He briefly scanned around for a means of escape and found none. There were simply too many of the creatures. Blocking off streets, patrolling; there seemed to be a constant flow of them in and out of the green. Just under half of the buildings around the village green remained standing. A scant few had burnt, but not collapsed. The damage was worse in some areas. The region he had been defending appeared to be the least affected, but still ruins were dotted around from place to place. He forced his eyes away from a certain spot on the green. He was not prepared to deal with that yet.
His nemesis sat atop his horse, perhaps thirty yards away, a sardonic grin on his face. He dismounted lazily and beckoned over the large humanoid Link had seen earlier. They spoke briefly in quiet whispers. The thing chuckled, and yelled a quick order to two of the smaller creatures, who rushed off to do its bidding. They both walked slowly towards him. The man was still smiling, and there was a certain arrogance, a swagger, to the way he moved. He stopped mere feet away.
He was a much the same height as Link, and of similar build. Broad across the shoulders, he appeared to be delicately muscled; his body had the compact tone of an athlete and the same lithe grace. He wore loose-fitting clothes. His tunic was baggy on his frame, as were his trousers. A cloak hung back over his shoulders, reaching to his mid-thigh. He did not appear to be wearing any armour, though the air of confidence he projected implied he had no need of any. Link looked at the man's face for the first time, to cement into his mind the face of evil. He had a strong chin, and his pointed Hylian ears were pierced with purple and orange rings. His hair was much the same length and cut as Link's, coming down to his collar, and parting around his eyes, but was much darker. High cheekbones and a straight nose, as well as powerful eyebrows surrounded the most compelling eyes he'd ever seen; blue and piercing, they seemed to stare straight through him, and into him at the same time. The impression he gave off was that of a predator, hunting its prey, and passing judgement. He wore a short bladed sword hung on his waist, but did not appear to be otherwise armed. Perhaps he didn't need to be.
He began to slowly clap. The sound echoed strangely in the still night, bouncing off the empty shells of ruined buildings. It seemed to Link that, in that moment, he could hear nothing else; no blazes roaring in the distance, no sounds of struggle as the monsters fought with any sort of resistance. He couldn't even hear the dawn chorus of the local wildlife, just the slow clapping of the man in front of him. The echoes slowly faded as he clasped his hands together. Finally, he spoke.
"I must say, I'm a huge fan of your work." His voice had a strange edge to it, but his relaxed manner as he spoke seemed to almost imply boredom. "They fear you, you know? My minions wanted to leave. They told me the job was done. They didn't want to be caught by The Spirit of Kohlin. They think you're a ghost, come to steal them away from the night." He paused briefly, lost in thought for a moment. "I've never known them to be superstitious. I'm learning a lot today. You'll help me learn the thing I came here for, won't you?"
Link waited through the man's monologue, hoping to see if his enemy would truly let his guard down, or to find an opportunity for escape. Neither had appeared so far. If the man ever turned away briefly, he would occasionally turn his head to cast a sideways glance at him. The man knew Link was trapped. He knew he would try and escape. He wanted him to know that would not happen.
His smile broadened and he spread his hands, pointing them slightly towards Link.
"But, I can see why they think you're a ghost; you look terrible! I'm surprised you're even on your feet still." His smile slipped a little and then came back somehow darker. "Do they burn still? Can you feel the fires caressing your skin, playfully licking at you with tongues of searing pain, sharing their heat, savouring your agony? Those cuts must sting, all the more from that grime and soot. Don't get excited now, if you breathe too hard, those ribs of yours could make an awful mess out of your lungs!" He let out an insane cackle, his movements becoming manic, like he was letting out tightly restrained emotions. As he continued, his voice seemed to shift in pitch, becoming slightly higher. "I'm really not happy with what you did to those poor imps just then. It wasn't very polite. It makes me. So. Very. Cross. Maybe soon you'll feel my blade twisting through you. Will you scream? Oh, I hope so. Your screams will sing to me, a beautiful symphony of agony. Yes." He seemed to catch himself mid-thought, and regained some of his composure. "No, no. Judging by that scowl, you'll hold it in as long as possible. Oh, I just love that look of defiance. I was like you once, so full of hope, and joy. Cursed with the naïve belief that the entire world was full of good, I fought for righteous causes. Then I was taken, and I saw the truth. I can't wait to break you. I wonder what you'll see…"
Link shivered and took a step back in spite of himself. The man was not a conquering warlord like he had expected. He was something entirely more unnerving. The man was unhinged, and possibly the most dangerous person he would ever meet. Definitely the most dangerous man I'll ever meet, if I don't get out of here. He thought, somewhat sadly. The man seemed to stumble, then caught himself and raised a hand to his face. He stood there a moment, then straightened up, and ran his fingers through his hair. The gesture seemed somehow familiar to Link. He continued to speak, his voice somewhat calmer and more level now.
"It's glorious, isn't it?" He raised his hands, seeming to point to their immediate surroundings with his palms. "It reminds me of you, you know. This, and every other village that's been in my path. It had a soul. It was filled with life and hope. And now, it is dying. It burns, broken. A ruined shell, battered, worn, and empty on the inside. My forces have come upon it, torn down its innocent ideals, its illusion of safety, and they've crushed its soul. We pushed it right to the brink, so it could stare into the abyss, and see its end coming. It fell apart. The spirit of Kohlin? Don't make me laugh." His voice became louder, more assertive, with his vehemence. "Not one of them had any real spirit left to crush. Most didn't even fight. Some begged for surrender. Cowards all. You'll find them over there." He pointed to the space Link had avoided looking at too closely. The rows of bodies there made him quiver with rage. The image of them seemed to burn into his very soul. Men, women and worst of all, children, had been arranged neatly there. Their wounds were single thrusts or slashes. They had not died fighting; they had all been executed. He glared angrily at the man, tightening his grip on his sword, and shifting to an aggressive stance. The man smiled back.
"Heh, that put some fire back in you, didn't it? The spirit might actually be present in you, but it's not enough. Will to fight alone will never beat me. I could almost cheer for you. Against ludicrous odds, you fought on, but all for naught. Your actions have made no difference. You've killed a handful of my minions, perhaps a few dozen. I have hundreds. You've saved a few of your precious villagers. I've KILLED hundreds. You've caused me mild irritation at best, and saved some insignificant yokels. All it cost you is your life."
Link looked into those eyes, and saw that his enemy truly believed what he had said. He felt his resolve waver. And yet…the man seemed to expect something. He knew if he surrendered, he would die like the others; a nameless corpse in a row. If he died, his actions would mean nothing. He could not let this man get away with it. He would not let this man get away with it. He would avenge his friends, and his village, but first, he had to survive.
The voice from his dream returned to him unbidden.
Now is the hour…Rise, Hero!
He would fight, even if it cost him his life. He would fight, because it was the right thing to do.
He levelled his sword, and pointed the tip at his enemy. The man stared back, a look of mild surprise on his face for the first time.
"Very well then, Little Hero. I'll play."
The man seemed to leap the whole distance between them in one stride, and attacked at blinding speed. Link had not even seen him draw his weapon before he was forced on the defensive. He parried a vertical swing, blocked a strike from his right, and weaved back from a slice that threatened to take his head. He felt the rush of wind over the blade as it passed by his face. Every movement and twist sent a new pulse of agony up from his side, but he knew he had to bide his time. He might not get a second chance if he failed. A vicious overhead swing from his foe almost brought him to his knees, and his wild retaliation found only air as his enemy leapt back to gain some distance. Link was taken aback for a moment, when he saw his opponent's sword still in place in its sheath on his waist. In his hand he held a long, single edged blade, with a slight curve. He held it out to the side for a moment, and then it seemed to disappear.
Link panted heavily. The exchange, though it felt much longer, had lasted mere moments, and it had taken all of his scant training and skill to defend against the assault. He had not been able to launch a single attack of any value. His enemy was calm and composed and seemed to be thinking things over in his mind.
He rushed forwards again, and Link didn't even see the sword this time. He raised his own blade in the place he knew he would have to guard, and felt something hit his block. The sound of steel clashing rang out in the air, but he never saw his enemy's sword. Three more blows came at lightning speed, each pushing his reactions to the limit, each getting closer to tasting his flesh. He moved faster than he ever had before. His sword flicked aside an unseen thrust and crashed against a wide sweep. Somehow, he knew where the next strike would land. He knew the time had come. He had accepted he would die tonight. He attacked.
His sword swung down with all his emotions driving it: Fury, despair, pain, regret and grief. The world seemed to slow to a crawl as his sword descended, with grim inevitability, toward his opponent's chest. The man raised a hand in a futile attempt to stop the attack.
He caught the blade bare-handed.
Link had only a moment to stare in dismay, before he felt a lancing pain in his thigh as his foe's sword pierced him. He looked into his enemy's eyes, dumbfounded, and saw sadness there. What? How…
The sword disappeared and his leg collapsed underneath him. His blood felt warm as it ran out of the wound.
"I'm terribly sorry about that. For what it's worth, I enjoyed our game while it lasted. Do try not to die, Little Hero."
The large humanoid spoke for the first time. It had dark skin the colour of baked earth, and its face was more like a bear's than anything else.
"You done playing? Prisoner here." It seemed to have difficulty speaking around its muzzle, and the large teeth that took up much of its jaw.
"Ah, our guest of honour has finally arrived. It would be very ungracious of me to not greet him, now, wouldn't it?" The man said, as two of the small creatures dragged a man forwards from behind him, and pulled a black sack off his head. Link stared at the bloodied, battered and bruised face of the village elder. He slowly opened his eyes, which appeared unfocused and dazed. As he came to his senses, they settled on link, and let out a gasp.
"Link? No you must flee!"
The man whirled and stared at the elder, stunned.
"Wait, what did you say? His name is LINK?!"
For the first time, his guard was truly down. Pushing off with his one good leg, Link leapt forwards and into the air, yelling out in pain, swinging his sword down overhead.
Then man spun as his sword screamed down.
The Large humanoid caught his wrist in an iron grip as he landed, and the sword stopped inches away from the man's head. The man sighed and then leaned forwards to speak to him, almost in a whisper
"Don't do that again, Son. I'd hate to have to kill you, given our history."
Link's mind reeled as his sword fell from numb fingers, the strange familiarity and recognition starting to make sense. It can't be. It isn't possible. It can't be him. The creature shoved him bodily to the floor. He could no longer feel his leg. He caught sight of the pool of blood he had left already, and felt a chill run down his spine. If he didn't get tended to soon, he could easily bleed to death out here on the green.
"Brox, old friend, you should know by now something like that wouldn't have even phased me. Next time let them hit. I do love to see their faces after something like that."
"To take risks is crazy." The creature, Brox, replied.
"Yes, it is. That's why I enjoy it so much." He whirled to face the elder. "Now then, I gather you two know each other, so we can skip all the tedious introductions, yes? I'm very bored of being here, and I've a reputation of being somewhat erratic, so let's just hurry up and get to the point before I decide to torture the poor boy in front of you. I might do that, anyway, if it takes you too long. When we last spoke, I asked you a question. I want my answer. Where is it?"
The elder looked at Link and sighed sadly.
"It's in the swamp, off to the west. A week's travel, at best." He said in a shaky, weak voice. "Whatever you're intending to do though, it won't work, you have no idea what you're getting into, going there."
If he had anything more to say, they would never know. The man waved a dismissive hand towards the elder, who toppled backwards as his head parted from his body.
"Thank you, old boy. You've been most helpful."
Link could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears. He felt like he should be seeing red, but he could not separate the fury and fear within him. They had killed a defenceless old man who had helped them. It was unforgivable. He was next. It was inevitable.
"Want this one killed too?" Brox said, kicking him not too gently in his already injured side.
"Why on earth would I want that?
"Knows where we go next, could follow."
"Yes, but I want him to do that. I would have let the old man live otherwise. There's nothing like a bit of good old fashioned revenge and hatred to keep someone going. If he doesn't have a reason to keep going, he could just lie down and die here. That would be no good."
"He could come kill you one day. Come kill now, he stay dead."
"If I kill him now, no-one will oppose me in the future. Where's the fun in that? If by some miracle he does manage to kill me, who's to say it won't further my plans anyway? It could be that my death is all that's needed to complete my objective in some obscure way. The best part is, even knowing all of this, he'll still follow. It's what idiot heroes do. Trust me, old friend, I used to be one."
"You're insane." Brox replied, almost seeming to laugh.
"Oh, quite completely, I'm afraid." He grinned wickedly back, then inhaled deeply "Gather everyone up, we're done here. I have one last little bit of business with our friend here, and then we can leave. We got what we came for."
A deep, rattling horn sounded somewhere nearby. As he stepped over to where Link was lying, and, almost tenderly, rolled him onto his back to look into his eyes.
"You will follow, won't you?" His vision was getting blurry. It was hard to concentrate, too. He stared into those eyes, and saw the features which now seemed so familiar to him, like they had met before a long time ago. He did not want to believe it. The man walked away as Link's eyes slid shut. He heard the sound of a large group leaving. There was no cheering amongst them. They had suffered losses tonight, probably greater than in any other place they had attacked so far. Link felt coldness seep into his body, as his strength left him.
Father…is that really you?