Chapter 6: Out of Safety

Your son will overthrow a mighty king… He shall be a hero to his people… I tell you all this, Lady Salydia, because you will not witness it.

You will not witness it…

The prophecies had danced in Salydia's head ever since she had left Kiru's coffin in the chapel. There was only one king of Hyrule, and his heir was a daughter. Salydia's son would overthrow the kind and fair King of Hyrule.

And she couldn't let that happen.

Leaving had been a last resort, but she had deemed it a necessary one. Dressed in a simple brown gown and cloak, Salydia had slipped out past the palace guards with her child sleeping while in a sling about her.

Hyrule Market had been so teeming with people that the young widow had passed through without notice. Her brunette hair that usually hung in intricate designs about her head now lay in a simple braid down her back. It was an awkward feeling, Salydia decided. It was as if she was a fugitive.

"Oh, pardon me, Madam!" a young man exclaimed as he bumped into Salydia. "Where are you off to so late?"

Salydia looked away, trying to avoid eye-contact.

"To the draw-bridge," she whispered.

"But it's almost night!" the man protested. "There's Stalchildren out there. It's no place for a mother and a babe."

"I assure you, sir, I'll be fine," Salydia insisted, continuing past him with Link in her arms.

At the drawbridge, Salydia realized she had to hurry. The guard was already readying it to close, and she couldn't be left in Hyrule overnight. If she knew Zelda as well as she thought she did, then the queen would be searching for her as soon as she discovered her note. And if she were in the city, she would be found quite easily.

Pressing Link tightly against her, Salydia sped across the drawbridge, leaving the confused guards shouting after her.

"What are you doing?!? You'll be stuck with the Stalchildr—" The guards' protests were silenced by the closing of the drawbridge.

A long, lone howl of a wolf heralded the coming of night. With a sigh of relief, the mother collapsed on the ground. She had taken the first step of to being truly free. Free of all those horrible prophecies.

A drop of water splashed against Salydia's cheek, and another quickly followed. Soon the soft shaaaaa of the rain began to sound throughout Hyrule Field. The drizzle steadily became a storm, but Salydia didn't care. Rain was simply water, after all. And night was simply the dark. It couldn't hurt her in the least.

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk.

The strange sounds reached Salydia's ears as she lay on the grass with her baby son.

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk.

Goosebumps prickled Salydia's neck, and clutching her child close to her, she turned about slowly.

Salydia screamed.

The mother found herself face-to-face with two red eyes belonging to a living skeleton. There was no doubt.

It was a Stalchild.

Salydia found herself both transfixed and frightened at its glare. It shuffled over and, grinning, slapped her face with its bony hands.

Salydia could feel blood trickling down her mouth. I have to escape. Stumbling in the dark rain, Salydia managed to get up and dash off to the north.

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk.

The widow glanced behind her to see two more Stalchildren had joined the one that had slapped her earlier. With a short cry, she forced her legs to take her further. I can't slow down. I've got to protect Link. He's all I have left.

A flash of lightning revealed a ranch up ahead.

Salydia half ran, half crawled towards the building. To her despair, she saw that it had been closed off with two heavy wooden doors.

The mother threw herself against the door, causing the baby to cry loudly.

"Help!" she shouted. "Please, someone, help me! Give me sanctuary!"

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk.

"Please!" she sobbed, banging on the door with her fists. "Will no one help me?" The rain poured down harder, and Salydia leaned against the door in tears as the Stalchildren approached.

Salydia curled herself up into a ball, as it was all she could do to protect her little Link. The bony fists soon raked across Salydia's back, ripping her gown. More claws shredded at her thigh, breaking through the muscle as though it were paper. Her screams echoed through the night as blood began to stain her clothes. It was over. It was all over.

That is, until a cucco's cry was heard. And with the first ray of the dawn, the Stalchildren, the cursed spawn of night, vanished.