Chapter 6: The Mysterious Warrior

Link woke up the next morning with the strange events of the previous night running though his head. He wasn't even sure that any of it had actually happened, a suspicion that was reinforced by the fact that there was no trace of the dark figure from the strange incident. He decided that it must not have actually happened and began to set out for the village. He and Epona had started to cross the rock bridge when a voice called out from behind them.

"Where do you think you're going?" it inquired. Link turned around to face the person he had met the previous night. His guess from before had been close, as the mysterious figure looked to be a boy no older than thirteen. The boy's garments were very familiar to link, as he was wearing light leather armor with bandages wrapped around his ankles, forearms, and head. Over the armor he wore a grey tunic with a high collar that covered his lower face. The armor was unadorned, but the tunic had the emblem of an eye shedding a single tear.

"Zelda?" Link wondered aloud in surprise.

"Zelda? Who the hell is 'Zelda?'" the boy responded with a trace of indignity. "My name is Kitsu. I'm a boy."

"Sorry, you just reminded me of somebody I haven't seen in a long time," Link apologized. "I didn't mean to offend you, Kitsu"

"I must admit, I'm still quite a bit offended, but I'm starting to think that you do this to everybody." Kitsu stated. "Does this 'Zelda' person know that you can't tell the difference between her and a boy?"

"It's a long story," Link explained. "I'm very sorry."

"So you said already," Kitsu replied emotionlessly. He looked up at the sun, which had already risen well above the horizon. "As much as I enjoy standing around and having complete strangers tell me that I look like a girl, we should probably get going. It's about a half day's walk from here to the village, and we wouldn't want them to miss out on the opportunity for you to insult them too." Without saying another word, he turned and began to walk away briskly. Realizing that the villagers might not trust him if he didn't arrive with Kitsu, Link followed along closely.

They remained silent for most of the journey. Kitsu, possibly still offended by Link's earlier mistake, showed no desire to talk to Link. Link tried several times to start a conversation, but was met each time by either short, simple answers or, more frequently, complete silence. While he would have liked to know more about the mysterious youth, Link realized that his chances of finding anything out at this point were slim to none. Around noon, the boy began to give Link commands about what to do when they approached the village.

"When we get near the village, stay where I tell you," Link was told. "You'll have to stand out of arrow range of the village, but stay out in the open where they will be able to see you. I'll gather the town elders and request that they allow you to enter the village. Once you do, you'll still be watched carefully until we are sure you can be trusted." Without another word Kitsu turned around and began to resume the journey to the village. As promised, Link stayed in the spot indicated to him when they arrived, and as the sun was setting Kitsu returned with the decision of the elders.

"Welcome to Duun Sedoro," Kitsu said emotionlessly. "The last remaining stronghold held by the Guardians of Kiasha."