Omg, I just saw the Bourne Legacy yesterday, and it was awesome! Driving home, I had to resist the urge to drive like a maniac because the movie was just so exciting! Anyway, on with the story. Hope you enjoy!


Chapter VIII

In which the protagonists make a decision...

The mountain rang with the sounds of weapons and armor being forged. Hana found herself having to fight the urge to cover her ears to protect them from the constant, rhythmic beating of metal on metal.

"What a healthy sound, don't you think?" Darunia said happily as they walked up the city's paths towards the top. His voice, while low, still rumbled over the loud din and the others had no difficulty in hearing him.

"It's a bit loud," Tak shouted.

Darunia laughed. "Back when I was younger, and my father was still chief, this mountain shook from our forges every night! It is like a lullaby to me."

Hana smiled at the thought, but then quickly winced as they passed the room that held the forges. They climbed up another level and then stopped in front of a dark passageway.

"Here we go, this secret tunnel will lead you back to the forest. You wanted to talk to Saria right?"

"Yes, thank you," Hana said.

"Wait just a minute now!" Tak shouted. "There was a secret tunnel connecting the forest and this city the whole time!? Why didn't Saria just send us through here?"

Darunia shrugged. "Maybe she doesn't know about it? Oh, no wait! We had to seal it again after Link opened it. See, some of the little people wandered in here, and they don't like places with no trees or plants. They get sick without them. So we had to block it with these rocks there." Darunia pointed to some large boulders. He took a few steps forward and with a few powerful punches crumbled the rocks as if they bread. "There you go!"

"Wow," Tak said, his jaw agape. "You guys are going to be some army!"

"Come on, Tak, we need to tell Saria the good news!"

"We will keep the tunnel open from now on for you, Hylians!" Darunia shouted after them as they raced through the passage.

The tunnel wasn't very well lit, and so the two had to stumble around blindly for most of the time they were in it. Soon the ground under them began to tilt so that they were marching downwards at such a fast rate that they nearly ended up slipping and sliding down several times. By the time the ground leveled off, the exit was in clear view. Light poured from the forest, and the distant sounds of birds could be heard.

Saria was waiting for them with a smile on her face. "I thought they would open the tunnel for you."

"We've got good news," Tak announced. "The Gorons have agreed to help Zelda out!"

"Good news indeed. The world is in sore need of it, but unfortunately we can't reveal this to it just yet. Should Ganondorf hear of the Goron's resistance before they are ready, he will crush them."

Hana nodded in agreement. "Darunia said it would take a few years before they have enough armor and weapons for everyone. They need to sneak around Ganondorf's forces, so they're working with limited supplies. But, he also said that they don't really need the weapons, so if Zelda needs them earlier then they'll be ready."

"I feel that Zelda will need the time herself. Planning a rebellion is not an easy task. I will get the news to Zelda, thank you for your help."

"What should we do next?" Tak asked, eager for another mission.

Saria shrugged. "You should probably return home. You have done quite a bit, as I am sure Zelda would say."

Hana and Tak's faces fell. "There has to be something else we can do!" Hana argued. "Zelda needs all the help she can get."

Saria tilted her head at them curiously. "Have you ever heard the tales of the Hylian Knights?" She seemed surprised when they shook their heads. "The Great Deku Tree used to tell me their story, and you remind me very much of them."

"They sound awesome," Tak said. "Where are they?"

"Long gone now. According to the Great Deku Tree, the Hylian Knights used to live in a great city in the sky; they would ride magnificent birds that were able to fly from one end of Hyrule to the other in less than a day. It was they who first discovered these great lands, and it was they who forged Hyrule."

"So what happened to them?" Hana asked curiously while Tak silently scoffed over the idea of riding birds.

"Lack of a need for them sent them to their end. Eventually, Hyrule was in a state of peace for so long, that the Knights disbanded. Those remaining few, the last of the Knights, lived in Hyrule until they died of old age, and then there were no more."

Silence took over for a moment, even the birds stilled; it was as if the whole forest was in a silent salute to the fallen warriors.

Saria took a breath and broke the silence. "I feel that there is no greater need for the return of the Hylian Knights than now." She looked at the two with solemn eyes. "But who would dare to openly oppose Ganondorf? Who would dare take up the title of knight, the title of defender of the royal family and Hyrule, now?" After that, Saria left, barely making a sound as she disappeared into the forest.

"Knights of Hyrule," Hana breathed out. "Sounds impressive."

"Hana, we could do that!" Tak said excitedly.

"Are you insane? We aren't knights! We don't even know how to really fight!"

"But you heard Saria, who else is going to do it? Everyone else is too afraid of him, but we took on a whole patrol just to get Zelda, and you pretty much renounced Ganondorf right then and there!"

"But-"

"And, someone needs to do it. I mean, the army's dead, most of the guards are dead, so if not us then who?"

"Ok, look, even if we were to do this, who would be in charge? You would need a captain, and no one would take us seriously. Zelda's right, we just need to lay low and wait for Link to get back. Then we'll have the Goron's army, and Impa, and everyone will know what to do."

"Hana." Tak's voice was suddenly quite serious, and Hana quickly stopped rambling. "Hana, I met Link."

"What?"

"I met him. He was kinda tall, blond hair, blue eyes, silly green hat and tunic, right?"

Hana nodded dumbly. "Why didn't you say you saw him?! All this time I was wondering if he was even alive!"

"Well, I mean, it was before you came to the village, before the siege of the castle. He came by, gave me this awesome mask."

"I thought you said your dad gave you a mask."

"Well..." suddenly Tak looked incredibly guilty. "He did. But that was after Link gave me the other one, and back then I thought Link's was way cooler; I mean, it was this really spooky looking thing, and Dad's was just... a stupid fox. That's what I told him, too. On my birthday. It was pretty much the last thing I said to him before he got called to Hyrule Castle Town."

Hana could see Tak was struggling to hold back tears; she knew she should probably say something, but she had no idea what. "You were just a kid," she blurted out finally.

Tak scowled. "I'm tired of that excuse. My dad died thinking I hated him, and it's not fair!" He shouted his last few words, startling a flock of birds from the trees.

Hana's shoulders slumped. "You're right. It's not fair. Ganondorf took so much from us." She met his eyes. "Let's do it."

"Do what?"

"Become the Knights of Hyrule."


Thanks for reading!