The Legend of a Thief: Ocarina of Time
Chapter 9
I was running along the dirt path next to the grassy hill. The castle's dirt road was a long path that eventually led to the drawbridge and into the castle. There was a huge green grassy field that stood right in the middle of the property and, instead of going through it, the path led around it and eventually to the entrance of the castle. I didn't understand why the path went around the grass instead of through it. Maybe they wanted to preserve the field's natural beauty, but, either way, I wasn't one to complain.
The gate where the guard stopped me originally was heavily protected, but there was a way to get past him and, once you did, it was a free go for awhile. The guards protecting the gate never did expect anyone to use the vines to climb over them and continue onto the path. The other guards positioned around the area don't look there either for exactly that reason.
Why would they expect someone to do what I was doing?
That was exactly why I did it. One of the basic rules any thief worth his salt would follow, was simple: be unpredictable. If the enemy could predict what you were going to do, then you already lost.
Now that I was past the gate, I continued to run along the grassy hill. I clung to the grass for two reasons. Number one was that my tunic was green and would be harder to spot in a green area. Of course, I didn't assume that was perfect camouflage, but the time of day I was pulling this off during helped my case. It was barely turning into morning and the night shift guards were going to soon be relieved. Due to their all night duty, they would be drowsy at this point in time and not very alert. That was the only reason my camouflage would work.
The second reason, was that it would make it simpler to transition into the next phase of my plan. My next move consisted of, simply put, running across the grassy field. I could only run so far on the dirt path until I ran into a group of guards.
Knowing about that problem ahead of time left me with only one option: running across the field.
Some of the same rules applied for the run across the grassy field, as did for my run on the dirt path. My imperfect camouflage would still provide me minor protection from detection in the area. The thing that I really had to rely on though, was speed. Unlike some of the other areas, the guards actually did scan the field for intruders. The time left between each scan was short, so speed was essential.
I was reaching the turning point and I immediately looked for the bushes, which would keep me from being seen by the two immediate guards. They were right where I expected them to be and, as soon as I was close enough, I jumped right next to them and out of sight.
I could now hear the two guards engaged in conversation. I listened in for a second before concluding that what they were saying wasn't important. All it heard was some lame talk about their personal lives. Who cared about that?
I tried to peek at where they were facing, so that I could get a clue on where to go, but I couldn't get a good enough look without endangering my position. Seeing my predicament, my fairy flew high up. She was high enough that no one would notice her, but if I looked up I could read any signal she tried to give me.
I sat there looking at her for awhile, but she soon gave the signal and I made broke out into a sprint across the field. I was in good physical shape and that was definitely useful here. The field whizzed past me quickly as I kept an eye on the guards.
Soon I reached the stone wall that, according to my fairy, I could definitely scale. I guess we'd find out now. I was out of the guard's way, so I knew I could relax on this part of the crime. I quickly found my footing on the wall and began my trek up. I was soon on the top, where I could finally see the castle up close.
My entire journey through the field had finally led me to this area and I was ecstatic. Once the outside was clear, half the journey would be complete. Half way to the princess. It was an intoxicating thought. Once I saw her, I would be able to continue my journey and gather more power. Waiting time was almost over.
I neared the edge of the cliff I was on and peered down. There was another dirt pathway, but that wasn't the thing I was interested in. I was interested in the body of water right next to the dirt pathway. Malon called it a moat and I figured that was an okay name. I didn't understand why they would call it that, but when I asked Malon about it she just shrugged.
I looked back and, once again, my excitement climbed. I couldn't believe I just outsmarted all those stupid guards! This was nothing like any of the other exploits I had done in the Kokiri Village. This was just great! Finally! This was a challenge I could truly enjoy. I was basking in the glory of my own ingenious plan, which my fairy and I came up with. Just thinking about it made my adrenaline run.
Flashback
"Can you explain why we're back at the castle?" My fairy was flying around in impatient patterns and just looking at her made me want to delay answering, if only to annoy her. "I mean, if you're not going in now, what's the point?"
I continued to set up my workstation. I placed my drawing utensils neatly along the ground right in front of the area of the castle. Once I had them organized in a way that suited me, I began to place myself into a comfortable position. I was now lying down on my belly facing my own art instruments. I lifted up the pen and began to draw.
"Well, you see, Navi, an important part of the thieving process is to know the environment from which you're stealing from. You need to know everything the enemy knows. Or, at least enough to keep you one step ahead of the opponent. If you don't, the mission will end up being a big fat failure." I said every one of those words while continuing to move the tip of the pen along the paper, making something that resembled the outside of the castle and its surrounding area.
"I guess that's sensible." She began to take a look at my drawing. "Link, that looks nothing like what's right in front of you! Everything is out of proportion! That tree is almost a fourth the size of the castle! If you're going to draw it, at least do it right!"
"Look, it doesn't have to be completely accurate! As long as it gives you the gist of where everything is, it doesn't matter!" I sighed. Why did she have to be such a perfectionist? And what in the world gave her the idea I could draw?! I'm only twelve for goddess's sake! Sure I was a pretty well accomplished thief, but that didn't mean I could draw. Being a thief was much easier anyway.
"Sure, whatever." I nodded, glad she didn't continue to pursue the drawing issue. She probably came to the conclusion it was pointless anyway. Now that I could concentrate on the drawing, I had it finished in no time. "So, now that you have that done, now what?" I got up from my laid position and crossed my arms while looking at the castle.
"We're going to have to get a look at the inside to complete the reconnaissance." Instead of bursting out and questioning everything I said, she just floated there, while giving me a suspicious look no doubt.
"I'm pretty sure you have a logical approach to this, but may I ask how you plan on going inside, to get a look on the inside, so that you can draw the inside, so that you can break into the inside?"
I chuckled.
"It's not like that. I'm not going inside. You are. In my current state, I probably couldn't even get in. You're a fairy though. You're much smaller than I am. You're faster and you can fly. If you're careful, you should be able to get in and out of the castle just fine. You'll note how many floors it has, where every room is, every entrance and exit a room has, and everything in each room. Well, everything important anyway." I let her take all this in, before saying, "What do you think? You up for it?
She heaved a heavy sigh, before declaring, "So you want me to do all that, without getting caught? Sounds like fun."
I grinned from ear to ear.
"Well, since you're such a top-notch fairy, I figured that this would be an appropriate test of your skills. I mean, if you can't do this then what makes you think you can keep up with me for the rest of our journey?"
Her life force glow flickered in an almost indignant way. "Are you challenging me?" Her voice was a bit dark, but I knew it was just an act. I'd known her long enough to know when she was playing around with me.
While maintaining my goofy grin, I said, "Only if you're up to it."
"Of course I'm up for it! You want me to go now?"
I nodded. "Yeah, the sooner we get this done the better." She began to fly off, but, just before she got too far, she turned.
"I still think you should consider my idea. I mean, is it really that bad?"
I cringed.
"We are not hiding in one of Talon's delivery crates and being delivered to the castle! There are so many things wrong with that plan! It's not even funny! Don't mention it again!"
She made a shrugging motion. "I still think it would be easier."
I rolled my eyes.
"Just go!"
End of Flashback
I jumped off the cliff, landed in a roll on the dirt road, and continued that roll into the moat. I hit the water and I was once again reminded of why I hated water. It was so wet! Even though my landing wasn't as bad as the one I had in the Deku Tree, it was definitely colder. I flailed my arms around and fought my back to the surface.
As soon as I was able to breathe, I opened my eyes and surveyed the area. The moat's current was pushing me to the right, just as I expected it to. It wasn't strong, but it was strong enough to make the ride quick enough. I soon reached a small hill that allowed me to barely be able reach my hands onto ground-level soil. I slowly pulled myself up and over onto the ground. I paused to catch my breath, before turning my head to see if everything would be exactly where it should be.
I smiled as I saw everything in position. Talon delivered milk to the castle every two weeks and, as I learned from Malon, he always left his deliveries right here. And, as I learned from my fairy, the castle servants usually attended to it the afternoon after he delivers it. I didn't know if they waited so long because they were extremely busy or something, but it didn't matter. All I cared about was that I could use that particular habit to complete my theft.
My smile didn't last long though, As soon as I noticed everything was in position, my eyes began to take in the whole picture. Unfortunately, that included Talon sleeping exactly where I needed to move the crates. I don't understand how such an unexpected event could happen, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that it happened, and now I had to deal with it. I rolled my eyes in annoyance.
Just what I needed.
Oh well, I'd found him. Malon would be happy. He was in an inconvenient location, but he was found nonetheless. I walked up to him slowly, so that I wouldn't wake him, and, once I reached him, I bent down to get a good look. Drool was dripping off his lips and I could tell he was cold just by looking at him. I wrinkled my nose in disgust. He didn't smell the best right now either.
"So, how do you think we should move him?" I asked.
My fairy flew up to be eye level with me. "Well, we definitely can't just wake him up."
I nodded my head, agreeing. "Yeah. If we did that, then that would just blow our whole operation."
"So, what we need to do is wake him up so that he can move, without ever alerting him of our presence. Any ideas?"
I raised an eyebrow.
"Isn't that what I asked you?" When she didn't say anything, I continued, "Well, do you see any rocks?"
"So...you want to hit him with a rock? That's simple, yet effective."
"Do you see any or not?" I shook my head. It's simple, yes, but we didn't have time to come up with anything more elaborate. She should understand that.
"Yeah, I see one that should work. It's over there." She flew over to it and I followed her, picking up the rock as soon as we reached it. The rock was big enough to cause some pain, but small enough so that it could be easily thrown from a distance and not cause a lot of pain. I gripped it tightly.
"Good eye, Navi." With that taken care of, I ran behind one of the crates with my fairy in tow. I positioned myself carefully so that I could see Talon perfectly. I took aim with the rock and threw it with enough force that I thought would wake him. The rock flew true to its course and nailed Talon straight on the head.
As expected, he immediately jumped up and yelled, "What in tarnation! Can't a person get a little shut ey-?" He paused and began to notice his surroundings. "How di- I must ha- Malon!" As soon as he screamed that he began to take off. "If I don't get back soon Malon's gonna have my head!"
Him running away was so comical. Who could've ever guessed that a little girl could inspire such fear in a grown man? It sort of fascinated me, but I shook those thoughts from my head. Now wasn't the time.
I began to push the crates to the edge of the ground, near the moat. Connected to the castle was a passageway where the water circulated between the moat and the castle's inner gardens. Zelda always had her breakfast in the garden, alone. It was all set up so perfectly, it was almost as if they wanted me to break in.
If I could get the crate into the right position, then I would be able to use it as leverage to jump into the passageway. The crate was in position, as was I. Taking in a deep breath, I ran to the edge of the crate and jumped.
My body hit the castle wall hard, but, luckily, my hand was able to catch just enough of the edge to keep myself from falling into the uninviting water. I pulled myself up onto the castle surface. I took a second to calm myself down before continuing on into the passageway that, for some reason, reminded me strangely of the type of tunnels I crawled in inside the Deku Tree.
Now that I was inside the castle, I found myself standing inside a pond of some sort. There was a bit of grass here and there, but the path leading to where the princess breakfasted was clearly defined be concrete floors. There wasn't a guard in sight either, just as my fairy said.
I smiled.
Nice.
I walked along the path carefully. I had memorized every guard's position, but it wouldn't kill me to take extra precautions. As I walked along the path I managed to sidestep every guard that ever crossed my path. Not a single one noticed me. My fairy and I planned this part of the exploit so perfectly it made me want to make a mistake on purpose, just to make things harder.
Flashback
"So, is that about right?" My fairy bobbed up and down the multiple papers that were supposed to represent the interior of the castle. While I waited I plopped myself onto my own bed. After my fairy got back from the inside, we had agreed that it would be better to put all the info together in our room. It was a very fancy room that was organized in much the same way my hotel room had been. The only huge difference was the difference in quality. The bed was way softer here, for one.
After much inspection, she said, "Well, I'd say it looks a lot better than the exterior. Probably good enough by your standards. So, that completes the maps, right?"
I shook my head.
"Nope. There is just one more detail that needs to be added."
"Like what?"
"Well, what we just did was the reconnaissance mission. There is still one more step before I can fully plan this."
My fairy shifted around in the air uncomfortably. "And that is?"
"Surveillance. We need to know how their surveillance system works by enacting our own. What I need now are guard patterns. How many of them are there? Where are they positioned? Do their positions change? If so, how? When do their shifts end? When do they begin? Also, how attentive are the guards? I'll need that kind of information if we plan to pull this off."
My fairy sighed.
"This job probably goes to me, doesn't it?"
I shrugged. "You are best suited."
She groaned. "I don't want to go inside again. It's such a weird place!" She took in a deep breath to calm herself down. "How long should this take?"
"This process will probably take several days. There's no way we can gather all that information in a day."
She heaved another sigh.
"This is annoying." Then, she gave me a stern look. "And what are you going to be doing throughout all this?"
I tensed in my shoulders. "Umm...well, since I don't really have anything to do, I'll be hanging out with Malon. She already invited me to play some games over in the castle market tomorrow."
"Ugh, I should have known. Link, I'm glad that you found another female companion to fill in the gap when you lost Saria, but we have an important duty to fulfill. I can't allow you to be distracted."
"It's not like that! She isn't distracting me! Besides, there's no way that the only reason I want to spend time with her is because of Saria! Saria was a good friend to me, and it did hurt when I left, but there's no way I would confuse feelings like that!"
"I hope you're right. Both girls deserve better than that." We stopped for a while. I didn't want to say anything. Could it be possible that I was mixing up my feelings between the two girls?
No.
It wasn't possible.
Saria was my best friend back at the village – the only one to ever acknowledge me, besides Jeb. She raised me and took care of me for most of my life. She was the most nurturing person I had ever met.
Malon, on the other hand, was a girl I had met only recently. Right off the bat, she was the first one to catch me in the middle of my theft. She could keep up with my wit in conversation and she could easily infuriate me. I found her to be a fascination. Something about her was different than any girl I had ever met. I was curious; curious about her past, how she became the way she was, who her mother was, and more importantly, what it felt like to have parents that actually cared about you. I was curious, that was all.
The feelings I had for both girls were entirely different.
"So, when do we start?" asked my fairy.
End of Flashback
I was running now. I cursed as I ran. The guard completed his round fifteen seconds before planned.
Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!
I turned the corner quickly, without much thought of what could have been in front of me. I rounded a few more corners, keeping on the path that led to the princess. I stopped and began to listen for any sign of being followed. When none were heard, I let go a sigh of relief.
That was way too close.
I looked to the left and, finally, I could see what I came for. A girl was standing in the gardens with her back to me, looking out a window. She was wearing a long dress that was white with mild shades of purple on it. I couldn't tell much because of the distance, but I could tell that she was upper-class, a term I learned from Malon. Apparently there was a lower class, a middle class, and an upper-class.
I shook my head.
Now wasn't the time.
The room was very round and in the middle was a field of yellow flowers. Surrounding it all was a beautiful pond of water. I took a quick look at my reflection in the water. Once I made sure I looked as good as possible, I began to walk toward her. After all, if I was going to be visiting royalty, it was probably courteous to look nice.
