The Legend of Zelda: TriSpirit, Episode 2: The Day of Duty
Chapter 2
Guard Duty
The sun high in the sky above the iconic Hyrule Castle, Link stands watch in the outer grounds below positioned alongside Bruce and Sven for guard duty. The three young recruits are all garbed in green tunics.
But only Link has a green hat to match.
The other recruits eye it with both curiosity and contempt. "Dude," says Bruce indignantly. "What's with the hat?"
"Yeah, none of us got one!" says Sven with an infantile pout. "What makes you so special?! ...It's 'cause you're friends with the princess, isn't it?!"
"My grandmother just happened to have it lying around and liked how it matched the color of my uniform," Link explains. "So she insisted that I wear it... That's all. _And for the last time; I don't have any personal relationship with the princess..."
Gossip about his accidental encounter with Princess Zelda still has not died down. And Link has been feeling quite fed up with the way everyone has been constantly throwing it in his face at every chance they get. There has not been a day since without someone bringing it up and prompting him to have to verify all over again that the event was nothing significant. Since then, he has found himself being repeatedly accused all week of 'flirting' with the princess, of thinking himself to be 'better' than everyone else, and of 'disrespecting' his fellow trainees with his 'condescending attitude'.
There is not a word of truth behind any of these claims, of course. It is all just Volker and the others saying these things about him and spreading rumors. But Link has found himself getting an increasingly worse reputation around town because of it. Needless to say; this past week has been quite tiresome for him.
"But you're the only one of us she's ever gone out of her way to talk to!" argues Sven to Link, still holding him to the accusation.
"Only because I accidentally almost killed her!" Link reminds, slightly vexed. "That hardly qualifies us as acquaintances..."
"Man," says Bruce. "If the princess talked to me, I'd be tellin' the whole town about it! What's wrong with you, dude?! You sure you ain't hidin' something..?!"
"Well, whatever" scoff Sven. "But can't you at least introduce us to the princess too? We'll pay you! ...Maybe."
"How am I supposed to do that..?" Link asks. "I'm no more acquainted with her than the rest of you are..."
Link cannot understand at all why they would think him capable of introducing them. What do they expect him to say?
'Yo, Princess! Remember me?! I'm that random guy who almost accidentally killed you during a training mishap just last week! I'm aware that you don't even know my name or anything, but I still think we're pretty close, and so I'd like to introduce you to a few of my peers whom I barely know myself!'
_Doing something as stupid as that would surely just prompt the king to employ some full-time bodyguards to always accompany the princess during her strolls and keep her from having to be approached like that again.
As the conversation goes on, Volker happens by. Unlike Link and the others, his recruit's uniform is complete with a red tunic rather than a green one. Being the son of Sir Pent and top-student has granted him special privileges in the ranks, making him the only novice swordsman to receive the honor of being an elite recruit for today.
He, too, takes notice of Link's hat and decides to get on his case about it;
"What's with the hat, Link?!" asks Volker scornfully "You thinking you're too special that just a regular recruit's tunic wasn't enough for you?! You had to go and add something more so that you'll stand out from your fellow recruits?! Ain't that just typical of you! You've been way over your head ever since Princess Zelda spoke to you!"
Unbelievable! Link was only just starting to get Bruce and Sven off his back about this...and now Volker comes along and starts it up all over again!
Unfortunately, Volker is far more viciously temperamental than the others. One wrong word and Link will surely take a beating from him...
"N-n-no..!" says Link frantically. "It was my grandmother's idea to wear this! She had it lying around and liked the way it's color matched my uniform..!"
"You can say that all you want but you're not fooling me!" scoffs Volker. "I know what you're really up to; you're just trying to make yourself stand out so the princess will notice you again! You sure are desperate, ain't ya!"
"Of course not!" protests Link, growing rather annoyed by the constant accusation. "Why do you keep accusing me of this..?!"
"Don't play innocent with me!" scolds Volker. "Just you wait till the tournament this afternoon; then I'll put you in your place for everyone to see! _Including the princess!"
"But...I'm not participating in the tournament," informs Link. "I'll be on duty when it's going on..."
Volker seems amused at this. "What_ You mean you chickened out and didn't even register for the big swordsman event today?!" he says with a condescending laugh. "Ha ha! That's just pathetic! I guess that just goes to prove how right I always was in saying that you're not fit to call yourself a swordsman! I guess it's like they say; the apple doesn't fall far from the tree! You're just as wimpy as your old man was!"
"My dad was not a wimp!" protests Link in an irked tone, surprising even himself with his sudden boldness. "But...as for why I didn't enter the tournament..." he continues, finding himself quickly sinking back into his typical fear and weakness as he speaks, unsure why he is even continuing; "Well_ I'm just...not ready for that sort of thing..."
"Well at least you got that right!" Volker taunts. "But in your case, you'll never be ready! You're a million years from being ready to even have a sword of your own!"
"I have a sword..." Link utters.
"Oh really..?" mocks Volker. "Then why didn't you bring it? All I see is that junk baby's toy on your back!"
Owch! Now he is getting hurtful...
Bruce and Sven laugh. They find this amusing.
"Don't call it that..." says Link sternly. "This was my father's sword."
"Oh! So this thing is that 'sword' you were talking about?" Volker continues to mock as he seizes Link by the arm and intrusively grabs hold of the latter's sword, drawing it from its scabbard on his back.
Link tries to protest but is quickly and effortlessly shoved back by Volker's superior strength.
"Ha! I would've thought it was a backscratcher!" taunts Volker as he examines Link's sword. "But it's true what they say about a warrior only being as good as his weapon; a garbage weapon for a garbage swordsman!" He then tosses it into the dirt as Bruce and Sven continue to laugh on.
Link says nothing but gives Volker a vexed glare. What does he find so amusing about causing pointless misery like this?
As the young farmboy goes to retrieve his sword, he is tripped by Volker. He crashes on the ground, just out of reach of his blade.
*Thud!*
He attempts to get up and reach for it, but Volker pins him to the ground with his foot and thrusts his own blade in front of Link's face. "Now this is what a real sword looks like!" Volker taunts.
His blade is significantly longer than Link's and much more polished: nearly as reflective as a mirror. It is made of a strong and sturdy metal and ornamented with a priceless ruby that likely holds magical properties.
"Take a good look, wannabe," Volker continues to gloat; "Pretty impressive, yeah? This sword is just as powerful as my dad's...and a million times better than that puny backscratcher of yours! And it's not just for show either; when I charge this sword with force-energy, it's blade becomes as hot as fire and strong enough to cut through a Dodongo's hide! _But I won't need to charge it with energy at all to cut up that stupid hat of yours into a million pieces!"
Upon saying this, Volker kicks Link's hat off his head and into the dirt in front of him. He holds his sword above it for Link to watch him run the hat through.
"Please, don't..!" pleads Link frantically. "My mother made that hat herself for my father..!" Although he may have felt reluctant to wear it, the hat still holds sentimental value to him.
Hearing this only seems to get Volker all the more interested in destroying it before Link's eyes. "Oh, so it's a mommy's gift, eh?" mocks he. "Ain't that just so sweet... To be still be so attached to your parents at your age like this... Looks like you're even wimpier than I thought! Oh, what a shame you're not participating in the tournament today_a hilarious show like this ought to be in front of a crowd! I'll bet even Princess Zelda would get a big laugh at seeing how unmanly you really are as you cry at the drop of a hat! If only she could see you right now..."
Bruce clears his throat and points; "Hey, speaking of the princess... There she is..!"
Volker quickly turns around in horror. His eyes have widened to the size of golf balls. "Wait_ WHAT..?!"
Indeed, Princess Zelda is walking out into the courtyards.
_Walking right this way!
Thanks for reading! Now Link and his peers are about to encounter Round 2 with Princess Zelda... The awkwardness is about to heat up once again!
Now for those who've read the original edition: the only significant change made here is that Volker now shows off his magical sword that can be imbued with the power of fire. Other than that, the chapter still plays out the same as before. Likewise, the next chapter won't be much different either, though it does have just a little bit more comedy this time.
