Chapter 10

Something didn't feel right. The insistent sensation throbbed at the base of Princess Zelda's spine. Anticipation or dread, she couldn't tell which. Something was coming.

Or someone.

She was in her chambers - as usual - and Ralis was standing on the opposite side of the room, his chest heaving as he seethed. He couldn't even look at her. A glass table stood between them. Zelda had taken a fancy to it and had bought it on a whim.

"You killed them," Ralis spat. "You killed my friends."

"You let them into my room," Zelda countered. "How am I supposed to feel safe in my own castle when my husband does a thing like that...?"

An incredulous look crossed the prince's face. Now he did turn to face her. "How are you supposed to feel safe?! How is anyone supposed to feel safe when you can blast them into oblivion at a moment's notice?"

"They shouldn't have threatened me."

Ralis clenched and unclenched his fists. Zelda didn't flinch - favouring him with a cool stare instead.

"I'm going back home," the prince said at last. "My mother will hear of this."

"Go, then."

She was done with his company, appearances be damned. Ralis glared at her one last time, then stormed out of the room. The door slammed shut behind him, setting the frame into a shiver.

And good riddance.

Yet still Zelda couldn't shake this feeling that she was on the verge of discovering something very important. She glanced out her window. All she saw were green hills kissed by the sun's light.

Zelda shook her head and turned away.

Link curled his finger around the trigger of the crossbow. He was laying flat on the grass on a hill that overlooked Hyrule Castle. The gentle breeze played with his hair, the crushed grass beneath poked through his clothes. His dark green attire blended into the undergrowth.

Now he understood what Captain Rusl had said about trying to find the balance between calm and alertness. Feelings churned within him - his soul drowning in a stormy ocean of pain, momentarily coming up for a gasp of serenity, then going under again. Decades of Red Potion bubbled in his veins. He felt the emotions, but didn't allow himself to be drawn into them. He was blind to his own thoughts.

After all, he was nothing now. Just an arrow on the bowstring of destiny.

The Smiling Man had been true to his word -Link had been free to go. He'd cast a spell on Link as he'd sat there cradling Ilia that knocked him clean out. When Link had next awoken he found himself outside Kakariko with his sword, mask and a satchel with his grey cloak and a pouch of gold coins inside. There was a note, too, hastily scribbled: 'You know what to do.'

He'd tried to go back to find the Music Parlour, but the strange magical door was gone. Not even the 'T' that had been marked there remained.

Link couldn't recall how long he'd walked In a daze - it could have been hours, it could've even been days. Eventually, something had hardened deep inside his soul. His resolve had solidified. He remembered words Captain Rusl had once said: Sometimes you have to have your heart broken into tiny pieces before you can build something great from the ruins.

Link had purchased a self-loading crossbow – similar to the type he'd borrowed in the library – some twine, and a mini telescope. With the twine, he tied the scope to the top of the crossbow.

Now here he lay, perfectly still, one eye closed, one eye peering into the scope.

Princess Zelda was in his sights. She was alone in her bedchamber in one of the middle floors of the castle's main tower. She'd just stopped to look out her window, then turned away with a shake of her head to begin pacing back and forth. Some part of him, some of his old self, marvelled at her beauty. Link crushed the sentiment.

He pulled the trigger.

The owl that had been sitting on the edge Zelda's window ledge took the bolt full force, then toppled forward, spinning over and over in the air before landing in the castle's moat with a dull splash.

Princess Zelda didn't even notice.

Link stood up. He unhooked the Silver Mask from his belt, slipped it over his face. From the satchel the Smiling Man had left for him, Link pulled out his grey cloak, put it on, and lifted the hood.

'I would like it on record that I am worried about you,' Fi projected.

'Your concern is noted.'

'Really. You're scaring me.'

Link didn't reply. He closed his mind down from Fi's intrusions, closed it off, too, from the sharp cuts of memories past. It was all so easy now. He didn't have to extinguish what he felt. He just had to stand apart from it all.

Link dropped the satchel and strode down the hill toward the castle. Much like he had when entering the Kakariko amphitheatre, Link slipped into the crowd of people heading over the drawbridge. The murmur of voices seemed distant, like they were all speaking from behind a wall of thick glass.

His boots thudded on the shivering oak. Link cast a glance over the side of the bridge. The dead owl bobbed up and down on the surface of the moat as the slow current took it away.

If the people found it odd that someone was wearing a mask, they didn't show it – after all, nobles of all sorts came to the castle, though most had no business further than the outer courtyard.

A gloved hand blocked Link's path just as he reached the entrance. He didn't react.

"Friend," the guard said. "Open your cloak."

Link did so. The guard's face darkened.

"That's some serious gear you've got there." He beckoned to one of his companions, then turned back to Link. "Hand them over to Jay."

Link unhooked his sword and crossbow and gave them to the other guard.

"Not taking off your mask?" the first guard said.

Link said nothing.

The guard shrugged. "Suit yourself." He turned to his companion. "Take this one to the Sarge. Weapons violation."

Jay threw Link a resentful look. "Follow me," he spat, scowling.

They rejoined the crowd as they entered the outer courtyard. Here stalls were set up for the wealthier clientele of Hyrule, selling goods of a far better quality than what you'd get down in Castleton Market. Guards patrolled the area. Link didn't know any of them, and they wouldn't recognise him in return – the guards were on a rung lower than his former friends at the Academy. His mask was for the benefit of those selfsame friends. He didn't want to run into anyone he knew.

Link glanced up, spotted an owl on one of the parapets, and tugged hard on his hood. Jay led him to a metal gate flecked with rust. Another guard waited there.

Jay spat."This one's for the Sarge."

The other guard nodded and opened the gate. Now they were in the inner courtyard. It was a lot cleaner here. A fountain gurgled a soothing rhythm of gushing water. They turned left heading toward the main tower. Link's eyes traced the shape of the tall, pale building, then stopped at one particular window. The princess's chamber.

Jay called for a halt at the foot of the steps that led to the tower's iron door.

Link looked around, soaking in every sight, every position. Apart from the two of them, the inner courtyard was empty.

Just as he had anticipated.

"Right," said Jay as he scratched the stubble on his chin. "You wait. The Sarge is right in -"

Link's palm shot out and struck Jay in the chest just above his heart. The young guard stumbled backward. Link waded in - a left, then a right, and Jay went down. Link crouched and retrieved his weapons, then swiftly stood back up. He raised the crossbow, cradling it with both hands as he looked through the scope once more and trotted up the steps.

'What are you doing?' Fi demanded.

Link ignored her.

He nudged the door open. It screeched on rusted hinges. Once the gap was wide enough, he slipped through. Another guard was sitting there - the Sarge, judging by his uniform - reading a scroll. His eyes snapped up.

"Hey!" he barked. "You're not supposed to –"

"Up," said Link. He trained the crossbow on the man's chest. Another door was set at the other side of the small, dark alcove. Link gestured toward it. "Unlock the door."

The man took a shaky step to his feet. He looked from Link to the door and then back to Link, hesitation and doubt written clearly all over his face.

"Now!"

"Please," the Sarge said, holding up his palms. "I have a daughter."

Link reached him in just a few quick steps. He spun the guard around and pressed the sharp tip of the bolt into the back of the man's neck.

The Sarge whimpered. "She's only three."

Link pressed harder.

"Alright, alright!" the Sarge cried. He began stumbling toward the door. His trembling hands took out the key from his pocket. "Just three," he whispered. "Please."

"Open it."

The Sarge slipped the key into the lock and turned. A soft click followed. The door opened to reveal a staircase.

Link lowered the crossbow, then grabbed the man by the shoulder. He spun him back around, and then stunned him with a headbutt. Link followed with a swift jab to the throat with his free hand. The Sarge slumped to the ground.

"You'll see her again." Link's voice sounded strange in his own ears. Stripped raw - more a croak than his usual tone. He hooked the crossbow back onto his belt and took off the Silver Mask. No need to hide his face now.

As Link began his climb up the winding stairs, he didn't notice the sound of the iron door creaking open again, and definitely didn't see the small figure with the oversized helmet step inside.

Captain Rusl stood to attention, his hands clasped behind his back. "Highness...?"

"I said have there been any reports of anything unusual?" Zelda drummed her fingers on the window sill. The strange feeling was gnawing at her now.

"No, Your Highness," Rusl replied. "Nothing."

"When did you last check in with your sergeants?"

Rusl shrugged. "About twenty minutes ago," he said. "The next check is in ten."

"Check now."

Link had been watching the tower for a few days. He knew that a series of landings divided the stairway on its way up. The landings, in turn, each opened out on to one of the castle's corridors. A pair of men stood guard on each landing. Link met the first duo head-on.

Link dived into the first guard, slamming him into the stairs. On his feet again in an instant and Link was met with a swing by the second. Link jerked his head out of the way, and the punch shattered the window behind.

Link grabbed the man's arm, and threw him spinning over his shoulder. The guard slid down the stairs, yelling. His partner was still writhing on the floor, groaning. A stomp to the head knocked him out.

Shouts rang out in the courtyard. They'd discovered Jay, then. Link broke into a sprint. The second pair of guards were already coming down, alerted by all the noise.

Link didn't even stop. His lungs burned as he ran, the muscles in his legs tense. He hit the first guard in the stomach doubling him over, and knocked him out with a sharp elbow to the back of the head. The second was already diving toward him. Link tried to meet his charge, but the guard caught him and slammed him up against the wall. The man grabbed the front of Link's tunic and swung him around to slam him against the opposite wall.

Link gasped for air, blinking fast. The guard grinned at his discomfort. He pulled back his arm for a punch - when Link snatched the Silver Mask up from his belt just as the swing came in. The man howled in pain and took a step back. Link swung the mask and clocked the guard around the head. The man still didn't go down.

Link hissed in frustration. He flipped the mask around and pushed it hard against the guard's face, then struck, jabbing the mask three times in quick succession. When Link pulled the mask away, the man looked dazed but very much conscious.

So conscious, in fact, that he attempted a lunge - and that was when Link took his chance. He cracked the guard in the chin with a high kick. Now he went down.

Link glanced down at his mask, his face grim. "Sorry," he mumbled.

The shouts outside grew more urgent. It didn't matter. Link was where he wanted to be. He turned off the landing into the adjoining passageway, then ran.

Zelda could hear some commotion outside. The guards were in a panic about something. She felt a tight grip on her heart. She knew - knew - that this was linked to what she'd felt before. She peered out of her window - and then heard her bedroom door shut behind her with a metallic click.

Zelda spun around, her eyes darting here and there. Who had done that...?

"Ralis...?"

No-one replied.

She began to creep cautiously forward, her neck craning as she searched. The lush carpeted floor tickled the soles of her bare feet. There was a part of her room that the sun never reached, one corner cloaked in shadow.

Zelda stepped toward it, her mouth dry.

"Hello...?" Her eyes narrowed as she peered -

And then she stopped.

He stepped out of the shadows, aiming a crossbow straight at her. Zelda took a step backward. Another. The stranger followed her in exact time. He wasn't saying a thing. The back of her knees hit the edge of her new glass table. Not taking his eyes of his face, she made her way around so that the table stood between her and him.

Now she could stand her ground. She called on the whirlpool of magical energy she held within and flexed her fingers in anticipation - but then something made her pause.

His eyes. They were haunted, broken.

"Hello, Princess Zelda," the stranger said in a voice barely higher than a harsh whisper. "My name is Link."

They stared at each other, their gazes locked. A sudden wave of goosebumps made Zelda's skin prickle.

And that was when Midna's sleep dart spun through the air and struck Link in the neck. He swayed for a moment, the crossbow slipping out of his hand, then fell, the glass table shattering under his weight.