Chapter 26: Vaati's Tower
"What if I told you that your whole life is a lie?" Mayor Dotora said calmly. "Everyone you loved, everything you thought you knew about the world…none of it was real."
"How can that be?" Linkle said doubtfully. "You're lying!"
"I never lie, Linkle," replied Dotora. "I'm merely stating the truth."
"Then prove it!" Linkle said, gripping the compass around her neck.
"That compass you're wearing…you got it from your grandmother, correct?"
Reluctantly, Linkle nodded.
"And where did she get it from?"
"I don't know."
"Linebeck II gave it to her, who agreed to let her raise you in exchange for not telling anyone where you were from."
"So I'm not from Outset Island?"
"No, you were born here in Oshus. Your mother did not want children, so she gave you up for adoption. The sorceress Cia took you in, before she turned to the dark arts, but then Linebeck II whom she was acquainted with by this point thought you might be useful. So after the TriForce Shock incident, Linebeck II had Cia implant spells of obedience into your head before sending you away to Outset Island. Then years later, he ordered your grandmother to send you away and lured you to this place using those same spells Cia had cast on you earlier. The purpose of this was so that you could kill me allowing him to become the next Mayor of Oshus unopposed."
"That's…a pretty hard explanation to swallow," Linkle said trying to sound calm. "How do I know that everything you're saying is true?"
"If you still don't believe me, then nothing should happen when you look at the TriForce symbol on the compass," Mayor Dotora said snidely.
So Linkle did and felt her mind go blank.
"Or when I say this: would you be a dear and kill me?"
Then without hesitation, Linkle silently took out the twin crossbows and fired two bolts at Mayor Dotora. They punctured him through the neck, causing him to gag on the floor in his own blood.
"No one…should...have to…bow…for another…man's…words…" Mayor Dotora murmured before lying perfectly still.
Linkle's eyes fluttered and she found herself holding the two crossbows and saw Mayor Dotora lying on the ground with two bolts sticking out of his neck.
"I killed him," Linkle muttered as she dropped the crossbows. "But I didn't mean to."
"Hey, Linkle, you in Hyrule Castle yet?" Linebeck II asked.
"I am, though I'm not sure how I got here. Mayor Dotora was here, but then I…killed him."
"With the Master Sword?"
"No, with these crossbows Kamahi gave me after I had killed one of the thieves."
"Has anything happened like something unnatural leaving his body?"
"I'm not seeing anything."
"Then the demon must be still in his body. You should take out the Master Sword and stab him just in case."
"Even though he's already dead?"
"Just do it."
Not wanting to argue with Linebeck II, Linkle walked up to the statue and started to climb. She got to the top of the statue's head easily enough, and was about to pull the Master Sword out when the old woman suddenly appeared looking out of breath.
"Don't touch that!" the old woman said breathlessly. "You ran up here without my permission, though I made it clear the Hyrule Castle Tours were closed, and now you're committing an act of vandalism. I'm afraid you'll have to leave Hyrule Castle now or I'll have to call the authorities."
"But there are no authorities in this city, ma'am," Linkle said sadly. "Now that the Mayor's dead, and it's my fault."
The old woman then noticed Mayor Dotora's body and cried out in surprise.
"You killed him?" the old woman asked as she examined the Mayor's body.
"I didn't mean to," Linkle said. "One moment I was looking at my compass and then the next I see Dotora lying dead on the floor."
Before the old woman could speak, Linebeck II's voice came through. "Linkle, what are you waiting for? Pull out the sword and eliminate the demon inside Mayor Dotora!"
"I can't," Linkle said letting go of the Master Sword. "I'm not sure how I feel about stabbing a man who I don't remember killing."
An audible sigh came from Linebeck II's end. "Would you be a dear and pull out the Master Sword for me?"
Linkle's hands then moved on their own as they grabbed the Master Sword's hilt. Then with one tug, the Master Sword slipped out of the statue's forehead and the blade shined brightly for a moment. But once the light died down, the statue crumbled causing Linkle to fall off. As the stone crumbled away, Linkle was surprised to see a real body underneath which collapsed onto the floor. Curious, Linkle examined the body and noticed it was a human man with pale skin, pointed ears, long lavender hair, wearing a dark purple hat, cloak, and tunic that was decorated with a gold belt ornamented by a red gem that matched his red trousers and sandals. A cloud of black smoke suddenly appeared over the body and merged with it. When this happened, the man's eyes opened revealing them to be bright red.
"Finally," the man said, getting up slowly. "Now that I've regained my true body, I can now finish what I started fifty years ago. Linkle, was it?"
"Are you talking to me?" Linkle asked as the man stepped closer to her.
"Such a sweet naïve girl," said the man as he stroked Linkle's cheek. "I suppose you should be rewarded for releasing me, the Great Vaati."
"Get away from her!" cried the old woman.
There was a flash of light and the man who called himself Vaati suddenly caught a golden arrow in his hand. But as it burned his hand, he was forced to let the arrow go.
"You," Vaati growled as he turned to face the old woman who was now wielding a golden bow with another arrow loaded.
"I knew you'd come back, Vaati," the old woman said sternly. "So I guarded this place as soon as I came to realize who I was."
"Well, you're too late, Hylia," Vaati said as he disappeared in a puff of black smoke. "Once my full strength has returned, I shall rule this place and the surface world after that!"
The black smoke then blew through Linkle, causing her to be knocked out.
To be continued…