Deep within the dungeons of Hyrule Castle, the prisoner tilted his head. His magic was numbed, yet he felt a familiar presence. Or rather, a pair of them. He chuckled. "Is there something going on?" He asked his guard mockingly. "The security seems somewhat lacking."
"Quiet!" The guard hissed their response.
"My apologies." He raised his arms as if to surrender, chains rattling. "I've been down here so long, it's hard to make good conversation." He paused. "Does it rain often?"
"I told you to be quiet!"
"Hmm." He scratched the beard forming on his chin. "You seem afraid. Do I scare you, little Hylian?"
"Shut it!" The guard bashed their fist against the door.
The prisoner chuckled. If they were afraid, they wouldn't need to worry about him for much longer. Well, they would, but for a completely different reason. He reclined against the cold cobblestone walls.
Yes. Soon.
Dex Epnable wandered up to the main gate of Hyrule castle with a dopey smile and a pair of hunched over figures waddling behind him. The guards flashed each other confused glances, then crossed their spears as the three figures approached.
"Sorry," The first guard, Alexander, shook his head. "But no one may enter until the crisis is over."
"What are you doing here, Dex?" Irea, the second guard, frowned. "Your orders were to patrol the streets, ensure people stay somewhere safe."
"I am!" Dex grinned. "I need to take them somewhere safe."
Alexander glanced at the cloaked figures. "And you decided to take them… to the castle?"
Irea made a face. "Dex, who are these two?"
"Oh," He glanced behind him, face frozen. "They're here to see their son."
She raised an eyebrow. "That's why you brought them here?"
Dex smiled. "Yes."
Alexander tried to wave the conversation away. "I'm sorry, but could the two of you please remove your cloaks? We can't let you in but we need to see your faces for security reasons."
The cloaked figured looked at each other. "… Of course." The first one muttered. "Wouldn't want to create an uproar." She pulled her hood back, with the second following suit.
"Ah." Alexander tried to hide a grimace. "Ok, that caught me off guard."
"Right." Irea pursed her lips. "A pair of old, old Gerudo women looking for their son. Shouldn't be someone that blends in well." She shrugged. "Probably hot." She turned to Alexander. "You know any hot gerudo guys?" He shook his head. "Ah well. We'll keep an eye out for them, get the message around, ok?"
"Why thank you." Cooed the hag. "That's very kind."
"Alright, now could you please shove- Alexander?" Alexander's face gone bone white, and his hands were shaking. "Goddesses, Alex, are you alright?!"
"Gerudo don't have sons." He muttered.
Irea's face went blank. "Sorry, what?"
"Gerudo are all women." Alexander flicked his eye's to his partner. "There's only one man."
Irea clenched her teeth. "Shit." She swung her spear at the witches, only to be blasted back, slammed against the door of the gate, the wood cracking against her armour. Alexander pulled his spear back and stabbed at them, but the witches were faster. With a flick of her wrist, the crone conjured ice to intercept and trap the spear. Panicked, Alexander tried to pull his weapon free to no avail, then reached for the short sword at his hip. The hag let him take a swipe at her, before giving him a hideous grin and splaying her hand at him, a stream of fire erupting from her palm, hitting him in the chest and melting his armour, the molten metal carving through Alexander's flesh. He let out a scream, only for his breath to be stolen from his lungs as he shot skywards, thrown by invisible hands, slamming into the stone arch above, and before gravity could end his pain, the crone encased him in ice, trapping him on the stones.
Irea had recovered and threw her spear at the witches, only for the weapon to burst into flames and reduce to slag and ashes without much more than a glance from the hag. Trembling, she drew her sword. "Dex! Help us!" Dex didn't respond, only turning to grin at her. Grinding her teeth and sending a silent prayer, Irea charged at the witches, and seemed to draw close, only to feel the cold to late, though even if she knew she could have done anything, and within seconds her entire body was frozen.
Kotake cackled. "That was quiet entertaining."
"Yes, it was." Koume nodded in agreement. "Though perhaps we shouldn't have toyed with them so much."
"Perhaps." Kotake shrugged. "Though killing them instantly would still cause alarm."
"Is there time to dispose of the bodies?"
"I doubt it. We've likely already alerted some of the red-eyed wolves."
Koume scratched her chin. "You're right." She looked at the frozen Irea. "What should we do, then?"
Kotake gave a ruthless smile. "Make sure they would bother us."
She snapped her fingers, and the ice shattered.
"So… are you going to tell me what's going on?"
"No."
"You won't tell me anything but you won't talk to me either." Zelda pouted. "You're no fun."
Nelo bit her lip, thankful that her cowl hid the action from the princess. She shouldn't have been chosen to protect the princess. For one thing, she was already injured, and for another, she had no idea how to deal with children, and certainly not with a princess. Her whole life, all her issues could be cut down as she faced them, both figuratively and very literally. Assassinations? Easy. Executions? Child's play. But child's play? It's not like she could decapitate the princess, for goddesses sake.
I don't want to kill the princess! She thought to herself. Killing children doesn't make them easier to deal with! What's wrong with you?! She let out a sigh. Why is it so bloody hard?!
Zelda tilted her head. "What kind of a sword is that?"
Nelo blinked. "Sorry? I mean, pardon, your highness?"
"That sword." Zelda pointed at the weapon in Nelo's hand. "It's different from the ones the knights have."
"Oh." Nelo raised the weapon. She was so used to it being concealed under her cloak in her left hand, she had forgotten that said arm was now broken, and that the weapon was exposed. "Well… it's an eightfold steel katana."
"Katana?"
"Yes." She brought the sheathed weapon up for the princess to see. "Single cutting edge, slightly curved blade. Not a common design in Hyrule, but it's fairly standard among Sheikah." Zelda nodded, acute to everything that was being said. "Mine is a bit shorter than most katana's, though not by much, and I've trained to use it singled handed."
"Why is it shorter?"
"So I can conceal it underneath my cowl."
"Wait." Zelda frowned. "Do you aways hold that under your cowl? Doesn't your arm get tired?"
Nelo knitted her eyebrows. "No. I don't. I… guess I've always been holding knives and swords. It's just second nature, I suppose." She paused, collecting her thoughts, opened her mouth to continue, but her voice faltered. She tilted her head.
"Nelo?"
She grunted. She looked over her shoulder, eye's flicking around the room. "I swear I…" She swallowed. Something felt off. Nelo stood abruptly, her chair clattering to the ground. "…Excuse me princess." She muttered, walking to the door. She looked out to see four sheikah and half a dozen knights standing guard, with the nearest of the former turning to her confused.
"What is it? Is the princess alright?"
"Do you feel that?" She whispered, tilting her head as if trying to pinpoint a sound. "Something's happened."
The sheikah frowned. "You feel something? Is it the Swordsman?!"
"No…" As quickly has it had come, the feeling left her. "It's over…"
"Is everything alright?"
Nelo was quiet. She tried desperately to find the source, but the signal was gone. But that didn't act as reassurance. She looked to the sheikah. "Who out the four of the are the two move skilled?"
"Hmm?" The sheikah paused, then pointed to two. "Meliph and Sol."
Nelo called them over. "You two are to guard the princess with your lives until Lady Impa or myself relieve you. Understood?" The both nodded and entered Zelda's chambers. Nelo returned her gave to the first sheikah. "What's your name and the other sheikah?"
"My name is Kara" He replied. "And this is Porter."
She nodded. "Kara, Porter. We need to find the source of whatever that was." Nelo bared her teeth. "I felt dark magic, I know I did. We can't allow that in the Castle."
The two of them place a fist over their heart. "Where to then?"
"It was southwards, I believe." She turned towards where she had felt the presence. "We'll start at the south walls and work from there. Let's move."
The three sheikah focused, and shadows began to immolate from their bodies, growing and until it swallowed the Sheikah and dissipated.
"Here we are." Dex hummed happily. "Your son is just down there."
They stood before the entrance to the dungeon, the guards already disposed of.
"Will there be more inside?" Kotake asked.
"Of course!" Dex Grinned. "We have to make sure no one escapes."
"Indeed." Koume sighed. "Well this is where we part ways. We won't be needing you anymore. Bring your head down."
"Gladly." Dex smiled and complied. Such nice ladies.
Koume brought her hand to his forehead and, with a single motion, tore her hand away, a small ball of light in her palm, and Dex collapsed to the ground, still smiling, his mind stolen, leaving only the body, an empty husk. Koume waved her hand, and the still breathing Dex was burned to the bone, then to ashes.
Kotake flexed her fingers, frost forming at their tips. "We need to move quickly."
"Agreed, sister." Koume clenched her fist. "Kill those that stands in our way."
"Kill anyone that act as a threat."
Without further hesitation, they plunged into the darkness.
"Nothing here." Kara sighed. "No one is missing, and I feel no residual magic."
Nelo shook her head. "No, not here." They had scoured the southern walls and the surrounding for a fair amount of time, and were now concluding their evaluation of the barracks, and Porter was growing irate.
"All due respect, Nelo," Porter scowled. "We've found nothing. Right now, we're wasting time. I'd rather be protecting Princess Zelda than chasing ghosts."
"Porter, hold your tongue." Kara warned.
"Fine." Nelo growled. "We'll check the gate for the grounds and then pathway between the grounds and the town. Then we return. Any objections?"
Porter glared. "No."
Shadows swallowed them once more, and when they faded they stood at the gate, still inside the Castle grounds. A wave of nausea rolled over Nelo, with the other two experiencing similar strains from the constant use of their magic. Once the feeling had passed, the started forwards.
"Let's make this quick." Porter scoffed.
Kara began moved towards the gate, then stopped. "What's that?"
Porter frowned. "What's what?"
"The door." He walked to the gate and pressed his hand against the wood. "It's damaged. Blunt force, from the other side."
Nelo felt a buzzing in her head. "This is the place. I can feel lingering magic."
Kara gripped the door handle and turned, and they moved through.
Porter cursed. "I guess you weren't full of it."
Before them was a pile shattered ice covering cracked armour that had begun to melt, blood and water mixing together.
"Sorcery." Nelo muttered. "This doesn't fit we know about the Swordsman, but we can't rule them out." She knelt down, trying to get a closer look at the remains.
Porter's breath was shaky, and he avoided looking at the pile of ice. "That's one guard. What happened to the other?"
"Look up." She replied.
The two other sheikah did just that and recoiled in shock. The body of Alexander hung frozen at the top of the arch, his face trapped mid scream, eyes wide in pain. Cracks had formed across the ice, making it clear that if the ice hadn't killed him, then his body would be broken if he ever unfroze.
Kara hissed a sting of curses. "We need to find who did this. They have to already be in the castle."
"They could be after the king." Porter shivered. "Or the princess. We need to move."
Nelo shook her head. "Not yet. We may find who the murders are from what's here. Try and find anything that could act as a clue." She looked at Alexanders corpse. Perhaps it was the ice, but it seemed that his chest plate was deformed. As if it was made liquid before he was frozen. She turned to the gate. While most of the stones were pristine and unmarked, in one corner there were slight blackening, and she could smell metal in the air. And something else.
"Nelo, over here!" Kara beckoned her over.
"What is it?"
"Slag." He pointed to a lump of metal on the ground, still hot enough to burn. "And ash. I believe it was a spear."
Nelo narrowed her eyes. "Heat and cold. Fire and ice. Do you know of any enemies of Hyrule that use these abilities?"
Kara scratched his chin. "Fire and ice? Let me think."
"Frozen…" Nelo returned her gaze to the gate. "Frozen and burned. Burned and frozen." She closed her eyes. "Enemies of hyrule. Who? Interlopers, Swordsman, demons, gerudo? No, no. Ganondorf?" Her eyes flew open. "Son of a-!"
Porter shot up. "You know who it is?"
Nelo became frantic. "Kara, I need you to contact the king. We need all available hands to fortify the dungeons. No one get's in or out!" Kara blinked. "Do you understand?!"
"U-understood!" He summoned shadows around him and Nelo didn't wait from him to go.
"Porter, you're with me."
He scowled. "What?"
"I don't have time for your bullshit! We need to get to the dungeon, now!"
"Why the hell are you so panicked?!"
"Fire and ice!" Nelo yelled. "The only known enemies of hyrule that have mastered those magics are the Gerudo witches!" She loomed over Porter. "Do you know who they serve? The King of the Gerudo! Their son!"
He swallowed."Oh. Shit."
"'Oh shit' is an understatement! Now move!"
No longer protesting, Porter meekly stepped away from Nelo and dissolved into shadow, and Nelo in turn summoned her own shadows, which lashed around angrily, her teleportation becoming violent. She hoped she wasn't too late.
Thing's are heating up.
Sorry, but this needed to be focused on a bit more. You'll have to wait before we get back to Link. And soon... bow before the King.
It's so confusing with Twinrova. Which witch is which? (HA!) I have to have a tab open constantly in order to check it out who's who.
Finished exams a couple of weeks ago, and I'm happy with how it went down. I may a have a future past school. Hurray! And I never have to science again, thank Sparda. Thing's are looking up for me, I'm allowed to fly again and holiday's are soon. Expect more for now, but remember there will probably be a drop off never year.
Oh, and Smash Ultimate will also take up a lot of my time. Sorry, but I need to unleash my inner Sadistic Space Dragon Pirate.
Also Young Link.
[
So, I just learned that Ocarina of Time has just turned 20 years old.
Happy birthday, Ocarina of Time. This was the first Zelda game I ever played (it was the 3DS version), and I owe it a lot. I didn't play it when it first came out, I'm only like 6 months older than Devil May Cry 1, but it feels nostalgic for me. As you know, it has stoked my imagination enough for me to create a story of my own for what I like to think happened between Majora's Mask and Twilight Princess. The Hero of Time is my favourite incarnation of Link, as I feel that there was an unspoken sadness, among other things, that were conveyed through the story. He started his life as an outcast, grew to help others, then failed when he was needed most, and despite still being a child, he had to pick up the pieces and fix everything. An outcast, a failed hero, yet he never gives up. I like that. Resonates with me. Devil May Cry might let me feel like an unstoppable force, but I feel like Link. I can share his story. DMC3 is Dante's story. OoT feels like Link's story and mine at the same time.
Ocarina of Time may not be the greatest game of all time, not even my favourite game or favourite Zelda game, but it holds a special place in my heart. Thank you Ocarina of Time.
]
