The Corrupted Hero

by Great Faith

In all her life, Katie, a perfectionist fairy, never thought she would have to aid a sadistic boy named Link who would rather waste his days chasing women and drinking sake than be a hero. This is a story about a fairy who must accept his flaws and about a young man who must learn on what it takes to be the hero promised.

119. Chapter CXIX

PART ONE - THE WILD HORSE CHASE

"Yeah, so you just keep one eye on the shoulder mostly. You can guess where they're planning to attack and you can counter that if you're quick enough. But that's only if the opposite leg matches it, otherwise they're just luring you in. If you got the opposite of that, then it's a pretty much a dodge."

Katie tried to imagine the action of it, but the description just scrambled her mind. "That sounds hard."

Link shrugged, a twig of wheat sticking out his mouth. "Eh, takes practice. You won't even think about it when it happens."

Rocks jutted out like teeth around them. Dirt curled at every gust of wind, plumbs of it spraying out. The heat wasn't getting any better now that they were diving further into the Eldin District. Walls of red mountains rose around them with cliffs over seventy feet high. The sky was more of a crack, showing the sun beaming every now and then. They walked in a deep trough, a river that had dried up long ago. Cracks spider webbed over to the side.

In over a week of travel, they haven't so much as seen a soul out here. No merchants, no horse riders, not even bandits. Not that Katie was complaining.

Link tugged his tunic down, sweat making V marks from back to front. The green fabric was caked in mud that had long congealed. It would take hours to scrub it off. The bruise over his brow was fading as well. The cut on his cheek was completely gone.

It was kind of incredible how they keep finding traps and even more incredible how he kept falling into them. Every time. She wouldn't dare laugh at him since his anger had been a scary thing. Rocks had cascaded when his boot tugged a trip wire. Buckets of mud splashed overhead.

And then, the worst of them, was a seemingly loose rope that quickly tightened around his boot when he stepped into it, taking him upside down on a tree. It wouldn't have been that bad if their noise didn't attract curious monsters.

She shuddered at the memory.

Now she was doing all she could to make him forget about that. It took a lot but his mood ameliorated since then. It was good thing since, knowing him, he'd have no problem wasting their days by hunting down whoever was responsible for the repeated inconvenience.

"What about archery?" Katie asked. "I've read that it takes really strong muscles in the arm to pull the bowstring back."

Link grimaced, as if he thought of something painful. "The first week of practice is the worst. You really feel like your arm is getting torn." His eyes flickered over to her, the tip of the wheat dipped down. "Well, not like you'd know. Say, don't you ever get tired of flying?"

She snorted. "That's like asking a Hylian if they ever get tired of breathing…or talking." She then thought of another question that had been bugging her for so long about Hylians. She glowed fulgently as she tried to say, "What about—"

He raised a hand to silence her, growing stiff. The wheat fell from his mouth. Her color dimmed.

Slowly, Link reached for his sword. "I saw you," he said out loud. "You better come out."

Another question found its way onto her list. How was it that he could sense enemies? There was nothing here. Nothing but trees hanging above them at the edge of the trough, limping down in duress of the weather. Crevasse stretched over from either of their side. There were rocks like natural pillars smacked in their way and they would've looked like stepping-stones if the river was flowing.

A glow sparkled from one of the short pillars. Link's eyes narrowed but a slow grin was making its way to his face.

Oh no.

"I'm giving you to the count of three. You aren't here by then, things will be a lot fun for me and shit for you. One…two…"

A soft voice cried out, "No, please!"

Link blinked and exchanged looks with Katie. Upon approaching the pillar, they were able to discern something small and feverish. It gently floated away from the pillar. "Please don't hurt me…"

Katie froze. The little thing trembled, flakes fluttering beneath her like gentle snow. She was small, smaller than Katie with wings that were a little round than pointed. She glowed with a beautiful purplish color, like a swirling vortex.

The little thing stopped its tremor when it saw Katie.

"Whoa, hey, do you know each other?" Link asked keenly, looking between the two fairies.

The other fairy got close to Katie and Katie felt her warmth. There was relief from the other fairy as her color softened. "I-I never saw you before," the other said. Her voice was highly pitched..

Katie herself felt a mixture of anxiety.

Immediately, the other fairy broke out of her inhibition. "Whoa, I never knew a fairy who could do that!" She went around Katie, swirling with a trail of sparkles behind her. "Oh wow! You have so many colors! What's your name?" She stopped in front of Katie.

Katie found herself looking at Link but not knowing why. He noticed the look and frowned. "What?"

Katie flushed. "Nothing." She looked at the other fairy obsequiously, but no matter how hard she stared, there was not a single trace of color within in that purple. Katie knew she was a bit different but never thought the disparities would be this great.

"My name is Kini," the purple fairy introduced, her color didn't change but beamed as she fluttered a little too close for Katie's comfort. "Wow, you're turning pink!"

"I'm Katie," Katie said finally, still unsure on what she thought of this. "This is Link."

Link waved. The smaller fairy, as if noticing him for the first time, trembled and flew higher.

Link frowned. "Hey, I'm not going to bite you."

"I-I'm sorry," Kini said timidly. "You look a little scary…"

"Trust me, he's not that scary," Katie said frankly. "If you could say that for someone who snores and drools in his sleep."

"Uh huh. And for someone who's been watching a lizard all morning while I make breakfast?" Link asked dryly. "What do you make of that?"

"Hey, that lizard was a rare specimen!" Katie turned to the other fairy. "So what are you doing out here?"

Kini hesitated, and sounded guilty. "Um…well—"

"Kini!" someone shouted angrily. "Kini, for Hylia's sake, do you even want to go home?!"

They all gazed up. Standing on the cliff of the trough was a young man nearing Link's age with hair shaved on both sides and a ponytail out the back, a scar ran down from his side. His eyes widened when he saw them.

"I didn't think anyone was out here," he said and paused when he looked at Link. For a moment, Katie was worried that he would've recognized Link by the sword.

"Hey, wait, are you the ass that's been setting off my traps?" the guy snapped.

Link hummed with an almost too casual manner. "I don't know. Are you the little bitch that keeps setting them up?"

"A blind and an ass, this one," the guy spat, spittle flying out from his mouth. "A little bitch, huh? Come say that to my face, I dare you!"

Link smiled. "Gladly." He brought out his hookshot and pulled himself up by latching onto a nearby tree. The guy yelped and the two disappeared from sight. Just like that, Link left her behind.

"Link! You dummy!" Katie shouted and was about to chase him until she remembered Kini.

"Oh no! He's going to be really mad at me," Kini said, sounding close to tears.

"Who was that guy?" Katie gasped. "Did he kidnap you? Were you trying to escape from him?"

"What? No! Not at all." Kini stopped her shaking. "He's really nice actually. His name is Cett and he promised to take me home if I healed him on the way."

"Home?"

The fairy looked at her for a moment, and Katie could guess that she was giving a strange look. "Home," the purple fairy repeated. "The Fairy Fountain."

At once, Katie went rigid. "Ah…right…"

"You…you've never been to a fairy fountain before?" Kini sounded horrified. Katie kept expecting her color to shift to pink but it just remained in its single color, like dried up paint.

"We should go see the boys," Katie said hastily. "Hopefully, Link didn't kill him."

"Cett's been really upset about the traps," Kini carried on nervously, "I'm worried about your friend."

Katie chuckled at that. "I'm more worried about yours." Now that she said it out loud, it didn't sound humorous. She really did need to go stop him. They both quickly flew up the trough, towards land where trees clustered together, stubbornly surviving the cruel climate.

A Fairy Fountain.

That stuck to her head. The legendary fountain was known to be a safe place for all the fairies in the world. It was said that no one with an ill heart would ever find it.

"You're really brave, Katie," Kini said as they went into the small woods over the branches of trees. "The way you talk with your Hylian so easily is so cool! Aren't you afraid of him?"

"No," Katie said. Not all the time. "He isn't really scary…well, unless you catch him at a bad mood, but they aren't all like that."

Kini gasped. "You met other Hylians? And you didn't run?"

"Not unless they were dangerous."

"Oh, I could never be around so many Hylians!" Kini went on. "You don't know when they would snatch you up and sell you!" Then she goes the fairy talking.

Katie didn't want to be rude to her but she really hoped the other fairy would spend more time on finding her Hylian companion. She'll find herself without one if they don't save him from Link in time.

The trees stuck out roots in areas where dirt sloped down. Chunks of rock ran into some parts of this small woods, showing deep crevasses. There were some critters around, a lizard scurrying away, a fat bird from a nearby branch taking flight. Animals were becoming scarce.

"Don't you ever get scared of them?" Kini blabbered on. "I mean, I can handle Zoras and Gorons. Or—okay—I've never actually met a Zora and Gorn but I think I can handle it. Hylains are something else! They are terrifying."

Katie sighed. "Kini, I've worked with Hylians. Well, I have to anyways." She stopped to look at her smaller kin. "They're really not that bad. Not all of them at least."

Kini seemed more amazed. "So brave!" she breathed out. "And so colorful too! I've never met anyone like you before! You're really special!"

Katie flushed, not knowing what to say. She didn't think Kini would realize that she was speaking to the fairy of the Goddesses, and that the boy with her was the hero chosen. She would've actually liked the attention, and proudly showed off her duty but…now she was just getting embarrassed.

"We should try to find the boys," Katie said finally, hoping she wasn't as pink as she thought.

"Oh right!"

Katie surveyed the area which was nothing more than scattered trees and rocks. "Where are those two?" She reddened. "I swear I should push a leash on that boy!"

"I think I hear something."

They listened past the dry wind rustling the branches. It took a moment but in the deadened silence of the small woods a noise rang out of place. It wasn't until her and Kini got close enough to hear it right.

Laughter.

The first one who spoke was Link. "Yeah, and I kicked their asses alright. Then one of them—the one I told him to get lost before—tried to get at my back for a fast one."

"Ugh, I hate it when they do that," Cett's voice rang, not in pain or agony that usually came with offending Link. "If you have the steel to come at me then do it in my face!"

"I know, right?"

The fairies fluttered out from the trees to see a wide landing beneath a short cliff that covered them from the worst of the sun. Link and Cett sat back on flat slates of rocks, leaning against the cliff. A bottle sat between them.

"Of course," Katie said with a sigh, joining them with a hesitant Kini.

"Took care of him later," Link explained. "But, see, the idiot had the chance to run and he didn't take it! And then he starts to bitch when I break his arm."

Cett drank heartily from the bottle, wiping his lip with the back of his hand. "I know the feeling. Used to have these big jackasses in my town chase me around. Then they look like the sky just crack when I send a bunch of rocks and mud headed their way."

The two laughed. The enmity seemed to have disappeared between them, as if it never existed. Link was about to drink from the bottle when he noticed Katie. "Took you awhile. Where were you?"

"Looking for you," she said testily. "Is this where you've been?"

"Kini!" Cett exclaimed, putting out his hand. The fairy went over it shyly, cringing when his eyes narrowed. "Blast it, sprit, you always have to run off on me?"

"I'm sorry," Kini said in a small voice.

"That your fairy?" Link asked.

Cett sighed as he dropped his hand. The purple fairy went on his side that was away from Link. "Found her on the way, said she'd heal me up if I take her home. Your fairy though…" Cett looked over at Katie with fascination. "Never knew there was a fairy who could change colors. I didn't even know fairies could be this brave! She always talks to you like that?"

"Oh, yeah. A lot," Link said with great exasperation. "You should see her when she nags.. Say, you mind if we switch fairies?"

Katie whacked him on the head, startling Cett and Kini. Link hissed through his teeth, chuckling painfully.

Cett decided to pick his words carefully. "What's your name?"

"It's Katie," she said stiffly.

"Touchy." Cett shrugged one shoulder to where Kini was on. "I'm supposed to deliver this one to a fairy fountain. You two on your way there?"

Link scratched his head. "Fairy Fountain? There's one here?"

"Should be." Cett turned to Kini as if for her to confirm. She brightened and Katie took it to be abashment. The man rubbed the back of his neck in mild irritation. "I swear we'll never get anywhere with her running off on me all the time!"

"And what do you do for her to keep running on you?" Katie snapped.

"Nothing! One time I sneezed and she suddenly just disappeared! And then there's one time when I tripped and cursed out. That scared her up to a tree and she got stuck up there. Took hours to get her down." He shook his head. "This is why you put them in a bottle. They scare too easily but putting her in a bottle makes her cry. Say, you don't have to do that with your fairy, don't you?" he asked Link.

"See, I would…" Link eyed the hammer. "But I like to keep my head in one piece."

Cett chuckled, leaning over with forearm hanging over one knee. "You're real different," he complimented Katie. "Why's that?"

Katie colored unfavorably. "Mind your own business."

"Sheesh, what's with the tone?"

"You know why!" When the Hylians didn't seem to understand, she glowed red. "You're the one who's been putting on those traps! Aren't you going to kill him, Link?"

"Hey, it's been a long time since I met someone with good taste," Link complained, lifting up the dark colored bottle as he turned to his new drinking buddy. "This is real good. What you put in it?"

"Haggled it from a merchant," Cett said proudly. "He was selling it at a hundred and I got him to meet me at twenty."

"Twenty?" Link whistled. "Aren't you a sly bastard?"

The guy grinned. "I really am a bastard for that. When I opened it, I was like, 'Oh damn! Maybe I should've given him a hundred!'."

Link drank a heavy sip. "You should try mixing it with sake. Works like heaven."

The mention of that brought this poignant heaviness to the colorful fairy. Thankfully, none of them notice when she suddenly seemed to have difficulties in staying in flight. She quickly changed the subject. "So what? You two officially bonded by sake now?"

"She doesn't get it," Link told to Cett and turned to her, lifting the bottle and waving it. "One day, little fairy, you will understand the true power of this incredible beverage. Until then keep enjoying your plain water."

"That stuff will kill you one day," she said dryly.

She would've gotten him off his bum and on the road. They were wasting precious daylight. But then again they haven't seen anyone in so long. Though she had him for company, much of her thoughts were still in Desmera over the Haidrund twins. The horrors that they had been through, that they survived still felt very much real even after a week. The memory came with a crushing weight that would threaten to take her from flight. Days like this are when Link's annoyance seem to be the best of distractions.

And he looked so relaxed as he caroused with another sake-lover. It was nice to see this little bonhomie for a chance. Well, better than finding Cett with a broken arm and screaming in agony.

Link took another chug, his eyes fixed at her. He seemed to be waiting for something, maybe for more scolding but she'll let it pass by. Let him enjoy himself, just this once.

Cett folded his arms in front of him. "About my traps—how did you guys not see the signs?"

Link frowned. "Signs?"

"Yeah! Those traps were for monsters. You know, they are literally crawling everywhere! Thought I could set a few surprises, and left warnings for travelers. You didn't see them?"

Link shook his head.

Cett scratched his chin, looking troubled. "Must've been the earthquakes then."

Katie's color flashed pink. "Earthquakes?"

Cett looked at them as if they came from the moon. "You two aren't from here I take it?"

"I heard about earthquakes in Death Mountain but I didn't think they'd reach here," Katie said uneasily.

"It was only a few shakes but it was enough to get people on their toes." Cett leaned back, spreading his arms. "It's been stressing folks out. You hardly see anyone anymore. What are you two doing here anyways? If it's not serious business, I suggest getting out of Eldin."

Link shook his head. "Can't do. I'm—we're looking for a horse."

"Horse?"

"Red with white mane, real bitchy sometimes—"

"Link, don't talk about Epona like that," Katie said with reproach.

"Lost her long ago—"

Cett snapped his fingers with brightened eyes. "You can't be talking about that horse, are you? The horse old Jen and his people found?"

"Who?"

"Oh this was ages ago. They're a bunch of carnival folks, you know the travelling troupe kind. Anyways, I ran into them just as they were burying these two guys, said that they were killed by groups of Moblins. Those guys had this horse with them that survived and the troupers took her in ever since." Cett sighed almost in a longing way. "She was a real wild one but a beauty too. Don't know what kind of idiot would've lost her." He shrugged at Link's scowl. "This happened nearly a month ago. Where've you been since then?"

Link set his jaw. "Been pretty busy."

"We saw the troupers just yesterday," Kini spoke out finally, reminding them all that she was here. The purple fairy, seeing that all eyes fell on her, brightened timorously and would've fled if Cett didn't grab her. His grip wasn't too hard and he was careful not to crumble her wings.

"Anyways," he continued. "What she said. You'll probably find them around the area. They were heading for the village using the main road."

Link groaned. "The main road? What are they thinking?"

"I know. I tried telling them but they were pretty confident in themselves." Cett shook his head in dismay. "Idiots. They're fine folks for sure but the kind of folks that should stay in their home than travel around."

"And you're sure the horse is with them?"

"She has a name, Link" Katie said peevishly.

Cett shrugged. "Could be. I don't know. I didn't plan on sticking around for them to get me killed. Just said hello to one of them and was on my way." Cett hesitated. "You'll need to be real careful around here, man."

"Trust me, I can handle myself," Link said.

"With monsters, sure, but what about people?" Cett looked at him firmly in the eyes. "There's some bad parties around here."

"Which parties are we talking about here?"

"The worst kind: the Silver Company."

Both Link and Katie darkened at that. Oh they've had their run with that company all right.

"What about them?" Link asked carefully.

"There's a fight for power. Some kind of struggle for leadership. I don't know. I stay out of that shit. You should too."

"Relax. I mind my own business." Link got up with a grunt, stretching out his arms. "You keep yourself alive by putting up traps or what?"

Cett smiled, patting his side to where a sword was strapped. Link had told her that you know a lot about a fighter based on how they tend to their weapons. Seeing the neat, almost smooth scabbard with the thin blade tucked in told her enough. "Never leave home without it."

"We should get going. We'll need to catch up to them," Katie said and hesitated. "If they're still alright."

"You're leaving?" Kini sounded upset, breaking her silence once again. Goodness, she reminded Katie too much of Sophia. Kini glimmered lugubriously. "But we just met! Can't you stay a little longer?"

"I'm sorry but we have to get going," Katie said, and found herself eager to leave. This was far too strange for her, to see another fairy, someone who was like her but much more different.

With one last chug of the sake, Link proffered it back to Cett but Cett shook his head. "Ah, you keep it. For the trouble."

Link grinned. "Don't get killed. You still have to try it with whisky."

"It's on my bucket list."

"Come on, Link," Katie said almost bitingly, since Kini was still looking at her. Katie went on ahead with Link calling her out to wait for him. He bid Cett farewell and hurried to catch up to her.

---

"What is wrong with you?" Link's frown deepened when Katie didn't seem to pay attention. She kept flying at a pace that made it difficult for him to catch up. With the cracks and the uneven ground he would risk losing his footing if he tried to run.

"Sprit!" he snapped, and her troubled color bloomed by a bright pink. "What's with you?"

She flushed. "What do you mean? Nothing's wrong."

He gave her a flat look.

"Really! Nothing's wrong."

"Uh huh, yeah," he said, moving past a large boulder to his right by wedging himself against the tight wall between it. These mountains were going to be the death of him. The slopes ran longer, deadlier and every now and then a monster would try to flatten him by rolling down boulders.

"Is it that fairy?" he asked. "Made you homesick?"

"It's…complicated," she said belatedly. "How would you feel if you never met a Hylian before?"

"Well, I—" He froze and spun at her. "Are you serious?"

The glow only brightened.

"You never met another fairy before?" he choked. "Sprit, you're kidding right?"

"Have you seen other fairies?" she shot at him, burning with what could be shame. "Before you met me?"

"Sure I have." He took a couple of steps back before breaking into a sprint in order to leap across a large crack. As he landed on the other side, dust churned up his boots. "Saw a couple of them. Agnes kept on chasing them off."

"Not all fairies are this shy," Katie said in a mutter. "But they do scare easy from Hylians. Poor thing. Makes you wonder how they feel when you trap them in a bottle for so long."

"We could give that a go," he suggested and chuckled when she turned red. "So what? Being around her got you all shy? Want to start acting like a real fairy?"

"I am a real fairy!" she snapped. "Just because I don't scare easily doesn't mean I'm not! That's like saying you aren't a normal Hylian, which is actually true!"

The path in front of him soon went crooked, splitting up into several directions where the walls narrowed in this mountain. The sky peered over their heads as Link walked past a chasm by going on the ledge. Bits of fertility showed themselves with pine trees overhead and bits of moss.

He really didn't see the point in Katie's argument. So she saw another fairy, so what?

"So you want to go there? Is that it?" he asked.

"Go where?"

"The Fairy Fountain."

"No! Are you crazy? We have to find Epona!" Her color said otherwise. He was getting good at really reading her. What must it be like for her, to never meet her own kind? If the other fairies were just as monotonous in color, then Katie would really stand out, like one of those multi-colored lanterns among little candles.

Link scratched at his tunic, hoping to get away from the mud that was starting to smell. What did Cett put in there? Link had to admit: the bastard was good at what he was doing. It also surprised him how Katie wasn't complaining as much as she should be. Not that he was complaining.

When they reached to a high cliff, the sky expanded before them, revealing a vast field of plateaus and chasms as if a giant claw had ripped through the land. There were more of those deep trough, snaking through the plateaus. Without a horse, traveling underneath or over those chasms would take time. A lot of time. The sun was harsh and he raised a hand to shield himself.

There was something happening below. Smoke billowed from of the chasms between two of the lowest plateaus. There was yelling, screaming, a clash of metal.

Katie froze. "Link—"

He was already moving. Link skidded down the slope nearby which was dangerously steep. The plateau above him mitigated the heat on his face, like a canvas shade. The marvelous glow of the sword beamed blue at his side.

The crying and screaming grew louder and desperate. He approached a group of people trying to fend off Lizafros and Bokoblins. Wagons were overturned, blood spilling onto the ground, people either trying to fight back or just ran away.

Link made himself known by latching onto a Lizafro, dragging it across the ground and slamming its head right onto his shield. He twisted around, switching from hookshot to sword and beheaded the monster.

Using the momentum, he cut the tongue off from one monster that tried to shoot from behind. Dozens lunged forward, like flies to honey. The influx of monsters nearly stumped him. This was more than what he'd countered in weeks.

A tongue shot his way and he sidestepped, grabbing it just as it passed then pulled and whirled. The monster screeched as it was thrown into its comrades, making an utter mess of things. Link let go and jerked back from a sharp blade, slamming it with his own and cutting the Bokoblin down.

More and more surrounded him, leaving little to no room for an escape. Link glared at them, sweat dripping down his face, the sun too hot. Then he smiled.

Moments later, he forgot himself, as he often did when faced against a tide of enemies. He hadn't fought in a way where his body acted on its own, giving his tired mind a temporarily break. His hard-earned skills fell into place like a lovely puzzle, each step was right, each swing of the sword was accurate, deadly. Sometimes he didn't just use his blade. Sometimes he would use his arrows as well, fire and lightening. It was so amusing to see them dance around, crying and screaming.

The battle invigorated him. He was completely surrounded, the possibility of escape was a fantasy. He was trapped in a storm of wooden clubs, rusted swords and small boomerangs. A place like this was just where he belonged. The battle invited him, excited him.

It took a moment before he realized that the battle was over, as if it had begun. He'd slain every single one of them, including those that tried to escape. Heh. Heart thudding in his chest, he put away his sword with a flourish and wiped the sweat from his face. That was fun.

People watched him. Troupers with strange outfits, holding up impromptu weapons like brooms and poles, with only a few yielding real weapons. With the battle at its end, people began to creep out from the cracks on the walls, and others from behind boulders.

They stared at him in a way that made him uncomfortable. That same adulation shined in their eyes, mouths hanging in awe and wonder.

"Thank you. Oh, thank you, good sir," one of them cried, walking up to Link and took Link's hand in two of his own, shaking it in energetic pumps.

The man had a balding head, a thin fragile frame with small hands. He wore the standard trouper's outfit with burgundy doublet that had smiley face pinned at one shoulder and an unhappy face on the other. The others wore similar but his was more opulent. "That had to be the worst thing we've ever had to come across."

Link scoffed, taking back his hand. He would've snapped at the man for the nerve to travel his people into a slaughter but Katie, ever so clever, spoke up for him.

"Happy to help," she chirped. "Are you the troupers Cett talked about?"

The man's bushy eyebrows rose. "A fairy. You aren't his. My, so colorful! What's your name, little one?"

"Katie. This is Link."

The man's wrinkly face smiled. "A pleasure. I'm Jen. This here is my troupe." The others looked at Link as if he came out from one of their storybooks. Kids snuck a glance at him behind their mother's skirts. Link couldn't help but smile a little.

"Father, Father!" a girl shrieked, shoving her way through the crowd. The girl wore similar to Jen but in a dress reaching her knees. Her face was sheer white. "Relin is hurt!"

Jen's bright face turned aghast. They followed her to where a young man laid on the ground, sword resting at his feet. Someone was tending to him but it didn't look good. They took him out of his jerkin, and peeled back the woolen shirt he wore underneath to show a nasty laceration that yawned across his lower abdomen.

"Graceful Hylia," Jen uttered. "What happened to you?!"

"He rushed at them!" the woman cried. "Again!"

Relin cringed, coughing weakly. "I…I'm sorry…"

"Sorry!" Jen snapped with the frightened anger that belonged only to a father. The old man fell to his side, gasping. "What did I tell you about fighting, boy! Someone bring the medical kit!"

"We can't, sir," a trouper said regretfully. "The wagon that had them is overturned. The stuff fell into the chasm."

Jen's hand trembled as it hovered over the nasty wound. The girl started crying. People either looked away or joined her.

This should be a good lesson to the old man. Close down business. No one was interested in shows with the rest of the world going to shit. Hearing the man choke on sobs, the girl wailing behind her hands made Link utter a curse under his breath.

"Idiot," he muttered, then gave up a blue elixir. "Here, this should help."

Jen touched the potion, as if he couldn't believe it. "Is this…"

"An elixir. A very powerful one." Katie looked at Link, no doubt shocked by his generosity. This blue one didn't come so easy. Eyes from Hionx, dry bones from Bokoblin, horns from a Lynel—yes he spent an hour riding on one to cut it off—then hours scouting over the woods for just the right herb..

All and all, this potion was meant to be his last desperate resort in case things go bad in a fight, real bad. He had another one, a gold one, that he will never use unless he was about to shake Death's hand.

"This will heal him up right away," Katie said to Jen, "but you have to stitch the wound."

"I'll go get my sewing kit," Jen's daughter said and ran to one of the wagons.

Jen uncorked the bottle and helped his son drink every last drop. All the while Link had to keep his fists at the side, watching all his hard work go down the drain. The other troupers watched nervously until Jen snapped at them to get to work. They scattered but not in a disorganized way. Wagons were pushed to their wheels, then a small search party was sent for anyone missing. Those wounded needed to make due with improvised bandages and herbs for now. Someone did a head count and assured Jen that all was accounted for.

The daughter of Jen, Wendy, helped her brother up. In matter of minutes, color returned to Relin's face, and soon he was able to stand on his own. He even had the nerve to smile. His father looked like he wanted to smack him but faltered and hugged his son instead.

"One of these days you're really going to get it," the old man said sharply.

Relin didn't care, grinning as he hopped from one foot to another, like a toddler who learned to walk. "I feel great!" he exclaimed.

"Elixirs come with special traits," Katie explained. "You have enough energy that would last you for a week."

Relin looked at Katie with awe and tried to poke her.

Katie colored in anger, and she moved right at Relin's face, causing him to step back with his hands raised. "Hey, stop it! We just saved your life!"

Link cleared his throat. "You mean I saved his life, all of them for that matter."

"Yes, you have." Jen looked towards Link reverently. "How can we ever repay you, young man?"

Link spoke before Katie could. "I want my horse back."

The man blinked but when Katie explained their situation about Epona, the older man looked disquieted. "She belonged to you? Should've known. Those men didn't look like good news, may Hylia have mercy on them."

Link folded his arms. "So you have her?"

Jen looked abashed, folding his hands in front of him. "I'm…um…I'm afraid we've already sold her."

"Are you serious?"

The man winced. "We needed money. A man offered a lot for her and even gave us one of his own, though Roster is pretty old."

He pointed at a red horse led over by one of the troupers. Old was right as the horse walked with a slow gait, head hanging low with mane sticking out. Link could feel his frustration venting in him, looking for an outlet.

"So who did you sell her off to?" he asked steadily.

The siblings exchanged looks. Their father looked troubled, and his hands, wilted papers more like, were fighting with each other. "We can offer you something else for your trouble—"

Link stepped forward. "Where is she?" he snapped. "I don't have time to play around, old man. Now who has her?"

Relin's eyes narrowed. If he so much as opened his mouth, Link will show him just how bad a wound can get when you don't have someone else's elixir to heal it. Link glared at the old man, who—to his credit—wasn't fazed at all, only apologetic.

"The man we sold her off to is not someone you'd want to meet, lad," Jen said gravely. "Even if we didn't need his money, we wouldn't dare refuse his offer. It was kind enough that he bothered to pay us for her in the first place." He gave Link a narrow look. "He is a dangerous man."

"That horse belongs to me," Link said sharply. "Dangerous, eh? I'll be the one that's dangerous when I get my hands on him. Where is he?"

"I'm not telling you if that's how you'll handle things," Jen said sternly. "You'll get yourself killed."

Link gritted his teeth. "Listen, you—"

"Link," Katie warned him. Her color softened when she spoke to Jen, "I'm sorry about him. He's always thinking he's invincible. Look, we really do need our horse back. Can you please tell us who has her? We could make a deal with him."

"Make a deal?" Link snapped. "She's my bloody horse! I'm not making a bloody deal for something that's mine."

"Link…"

"Let him try to make a deal. I swear if he doesn't give her back to me—" He stopped his noise when pain erupted on his skull, chattering his teeth, making him see two of everything.

"We would appreciate it if you could tell us where we would find him," Katie said a little too cheerfully, putting away her hammer.

The troupers stared at her for a moment. Jen scratched at his fading hair. "He has a manor in the village Dethel. That's where we're headed. But you'll mostly find him in the arena."

Link's pain was forgotten and he perked up. "Arena?"

Jen nodded. "It's some miles away from Dethel. He's one of the arena's most prominent patrons."

"Alright, so I'll find him there?"

"It's not so easy," Jen stressed. He looked exaggeratingly at Katie, hoping for her support but she didn't give it. He glanced at them both and shook his head in dismay when he realized something. "You two aren't from around here."

Link frowned. "So what?"

"Are you aware that that arena belongs to the Silver Company?"

"Wait, what?" Katie turned pink. "Are you serious?"

"Dead serious," Jen said.

This time his lovely daughter Wendy spoke up. "Yeah, it's kind of like a sign up place, you know? You go fight there, prove your worth, and if you're really impressive then they'll let you join the company."

"There's some bad things happening there," Jen said lowly. "Very bad things. With the government gone, they start to make fights to the death."

"That's illegal!" Katie cried.

"Yeah, no shit," Link said with a snort. "Isn't the whole company freaking illegal?"

"They're quite legal so long as they don't brag about their contracts," Jen said darkly. "And so long as they try to look good in public eye, which would be to have a nice and friendly match where you could surrender."

"And they're not playing nice anymore," Link said.

Jen nodded at that. "Really, the Zoras' arena is the most honorable one in the world now."

Link tried not to cringe at the memory of that. "I'll be going to him then."

"But the Silver Company—"

"—is in a power struggle. I heard enough from Cett. Look, I don't really care. I'm getting my horse back."

Link could swear that Epona wasn't worth this trouble but he made it this far for her, and, well, she was a gift from Ruto. The horse belonged to him, and if there was one thing Link hated the most it was when someone thought to take his things from him.

He crackled his knuckles, getting excited. "If this guy's as bad as you say, then I wouldn't mind meeting him. A battle to the death, eh? Sounds like fun."

"He's a politician," Jen told him flatly.

That ruined Link's ardor. A fighter was one thing but a bloody politician? "So he's just a loud mouth hiding behind a bunch of people?"

"A dangerous bunch of people." Jen remained obstinate about that. Link didn't understand why the man was so concern about a random stranger when he nearly got his own people killed.

Link locked eyes with him. "One way or another, I'm getting my horse back. So are you going to pay me back or what?"

Katie pounded him again. "I'm really sorry for this idiot," she hissed, then glowed genially towards Jen. "We really do need your help though."

Link grounded his teeth, cringing at the sudden dull ache that throbbed the back of his head. He could hear a snicker and gave a dark look to Relin. The guy stopped his noise at once.

"You two are serious on going?" Jen's eyes were small beads surrounded by wrinkly, saggy skin. His lips were so thin, they disappeared when he pursed them. "Lad?"

"I'm going to that village."

"Very well then but I must tell you that you have to be very careful—"

"My words and days, I know—"

"This man is friends with the leader of the Silver Company," Jen cut him off sharply. "You're a good fighter, lad, no doubt about it, but those people are trained like soldiers, maybe even better than them."

Link really didn't need to hear this from an old frog. He wondered if Banard would be there. The penalty for going against the company would earn you a nice, quiet and final visit from them.

They were just like him, even better. They aren't just fighting to live but had made it their living to do so.

Some of them might have escaped as well, Link thought, suppressing a shudder. He will not show it in front of Jen. They might have the marks though. Just like him.

If he came up against another Banard, would he be able to beat him? Link wasn't planning on losing to anyone, no matter how skilled they are, no matter how old or strong. Losing wasn't an option for him. It was never an option.

But…is he strong enough for the company?

Guess we'll find out, he thought, sitting on the lead wagon with the rest of the caravans all set to go. With his hands behind his head, he did his best to ignore the chatter of Katie and Jen.

Instead, he curiously found comfort in the creaking turn of the wheels and the clopping of the horses.

---

Don't worry, this arc won't be too long. Roughly ten chapters but it is important for Link and Katie to go through with this. Hope you guys enjoy this one.