Chapter 11

In Which Link Goes for a Ride

Naydra swung and swayed down the main thoroughfare of the village, trailed by balls of blue light. At least, a pretty good imitation of Naydra. As good an imitation as could be made with paper and fabric, steered by a few of the townsfolk, and pursued by children with paper lanterns. 'Naydra' would run through the town, chasing away the bad spirits of the previous year and ensuring good fortune for the next.

I stood with Aryll, passing out sweets and small toys to the children. She had tried to make herself popular in town the last few days, bringing gifts, fussing over babies, sitting in on sewing circles. She had sponsored the feast for the New Year's festival as well. Many were still skeptical of the canal plan, although though some were receptive to the idea of a safe sea route. Those that had suffered monster attacks on the road were the most receptive. Opposition from the Textile Guild was still fierce, and she wasn't above trying to curry some personal favor.

"They're acting like I'm trying to cut them out!" Aryll had complained, as we walked back to Hateno after the raid on the monster camp.

I stared at her side-long for a long beat.

"Alright, alright, maybe I am trying to cut them out. But people vote with their rupees. If Hateno makes a better product, people will still buy their fabric. And the Guild isn't the whole town - everyone will benefit by having a direct link to Hyrule. I can't let Borges' interest in lining his own pockets slow things down for the entire kingdom."

I smirked. I wouldn't want to be the one standing in her way, that was for sure.

Once in town, she had demurred to even discuss the issue, claiming she didn't want business to get in the way of the holiday celebrations.

"I just love the costumes and the lanterns!" she said to anyone who would listen, in an uncharacteristically saccharine tone. "I have since I was a little girl."

Well, that might be true, I thought, but it wasn't why she was delaying. It seemed to me she was just leaving a bit more time for her to get to know her enemy before charging into battle.

A group of children ran up to us, begging for candy. One boy stared at me, open mouthed. He took the candy from Aryll with an outstretched hand, never taking his gaze from me. I waved. The boy gave a small terrified squeak and ran away.

"What an odd child," Aryll remarked. "What was that about, I wonder?"

I knew exactly what it was about, as the little boy had taken to silently following me around town at a respectable distance, ever since I crash-landed in his goat pasture chasing after the real Naydra. Any time I tried to engage him, he spooked and ran off. I didn't tell Aryll any of this, though, not wanting to explain why I had been chasing Naydra in the first place. I just shrugged.

"Come on," she said, "Let's get upwind of this cookfire, the smell of meat is making me sick."

I thought that was a bit odd, she normally loved the smells coming out of Kumi's kitchen, but maybe the style was different here. We wandered down the street, looking at the lanterns and decorations. We eventually came to the main square where people danced to the beat of drums and the hooting of ocarinas. Boudie flashed me a wide smile as she spun around with Scavo, who only had eyes for her.

"Link!" Ilia came running up. "Dance with me!" She grabbed me by the hand and pulled. I may have hesitated, but Aryll grinned deviously and gave me a sharp shove. In spite of myself, soon I was spinning and laughing, swinging between Ilia, Boudie, and even Lucia while the villagers clapped out the time from the sides.

I fell into bed that night happier than I'd felt in years. Maybe I'd truly found my place.

…..

"Lady Aryll, you look positively radiant!" crooned Borges as he kissed Aryll on each cheek.

I thought he was just being a flatterer, but her skin did seem to have a bit of an extra glow to it. Goponga was often muggy, maybe the mountain air here agreed with her.

"Oh, you're too sweet. Please, come in and sit down, we'll discuss the situation over drinks, the mead here is second to none."

I stood at the wall behind Aryll's chair while she toasted Bo, Borges, and the other guild masters. She took a deep draught and smacked her lips approvingly.

"It really is excellent, it must sell for such a good price in Castle Town."

"Unfortunately, my lady," said the master brewer, "the tropical weather in Faron spoils the mead, so we aren't able to send it by ship. And it's hardly economical to send it over land."

"Oh, you don't say? And you don't send it down the Squabble because…?"

"Stop feigning the ignorant girl, Duchess," Borges sneered. "You know as well as anyone that the Squabble isn't navigable. We all know why you're here. You want to destroy this village with your canal."

Aryll savored another sip of the mead, then carefully wiped the corners of her mouth with a napkin. She held the napkin in front of her, slipping the cloth through her hands.

"This is fine linen. I'd like to pay my respects to the farmer who grew such a crop." The guild masters looked back at her in stony silence. "Oh. That's right. The flax is from Goponga. The thread was probably spun with my own hands. Is it a crime, to want to reap the rewards of my own work? Would it be so bad, if the brewer's guild could expand their market? What about you, master fletcher? What if you could get saltpetre from Hebra in half the time? I'm sure his Majesty would be quite pleased to have such a steady source of explosive arrows." Her gaze had so much fire in it that each of the men quailed under it as she addressed them in turn.

"The answer is no! Don't think you can come here and work your wiles, you little bitch–"

Bo slapped his hand on the table. "Borges! Control yourself!"

Aryll addressed the brewer, not even deigning to give Borges a response. "You have six daughters, do you not? I can't imagine the strain of providing a dowry for so many. Did you know in Goponga, the groom's family pays a bride price? If you send your daughters to me, I will train them as weavers. I'll pay twice what the Hateno guild pays. A woman could live a comfortable life in Goponga, married or no." She addressed the entire table. "There is a place in Goponga for any daughter of Hateno looking for opportunity."

Borges released the strangled cry of a wounded animal. He stood up and shoved the table towards Aryll. It caught on the rug and flipped over, flinging mead and fruit everywhere. He started advancing around the table, fists raised. He looked completely unhinged.

I stepped forward, jumping up on the edge of the overturned table to give myself some momentum. My foot connected with Borges' sternum, knocking him flat on his back. The wind went out of him, and he looked up at me, stunned. "Try me," I growled, quietly enough that only he could hear.

There was a general furor around the table. Some were shouting at Borges for his outburst, some at me for my interference, others fussing over Aryll. My foot on Borges' neck, I turned to look at her. She was very calmly wiping the mead from her face, as if it were nothing more than a light spring rain.

"I want nothing more than the success of both our peoples. And I do not believe the success of one excludes the other. But I'm warning you–"

"You're warning us?!" Borges shouted, voice slightly strangled. I shoved my foot a bit harder on his neck until he was silenced.

"I"m warning you," Aryll continued, "that if you continue to stand in my way, I will have no choice but to treat you as an enemy." She reached behind her, holding out a hand. Her maid placed a thick envelope in her hand, printed with the tripartite emblem of Nayru. "I hold in my hand a copy of the Treaty of the Battle of Rabia Plain, as well as a letter from King Dorephan. As you may recall, the treaty gives rule of all of the lands of Lanayru to the Zora, including the Naydra snowfield. These lands are leased back to Hateno at no cost."

I remembered this vaguely from a conversation with my mother, years ago. The treaty dated back hundreds of years, since the time of Dorephan's grandfather. Hateno had used the mountain and the snowfield for logging for most of those years, and as long as they maintained the path up to the Spring of Wisdom, the Zora were happy with that arrangement.

"However. If Hateno continues its opposition, the Zora are prepared to raise this issue to King Rhoam when they travel to the Castle for the Princess' birthday next month. They will ask to transfer the leasehold to Goponga."

There was a low furor around the table as the guild masters processed this information.

"You can't do this!" the master forester objected.

"I can, and I will. I hope you can import enough wood from Akkala to heat the town!"

I tried to keep my face impassive. Mipha might have joked that the Zora didn't intervene in Hylian affairs, might have given the impression of being shy and retiring, but I knew this was her doing. It really was a coup de grace.

She passed the copy of the treaty to Mayor Bo. "Link, Master Borges seems to have tripped. Help him up, please." And she swept out.

….

The night before Aryll was due to leave was a full moon, and I was on edge. I walked in circles around the edge of town, checked multiple times on the men standing guard at the gates. I made sure there were water buckets at the ready at the wells and at every house in case of fire. Finally I decided to go to the Inn, thinking a drink would settle my nerves. And maybe Aryll was still up.

I walked up the hill towards the Inn and heard voices drifting down from the patio. I wasn't trying to eavesdrop, per se, but I heard Reseda say my name and I was curious. So I crept closer on silent feet.

"I'm surprised you don't just ask Link to marry Borges' daughter. He's a fine young man, and a generous settlement on the young couple could make the way very smooth for you."

Aryll sighed. "Yes. That would have been the easiest way out."

"Why don't you?"

"Because he would do it. As soon as I asked, without question, without thinking about the long-term implications. He would do anything if he thought it would help me."

"So what's the problem, then?"

"There's a girl in Goponga, she's very sweet. When she was born, she was trapped in the birthing canal. When they finally freed her she was as blue as a nightshade and they thought she was dead. Finally though, she began to cry, ever so feebly. But she's always been a little odd, and she never learned to speak properly. She mostly hums and sings and babbles. "

"I'm sorry, I don't see what that has to do…"

"I've heard her make more insightful comments than I've ever heard from Lucia. That one might be the most idiotic girl in all of Hyrule."

Reseda squawked with laughter.

Aryll continued. "In all seriousness though, he's had so few opportunities to make his own choices. He had to take care of us both after Mother died, and Father sent him to the Citadel years before his time. He's risked his life just to keep his freedom. How can I take that away from him, after everything he's done for me? And he's still so young."

I heard Reseda snort.

"Yes, I do realize how that sounds. I didn't marry for myself, I married for my people. I'm fortunate that my husband is a kind and generous man. I know my mother was not so lucky. But I can let Link be his own person."

"I can understand that. Abe always said the ability to marry for love far outweighed a dukedom."

"You must miss him very much. I wish I remembered him better."

"You were so small when he passed. He was a remarkable man, and a wonderful husband. He cared for you and Link greatly."

"To Uncle Abe."

"To Abe." I heard the sound of glasses clinking together, and a long silence.

"At any rate," Aryll continued, "I'm surprised to hear you advocate for Link to marry anyone but Ilia. It seems like everyone in town is taking bets on when that's going to happen."

"I love Ilia like my own daughter, and I want her to be happy. If that's with Link, then I am happy. If it's with someone else, then I will be happy too."

Was that true, I wondered. Everyone in town thought I would marry Ilia? I guess we had been spending a lot of time together. Again I pictured Ilia surrounded by a passel of blonde children. Was that what I wanted? Regardless, tonight was not the night to worry about it. No one would be having children with Ilia if she got carried off by bokoblins. And I did need to consider if proposing to Lucia would genuinely help Aryll. She was right – I absolutely would if she asked. And maybe have to find a way to spend most of my married life out of Hateno.

I didn't want them to know I had been listening, so I crept back down the hill, then walked back up, whistling merrily. I strode onto the patio and sat down next to Aryll. Reseda called to the night porter for another drink.

"You look nervous, Link."

I waved up at the moon.

Reseda laughed. "I've never known a man to pay so much attention to the moon's cycles. If I didn't know better, I'd think there was some girl in town you were worried about."

I rolled my eyes at Reseda, but then noticed that Aryll had gone white as a sheet, staring into space slightly slack-jawed.

"Aryll?" Reseda said quietly. "Are you alright, dear?"

"If tonight is a full moon, then…" Still slightly slack-jawed, Aryll began counting on her fingers.

"Oh!" Reseda interjected. "So soon?"

"I think so."

"How far along do you think you are?"

"I…I don't know… three months maybe? I've been so busy lately I just lost track."

My head turned back and forth between them, like watching a children's game of hot potato. "What…" I started to ask, utterly confused.

Aryll still just stared off into space, looking like she had been struck by lightning.

Reseda raised her glass to me and smiled warmly. "Congratulations, Link, you're going to be an uncle."

I looked to Aryll to confirm, and she nodded.

I took her in my arms and hugged her tightly. I whispered in her ear what an excellent mother she would be.

She looked at me, tears welling in her eyes. "I hope so," she said, barely above a whisper.

The night air was rent by three short, loud blasts of a sheep's horn. I stood up so fast the stool skittered to the floor behind me.

"Get inside. Bar the doors," I commanded. I ran to the farmstead up the hill, where I could get a view of the land.

A score or more of Lizalfos were working their way up the incline from Hateno Bay, heading towards the town. The numbers were staggering, but we had the advantage of high ground. There was no time to waste though. I ran back down the hill, looking for my band of fighters. I found Boudie, told her to grab her bow and meet me back up the hill. The others I told to get rocks, bricks, anything heavy, and to get the townsfolk to start boiling oil.

I made my way back up the hill, and tried to help Boudie pick off as many as we could while we waited for reinforcements. Damn it all, there were too many of them. I couldn't get my mind off of Aryll, holed up in the Inn. What if they broke through? Fuck it. I drew my sword and charged down the hill.

I slashed and dodged and rolled, everything else being tuned out by the rush of blood in my ears and the sound of metal on metal. I vaguely heard someone calling my name, but I tuned it out as the lizalfos fell before me. They just kept coming! How were there so many of them?

I was snapped out of my trance when a big stone block came bouncing down the slope. I managed to duck out of the way as it took down two of the monsters. I looked up the slope, Scavo was there, another block in his hands.

"Link! Get up here! We can't see where you are!"

My blood was up and I wanted nothing more than to keep slashing indiscriminately, but I realized I was hamstringing my team by being in the line of fire. I started climbing up, and as I got closer, Boudie was able to start shooting again.

"Yeah, good shot! You show 'em, Bou–" I watched as three arrows arced in perfect harmony up the hill, towards where Scavo and Boudie stood. One of the arrows lodged itself in Scavo's throat, cutting off his cheers in a spray of blood. He dropped instantly.

A mighty roar cut off Boudie's scream. I turned towards the sound, scarcely able to believe it. I had heard of Lynels in the wildest woods of Akkala and the remotest plateaus of the Gerudo Highlands, but I could scarce believe one would be here. I didn't have time to react as the beast bent low and charged up the hill with terrifying speed. The impact sent me flying, and I rolled down the hill a hundred feet, dazed and winded.

I heard screams, and roars, and the hiss of lizalfos. I tried to make the world stop spinning, so I could get back to the village. A tiny ball of light floated toward me. I couldn't bring it into focus. It looked like it had… wings? The little ball circled around me, and I felt instantly energized. I jumped up and ran. The Lynel was running amok in the village, swinging its giant club back and forth with abandon. I had an idea. Was this total madness? Taking a deep breath, I ran up behind it and leaped onto its back. Holding on as tightly as I could with my legs, I whaled on it with the sword. It bucked and spun fiercely, but not for nothing had I been the one to gentle Selene. It did eventually get the best of me though, flinging me back onto the street.

"Link! Take cover!"

Boudie was there, standing defiantly. She took aim, and hit the Lynel right in the face. It stumbled, and I took the opportunity to land a heavy blow. Finally, that was enough, and it fell dead.

I worked my way through the town, helping the farmers armed with little more than sticks and pitchforks flush out the remaining Lizalfos. I nearly cried with relief when I saw pink streaks start to show in the eastern sky.

I made my way back to high ground, wanting to make sure the surrounding areas were clear. I passed by Boudie, sobbing over Scavo's body. Several of the weaver women were there with her, and I didn't want to intrude. I didn't know what I could even say. I kept moving.

The sun peeked over the mountains. I stood on the cliffs overlooking Hateno Bay, watching the rays sparkle on the calm waters. I pulled off my torn, bloody tunic and wiped my sword clean with it.

"I'll send you some new clothes when I get back to Goponga."

I didn't even turn my head to look, but Aryll walked up beside me and tucked her hand into my elbow.

"Everyone down in the village is accounted for. Bo and Isa's house is badly damaged, but they can rebuild." She swallowed. "They moved Scavo's body into the loomhouse until funeral arrangements can be made."

I nodded. We looked at the ocean, and said nothing for a long time.

"I'm so scared, Link. I want our people to prosper and thrive. How can they, when they're under constant threat of attack like this? How can I–" her voice caught in her throat. She swallowed hard and continued. "How can I raise my child like this?" She finished quietly.

I didn't know how to answer her. I just put my arm around her shoulders and squeezed her tight. Eventually, she took her leave and headed back down to the village.

I thought about my little niece or nephew, of the tiny carved owl burning atop the corpse of the baker's daughter, Sidon and Rivan belly flopping into the water, a golden-haired child perched on Ilia's hip.

Go, and bring peace to Hyrule, Hylia had said. The children of Hyrule would never know peace if things carried on like this.

Your wounds shall be healed, she had said. But there would be no healing of Scavo's wounds.

Have no fear, Farore had told me. Everyone I cared about would continue to live in terror until things were set to right.

I turned to the north, to face Mount Lanayru. I dropped to my knees right there on the grass, tipping my face up to the sky.

"Just tell me!" I screamed. "Just tell me what to do!"