"Duck!" Link shouted to his troops and dived down behind a rock outcropping just as a large explosion claimed a nearby house. Flaming debris was hurled up in the air and landed on his back, but the pain was hardly felt. What he and felt the most was the searing heat; it was as if hell had broken loose.
"Where did that come from?" one of the troops ducking next to Link shouted.
"I don't know; I can't see anything, but I tell you one thing: whoever sent it will be dead in a little while," Link responded and drew his bow. Another moment and an arrow was nocked across the taut string. Sparing a few moments out of hiding, he found a good target: a mounted enemy Malchadite racing up to one of the village's women, intent on hewing off her head.
The Malchadite stopped short when Link's arrow penetrated his neck and carried him off of his steed. He fell under the legs of the horse and was crushed immediately. After great struggle to escape its rider's tangling body, the animal reared up and took off into the shadows of the night, leaving the dead man and his comrades behind.
Link shot a few more arrows as cover to himself before he jumped out from behind the rock and ran up to the woman. "Come on!" he shouted and grabbed her hand. "You'll be safer over with us." Because of the shock of her near death experience, Link practically dragged the villager to where the rest of his men were hiding.
Safely behind the rock, Link drew his sword and raised it in the air. The firelight glinted off the blade as he shouted, "Listen up, you guys. After the next bomb drops I want you to bolt out of here and engage the enemy sword to sword; it's the only way we have a chance to win." The next bomb blew and a great roar rose up from his troops as they drew their own weapons and charged out from behind their hiding place to meet the enemy in hand-to-hand combat.
Immediately, two enemy Malchadites ran up to attack Link, but both fell dead at the blade of his sword. "I love this sword," he murmured and stared at its red stained blade. His sword was the most lethal of swords, for it was forged from Death Mountain, made by the greatest metalworker, Biggoron. The unparalleled sharpness and the elegant designs covering each side of the blade down to the hilt made Galadhad the most coveted of weapons.
A loud cry brought his attention to the world behind him. Link saw one of his men lying on the ground, a Malchadite standing over him with his sword in the air, ready to strike at any moment. Springing into action, Link pulled the only other weapon of his off his belt, aimed it, and sent the harpoon on the hookshot straight into the Malchadite's sword hand. As the shot retracted, the enemy was pulled along with it until he was staring up into Link's deadly eyes. "Goodnight," Link said coldly and brought his hand down across his adversary's face, knock him out or perhaps killing him.
Another explosion rocked the ground and incinerated another house. Running away from the newly created fire were two Hylian warriors. One was the commander and the other an ordinary soldier. "We need to get the Malchadites out of town!" the commander shouted. "There are too many people around that might get hurt if we don't do something soon."
"Yeah, I know," Link agreed. "But there is no end to these guys; you kill one, and two more take his place. The most we can do is stand our ground and hope they run out of men before we do."
The other man grimaced. "With the casualties we've experienced that better come very soon. Otherwise we won't have any troops left."
Link didn't know how to respond to that, so he gave them one order: to continue fighting until not one enemy remained standing. "We won't lose yet." The men hurried off into the blackness to resume fighting with the nearest foe they could find. "Not while I'm still alive," he murmured.
Link ran where there was the most congestion of Malchadites and quickly cleared that area. These people aren't good fighters, he thought. They only win because they fight in groups and outnumber their opponents.
A number of battle cries brushed by his ears. Coming his way were two Malchadite warriors with a number of pitchfork-wielding farmers on their heels. Link couldn't help but smile.
He had better get rid of the enemy before they figured out that they outclassed their pursuers. Ducking in between two large buildings, the dark night and heavy shadows covered him with their foggy hands. The black attire he wore simply added to his invisibility.
As the two fleeing Malchadites charged by the opening in the buildings, Link thrusted Galadhad out, cleanly severing the head of the nearest enemy and cutting a fourth of the way through the neck of the farthest one. Moments later, the outraged farmers were upon the survivor and killed him.
Always intrigued by different armor styles, Link took precious time to scrutinize that of the Malchadite. The dead man wore a leather helmet, leather armor, and the strangest pair of boots he has ever seen-a fairly light load for this type of warfare. Bending down to get a closer inspection of the footwear, Link wracked his brain until he remembered the style of shoe before him; they were cloth moccasins designed to cushion the ground under the wearer and make travel noiseless. Usually they weren't used unless the person was crossing over leaves or something that could crackle under feet, like crossing through a forest...
Then something in the back of his mind clicked as the information settled in. There were only two entrances into this town: one was the regular entrance that overlooked miles upon miles of flat prairie grounds-no one could ever walk over those fields without being seen ten miles away. The other entrance was a large gate at the back of town that entered into a thick forest. He had a strong hunch that the stream of Malchadites was coming from the back gate. Also, with autumn stiffening the leaves and sending them tumbling to the ground, the only way to navigate silently through a forest heavy-laden with leaves unheard would be to wear some form of cushioning footwear. With great excitement and hope that his idea is correct, Link worked his way to the far end of the town. "Close the gate! Close the gate!"
Another explosion rocked the ground, nearly sending him to his knees. Someone had better find whoever thinks it's amusing to blow buildings sky high before *I* do! The heat from more burning houses washed over his face and the splinter of wood rang all around him. The commander was right: if the battle weren't moved, Bolragade would be lost.
Link reached the short flight of stone stairs that led up to the metal gate. As he ran up the steps, enemies ran down to meet him, swords held high. Unfortunately for the Malchadites, when they reached the ground, they each had a thin, vertical hole in their chests. Shouts drifted down from the top near the gate as a chain of soldiers raced to the village floor. There did not seem to be an end to that chain, either. Thinking quickly, he pulled out Galadhad and sliced the chock that held the gate in its open position. A metallic clang signaled the gate had been closed, and Link saw only a few enemies rushing toward him and assumed the rest were trapped on the other side.
The ten troops not caught by the gate's closing formed a circle around Link, all with their swords, clubs, staffs, anything that could inflict damage, drawn. The way the men held themselves, in anger and rage, was more than enough to say they were thoroughly unhappy. The first soldier ran up to Link and traded blow after blow with metal against metal before the Malchadite spluttered to the ground to rest eternally. Two more were dispatched similarly. At the sight of Link running into the middle of the circle with his sword raised above his head, an orange glow surrounding it, they paused.
Not sure what to expect, the fighters charged forward in unison to attack Link, but the stored energy in his glowing blade came forth, forming a perfect orange circle which enveloped the soldiers and severed their upper bodies from their lower. The orange cloud extended so far as to touch a few of the Malchadites behind the gate; there were quite a few half-bodies and spare hands lying on the ground.
Link turned to the survivors on the gate's other side. Most were running back into the forest, screaming as if a demon was on their tail. Oh well, he thought. Let them flee. Maybe they can inform their leader of what they're up against and leave Hyrule alone.
Turning around, Link watched another house erupt in flame. The residents were frantically running from the wreckage, hoping to get to another shelter. This time, though, from the brightness of the explosion, he saw exactly where the Malchadite bomber was: on top of the town's inn, the Boar's Back, in the town center. This man will pay. The Hylian general yanked out his hookshot and shot after shot pulled himself onto a building next to the inn.
Silently, he climbed the rest of the way to and up the large structure. With the bomber fully absorbed in his own activities, Link easily sneaked up behind the Malchadite. Grabbing the poor man with one arm, Link held him up to eye level by the collar of his shirt. The Malchadite tried to bring a knife out of the folds of his coat, but Link grabbed his arm and twisted it till it was no use. The fright was plain on the man's face. "Please, don't kill me," he begged.
Link laughed a cold, bitter laugh. "You burn these buildings and the people in them to ashes." The acid was clear in his voice. "You take pleasure in slaughtering the residents of this town, my town, and watching them suffer." He now had the man hanging over the edge of the tall, four-story building. "You do not deserve to be saved." He let go of the enemy and watched as his body fell the large distance to hit the ground with a loud crack. He didn't get up after that.
Link picked up the bag containing the bombs and jumped from building to building until he safely landed on the ground. The bombs were disposed of in the well where they detonated harmlessly in the water.
"General!" someone shouted. It was the commander. "The Malchadites have surrendered. Should we take them alive or...not?"
After a long pause and thought, Link answered, "Take them alive; we'll need them for information. Round them up and get them out as soon as possible." Link turned to walk back to the front of Bolragade. At least with the battle over he could be home with his wife.
In less than an hour the surrendering Malchadite soldiers were marching out of town, shackles around their ankles. Some looked relieved to be alive and others like they would rather be dead. The morose-looking men knew the consequences of war and also knew that once information of this battle leaked out, no Hylian would go easy on them.
Link watched as the surviving Hylian troops marched confidently out into the green fields where they would assemble before the trip back to Hyrule Castle. He smiled at the new victory he could add to his plethora of other victories and started making his way out to the pasture, but a shrill shriek echoed through the town from the unburned section, stopping him in mid-stride. He turned to face the direction of the scream, fists clenched till his knuckles were white. This was not going to be good for the man who caused the scream, Malchadite or not.
He proceeded through the crowds of villagers frantically trying to put out the fires, and to the group of untouched houses. Now, if only he knew exactly where the scream came from. He looked through the first alley between the closest two houses; nothing. The second and third also had the same results.
But, in the fourth alley were two people: a teenage girl, no more than sixteen, and an enemy soldier who seemed to want something from the girl that she didn't want to give. Link hid in the shadows and silently stalked up to the pair. Just as the Malchadite placed his hands on her shirt and began to tear it open, Link reached out his arms, encircling them around the man's neck. A quick twist and the man fell to the ground, dead.
"Are you okay?" Link asked the girl. Now that his eyes were adjusted to the darkness, he noticed that the girl had blond hair cascading down to her lower back, shining blue eyes, and the well-formed body of a seventeen-year-old.
"I'll be fine. Thank you," she said in a shaky voice. Only a trace of tears could be seen on her face. She tried to button up her shirt as best she could, but there were a few gaps where the buttonhole met no button. "My name's Jesika."
"Link. General Link." He held out his hand and took her own, shaking it and then remembered something. "I better get you back to your family. With all of the commotion going on, they must be worried sick. Where do you live?"
At the mention of the word "family", her eyes fell to the ground. "My family's dead. They...they died years ago...when I was little." She paused briefly, reminiscing back to her younger years. "I was wondering: I have nowhere to go and...well, could you take me to Hyrule Castle with you? I know how to cook and do laundry, and I won't be a problem."
He thought about it and finally nodded. "Sure. When we get to Hyrule Castle, I'll see what I can do." He turned and started walking away. "Come on, we're leaving now." Jesika followed him out of the village to where the group of warriors had assembled.
When Link was out in the field, a group of warriors rushed up to him with cheers and smiles. A roar of shouts was directed in his direction, but he had no idea what anyone said. He sighed and smiled and ran up on a nearby hill. When everyone had finally stopped talking, he said, "Great job, you guys. We sure showed those Malchadites, didn't we?" A loud outburst of affirmative cries drowned out the next few sentences of Link. "Tomorrow, we'll head back to Hyrule Castle. I'm sure your families will be dying to see you again. But, until then, take the rest of the night for time to yourselves."
Another large cheer rose from the Hylian soldiers as Link descended from the hilltop and rejoined Jesika, this time with fatigue heavy on his eyes. He walked with a slight stagger. "I am extremely tired, so I'm going to sleep soon. You're more than welcome to sleep in my tent-you might want to with some of the looks that the men are giving you-if you don't mind sleeping in close quarters."
Noticing some of the glances aimed her way Jesika quickly replied, "I think I'll take your tent." She had never met anyone interested in anything *but* her body, and she knew what a man's interest could be like, as proven with the all-hands Malchadite. She followed him to the center of the celebrating men where a few tents had been pitched. Link walked into the biggest of the tents and she followed.
"Make yourself at home," Link said. "And try to get some rest; we'll be leaving early tomorrow. I'll be outside for a little while. After all, a general should celebrate with his men." He gave a tired smile and left, leaving her alone. Along the back of the tent was a pile of sleeping bags and blankets. She grabbed one of each and laid it out on the ground near the center. That way, if someone entered the tent from any direction, she could keep a half-tent length between that person and her.
She removed her shirt and skirt, folding and laying them neatly by the sleeping bag. The crisp night air felt cold on her skin, and she hurried to slip in between the folds of the bag. Soon sleep fell on her like a bird on its prey.
A strong push on her shoulder roused her from her dreamless sleep. When she rolled on her side to face the other way, the pushing only got worse. "Wake up," someone spoke. The voice sounded somewhat like Link's. "We'll be leaving in a short while."
Oh. Jesika wearily opened her eyes and propped her body up on an elbow. "I'm up, I'm up. Just give me enough time to dress before you collapse the tent." When she was once again alone, she left the covers sprawled on the floor and put on her clothes. She couldn't wait to get to the Castle so she could get a new shirt; she had no intention of letting people stare at something they shouldn't be staring at.
She yawned, stretched, and walked out of the tent into the gentle glow of the morning's red sun. She couldn't find Link anywhere. "Link!" she shouted into the crowd, drawing nearly everyone's attention. Oops. She was about to say something to the men, but a melodic neigh cut off her retort.
A large, beautiful brown horse stopped at her side. On it rode Link. "Come on," he said. "You can ride up here with me on Epona. Link pulled her up to sit behind him in the leather saddle. "Hold on tight," he said as Epona bolted to the front of the now marching group.
"You might want something to eat," Link advised, handing her a piece of meat. "It's the only food we'll have until we get home."
"Thanks," Jesika said and dived in on the strip of meat, realizing how famished she really was. "How long until we get to Hyrule Castle?"
"It'll be quite a while," he answered. "Probably not until sundown. If you get bored, watch the scenery. That's what I do."
For the first hour, watching nature roll by was fascinating, but quickly after it got dull. For another hour, Jesika's thoughts traveled over to her home village. She remembered walking home from her daily walk that night many days ago when men came running down from the forest and attacked. She ran into a store and stayed there under siege for the next few days, not daring to come out for fear of losing her life. Then, after what felt like years, the enemy had disappeared, and she walked out only to be jumped by one of the attacking soldiers. Fortunately Link showed up and did something she could not: take care of herself.
She rested her head against his back and drifted off to sleep.
She woke up when a loud whiny rang in her ears. "What is it?" Jesika asked as she opened her eyes, taking in the trees and hills. Over the many rolling hills and past the tumbling plains stood Hyrule Castle, bathed in the red glow of the sun.
"Sorry to wake you; you looked so relaxed, but I thought you might want to see what a sunset on the Hylian Plains looked like. What do you think of it?"
"It's gorgeous," she breathed, taking in the orange mountain tops and the red grass in their entirety. "I've never seen anything like it."
Link smiled. "It gets even better at the Castle. If we can get there before the sun goes down, you'll get a real sight. Hold on." Jesika strengthened her grip around his stomach as Epona charged forward, leaving clouds of dirt in her wake.
No more than an hour later, Epona and her riders reached the drawbridge leading to Hyrule Village. But instead of dismounting and crossing through, they took a side trail that led around the fortified wall directly to the Castle. "Hmm, no one's here. Probably didn't know we would be here so soon. Well, let's go in and give them a surprise."
They dismounted and Epona ran off the graze in the beautiful pastures. Jesika experienced a wave of envy as she compared these luscious green pastures filled with rows of flowers of every kind to the dull brown fields that grew near her home. Now she believed her fellow villagers when they said these meadows were one of the most gorgeous sights a person can see in his or her lifetime.
Link made his way to the main gate. Since it was open, he proceeded in and entered into the foyer. "You live here?" Jesika asked, gaping at the marvelous paintings and marble statues decorating the room. She tried not to set her feet on the elegant tiled floor for fear of putting smudges on the perfect white stone.
"Yeah, this is the Palace. Come on, I'll introduce you to Zelda." He was about to start down one of the many halls when two figures emerged from a room. One was a palace guard and the other was a very beautiful woman. Both were deeply engrossed in a conversation about something she couldn't hear.
"Oh, you're home!" the woman exclaimed. A pang of jealousy washed through Jesika as the woman rushed up to Link and kissed him. She wore a pink and white dress with her shiny blond hair tied up in a bow and a diamond studded tiara that made all other jewelry look cheap and pathetic. Jesika presumed that this was Zelda.
"I want you to meet someone," Link said after he broke the kiss. He turned to blond girl at his side. "Zel, this is Jesika, someone I met and who I promised a place to work at the Castle. Jesika, this is Princess Zelda."
"Hi," Zelda said, smiling charmingly. "We'll find you a place to work, I'm sure. Can you cook? We're in great need of people who know how to prepare food." Jesika answered positively. "Good, I'll have Alcabar take you over to the kitchen. The head chef should give you something to start on right away, if you're not too tired. Or you can start tomorrow. Your choice." Alcabar, the Palace guard, stepped out from the doorway he never left and directed the young girl down one of the halls to where the kitchen was located.
"What are you doing home so early?" Zelda asked, once they were alone. "No one was expecting you for at least another two days. We are not yet ready for the reception banquet."
"The attack wasn't as large as anyone thought it would be. Besides, the Malchadites surrendered halfway into the battle. Cowards." Then a thought came to Link as he felt his stomach growl. "Can I have something to eat? I'm starved."
"Oh, you poor thing," Zelda teased. "Go to our room; I'll have a meal delivered to you."
"Huh.... What about you?"
She smiled at him. "Since you and all of the soldiers are back, Daddy will want the banquet's planning to be done immediately so we can celebrate the victory with it still being fresh in your minds. And since I'm taking charge of the planning and setup for this event, I have to make sure nothing goes wrong. I probably won't be back until after midnight, so don't stay awake for me." She kissed him goodbye and rushed down one of the halls as fast as her legs could carry her.
There were many other questions that he wanted to ask but would have to ask them later. He might as well get a good night's sleep; the battle fatigue still hadn't left him, and he was tired.
Link walked through the maze of halls until he arrived at two large wooden doors: his palatial suite. The first room opened up into a large living room. A couch was in the middle with many shelves topped with plates, silverware, anything else Zelda fancied to show resting against the walls. But he walked straight into his bedroom to where a large dresser stood. In it, he set his sword, shield, bow, quiver, and hookshot and sighed in relief. It felt like a large granite block had been taken off his back after his small arsenal had been put away.
He then walked into the bathroom and filled the marble tub with hot water. The heat felt good against his skin as he dipped himself into the deep tub. All of the aches and pains dissipated almost instantly as the hot water massaged his sore muscles. Just before he was about to fall asleep, movements in the next room entered his ears. Normally, he wouldn't have bothered to investigate, but his battle instincts were still fresh in his mind, so Link jumped out of the tub and ran into the bedroom in the process of tying a towel around his waist.
He really shouldn't have bothered; the sounds he heard was the meal being delivered to his room. Abandoning his bath, Link sat on the bed to eat the two steaks, the large green salad, and the fish strips that made up his dinner. After he finished, Link wheeled the cart out to the other room so it could be taken back to the kitchen.
With his stomach full of food and his body relaxed, fatigue took its toll even harder. Link lethargically took off the towel wrapped around his body and laid down on the bed. He barely got under the blankets before he was enveloped in sleep.
A loud metallic clang reverberated through the room, causing Link to bolt out of bed, battle senses at maximum. What were those sounds? he asked to himself. Surely no one would be awake at this hour in the night. Another series of clashes echoed throughout the bedroom, followed by loud shouts. He wished he didn't have to, but Link saw he would have to go down and find the two who were disrupting his first peaceful night in days.
He donned his elegant robe and grabbed a dagger, making sure it was concealed in one of its folds; no point in going into a possible fight unprepared. If it got intense, he might need the weapon. Just as he was about to walk out of the suite, he looked at his bed to make sure Zelda was still asleep. To his amazement, the bed was completely empty. She must still be planning for the celebration everyone seemed to be making a fuss about.
Link made his way through the labyrinth of halls and passages and stairs until he was on the bottom level of the Castle. Now, where was the most likely place those idiots would be? Fortunately, he didn't have to think long for the clangs again sounded through the room. This time, he knew exactly where they were coming from: the garden.
Walking out into the large botanical garden, Link started down one of the many stone paths. With the size of the garden he knew it could take hours to find them but he wanted to find them anyway so he could tell them to be quiet during the middle of the night. As he walked down the path, a bundle of shouts grazed by his ears. They seemed to be coming from the direction he was heading.
With speed like the wind, he ran down the path like the wind until he came to a large clearing. In the center were two figures, one dressed in midnight black and the other in death black. Each was viscously fighting the other. The one in midnight black had blond hair and a long sword while the other resembled more of a monster than a man.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Link shouted and headed to the dueling couple. As he reached the two, they faded into air, leaving nothing but the memories and sounds. With an uncertain mind, Link grasped his dagger and tried not to think about what he just saw.
But a scream interrupted his thoughts sending back every memory in the double. It was a scream of pain and suffering; a scream Link hadn't heard since his time saving Hyrule from Ganon. Instinctively, he headed down the path in an attempt to locate the person who could scream such a thing.
He reached the end of the path and, to his horror, found Zelda. There were chains and manacles around her wrists and ankles, secured firmly to the ground. Her dress was in scraps that hung loosely on her bloody body. Crisscrossing red lines scarred her back and chest. Standing behind her was a burly man with a dragon painted on his tunic. The sign of the Malchadite army. He brandished a whip and cracked it over her back, causing another blood-chilling shriek to escape her mouth.
Link had no intention of letting any harm come to his wife. He took his dagger and hacked at the chain around the Princess' right wrist. Unfortunately, it did no good. "What?" he asked rhetorically and inspected the knife's blade. There was supposed to be no metal in all of Hyrule that could keep the sharp edge from cutting through, yet the chains would not be cut. Again, Link sliced at the chains, and again he got the same results.
The man just laughed at Link's foolish attempts to free his captive. Slowly, he lifted a double-edged sword and placed it at the base of Zelda's neck. The Malchadite then lifted the sword to the side and swung it -
"No!" Link shouted, bolting upright in bed. He was covered in sweat and the sheets were soaked through.
"What is it?" Zelda asked, walking into the room. She was already dressed and in the process of putting on a pair of earrings. "I heard a scream-are you all right? You look like you saw a ghost."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, getting out from the blankets. He walked to his closet and pulled out a silken robe. "A bad dream, that's all."
Zelda looked far from convinced but changed the subject anyway. "Well, for your info, the banquet will be held in a few days along with an awards ceremony. You might want to have a speech ready just in case you are asked to talk."
He groaned. Speaking was not high on his "favorites" list when it came to formal engagements. "I will," he promised, not really intent on preparing one at all.
"I need to go," she said. "Daddy wants the Planning Committee and me to start setting up for the banquet and service before the day is over. Expect me to be home late again tonight." She turned to walk out the door. "Oh, that reminds me. Will you go tell the kitchen to start preparing the food for the feast? I didn't have time to do it last night and it would help me a lot."
Link nodded and rested back in his bed. Not more than a minute later he got up; sleep would not come to him until nightfall. He might as well start his day now so he can try to get a real good night's sleep.
His black tunic and pants were lying folded on a chair. His Gauntlets were hanging in his weapon's closet along with his black cap. He had no idea why he was dressing up in full uniform, but he did it anyway; it made him feel more secure. After he finished dressing, Link left the suite and headed to the kitchen.
Not five minutes later but what felt like hours, Link found himself standing in front of the large kitchen door. The aroma of cooking meat and vegetables permeated the hall and entered his nose, reminding him that his stomach needed some food.
The inside of the kitchen was a hubbub of activity. Men and women were running around, screaming orders, and cooking as fast as they could. Link made his way carefully around the hustling cooks, trying to find the head cook.
After a while of searching, Link knew he would not find the chef so he turned to leave when he saw a familiar face: Jesika. "How are you doing?" Link asked, sitting down on a stool opposite of where she stood chopping vegetables.
Jesika lifted her head and smiled. "Hi. I didn't see you come in." Setting her knife down, she continued: "It's great living in the Castle. I get a room larger than my old house, a lot of nice coworkers, and I get to cook whatever I want." She reached down below the table and pulled out a dish with a large pastry topped with honey on it. "This is something I made this morning. I was going to eat it, but I had to get to work chopping vegetables for this banquet thing happening in a few days. You want it?"
Link picked up the pastry and took a bite. "Hey, this is good!" he exclaimed, trying to pry his mouth open because the honey glued it shut. "Have you always been able to cook like this?"
"Yep," Jesika said proudly. "I would cook for myself just about every night in the shelter, so this is nothing new to me." Then her face frowned thoughtfully for a moment-Link figured she was back to her past and dared not ask-but she replaced it with a smile. "Is there something you wanted?"
"Yeah. Zelda asked me to come down here and tell the head chef to have everyone start cooking for the upcoming dinner, but it looks like you already received the news."
"Yeah, someone already came here and told us to do that. That's why I didn't get breakfast: I have too many meals to make. I can't believe these people are so unorganized. Thousands of meals in just three days! I better get back to work now, so I'll see you at the ceremony if not before then."
"Talk to you later," Link said and walked out of the kitchen and back to his room so he could try to finish the rest of his sleeping.
Three days later, Link found himself standing out in a large field. He was dressed in his regular attire of black tunic and pants and his weapons were slung about his body. The medals adorning his tunic shone brilliantly in the yellow-orange sun. All around him, the people of Hyrule stood. He could even recognize some familiar faces: Malon sat near the dais that he stood on, Nabooru and a few Gerudo were lounging at the refreshment tables.
"...And now, I'd like to introduce General Link, the commander of the army," Zelda said, almost making his heart stop. He really didn't expect to have to speak at all; he thought she was just joking when she said to prepare a speech. Since he didn't know what he would say and because he was nervous when speaking publicly, he was a basket case.
"Uh, well, um," he began, stepping up to the podium. "I really have no idea what to say. I didn't think that I would be up here at all, so I really didn't prepare a speech." There was a long pause, causing the assembled Hylian population to gaze at him more intently. All this did was make him even more nervous.
Link went on and talked about his other accomplishments and how he came to his position and finally got to the actual battle itself. He didn't miss a single detail: the beginning of the battle all the way to when the Malchadites were captured was covered.
"Now," Link continued, "I think I'm just taking up your time, so I'm going to let you go and talk and eat and do whatever else you want to do. Enjoy yourselves." Link stepped down from the stage and walked over to where his wife stood.
"Well done," she teased, a large smile creasing her face. "Now, I have someone who wants to talk to you. He seems to be very interested in the battle, and I know he has questions about it even after your very...descriptive talk." Zelda took his hand and led him into the large group of people surrounding the snack tables.
Link was busy explaining to people curious about what the battle was like for him personally. He had no idea that so many people were interested in what a war was like. "Yeah, and then they surrendered. I thought that they would-"
A shattering scream interrupted his chat. One man was running down one of the hills pointing to something behind him, screaming "They're coming! They're coming!"
"Who's coming?" Link asked, running to the man's side at the base of the hill. "What are you talking about?" But his questions were answered when he saw what the man was talking about: Malchadites. Not a small collection, but an army that made Hyrule's look small. Immediately a feeling of dread collected in his stomach as all the possible outcomes swirled through his brain.
The collected Hylian population was frantically running around, having absolutely no idea what to do. "Link!" Zelda ran up to him. Fear was etched on her face. "What do we do?"
Link unsheathed his sword and turned to his wife. "Get my men up here as fast as possible, and get everyone else out. Try to get them to Hyrule Castle." Without waiting for an answer he ran to the oncoming Malchadite force.
Before he got to the enemy, two arms wrapped themselves around his body. "What the heck do you think you're doing?" someone shouted. Link recognized the voice as that of his commander's. "There's more important things to do that throwing your life away to have a good time slaughtering enemies. Remember, now you're not responsible for yourself but for all of Hyrule."
Link hated to admit it, but the man was right. His responsibility was to keep Hyrule safe, not to go on a killing spree. He put Galadhad away and faced his commander. "Well, don't just stand there, gather my troops and keep the Malchadites busy. I'm going to help with the evacuation." As the commander ran off, Link pulled out his ocarina and played a short tune. He was surprised he still knew what keys to play. In no more than a minute, Epona stood at his side. He mounted and took off in the direction the frightened people of Hyrule seemed to be drifting.
Minutes later, the mare caught up with the evacuating populace. They were in pretty good order; none were running over each other or screaming their lungs out. Zelda did a good job organizing them and getting them to calm down enough to run away.
A movement caught his eye. A Malchadite was running to intercept the head of the fleeing people. Not for long. Link drew his bow out and nocked it with an arrow. After a moment of aim, the arrow whizzed off the string and planted itself in the side of his head, causing him to fall short of his target.
Hyrule Castle loomed in the distance. If they could make it to the Castle, Link and everyone else knew they would be safe. The Castle was redesigned to hold all of Hyrule's population behind its gates and had many defenses, making it almost impenetrable.
They would have made it without trouble, too, if it weren't for the long line of enemies barring their way. Simultaneously each archer raised his bow and let loose a deadly barrage of arrows that rained down on the populace, killing some but wounding most.
Link accelerated to the assembled enemy line, sword in hand, and brought it down across any neck he could reach, hewing off as many heads as he could. But for each one he killed, two more took its place, just like Bolragade. When a few arrows nearly hit Epona, she retreated back to the stranded Hylians.
Link knew that there was no hope to save Hyrule from this enemy, so he did the only thing he could: he grabbed his wife and Jesika, who happened to be standing by Zelda's side, and pulled them onto the saddle. When they were secured, Epona took off in a different direction. Hopefully, he could get away from this uncountable foe.
"No!" Zelda cried from in front of him. She tired desperately to jump off and run to her people, but Link held her firmly in place. "You can't do this! How can you leave these people to die?!"
Link didn't answer right away. But when her protests grew louder and louder, Link shouted, "The first thing a general learns is when to retreat from battle. These Malchadites outnumber us at least five to one. Only the best fighters can survive odds like those, and Hyrule doesn't have many of those people. There is no point in fighting if everyone dies."
"If we're not going to fight, what are we going to do?" she demanded acidly.
"We're leaving. The only other place we can go is to Malchadia. But from there, I don't know what we're going to do." They rode silently for an hour until dusk started to set in. The sound of a neighing horse brought his attention to what was happening around him. A large group of enemy soldiers were trailing him. Each one loaded his bow and let the projectile fly. Some arrows hit the ground near Epona while others flew over his head. Fortunately, none hit their target.
Link armed his own bow and fired at his trailers, trying his best to navigate around Jesika, who had her arms clamped around his waist. He could feel her arms and even her body shaking in fear.
Again a barrage of arrows came his way, and again they failed to make contact. Link shot back another arrow and took another man off his horse. He didn't know how long he could keep this up, but he knew it wouldn't be for long.
His fears came true as a rogue arrow landed in the neck of his steed. The brown mare buckled under the now burdensome weight she carried and crashed into the ground, sending her passengers through the air to land a few feet away. "Run for the woods!" Link commanded as the three of them got to their feet. He held back a moment to look at his now-dead horse, a tear in his eye. "You've done well, good friend. Now it's time for you to rest. Sleep well." He then turned and caught up to his companions as they neared the looming forest.
Running ahead of the women, Link wanted to make sure no danger presented itself. The trees were unusually quiet; no animal wanted to take any part in the danger happening around them. The bushes were low in this part of the woods and no unseen armor reflected the red light of the sun. Unfortunately he could only see a few meters into the forest; the rest was very dark. But this was the only semi-safe place he could find so this is where they would enter.
Link ran back to his wife and friend. Grabbing Zelda and Jesika's hand, he nearly dragged them to the thick copse of trees. "We have to cross through this forest and we'll be in Malchadia," he informed them, but more for himself. "Hopefully we can lose them with our head start." Still holding hands, they walked into the forest.
"Boy, it's dark in here," Jesika complained. "If there were more light--" a sharp glare from Link cut her off. His face said everything: "Don't talk unless you want them to find you." She didn't talk again.
Nocturnal sounds started to whisper through the trees as branches tugged menacingly at their clothes. Beasts that Link would not like to meet in daylight, and definitely not in darkness, cried out in the depths of the forest. He realized that three of them were farther in this place than he had thought. He just hoped that they found the end of this creepy forest, and soon.
"Link, look," Zelda softly muttered at his side. One of her fingers extended to a light gray patch. "It looks like a clearing. Maybe we should check it out?" It was not as much of a suggestion as a plea. She wanted to get clear of the spooky trees and out of the suffocating air.
Link generously complied. The three took large gasps of the fresh air until their heads swam. Darkness had finally settled over Hyrule. Darkness that carried a sense of death, as if it was mourning over the taken lives of innocent Hylian people.
But this didn't seem right. A feeling that they were being watched nagged at his mind and senses. The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed that they were herded to this spot. With their lack of knowledge about the geography in this area, it would be a great trap.
"Guys, come on. We are getting out of here." He hastily collected his companions and ushered them to a place where they could easily resume their trek through the forest. But just as the three neared the edge of the clearing, a rustle came from every direction and ten Malchadites appeared. Each one carried a sword, sleek and sharp blade jutting down to barely rest above the ground. Each one had an expression of contempt etched on their faces and looked eager to unleash the deadly power each sword carried.
"Stay where you are," one of the soldiers warned, holding his sword in a way that deterred anyone from attacking. "You are lucky we don't just kill you now." His threat was directed more to Link than the other two, for he eyed them with lust in his eyes.
"I don't think so," Link responded, drawing his sword to clash with his opponent's. A metallic clang filled the quietness momentarily as the other Malchadites gathered their wits about them and joined in the fray. Shouts of anger lifted into the air and, Link was assured, alerted every person within miles of the battle.
During this time Jesika and Zelda slowly made their way to the outskirts of the clearing, trying to get away from the action. "Princess Zelda, let's get away from here," Jesika pleaded. "I think we have a better chance of surviving the forest than this battle zone."
"I think you're right," the other woman responded after looking at the melee. "Let's head into the forest." Zelda made her way, Jesika right behind her, to the edge of the clearing. The two set foot onto the hard dirt floor and their legs were wrenched backward. Jesika screamed and a cruel laugh chuckled behind them.
The two felt themselves being pulled over the ground back towards the fight. "Get up." The whip released its iron grip on Zelda's ankle and she stood up, fulfilling the man's order. Now she got a look of the scene in front of her: Link was reluctantly standing still, a sword blade to his neck. A man seemed to be talking to him and she caught the last of his words. "...and if you do, I'll have one of my men kill her. Got that?" No doubt he was talking about her.
"Well, men, let's pack up and get out of here," the man threatening Link said. "But first, I want to see the prizes we have here." He walked over two dead Malchadites she didn't notice before and stood before Zelda. "Why, this looks like the Princess of Hyrule. Am I mistaken?" He placed his hands on her shoulders. "Well, Princess, you are in good hands now." She could feel his hands pushing the top of her dress down off her shoulders. "Your dress looks a little tight; maybe you would like to step out of it?"
She never knew she had it in her. Zelda overcame her paralyzing fear and brought her hand around to slap the Malchadite leader's face with a loud clap. "Rot in hell." She spat on his face.
The enemy, obviously angered, viciously grabbed her and drew a knife placing it to her throat. "That was a mistake. No one ever hits me and gets away with it, woman. Not unless they pay." He wrenched the Princess's head up, exposing her bare neck. Zelda swallowed fearfully as she felt the cold blade pressed to the soft skin of her throat. "I wonder how pretty you'll be with a large gash running through your neck?"
"Leave her alone!" Link shouted. In his anger, he broke free from the rock-hard grip of his oppressor and started ahead only to be grabbed again. "I said leave her alone!"
"Shut up!" the other man roared. He walked up to Link, Zelda held out in front. "If you say another word, I'll kill her." He was not joking. To test Link's faith in his words, the man hit Zelda on the back of the head, sending her sprawling to the ground. As she tried to get back up, he took a fistful of hair and practically dragged her to her feet. Again he placed the cold steel blade at below her chin but dropped it when another shout came to his ears.
"Leave Princess Zelda alone." It was Jesika, forgotten by everyone during the recent activities. Her knees were shaking with fear and she was sobbing. "Leave her alone," she said, this time in a weaker voice.
A motion from one of his hands, the leader ordered two men to retrieve her. "Run-" Link started and stopped when a fist connected with his stomach. He did, though, catch enough of his breath to see Jesika run into the trees, with two men covering the distance gap between them and her.
This might be their only chance of escape and he will not pass it up. Taking advantage of the distraction, Link broke free of the iron grip holding him in place. To his holder's surprise, Link took out his hookshot, placed it at the man's stomach, and propelled the tip of the shot through his body to stick into a nearby tree. When the hookshot collected itself, it carried the impaled man with it, securely attaching him to the rough bark.
As Link reached for his dagger at his waist, a leather whip tied his arms to his side. The leader had an enraged look on his face. "Let him go." Approaching Link, he brought Zelda out in front once again, but this time the blade was pressed in her neck. A small trickle of blood danced down to seep into the front of her dress.
A lump formed in Link's throat as the knife dug deeper into her soft skin. "Did you really think I was lying?" he asked rhetorically. "Did you really think I was just joking? Ha. You really don't me very well if you think I bluff. Unfortunately for you, it's your wife who's going to pay for your ignorance." Zelda screamed out in pain as the sharp blade swept across her throat, and the blood flowed in more than a trickle.
Link watched horror-stricken as it seeped down her neck and stained the front of her dress. Her eyes clearly showed the hurt that she felt but held no malice or hostility. In fact, her eyes had no emotion whatsoever in them. Just pain.
In moments, enough blood had drained from Zelda and her face became snow-white. Link could see consciousness leave her body as her legs gave out and she lost her balance. She stumbled and fell into his arms. Blood soaked his tunic and front but Link didn't care; his wife was dying right before his eyes. "Zelda, please don't die," he begged desperately. "Please...don't die." He wrapped her in a tight embrace in his arms and slowly laid her on the ground. The front of her dress was a deep crimson; no amount of help could save his princess now.
Before her final waking moment, Zelda curled her lips in a weak smile, a smile of encouragement, of support, of happiness, and mouthed ever so slowly three words before closing her eyes to rest forever: I...love...you.
Tears streaming down his face, Link watched his dead wife lay still on the green grass. Never before had he felt such heart-racking pain in his life, not when he had to leave Kokiri Forest, not when he had to leave Saria.
When the restraining clamp of the hand presses Link's shoulder, his utter despair turned to great hatred. Hatred to the Malchadites for what they did his wife and his life. Hatred to himself for not taking seriously the man's words. The wrath that he so long ago mastered and pushed down in the recesses of his mind now came floating to the surface in full force, strengthened by the other strong emotions swimming through his thoughts.
"You--," Link muttered under his breath with such intensity that everyone took a step back. "You bastards!" Link unsheathed his sword and held it out in front of him. The surviving seven Malchadites each brought up their own weapons, glad to be able to play the deadly game of swords, not at all affected by the sight they just saw.
Two soldiers advanced on Link. One came in with his sword held high while the other had his low. Link twirled to the side and avoided each blow, but two more he barely saw came from another set of Malchadites at the end of the fighting circle.
Out of his anger, Link swirled his blade in a complete circle and took off their two heads. The bodies fell to the ground, one landing on his sword, the other on his severed head. He eyed the remaining five and swung at the nearest.
This man, though, was prepared and countered the blow with his own sword. But he didn't have the same amount of vigor Link had, so he swung the two blades in a circle and knocked Link's off to the side. The Malchadite saw Link struggle to regain control so stepped in to deliver the final blow only to feel it pierce through his chest. The blade cleanly sliced his breastbone and ribs and stuck out if his back, following the up-down direction of his spinal column. A last grunt and he too fell on the ground.
By now, everyone had seen more than enough of Link's powerful wrath and fighting abilities. Each was visibly scared. No one dared to get near him; no one wanted to die. Every soldier slowly slid back to the beginning of the forest in a single hope of escape. None got there. The first of the four remaining was jumped by Link who grabbed his wrists. The extra power given by his Gauntlets allowed him to crack them before breaking the enemy's neck. The corpse Link threw at his enemies.
As each one stood up, anger also was plain. Silently the Malchadites produced their bows in one hand and nocked an arrow, ready to be drawn and released. This didn't deter Link at all; he held out his sword and concentrated on the blade. As the blade grew blue and then shifted to orange, Link could feel his anger flowing through his weapon and collecting as destructive energy. When every ounce of his anger had left his body the blade had become so orange it appeared red.
But it didn't stop there. His own energy, the energy that fed his muscles and all parts of his body, too was absorbed in the swirling collection at the end of his sword. This time there was no doubt about it; the blade was red. Red as newly spilled blood.
Every Malchadite saw the blood-red blade and the look of death in Link's eyes. None wanted to let him live long enough to execute any attack with his vicious weapon. They raised their bows and drew the arrow in unison with Link thrusting his blade into the ground.
Nothing happened. Seconds passed and still nothing. Exhaling breaths they didn't know they held, the three remaining enemies aimed again at Link as towers of flames erupted from the ground. Licks of fire danced all around, playing games with the shadows. Light glinted off metal and invaded the darkest of spots, but there was no heat; metal was not hot, skin was not sweating. "A game," one of the men said and stepped forward.
Unfortunately for him, it wasn't a game. A strand of flame fell across his leg and intense pain sliced up and down his body. Every nerve was in its own spasm and only worsened as the fire climbed up toward his head. Metal melted as if it were in a forge and cloth served little protection. Where flame seared his body only black scars remained. His skin was dying. His screams of agony cut through the trees only to be drowned out of the crackle of burning wood and the silence of death.
The other two were similarly engulfed, and their deaths had the same suffering as their partner. Soon, the fire waned until it finally disappeared. The smell of scorched flesh and wood and grass filled the air, making it stuffy as the forest.
A clash as he dropped his sword, Link stumbled over to his dead wife. Fortunately she was spared from his angry fire. Her skin still had the same peach look and was still soft to the touch. Thinking of nothing else, Link lay his head on her shoulder and wrapped an arm around her still figure, as if to protect her from an unseen danger. He ignored the wet blood soaking into his tunic. His tears raged relentlessly, and sleep settled down upon him. Obeying his tiredness, Link shut his eyes and buried his face in her chest before entering his world of dreams. No good dreams would come tonight.
Jesika, who witnessed everything: the fierce attack, the death of ten men, all bloody, and the magical fire, walked back out into the clearing. The starlight was covered by a thick blanket of smoke, making the night even darker and colder.
She eased herself up to the edge of the black circle, the circle where the flames had been contained, but didn't cross onto it. Instead, the blond-haired girl crossed the circle and slid silently up to Link. The wind sent shivers down her spine. She put her body down by her friend's, getting as close to him as possible, and slept. She hoped she would not wake in a prison, or worse.
"Where did that come from?" one of the troops ducking next to Link shouted.
"I don't know; I can't see anything, but I tell you one thing: whoever sent it will be dead in a little while," Link responded and drew his bow. Another moment and an arrow was nocked across the taut string. Sparing a few moments out of hiding, he found a good target: a mounted enemy Malchadite racing up to one of the village's women, intent on hewing off her head.
The Malchadite stopped short when Link's arrow penetrated his neck and carried him off of his steed. He fell under the legs of the horse and was crushed immediately. After great struggle to escape its rider's tangling body, the animal reared up and took off into the shadows of the night, leaving the dead man and his comrades behind.
Link shot a few more arrows as cover to himself before he jumped out from behind the rock and ran up to the woman. "Come on!" he shouted and grabbed her hand. "You'll be safer over with us." Because of the shock of her near death experience, Link practically dragged the villager to where the rest of his men were hiding.
Safely behind the rock, Link drew his sword and raised it in the air. The firelight glinted off the blade as he shouted, "Listen up, you guys. After the next bomb drops I want you to bolt out of here and engage the enemy sword to sword; it's the only way we have a chance to win." The next bomb blew and a great roar rose up from his troops as they drew their own weapons and charged out from behind their hiding place to meet the enemy in hand-to-hand combat.
Immediately, two enemy Malchadites ran up to attack Link, but both fell dead at the blade of his sword. "I love this sword," he murmured and stared at its red stained blade. His sword was the most lethal of swords, for it was forged from Death Mountain, made by the greatest metalworker, Biggoron. The unparalleled sharpness and the elegant designs covering each side of the blade down to the hilt made Galadhad the most coveted of weapons.
A loud cry brought his attention to the world behind him. Link saw one of his men lying on the ground, a Malchadite standing over him with his sword in the air, ready to strike at any moment. Springing into action, Link pulled the only other weapon of his off his belt, aimed it, and sent the harpoon on the hookshot straight into the Malchadite's sword hand. As the shot retracted, the enemy was pulled along with it until he was staring up into Link's deadly eyes. "Goodnight," Link said coldly and brought his hand down across his adversary's face, knock him out or perhaps killing him.
Another explosion rocked the ground and incinerated another house. Running away from the newly created fire were two Hylian warriors. One was the commander and the other an ordinary soldier. "We need to get the Malchadites out of town!" the commander shouted. "There are too many people around that might get hurt if we don't do something soon."
"Yeah, I know," Link agreed. "But there is no end to these guys; you kill one, and two more take his place. The most we can do is stand our ground and hope they run out of men before we do."
The other man grimaced. "With the casualties we've experienced that better come very soon. Otherwise we won't have any troops left."
Link didn't know how to respond to that, so he gave them one order: to continue fighting until not one enemy remained standing. "We won't lose yet." The men hurried off into the blackness to resume fighting with the nearest foe they could find. "Not while I'm still alive," he murmured.
Link ran where there was the most congestion of Malchadites and quickly cleared that area. These people aren't good fighters, he thought. They only win because they fight in groups and outnumber their opponents.
A number of battle cries brushed by his ears. Coming his way were two Malchadite warriors with a number of pitchfork-wielding farmers on their heels. Link couldn't help but smile.
He had better get rid of the enemy before they figured out that they outclassed their pursuers. Ducking in between two large buildings, the dark night and heavy shadows covered him with their foggy hands. The black attire he wore simply added to his invisibility.
As the two fleeing Malchadites charged by the opening in the buildings, Link thrusted Galadhad out, cleanly severing the head of the nearest enemy and cutting a fourth of the way through the neck of the farthest one. Moments later, the outraged farmers were upon the survivor and killed him.
Always intrigued by different armor styles, Link took precious time to scrutinize that of the Malchadite. The dead man wore a leather helmet, leather armor, and the strangest pair of boots he has ever seen-a fairly light load for this type of warfare. Bending down to get a closer inspection of the footwear, Link wracked his brain until he remembered the style of shoe before him; they were cloth moccasins designed to cushion the ground under the wearer and make travel noiseless. Usually they weren't used unless the person was crossing over leaves or something that could crackle under feet, like crossing through a forest...
Then something in the back of his mind clicked as the information settled in. There were only two entrances into this town: one was the regular entrance that overlooked miles upon miles of flat prairie grounds-no one could ever walk over those fields without being seen ten miles away. The other entrance was a large gate at the back of town that entered into a thick forest. He had a strong hunch that the stream of Malchadites was coming from the back gate. Also, with autumn stiffening the leaves and sending them tumbling to the ground, the only way to navigate silently through a forest heavy-laden with leaves unheard would be to wear some form of cushioning footwear. With great excitement and hope that his idea is correct, Link worked his way to the far end of the town. "Close the gate! Close the gate!"
Another explosion rocked the ground, nearly sending him to his knees. Someone had better find whoever thinks it's amusing to blow buildings sky high before *I* do! The heat from more burning houses washed over his face and the splinter of wood rang all around him. The commander was right: if the battle weren't moved, Bolragade would be lost.
Link reached the short flight of stone stairs that led up to the metal gate. As he ran up the steps, enemies ran down to meet him, swords held high. Unfortunately for the Malchadites, when they reached the ground, they each had a thin, vertical hole in their chests. Shouts drifted down from the top near the gate as a chain of soldiers raced to the village floor. There did not seem to be an end to that chain, either. Thinking quickly, he pulled out Galadhad and sliced the chock that held the gate in its open position. A metallic clang signaled the gate had been closed, and Link saw only a few enemies rushing toward him and assumed the rest were trapped on the other side.
The ten troops not caught by the gate's closing formed a circle around Link, all with their swords, clubs, staffs, anything that could inflict damage, drawn. The way the men held themselves, in anger and rage, was more than enough to say they were thoroughly unhappy. The first soldier ran up to Link and traded blow after blow with metal against metal before the Malchadite spluttered to the ground to rest eternally. Two more were dispatched similarly. At the sight of Link running into the middle of the circle with his sword raised above his head, an orange glow surrounding it, they paused.
Not sure what to expect, the fighters charged forward in unison to attack Link, but the stored energy in his glowing blade came forth, forming a perfect orange circle which enveloped the soldiers and severed their upper bodies from their lower. The orange cloud extended so far as to touch a few of the Malchadites behind the gate; there were quite a few half-bodies and spare hands lying on the ground.
Link turned to the survivors on the gate's other side. Most were running back into the forest, screaming as if a demon was on their tail. Oh well, he thought. Let them flee. Maybe they can inform their leader of what they're up against and leave Hyrule alone.
Turning around, Link watched another house erupt in flame. The residents were frantically running from the wreckage, hoping to get to another shelter. This time, though, from the brightness of the explosion, he saw exactly where the Malchadite bomber was: on top of the town's inn, the Boar's Back, in the town center. This man will pay. The Hylian general yanked out his hookshot and shot after shot pulled himself onto a building next to the inn.
Silently, he climbed the rest of the way to and up the large structure. With the bomber fully absorbed in his own activities, Link easily sneaked up behind the Malchadite. Grabbing the poor man with one arm, Link held him up to eye level by the collar of his shirt. The Malchadite tried to bring a knife out of the folds of his coat, but Link grabbed his arm and twisted it till it was no use. The fright was plain on the man's face. "Please, don't kill me," he begged.
Link laughed a cold, bitter laugh. "You burn these buildings and the people in them to ashes." The acid was clear in his voice. "You take pleasure in slaughtering the residents of this town, my town, and watching them suffer." He now had the man hanging over the edge of the tall, four-story building. "You do not deserve to be saved." He let go of the enemy and watched as his body fell the large distance to hit the ground with a loud crack. He didn't get up after that.
Link picked up the bag containing the bombs and jumped from building to building until he safely landed on the ground. The bombs were disposed of in the well where they detonated harmlessly in the water.
"General!" someone shouted. It was the commander. "The Malchadites have surrendered. Should we take them alive or...not?"
After a long pause and thought, Link answered, "Take them alive; we'll need them for information. Round them up and get them out as soon as possible." Link turned to walk back to the front of Bolragade. At least with the battle over he could be home with his wife.
In less than an hour the surrendering Malchadite soldiers were marching out of town, shackles around their ankles. Some looked relieved to be alive and others like they would rather be dead. The morose-looking men knew the consequences of war and also knew that once information of this battle leaked out, no Hylian would go easy on them.
Link watched as the surviving Hylian troops marched confidently out into the green fields where they would assemble before the trip back to Hyrule Castle. He smiled at the new victory he could add to his plethora of other victories and started making his way out to the pasture, but a shrill shriek echoed through the town from the unburned section, stopping him in mid-stride. He turned to face the direction of the scream, fists clenched till his knuckles were white. This was not going to be good for the man who caused the scream, Malchadite or not.
He proceeded through the crowds of villagers frantically trying to put out the fires, and to the group of untouched houses. Now, if only he knew exactly where the scream came from. He looked through the first alley between the closest two houses; nothing. The second and third also had the same results.
But, in the fourth alley were two people: a teenage girl, no more than sixteen, and an enemy soldier who seemed to want something from the girl that she didn't want to give. Link hid in the shadows and silently stalked up to the pair. Just as the Malchadite placed his hands on her shirt and began to tear it open, Link reached out his arms, encircling them around the man's neck. A quick twist and the man fell to the ground, dead.
"Are you okay?" Link asked the girl. Now that his eyes were adjusted to the darkness, he noticed that the girl had blond hair cascading down to her lower back, shining blue eyes, and the well-formed body of a seventeen-year-old.
"I'll be fine. Thank you," she said in a shaky voice. Only a trace of tears could be seen on her face. She tried to button up her shirt as best she could, but there were a few gaps where the buttonhole met no button. "My name's Jesika."
"Link. General Link." He held out his hand and took her own, shaking it and then remembered something. "I better get you back to your family. With all of the commotion going on, they must be worried sick. Where do you live?"
At the mention of the word "family", her eyes fell to the ground. "My family's dead. They...they died years ago...when I was little." She paused briefly, reminiscing back to her younger years. "I was wondering: I have nowhere to go and...well, could you take me to Hyrule Castle with you? I know how to cook and do laundry, and I won't be a problem."
He thought about it and finally nodded. "Sure. When we get to Hyrule Castle, I'll see what I can do." He turned and started walking away. "Come on, we're leaving now." Jesika followed him out of the village to where the group of warriors had assembled.
When Link was out in the field, a group of warriors rushed up to him with cheers and smiles. A roar of shouts was directed in his direction, but he had no idea what anyone said. He sighed and smiled and ran up on a nearby hill. When everyone had finally stopped talking, he said, "Great job, you guys. We sure showed those Malchadites, didn't we?" A loud outburst of affirmative cries drowned out the next few sentences of Link. "Tomorrow, we'll head back to Hyrule Castle. I'm sure your families will be dying to see you again. But, until then, take the rest of the night for time to yourselves."
Another large cheer rose from the Hylian soldiers as Link descended from the hilltop and rejoined Jesika, this time with fatigue heavy on his eyes. He walked with a slight stagger. "I am extremely tired, so I'm going to sleep soon. You're more than welcome to sleep in my tent-you might want to with some of the looks that the men are giving you-if you don't mind sleeping in close quarters."
Noticing some of the glances aimed her way Jesika quickly replied, "I think I'll take your tent." She had never met anyone interested in anything *but* her body, and she knew what a man's interest could be like, as proven with the all-hands Malchadite. She followed him to the center of the celebrating men where a few tents had been pitched. Link walked into the biggest of the tents and she followed.
"Make yourself at home," Link said. "And try to get some rest; we'll be leaving early tomorrow. I'll be outside for a little while. After all, a general should celebrate with his men." He gave a tired smile and left, leaving her alone. Along the back of the tent was a pile of sleeping bags and blankets. She grabbed one of each and laid it out on the ground near the center. That way, if someone entered the tent from any direction, she could keep a half-tent length between that person and her.
She removed her shirt and skirt, folding and laying them neatly by the sleeping bag. The crisp night air felt cold on her skin, and she hurried to slip in between the folds of the bag. Soon sleep fell on her like a bird on its prey.
A strong push on her shoulder roused her from her dreamless sleep. When she rolled on her side to face the other way, the pushing only got worse. "Wake up," someone spoke. The voice sounded somewhat like Link's. "We'll be leaving in a short while."
Oh. Jesika wearily opened her eyes and propped her body up on an elbow. "I'm up, I'm up. Just give me enough time to dress before you collapse the tent." When she was once again alone, she left the covers sprawled on the floor and put on her clothes. She couldn't wait to get to the Castle so she could get a new shirt; she had no intention of letting people stare at something they shouldn't be staring at.
She yawned, stretched, and walked out of the tent into the gentle glow of the morning's red sun. She couldn't find Link anywhere. "Link!" she shouted into the crowd, drawing nearly everyone's attention. Oops. She was about to say something to the men, but a melodic neigh cut off her retort.
A large, beautiful brown horse stopped at her side. On it rode Link. "Come on," he said. "You can ride up here with me on Epona. Link pulled her up to sit behind him in the leather saddle. "Hold on tight," he said as Epona bolted to the front of the now marching group.
"You might want something to eat," Link advised, handing her a piece of meat. "It's the only food we'll have until we get home."
"Thanks," Jesika said and dived in on the strip of meat, realizing how famished she really was. "How long until we get to Hyrule Castle?"
"It'll be quite a while," he answered. "Probably not until sundown. If you get bored, watch the scenery. That's what I do."
For the first hour, watching nature roll by was fascinating, but quickly after it got dull. For another hour, Jesika's thoughts traveled over to her home village. She remembered walking home from her daily walk that night many days ago when men came running down from the forest and attacked. She ran into a store and stayed there under siege for the next few days, not daring to come out for fear of losing her life. Then, after what felt like years, the enemy had disappeared, and she walked out only to be jumped by one of the attacking soldiers. Fortunately Link showed up and did something she could not: take care of herself.
She rested her head against his back and drifted off to sleep.
She woke up when a loud whiny rang in her ears. "What is it?" Jesika asked as she opened her eyes, taking in the trees and hills. Over the many rolling hills and past the tumbling plains stood Hyrule Castle, bathed in the red glow of the sun.
"Sorry to wake you; you looked so relaxed, but I thought you might want to see what a sunset on the Hylian Plains looked like. What do you think of it?"
"It's gorgeous," she breathed, taking in the orange mountain tops and the red grass in their entirety. "I've never seen anything like it."
Link smiled. "It gets even better at the Castle. If we can get there before the sun goes down, you'll get a real sight. Hold on." Jesika strengthened her grip around his stomach as Epona charged forward, leaving clouds of dirt in her wake.
No more than an hour later, Epona and her riders reached the drawbridge leading to Hyrule Village. But instead of dismounting and crossing through, they took a side trail that led around the fortified wall directly to the Castle. "Hmm, no one's here. Probably didn't know we would be here so soon. Well, let's go in and give them a surprise."
They dismounted and Epona ran off the graze in the beautiful pastures. Jesika experienced a wave of envy as she compared these luscious green pastures filled with rows of flowers of every kind to the dull brown fields that grew near her home. Now she believed her fellow villagers when they said these meadows were one of the most gorgeous sights a person can see in his or her lifetime.
Link made his way to the main gate. Since it was open, he proceeded in and entered into the foyer. "You live here?" Jesika asked, gaping at the marvelous paintings and marble statues decorating the room. She tried not to set her feet on the elegant tiled floor for fear of putting smudges on the perfect white stone.
"Yeah, this is the Palace. Come on, I'll introduce you to Zelda." He was about to start down one of the many halls when two figures emerged from a room. One was a palace guard and the other was a very beautiful woman. Both were deeply engrossed in a conversation about something she couldn't hear.
"Oh, you're home!" the woman exclaimed. A pang of jealousy washed through Jesika as the woman rushed up to Link and kissed him. She wore a pink and white dress with her shiny blond hair tied up in a bow and a diamond studded tiara that made all other jewelry look cheap and pathetic. Jesika presumed that this was Zelda.
"I want you to meet someone," Link said after he broke the kiss. He turned to blond girl at his side. "Zel, this is Jesika, someone I met and who I promised a place to work at the Castle. Jesika, this is Princess Zelda."
"Hi," Zelda said, smiling charmingly. "We'll find you a place to work, I'm sure. Can you cook? We're in great need of people who know how to prepare food." Jesika answered positively. "Good, I'll have Alcabar take you over to the kitchen. The head chef should give you something to start on right away, if you're not too tired. Or you can start tomorrow. Your choice." Alcabar, the Palace guard, stepped out from the doorway he never left and directed the young girl down one of the halls to where the kitchen was located.
"What are you doing home so early?" Zelda asked, once they were alone. "No one was expecting you for at least another two days. We are not yet ready for the reception banquet."
"The attack wasn't as large as anyone thought it would be. Besides, the Malchadites surrendered halfway into the battle. Cowards." Then a thought came to Link as he felt his stomach growl. "Can I have something to eat? I'm starved."
"Oh, you poor thing," Zelda teased. "Go to our room; I'll have a meal delivered to you."
"Huh.... What about you?"
She smiled at him. "Since you and all of the soldiers are back, Daddy will want the banquet's planning to be done immediately so we can celebrate the victory with it still being fresh in your minds. And since I'm taking charge of the planning and setup for this event, I have to make sure nothing goes wrong. I probably won't be back until after midnight, so don't stay awake for me." She kissed him goodbye and rushed down one of the halls as fast as her legs could carry her.
There were many other questions that he wanted to ask but would have to ask them later. He might as well get a good night's sleep; the battle fatigue still hadn't left him, and he was tired.
Link walked through the maze of halls until he arrived at two large wooden doors: his palatial suite. The first room opened up into a large living room. A couch was in the middle with many shelves topped with plates, silverware, anything else Zelda fancied to show resting against the walls. But he walked straight into his bedroom to where a large dresser stood. In it, he set his sword, shield, bow, quiver, and hookshot and sighed in relief. It felt like a large granite block had been taken off his back after his small arsenal had been put away.
He then walked into the bathroom and filled the marble tub with hot water. The heat felt good against his skin as he dipped himself into the deep tub. All of the aches and pains dissipated almost instantly as the hot water massaged his sore muscles. Just before he was about to fall asleep, movements in the next room entered his ears. Normally, he wouldn't have bothered to investigate, but his battle instincts were still fresh in his mind, so Link jumped out of the tub and ran into the bedroom in the process of tying a towel around his waist.
He really shouldn't have bothered; the sounds he heard was the meal being delivered to his room. Abandoning his bath, Link sat on the bed to eat the two steaks, the large green salad, and the fish strips that made up his dinner. After he finished, Link wheeled the cart out to the other room so it could be taken back to the kitchen.
With his stomach full of food and his body relaxed, fatigue took its toll even harder. Link lethargically took off the towel wrapped around his body and laid down on the bed. He barely got under the blankets before he was enveloped in sleep.
A loud metallic clang reverberated through the room, causing Link to bolt out of bed, battle senses at maximum. What were those sounds? he asked to himself. Surely no one would be awake at this hour in the night. Another series of clashes echoed throughout the bedroom, followed by loud shouts. He wished he didn't have to, but Link saw he would have to go down and find the two who were disrupting his first peaceful night in days.
He donned his elegant robe and grabbed a dagger, making sure it was concealed in one of its folds; no point in going into a possible fight unprepared. If it got intense, he might need the weapon. Just as he was about to walk out of the suite, he looked at his bed to make sure Zelda was still asleep. To his amazement, the bed was completely empty. She must still be planning for the celebration everyone seemed to be making a fuss about.
Link made his way through the labyrinth of halls and passages and stairs until he was on the bottom level of the Castle. Now, where was the most likely place those idiots would be? Fortunately, he didn't have to think long for the clangs again sounded through the room. This time, he knew exactly where they were coming from: the garden.
Walking out into the large botanical garden, Link started down one of the many stone paths. With the size of the garden he knew it could take hours to find them but he wanted to find them anyway so he could tell them to be quiet during the middle of the night. As he walked down the path, a bundle of shouts grazed by his ears. They seemed to be coming from the direction he was heading.
With speed like the wind, he ran down the path like the wind until he came to a large clearing. In the center were two figures, one dressed in midnight black and the other in death black. Each was viscously fighting the other. The one in midnight black had blond hair and a long sword while the other resembled more of a monster than a man.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Link shouted and headed to the dueling couple. As he reached the two, they faded into air, leaving nothing but the memories and sounds. With an uncertain mind, Link grasped his dagger and tried not to think about what he just saw.
But a scream interrupted his thoughts sending back every memory in the double. It was a scream of pain and suffering; a scream Link hadn't heard since his time saving Hyrule from Ganon. Instinctively, he headed down the path in an attempt to locate the person who could scream such a thing.
He reached the end of the path and, to his horror, found Zelda. There were chains and manacles around her wrists and ankles, secured firmly to the ground. Her dress was in scraps that hung loosely on her bloody body. Crisscrossing red lines scarred her back and chest. Standing behind her was a burly man with a dragon painted on his tunic. The sign of the Malchadite army. He brandished a whip and cracked it over her back, causing another blood-chilling shriek to escape her mouth.
Link had no intention of letting any harm come to his wife. He took his dagger and hacked at the chain around the Princess' right wrist. Unfortunately, it did no good. "What?" he asked rhetorically and inspected the knife's blade. There was supposed to be no metal in all of Hyrule that could keep the sharp edge from cutting through, yet the chains would not be cut. Again, Link sliced at the chains, and again he got the same results.
The man just laughed at Link's foolish attempts to free his captive. Slowly, he lifted a double-edged sword and placed it at the base of Zelda's neck. The Malchadite then lifted the sword to the side and swung it -
"No!" Link shouted, bolting upright in bed. He was covered in sweat and the sheets were soaked through.
"What is it?" Zelda asked, walking into the room. She was already dressed and in the process of putting on a pair of earrings. "I heard a scream-are you all right? You look like you saw a ghost."
"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, getting out from the blankets. He walked to his closet and pulled out a silken robe. "A bad dream, that's all."
Zelda looked far from convinced but changed the subject anyway. "Well, for your info, the banquet will be held in a few days along with an awards ceremony. You might want to have a speech ready just in case you are asked to talk."
He groaned. Speaking was not high on his "favorites" list when it came to formal engagements. "I will," he promised, not really intent on preparing one at all.
"I need to go," she said. "Daddy wants the Planning Committee and me to start setting up for the banquet and service before the day is over. Expect me to be home late again tonight." She turned to walk out the door. "Oh, that reminds me. Will you go tell the kitchen to start preparing the food for the feast? I didn't have time to do it last night and it would help me a lot."
Link nodded and rested back in his bed. Not more than a minute later he got up; sleep would not come to him until nightfall. He might as well start his day now so he can try to get a real good night's sleep.
His black tunic and pants were lying folded on a chair. His Gauntlets were hanging in his weapon's closet along with his black cap. He had no idea why he was dressing up in full uniform, but he did it anyway; it made him feel more secure. After he finished dressing, Link left the suite and headed to the kitchen.
Not five minutes later but what felt like hours, Link found himself standing in front of the large kitchen door. The aroma of cooking meat and vegetables permeated the hall and entered his nose, reminding him that his stomach needed some food.
The inside of the kitchen was a hubbub of activity. Men and women were running around, screaming orders, and cooking as fast as they could. Link made his way carefully around the hustling cooks, trying to find the head cook.
After a while of searching, Link knew he would not find the chef so he turned to leave when he saw a familiar face: Jesika. "How are you doing?" Link asked, sitting down on a stool opposite of where she stood chopping vegetables.
Jesika lifted her head and smiled. "Hi. I didn't see you come in." Setting her knife down, she continued: "It's great living in the Castle. I get a room larger than my old house, a lot of nice coworkers, and I get to cook whatever I want." She reached down below the table and pulled out a dish with a large pastry topped with honey on it. "This is something I made this morning. I was going to eat it, but I had to get to work chopping vegetables for this banquet thing happening in a few days. You want it?"
Link picked up the pastry and took a bite. "Hey, this is good!" he exclaimed, trying to pry his mouth open because the honey glued it shut. "Have you always been able to cook like this?"
"Yep," Jesika said proudly. "I would cook for myself just about every night in the shelter, so this is nothing new to me." Then her face frowned thoughtfully for a moment-Link figured she was back to her past and dared not ask-but she replaced it with a smile. "Is there something you wanted?"
"Yeah. Zelda asked me to come down here and tell the head chef to have everyone start cooking for the upcoming dinner, but it looks like you already received the news."
"Yeah, someone already came here and told us to do that. That's why I didn't get breakfast: I have too many meals to make. I can't believe these people are so unorganized. Thousands of meals in just three days! I better get back to work now, so I'll see you at the ceremony if not before then."
"Talk to you later," Link said and walked out of the kitchen and back to his room so he could try to finish the rest of his sleeping.
Three days later, Link found himself standing out in a large field. He was dressed in his regular attire of black tunic and pants and his weapons were slung about his body. The medals adorning his tunic shone brilliantly in the yellow-orange sun. All around him, the people of Hyrule stood. He could even recognize some familiar faces: Malon sat near the dais that he stood on, Nabooru and a few Gerudo were lounging at the refreshment tables.
"...And now, I'd like to introduce General Link, the commander of the army," Zelda said, almost making his heart stop. He really didn't expect to have to speak at all; he thought she was just joking when she said to prepare a speech. Since he didn't know what he would say and because he was nervous when speaking publicly, he was a basket case.
"Uh, well, um," he began, stepping up to the podium. "I really have no idea what to say. I didn't think that I would be up here at all, so I really didn't prepare a speech." There was a long pause, causing the assembled Hylian population to gaze at him more intently. All this did was make him even more nervous.
Link went on and talked about his other accomplishments and how he came to his position and finally got to the actual battle itself. He didn't miss a single detail: the beginning of the battle all the way to when the Malchadites were captured was covered.
"Now," Link continued, "I think I'm just taking up your time, so I'm going to let you go and talk and eat and do whatever else you want to do. Enjoy yourselves." Link stepped down from the stage and walked over to where his wife stood.
"Well done," she teased, a large smile creasing her face. "Now, I have someone who wants to talk to you. He seems to be very interested in the battle, and I know he has questions about it even after your very...descriptive talk." Zelda took his hand and led him into the large group of people surrounding the snack tables.
Link was busy explaining to people curious about what the battle was like for him personally. He had no idea that so many people were interested in what a war was like. "Yeah, and then they surrendered. I thought that they would-"
A shattering scream interrupted his chat. One man was running down one of the hills pointing to something behind him, screaming "They're coming! They're coming!"
"Who's coming?" Link asked, running to the man's side at the base of the hill. "What are you talking about?" But his questions were answered when he saw what the man was talking about: Malchadites. Not a small collection, but an army that made Hyrule's look small. Immediately a feeling of dread collected in his stomach as all the possible outcomes swirled through his brain.
The collected Hylian population was frantically running around, having absolutely no idea what to do. "Link!" Zelda ran up to him. Fear was etched on her face. "What do we do?"
Link unsheathed his sword and turned to his wife. "Get my men up here as fast as possible, and get everyone else out. Try to get them to Hyrule Castle." Without waiting for an answer he ran to the oncoming Malchadite force.
Before he got to the enemy, two arms wrapped themselves around his body. "What the heck do you think you're doing?" someone shouted. Link recognized the voice as that of his commander's. "There's more important things to do that throwing your life away to have a good time slaughtering enemies. Remember, now you're not responsible for yourself but for all of Hyrule."
Link hated to admit it, but the man was right. His responsibility was to keep Hyrule safe, not to go on a killing spree. He put Galadhad away and faced his commander. "Well, don't just stand there, gather my troops and keep the Malchadites busy. I'm going to help with the evacuation." As the commander ran off, Link pulled out his ocarina and played a short tune. He was surprised he still knew what keys to play. In no more than a minute, Epona stood at his side. He mounted and took off in the direction the frightened people of Hyrule seemed to be drifting.
Minutes later, the mare caught up with the evacuating populace. They were in pretty good order; none were running over each other or screaming their lungs out. Zelda did a good job organizing them and getting them to calm down enough to run away.
A movement caught his eye. A Malchadite was running to intercept the head of the fleeing people. Not for long. Link drew his bow out and nocked it with an arrow. After a moment of aim, the arrow whizzed off the string and planted itself in the side of his head, causing him to fall short of his target.
Hyrule Castle loomed in the distance. If they could make it to the Castle, Link and everyone else knew they would be safe. The Castle was redesigned to hold all of Hyrule's population behind its gates and had many defenses, making it almost impenetrable.
They would have made it without trouble, too, if it weren't for the long line of enemies barring their way. Simultaneously each archer raised his bow and let loose a deadly barrage of arrows that rained down on the populace, killing some but wounding most.
Link accelerated to the assembled enemy line, sword in hand, and brought it down across any neck he could reach, hewing off as many heads as he could. But for each one he killed, two more took its place, just like Bolragade. When a few arrows nearly hit Epona, she retreated back to the stranded Hylians.
Link knew that there was no hope to save Hyrule from this enemy, so he did the only thing he could: he grabbed his wife and Jesika, who happened to be standing by Zelda's side, and pulled them onto the saddle. When they were secured, Epona took off in a different direction. Hopefully, he could get away from this uncountable foe.
"No!" Zelda cried from in front of him. She tired desperately to jump off and run to her people, but Link held her firmly in place. "You can't do this! How can you leave these people to die?!"
Link didn't answer right away. But when her protests grew louder and louder, Link shouted, "The first thing a general learns is when to retreat from battle. These Malchadites outnumber us at least five to one. Only the best fighters can survive odds like those, and Hyrule doesn't have many of those people. There is no point in fighting if everyone dies."
"If we're not going to fight, what are we going to do?" she demanded acidly.
"We're leaving. The only other place we can go is to Malchadia. But from there, I don't know what we're going to do." They rode silently for an hour until dusk started to set in. The sound of a neighing horse brought his attention to what was happening around him. A large group of enemy soldiers were trailing him. Each one loaded his bow and let the projectile fly. Some arrows hit the ground near Epona while others flew over his head. Fortunately, none hit their target.
Link armed his own bow and fired at his trailers, trying his best to navigate around Jesika, who had her arms clamped around his waist. He could feel her arms and even her body shaking in fear.
Again a barrage of arrows came his way, and again they failed to make contact. Link shot back another arrow and took another man off his horse. He didn't know how long he could keep this up, but he knew it wouldn't be for long.
His fears came true as a rogue arrow landed in the neck of his steed. The brown mare buckled under the now burdensome weight she carried and crashed into the ground, sending her passengers through the air to land a few feet away. "Run for the woods!" Link commanded as the three of them got to their feet. He held back a moment to look at his now-dead horse, a tear in his eye. "You've done well, good friend. Now it's time for you to rest. Sleep well." He then turned and caught up to his companions as they neared the looming forest.
Running ahead of the women, Link wanted to make sure no danger presented itself. The trees were unusually quiet; no animal wanted to take any part in the danger happening around them. The bushes were low in this part of the woods and no unseen armor reflected the red light of the sun. Unfortunately he could only see a few meters into the forest; the rest was very dark. But this was the only semi-safe place he could find so this is where they would enter.
Link ran back to his wife and friend. Grabbing Zelda and Jesika's hand, he nearly dragged them to the thick copse of trees. "We have to cross through this forest and we'll be in Malchadia," he informed them, but more for himself. "Hopefully we can lose them with our head start." Still holding hands, they walked into the forest.
"Boy, it's dark in here," Jesika complained. "If there were more light--" a sharp glare from Link cut her off. His face said everything: "Don't talk unless you want them to find you." She didn't talk again.
Nocturnal sounds started to whisper through the trees as branches tugged menacingly at their clothes. Beasts that Link would not like to meet in daylight, and definitely not in darkness, cried out in the depths of the forest. He realized that three of them were farther in this place than he had thought. He just hoped that they found the end of this creepy forest, and soon.
"Link, look," Zelda softly muttered at his side. One of her fingers extended to a light gray patch. "It looks like a clearing. Maybe we should check it out?" It was not as much of a suggestion as a plea. She wanted to get clear of the spooky trees and out of the suffocating air.
Link generously complied. The three took large gasps of the fresh air until their heads swam. Darkness had finally settled over Hyrule. Darkness that carried a sense of death, as if it was mourning over the taken lives of innocent Hylian people.
But this didn't seem right. A feeling that they were being watched nagged at his mind and senses. The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed that they were herded to this spot. With their lack of knowledge about the geography in this area, it would be a great trap.
"Guys, come on. We are getting out of here." He hastily collected his companions and ushered them to a place where they could easily resume their trek through the forest. But just as the three neared the edge of the clearing, a rustle came from every direction and ten Malchadites appeared. Each one carried a sword, sleek and sharp blade jutting down to barely rest above the ground. Each one had an expression of contempt etched on their faces and looked eager to unleash the deadly power each sword carried.
"Stay where you are," one of the soldiers warned, holding his sword in a way that deterred anyone from attacking. "You are lucky we don't just kill you now." His threat was directed more to Link than the other two, for he eyed them with lust in his eyes.
"I don't think so," Link responded, drawing his sword to clash with his opponent's. A metallic clang filled the quietness momentarily as the other Malchadites gathered their wits about them and joined in the fray. Shouts of anger lifted into the air and, Link was assured, alerted every person within miles of the battle.
During this time Jesika and Zelda slowly made their way to the outskirts of the clearing, trying to get away from the action. "Princess Zelda, let's get away from here," Jesika pleaded. "I think we have a better chance of surviving the forest than this battle zone."
"I think you're right," the other woman responded after looking at the melee. "Let's head into the forest." Zelda made her way, Jesika right behind her, to the edge of the clearing. The two set foot onto the hard dirt floor and their legs were wrenched backward. Jesika screamed and a cruel laugh chuckled behind them.
The two felt themselves being pulled over the ground back towards the fight. "Get up." The whip released its iron grip on Zelda's ankle and she stood up, fulfilling the man's order. Now she got a look of the scene in front of her: Link was reluctantly standing still, a sword blade to his neck. A man seemed to be talking to him and she caught the last of his words. "...and if you do, I'll have one of my men kill her. Got that?" No doubt he was talking about her.
"Well, men, let's pack up and get out of here," the man threatening Link said. "But first, I want to see the prizes we have here." He walked over two dead Malchadites she didn't notice before and stood before Zelda. "Why, this looks like the Princess of Hyrule. Am I mistaken?" He placed his hands on her shoulders. "Well, Princess, you are in good hands now." She could feel his hands pushing the top of her dress down off her shoulders. "Your dress looks a little tight; maybe you would like to step out of it?"
She never knew she had it in her. Zelda overcame her paralyzing fear and brought her hand around to slap the Malchadite leader's face with a loud clap. "Rot in hell." She spat on his face.
The enemy, obviously angered, viciously grabbed her and drew a knife placing it to her throat. "That was a mistake. No one ever hits me and gets away with it, woman. Not unless they pay." He wrenched the Princess's head up, exposing her bare neck. Zelda swallowed fearfully as she felt the cold blade pressed to the soft skin of her throat. "I wonder how pretty you'll be with a large gash running through your neck?"
"Leave her alone!" Link shouted. In his anger, he broke free from the rock-hard grip of his oppressor and started ahead only to be grabbed again. "I said leave her alone!"
"Shut up!" the other man roared. He walked up to Link, Zelda held out in front. "If you say another word, I'll kill her." He was not joking. To test Link's faith in his words, the man hit Zelda on the back of the head, sending her sprawling to the ground. As she tried to get back up, he took a fistful of hair and practically dragged her to her feet. Again he placed the cold steel blade at below her chin but dropped it when another shout came to his ears.
"Leave Princess Zelda alone." It was Jesika, forgotten by everyone during the recent activities. Her knees were shaking with fear and she was sobbing. "Leave her alone," she said, this time in a weaker voice.
A motion from one of his hands, the leader ordered two men to retrieve her. "Run-" Link started and stopped when a fist connected with his stomach. He did, though, catch enough of his breath to see Jesika run into the trees, with two men covering the distance gap between them and her.
This might be their only chance of escape and he will not pass it up. Taking advantage of the distraction, Link broke free of the iron grip holding him in place. To his holder's surprise, Link took out his hookshot, placed it at the man's stomach, and propelled the tip of the shot through his body to stick into a nearby tree. When the hookshot collected itself, it carried the impaled man with it, securely attaching him to the rough bark.
As Link reached for his dagger at his waist, a leather whip tied his arms to his side. The leader had an enraged look on his face. "Let him go." Approaching Link, he brought Zelda out in front once again, but this time the blade was pressed in her neck. A small trickle of blood danced down to seep into the front of her dress.
A lump formed in Link's throat as the knife dug deeper into her soft skin. "Did you really think I was lying?" he asked rhetorically. "Did you really think I was just joking? Ha. You really don't me very well if you think I bluff. Unfortunately for you, it's your wife who's going to pay for your ignorance." Zelda screamed out in pain as the sharp blade swept across her throat, and the blood flowed in more than a trickle.
Link watched horror-stricken as it seeped down her neck and stained the front of her dress. Her eyes clearly showed the hurt that she felt but held no malice or hostility. In fact, her eyes had no emotion whatsoever in them. Just pain.
In moments, enough blood had drained from Zelda and her face became snow-white. Link could see consciousness leave her body as her legs gave out and she lost her balance. She stumbled and fell into his arms. Blood soaked his tunic and front but Link didn't care; his wife was dying right before his eyes. "Zelda, please don't die," he begged desperately. "Please...don't die." He wrapped her in a tight embrace in his arms and slowly laid her on the ground. The front of her dress was a deep crimson; no amount of help could save his princess now.
Before her final waking moment, Zelda curled her lips in a weak smile, a smile of encouragement, of support, of happiness, and mouthed ever so slowly three words before closing her eyes to rest forever: I...love...you.
Tears streaming down his face, Link watched his dead wife lay still on the green grass. Never before had he felt such heart-racking pain in his life, not when he had to leave Kokiri Forest, not when he had to leave Saria.
When the restraining clamp of the hand presses Link's shoulder, his utter despair turned to great hatred. Hatred to the Malchadites for what they did his wife and his life. Hatred to himself for not taking seriously the man's words. The wrath that he so long ago mastered and pushed down in the recesses of his mind now came floating to the surface in full force, strengthened by the other strong emotions swimming through his thoughts.
"You--," Link muttered under his breath with such intensity that everyone took a step back. "You bastards!" Link unsheathed his sword and held it out in front of him. The surviving seven Malchadites each brought up their own weapons, glad to be able to play the deadly game of swords, not at all affected by the sight they just saw.
Two soldiers advanced on Link. One came in with his sword held high while the other had his low. Link twirled to the side and avoided each blow, but two more he barely saw came from another set of Malchadites at the end of the fighting circle.
Out of his anger, Link swirled his blade in a complete circle and took off their two heads. The bodies fell to the ground, one landing on his sword, the other on his severed head. He eyed the remaining five and swung at the nearest.
This man, though, was prepared and countered the blow with his own sword. But he didn't have the same amount of vigor Link had, so he swung the two blades in a circle and knocked Link's off to the side. The Malchadite saw Link struggle to regain control so stepped in to deliver the final blow only to feel it pierce through his chest. The blade cleanly sliced his breastbone and ribs and stuck out if his back, following the up-down direction of his spinal column. A last grunt and he too fell on the ground.
By now, everyone had seen more than enough of Link's powerful wrath and fighting abilities. Each was visibly scared. No one dared to get near him; no one wanted to die. Every soldier slowly slid back to the beginning of the forest in a single hope of escape. None got there. The first of the four remaining was jumped by Link who grabbed his wrists. The extra power given by his Gauntlets allowed him to crack them before breaking the enemy's neck. The corpse Link threw at his enemies.
As each one stood up, anger also was plain. Silently the Malchadites produced their bows in one hand and nocked an arrow, ready to be drawn and released. This didn't deter Link at all; he held out his sword and concentrated on the blade. As the blade grew blue and then shifted to orange, Link could feel his anger flowing through his weapon and collecting as destructive energy. When every ounce of his anger had left his body the blade had become so orange it appeared red.
But it didn't stop there. His own energy, the energy that fed his muscles and all parts of his body, too was absorbed in the swirling collection at the end of his sword. This time there was no doubt about it; the blade was red. Red as newly spilled blood.
Every Malchadite saw the blood-red blade and the look of death in Link's eyes. None wanted to let him live long enough to execute any attack with his vicious weapon. They raised their bows and drew the arrow in unison with Link thrusting his blade into the ground.
Nothing happened. Seconds passed and still nothing. Exhaling breaths they didn't know they held, the three remaining enemies aimed again at Link as towers of flames erupted from the ground. Licks of fire danced all around, playing games with the shadows. Light glinted off metal and invaded the darkest of spots, but there was no heat; metal was not hot, skin was not sweating. "A game," one of the men said and stepped forward.
Unfortunately for him, it wasn't a game. A strand of flame fell across his leg and intense pain sliced up and down his body. Every nerve was in its own spasm and only worsened as the fire climbed up toward his head. Metal melted as if it were in a forge and cloth served little protection. Where flame seared his body only black scars remained. His skin was dying. His screams of agony cut through the trees only to be drowned out of the crackle of burning wood and the silence of death.
The other two were similarly engulfed, and their deaths had the same suffering as their partner. Soon, the fire waned until it finally disappeared. The smell of scorched flesh and wood and grass filled the air, making it stuffy as the forest.
A clash as he dropped his sword, Link stumbled over to his dead wife. Fortunately she was spared from his angry fire. Her skin still had the same peach look and was still soft to the touch. Thinking of nothing else, Link lay his head on her shoulder and wrapped an arm around her still figure, as if to protect her from an unseen danger. He ignored the wet blood soaking into his tunic. His tears raged relentlessly, and sleep settled down upon him. Obeying his tiredness, Link shut his eyes and buried his face in her chest before entering his world of dreams. No good dreams would come tonight.
Jesika, who witnessed everything: the fierce attack, the death of ten men, all bloody, and the magical fire, walked back out into the clearing. The starlight was covered by a thick blanket of smoke, making the night even darker and colder.
She eased herself up to the edge of the black circle, the circle where the flames had been contained, but didn't cross onto it. Instead, the blond-haired girl crossed the circle and slid silently up to Link. The wind sent shivers down her spine. She put her body down by her friend's, getting as close to him as possible, and slept. She hoped she would not wake in a prison, or worse.