Author's Preface:

Recommended Background Music: Courage - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

It had been three days since Link had spoken with Velretta in the guardhouse. Three days in which so much had changed around the village. Velretta had stated to the villagers how much better it would be to move on from the past strife. She had also spoken to them about Link and Letz, leading to a much warmer feeling towards the two. Although her idea of 'speaking' to the Vinwakans was lecturing them in a loud voice, informing of how it was going to be from here on out. Link had to try not to laugh at hearing about her antics and the mute nodding of the villagers from Letz. Though still bland in appearance, Vinwaka now showed a softer, friendlier side to Link.

Despite the excitement to move forward, there was a bitterness to the otherwise open optimism. The village held several funeral services for both the dead guardsmen and the mayor of Vinwaka. While the guardsmen may not have been popular in the village, the dead were still given a solemn farewell. The mayor's funeral was a large affair, and the occupants of Vinwaka had mourned their lost mayor with a large funeral pyre. Link did not know the man well, but he seemed to have been well respected.

Link himself had never intended to stay long in Vinwaka, but he found himself helping to scout for the missing lizalfos. He had no intention of leaving the village to the whims of monsters right after it was turning the corner. Meanwhile, Letz or the local medicine man checked his crossbow wound daily and it healed as rapidly as he could have hoped for.

As for the lizalfos, no head or tail could be found. It would seem the two leaders of the lizards had left Hyrule completely behind. After three days of scouting, Link had traveled quite far from the village, and yet he found no signs of monsters of any type. It seemed as though the village could finally experience a time of peace and prosperity.

On the morning of the fourth day, Link determined it was time to leave. He had accomplished everything the resistance had sent him to do, and Letz had the village defense well under control. Many villagers had volunteered for scouting and defense after Velretta's speech, and they moved to take on some of the roles that the guards had previously filled. Link could do no more for the community, and he only wished that time could heal the wounds left from Garsus and his men.

Just as the sun began to rise, Link was in the guardhouse stable, tightening the final strap on Epona's saddle. He sighed as he thought about the previous week. Pain, betrayal, and bloodshed. He just couldn't escape trouble no matter what he did. The part he regretted most was the slain guardsmen. Why couldn't they just see past their immediate commander's orders? Following their orders blindly had led to their meaningless deaths. Link shook the dark thoughts away as he grabbed Epona's reins and walked out into Vinwaka.

The morning was bright, and a few villagers moved around. He passed them all quickly, not wanting to draw attention to himself. The sun was bright, and the weather looked promising. With any luck he could be halfway to castle town by nightfall. He quickened his pace slightly.

"You were just going to leave without saying goodbye?" A female voice called from behind him. Link grimaced as he turned to face Velretta. She wore her typical red jacket and had a smirk on her face.

Link had indeed intended to avoid the numerous goodbyes from Vinwaka. If he was honest with himself, he hated goodbyes with a passion. That's your fault, Midna, he angrily thought as he considered the blond woman in front of him. He finally grinned at the huntress, his eyes gaining a mischievous gleam.

"I didn't think you would want to say goodbye to someone who bombed you and tied you up." Velretta's eyebrows instantly came down in a glare. She had recovered extremely well from their previous discussion and was back to her old self.

"Oh, you think that determines anything? If you didn't have a bunch of cheap gadgets, I'd have had you strung up for the village to see," the huntress stated confidently.

"In fact," she continued, "I could have you strung up right now. While you were out addling in the woods last night, I just happened to be elected mayor. So, I have the authority to do anything I want." Link raised an eyebrow.

"Mayor huh? Who'd you threaten to get that job?" Velretta scowled at the green-clad hero.

"I didn't even volunteer. They basically threatened me into the job. Said something along the lines of 'she did a splendid job uniting the village against the garrison'. Those sops will regret it soon enough." She grinned evilly at Link, obviously contemplating some scheme to anger the village elders. Link just shook his head. He had been through enough village politics in the last week. He couldn't wait to return to the peace and quiet of castle town.

As they were speaking, Letz exited the guardhouse behind them. The gray-clad Sergeant was followed by two Hyrulean guardsmen. Link suddenly realized in confusion that it was the two men they had put in cells before confronting Garsus. He was confused further when the soldiers exchanged salutes with Letz. The older hylian hurried over to Link and Velretta.

"Link! You were gonna leave without saying farewell to your ole brother in arms?" The man took off his helmet, revealing a broad grin and twinkling blue eyes. He stopped in front of the hero and new mayor.

"I thought you would be busy," Link replied. He indicated the two guards now moving towards the village hall. "What's up with them?" The sergeant's grin didn't fade as he looked back over his shoulder.

"Those two? They're something, I'll give them that. Their names are Pausil and Kartis. Those jokers aren't really great soldiers, but they didn't really get along with Garsus either. We've came to an understanding, and they've agreed to work with me in Vinwaka." Link nodded thoughtfully. As long as Letz could keep them in line, they would be helpful in protecting the village.

"Oh, by the way Letz," Link mentioned after a second of silence, "I'm going to pull some strings for you when I get back to castle town." Letz looked at him questioningly.

"What are you getting at?" the sergeant asked.

"I'm going to get you some reinforcements sent down here and recommend you for Lieutenant or Captain's rank," Link replied. "I mean, being in charge of a garrison is probably worth a captain's stripes." Letz's jaw dropped in an instant.

"Uh wow!... Thank you so much!" the guardsman sputtered out in shock. Letz blinked a few times, as though trying to process Link's words completely. He then seemed to regain his composure a bit, before looking at Link in a new light.

"You're not just some lowlife agent for the resistance, are you?" The sergeant questioned, his eyes on Link's left hand. Link smiled at the soldier.

"I might have undersold myself a little, but I am working for the resistance," Link replied stoically. Velretta snorted from beside him.

"Seems like they should be working for you after this last week." Link smiled but said nothing for a second. He took in the drab buildings of Vinwaka one last time. The plain dirt streets and wooden homes looked much the same as before, but the people had changed. They now wore smiles and talked excitedly in the road. Vinwaka was better off now than it had been before. With this in mind, he moved to mount Epona.

"I'd better get on the road. I wish you well on your work here." He told both of them. Before he could put his foot into the stirrup however, Velretta had embraced him. Link stepped back in surprise for a second, before slowly returning the hug.

"You might be a hylian idiot, but we do appreciate everything you've done for us. As mayor of Vinwaka, I officially give you a big, super formal thank you hug." She grinned at Link as she released him. "And as a friend, I'd like to give you this." Her smile reformed into a smirk as she thrust a cloth covered item into Link's hands. Link stood confused for a second, while Velretta eyed him impatiently. He looked down at the small package and then back at the scarlet huntress.

"A gift? There's really no need…" Link started, but Velretta waved down his complaints in an instance.

"Hurry up and open it before I change my mind," she stated commandingly.

Link slowly removed the cloth, revealing a simple dagger. The knife was a slightly curved, utilitarian design meant for any outdoor tasks. The most noticeable feature of the dagger and sheathe was its color: a bright crimson that matched its previous owner's jacket. Link drew the dagger in one motion and traced his finger along its edge. The blade sported an edge without serrations, around four or five inches in length. Unsurprisingly, it was razor sharp, and Link smiled at the feel of the cold blade against his finger.

"Thank you." He said quietly, nodding at the blond-haired woman in front of him. Link carefully returned the dagger to its sheathe and put it through his belt. Velretta's face was covered in a self-satisfied smile.

"I thought a swordsman like yourself would appreciate a good blade, and I have five of those anyways." She tapped a knife sheathed on her own hip. The huntress eyed the green-clad swordsman once more. "But I mean it, you are welcome here any time." The huntress then crossed her arms and leaned back in a satisfied manner. Letz, meanwhile, offered his hand to Link, and Link shook it firmly.

"More than welcome, I think," Letz stated resolutely. "In fact, you'd better be here in two weeks." Link looked at him questioningly.

"What?" he asked, confused as he mentally ran through what issues hadn't been resolved. "What happens in two weeks?"

"Laurina and I are going to be married then. I think the person that allowed it to happen should be there, don't you?" The sergeant was beaming at the green-clad hero. It was almost bewildering to see the usually moody soldier so happy and excited.

Link had met Luarina only once in the last few days. She was a quiet, dark-haired lady with piercing green eyes. The farmer's daughter had basically hugged Letz's side when in his company. While Link himself had not interacted with her much, it was obvious the two were deeply in love. Link grinned back at the soldier.

"Wouldn't miss it. You think you'll have that dent out by the time the wedding happens?" Link asked jokingly, indicating the piece of armor in the sergeant hands. Letz scowled at that, momentarily losing his blissful expression.

"I don't think anything will get it out, but I'm not giving up yet." He glared at the helmet, as though his eyes could shame the metal back into shape. Link held in a chuckle.

"Don't worry, just sell it off as battle scars. Laurina will be impressed." Letz frowned but said nothing more as Link mounted Epona in one motion.

"Take care of yourself, hylian." Velretta told him, her face oddly sad. Letz waved from beside her, and Link retuned the motion.

"I'll be in touch. Get this village going in the right direction, and I'll talk to you in two weeks." Link turned from the two figures, urging Epona towards the gate. The two new officials of Vinwaka watched him leave. He slowly led Epona through the palisade gates of the village, the gatemen watching him with interest. This time, however, they were smiling at the green-clad swordsman as the Ordonian headed off into the distance.

A barren throne room stood silent. Great stone steps led up to large gray throne. The light of the room was dim, with only a few torches scattered around the room. The roof of the great hall indicated that it was part of a cave or cavern and buried deep underground. On the throne sat a large dinolfos, its tail awkwardly to the side as it sat in front of two bowing lizards.

This dinolfos did not wear armor like the majority of the species that the hylians had encountered. Instead, it wore a leather tunic covered in gems and rubies. On its head lied a simple crown composed of interwoven metal rods. The creature's tongue slithered in and out occasionally in a bored manner.

The first of the bowing figures, a large armored dinolfos, hissed reverently up at the figure on the throne. The second figure, a lizalfos chieftain, remained silent beside the warrior. While no hylians could have understood the hissing language, the lizards understood each other perfectly.

"I beg to report, my queen, that the raiding tribe ssssent to sssouthern Hyrule hasss been eliminated," The dinolfos warrior reported to his queen. The figure on the throne, hissed angrily, her claws scratching into the stone seat she sat on.

"And how, did thisss happen? You!" the great lizard queen indicated the lizalfos Chief. "Why did you fail in your tasssk to find a backdoor into Hyrule?" The chief shook in fear as he kept his head down.

"The fault is not ourssss," the chieftan exclaimed in a panic. "There wasss a great warrior among the long eared onesss, marked with the gold hand. He ssstopped usss!" The queen glared down at the smaller lizard.

"And all your warriorsss were ssslain?" she asked the quivering lizalfos.

"Yesss, all of them! It wasss a great tragedy!"

"Then you are of no ussse to me. Dinolfosss warrior, ssslay this uselessss carrion."

Before the chief could even respond, the dinolfos fighter had sliced his blade across the lizalfos's neck. The lizalfos shrieked in pain and fell forward, his green blood splattering up the stone steps to the foot of the throne. The dinolfos warior calmly sheathed his blade as though nothing had happened.

The queen stood up, ignoring the blood that had splattered onto her claws. She glared around the room as though looking for something else to put her anger on. Finding no target for her wrath, she finally shrieked at nothing in particular.

"Mark my wordsss, gold handed warrior or not, I will find a way to enter the Kingdom of Hyrule!"

A week after Link departed, Letz found himself working through a mountain of paperwork in his new office in the guardhouse. It was obvious Link had made good on his promise to send help to Vinwaka. He had received a messenger just two days later attempting to receive details on the situation so more troops could be deployed to the village. This unfortunately meant that Letz had to retell the entire collection of events from the beginning of the garrison's arrival to Link's victory over Garsus. The process was long but necessary.

Letz leaned back, placing the quill back on the table. The soldier sighed. He was lucky to even be able to read, haven taken some lessons back in his youth. He wasn't from a large town, and reading was considered a luxury to many there. If he was being honest, his earlier remark to Velretta about being able to read had stemmed from his own insecurities. The entire process would be even longer if he had to recount everything to a scribe.

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud banging from his office door. Letz was confused for a moment. The hour was late, and he hadn't expected anyone to bother him for the rest of the night. He went to the door, opening it to reveal the stubby guard, Kartis. The man was still a coward, but he had a friendly smile and a contagious laugh that made him hard to hate. Kartis saluted his sergeant, which Letz returned.

"Sir, a package just arrived for you, thought I'd bring it in if that's okay." Letz wasn't expecting a package, but he might as well see what it was. Any break from paperwork was a good break.

"Sure. Bring it on in." The pudgy man returned with a large box, setting it down with a huff. He then saluted his sergeant once more before exiting, closing the door as he went. Letz walked over to his desk, pulling an envelope from the top of the box's fold. He opened it quickly revealing two parchments of paper. Rough handwriting covered the first. The sergeant quickly scanned the note.

Letz,

I hope this letter finds you well. I have been doing my best in castle town to ensure you have more resources at your disposal. Ten soldiers are on their way now to reinforce Vinwaka's garrison. They should be at the village a day after this letter if all goes well. Consider this repayment for saving my life.

Many people were very taken by your pursuit of justice and fairness. In fact, after telling the story to some important people in town the princess herself wanted to send you a wedding gift. It is a tad early, but I of course could not object to such a demand. Besides, I enjoyed offering some ideas as to what the gift should be. It's enclosed in the box alongside your official promotion paperwork for captain.

Best Wishes,

Link

Letz stared in shock, mouth agape. The princess? The soldier looked at the second note. Sure enough, in prestigious handwriting the heir to the throne had written a letter of commendation to him, a lowly sergeant.

No, a captain now, he reminded himself. It all boggled his mind. His life had changed so quickly from the constant misery of Fassil and Garsus. All because of one stranger who happened to hear the plead of a dying man. Putting the papers aside, he moved to open the box.

Inside he found a new, shiny, and most importantly undented helmet, complete with his name engraved in gold on the inside.

Author's Note:

And so the sun sets on a tale past twilight. Will there be more? That depends on you dear reader. I'll be checking reviews and favs to determine if there is interest in any more stories moving forward. My greatest fear is to write stories that sound good to me but are not enjoyed by others.

So please, if you enjoyed the story and would like to see more stories featuring the resistance, Zelda, Link, and other characters from Twilight Princess, leave a review or just message me directly. This is my first published fictional work ever, and I'm not sure if it turned out well enough to write more. I intend to bring the focus back on more familiar characters in the future if I do continue writing.

Regardless, if you made it this far, thank you so much for checking this story out and sticking with it to the end! It's wonderful people like you who keep old games and characters alive and well! Cheers to all of you!

-GrayGuard06