The Legend of Zelda: The Return
"Cowards die a thousand times before their death;
The Valiant never taste of death, but once."
– William Shakespeare
Chapter 12
Sometimes I wonder . . .
What would my life be like if my parents hadn't died? There had to have been a brief stretch of time between my birth and their deaths in which we were together and happy . . . there had to have been. Somewhere, in the depths of my mind, must be the memory of me and my family, just being a family. Just doing what Moms, and Dads, and their kids do.
Maybe I would have grown up a completely different person. Maybe I wouldn't be this sarcastic. Maybe I wouldn't be this impetuous. Maybe I would have been a little bit smarter than I seem to be . . .
I know one thing for sure though.
I wouldn't be in this Goddess forsaken cell in the caverns underneath Kakariko Village.
At least they left me my weapons.
Must be pretty confident.
Still not sure how I got here. After getting beat on by the dozen or so Sheikah I landed on, I must have blacked out, because when I woke up I was here, on this cold dirt floor and behind these bars. I'm starting to wonder if I didn't imagine Sheik, too. Why would he leave me in here?
Then again, you never know with Sheik.
Damn Sheikah and his goddess damned secrets.
I look up at the sound of the heavy iron door swinging inward.
Speak of the Devil. It's Sheik and a couple of other Sheikah. And he looks mad at me.
If I wasn't mad at him too, I might care more.
He stops in front of my cell and we glare at each other.
"You're supposed to be in the desert," he growls.
"You're supposed to be in Dark Link's clutches," I growl back. "Or better yet, dead. Were you planning on letting me and the others in on the little secret that you were alive at any point in time?"
"Watch your tone when speaking to a Sheikah," snaps one of the men behind him, taking a threatening step forward. "Show some respect." I meet his gaze evenly, despite my stomach flip-flopping at the thought of yet another beating. The first was bad enough.
"I'll show respect when he's shown himself worthy of it," I growl back.
"Let it go," Sheik says, raising a hand to stop the furious Sheikah. "You could beat him a million times and it would change nothing. Take off your gloves, Link."
"What?" I demand, staring at him. "Why?" He blows his blonde bangs out of his eyes impatiently.
"Look, do you want out of there, or not?" He demands. "Just take off your gloves." Narrowing my eyes at him I pull my gloves off one at a time. I absently scratch at the triforce mark on the back of my hand. The other Sheikah's eyes widen simultaneously.
"He is a Child of Destiny!" The cranky one gasps. His partner nudges him and he quickly regains his composure.
"Draw your sword, Link," Sheik instructs. Giving him an odd look I pull my gloves back on and draw my sword. It comes out its sheath with its usual shimmering ring. The Sheikah blink at me. "See?" Sheik says, somewhat smugly. "The Master Sword. Just like I said. He's the Hero of Time, now open up his cage." The cranky one shifts uncomfortably.
"We should check with Detsu first," he says. Sheik grits his teeth and whirls around, wrapping his fist in the front of the other Sheikah's uniform.
"Don't bother me with your excuses!" He cries. "Do you want to be held responsible for keeping the Hero of Time from doing his duties? How are you going to explain it when Ganondorf returns and takes over the world, all because you were too cowardly to make a simple decision on your own without having to run to your superiors? Dammit man! There isn't time for this!" He all but throws the other Sheikah at my cage. Looking stunned – for a Sheikah anyway – cranky guard hurriedly unlocks my stall and opens the door. I cross my arms and walk out of it.
"Come with me," Sheik says stiffly, turning on his heel and walking out the door without a further word. I look back at the other two Sheikah but they stare impassively back at me.
Well these people are just a barrel of fun, aren't they?
Shaking my head I turn around and follow closely on Sheik's heels. He leads me on a zigzag course through the darkness of the caverns underneath Kakariko, lit only dimly by torches.
Farore . . . I never even imagined something like this existed. Suddenly I understand how such a small village could be the Sheikah capital of the world . . . and why I've never seen a Sheikah here. I wonder how far these caverns go . . .
After what seems like forever, Sheik finally stops in front of a door and enters through it. I follow him in and walk past him. It's a little bedroom. There's a bed in the corner, a dresser along the wall, and a few other odd objects. I blink when I look at the little shelf in the other corner. That's the slingshot I gave to Sheik the first Solstice Eve I spent in Castletown . . . I can't believe he still has that.
Sheik shuts the door behind us.
Well . . . maybe slammed is a better word.
"What do you think you're DOING?" He cries. I turn around and avoid his question.
"Where's Zelda?" I say. "I need to talk to her."
"She's not here," he says quickly. I frown. He's lying.
"Sheik, I mean it, it's important," I say.
"She's busy," he says. "Look, she'll be back in a bit. What are you doing here? Why aren't you with Nabooru? Did you not listen to a word we said? Did you not learn anything from what happened at Lon Lon?" I glare at him.
"Let me ask you a few questions, Sheik," I snap. "How is it you're here, and not rotting in a dungeon somewhere? Why didn't you let me know you were okay? Where's Zelda really? What happened to Impa? And what made you think, that after what happened at Lon Lon, I'd be willing to just sit in the desert digging sand out of my ears when I know for a fact that you guys are in trouble in Kakariko?" He and I glare at each other for a long moment and then finally make frustrated noises.
"Fine," Sheik hisses. "Quid pro quo. You ask one then I'll ask one."
"How did you escape from Dark Link?" I ask.
"I . . . didn't get free until after you got away. I was . . . injured. I must have passed out. When I woke up I headed for Kokiri Forest and the Kokiri told me where you'd all gone. I came back here because I could be of the most use here. What are you doing here?"
"I heard Nabooru talking to someone – Kaepora or something – about a distress call from Zelda. Something about Impa going missing and a traitor among the Sheikah." I lower my voice when Sheik frantically gestures for me to do so. "So I got on Epona and took off. I knew Nabooru wouldn't let me go without a fight, so I figured I'd avoid it by going off on my own."
"A friend of yours, Neesha, has gone missing. Is she with you?"
"Yes," I say. "You got to ask two, now I get to ask two."
"Fine," Sheik says, crossing his arms.
"Why didn't you let me know you were all right?" I demand. "Do you have any idea what the thought of Dark Link having you and Malon and the others has been doing to me?"
"I didn't let you know I was all right, because that would have led to more questions about what was going on here and then if you found out I knew you'd do exactly what you've already done and put yourself and everything else at risk by rushing down here. And yes, I know exactly what the thought of Dark Link having us has been doing to you, because the same thoughts run through my mind about if he ever got a hold of you." He pauses and I gesture for him to ask his question. He frowns at me suddenly. "Are you still angry with me?"
"Yes," I answer shortly. "Very angry. And this whole situation hasn't exactly helped matters any, either."
"Link . . ." Sheik starts, and I can already see what he's going to say. The same song and dance he's been handing me for years.
"Look, Sheik," I say, "it's one thing to be secretive and lie to me when it's not serious. When we're just kids, and we're just fooling around, and it's not important. But when you lie to me about things like . . . like . . . me, then we've got a problem! You knew about this whole Hero of Time thing, and you hid it from me. You knew about Dark Link, and you hid that from me too. You lie to me all the time –"
"I do not!" Sheik cries in protest.
"You do so!" I cry in reply. "You still are!"
"Prove it," Sheik says. My eyes narrow.
"Where's Zelda?" I demand.
"I told you, she's not . . ." His voice trails off.
"Case in point," I say.
"Link . . . I just . . . I can't explain it, all right? I can't tell you where she is. Can't you just accept that?" I consider for a minute accepting it. I'm used to accepting it. It's what I've always done in the past. But this time's different.
Empty an upset mind . . .
"No!" I cry furiously. "I can't! You lie to me, then when I call you on it, you say you can't tell me the truth, but then you won't tell me why. I'm tired of it, Sheik! There's too many secrets! You and the Sages and everyone! No one will be straight with me, no one will tell me anything, and you're all trying your damned hardest to keep me in the dark about everything! 'What he doesn't know won't get him killed.' That's what Nabooru said when Kaepora whoever was asking her if she was going to tell me that people I care about are in trouble. And I guess that was the whole point behind shoving me into the desert, wasn't it? To keep me safe. Safe and stupid."
"Link . . . " Sheik tries again but I interrupt him.
"You don't protect someone from poison by never telling them what the skull and crossbones mean, Sheik," I say in a voice that's dangerously quiet. "Either you people start being straight with me, or I'm going to drink that poison and never know what hit me."
"Link . . ." He tries once more, but I don't interrupt him this time . . . he just doesn't know how to finish.
"Let's start small," I say. "Where is Zelda?" An odd, wry look twists Sheik's face.
"Start small," he says, as though there's something ironic in that statement. He moves over and sits down on his bed, avoiding my gaze for a moment. He takes a deep breath then turns back to look at me.
"Link, I am . . ."
"SHEIK!" The door bursts open and a young Sheikah, about my age, bursts into the room, panting heavily. He stares from me to Sheik and back again. "This is the kid who's causing all the trouble?" He demands suddenly. I raise an eyebrow at him.
"Nice to meet you too," I answer caustically. "Man, I'm really starting to love this Sheikah hospitality." The guy grins at me. And honest to Din grin . . . on a Sheikah. Will wonders never cease?
"Yeah I guess you haven't had that great a reception," he says. "My name's Hunter, and you're Link, and that's Sheik. Now we're all introduced." He turns back to Sheik. "They've caught another prisoner. A Gerudo, can you believe it?"
"Neesha!" I gasp.
"She says she knows you," Hunter says, looking at me, then turns back to Sheik. "Anyway, Detsu's taking her personally to the dungeon. He intends to lock her up with Link." Sheik blinks and some kind of realization suddenly widens his eyes.
"But Link's not there," he says.
"Exactly," Hunter says. "Sheik, this is serious. If Detsu finds out you went behind his back . . . Impa's favorite or not, he's gonna rip you apart."
"Woah, what's going on?" I cry.
"No time," Sheik gasps, getting to his feet and shoving me out the door, Hunter follows close on our heels. "We've got to get you back in your cell before Detsu realizes your gone. Hunter, does everyone else know the plan?"
"Yep," Hunter answers, running along beside us. "Everyone's in place. They're just waiting for your word."
"You're sure they're holding her there?" Sheik asks.
"Sheik, I swear," Hunter says. "I'd bet my life on it."
"You may yet," Sheik mutters gravely. Hunter's face is grim but he doesn't reply.
Oh man, am I missing something here . . .
"Is this one of those things that's going to make sense later, or am I just going to be left in the dark on this one too?" I ask.
"It'll make sense later," Sheik promises. "I'll fill you in after we deal with Detsu and Neesha."
We burst into the dungeon where I was being held. The cell still stands empty and open.
"Quick!" Hunter says, grabbing the cell door. I jump into the cell – hoping I'm not going to get double crossed somehow here – and drop back into the sitting position I'd been in earlier. Hunter shuts the door and locks it.
"They're coming!" Sheik hisses, peering out the door. "We can't get back out! They're in the hallway!"
"Hide!" I hiss back from my cell.
"Where?" Hunter demands. "There's nowhere!" We all look around desperately. He's right. There isn't anywhere to hide.
The sound of footsteps can be heard from the hallway now.
Oh man . . . why did I have to lean up against Dampe's grave? Why couldn't I have just left well enough alone . . .
I gasp suddenly, causing both Sheik and Hunter to look at me.
Dampe!
Of course!
I shove my hand into my pouch and pull out my hookshot, tossing it to Sheik, who stares at it uselessly.
"Link, what . . ."
"I get it!" Hunter cries, snatching the hookshot and aiming it upwards. He pulls the trigger and it sinks to the roof with a chink. Hunter turns around. "Grab my neck," he hisses. We can hear voices now. Sheik wraps his arms around Hunter's neck and Hunter releases the catch, holding tight. The two sail up and dangle from the ceiling just as the door opens and Detsu walks in, followed by two other Sheikah, one of which has Neesha draped over his shoulder.
"Neesha!" I gasp, leaping to my feet and rushing over to the door of my cell. "What did you do to her?" Detsu raises his eyebrow at me.
"Why are you winded?" He demands. "What have you been doing?" I immediately try and regulate my breathing.
"Uh . . . laps," I say. "Around my cell. Keep in shape. What did you do to Neesha?" I repeat. Detsu makes a face.
"The Gerudo is a trespasser, like yourself. She claims she came looking for you. Jumped down the grave entrance. On the instructions of this." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small jar, with a tiny blue glowing fairy in it.
"Navi!" I gasp.
"Link!" She cries, beating on the glass with her hands. "This son of a –" Detsu shakes the bottle and Navi cries out as she's slammed off the sides of it.
"Leave her alone!" I cry furiously, staring in horror at Navi as she falls limply to the floor of the bottle.
"Get back from the door," Detsu sneers. I don't move. "Do it!" He says again, giving the bottle a shake just for good measure. I scowl darkly and step back to the back of the cell. The Sheikah with his arms free pulls out his keys and opens the cell, and the one carrying Neesha dumps her unceremoniously on the ground. They step out and shut the door and I immediately drop to my knees at Neesha's side.
"Neesha?" I say, shaking her gently, keeping one eye on Detsu and Navi. "Neesha? Are you all right?" Detsu sets Navi on the ground beside my cell, just out of my reach.
"Enjoy your stay, Link," he says coldly. "I'll be back soon to decide your fate." I meet his gaze and am startled by the hate I see there. It's a furious, personal hate. Like I've done something to him . . . Like I've done something awful to him . . .
But I've never met him before . . .
I don't get it . . .
He turns on his heel and storm out the door, his lackeys on his heel, slamming the door shut behind them.
A small stone falls on the ground. I blink at it.
"Uh-oh," I hear Hunter say. The next minute the chunk of roof the hookshot's embedded in comes loose in a shower of stones and Sheikah. Hunter and Sheik strike the ground hard and painfully disentangle themselves from each other.
"Sheik!" I say. "Navi . . ." He understands instantly and rushes over to the bottle as Hunter unlocks the door to my cell. He walks in and reaches into the pouch at his waist, pulling out a small bottle with a glowing pink fairy spirit in it. He leans down and opens it near Neesha. The pink light comes out and swirls around Neesha before disappearing with a faint giggle. Neesha groans and her eyes flutter open. She rolls over and squints at me.
"Link?" She asks, then gasps and jumps to her feet. "Oh no! Where's Navi!"
"Right here," Sheik says, holding out his hands. I reach out and gently take Navi from him, setting her in the palm of my left hand and poking her with a finger.
"Hey, Navi?" I say. "You alive?" She groans and sits up in my hand, making a vain attempt to get her hair out of her eyes.
"No," she grumbles. "I ache all over." I pull my hat off and set her on my head.
"You'll be fine in a while," I say. "Fairies heal fast." I pull my hat back on.
"Where are we?" Neesha demands. I look to the two Sheikah, raising an eyebrow, my own questions obvious in my eyes. They exchange a glance.
"Come on," Sheik says. "We'll explain everything." Hunter peers out the door carefully then nods.
"Coast is clear," he says. We head out the door at a brisk jog and Sheik starts talking.
"Detsu's a double agent," he says as we run. "Has been ever since before you changed history. Ganondorf got his claws into him over twenty years ago."
"So why is he still breathing?" I ask. "If you freak out this much over an innocent trespasser, I'd love to see how you deal with a traitor . . ."
"Because we couldn't prove it until after you'd been sealed away in the Sacred Realm," Sheik explains. "And he was dealt with accordingly. Nothing but death is harsh enough for a traitor. But the problem is, when you changed history . . ."
"Detsu came back," I fill in the gap. Sheik nods.
"Exactly," he says. "Impa didn't want to move against him. She wouldn't accept the idea that a Sheikah could actually betray us without Ganondorf's influence." Sheik's tone suggested he strongly disagreed. "But Detsu's been rotten since before any of us were born. He was in league with Ganondorf during the Great War. I know he was."
"We just can't prove it," Hunter adds. "He covered his tracks too well. There was one man, Brayden, who might have been able to do it . . . but . . ."
"He and his family disappeared under mysterious circumstances," Sheik says. "I bet you any money Detsu killed them all."
"We can't prove that either," Hunter said.
"Sounds like you're making a lot of assumptions without proof," Neesha says.
"We don't have proof, but we have are not assumptions," Sheik assured her.
"What does Impa have to do with any of this?" I ask.
"Well," Hunter says, "not only is Impa a Sage, but she's also leader of the Sheikah. At least until she disappeared. You get three guesses as to who took over for her after she disappeared."
"Detsu," I say, then blink. "Hey, you know about the Sages?"
"Sure!" Hunter says. "Everyone does. Sheikah don't keep secrets." I choke. "From each other," Hunter adds hastily. "It's just with everyone else that we keep secrets."
"Right," I say dryly. "I know that much."
"Anyway, Hunter thinks he's found out where Detsu's keeping Impa," Sheik says. "We've gathered up the few Sheikah we're sure we can trust and are going to try and break her out tonight. And, if one of us happens to get a shot at Detsu . . ."
"You'll take him out," I finish.
"Right," Hunter says. "You, however, were not part of the original plan."
"Which brings us to a problem," Sheik says. "You can't risk . . ."
"Finish that sentence Sheik, and I'll finish you," I say darkly. "I'm not a pawn in some game of Chess, and if you keep trying to shove me back into the box I'm going to dismantle you piece by secretive piece." Sheik is silent.
"I can't give you permission to fight with us," he says.
"I'm not, nor have I ever, needed anyone's permission to do anything, least of all yours," I reply.
"Well," Hunter says brightly, "I, for one, would be glad to have the Hero of Time on our side. Even if he does dress funny."
"This from the guy wearing a blue and white body suit," I reply glibly.
"Hardy, har, har," Hunter says. "This guy's a real riot, Sheik. Where'd you dig him up, anyway?"
"He just kind of fell out of the sky," Sheik says, shooting me a grin.
"Hey I though Sheikah weren't supposed to smile ever," I say.
"That's when we're up in the real world," Hunter says. "Down here we can be ourselves." I gasp mockingly.
"You mean Sheikah's have personalities?" I say. "That's amazing! Hey Neesha, do Gerudo's have personalities too, or are you guys just always your usual, single minded selves?" I think if she had something handy she'd throw it at me.
Too bad we're running too fast for that.
Hey wait a minute . . . what am I hearing?
"What's that?" Hunter asks a second later. We all skid to a stop and listen.
Sounds like . . . screaming . . . and metal on metal . . .
"Someone's fighting," Neesha says.
"A lot of someones," Hunter adds. The four of us exchange a look and immediately take off at a pace three times what we were previously doing. As we round the next corner we again skid to a stop and stare with wide eyes.
Moblins.
There are Moblins in the Sheikah's secret caverns.
"Let me guess," I say thickly. "Those Sheikah fighting down there are the ones loyal to you?"
"And those Moblins down there are the ones loyal to me," hisses a voice from behind us. As one we gasp and whirl around as Detsu separates himself from the shadows around him. He grins maliciously at us, glaring at Sheik.
"Oh come on," he says at the stunned looks on our faces. "You didn't actually think your pathetic little plan would work, did you?" He asks. "Honestly. The things children think . . ."
"Where's Impa?" Sheik demands furiously, clutching his saber in a white-knuckled grip.
"Gone," Detsu says. "Awaiting my Master's return. Along with that other, irritating, Gerudo woman. The Sage of Spirit."
"What have you done with Nabooru?" Neesha cries, shifting her stance ever so subtly. Now why does that stance look so familiar?
"She was foolish enough to intrude upon the Sheikah's realm," Detsu answered. "And now she also awaits death in Ganondorf's dungeons."
That's an attack stance . . .
Neesha screams a battle cry and throws herself at Detsu, sword extended. Detsu has his sword out in a flash, but not fast enough to completely avoid Neesha's attack. Her blade slides across his arm. He glares at her, surprised by the suddenness and ferocity of her attack, but it doesn't faze him further than that. He blocks her sword twice with his. She raises her sword to attack again, but he slams his foot into her stomach and she stumbles back against the wall. He follows up by driving his sword through her stomach.
Her eyes go wide.
"Well it's true," I snap. " Dying is not honourable. Dying is not something to be proud of. And honour and pride are not worth dying for."
"Then what is?" Demands a sharp voice to my left. I turn and meet Neesha's gaze evenly.
"Life is," I reply, without even having to think about it. "Life is worth dying for. Whether it be yours or someone else's, life is the only thing worth dying for."
A haze of red suddenly clouds my vision.
She can't be dead . . .
The Master Sword sings as I rip it out of its sheath and leap at Detsu.
She just can't be . . .
He smirks at me, confident in his ability to do to me what he did to Neesha. But I'm no little Gerudo girl.
For this single, solitary moment . . .
I am the Hero of Time.
The Master Sword flashes with a blue light and slices through his blade like a Zora through water. I don't stop, following up my attack and taking advantage of his surprise by driving my sword through his arm. The same one that Neesha hit. He cries out and throws himself backwards, dislodging my blade and clutching his arm.
The knowledge . . . the power that I felt a moment ago fades . . .
The Master Sword grows dim.
But the rage remains.
"This isn't over, children," Detsu snarls, running towards the battle. I start after him, but Sheik catches my arm.
"Link don't," he says. I shrug out of his grip and ignore him, keeping Detsu in my sight. He's heading for a fork in the caverns. He runs down the right passage.
I follow him.
"LINK!" Hunter shouts. "YOU CAN'T GO IN –" My hat, and Navi inside it, fly off of my head for no apparent reason, as though coming up against some unseen barrier, but I pass right through it. Hunter's voice dies off and he doesn't finish his sentence.
If I stop now, I'll lose Detsu . . .
I can't afford that . . .
Not now . . .
I run alone, into the darkness . . .