By Joker's Specter
Chapter Two: Cyrus
Link drifted in and out of consciousness for a while. He couldn't see due to the burlap sack that was covering his face. When he managed to stay awake for more than a few seconds at a time, he took in as much information as he could to gauge his situation. The first thing he discovered was that he was on the back of a horse, and the horse wasn't Epona. It was a full-grown horse that didn't have the smooth galloping abilities Epona seemed to have mastered.
The next thing Link realized, once he tried to move around a bit, was that his hands were bound behind his back. That wasn't surprising, but it was definitely irritating. It put him in a spot where the best thing to do was to pretend he was still knocked out. Following that decision, any time he managed to keep the pain away long enough to stay conscious, he stayed as still as possible.
Speaking of pain, the third thing the Hylian realized was that he had a massive headache. He only realized that when the adrenaline left him as he forced himself to calm down. At first he thought it was just a minor bump, but apparently whoever attacked him had clocked him pretty hard in the skull. Every time the throbbing gradually built up until it sent a ringing sensation through the boy's brain, he knew he was seconds from passing out.
In the midst of his internal battle to stay awake, he picked up snippets of conversation between the people who had attacked him. As he focused his elf-like ears hard to listen to what they had to say, he discovered three unique voices; all of them were full-grown men.
"...can't be one of Kain's men...green clothes aren't..."
The ringing through Link's head made it hard for him to pick up most of what was being said between the men.
"...don't care...trespassing..." the deepest of the voices said.
The ringing became a throbbing as Link got the sensation that someone was having a fist fight with the back of his head.
"He's just a kid...what...with his horse?"
Link bit his lip to stop himself from groaning in pain.
"...it..."
A shockwave of pain travelled from the back of Link's head to every nerve in his body. He clenched his stomach in an attempt to stop himself from throwing up.
"...seems...right age...your daughter."
A chorus of demon laughter rang out through the night. It took Link a moment to realize it wasn't a horde of foul creatures, but instead it was just the men laughing. The pain was twisting and turning every sensation Link felt into a horrifying experience that played with his senses. Despite that, he didn't want to pass out. He needed to know what was being said.
What were they talking about, anyway? He couldn't concentrate, and soon he felt the fuzzy numbness that heralded unconsciousness travel from his fingertips and toes throughout his body. Before he passed out again, his sharp ears picked up a few more words.
"...stupid Fairy Shrine...reason...Kain...attacking us..."
Darkness engulfed the young boy.
!-K- -A- -T- -A- -R-!
!-A- -F- -A- -C- -E-!
When Link woke up again, he wasn't on a horse anymore. Instead, he was being carried by someone with weak arms. He knew this because they kept dropping him and dragging him.
"Hey! Tolgi!" shouted a voice from far off, "Bronzen said to be careful with him!"
The man carrying Link was breathing heavily. "Well, I could, if you would stop bein' lazy and help me!" he yelled back. Immediately after, Link slipped from his grasp again and landed hard.
Grunting in pain as he collided with the hard floor, Link rolled over and tried to climb to his feet. "Just let me walk!" he groaned.
There was a moment of silence as Link wondered if maybe they were actually considering it. Before he could get his hopes too high, the man apparently named Tolgi clonked Link on the back of his head again. The pain electrified Link, and blackness overtook him again just as he smacked into the hard floor again.
Dreams, memories, and nightmares flooded Link's unconscious form. For the longest time he didn't know what was real as he coasted through his subconscious thoughts, trying to make sense of it all.
Far from being able to do so, Link finally woke up again, this time with the bag removed from his head and his hands untied. The reason for that, he figured, was that they had contained him in some sort of jail cell. It was fairly light, due to the sun shining through the barred windows set into each of the four sides of the building.
As Link came to and was beginning to grasp the situation, he took the time to study his surroundings, he allowed his eyes to scan the rest of the room. Other than his own cell, there were five other cells that were laid out against two walls of the room; three on the wall opposite of him, and two to either side of his own cell.
Link sat up where he had been laying on the cold stone flooring of his cell and studied the occupants of the jail. There were four people in the room with him, three of which were captives like himself. The other person was apparently a guard, seated at a chair near the door that opened to the outside. The guard was busy amusing himself with a card game.
On the cell to Link's right was a girl that looked to be about twelve years old; right around Link's age. She had long brown hair, and was wearing some clothes that you'd see a peasant wearing. The girl looked like she was asleep on the small bed in the corner of her cell.
Link wondered where his own bed was, since there wasn't one to be found in his cell. Brushing the thought off, he put his attention on the boy in the cell to his right. The young man looked like he was sixteen or seventeen years old. The brunette had short, messy hair that stuck up at odd angles. Like the girl to Link's left, the boy was wearing a commoner's attire. They appeared to be ripped and shredded in some sections, as if he had been in a brawl.
The brown-eyed boy was leaning against the far wall of his cell, deep in thought. After a few moments, he noticed that Link was staring at him. his mouth turned into a crooked, amused smile, and he leaned his head back against the stone wall and closed his eyes.
In the cell across the room and on Link's right was a muscular adult that looked to be middle-aged. His black hair was starting to turn gray, and his sharp eyes were dark and focused. He had a nervous expression on his face as he paced back and forth throughout his cell.
Link's attention was drawn to the man's clothing. Unlike the other two prisoners, the older man had an outfit that resembled something you might find in a royal court. It reminded Link of Hyrule Castle and all of the Lords and Ladies that often came and went.
Standing up, the blonde boy flinched in pain. Despite the headache Link had, he walked to the front of the cell, managing to stay steady on his feet.
"Excuse me. Where...where am I?" he asked the guard. The overweight guard looked at Link, made a small laugh, and then resumed playing with his cards.
Link looked around to the other people for help. Nobody seemed to have paid him any attention yet, so he walked up to the bars that he shared with the other boy's cell and asked the question again. "Can you tell me where I am? And where my horse might be?" he inquired.
The boy opened his eyes, made his crooked smile again, and said, "You know... I don't recognize you."
Link shrugged. "I don't recognize you, either," he replied simply.
The boy's smirk widened. "Aren't you supposed to be one of my dad's men?" he asked. He pushed himself off of the wall gently with his back and began to stride forward towards Link. If the bars hadn't been between them, Link might have felt threatened. It was at that moment that he realized he didn't have any of his gear, either. Not that it surprised him, of course, but it was was very unpleasant to think about.
"Yeah... Green clothes. No clue where you are, and you own a horse," the boy said, studying Link with his calculating eyes. "I tried to tell these morons that you're not one of us, but naturally they didn't listen. That's the problem with 'em; they won't listen to reason," he added, and began to pace around his cell.
Link wasn't sure what to make of the boy's sudden ranting. At a loss for words, he simply stood there and listened as the prisoner continued.
"All they do is assume," the boy said, visibly getting angry. "Just like they assume my little sister over there is dangerous." He motioned to the girl in the cell behind Link, and then went on. "And just like they assume that my father, Kain, is trying to rob them of their land." He kicked the wall in disgust, then seemed to calm down slightly.
Link watched the boy with a wondering expression. Robbing of land usually involved battles and wars. It made Link feel worried inwardly as he wondered just what he had gotten himself into.
The brunette boy turned to Link and folded his arms. "To answer your question, kid, you're in the town of Keystone. I have no clue where your horse is; chances are they kept it for themselves, because they like to use 'em. The rotten King himself has over ten for his personal use, I hear," he said with a bitter tone.
"Wow," Link managed to say. Who needed ten horses just for their own use?
"You see kid, those of us living under my father's authority don't get many horses over where we've set up camp, so we don't use 'em. Instead, we use other animals that can carry our weight. Whatever can match a horse for speed, we'll try out."
The story was beginning to fascinate Link. It seemed like every land he came to outside of Hyrule had its own distinct feel to it. Exactly what kind of animals could be ridden other than a horse, anyway? A cow?
"By the way..." the boy said, stepping forward. "I didn't catch your name."
Link straightened up. "Oh... my name's Link."
The boy looked at Link and smiled crookedly again. "My name's Cyrus. My little sister over there is named Crystal." Again he pointed to the young girl behind Link.
A thought crossed Link's aching head. "Say, Cyrus..." he said quietly. He turned to make sure the guard was still entranced by the card game, and then continued. "Do you know of a way out of here?"
Cyrus stopped smiling, glanced at the guard, and said, "Not unless you want to be a slave at the palace. You'd naturally get zero freedom... Nothing... It's basically like staying here at the jail, except you'd have physical work required of you. The only good thing is that you get nicer clothes, and sometimes good food."
"Oh..." was Link's only reply. He felt a little down, and began looking around the cell in an attempt to formulate a plan to escape. Still a little dizzy, Link decided he should sit back down. Nothing in his cell provided him with an ample surface to sit on, so he had to make do with the floor.
About ten minutes later the guard rose to his feet. He stretched his pudgy arms and walked out of the building, closing the door behind him. Cyrus' eyes had been watching the guard the entire time.
As soon as the guard was out the door, Cyrus walked back up to the bars separating him and Link. "Actually, yes, I think I know of a way out," he said with a smirk. "I just didn't want the guard to hear it so they could fix the problem."
Link stood up from where he had slumped against the wall. "Really?" he questioned. He still didn't know what to make of the other boy, so it was within reason to be hesitant.
Cyrus nodded. "I would've definitely tried to escape, too, if it weren't for two reasons. The first reason being Crystal."
The Hero looked back at the girl called Crystal. The brunette girl hadn't woken up the entire time since Link had regained consciousness.
"She's sick, and I don't know if I could get her out of here with me..." Cyrus explained.
As Cyrus had started talking, the man in the other cell stopped pacing and was listening in on the conversation. After Cyrus finished telling Link about Crystal, the man gripped the bars and leaned his face against them. "Ahh, Cyrus," the man said with an amused smile. "You're just as crafty and devious as your father if you've truly discovered a way out of this wretched place."
It was the first time Link had heard the man speak. His voice was low and strong, but still had a hint of worry behind it.
"Of course you realize that the King has mistaken me as one of your father's spies, right?" the man said bitterly.
"As I was explaining to Link over here, your people assume things way too quickly," was Cyrus' only reply.
Link wasn't sure what to make of the two prisoners, but he didn't want to have a debate start while he was still there. Interjecting between their argument, he said, "Cyrus, what if I helped you escape with your sister?"
Cyrus' eyebrows shot up, surprised at Link's proposal.
"The only catch is that I'll need you to help me find my horse. I'm sure you know this town a little better than I do," Link added. He surprised himself at how articulate he was being, despite the throbbing pain in his head. It was a good sign that he didn't have any brain damage.
Cyrus was silent for a minute, then he went on to smile the crooked smile that came so easily to him. "That'd be great, Link, if it weren't for the second reason I haven't escaped yet."
"Second reason?" Link forgot about that.
The smile left Cyrus' face. "We can't escape without an outside contact," the brunette boy explained as he sat down on his thin bed. "I really wish we could make it work. I really want to get my sister some help... The King of Keystone won't do anything to help her, and neither will the guards as long as they're under his orders."
Link was puzzled. He leaned forward against the bars, holding onto them, and asked, "Why won't the King do anything to help?"
Cyrus shook his head with a lost look in his eyes. "He thinks that all 'Kain scum' should die anyway," he said in a voice layered with sadness.
Link was about to reply when the door to the jail opened. Two guards decked out in armor strode into the room.
"You," one of them said, pointing to Link. "You're to come with me." The large guard walked up to the door to Link's cell and unlocked he. He handed off the ring of keys to the other guard as he swung the door open and approached the young boy.
Link shot a glance to Cyrus as he walked out with the guard, silently wishing he could do more to help the siblings before he left.
Cyrus sighed heavily and watched as what might have been a hope of escaping disappear before his eyes.
"The kid's dead meat," Cyrus said sadly.
End: Chapter Two: Cyrus
