A note from the Hime no Argh herself–

The current line of thinking among some of the readers seems to be that I've been inspired by LotR. Well, you're right! :D (Partly, anyway.) Everything I know about battles and war I learned from LotR (the movies, I hate the books), Tamora Pierce, and a bit of my own research. My observations and research will start to show through more and more in the coming chapters.

Thank you very much to those who inquired after my mood (especially Ghoul King, who left the longest and one of the most...interesting reviews I've ever received ^^;). I'm definitely feeling better, especially now that midterms are over and I'm going home for a week-long break.

This chapter is slightly evil...since I won't be able to post the next till I get back. ^^;;

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Chapter 34

Iron Knight

That night dark clouds seemed to roll in from nowhere and a steady rainfall began. The townspeople were bewildered. "It's summer," Rowen told Zelda, scowling at the sky as though it were being impertinent. "It never rains during the summer."

Training went on in the rain. When at last Valan dismissed his troops, the townspeople retreated wearily back to their homes, soaked and exhausted. While Valan, Impa, and Rauru had their nightly meeting at Valan's favorite table in the tavern, discussing war, Zelda sat at the counter instead and poured over a large map of Hyrule. Link didn't join her, apparently too exhausted after the long day.

"You should go to bed," Impa told Zelda once the meeting had adjourned. "You have to be up early for Rauru's training, don't you?" A wicked smile played around her lips, but Zelda wasn't amused.

"I'm trying to figure out where we can move all these people so that we can continue our training unnoticed," she explained wearily, pointing to the map. "But Ganondorf's agents are everywhere. There's no place to hide."

Impa shrugged. "We'll find a place."

Zelda rubbed her face and her weary eyes. "I'm scared," she admitted at last in a very quiet tone. "It's like...there's something in the air today, and it's putting me on edge. I feel as though something is out there, waiting for its chance."

"To do what?" Impa's eyes were sharp on Zelda's face.

"I don't know."

There was a long silence. Then Impa slid into a stool beside Zelda and pointed to the enormous landmass in the center of the map. "Here."

Zelda stared at the map, then at Impa, wondering if she'd taken leave of her senses. "Hyrule Field? You're kidding, right?"

Impa slowly shook her head. "It's the last place Ganondorf would think to look."

"You're crazy," Zelda said flatly, grabbing the map and crumpling it up. "I'm not leading my people into Hyrule Field again."

"What if I told you there was something there, in the middle of it?" Impa asked calmly. "A place that could be made habitable and safe for an army-in-training? A place entirely devoid of Ganondorf's agents and the very last place in Hyrule that he would think to look?"

Zelda shook her head. "I'd say it was too good to be true, because I know it is."

"You're wrong. The map doesn't show it, but there is a place." Impa took the map from Zelda, smoothed it out on the counter again, and pointed to a region in the northern central part of Hyrule Field. "It's not far from here, either. Perhaps an hour or two's walk if you know where you're going."

Zelda rubbed her eyes again, feeling very weary. "Impa, what in Din's name are you talking about?"

"Lon Lon Ranch," was the Sheikah's reply. "An old horse ranch. Its owners were killed long ago and the premises deserted, but it still exists. As a fortress, it wouldn't do too badly. High walls and a lot of space inside for training. We could make it safe."

Zelda sighed. "All right. Assuming this place exists, how in Din's name would we get there in the first place? In case you haven't noticed, Hyrule Field is swarming with monsters and we can't afford any casualties at this step in the game. Not only that, but we would have to get everyone else–the people that my thieves and the sages are gathering–to this place and ensure their safety along the way. If that's doable–"

"It is doable," Impa interrupted calmly. "It merely requires the Sage of Time."

"The Sage of Time...?" Zelda stared at her, then abruptly it hit her. "Farore's mercy," she said weakly. "You mean to have me freeze time for all of Hyrule Field? I can't do that!"

"Yes, you can. It would be an immense toll on your power and energy, that is true, but we sages can lend you our power to lessen the strain. And if we coordinate our movements, you need only freeze time for a few hours, to allow our allies to reach the ranch safely. All of us sages, including you, are connected. We can communicate a plan."

Zelda bit her lip, staring at the map in silence. The fact that Impa even suggested such an idea told her how desperate their situation was–the Sheikah must feel the ill foreboding in the air, as Zelda did. But the idea was doable. If they pulled it off, they would be out of Ganondorf's reach, at least for a time. That alone made it worth a try.

"Fine," she said quietly. "But I'm contacting the sages tonight, and you're to tell Valan and Rauru to spread the word to our troops. I want everyone ready to go at any moment. Anyone who's not ready gets left behind." It was an extreme measure, but she was desperate enough to do it. She did not like one bit the scalp-crawling feeling that had been with her all day and night. "What about Marek, Rune, and Dagger?" she remembered worriedly. "None of the sages went with them. How will I contact them?"

Impa was quick enough with an answer. "Contact Saria," she suggested. "Tell her to go to Hylia City to find them and be ready to come to Lon Lon Ranch at your command."

"Will she get there fast enough?" Zelda worried.

"Sages can be anywhere they want in an instant," Impa informed her dryly. "You could too, if you tried."

Zelda made a mental note to test that theory, but for now she decided it was best to conserve her energy for the migration to Hyrule Field. "That's it," she whispered, staring at the map. "Goddesses save us. This is getting more dangerous by the moment."

* * *

The next day dawned dark and stormy. Zelda didn't bother sleeping in, knowing well that a little thunderstorm wouldn't divert Valan from the day's training. And she had things to do.

Before archery practice, Zelda sought out Ronin and Blue in the nearly-deserted training field. Blue was still favoring her black cat shape. "I need you to do something for me, Ronin," she said quietly, so as not to be overheard. "Both of you," she added, looking at Blue.

"Anything for my fair lady," Ronin said amiably. "What is it that you need?"

"Impa says there's a place in Hyrule Field that was once a horse ranch," Zelda explained, talking fast to avoid being interrupted. "It may well be the only safe place–well, relatively safe place–that we can gather to continue training and planning the resistance. I want you to go and fly with Blue over the field and see if you can scout out this place."

Ronin raised his brows when she was done, but thankfully did not question her request. "Very well. This shouldn't take long." He bent down to pick up Blue, stroking her delicate skull. "What do you say, love?"

The cat purred, rubbing under Ronin's chin. "I knew you would agree," he said wryly, adding to Zelda, "She's antsy for a bit of adventure."

He stepped back several paces and threw Blue up into the air. An enormous wind sprung up out of nowhere, seeming to engulf Blue as she changed shape in midair, growing and lengthening so rapidly that Zelda could not follow the transformation. Within seconds Blue the dragon was flapping to keep herself aloft, her great wings beating through the rain. She raised her slender, lizard-like head and bellowed forth an eager roar, answered by the surprised cries of fright and amazement by the early-morning trainees staggering onto the field.

Blue swooped around the field once as if stretching her wings, then dove and snatched Ronin up into her talons. With a great gust of wind the two were gone, flapping up into the stormy, lightning-torn sky.

* * *

Link heard about Zelda's forebodings and plan to migrate to Hyrule Field from Impa, rather than Zelda herself. For some reason this nagged at him. He couldn't help thinking, yet again, that Zelda was avoiding him, but he shrugged off the thought and tried to concentrate on training.

It wasn't easy. Zelda wasn't the only one whose nerves were jumping today. Link felt as though a chill was constantly crawling up and down his spine, though he couldn't fathom why. The day wore into evening, the evening into night, and the strange feeling didn't dissipate. If anything, it grew stronger.

Such it was that Link found himself seated on a crate outside of the inn in the rain with his sword in hand. He couldn't sleep. Something was coming and he didn't know what. He wanted to tell someone, but what could he say? He had a feeling? Zelda would believe him, maybe even Valan, Impa, and Rauru, but the exhausted townspeople would hardly bother themselves to worry.

Thunder rumbled ominously across the sky. Link's agitation suddenly grew tenfold. Cold sweat trickled down his back. Whatever it was, it was no longer coming. It was here.

He sprang to his feet as though fired from a catapult, running as fast as he could toward the entrance of the town. He wondered at the absence of an alarm, but as he drew closer to the entrance he saw the reason–the sentries had abandoned their posts and were running flat-out as if chased by a pack of ravenous wolves. Yet Link saw no sign of the enemy.

He caught a man by the arm as he tried to dart past. "What the hell's going on?" Link demanded.

The man looked at him wildly, his face reflected abject terror. "Goddesses save us!" he shrieked. "It's an Iron Knight!"

Link let the man go, rooted shock-still where he stood. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end. An Iron Knight. He could think of no worse foe but Ganondorf himself.

Everyone knew that Iron Knights were the most powerful and terrifying creatures that served under Ganondorf; wherever they went, they left destruction and death in their wake. The very few who managed to survive their attacks had no words for the horror of the knights. A single knight could raze an entire settlement to the ground and slaughter every living creature around it without mercy.

Ganondorf knew. Somehow he had been informed of the resistance.

It took every ounce of Link's will to keep moving toward the town entrance. There was no sign yet of the Iron Knight; they were slow but unstoppable. And he, Link, was the only thing that stood between it and Kakariko.

Slow vibrations in the earth heralded the Iron Knights' coming; Link felt its heavy steps underfoot as he reached the entrance to the town, before the long stretch of land that lay between Kakariko's gate and the stairs carved into the mountain. There he stood, shaking all over, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end. He gripped the Master Sword in a white-knuckled grip and waited. All was very quiet; even the rumbling of thunder overhead seemed dimmed.

A horse's whinny split the air; Link chanced a glance back to see Demon thundering toward him at full gallop, trailing the rope that had tied him to his stall in the stable.

"Demon!" Link gasped in shock as the gelding reached him, prancing skittishly as his eyes rolled with terror. "What are you doing here?! Get back to your stable now, are you insane?!"

But there was a steeliness in Demon's eyes that Link had never seen before. Ceasing his frantic prancing, the horse lowered his head and snorted, glaring at Link and pawing aggressively at the dirt. It was a battle stance. Demon was ready to fight with him.

Demon butted Link's chest and tossed his head, a clear order to mount. He had no tack save for the roped tied around his muzzle like reins, but Link threw himself astride the gelding's back, turning him to face the stairs. Demon wanted to fight; Link understood that. And he could not possibly claim that he would rather be facing this enemy alone.

"When that Iron Knight comes up those stairs," he murmured to Demon, who continued to snort and paw the earth, "we're going to charge him. He's powerful but slow. Just keep moving; keep out of his range. I'll guide you."

The gelding tossed his head as if he understood, and Link wouldn't have been surprised if he did. He patted the horse's neck as the two of them waited. He couldn't rely on help; if the town knew an Iron Knight was heading their way, they would likely panic. It was up to Link and Demon.

Farore, give me courage, he prayed, sweating, as the Iron Knight's horned helmet appeared over the lip of the stairs.

* * *

To be continued.

* * *

I thought I should make a note on something in this chapter because I expect everyone would inquire after it. Yes, I changed the name of the Iron Knuckles to Iron Knights and yes, I'm perfectly aware of that fact. Why? I just thought it sounded cooler. ^^;