Chapter 18

Ganson slowly woke up, sat up, and looked around at his surroundings. Everything was dark. The only light was the light from the moon coming through the bars. He could definitely tell he was in a cell. He then looked around for Link, but he wasn't there.

"Link, where are you," shouted Ganson, sounding a little panicky. He then heard a familiar, sinister laugh. He quickly looked to the cell door which was open. Standing in the doorway was none other than his father, Ganondorf.

"He's not in here, my son," sneered Ganondorf.

"Where is he!? What did you do with him!?"

"Calm down. He's safe...for now."

"You ba--"

"Hold your tongue, boy!" Ganson quickly shut up. "Now listen here. Unless you want to keep your brother alive, you'll do exactly as I say and do what I want you to do." Ganson's facial expression turned into one of fear.

"Wh-What do you want me to do...?"

"Simple. I want you to help me take over Hyrule and kill the Royal Family."

"I can't! I'm not like that! And Zelda--and Impa--and the king---they're my friends! I won't betray them!"

"Then you leave me no choice." Ganondorf held a hand out towards the wall and a mirror formed on it at that moment. The mirror then showed a different room of the place. In the middle of a room, there was a metal poll that stretched from the floor to just about the ceiling. There on that poll was Link, with chains wrapped around his arms, wrists, and legs, binding him to the poll. Ganson's eyes widened at the scene.

"Link!"

"This is what will happen if you disobey me!" Ganondorf then held a hand out to the mirror again and many small bolts of electricity shot through Link's body, causing him to cry out in pain. After a moment, Ganondorf ceased the torture and made the mirror disappear. Ganson stared at Ganondorf in utter horror.

"Don't! Don't hurt him again! Please...I'll do it, just don't kill my brother!!" Ganondorf then smirked, walking over to Ganson. He cupped his hand under his chin and had his son look up at him.

"That's what I like to hear."

Chapter 19

A country-wide search was conducted immediately after the disappearance of Link and Ganson. Zelda, Impa, and the king joined in this search as well. After a long day of searching and coming up empty handed, the three returned to the castle in despair. After a few moments of sulking in silence, the captain of the guard quickly ran into the throne room, short of breath. He quickly kneeled in front of the king and bowed his head.

"Your Majesty, I have terrible news," stated the captain. The king's face grew very worried.

"What is it, Sir Largen," asked the king.

"Kakariko Village was attacked!" The king grew furious and quickly stood up.

"Who is responsible for the attack!?" Largen frowned.

"Ganson, Your Majesty." The king's, Impa's, and Zelda's faces turned into ones of shock.

"Impossible! He was kidnapped along with Link," cried out Impa. Largen frowned.

"There was no mistake that it was him." Zelda's face hardened as her eyes narrowed.

"I knew he couldn't be trusted," shouted the princess. She then stormed out of the room in tears. The king dismissed the captain and sighed, sitting down in his throne. The room remained silent for a few moments, mainly from the shock of the news. Impa then raised her head and looked at the king.

"Zelda and I shall talk with the other sages. Maybe we can figure out what exactly is going on," stated the nursemaid. The king looked at her and nodded.

"Try to calm Zelda down first. She is too filled up with rage to even think straight." Impa nodded and stood up, heading to the only place she knew Zelda could be: the courtyard. There she saw the princess, sitting on the steps to the window, hugging her legs to her chest. She had her face buried into her knees and was sobbing into them. Impa walked over to her and sat next to her. She pulled her into a hug and let the princess cry into her shoulder, rubbing her back gently.

"Everything's going to be okay, Princess," said Impa in a soothing voice.

"Ganson betrayed us, and he's probably the one that took Link," sobbed Zelda.

"We heard both of them scream, Zelda."

"He could have staged the whole thing."

"Princess...let's talk with the sages once you've calmed down. Maybe they can help us find Link and get to the bottom of this mess."

"Okay..."

Chapter 20

The sages gathered together in the Chamber of the Sages, all with very worried expressions. Zelda still seemed angry, but everyone thought it was because of her kingdom being attacked. Ruto wasn't very discreet about her sobbing, bawling her eyes out.

"I can't believe my fiancée's missing," cried the Zora princess. Zelda's head snapped in Ruto's direction, glaring at her.

"Are you going to stand there and cry about your so-called fiancée, or are you going to help us find Link," shouted Zelda. Everyone stared at her in shock. They had never seen Hyrule's princess get this angry, especially Impa.

"Princess, calm down. The only way we'll be able to find Link is if we're calm and we work together," explained Rauru. Zelda and Ruto nodded, apologizing to each other. All seven sages then took each other's hand and stood in a circle. They closed their eyes and their respective auras started glowing around them as they tried to make a connection with their captive hero.

"Link, can you hear me," asked Princess Zelda telepathically. There was silence. "Link??"

"...Zelda...? Is that you," responded Link weakly. Everyone was able to hear the conversation and were relieved that their friend was still alive.

"Are you okay? Where are you? What did Ganson do to you?"

"I'm fine...I don't know where I am...Ganondorf's using me to blackmail Ganson into doing what he wants..." Zelda's face turned into one of guilt. She had Ganson wrong all along.

"Link, what is Ganondorf doing to you," asked Rauru with concern.

"I'm chained to a metal poll...whenever Ganson disobeys him, Ganondorf sends a bunch of electricity through me..."

"How many times have you been shocked?"

"Thr—"Before he could finish, Link's connection was cut off abruptly. Everyone in the chamber became extremely worried. A long period of silence filled the chamber. Rauru then composed himself and looked at the sages.

"We need to hurry."