Chapter 23

Sheik and Rauru arrived late that night at Ganondorf's hideout. They wanted to kick themselves for not being able to find the location so easily. Where the archery range used to be in Gerudo Valley is where Ganondorf built his secret fortress. Moblins stood as guards instead of Gerudoes. The two were very successful in entering the fortress. The only problem was they were horribly lost with all of the darkness inside. Rauru frowned.

"How can we find him if we don't even know which room we're in," he asked. Sheik sighed, looking around.

"I'm not sure, but whatever we do, we need to hurry," replied the young "Sheikah." After a few moments of walking around aimlessly, they heard a loud scream of pain coming from the end of a long hallway. The two men quickly looked in that direction and started running as fast as they could, knowing who that scream belonged to. They entered the room and were shocked at the scene. It was just as Ganson had explained it to them, only Link looked worse than the description. Blood was now officially on his clothes around where the chains were. His skin was pale and his body was limp. The two quickly rushed over to him. Sheik worked on removing the chains as Rauru assessed the damage done on Link's unconscious form. "Rauru."

"Yes?"

"I've undone the chains and I'm about to let go of them. Hang onto Link so he doesn't fall and hurt himself more." Rauru gently, but firmly, placed his hands on Link's arms where they weren't injured and nodded to his partner. Sheik then nodded back in acknowledgement and let go of the chains. Rauru scooped Link up into his arms and was amazed at how light he was. Sheik walked over, looked at his friend, then frowned.

"They haven't been feeding him," explained Rauru. "His body's frail, so we need to be careful with him."

"We need to get him medical attention quickly," stated Sheik.

"I don't think that'll be happening," sneered a familiar, unwanted voice. The two quickly turned around and looked at the source of the voice.

"Ganondorf," cried out Sheik, glaring at him. The King of Evil simply smirked.

"You're not going anywhere. Ganson! Come here!" At that moment, Ganson came up from behind Ganondorf. He smiled inwardly once he saw that Link was no longer bound to the pole.

"Yes, Father," he asked.

"Destroy them!"

"No." Ganondorf quickly turned around and glared at his offspring. Ganson simply smirked at him.

"You have no power over me anymore! Now that my brother is free, I don't have to worry about getting him killed to destroy you!" With those words, Ganson sent a powerful blast of dark magic at his father, sending him flying into the metal pole back first. Ganson quickly turned to the other two. "Go! Now!"

"What about you," asked Sheik.

"I'll catch up! Get him to a doctor!" Sheik nodded, then ran with Rauru and Link towards the exit. Ganson, noticing his father getting up with his hand on the metal pole, grinned and sent an electric attack at the pole, causing it to shock Ganondof. The Gerudo king cried out loudly in pain. Ganson chose that moment to catch up with the others, helping them escape. Once they were a safe distance from the valley, they stopped for a moment to catch their breath.

"Ganson, I owe you an apology," stated Sheik, looking at Ganson. "I thought that you kidnapped Link and betrayed our country, but I had you horribly wrong. From now on, I trust you." Ganson blinked.

"You trust me? Even after all of the horrible things I've done?" Sheik nodded. They smiled at each other, but their smiles didn't last long as they heard Rauru clear his throat loudly.

"You two can kiss and make up later," started Rauru. Sheik and Ganson shot him a quick glare before Rauru continued. "We need to get Link to safety and to a doctor."

"We have a doctor in the castle. Let's head there. We can tighten security around him as he's recovering," stated Sheik. They nodded and quickly headed towards the castle.