Chapter 12: The Battle of Hyrule Castle
disclaimer: Zelda and all characters of the game are property of Nintendo. In no way do I expect to get paid for this.
A man on horse back rode swiftly towards the castle gates. He shouted at the gate keepers to let him in so he could deliver information to the King. The gates opened and the rider entered the castle.
The doors opened in the throne room of Hyrule Castle and a man ran towards King. "My lord, a great host of goblins is coming."
The King stood up from his throne. "How many?"
"Six, maybe seven thousand. I was sent by Princess Zelda to ride west to Zora's Domain. A Zora rode with me. He said he had to deliver a message at Lake Hylia. We both saw the army and he offered to ride to Zora's Domain to ready their troops while I come back to inform you. There is something else you must know, my lord. The goblin army is being led by Aghinim of Death Mountain."
"That treacherous whelp seeks to destroy my walls. How long do we have?"
"They will be here by noon tomorrow."
Daphnes sat back down on his throne. "We do not have men enough here to defend the city. We can only hope that the other riders make haste enough to bring our allies here in time. Is there anything else that I should know?"
"I don't know if this is valid news, but in the distance I did here the goblins chanting something. It was difficult to make out, but I believe they were chanting a name."
"What name did you here, rider?"
"It sounded like... Ganondorf. I believe that is what they said."
Daphnes got up from his chair and walked about the throne room, expressing utter fear in his eyes. "No. It can not be. He was destroyed years ago. Our worst fears have been brought upon us." He thought about what he should do. "We must set our attention to the goblin horde for the moment. If those vile creatures breach our walls, we will not be able to stop their advance and they will destroy this city."
"I will lead the men, my lord." Daphnes turned around to see Link and his two friends standing behind him. "We have fought many battles together, and we will not fail you."
Daphnes grinned at his courage and nodded. "So be it, knight of the south. You and your friends will lead the armies of Hyrule in the defense of this city. You have until dawn to strategize with my generals. Show them your sword, and they will follow you to the depths of Hell and back. This is your fate as the Hero of Legend."
The three warriors bowed their heads to the King. "Your allies will come, my lord. They gave me their word and Mikau is a swift rider. We will not lose the city to the goblin horde."
Link and his friends stood on the balcony of Link's room in the castle, thinking about the upcoming battle. They had formed a battle plan with the generals earlier that day. Link looked upon the night time sky, thinking about how far he had come as a knight and all the sights he saw with his companions. He thought of Malon and whether or not Mikau made it to Lake Hylia. He wanted to see her again. He wanted to marry her and raise their children.
"What troubles you, my brother," asked Darmani.
Link turned his gaze from the stars to Darmani. "Nothing. Just thinking of tomorrow."
Sahashra placed her hand on Link's shoulder. "You are strong in heart. These men will follow you into any battle field, just as we will."
"She is right, brother. We will not leave your side in your time of need."
Link smiled at his loyal friends. "It has been my honor to share the field of battle with you. Together, we will overcome our enemies and live long and peaceful lives."
His friends smiled back at him as he turned his gaze back at the stars. He felt more confident in himself and in his friends than he ever did. He was ready to fulfill his destiny as the Hero of Legend.
Link woke up from his slumber at dawn of the next day. He got out of bed and grabbed his gold armor vest. After he put it on, he wore his brown padded tunic over the armor. He strapped on his shoulder belt and buckled his waist belt. He then reached for his shield, strapping it on his back. He put on his white leggings and placed his feet in his travel boots. He then equipped his sword on the left side of his hip and put on his armored gauntlets. He left his grey cloak on his bed and went outside of his room.
Hours later, two thousand heavily armored Hylian soldiers stood in front of the city gates, waiting for the goblin horde. Five hundred archers stood on top of the gates, holding their bows in anticipation. Among the archers was none other than Sahashra, clad in her dark grey Shiekah tunic and a mask covering her mouth and nose. Darmani stood with the soldiers in the fields. He wore a metal chest plate and a war helmet. His war hammer was strapped to his back while his battle ax remained in his hands. Link sat on Epona's back in front of the soldiers, gazing upon the land with a look of determination. King Daphnes Nohansen and Princess Zelda looked from a large balcony upon the city gates, accompanied by several royal attendants and advisors.
Fear struck the hearts of the soldiers when the goblin horde took away the silence of the fields as they marched towards the city. Link drew out his sword and turned to the soldiers.
"Arise, soldiers of Hyrule! Justice awaits these vile creatures of darkness, and that justice shall fall upon them by your hand! You are children of this country, and now is your time to fight for it! Fight for your King, fight for your country! FIGHT FOR HYRULE!"
Link raised the Master Sword in the air as the soldiers shouted their battle cry. He then turned Epona in the direction of the goblin horde.
Aghinim and his black steed stood in the middle of the goblin army. He carried a long black staff in his right hand and held it high in the air. The goblins began chanting the name Ganondorf and pounded on their thick armor with the handles of their weapons. Link signaled to the archers above as he rode back and forth in front of the soldiers.
"Ready your bows!" shouted Sahashra. The archers aimed their bows in the air. "FIRE!"
The archers released hundreds of arrows in the air. One by one, the arrows darted their way to the goblins, causing them to cluster a little.
"Hold the line!" yelled Aghinim.
Link then dismounted Epona and sent her away from the field. He pointed at the goblin horde and shouted, "CHARGE!" Link and all the soldiers ran towards the enemy army. The goblins charged the soldiers and the battle for Hyrule Castle had begun.
Darmani swung his ax ruthlessly at his enemies. He fought with a rage very common among the Goron warriors. The archers continued to fire their arrows, hitting the goblins that were further away from Hyrule's soldiers. Link fought with more intensity than he had ever felt in his career as a knight, killing large numbers of goblin soldiers at a time. The soldiers of Hyrule were equipped with a variety of weapons. Ogres were the most feared enemies of the army, for they were massive in size and were armed with giant swords and axes. It took many soldiers to bring one down. The higher ranked goblins rode on giant boars, which would trample over large numbers of soldiers and their big tusks would pierce through the armor of whatever stood in its path. When Darmani wasn't taking out large numbers of goblin foot soldiers, he would bravely fight up to three ogres at a time, driving his ax through their armor and crushing their skulls with the Megaton Hammer. Whenever a giant boar would approach Link, he would stand his ground until it was close enough to attack. He would roll to his side and slice at the legs of the boar, causing it to tumble to the ground. He would then either kill the rider or defend himself against an approaching goblin.
The battle was chaotic. Shields shattered, swords collided, limbs were lost, blood was spilled, and lives were lost. Hyrule's soldiers fought well, but their numbers were declining. The archers were running out of arrows and they were forced to retrieve more. Sahashra joined the fight by leaping from the high walls and landing safely on the ground, leaving behind her bow and bringing her sword and staff with her. Link signaled to a man atop the walls to wave a red colored flag in the air.
Moments later, a thousand soldiers on horse back rode from the eastern walls and charged the goblin horde. They trampled over the goblin soldiers and swung their weapons in a violent frenzy. Link continued to fight as they arrived. Still, more and more Hylian soldiers were dying. Hope began to fade for the soldiers of Hyrule as their numbers declined by the minute. All of the sudden, horns sounded in the distance from all sides of the field. Aghinim turned his attention from the walls to the noise behind him.
Armies of different races were scattered in the distance. From the south stood the soldiers of Lake Hylia, led by Gorlois and Link's uncle, Boris. From the east stood the brute forces of the Goron army, led by none other than King Darunia. Joining them were many Shiekah highlanders from Mt. Avarice. They brought dozens of catapults, of which the Gorons loaded their bombs. The highlanders were led by Impa of Kakariko Village. Finally, to the west stood the aquatic soldiers of Zora's Domain. Mikau led the Zora soldiers and they all rode on horse back. The horns sounded in the distance one last time and all the armies charged the goblin horde with haste. The soldiers of Hyrule shouted their war cry as they continued the fight.
The Zoras trampled over hundreds of goblin soldiers and Mikau leaped from his horse to join the fight on foot with his Zora sword. Oxen from Goron Mountain pulled the large catapults closer to the battle field and the Gorons loaded their bombs. The highlanders launched the bombs at the goblin army, setting off deadly explosions and sending several goblins high in the air. Once the bombs were diminished, the Gorons and highlanders left the catapults and charged the goblin army. The battle had taken a turn for the better at last.
Aghinim dismounted his horse and joined the fight, using dark magic from his staff to take out large numbers of soldiers. Sahashra battled her way to Aghinim and called out his name. He turned to face the masked warrior and drew out a large blade with his right hand, carrying his black staff in his left. Sahashra ran towards the evil wizard with her sword and staff ready. Aghinim twirled his staff around to taunt her as she engaged him with great speed. Once she came within range, she jumped in the air to deliver a powerful jump kick. Without even moving his legs, Aghinim quickly moved to his left out of the way of her swift foot. As she landed, Aghinim floated towards her with haste to collide his blade with her neck. Sahashra blocked the attack with her sword and twirled her staff at Aghinim. He parried and they both alternated their attacks with their magical weapons.
Sahashra was a very nimble fighter, using her agility and acrobatic ability in battle. Aghinim was a force to be reckoned with, as his attacks were swift and strong. The more Sahashra used her fancy foot work, the more Aghinim would hover out of harms way. Despite her amazing agility, Aghinim managed to deliver a horizontal slash to Sahashra's belly, causing her to flinch. He then lobbed a powerful blast of dark magic from his staff which hit Sahashra's chest and sent her several feet back, landing hard on her back.
Link saw her fall to the ground and battled his way through to reach his fallen friend. Aghinim walked slowly towards Sahashra and charged his staff for his finishing move. Sahashra remained on the ground, weakened from the blast and trying desperately to catch her breath. Just as Aghinim was about to finish Sahashra, Link charged at Aghinim and rammed his Hylian Shield at the right side of the wizard's torso, knocking him down to the ground.
Link stood between the weakened Sahashra and Aghinim as the evil wizard quickly stood from the ground. Aghinim looked at Link and charged his staff once again. Link raised his shield as Aghinim lobbed a large blast of dark energy at him. The blast hit Link's shield and knocked him down on his back. He quickly threw away his shield as it began to melt from the blast. He got up and grasped the handle of the Master Sword with both hands.
Aghinim floated his way towards Link with great speed. Link ran to meet him head on and swung his sword at him. Aghinim blocked the attack with his blade and twirled his staff at the mighty knight. They attacked and parried at each other with swiftness and powerful strikes. Link delivered a blow so powerful that it shattered Aghinim's sword into pieces. He then threw a strong back fist at the jaw of Aghinim, causing him to stagger back a ways. Aghinim regained his composure and charged his staff once again. Link readied his sword and it began to shine brighter than before. Aghinim launched his blast of dark magic at Link. Without hesitation, Link swung his mighty sword and hit the blast back at the wizard. Aghinim was sent back several feet when the blast hit him, leaving a large burn on his chest and causing him to land face first on the ground.
Link approached the fallen wizard as he slowly rose to his knees. Aghinim glared at Link as he came closer. "It is not over, Hero! Lord Ganondorf will rule these lands and destroy your people!"
In a spinning motion, Link delivered a fatal slice to Aghinim's stomach followed by the removal of the vile wizard's head. The limp body fell to the ground and Link hurried back to his masked friend.
Thirty minutes later, the last of the goblins were slain. All the soldiers of the battle field shouted in victory. Darmani raised his weapons in the air as he joined the war cry. Mikau gazed upon the battle field with pride. Link helped Sahashra to her feet and smiled at their victory. Link then raised his shimmering sword in the air and gave out a war cry of his own. The soldiers turned their attention to the new Hero of Legend, chanting his name as Darmani made his way to Link and carried him on his shoulders. Link spread his arms out and closed his eyes as his Goron companion carried him about the field, caught in a state of utter bliss with his accomplishments. Daphnes sighed in relief as the royal attendants and advisors cheered. Zelda smiled ever brightly and hugged her father.
The soldiers where greeted with the cheers of the townsfolk as they entered the city. Women threw flowers at their feet and men raised their fists in the air as they cheered the soldiers. Link rode on the back of his beloved horse, Epona, as they made their way through the streets of the city and onward to the castle.
Mikau caught up with Link on his own horse. "I have something for you, Link."
Mikau reached under his red tunic vest and gave Link a necklace with a small pendant in the shape of a horse. It was a gift he gave Malon before he left Lake Hylia to train with his uncle at the mountains of Romuli. Link smiled at the Zora general.
"She was happy to hear about you. She sends her love and awaits your return."
Link shook Mikau's hand. "Thank you, my friend."
"It was my honor." Link let go of Mikau's hand and put the necklace around his neck.
Later that night, a ceremony was held in honor of the soldiers who died that day. The bodies of the fallen soldiers were burned in the traditional way of the people of Hyrule. Among them was Link's uncle, Boris. Link paid his respects to his fallen uncle and dropped his torch upon the wood and oil that covered him. Women mourned the deaths of their dead husbands and sons as the flames lit up the night sky in the fields they died in. The King spoke his words of respect for the fallen warriors, honoring them for dying in the field of battle. Next to him were all the lords of Hyrule and his daughter, Zelda.
After the ceremony, everybody entered the city. The townsfolk went to their houses while the soldiers and lords headed for the castle. The soldiers went inside the soldier fort to rinse their bodies from the stink of battle and receive the rest they so dearly deserved. The lords of Hyrule were given their own rooms inside the castle. Link and his three companions also received their own rooms and they fell into a much needed slumber in their beds.