The grey clouds above had now turned as black as the smoke still rising from the ruins of the Lost Woods and threatened to unleash the thunderstorm sleeping within at any moment. Off in the west, where the cloud cover was less, the last bits of the sun left were slowly beginning to set. As Hyrule was being blanketed in darkness, several soldiers were walking along the wall and behind the barricade lighting the torches that had been placed there for this occasion.
It was quiet, and this was unnerving for the soldiers that were now situated on the wall. They had never heard Hyrule so quiet before. Lon Lon Ranch sat off in the distance as just a dark blur. There were no lights coming from it. Other than the torches, the only light that they could see were a few distant lights from Kakariko Village, and even they were less than normal. Even though there were lights, not one sound could be heard coming from Kakariko Village. It was as if they were trying to remain hidden from the coming conflict.
The drawbridge was closed for the first time in seven years, and behind it the portcullis, which hadn't been lowered in an even longer time, was down and ready to prevent any enemy troops from getting through. Hyrule Market sat as quiet and as dark as Lon Lon Ranch, which was a first in the entire history of Hyrule. Even the water flowing through the moat sounded quieter than normal.
All along the length of the wall stood the Hylian Army, all poised and ready for the coming conflict. They stood in two rows, the better archers toward the front and everyone else behind. The regular knights were clad in their usual armor, had a sword hanging from their sides, and a bow and quiver of arrows on their backs. The only thing missing was the spears that they usually held while on guard duty. Since there wasn't enough armor to clad all of the recruits, they were clad in mail shirts. Each one of them also had a sword hanging from their sides and a bow and quiver of arrows on their backs.
The Royal Guards were all situated down by the barricade. If the enemy were to break through their defenses, they wanted to have their best warriors waiting to greet them. Their purple and gold full-body armor was glinting in the light from the torches. Half of them had a bow and quiver of arrows to get some hits in should the enemy break through, but they were all ready to fight with sword and spear. Each one of them kept their kite shields close by. Hylian shields were also situated nearby for those who would be coming off the wall to fight hand-to-hand should the enemy break through.
Link was standing on top of the wall toward the middle looking toward the south. He had on his usual tattered green tunic, but this time he had done something he had never before done in his life. Underneath that tunic he was wearing a mail shirt. Link's Biggoron Sword and Mirror Shield were sitting on his back, and his bow and arrows, along with his other various weapons he figured he might need, were leaning against the wall.
Zelda and Navi were on the far ends of the wall. They thought it would be better to separate the three people in charge of Hyrule's defense so that one attack didn't take them all out. Navi was clad in her usual golden armor, but it shown all the brighter since she had polished it earlier. Her sword hung at her side, but unlike everyone else she had no bow or arrows. She was going to rely on her magic to attack the enemy forces.
Zelda was the same, except she had no sword hanging from her side. She had never even used a sword before, so to carry one with her would be useless. Zelda was just going to rely on her magical abilities which, since she was a Sage and from what she learned at the Temple of Light, far outclassed Navi's. Even with her abilities, Zelda was no fool. That is why she wasn't wearing one of her usual flowing gowns. As a princess Zelda did have her own special armor, but she wasn't wearing that either because she needed to be able to move freely. That is why she instead was wearing the same Sheikah outfit she wore when disguised as Sheik, except the only difference was she had a mail shirt on underneath.
Malon was feeling a little uncomfortable wearing her mail shirt. She had never worn anything so heavy before, but she knew it to be necessary. Just as she had promised Link, she was the only recruit not wearing a sword at her side. She did however, have two extra quivers of arrows situated nearby. To her left stood her father Talon, and to her right stood Ingo. The three of them weren't standing that far away from where Link stood.
As everyone stood there waiting and watching, the sounds of distant drums could be heard coming from the south. Before long the sight of distant torches moving toward them could be seen. Murmurs began spreading throughout the Hylian ranks. The enemy was still quite some distance away, but everyone was standing ready and prepared to fight nonetheless. As Link stood there staring, a hand was placed on his shoulder. Link turned to see King Hyrule standing there, clad in the same kind of armor as the Royal Guards.
"Well Link my boy," said the King before Link could speak, "it looks like the time has finally come."
"Your majesty, what are you doing here?" asked Link, surprised that the King was out here so close to the battlefield.
"I plan on fighting. There is nothing in this world that I would ask my people to do that I would not be prepared to do myself. If my people and my knights are about to fight and die for this kingdom, then it is only right that their king does so as well. This is my kingdom, and I am its king. I would much sooner give up that position then stand by and watch Hyrule be destroyed."
"I understand exactly how you feel. Let's just hope that the tides of fate are on our side."
"I see that Gerik has yet to return. He was a fool to go to the Gerudo."
"Maybe so, but we do need them. Just look at the enemy forces pouring out of the forest. He will be here; he promised."
"Gerik is probably dead. You know that the Gerudo hate anyone who intrudes within their territory, especially if they're male. Even if he's not dead, then he's most likely slaughtered all of the Gerudo to keep his own life. If that's so, then I doubt he would be returning in such disgrace."
"If there's anyone besides myself that could convince the Gerudo to come to our aid, it's Gerik. I know that he won't fail us, or betray us. Besides, the Gorons and Zoras have yet to show up either."
"Well they have promised to send us their aid as soon as possible. You have to remember that the size of the enemy force caught them off guard, as it did to us. They were all prepared to arrive tomorrow morning, but now they have to put a rush on things. They'll arrive in time to help us."
"Oh, I don't doubt that. I just hope that they arrive soon."
"That we all wish for. I'm going to head back down to the barricade now. I leave the defense of the wall in your hands Link. I also leave the safety of my daughter in your hands as well."
"Don't worry, I won't let you down."
"I know you won't. If you should need any extra soldiers, just yell down to me and I'll send some of the Royal Guard up to reinforce you. May the Goddesses have a Hyrule to look down upon in the morning."
With that the King headed over to the stairs and Link turned his attention back toward the south. The enemy was still pouring out of the forest hundreds at a time. The forward units were already nearing the halfway mark of Hyrule Field. It was the Lizalfos and Dinolfos in the lead. Their scaly, green skin glistened in the torch light, and slight hisses could be heard in-between the drum beats. Looking at them Link guessed that there was somewhere between two to three thousand of them, and they were going to be used just as Navi had said several days before, as cannon fodder.
All the way from the Lizalfos and Dinolfos down to the forest were nothing but torches and dark figures moving along like waves on the ocean. It looked as if there was no end to this army. As they neared Lon Lon Ranch, a sort of deep whistling noise broke through the air and the soldiers watched in terror as three flaming boulders flew through the air toward the ranch. The boulders smashed into the ranch, taking out one of its walls, the corral, and the silo. From the ruins flames started to consume the wreckage.
All the soldiers watched this in horror, but Malon, Talon, and Ingo were the most affected. They just stood there in shock as they watched their home go up in flames. The deep whistling noise cut through the air once again and this time four flaming boulders went into the ranch, completely destroying what was left. Everyone now watched as the ranch, which was nothing more than broken timber, burned to ashes.
Since they thrive within fire environments, the Lizalfos and Dinolfos just marched right through the flames and stopped where the edge of the ranch closest to the wall had once been. They then spread out to form ranks all along the length of Hyrule Field, all the other enemy forces forming ranks behind them. Behind the Lizalfos and Dinolfos stood the Arcanites, and just as Navi had described they made up 50 percent of the army. In fact, they were still pouring out of the forest.
After what Link guessed to be the first half of the Arcanites the catapults that had leveled Lon Lon Ranch appeared. The catapults were simple wooden weapons which had four large wheels to easily push them, but the fronts of them were protected by what looked like large metal shields. Link counted ten of them in all. Behind them the other half of the Arcanite division made its way out of the forest. Link figured that the Wizzrobes and Darknuts would be the last ones to come out along with Lord Arcana.
As Link looked out, he noticed that only the Lizalfos and Dinolfos were within their firing range. There was a large open space between them and the first battalions of Arcanites. The drums now stopped beating and Link looked up. There were no more troops pouring out of the forest, but the army reached as far back as the forest though. Everyone standing on the wall knew that this was it. Both sides were in position and ready to fight to the death.
The enemy drums now began a continuous beat. Link took this as a sign that the enemy was preparing to attack. He raised his right arm and signaled to the soldiers to draw their bows. In unison they all pulled their bows from their backs and readied an arrow to be fired. They all then, once again in unison, aimed their weapons down at the enemy. Link didn't draw his bow yet. He still had his arm up in the air, waiting for the right time. The drums now stopped and a low, deep horn was blown. Even before any of the Lizalfos and Dinolfos could move a muscle, Link brought his arm down in one swift motion.
"Fire at will!" he yelled as hundreds of arrows flew off the wall and pierced the enemy forces.
Despite the onslaught of arrows, the Lizalfos and Dinolfos charged forward. They didn't have any bows of their own or a way to scale the wall, but yet they charged into the onslaught anyway. Dozens of them fell to the ground dead every second, and still more fell down hissing in pain from wounds. While this slaughter was going on the catapults remained silent and the Arcanites stood their ground.
Link now picked up his own bow and readied an arrow. He didn't fire it right away though. He remembered Navi saying that they were creatures of darkness, so he had an idea. Link reached down into the reservoirs of magic within him that had been bestowed by the Great Fairies, and pumped a little of it into the arrow transforming it into a Light Arrow. He then released the arrow and let it fly.
The arrow flew straight through the air and pierced the chest of a Lizalfos. The Lizalfos was instantly vaporized by the arrow. Not only that, but several other Lizalfos that had been near the one Link shot were vaporized as well. Extremely pleased with the results, Link readied another arrow. As he fired another one, Link noticed that there were other bright lights taking out groups of Lizalfos. It was Zelda and Navi firing fireballs at them. While it was difficult for everyone shooting to see whether their shots were connecting or not, everyone knew that at least Link and Malon were nailing all of their shots.
"Lord Arcana sir," said an Arcanite as he bowed down before Lord Arcana, "our forward advance has been torn to shreds. It won't be long before they are all dead."
"Good!" Lord Arcana replied with a smile. "They have served their purpose well. They were to test the enemy's resolve, and I am happy to see that the people of Hyrule are ready to fight to the bitter end. It's been a long time since my men have seen any real battle. This will certainly be one for the history books."
"Excuse me sir, but was it really such a wise decision to send two thousand of our troops to their deaths, especially when the enemy will suffer no casualties."
"You need to learn your place captain. I created them just for this purpose. They are my troops, and I can use them any way I see fit. Their mission was not to cause any damage, but to test the enemy's defenses and resolve, which they did with flying colors. Not only that, but the enemy has had to waste about two thousand of their arrows against them. That means there will be two thousand less to fire at you."
"I am sorry sir. I meant no disrespect."
"Of course you didn't. Now by the looks of things, they have two magic-wielders among them. Also, that archer in the middle there seems to be wielding Light Arrows. He must be the one who defeated my son. In a way I want him to live since he was the one who defeated my son, but I also want him to die because he could pose a threat if left unchecked. Since they're spread out along the wall, they must be the ones in charge of the defenses. Take them out and the rest will be putty in our hands."
"What are your orders sir?"
"Sound the charge. All Arcanites are to advance and slaughter the Hylian troops. Have the catapults begin a barrage, but don't aim them at the drawbridge just yet. If we try to advance through the drawbridge our troops will be slaughtered by their archers. When their numbers have decreased, then destroy the drawbridge and advance into the city."
"Your will be done sir."
"Oh, and Captain. If you question my methods again, it will be the last thing you ever do. Understood?"
As the last of the Lizalfos was struck dead, the Hylian troops took a breather. All the Lizalfos and Dinolfos were either dead or dying, and the agonizing hisses of those still dying were difficult to bear. In addition to the arrows sticking out of the dead and wounded, dozens of other arrows were either sticking out of the ground or lying there broken. There were quite a few burned patches of field where Zelda's and Navi's fireballs had slaughtered groups of enemy.
As everyone stood there celebrating their victory, despite how small a victory it was, they were wondering what the enemy was up to. It was obvious to all of them that the Lizalfos and Dinolfos were simply sacrificed, but for what purpose they had no idea. They had their bows and an arrow held in their hands, but the bows weren't drawn. They were being held loosely at their side. They were all waiting for the enemy to make their move.
As they looked out off the wall, they saw ten bright fires being lit. It took all of them just a second to realize that it was the catapults, and that they were being readied to fire. The same low, deep horn that had blown before was sounded once again. Everyone on the wall quickly raised their weapons as thousands upon thousands of Arcanites let out a yell and charged forward. At the same time all ten catapults were fired, their flaming boulders heading straight for Hyrule's defenders.
The first reaction of everyone was to duck from the boulders. Two of the boulders struck the side of the wall, causing only minimal damage. The remaining eight boulders flew clear over the wall and collided into the city behind, crushing a few houses and starting several small fires. Since the Royal Guards weren't fighting at the moment, they rushed forward to stop the fires from spreading. As the soldiers on the wall rose from their ducking positions, they were greeted by a barrage of enemy arrows.
The arrows pierced the mail shirts of several of the soldiers killing them, their dead bodies either falling down on top of the wall or falling off of it. Several others received minor injuries, but it wasn't enough to keep them out of the fight. The Hylian soldiers now quickly drew their bows and returned with a barrage of their own. They knew that they had the advantage since they were on the higher ground, but given that they were seriously outnumbered they weren't sure how much of an advantage they still had.
Both sides continued sending volley after volley of arrows into each other. Link had resorted back to his regular arrows since Light Arrows wouldn't really have any special effects against the Arcanites, but whenever he noticed a close group of them he fired either a Fire Arrow or an Ice Arrow, whichever he felt like firing at that particular moment. Malon continued to score kill after kill while also avoiding the enemy's arrows. She had fired so many arrows already that she was on her third quiver of arrows. Talon and Ingo weren't faring as well as Malon, but they did have some kills that they were positive of.
Both Zelda and Navi continued their volley of fireballs, taking out groups of enemies at a time. The two of them noticed though, that many of the Arcanites seemed to be aiming their arrows at them. Navi simply dodged the arrows, but since Zelda had a nearly endless reservoir of magic at her disposal she just put up a magical barrier around her whenever she saw an arrow headed her way. Navi tried to remain indifferent when a fellow soldier next to her was killed, but Zelda couldn't help but silently weep whenever someone within her sight was hit and killed.
Hundreds of Arcanites were already dead, but there were so many that it didn't seem like they were making a dent. The Hylians had so far suffered only minor casualties, but a boulder that collided with the top of the wall changed that. Within one instant over a dozen soldiers were smashed and crushed underneath the giant flaming boulder. Several others were thrown from the wall from the impact of the hit as well as the partial collapse of part of the top of the wall. Those that fell backward into the city were able to recover quickly and head back up to the wall, but for those who fell into Hyrule Field they were slaughtered in seconds.
"Zelda, Navi!" Link yelled over the sounds of the raging battle. "Take out those catapults before they take us out!"
Zelda and Navi heard Link and agreed with his decision. They created their fireballs and fired them at the catapults, but the fireballs simply bounced off the metal shields harmlessly. Navi was going to have to try something else, but in the meantime she continued her assault on the enemy forces making sure not to give them a breather. Zelda didn't give up though. She decided to create an ice attack and fired it at the catapults. Unfortunately, that attack was deflected away as well.
As Zelda tried thinking of another type of attack, three more boulders collided with the wall, but luckily they only hit the side. Zelda turned around and looked at Hyrule Market, or what was left of it. Half of the city was already in ruins and flames. As Zelda turned around to face the battle again, she saw a boulder heading straight for her. Quickly summoning up her magic she created a wind attack and blew the boulder back towards the enemy, crushing at least a dozen Arcanites as it crashed into Hyrule Field.
Link had seen Zelda's and Navi's failed attempts at destroying the catapults and despaired a little. Link knew that his fire arrows would be deflected by the metal shields just as the magic attacks had been, and the catapults were too far away for any bombs to reach them. Unless they could come up with another plan of attack, they were just going to have to avoid the boulders being flung at them as best they could.
The arrows being fired by the Hylians were starting to decrease as their quivers were quickly emptying. As full quivers were being brought up to the wall as quickly as possible, those who had run out of arrows were now tossing the spears and bombs that were in the various barrels on the wall. As long as the spears hit there was a guaranteed kill since the spears easily pierced the Arcanite's chain mail. As for the bombs, by the time they flew off the wall and hit the ground they were ready to explode, so it gave any Arcanites near it no time to escape the blast unless they saw it flying down toward them.
Link watched as another boulder went slamming into the wall. He braced himself against the vibrations caused by the impact and then turned back to the battle. As he did so, an arrow flew right past his face, just narrowly missing him. He didn't escape unscathed though. The arrow slightly nicked him across the cheek. As he felt a little blood beginning to seep from the cut, Link fired an arrow at the first Arcanite he saw hoping that it had been him who shot the arrow. Link's arrow flew straight towards the guy and nailed him right between the eyes.
Malon had run out of arrows at the moment, so she was waiting for more. Not having the strength to toss a spear and not wanting to risk messing up with a bomb, Malon was currently ducking behind the wall. All around her though, soldiers were dropping dead. She knew that every arrow she fired had killed somebody, but to see people die right next to her, her own people even, was something that she never imagined.
As she waited for the arrows, she started looking around for her dad. Since the real battle had started, there was nothing but confusion on top of the wall. The two lines of soldiers that stood there at the beginning of the battle were now broken. This was due to not only Hylian casualties, but also soldiers who were dodging enemy arrows and the occasional boulders. Malon had no idea if her dad was still alive or not, and it worried her.
Malon turned her head and saw Link standing nearby. She watched him stand there with full confidence. He never flinched, and stood his ground as he fired arrow after arrow off of the wall. As far as Malon could see he was the only calm in all this confusion. Just then though, a nearby soldier was struck with an arrow and fell dead right in front of her. Malon jumped at first, but remembering how Link was acting she regained her composure. Not waiting for the replacement arrows anymore, Malon took the quiver off the guy who had just died and once again joined the battle.
Both sides were suffering heavy casualties, and an end was nowhere in sight. Nobody had any idea how much time had passed since the battle first began, but it already seemed like days to the defenders of Hyrule. As Link stared out into the endless sea of warriors charging toward them, he knew that they were sunk unless reinforcements came soon, and even then he wasn't sure if they could make it.