Chapter 9 - The three tasks
Link had slept late. The sun was streaming in through the same tiny window through which the moonlight had shone the night before. He'd had a bad night, and since for once he didn't have to look after the camp or wake the others, he decided to treat himself to a longer sleep.
Robbie's home was already in full swing. There were the sounds and voices of the others, the bustle of the daily work. He supposed they wouldn't have waited him for breakfast, or for anything for that matter, as the sheikah had enough to do on their own to talk about their projects and research. He went downstairs and found only Zheline in the kitchen, the rest must have been outside.
"I've saved this for you honey, I hope it's enough to fill that appetite of yours," Zheline said, holding out bread, cheese and some eggs.
He nodded and smiled lightly to thank her, and then unceremoniously devoured the breakfast.
"Where are the others?"
"They've gone outside. Granté is visiting us and has come with a new machine he has designed; he's showing it to his father. Robbie goes crazy every time our son shows up with one of his inventions."
It took Link a while to realise, but eventually he remembered that Granté was the son of Robbie and Zheline. After Tarrey Town was founded, he'd decided to move there and had his own business. Granté was a formidable armourer, as much as his father, Link had taken cracked shields to him and made them as good as new. Link finished gobbling down his breakfast and went out to join the rest.
Around the lighthouse, Robbie accumulated ancestral junk. To pile it up and manipulate it back and forth, Robbie had some sort of cranes or hooks that were controlled by a lever. He found Zelda operating one of the cranes, looking like the very face of happiness as she successfully snagged a sentry guardian, and moved it to a clear spot. Beside her was Granté, giving her directions on how to operate the lever and the mechanisms that controlled the hook.
"That's great! You look like a professional, I didn't know princesses were taught how to operate heavy machinery," Granté celebrated, earning a laugh from Zelda.
"Link!" Zelda exclaimed when she saw him showing up, "have you seen what I've done?"
"Yes, I see."
"Link, I'm Granté, surely you remember me, from Tarrey Town," greeted the young sheikah.
"Nice to see you, Granté."
"Zelda, now I'll show you how to make a shield by melting the legs of the guardian you've moved," Granté said, returning immediately to the princess. "First we'll melt material and then I'll show you how to connect a generator to create a force field."
"It'll be great, just give me a second, you can start without me," she said, and waited for Granté to get a little away, "Link, have you seen what amazing machines? If I had these cranes years ago..."
"Sounds like fun," he said, shrugging.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" he growled, avoiding her eyes.
"I don't know, you look a bit serious. Maybe you didn't sleep well up there, it's the most uncomfortable room. I'm really sorry, in the end you always get the worst bed. If you want, tonight I'll sleep there and you sleep in my room, I don't mind."
"Nothing's wrong with me. My bed was comfortable," he reiterated, and sat down on a wooden stump next to them. He was actually annoyed, but he couldn't explain why.
"I didn't imagine Robbie had such a young son," she said, regaining her enthusiasm.
"Well, you see."
"He looks a lot like Robbie when he was young," she smiled. He shrugged. "Granté makes incredible shields, have you been able to buy any shield made by him? I'm sure you'd like them, they're very resilient and some are reinforced with ancestral energy."
"Yes, I know he makes shields."
Zelda frowned and looked at him sideways.
"Okay, then... I'm going to see how they keep working on that, you don't mind, do you?"
He shrugged again and Zelda walked away, to join the sheikah. He felt uncomfortable. And yes, maybe grumpy. He didn't understand what all the fuss was about over a bunch of old irons. Besides, he was still thinking about last night's conversation... should he talk to Zelda? Should he ask her to tell him what had happened now that he had managed to find out more? He decided it would be best to visit Shadow and make sure he was well taken care of.
Once at the stables, Link found the knight from the day before. He was walking from side to side as if guarding something, Link wondered what. He also saw that the inn was much busier than the night before, many visitors had arrived that morning and there was hardly any room left to stay there.
"Is there something going on? There are many travellers arriving here." He asked the knight.
The man rolled his eyes and continued to stand guard, back and forth. Link couldn't make any sense of it. From his position he couldn't anticipate threats, he didn't even have good visibility. If Link had to stand guard, he wouldn't do that, unless there was something important to protect at the entrance to the stables.
"Ignore Hozlar, he thinks he's the captain of the invisible army guard," said a tall, bespectacled man, "my name is Khiney."
"I'm Link," he said, greeting the man.
"The Akkala Tournament will be held shortly. That's why there are so many people around, they're contenders for the grand prize and that increases Hozlar's absurd suspicion... the poor devil stands guard as if he is half mad or the end of the world has come."
"The grand prize?"
"A solid gold arrow. It is a relic from many years ago, which is always given to the winner, a demonstration of a soldier's worth."
"I didn't know about that tournament..." he admitted.
"Do you know the Akkala Citadel Ruins?"
"I'm not sure…"
"Goddess boy, you mustn't belong to this world," Khiney laughed.
"A hundred years ago there was a Citadel in Akkala, isn't it?" He asked. Maybe it was another one of his many memory gaps.
"Not really. Akkala's Citadel is much older, archaeologists try to date its origins without too much success. It is a stone elevation, southeast of Akkala's southern inn. You must have seen its huge stone-paved causeways if you've ridden this far."
"I've seen them."
"Well, if you deviate, you will reach the Citadel. A portentous high fortress on the rock... now in ruins. Legends say that the great knightly lineages were formed there. There were stables in the hollow, the best armourers and smiths were based in Akkala. And all the knights trained endlessly to become worthy of some high position in the kingdom, or to earn the right to try to carry the Master Sword."
"The... Master Sword." Link suddenly felt as if the Master Sword was vibrating behind his back. He was so used to carry it that he wasn't going anywhere without it.
"Yes, the Sword of the Chosen one, the ultimate custodian of the royal family. I'm sure you're familiar with the story, your sword resembles one of the many replicas of the Master Sword, although it doesn't look much like the original, the armourer who made it must have made fun of you," Khiney said, using his index finger to push his glasses up on his nose.
"How do you know what the original sword looks like?" Link said, frowning. Damn it, what was that lanky guy all about?
"There are engravings and manuscripts with illustrations. A lot of people go around with replicas, like you, thinking they're important, so don't take it as a personal attack," Khiney laughed again, though Link wasn't amused.
"I'm not offended, I don't mind."
"If you think you're a hero, you should sign up for the tournament, maybe you'll prove your sword's worth... although looking at it, it looks as if it could break at any moment."
"Sure. Well, I have to go."
"Hey, Link, don't get me wrong, I was just teasing you!" shouted Khiney from a distance, though he said it with a chuckle, "They let kids like you take part too! Maybe you'll make it half a round in the tournament!"
Link could still hear Khiney's laughter from Shadow's stable. Luckily, his old friend straightened his ears as soon as he saw him arrive and brought his muzzle close to his face to greet him, the first warm feeling all morning.
"Hey, buddy, I'm glad to see you too," Link said, pulling a carrot out of his bag, "lately you're the only one who understands me."
Shadow gave a sort of snort of pleasure at the sight of Link and the food. Link decided to ride Shadow around, a ride with him would clear his mind.
He did not return to the sheikah lighthouse until noon and decided to take Shadow with him. The stables were crowded with visitors arriving for the tournament and Shadow didn't feel good about the bustle. Neither did he. They were much alike in that regard.
He found the sheikah around a large bonfire. It was a nice day, especially for autumn, so they had decided to prepare a feast outside. He nodded to the group and rounded the lighthouse to tie Shadow up next to a pile of ancestral junk. It was a good spot, sheltered from the wind and cold, and he would just have to get him plenty of food and water. If it rained or snowed, he could make a small shed for him out of old scraps that Robbie accumulated.
After attending Shadow, Link joined the group, there was already a good portion of meat roasting away from the coals, it would take time to be ready, so he saw smaller skewers with mushrooms and vegetables also cooking they would serve as a snack.
"Do you need help?" He asked Zheline, who was busy moving back and forth.
"No, honey, we have prepared lunch together, you sit down and enjoy it with the others. I'm busy with some things that Granté has brought, and I want to get them ready before he leaves again."
Link nodded and sat on a stump near Symin. The rest of the sheikah surrounded Zelda, who was engaged in some sort of technological discussion with Robbie. There were too many sheikah there. Zelda wrinkled her nose almost imperceptibly, a little less than when she was growling or angry. She seemed calm and in a good mood, she radiated light and that was good, wasn't it? However, he didn't get the same sense of fullness that he had at other times when he saw her well, far from nostalgia and melancholy.
"Link, you've been to the stables, haven't you?" said Granté, with a huge smile. He had a row of perfect white teeth and showed them whenever he could.
"Shadow wasn't happy in those stables," he said, "that's why I brought him here, I hope you don't mind. I'll take care of the cleaning and give him everything he needs. He won't be a burden to anyone."
"No problem, no problem," Robbie said, waving his hand, "you can do whatever you want with your horse."
"What about ours?" Zelda asked, with a wrinkle of concern between her eyebrows, "will they be all right in the stables?"
"They're fine, I've paid extra to the people in charge of the stables so that they don't lack anything. But Shadow doesn't like crowds. He feels nervous and out of place," he clarified, though he partly felt he was trying to talk about himself.
Zelda didn't look very convinced; Link could see the worry still on her face.
"Those stables are trustworthy," Granté said, "I've left my horse there, the animals will be perfectly fine. And later I will personally check that all your horses are well taken care of."
"I've already checked that they're well taken care of," Link interjected, "as I said, Shadow is special. He's a wild horse, he doesn't feel good in the stables. There's no need to worry about the other horses."
"I was going down to the post this afternoon anyway," said Granté, "I want to enter the tournament. If you like, you can come with me, Zelda, so you can see your horse with your own eyes. It's only logical for a brilliant scientific mind like yours to always want to be sure of everything."
Zelda unravelled the gesture of concern to draw a sort of smile.
"Come on. I have no business being around you or your father. I think you've found a fancy way of saying I'm too controlling," she joked, smiling wider. Granté let out a laugh. Link felt Zelda's smiles dig into his stomach, the warmth he'd felt the other times seeing her smile had turned into something uncomfortable and bitter.
"I agree that Granté's progress this time is fabulous. This son of mine has made a name for himself in Tarrey Town and the surrounding area thanks to his inventions, Your Highness. Soon he'll have to expand the business," Robbie said, "you could make prototypes like my Candy. You could mass-produce them."
"Your Candy is not even good for tightening half a nut," said Purah, who was more vigilant to read a manuscript on her hands than from the conversation.
Link rolled his eyes, again Robbie's stupid robot, it was clear he didn't learn from mistakes.
"What is Tarrey Town?" Zelda asked.
"Oh! You'd love Tarrey Town," Granté said, "that's where I live now and where I have my armoury. It's a village that was built from scratch, thanks to the collaboration of people from all corners of Hyrule. Goron, zora, gerudo, sheikah... we all live there in harmony. It's an example of brotherhood and self-improvement, a unique place in all of Hyrule. And we have all worked hard for the village."
"Especially Link," interjected Zheline, who appeared spontaneously, to take her place around the fire.
"Link?" Zelda asked, her eyes fixed on him.
"Well, I guess we've all worked hard for the village," Granté insisted, though his tone was less effusive.
"Don't be silly, son," Zheline rolled her eyes, "Link helped for days to build the first houses and brought their inhabitants and spent mountains of rupees on those buildings. The village wouldn't exist if it weren't for him."
"I didn't know you'd built a village," Zelda said. This time her smile was for him, and the feeling was so warm that it melted every last inch of bitterness left in his body.
"Link is very modest and that's why he didn't tell you anything," Zheline added, "Granté managed to settle down because of him, and we're very grateful for that, aren't we, son?"
"Yes, Mom...," Granté mumbled.
"And... what is the Akkala Tournament?" Link asked, coughing to clear his throat and changing the subject on purpose.
"Ridiculous tests for a bunch of fanatics to pretend to fight invisible enemies," Robbie interjected.
"C'mon, Dad," Granté protested, "it's a prestigious tournament, which has been held since ancient times. That's why I came here. At first I only made shields. Then, after participating in the village archery contest, some friends encouraged me to train... And here I am. The tournament has three tasks. The Archer, The Explorer, the Warrior. Whoever wins in all three tasks is the winner. Maybe I can bring the golden arrow home."
"The sheikah haven't competed in those tournaments since King Roham's time," Purah said, reappearing in the conversation, " I don't know why the hell it has continued to be celebrated, it's disrespectful to the royal family. And with all that this world has been through..."
"Zelda, I will get the golden arrow and bring it to you so that you can re-establish the tournaments in honour of your family, if you wish," said Granté, turning the situation around.
Okay, Link wanted to punch Granté in the face. Why did he have to bring Zelda anything?
"I appreciate it, Granté, but I wouldn't feel comfortable resetting anything...," she said, frowning.
Link smiled at himself. Granté didn't know Zelda at all and didn't know her rejection of her past role as a princess.
"Oh, wow," lamented Granté.
"We won't stay here long," Purah again intervened, "we must return without delay to Hateno, before the weather gets worse."
"The tournament is only three days, one for each of the three tasks. You can't tell me you can't stay for three more days... It doesn't matter if you don't want to re-establish anything, Zelda, the tournament is fun, there's feasting and dancing in the evenings, Akkala will be full of life. Besides, if you stay, we'll make our way back together. We'll take a little detour and I'll show you Tarrey Town."
Zelda stared at Granté, as if she were weighing all those possibilities.
"No. We'll make a detour on the way back, but to Death Mountain. It's the route I've already traced on the sheikah slate," Link said. Everyone stared at him dumbfounded, as if he had just spoken in an unknown language. "Zelda still needs to talk to Yunobo."
"Enough," Zelda said, standing up.
"Zelda, where are you going? The food is not ready yet," Granté said, also standing up.
"I need a rest."
"But the roast…" Granté babbled.
"I'm going to read in my room. When you stop making decisions for me, maybe I'll go out for a bite to eat."
Zelda disappeared through the lighthouse door before anyone could open the mouth to protest.
Link felt grumpy for the rest of the afternoon.
He wanted to enter the tournament so he could punch Granté down without it seeming ungentlemanly. Granté bothered him. Everything about him annoyed him, his trying to be the centre of attention, his arrogance, and his stupid, perfect smile. A knight should be humble and put his oath and vows before his personal desires. Link had personal desires too, and that bothered him even more than Granté himself. He was tortured by the idea that Zelda would rather lean on the sheikah than him. Granté was witty, and he could talk to her about things he didn't know even if he studied for a thousand hours.
And Granté had eyes in his face. He had seen Zelda, just as he had seen her. He had seen that kind of… of something that she radiated unconsciously.
Link decided that it was no good torturing himself with so much nonsense. He grabbed his bow and quiver and set off into the neighbouring forest, with the idea of shooting something. Then he would go to Zelda to apologise. It was her right to go wherever she wanted, with or without company, and he'd acted like a jerk, just for trying to oppose Granté.
When he returned, it was already dark. He appeared quite late at the lighthouse, and the sheikah and Zelda were just finishing dinner.
"Linky, you're so dirty!" Purah observed, bursting out laughing.
"I fell in a ditch," he admitted. He didn't look his best, nothing like Granté's shiny hair and spotless sheikah robe.
"Will you sit down to dinner with us, Link? I've saved your ration,"Zheline offered.
"No, thank you. I ate something in the woods. I'm going to check on Shadow," he said.
He dropped his weapons in a corner and went in search of his horse. It was already dark and quite cold. Each night grew colder than the last, and he knew that one day the first snows would arrive at the Akkala lighthouse.
"Link."
"It's cold, go back to the lighthouse with the others."
"I've saved some apples for Shadow. I've seen that you do it sometimes."
Link turned to see those two mountain gems watching him with concern. He knew it was her just by the sound of her footsteps on the wet grass surrounding the building.
"Thank you," he said, accepting the apples. Shadow whinnied as soon as he caught a whiff of them and devoured them in two bites. "I'm all right. I was stalking a huge boar, with two tusks as long as my hand, and I was clumsy. It nearly ran me over, but I only rolled a little in the bush until I fell into the ditch. It was all right."
"I... I'm glad it was just that. I was worried about you."
He clenched his fists. He had been an idiot; nothing was her fault and the last thing he wanted was for her to worry about him again.
"Don't worry, really. It's okay."
"Are you sure you don't want to have dinner with us?"
"I really ate something in the woods. And I'm too dirty to sit there. Look at this mess."
"I see...," she smiled, "a bath wouldn't hurt, even Shadow looks better than you."
"Dammit... Shadow always looks better than me."
"I think I agree with you," she laughed, stroking Shadow's forehead, who grunted with pleasure. Lucky bastard.
"Zelda... I'm so sorry I said that about going to Goron City. Of course you can go wherever you want," he apologized.
"And you can go wherever you want too," she hastened to say, "I've noticed that you're not comfortable with the sheikah, I understand that. Although you never said anything, I know you were never cut out for this, to chase me in my investigations or to put up with them."
"Was I like this before?"
"I think so."
"Well, at last I look something like my past self, that's good," he said, smiling a bitter half-smile.
"But you're freer than you were then. So don't wait for my decision, or my whims. You don't have to hold the sheikah if you don't feel like it, if you want to go home or visit the goron I'd understand perfectly. I… I can't keep you here."
"I'm not going anywhere without you."
Without further ado, he avoided Zelda and clambered up the outside stairs to his small attic room. He didn't know if Zelda was kicking him out again or what, but as much as the thought pained him, the one thing that was clear to him in the midst of his own confusion was that he wasn't planning on walking away from her.
