Chapter three! That one took longer to write, and should take longer to read. Read and review, and remember kids, I do not own Zelda.
Chapter Three
A Secret War
As Link approached Hyrule Castle, he got a terrible feeling in his gut, as if he had been framed for murder and the victim's father just challenged him to a duel. Epona seemed to slow down, too, and Link felt there must be some evil radiating from the Castle. He hoped to goddesses he was wrong.
It was still early in the morning, almost so early it was still dark, but the horizon grew pink as he rode. The drawbridge was just coming down as he reached it, and where he was halfway across it, Epona stopped. He couldn't have made her go any further if he could throw her. So he told her to go home, which she seemed to take at great relief, and approached the castle on foot, his terrible feeling not leaving (and this and his nightmare still flashing through his mind made a terrible duo). He was sure this wasn't even the beginning, but he already wished it was over. But his sword was still strapped to his back, and if something evil had happened in there, he wasn't going down without a fight.
He walked across the rounded drawbridge, now without the company and warmth of his horse, and entered Hyrule Castle town, only to find it empty. He assumed this was only because of how early it was, but he couldn't be sure. He loosened his sword from his sheath.
He walked across the empty marketplace to the gate on the other end, which was already open. Probably for the guards to change shifts, he thought, and walked slowly and cautiously through the grey-brick arch. His heart was beating wildly, and every moving thing made him jump. But what he saw now made his heart stop cold.
The real gate, which was patrolled by Hylian guards, was under attack. There were two Lizalfos, Gannondorf's nasty reptile-men, and they had bound the guards tight so that their hands' circulation was cut off, and they grew red, and soon purple. Link was glad he had loosened his sword from its sheath, which he now yanked with unseen speed. The Lizalfos heard this, and looked up with surprise at young Link, and their first expression was fear. All in Hyrule knew what Link had done, even the remnants of the monsters. But their expression changed to a wicked smile, and link was afraid of what would happen next. But it was the last thing he had expected from a Lizalfos.
A dark aura grew around them, and they were concealed in a smoky shadow. It looked as if their sea-green skin had turned a purplish black. They both pulled bladed staves symmetrically, and even they were the same purplish black. They both charged at Link symmetrically, with their staves held across their chests, evidently to decapitate Link.
The biggest problem was, though, that they moved with an insane, inhuman speed, more than three times faster than any average Lizalfos. All Link had time to do before the blades would rip down his neck was hold his sword in front of himself, and they're shadow-blades collided with it. His small Kokiri short-sword broke in two, and the most that the Lizalfos got was to skid through the dust five feet, and stop short symmetrically with their long blades both pointed at Link. Fortunately, however, Link knew how to stop it this time.
The Lizalfos charged him with their inhuman speed, this time with their staves pointed at him like a lance. But as the ends of the blades came within a foot of Link, he ducked and took one of their staves, and tripped the one whom he had disarmed. In that same fluid movement, he drove the staff between his ribs, through his heart, out the other side, and six inches into the ground. It wriggled and twitched like a snake under the staff for a moment, and then lay still.
Now the other Lizalfos looked at Link with fear. He was gaping in surprise, and his slanted eyes grew round and wide. Link guessed the Lizalfos thought the Shadow made him immortal.
Link was surprised at this feat himself, and never could've dreamed that the shadows did nothing to the Lizalfos' constitution. But now he was ready for the next one, and it hesitatingly charged towards Link. But he himself made it easier than Link had expected, and just passed out while charging. Link untied the guard's leather bands around his arms and mouth, and used them to tie up the Lizalfos that had fainted.
Link looked over his work, and let out a disgusted sigh and a grimace. Just then, he remembered the guard. "Hey, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine when the blood returns to my arms. Thanks for taking care of those freaks, by the way."
"No problem. I need to see the Zelda, is she home?"
"Um… wait, uh…" The guard pulled some papers from his pocket, and scanned them over with his eyes. "Um, do you have an appointment?"
"I never needed an appointment before. This is pretty urgent."
"Name?"
"Um… Link?"
"Oh, like the Hero, huh?" Then his eyes widened. "Oh, please, come in!"
"The princess is just through here, sir."
The guard led him through a door in the castle that out in the courtyard where Link had first met Zelda. This place reminded him of so much, brought so much back that was hidden behind a door in his mind. The grass, the flowers, the fountain, each individual chirp of the birds, it was overwhelming to Link's mind. He looked around him and remembered every detail of his previous adventures, every syllable that was spoken. It felt like home.
Then Link saw the one thing that reminded him of everything the most. There, sitting on the edge of the beautiful marble fountain, was the Princess Zelda herself, whistling her lullaby to herself.
"It has been a long time, Zelda." Link muttered quietly, but in Zelda's ears it was loud. She had thought of his voice every day, and when she heard it, her heart skipped a beat.
She could barely control herself, but a half-second before she spoke, she remembered her manners. "Yes, it has." She couldn't think of anything else to say. She didn't know what to think. Her heart was beating fast, and she blushed at her words. Aw, the heck with it, she thought, and sprinted through her fountain, stumbled on her dress, and wrapped Link in the tightest hug he had yet had. He couldn't feel his arms, but that may have been due to the fact that it felt like his heart had stopped beating the moment he saw her. He had missed her so much.
"Link, where were you? Where were you? Why'd you leave? Where did you go…"
Link was wrong. He could feel his arms, and he hugged Zelda back, almost as tight as she hugged him. Neither of them minded. "I'm home, Zelda. I'm home." Tears fell from both their eyes, and they could feel each other's heat-beat. They beat, although fast, in perfect harmony. Zelda whispered, "So much I need to tell you, so much I need to hear…" Her head rested on Link's shoulder, and Link hoped he would never have to pull away.
But he knew he had to sooner or later, and did presently. "What has happened, Zelda? The Lizalfos, they were… inhuman…"
"What has happened… I have very little knowledge of it myself, but I will try to explain it to you."
Over the next half-an-hour or so, Zelda explained what had happened in the four years since he had mysteriously disappeared. Gannondorf, with the help of a cultist named Agahnim, broke the Seal of the Sages, and ran rampant directly afterwards. Hundreds died, and almost all that had survived were severely injured. But then Gannondorf disappeared, and had not been seen since. In the last six months from the time Link returned, though, Hyrule had been constantly attacked and pillaged by beasts in black shadow, and they killed everything that moved with ease. Hyrule had been thrown into a secret war, a war the public had no knowledge of.
"So, you are the last hope of Hyrule, Link. We turn to you again for our redemption, and our survival. Find Gannondorf, Link. Defeat him, lock him away.Reclaim the master sword, make sure he never returns."
"I will do my best, Zelda. For Hyrule. But I have no weapon.The Lizalfos, they shattered it…" He held up the shards of his polished wooden Kokiri Sword, the once shining ruby in the hilt now dull and tarnished, as if any magic it had held was vanquished.
"That isn't a problem. Follow me."
Link followed Zelda to her large quarters, all the walls and furniture pink except for a large vanity-dresser, which was a dark brown wood. Zelda walked to this vanity, and opened the top drawer. When Link peered over her shoulder, he saw that the drawer was empty except for a single sword. It was silver, and had two silver eagle's heads for a basket on the hilt. It had a beautiful black leather hilt, with gold spots, and a head that looked like to snakes. The sheath was also of beautiful design, glossy black with gold spots, and a shining silver tip. "Here, take this."
As Zelda handed Link the sword, Link almost dropped it, not expecting it to be as light as a feather. He pulled it from its sheath, and the steel blade shone with suck a light it seemed to be glowing. "This must be the best sword I've ever held, apart from the Master Sword. Is it the Hylian Army standard?"
Zelda gave a giggle. "No, not a sword as fine as this. This belonged to my great-grandfather, and he fought many a battle with it. It's almost like a family heirloom, you might say."
"Does this sword have a name?" Link said, as he swung it in an almost playful manner, attempting to regain some of his lost prowess.
"It is Slahinyr, the Sword of Light."
"Thank you, Zelda. This is more than I could have possibly hoped for."
"No problem. You must only promise me you will use it for good, and for Hyrule."
Link nodded, and for the first time, Zelda realized how tired he looked, his bloodshot eyes, his dirty clothes.
"Oh, Link… C'mon, you need to go to sleep."
"No, Zelda, I can—"
"You can nothing. C'mon."
Link was led into another room, just like Zelda's, but everything was white, not pink. "You can sleep here tonight." Link sat down on the bed, and flashed Zelda a quick smile. Zelda walked over to him and gave him a squeeze. "It is good to see you, Link." She took a pink ocarina Link had never seen before from a fold in her dress, and began to play a melancholy song, with long, slow notes, and it lulled Link into a deep, dreamless sleep.
When Link awoke the next morning, he was much refreshed, although his mind was heavy with thoughts of Gannondorf's escape. He lay staring at the ceiling, listening to the birds chirp outside for a long time.
After what seemed like hours, a maid came into the room and began to dust things around the room. When Link sat up, she was very startled. "Oh, I'm sorry; I didn't know anyone was in here!" She had a Dutch-sounding accent.
Link replied with "No, its fine. Have you seen Zelda around anywhere?"
"Why no, sir. The whole castle's been looking for her; no one knows where she went. She seems to have just disappeared in the night."
"Well, thanks anyway." Link hopped out of bed and strapped Slahinyr to his back. He would have to go reclaim the Master sword. But at that moment, he remembered he had left the stones with "The stone guardians." Link muttered under his breath, with a "Hmm?" from the maid. He jogged out, ready to regain the Spirit Gems.
