If there was one word I would use to describe the atmosphere of the war council that night, it would be tense. You could practically cut it with a knife it was so palpable. I mean, the councils were always very serious (they were war meetings after all), but that night things felt a little more intense than usual. It didn't help that the news we received was progressively worse and worse. Resources and morale were wearing thin on the front lines. It seemed like we were losing ground along with the lives of Hylians everyday. The war was not going well. I suppose the additional tension also had something to do with the green clad hero who was sitting next to the princess.
I tried not to let it bother me that Link had walked into the council with Zelda and King Cepheus and sat down next to them as if it was the most natural thing in the world, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel even a slight pang of jealousy. I always walked into the meetings alone and feeling out of place and got stuck stuck in between one of the King's advisors and General Linebeck. Not to mention, I couldn't even get Zelda to look at me, let alone smile and talk to me the way she was talking to Link when she first walked in the door.
I had to remind myself that none of that was important and that I didn't belong in this timeline anyways. I was here to do a job and then leave. By the time I got done calming my childish anger, Zelda had sat down and assumed her regal demeanor.
"Alright," King Cepheus said, officially bringing the council to order. "As I'm sure you're all aware by now, just yesterday we received a report of more of Ganondorf's forces moving east along our southern border."
My ears perked up at the mention of Ganondorf having soldiers along the south. Of course, I hadn't heard any of this before. Since I was just meant to observe, I never received any of the intel reports before meetings. I guess they thought it was better training if I had to make judgements on the fly.
Most of the attacks from the Gerudo had been coming from the west, so the fact that Ganondorf was trying to move to attack Hyrule on two fronts was pretty intimidating. There had been small skirmishes from time to time on the south, but we still had next to no resources there.
"According to our reports, Ganondorf's soldiers should reach the town of Rivenport by mid morning tomorrow," King Cepheus said. "It is a relatively small, fast moving group of Gerudo warriors, but if we mobilize our soldiers by dusk we should be able to intercept them."
"That would only be possible if we also sent a small group of soldiers to Rivenport," the King's advisor said in a nasally voice. "Moving any significant number of soldiers to the southern border would take several days, if not a week."
"We should still consider our options for sending a small squadron tonight," Zelda said. "We cannot simply leave the people of Rivenport to die by the hands of the Gerudo."
"Let us not forget that this Gerudo troop is part of Ganondorf's elite guard," General Linebeck said. "It will take more than a small squadron of Hylian soldiers to stop them."
"Perhaps we can send a messenger, telling the people to gather only the essentials and flee as quickly as possible," King Cepheus said.
"Rivenport is a relatively large settlement," another general said. "Too large to mobilize quickly."
"Well then what do you suggest we do?" Zelda asked, the challenge in her words apparent. Tensions were clearly high, and I felt like I was watching a fiery exchange in a tennis match.
"The only logical course of action is to send a full squadron to the south," the general said. "We can stop Ganondorf's forces and then begin moving along the southern border to attack him from two fronts."
"By the time our soldiers arrive, every citizen in Rivenport will be dead!" Zelda nearly shouted. Her outburst was so sudden that it surprised everyone in the room. Even receiving difficult news about the war, I had never seen Zelda lose her composure so quickly. She was clearly on edge.
"Princess, this is no way to conduct yourself during an official council," King Cepheus said in a kind yet stern tone. Zelda seemed to check herself, adjusting her posture and taking a deep breath. "In the long run, I believe we can all agree that we will need to move a good deal of troops to the southern border. We can begin preparations for this immediately. In the meantime, we must do anything we can to protect our citizens."
"Will all due respect, sire," the King's advisor said. "Rivenport is likely already a lost cause. Even if we send a small group to intercept Ganondorf's forces, we don't have enough skilled soldiers currently at our disposal."
"With all due respect," Zelda began well contained but apparent fury. "We have the most skilled warrior in all of Hyrule right here." Immediately, all eyes in the room shifted towards Link who was situated at Zelda's side. He had remained silent throughout the meeting up to this point, so I was interested to see what he thought about the situation. No one really wanted to say it, but most of the military experts thought it best to let everyone in Rivenport die. I was definitely on Zelda's side for this one, but I could at least see where the generals were coming from. I couldn't imagine Link ever agreeing with the decision to let innocent people die though.
"Yes, let us hear from Hyrule's greatest warrior," Linebeck said sarcastically. Linebeck was a pretty cocky general from what I could tell from past meetings. He was always the most critical of anything that I said during meetings. I guess he didn't think much of non-military personnel sitting in on war councils.
"Link," King Cepheus began. "You know the most about Ganondorf's elite guard. What do you make of all this?"
Link's eyes scanned the entire room in a calculating manner. His jaw was clenched tightly, and I could tell he was having a difficult time keeping his composure. Finally, after several moments of silence, Link began to speak.
"There is no doubt that Ganondorf's elite troops are a force to be reckoned with," he said. "No small squadron that we could send in time would stand a chance…" The generals seemed pleased at this information and began to nod in agreement before Link went on.
"However, if I were to lead a group of the finest twenty or so soldiers that we could muster, I believe we could halt the Gerudo forces long enough for reinforcements to arrive."
Zelda's eyes shone with pride as everyone around the table was left speechless. Suddenly I understood what Link had meant when he said that Zelda had called in a favor. Despite knowing that it was at the request of the Princess, I couldn't help but be impressed. Link was offering to singlehandedly do the impossible, and by the way he spoke I was inclined to believe that he could pull it off. I was beginning to understand that Link's title of "Hero" went far beyond his ability to swing a sword.
"I'm sorry Link, but that's out of the question," King Cepheus said, causing the look of pride on Zelda's face to change to one of pure shock. "If we're to have any hope of winning this war, we need you to make sure that you and our new arrival are ready to face the King of Thieves when the time arrives. We can't risk the fate of Hyrule on one town."
"But father—"
"I've heard enough, and I will not be swayed on this matter Zelda," the King said, effectively silencing his daughter along with everyone else in the room. The expression on his face was unmistakably pained. "I truly am sorry, but it appears all we can do is pray to the Goddesses for the people of Rivenport."
At that, I felt rage beginning to bubble up from deep inside me. I had been uprooted from my life to save Hyrule and become a hero, and yet all I was doing was getting an entire village of innocent people killed. If I wasn't in the picture, Link would ride off into the night and defeat those Gerudo without a moment's notice. But instead people had to die while he stayed behind because everyone thought I needed a goddess damned babysitter. I was so angry and frustrated that I could hardly see straight, and before I knew it words had begun to escape my mouth before I could stop them.
"I'll go with him," I said and I felt every gaze in the room focus on me. "You say Link can't go because he has to train me? What better training is there than a real battle? If we both go, I'm sure we can stop them."
King Cepheus looked at me, an expression of understanding on his face. In that moment we fully understood each other. He admired what I was offering, wanted to agree with me, but deep down he felt I was wrong.
"Link, your determination is admirable, but I cannot allow this," he said, confirming what I already knew. "There is no doubt that you have skill. You are likely on your way to becoming one of the greatest soldiers in all of Hyrule, but you are inexperienced. I cannot risk your life on such a mission."
For a moment, I considered conceding defeat and allowing this to happen, but then I caught sight of a familiar pair of blue eyes that I hadn't truly seen in a while. For the first time in roughly a week, Zelda met my gaze. I remembered the first moment she appeared on my doorstep, and the way I felt inside when she had called on me to become something more than just a boring high schooler. I remembered all the words of encouragement, and the desperate pleading moments when she had begged me to help her save her country. Zelda was kindhearted and loved the people of Hyrule with all her heart. It pained her to know that so many innocent Hylians would die. There was a sparkle in her eyes when I looked at her in that war room that I recognized. She was asking me to step forward again and answer her call. When I looked into her eyes, there was only ever one answer.
"Your highness, I was brought here to save the people of Hyrule," I said, meeting the King's gaze with as much strength as I could muster. "I didn't come all this way to let them die."
The King's advisor shot me a look that could only be described as purely venomous. He rose from his chair, directing all of his anger straight at me.
"Are you suggesting that King Cepheus is willingly letting his citizens die?" he asked, clearly outraged. "You clearly have much to learn about war you insolent little—"
"That's quite enough," the King said sounding tired. Cepheus looked at me and I could see the pain behind his eyes. "Link, I know this is difficult for you to accept. It is difficult for all of us to accept, but sometimes in war sacrifices must be made."
I looked around at the room, shocked by the way that everyone seemed to just accept defeat. Link was facing forward, his jaw set in barely contained anger. I looked to Zelda but her eyes were cast downward, her face the very picture of anguish. I decided right then that I wasn't going to put up with this council, and I was definitely not about to let the people of Rivenport die.
"I won't be a part of this decision," I said, rising from my seat. There was a chorus of disapproval from the generals and advisors in the room, each of them shouting about my "lack of respect" and my "disdain for tradition," but all of their words fell on deaf ears. I was sick and tired of nothing but training day after day. I was sick of feelings like a dog being pampered for a show. I was sick of the inside of castle walls, and of hearing about countless lives being lost with each day that passed. I wanted to feel like a soldier, to get out and do some good, and I was going to do it with or without the King's approval.
As I made my way across the room and through the door, Zelda remained silent in her seat. She had already said everything that needed to be said with that one look. At least, that's what I thought to be the case, so it came as a bit of a surprise when I heard the door to the War Room open up again.
"Link, wait," Zelda called out as she made her way down the hall to me, walking briskly but maintaining that regal poise that she always did.
I turned quickly to see her but didn't stop walking. I felt like if I stopped moving for even a second, I was going to lose all of the momentum that I had. I was going to need all of the momentum I could get if I was going to pull off the plan I had worked out in my head.
"Link, please stop for just a moment," Zelda said, catching up to me and matching me stride for stride.
"I'm sorry Princess, but its a bit late for stopping now," I said, keeping my gaze forward.
"Link," Zelda said with a surprising softness that nearly stopped me in my tracks. She took advantage of my surprise and grabbed me by the wrist, effectively halting my progress. Zelda kept her grip firm and moved in front of me to make sure that I wouldn't try to get away and meeting my gaze so to ensure I was paying attention. Her eyes were a mix of so many emotions that I couldn't even begin to pick them out.
"I need to apologize to you," she said, her grip on my wrist tightening even further. "I knew that I was putting you in an impossible position, and still I…"
"Don't start apologizing now, Princess," I said, feeling a sudden burst of anger spout up that I didn't know I had.
"I'm sorry, what?" Zelda said, clearly surprised by my words.
"All of this was my decision and I'm finally going to start doing what I came here to do, so don't you start in now with the apologies."
"Link no, that's not at all what I meant," Zelda said. We were both caught off guard by the unexpected bite in my words. "Link… what are you planning on doing?"
"I'm going to do what you asked me to do," I said simply. "I'm going to help you save your people."
"How are you going to help them then? By getting yourself killed?" Zelda said with discernible distress.
"You wanted me to go, didn't you?" I demanded. "Thats why you looked at me with that goddess damned look, isn't it Princess? Because you wanted me to save Rivenport!"
"Not at the cost of your own life. Going alone is suicide!" She said, her voice rising as the emotion in her words began to show more and more.
"I thought maybe you could convince the council to send a squadron. That's why I wanted to apologize to you. It was unfair of me to ask you to do the impossible. I didn't want to ask, but do you think it's easy for me to accept the death of my people? Even still, that doesn't mean that I want you to go and get yourself killed!"
Zelda's words were beginning to make me unsure of my own actions, but I was still so angry at how useless I had felt over the past few weeks. I felt bad, putting Zelda in what I knew was a difficult position, but wasn't I doing the right thing? Wasn't this what I was meant to be doing the entire time? I couldn't back down now that I finally had an opportunity to be the hero that Zelda had called me to be just because she was scared that I would get hurt.
That, and there was one other thing that had been bothering me for the past few days ever since the other Link, the real Link, had arrived. Something that was enough to fuel my anger and drown out any guilt I felt for making Zelda worry.
"Would you be so worried if it was the other Link who was about to try and save Rivenport all on his own?" I said, trying and failing to keep my jealousy from showing. I knew I was being petulant and stupid, but after so long of feeling inadequate and ignored, I simply couldn't help myself.
With that, I jerked my wrist free of Zelda's hand and moved past her further down the hall. As soon as she recovered, she was following me down the hall once again.
"Link, that is not what this is about," Zelda said, trying and failing to grab ahold of me and stop me from advancing further down the hall. "Link has years of training that you've never had! Of course you're not going to be as good of a swordsman as he is after a few sparring matches. You don't need to prove anything to anyone."
"If I don't need to be every bit the hero that he is, then why am I even here?" I asked, and for once I found that I had managed to ask a question that Zelda didn't have an answer to.
While Zelda was stunned into momentary silence, I used the opportunity to push past her and enter a stairwell that led to the ground floor of the castle. As I was descending the stairs I listened to make sure that Zelda wasn't following me.
Once I was safely on the ground floor, I began working my way towards the armory, moving quickly and silently just in case Zelda tried to send some of the guards to stop me. Knowing her, I doubted that she would take such drastic measures, but I had to play it safe. Maybe she wasn't willing to admit it, but everyone familiar with our situation including myself was aware of the elephant in the room: I wasn't as good as Link.
The gap between us was frustratingly massive, and I had to experience just how wide that gap was day after day. There were a lot of things that the other Link had that I didn't, but the most important one was experience. Well, I wasn't about to let a lack of experience hold me back anymore.
I made it to the armory with no incidents and immediately began grabbing equipment that I would need. I put on a light chainmail underneath my blue tunic and strapped a leather wrist guard to my right arm. I attached a quiver full of arrows to my belt and slipped a simple recurve bow over my shoulder. I picked out a small metal shield that looked sturdy but didn't weigh too much. It had blue paint adorning the face and a red Hylian crest at the center complete with the gold emblem of the Triforce itself.
I had to test out a few swords to make sure I found one that was properly weighted, although none of them felt exactly right for me. I settled on a simple, double-sided one that felt just a little too light. The handle and hilt were a simple dark gray, but the edge looked wickedly sharp.
Examining the sword in my hand, I felt galvanized. No more dull blades for me. I had come here to save lives, and I was about to do it—with or without the approval of the royal family.
Author's note: Wow, this update came so much later than I expected. Sorry about that one but I've been kind of swamped what with new classes that were way harder than I expected them to be. But hey, finals are over now so hopefully I'll be able to focus on writing a little bit more now! Maybe... Anyways, I just wanted to take a quick moment and thank everyone who has favorited, followed, or reviewed this story. It really means a lot and you guys are the only reason why I still update at all. It might take a long time, but I promise that this story will be finished one day. As usual, feel free to drop a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter or the story as a whole. Even if I don't respond, I promise I read every review. There's no such thing as bad feedback! Hopefully the next update will come a little sooner, but until then stay classy ladies and gents.