"I can see everyone's face when I close my eyes."
"...I'm sorry," Link and Gerrard sat in the middle of their prison, haunted by recent ghosts.
Gerrard rubbed his hands together. "And the worst is...They were just living, and I missed the execution by maybe 10 minutes...If I had just...been able to see them again...and not like that."
"Tell us about them."
Eyes hooding, the dusky boy told him, "Vinnie had this poofy hair, and he was pretty sure he was going to join the guards. He was the only one of us four that had a conscience. Now he...And Rizzo...I really thought he was going to be the looker, but now I can't not imagine his eyes bugging from the garrotte." A twisted smile danced across his face. "Trevor was a bastard. We told him he was going to drink himself to death before he turned 17. Aha." Gerrard's laugh was absolutely empty. "Guess we were wrong."
"...It feels like my fault."
Gerrard batted at the air, eyes downcast. "Nah. It's not. It was just...politics. Impa said some things to the king last night that really opened my eyes. It was orchestrated, the same as you getting to Zelda, and being locked in jail. Even though I know that, I can't not be angry at myself, really. I wish I hadn't taken your job. That's what pushed my clan over the edge. We acted against you, and Zelda's plans."
"If this was orchestrated, I'm not sure you have any blame at all," Navi offered. She hovered close to the boys in the cell's center. "I don't know if there's a difference here in the castle between random and planned anymore, if there ever was." She flapped speculatively, measuring the exhausted youths. "There's something else that Impa mentioned after you two fell asleep last night." She paused. To Link, Navi glowed for a brief second. "We have a big job ahead of us. Things...aren't going to get easier. Not anytime soon, at least. But I'm here to help, and make sure you two stay sane to some degree.
"You both lost your home and family in irreversible ways," Navi rested cupped hands over her heart. "Link had time to recover, somewhat, when we traveled with the Lon Clan. It was traumatic in its own way, but we were doing pretty well. Even with the Farmington Hierarchy annoying as wolfos at a picnic, there were a couple stellar days with Malon, and Mullick and Talon."
"And Jessel," Link supplicated. He missed his soldier woman and her merciless wit.
"Since we have some time, I want to hear about the Lightning Willow." Though he was still picturing his friends, Gerrard pressed onward with the distraction.
"The first time I heard her shout, I thought it was a man," Link smiled. The wagon ride to Farmington seemed like a lifetime ago, imagining sunny skies, dust clouding his mouth, lowing cattle and a hard wooden bench in place of the chill stone all around them. Impa hadn't recast the comfort spell. "She and Ingo Lon served in the desert together. They were captured-"
"I know that part. Because of their valor, they were able to take down Ganondorf's father and pave the road to victory for the King."
"According to her and Ingo, they just kept getting lucky. The squadron of six soldiers were separated from the main party just over the border. They were lost, and the Gerudo found them. Instead of killing them, they were captured. They were captured by the ruler of the west's sentries. The camp they were imprisoned in belonged to the very person they were looking for." Storytelling laced his cadence, and Gerrard was a good audience. "Ingo managed to escape during a nightwatch and a sandstorm. That was suicidal enough, but he just kept trudging through the razor wind. There was a party of scouts already in the area, and once the storm cleared, Ingo led them to the camp.
"Meanwhile, the Gerudo wanted to make an example out of the Hylians in their clutches. Jessel was singled out, put through these trials-she did not tell me what they were-and she was almost executed at the stake for failing. But at the last minute, the King and his riders came out of nowhere to neutralize the camp. Fate was just going their way. They were smart enough to pounce on the opportunities, despite danger or the fear that they…" Link trailed off, and the message of Jessel's story hit him over the head like a stone. He blinked in disbelief. "Even if that's completely true, I just realized, if Impa wasn't lying about Jessel 'grooming' me, she was also teaching me this lesson. I wonder if she knew you were going to join me."
"Man, I didn't even know I was joining you. I thought I was just doing right by myself, and now…" Gerrard squeezed his face. "We must be crazy."
"Not yet," Navi was fairly more relaxed now, teasing leaking into her tone. "Your actions don't have that twist of unreasonable logic. However, your lucidity about this unbelievable situation makes me question that."
"It's insane, I agree," Link splayed his legs out to ease the strain of cross legged sitting on the dungeon floor. Who in their right mind would ever agree to play this game? "I wish I had my ocarina. Then I could practice something that doesn't leave a bruise or break bones." His hands cradled air as though he held his memento from Saria.
"I still can't believe Impa just punched you! She healed you, right after, sure, but that's still a dick move in my book," Gerrard crossed his arms.
"And you stabbed me. Here we sit," Link reminded him, eyeing his cellmate and scooting a few inches farther away.
"What? Oh, no, we're cool now, since I led you to Zelda," Gerrard said as though it really solved everything.
"And into prison. Here we sit."
"Yeah, but now we get training by the protector of the princess herself!"
"And she broke my jaw. We can do this all day. It's not a competition...I'd hate for you to lose, anyway."
"Wait, wait! What? Was that a joke? Mr. Serious and Proper…No wait, you joked to the King, too! He asked you about sneaking in, if the other Kids would do that too. Would they really?"
"Like I said, the Children are merciless, and a lot of them do go out of the way to make each other laugh."
"But not for you, right? I can hear it, you want to say, 'But never me.'"
"Almost," Link drew in a breath. "Saria, the Wisest, and my best friend, raised me and taught me everything I should know. She fought for my acceptance. Mido, the lead hunter, fought back. He played tricks on me, but only to make himself laugh.
"Saria was the best at taking my doubts and turning them upside down. She never held back anything, and helped me look past Mido's jealousy. Whenever I was upset, or lonely, I would go to her, and she would listen to my trouble with this weird, practical look on her face. She had this way of downplaying...But she didn't belittle me."
"So why didn't she order Mido to stop? If she was your Wisest or whatever, shouldn't she know best?"
"Ah, but children are loath to listen to logic," Navi chided. "Even if she asked, it's not in the Kokiri lifestyle to follow orders. Each Child is free to follow their own path through life. The guidance of the Wisest and Lead Hunter can help steer them, but none of them would take the words as a 'to-be-obeyed' order. That's why they make pacts, to give major promises weight."
Zephane burst into Link's mind like an intruder. He saw her brow with the bright red smear, and her snub nose scrunched in imperious disapproval. "This is the kind of thing Zephane would be jealous over, right? At the mercy of the future most-beautiful-woman-in-Hyrule?" Link said wistfully.
Navi guffawed, and covered her mouth. "Hee, you hit the nail on the head, heheh!" she said through her fingers. "She'd have told Zelda to stop bullying her Hero, straight away! Oh, and Impa would be dead. If she ever found out...She'd sicc her cuccos on her!"
Gerrard watched the giggling fairy and the feline smiling warrior with a dry smirk. "Lemme guess: girlfriend down on the farm?"
"Eh, not really," Link rubbed his scalp. "She formed an attachment to me, and then caused this." He held out his right hand, wiggling his healed pinky finger. There was no third joint or lasting damage to his nerve.
Gerrard sucked wind. "Goddesses, what the hell do they teach on the ranch?"
"No, dummy," Navi swatted Link's ear. " What my laconic friend forgot to mention is that the girl got herself into trouble with a peahat, and then they fell into a patch of deku babas. To save his life, Link had to sever his finger from the deadly things."
"Man, that is even more hardcore," Gerrard approved, nodding. "Lead with that fact, next time. I didn't even notice you didn't have it. That could have made me reconsider stabbing you."
"Really?" Link doubted, eyebrow propped up.
"Yeah, no, probably not. The opportunity you gave me was too good not to use. I don't know if you were desperate or naive, but you don't let strangers get that close."
"I was angry. I was tired of being led around, paraded, chided and told what to believe and how to present myself, and what I was allowed to bring." He looked to Navi. "I know, I have the choice, and it's mine alone. But you have to admit, this doesn't feel like choice or chance."
Link breathed deeply. He held the thief's hazel gaze. "When we get out of here, it's just you and Navi and me, if you can keep up with us. I'll take advice, and city Lore any time, but survival outside the walls is my realm. I need to...exercise those skills again. It's like I'm cut off from nature, even though everything is part of it. I want the wind, the stars, leaves and worms in the dirt. Grass and birds and bugs and the accomplishment of crafting...I miss it so much." Horrified at the emotion in his husky muttering, Link stopped himself before another word betrayed him.
Gerrard was nothing but empathetic. He couldn't look at Link. Thirteen was too young to admit the gravity and responsibility of feelings. He cleared his throat. "Grief sucks. And your glowy girl says it's not going to let up within the next few hours. But I can listen to your forest lore, or your badass ranch stories if you feel like it. Once boot camp is over, and we get on the road to Death Mountain, I think it'll be good for both of us. I've never been outside of the city, not even past the Flats, so I'm excited to see what grass is really like."
"Grass? I don't under-"
"I only see the scruffy strips between stalls, the small, manicured lawns of townhouses and gardens, and sometimes, the castle grounds. But like I said, I've never stepped beyond the boundary of the Flats, and it's mostly rocks and heath right out front. The prairie sounds exciting. Plus, peahats, babas, stallchildren, poes-"
"Stallchildren? Like stalfos?" Link questioned.
"Actually, I just learned this from Jessel the other day," Navi volunteered. "Stallchildren are the dead brought back to life, mindless and under the command of the spell caster. Stalfos are the living made undead, and while you can control them, they often retain their knowledge from life."
Now Link smirked. "And why would a normal sergeant know that? And that shouldn't be possible. The dead are dead."
"Oh, wow, I can't believe Impa and the King locked you up, not realizing you know exactly what is and isn't possible!"
"Navi-"
"No, Link. We just learned to read. We just learned within the last month that words can become permanent and moveable. We just learned that this life and task are way bigger than we imagined. You should not call anything impossible. You don't know, yet. We have no idea what we're really up against, aside from some vague political warnings and a magical quest.
"Everything could change like that," Navi snapped her fingers with her last syllable.
The door banged open.
Impa stood in the frame, eyes burning.
"Power indeed lives up to his claims," Impa spat. "Ganondorf has assassinated the King and will be controlling the court until you find the Spiritual Stones."
Question after question flooded Link's brain, but all paled next to this one: "You just had to say something, didn't you, Navi?"
"Okay, so can you start again, if we have the time?" Gerrard requested as he ascended from the floor.
"We don't, but I'll tell you as we run," Impa slashed her hands in the air and the muffling charms fell away from them.
The reignition of their bond elicited a soulful gasp, as Link and Navi's minds reached out to find each other. It was so lonely without a conscience.
"The hell it was. I enjoyed the silence." And he knew it was a lie of love.
The boys moved at Impa's behest immediately, followed her towards the farthest back wall of the dungeon. It held no resistance as the royal attendant walked through it, swallowing her as if it were not substantial. Gerrard hesitated for only a second, then shrugged and went into the wall.
The boy from Kokiri reached out a hand, and when he couldn't place it on the wall before him, when he watched his fingers engulfed in a convincing illusion, he felt that onerous burden again. This was another crossroads, a threshold to another chapter of his life. He watched the web of decisions spread out before him, fingers of a wagon wheel turning a kaleidoscope of options. He considered the prisoners behind him, and those who dwelt in the castle. He could stay put, and not follow the Sheikah. They could rally and take out Ganondorf...But if he killed the King, then maybe it was better to go. He could pretend to comply with Impa. He shuddered at that thought. She would snap his neck, more than likely, if he even tried to deceive her with his intentions. Again, he felt little choice in the matter. Above all else, he must survive.
Hadn't he said it to Gerrard? Survival outside these walls was his realm. He would own that. It was all he had left.
Link passed into the secret catacomb. The thief and fairy were trying to act natural: averted gazes, whistling and shuffling included. "What?"
"Well, from this side, the wall is invisible. It was kinda...funny watching you reach out, and there were like, seventeen emotions that went across your face…" Gerrard admitted.
"I'm glad my moral ponderings are amusing," Link deadpanned.
"Shall we?" Impa ushered them further into the spell-lit darkness. "Apparently, Ganondorf felt he had enough influence and control over the court nobles to begin his campaign. We did not think it was going to be so soon! The King was making some progress with reparations, but my contact tells me his tongue was barbed when the Western King presented his case this morning. Salting those wounds was not a good decision. Dakor almost invited the attack with insults."
"So how is Ganondorf keeping everyone from telling the world about the King? Won't that close off our chances of getting the Spiritual Stones from the other leaders?" Navi asked.
"He's taking a gamble on the weak nobles," Impa told her. "He told them not to breathe the news, but to protect their families."
"Ah," the fairy sighed. "That would do it."
"There has to be someone brave enough-" Link insisted.
"Undoubtedly. And the Shadow Court spans farther than Ganondorf knows. The world will know in a matter of hours, but the common folk won't speak of it, and the leaders will not elaborate on the protective measures they will take. In a way, it will make it easier for you to enter those foreign realms. They will be expecting a messenger from the Royal Family. No one, of any race, wants another war. You will have the best chance of defeating Ganondorf."
"So we're also a gamble," Gerrard noted. "We have to hope and fucking pray that he doesn't descend on us the second we get all the Stones."
"And this is why Din lay claim to him," Impa mourned. "His path has not been easy, and thus, his reward is so much greater than ours if we redirect him. It will be luck and fate if we gain the Triforce before him.
"The general plan is this: travel to Cor Darun to gather the Goron's Ruby, then to the Zora's Domain and meet King Icthyllion for the Zora's Sapphire. Then, you will return to the Temple of Time to meet with Zelda and myself to open the Door of Time. Once we are within the Sacred Realm, we will have to find the Triforce in the Light Temple, and make our request for balance and rejuvenation. If Zelda and myself are unable to return, there will be preparations for you to do that task alone."
"So the Princess is now Queen, huh?" Navi said sympathetically.
"In name, but Dakor managed to tie his spirit to the land's magic so she can gradually take up the mantle," Impa told them. "That is a great blessing of Nayru's family: the light essence within them can be used to shore and strengthen magical seals and huge enchantments. So while the King has died, he has not left quite yet. He is still protecting what he can, and I am grateful for his sacrifice."
Link silently agreed, offering peace and thanks to Dakor's spirit, despite his imprisonment. He'd only done what he thought would serve his land the best. Link understood now, a little, those choices that seemed so black and white were gray and dark gray at best. "Where is Zelda? Is she safe?"
"I will tell you she is protected, and hidden, but nothing more than that. Ganondorf may be listening for that sort of information. We know of his human guards, but we believe he could already have further reaching enchantments or incorporeal familiars."
"Say what now?" Gerrard bleated.
"Ghosts, or poes, bats with observation charms, or things we can't yet imagine. The Sheikah have a very good record of Demise's monster capabilities, the kinds of beings he was able to raise and control remotely. We have witnessed a rise in certain populations across Hyrule in our time, and have been taking great pains and man-power to protect the people of the land from them. But it is now undeniable: stallchildren are stalking the old battle sites, guay eagles are accosting travelers in the mountains, dodongos are breeding like mad hares in lava tubes, octoroks are attacking ferrymen and fishermen by the dozens and too many more incidents to list right now."
The tunnel was growing less finished and more cavelike, with hew marks from ancient tools scoring the walls and puddles beneath dripping stalactites. They walked for an hour until fresh air wafted in tendrils around their ankles and noses. Another ten minutes and the promise of daylight around the corner beckoned.
Impa stopped. Her hair was being tugged by the wind pouring in through the exit. "I have your belongings here." She bent beside a small stone, uncovering a seamless flagstone. She hoisted two bulky backframes from the cache, one sleekly styled for travel, and the other, wrapped in bearskin.
Link accepted his inventory with trembling hands, prying aside the flap to find his pouch, sword, the shield from Gerngt and the rest of his weaponry. He also saw a packet of paper within a vellum envelope. His pouch was familiar beyond comfort, and he undid the thong at the neck. His fingers crept over the clay ocarina, rupees, the tag from Jessel and the Spiritual Stone of the Forest.
"How did you get this?"
"Dakor was too much like a raven, and kept a safe beneath his bed," Impa said plainly. "He slept, and then I was able to retrieve the stone as soon as he left for court. The Sheikah taught him enchanting, and so, I broke his seal. The rest was collected by my servants overnight.
"You'll find all sorts of dried rations and lightweight equiptment in Gerrard's pack," she informed them. "I don't doubt your sense of direction or the map from the Lon Clan, Link. Resupply at Kakariko Village before you start climbing Death Mountain. That is my clan's ancestral home, so you will be assisted."
"Did you look at my family tree? Or even find out-" Link began to ask more, but Impa had no answers.
"There was little time. These were just placed here if not half an hour before our arrival. If we meet again, and I have information, I will tell you. Until then, you three must make haste. Be discreet, and if all else fails, play the Messenger's Song. You will find help." She melted into the stones with uncanny silence. The boys were left gaping at nothing.
"Well. That was abrupt," Navi said. "She must have so much to prepare and help protect the town and Zelda, I guess. You still remember how to play the diddy?"
"Yes. I can play it again, but only if I have to," Link said. "If I understand Impa, it has some sort of power, and I don't just want to invoke it without knowing more about magic, and music."
"Shall we move on? I can teach you a little bit about music," Gerrard offered as he unloaded clothing from his backpack. He pulled on socks and sturdy boots, a quilted vest and a belt. He was also delighted with a heavy navy blue wool cloak. Shouldering his pack first, he whipped the cloak over his burden, clasping it with the silver triangles at his throat. "Magic is not something I'm interested in, to be honest."
"If you're honest for a second, I'll eat Link's bear fur," Navi scorned.
"I can try," Gerrard chuckled.
"I'll offer my written apologies if that happens," she said. "Without your dishonesty, Link wouldn't have seen the Princess before Ganondorf killed the King. We might have had a much different situation without the guidance of a delinquent weasel."
Gerrard's face was twitching in emotion. "If I wasn't half so insulted, I would be honored by the backhanded compliments of a glowing damselfly"
"Can we skip the verbal fencing and just get moving?" Link demanded, fighting a headache and a grin. He fastened his own belt, his obsidian knife, the bone shiv, his pouch and finally, his pack.
"Hmmph. He started it." The bobbing sprite, redeemed urchin and displaced hunter moved on quickly, footsteps pattering in warm, protective shoes. Oh, how Link had missed the support of his boots on soulless flagstone...
Link gulped at the outside smell of stone, and dry wind, conifers and glacial runoff, hungrier than ever for the sight of late afternoon. It gnawed at him to leave the castle and an oppressive atmosphere was lessening with every step. He wondered if it was Ganondorf's presence and control of the capital, or just normal anxiety. Heh. Normal anxiety. As if he knew what that was…
And once they were around the corner of the tunnel, the stony expanse of volcanic ridges clawed into the steel gray sky and greeted them as brothers. Valleys filled with ranks of pines and firs and hemlocks softened the sharp ravines, but did not disguise them. There seemed to be only one viable path through rock and sky ahead of them: a steep walled pass between two neighboring peaks, or straight down into the conifer-filled valleys.
"So which way to the village?" Gerrard gushed, already pushing forward into the pass. He stopped to face Link, and saw the blonde was standing at the edge of the precipice, staring down. "Hey, wanna step back? That seems a little close."
"I'm studying the land, how it flows," he said absently, leaning over the void. "And besides, this kind of stone isn't usually prone to fracturing-"
As if he hadn't been standing there, Link and the lip of rock he was ensconced were tumbling away down the cliffside.
"Link! No!" Navi screamed and flew to the edge of the world.
"We have got to stop saying these things!" Gerrard berated and sprinted for his friend's life.
