The Downfall Timeline
Book 1
Chapter 18: Fire, Blood, & Justice
Midnight, January 28, 610 GK, The War of Imprisonment, Day 196
Lon Lon Ranch
As Viscern raced from the barn – drawing the enemy away from Link, Alfon and Russell shattered the locks on the stables and set the horses and cattle free. The herd, having already been whipped and tortured by Ingo and his moblins, charged for the ranch gate without command.
The scout's great agility allowed him to leap over or dodge around the animals as they came at him, but his dull pursuers were not so skilled and were quickly trampled by the charging animals.
With half of their mission complete, the three soldiers quickly regrouped and raced back to the house and barn behind the animals. When they did not find Link or the girl at the gate, the marshal ordered Russell into the house - to deal with the traitor - while he and Viscern searched the barn for his squire.
They found the young soldier, screaming at the top of his lungs, as he ruthlessly bludgeoned a ruined Ingo on the floor of a stall beside Malon. Behind him, the girl hung from her chains - still sobbing in terror at everything happening around her.
The knight swiftly grabbed the boy and dragged him away from the dying traitor as Viscern quickly grabbed the key from his belt and released Malon.
"Easy hon, easy, it's ok... I've got you. It's ok... I'm here." he tried to soothe in a fatherly voice as she collapsed into his arms.
Her limbs were withered and shaking from the torture, so Viscern gently wrapped his cloak around her and cradled her in his arms.
Alfon, stunned at the bloody mess on the floor, slowly looked from Ingo back to Link.
The squire was gasping for air and crying tears of rage, but his eyes remained locked on the traitor's body.
"My Lord-" Viscern began, but the rancher suddenly twitched and let out a gurgling groan.
Link dashed forward to resume the attack, but Alfon quickly lifted him off his feet and held him captive.
"Leave him lad! Leave him!" he bellowed as he noted the growing fire spreading over the back wall and floor of the barn, "He'll get justice, don't you worry. Come on!"
Still carrying the thrashing boy, they both rushed back to the ranch's gate. The marshal let out a long, piercing whistle and shortly after, a whinnying answer came from the snow-covered landscape. Soon the tramp of hooves thundered out of the darkness as the soldiers' mounts galloped up to meet them.
The liberated herd had found Alfon's great horse in the dark and stayed near them for protection. Now a throng of Hylian mounts galloped up to the ranch gate -including a handsome red filly- to meet the marshal and his men.
Setting Link back on his feet, the knight quickly mounted and ordered to his men to do the same. Russell came rushing out of the ranch house - forcing several pieces of parchment into his satchel as he ran.
"The Traitor is gone!" he cried, as he caught the reigns of his own horse.
Alfon pointed to the growing fire that was now burning through the nearest side of the barn, "He will be. Get your horse, we're leaving." He answered in a solemn voice.
The great knight reached down and took Malon from Viscern - so that he could mount his own horse. Epona, the red filly, found Link in the darkness and lovingly nuzzled at his hair.
"Ride her if she'll have you Link," called his master, "I need to carry the girl."
The squire grabbed Epona's mane and pulled himself up. Obediantly, she stood very still and accepted him without complaint. With a cry from their leader, the team kicked their horses to a hard gallop and raced over the icy landscape, back toward the King's Road.
After riding only a short distance, a piercing scream rose up from the engulfed barn. Turning back and looking over their shoulders, the four men could see that the fire had now engulfed the entire barn and spread to the nearby farmhouse.
"More than the traitor deserves!" Spat Russell, who felt disappointed that he had not dispatched Ingo himself.
"Fire will do in a pinch, when there's need." replied Alfon, still cradling the girl.
"Aye, My Lord. That it will." answered the old veteran as the firelight flickered on his face.
Once they reached the road, they briefly stopped and turned back to take in the result of their mission. Link remained silent as the roof of the barn collapsed and great flames roared up into the night sky.
"He was actually trying to force her to... pray to Ganon." He thought bitterly.
A small part of him knew it was wrong, but he - like his comrades – allowed himself to take great satisfaction in Ingo's death.
Once the barn roof collapsed, the flames within rushed upwards and towered over the ranch's palisade. For miles, in every direction, the snow-covered landscape was brightly lit by the yellow-orange glow of Ingo's demise.
Alfon's eyes caught the gleaming stone gates of the capitol to the north and realized that its lookouts would surely see the blaze.
"Ride hard!" he urged, "They already know what we've done!"
Spurring his horse back to a gallop, he charged southward as the others raced after him.
For nearly an hour, they drove their horses as hard as they dared down the cobblestone road. With the bitter wind in his face, Link struggled to see what was ahead of him, but Epona faithfully kept to the path and stayed near to Alfon.
Far away behind them, in the North, an unearthly wail suddenly rose up and pierced their ears.
"Bats!" shouted Russell over the wind.
The squire had heard stories of Agahnim's giant bats, but had never actually seen one himself. Their shrill cry filled him with dread as he leaned forward and held onto the little filly even tighter. Malon, however, knew exactly what that sound meant and she struggled and screamed in terror against her rescuer's grasp.
In moments, the wind shifted and the rush of wings came low overhead. Several of the ranch-horses screamed in terror and broke off from the group - hoping to escape. As Link turned his head left and right, he could see giant winged shadows dive down upon the terrified beasts and lift them away with cruel talons into the darkness.
"Keep going!" cried Viscern as he and Russell broke formation and wheeled back.
They lifted their bows and began firing arrows into the inky blackness above their heads.
"We should help them!" screamed Link over the wind.
"No!" bellowed Alfon in return, "We have to get you and the girl back to the lake! They know their duty!"
The boy did as he was told, but felt a surge of anger toward his master. "How can he just leave them to those monsters?!" he wondered.
They continued their frantic retreat for as long as their horses could bear it. The surge of adrenaline from the bats' attack spurred them onward, but after several more miles, the poor beasts began to pant and cough in the cold air.
Slowing to a halt, the marshal motioned for silence as he listened to the darkness above them. The sound of wings and the captains' cries were gone now and Link could only hear the soft breeze over the snow and the distant ripple of the Zora River to the East.
"We will need cover." He whispered silently, once he was satisfied that the bats were not close by.
Without another word, he motioned to his squire to dismount and come near him. When Link was within arm's reach, the knight tapped the boy's baldric, then pointed to one of the saddle bags hanging from his horse. The squire quickly retrieved his master's spare leather belt, loosened it as far as it could go, and handed it up to him.
Holding Malon with one arm, the great warrior draped the belt over one shoulder and across his chest. Then, with fatherly care, he rested the girl's body into it – like a sling – and drew his warm cloak about her. She seemed to drift in and out of consciousness, badly weakened and barely alive after two weeks in Ingo's barn.
He didn't speak, but Alfon's heart was breaking at the sight of the poor child in his arms. He had seen many conflicts – large and small – and understood the cruelty of battle and the hardships that it would bring to civilians. But the idea of a Hylian torturing and starving a child for amusement was something new to him.
3am, January 28, 610 GK, The War of Imprisonment, Day 196
Beside the River
As quietly as they could, the pair led their small herd eastward – off the road – toward the river. Near its banks, a long, but narrow group of trees formed a small wood for them to hide in. Most of these trees were bare and leafless, but a small cluster of Hylian pines stood near the center, and the marshal directed his squire to lead the animals and shelter there until dawn.
Still shivering from the terror of the shadowy attack, the beasts seemed to know that these trees would provide them some protection, but still, they all stood together - wide-eyed and nervous about what lay in the darkness above them. At the slightest rustle, or creak from the branches, they would flinch and look upward in fear.
Link was directed to stand watch, and make certain the animals did not attempt to wander out of the glade. Alfon rested his back against a tree and cradled Malon in his lap, with one arm beneath his cloak. To keep his strength up, the knight allowed himself to dose, but his bow remained in-hand.
Twice in the night, the girl stirred and began to call out for her father, but the marshal just rocked her gently in his arm and soothed her back to sleep.
"It's ok hon, its ok. It's all over now. Just sleep." He would whisper.
The fatherly voice was not only a comfort for Malon, but also acted as a steadying hand for his squire – whose adrenaline and anger had now diminished.
Despite how tired he was, the boy's mind had become fixated on what he had done back in the barn. Aside from training with his master, or small scrapes in Lake Town with the other soldiers, the boy had never attacked a Hylian before – and it frightened him at how easily he had done it.
"How could I do that?! What is happening to me?!" he wondered anxiously.
High above them, the chaotic winter wind rolled and churned the thick layer of clouds that obscured the night sky. For a brief moment, a small break in the darkness allowed the moon's light to shine down over the glade. A thin silver beam reached down and touched the snow beside the boy. Curiously, Link reached out his hand to let it fall on his glove.
With a sudden stab of fear, the squire watched as his hand entered the light and revealed itself to still be covered in Ingo's blood.
The bitter-cold air seeped into his heart as the horror took hold.
"I'm… a killer!" he thought.
In a sudden panic, the boy quickly knelt down and frantically scrubbed at his gloves in the snow – if he could remove the blood, somehow that would remove some of the crime from him.
"Listen to me." came the deep but soft voice of his master, "You did what you had to do. Every man feels this his first time. He was a traitor and a murderer. There was no wrong in it. You brought justice to that ranch."
The cold now spread to Link's stomach and he began to feel a sudden sensation of falling. The world turned and spun around him as he struggled to stay upright. His fingers were becoming stiff and difficult to bend, while his skin burned from the cold – and still, the red stains were not coming off.
"Come here son." Alfon whispered.
Every part of his body seemed to shudder and shake on its own. Without thinking, the little hero dropped his sword into the snow, beside the herd of animals, and slowly staggered over to where his master sat. His vision was becoming distorted now and his mind splintered into a hundred different thoughts – but, 'obeying his master' managed to stay at the forefront.
Reaching his lord, Link dropped to his knees and looked into Alfon's eyes. The fierce, little squire had become a frightened boy again.
"I know what you feel son." The knight started, quietly. "And I regret that more aren't here to help us. But I need you right now, son. She needs you!" The marshal lifted the edge of his cloak to reveal Malon's bruised and swollen face as he finished.
Against the terror, the sickening disgust, and the whirling dizziness – came a strong and steadying hand in Link's mind.
"She needs you." Those words echoed through the boy and forced his chaotic mind to still itself.
"We are not done yet, Link. It won't be done until we get her back to her father. Do you understand son?" the knight finished.
The little soldier nodded, then muttered, "Y-yes… yes sir." And pushed himself back to his feet.
"Then get your sword and stay ready." His master whispered, pointing back at the sword in the snow.
Near Dawn, January 28, 610 GK, The War of Imprisonment, Day 196
Beside the River
Several times, during the remainder of the night, the wind would shift suddenly and a strong gust would rattle the treetops - making the evergreens rustle and sway. Alfon gripped his bow tightly while Malon slept and Link kept his hand on his sword -with his eyes turned upward- but nothing more came.
"They have our scent." The marshal thought grimly to himself, "And likely can hear our breath."
But the great bats had never attacked a Hylian caravan during the daylight and he hoped that they could not tolerate the sun.
"If we can just make it till dawn…" he thought quietly to himself as he scanned the treetops.
If they pushed the animals hard, they might reach Deya, or at least the grove of trees that the men had sheltered in near there. But the marshal was reluctant to bring the bats so close to the lake or to risk the village. His only other option, was to first go south then turn eastward up the Zora Road and attempt to seek shelter in their domain.
But he was unsure about this option. The Zora had promised their support early in the war, but had been very secretive and distant about what preparations they had made to protect their own home. The marshal had no idea what guards or passwords would block his way – nor what to do with a herd of horses and cattle in the rocky springs of Hyrule's aquatic race.
"Where is my army?!" he wondered angrily, as another sudden rush of wind swooped low over the treetops.