Author's Notes:

Chapter three!

I'm kind of flattered that you think that I thought this all the way through, haha. I actually did not plan this all the way through, but with this story, I wanted to create a new universe that is similar to the one in Zelda games, but with differences. I doubt that this story will be the victim of writer's block, so expect somewhat frequent updates, especially in August.

I want to create characters that are somewhat believable, so they are all victims to having flaws, just like you, or I. Of course, Link is quite rude and hostile towards others. Jaylos is somewhat arrogant, but he has the drive to make Hyrule a better place at the same time. I don't want to have too many characters, but rather, create meaningful bonds between a few of them.

I think that I'm going to keep Link and Jaylos as the main characters. This story, as a whole, is about their adventures.

~Two Decades~

Link

Three days had passed since I was attacked by a dozen bandits in the forests contained within the Mudlands. And with the money I earned, I intend to buy a new sword; the old one has lost its sheen. But what I find amazing is that I had not touched the money for three whole days.

My apartment was reasonably luxurious compared to what the average resident of Hyrule Castle Town had, but quite modest compared to how much money I actually made. But if I took anything better, people would be suspicious; the assistant to the Commander of the Forest Gate was not a particularly demanding position. By some of the men who work under me, I'm often referred to as "coffee boy." If only they knew about my night job...

I left my apartment locked, as always, and proceeded out the front door. My home is 29 Scizel Street. Scizel is Old Hylian for "Heaven", which is fairly contradictory to how the street actually looks. It's run-down, unsightly, and I try to avoid being here whenever possible. "Man up, it's a nice place," Father had always told me. In response, I always asked him why he'd never lived with me, but with the man he had rescued in a storm many years ago. "That's my choice," Father had said, his words cold as ice, and final, because he refused to speak about it any longer.

Only a few blocks away was the blacksmith from whom I normally purchased armor from. She was blue-collared, and developed arms like the average soldier, after years of forming steel and iron to make weapons. "I'm not the best blacksmith in the city," she'd once told me, "but I'm glad you give me a shot, Master Link." But I'm not a master of any kind. I've accepted what I am a long time ago.

Of course, she was still there, crafting a blade. She finely chiseled the hilt, making intricate patterns of dragons on it. Perhaps it's her way of being artistic. I approached her, and placed the bag I was holding in my right hand onto the desk as I entered her shop. Three thousand rupees weighed quite a bit. Even inside, the constant laughter of children running and adults gossiping could be heard pretty clearly. "Mornin', Link."

"More like afternoon, no?"

This earned a slight chuckle for her. "If it is afternoon then I've been working too hard. I should have been counting the minutes until lunch. But how may I help you? Sword, perhaps?" She said, eyeing the leather sack on her table. "How much do you got in there?"

"Three thousand." She whistled enviously, and I grinned. "I'm looking for a sword. Got anything?" Of course she has something. She always has something. Especially at the price point I'm setting. The blacksmith nodded, and left the entrance to a private room, probably to look for a sword that suits me.

One reason I go to her is because she actually gets work done, unlike most women in such fields, who take shortcuts on all of their products and expect people to buy them because there are so few women who work as blacksmiths. I've always hated people who are treated specially because they are a minority. My half-brother, Farrell, is the perfect example of this. Everybody regards him as more than what he is because his hair is of a red colour. People with such hair colours are known as Din-Sai, which means "Child of Din, the Goddess of Fire" in Old Hylian. But according to my father, Farrell had brown hair as a young boy. I personally don't know what to think of him. All I know is that somebody will get him off his high-horse someday, and bring him back to Hyrule's grounds.

"How 'bout this?" She came back, holding a sword made out of finely crafted steel. "Feel it. It feels right, doesn't it?" I held it in my hands, and it did feel quite good. Firm, yet sleek and light. Some men preferred heavier swords. Lighter ones were perfectly fine with me.

"I don't like how the hilt is carved with dragon drawings." I inspected the sword, "replace them with wolves and we've a deal. I'll pay the advertised price."

She pouted. "You don't like my carvings? Whatever; I'll have the wolf on it within a few hours, tops. The weird thing is... you asked for a wolf on the hilt of the last sword you purchased from me. Is it your symbol or something?" I nodded. "Alright, sounds good," the blacksmith took the sword back, and laid it on the table, beside my sack of rupees. "Despite the fine craftsmanship of this sword, I'd let it go for only three thousand rupees. Quite a bargain, if you ask me."

I laughed, and she smiled. I walked up there, "perhaps I'll pay two thousand rupees."

"Two thousand and five hundred."

"I'll pay two thousand," I quipped. She frowned, and placed her hands on her hips in annoyance. "No more."

"Two thousand and three hundred?"

"I'll pay two thousand. Take it or leave it."

She sighed, "fine, I'll take the money. Y'know, for somebody who just walks around with that much money, you're pretty damn cheap. How do you get this much again?"

"I got a promotion." I lied.

"This is what... the third promotion you've told me about in the last year? Who you working for? I might think of working there myself." I shrugged. The coffee boy to the Commander of the Forest Gate wasn't a particularly popular job when it comes to promotions. But it puts food on the table. What I make through smuggling and assassinating is my main source of income. But of course, she doesn't need to know that. "We got a deal?" She asked. I nodded.

About a third of the rupees were returned to me, along with the sack, and I left the shop with a new sword, which fit in perfectly in the sheath that I carry. But I decided not to go home because I have other places to be, mainly the clock tower. I lived my life in three places - at home, at the Forest Gate, and the clock tower, but my real life was at the clock tower. It spanned in the middle of Hyrule Castle Town, taller than every building around it, although a few of the towers in Hyrule Castle's interior dwarfed. But they say that in Clock Town, the clock tower there is twice the size of the one here. I've got to visit that someday.

Dozens of merchants had lined up their wares at the sides of the building, and hundreds of citizens were buying at any given time. Every day, the streets were becoming more and more crowded. Or perhaps that's just how I see it.

The clock tower had a large wooden door leading inside of it, which was always unlocked, but nobody actually went inside of it - which made it the ideal place for the headquarters for any and all illegal operations in Hyrule Castle Town. I nonchalantly opened up the door and went inside. There were several tables laid out on the first floor - some of the men played cards, others talked, others laughed. Only a few actually meant to do business in the afternoon. As much as I wanted to sleep in, Father had told me to come to the clock tower by now.

But I had different plans. This is no way for a man to live. Perhaps today I'd resign permanently, and turn over a new leaf. The attack by bandits three days ago nearly cost me my life, and three thousand rupees was quite a modest payment for that trouble. But nevertheless, for some reason, I still approached the table where Father, Farrell, and Pasco sat. I took the fourth seat.

"'Bout time you showed up," Sendro immediately said. "We were goin' to start without you." I shrugged, but he continued. "Anyways... we've received a job from the King of the Underworld himself." Nobody knows who the King of the Underworld was. All we know is that he's the driving force of all the covert operations we take. They say he's powerful beyond belief... but I have my doubts. "This job will be the biggest one we've done, but it will pay for itself dearly."

"Can't be too big if he's entrusting Link with it," Farrell chuckled. I sneered. One day, I'd shove a sword through your eye. Farrell and I always made empty threats like that when we were children. Old habits die hard, I suppose.

"Cut it," Father said. "You're both adults; stop acting like children."

Farrell was an orphan, found by Father when the boy was five. He only has nine fingers. Father never told me why. He was found twenty-one years ago. I've heard him talk about the story at least a hundred times - by now, I could probably recite it, word by word. The year afterwards, Father met Mom, and I was born. And I - I was only four when mom got sick and died. Desperate for money, he agreed to all of these illegal activities.

I am Father's true son. Yet he loves Farrell more.

I've grown to accept that truth for what it is. Farrell is six years older, and more capable than me. But I'm still capable. That's why I'm being asked for this assignment. It's flattery, however. I have no interest in this business anymore. I value my life.

Firelight framed Sendro's face, and he gave the smile that I despised to see - he was the reason that Father could put food on the table, but only if his two sons would work under the bastard. But Farrell and I proved ourselves to be more than gophers - we were the best thieves, smugglers, and killers in the whole city. And Sendro spoke, "this whole business of ours might come to an end soon enough, and we can't let that happen. Laws are becoming tighter, and the Hylian Guards move closer to discovering us to be a whole organization." He sighed, the old man he was, "we've come to far; we've earned too much money on this. We can't stop now."

"I have no intent on continuing," I immediately said. A rather brash choice of words, but this is something I thought of for quite a while. I've decided one thing: I want out. "I don't want to continue all of this smuggling. Every day, Sendro... every day I wonder if I'll die, or get discovered by the police, or get captured. Every day."

Father, Farrell, Sendro... all three just stared at me. Father was surprised; Sendro was disappointed. But Father spoke. "I understand."

I gave a sincere smile, "thank you Father-"

But he continued. "Now I understand the kind of man you are, Link. My own son. Sendro fed you as a small child; he fed both of you. And in return, we run errands for him, because he's too old to do it himself. He has something to ask of you, so do it!"

"Pasco," Sendro said, "that's enough. Thank you, but I understand Link's situation. And listen," he told me, "the King of the Underworld is paying three million rupees for this mission."What? That's enough to buy a mansion of gold... "Do this mission, and you'll be set for life. You can have a home, family, your kids would be set... sounds nice, doesn't it?"

It does sound nice... I'm still young enough to start over. "Just this one job, right? And then I'm free?" Sendro nodded. "Fine; I'm in."

Sendro laughed, "that's what I like to hear. Alright, as I was saying, laws are becoming stricter. Find out why, and stop it." That's it? But Sendro sighed. "But we can't afford chaos. Kill if you need to, but your actions cannot lend themselves to a full-scale rebellion by the citizens. Keep yourselves discreet, but make sure this gets done quickly."

"Yourselves?" I asked. "Interesting choice of words..."

"You'll be working with Farrell on this," Sendro said. "To make it quicker. Or you could both work independently, and whoever stops this new movement in making laws tighter first gets all of the money."

"I'm for the second one," Farrell immediately said. He gave me a smug glare. "Link's dead-weight. He'll only slow me down." I only returned his confident smile. For I have one advantage: I already work for Hyrule Castle. I could figure this out infinitely faster than Farrell. He noticed my expression, and frowned, "why are you so happy?"

I shrugged and kept my smile, "because I can't wait to see you fail." Farrell sneered, getting up. He stormed out of the tower.

"Link," Father said right before I got up. "Why do you want to quit?"

I saw no use in lying to him; he is my father, after all. He looks so much older today than he was the last time I saw him. "I - I," I wanted the words to flow out of my mouth, but it was only a river that ran dry. "I nearly died three days ago because of the last mission. All because of three thousand rupees," I told him, my hands on the table. "My life is not worth three thousand rupees."Slowly, Father nodded. "It would be best if I left by now."

Perhaps it would be best if I left permanently... No, three million rupees is too much to forsake. The King of the Underworld always pays his debts.

Jaylos

I gave him a casual smile. "More wine?" I asked. He nodded, and I poured some more for Arkaz Grachen.

Arkaz was Impa's most loyal assistant, and serving just under the Master of the Guard is quite prestigious, in my opinion. However, he has to go. By the end of the day, there's no avoiding that fact. Arkaz was a threat to me, Impa, and most importantly, the Crown. Only recently have I discovered that he's been selling secrets to Termina for a fair price. Secrets of national security, such as Hyrule Castle's floor plans, or the militia numbers. And he continues to sell these secrets, including the fact that Hyrule's Master of the Law has switched.

"This is quite fine wine you've got here," Arkaz told me. "Where did you bring it from? Ordon?" He asked. I nodded, and he gave a pleasant smile. "Ah, the flavour dances on my tongue. It must've cost you a fortune, though..."

It did cost me a fortune. Ordon's wines were made with incredible quality and prepared better than any other wine on the market. Naturally, they took quite a dip of my pockets, but the cost will be menial in the long-run. "It wasn't much," I lied. "And it's more of a celebration, more than anything else." Of course, Ordon's wine proved rather strong, since he did not notice that I did not have a single drink of it. Instead, I kept on pouring it ever time he asked for more. I continued until I thought that Arkaz was sufficiently drunk enough.

"So - so it's a celebration, right?" He asked. I nodded. "Wh - why me though?" His words were blurred and I could barely make it out, although I had a general idea of where I was going with this.

"Because," I smiled, "I find your personality quite interesting." At this point, I knew he was drunk enough for the next stage of my plan. T- he average person would ask what I meant when I said I find their personality interesting, but he simply nodded while smiling. "And I feel that we could be good friends, don't you think so?"

"Yesh - yes, I do," he said, nodding. "We could help eashoth - each other out." I nodded, and gave a sincere smile that could lead anybody to believe that I was their friend. I never quite prided myself on acting, but I might after this performance. We'll be great friends.

I sat down again, and leaned forward. "So, Arkaz, I have a question: can you keep a secret?" He nodded, and I spoke, with a voice that could make even the paranoid believe I was their friend. "I am infatuated beyond belief with the Master of the Treasury, Gyla. You can keep this a secret, can't you?"

"Yes, yes," Arkaz said, smiling, "I am excellent at keeping secrets." So he has experience keeping secrets? Intesting... I thought to myself.

"But surely, you have a secret as well," I suggested. "I've told you mine, let's seal our friendship with a secret of yours."

Arkaz frowned. Although drunk, he was no fool. "I've many secrets, but I don't just trade them-"

"So you sell them?" I smiled at him.

He appeared mildly surprised by this. You've been trapped, I thought triumphantly. But he denied it, "n- no, my lord. I don't sell anything..."

"Then why does Termina know the size of Hyrule's armies?" I smiled at him. "As you may know, birds sing songs, and the birds I have sang about your lies-"

"Do you question my honour?" He shouted, his eyes bloodshot. I simply remained seated, tapping my fingers against the wooden table. And then I laughed.

"No, no," I told him. "I don't question your honour at all, no need to worry about that. I am simply denying its existence." This was clearly enough for Arkaz to curse profanities about my mother, and he even drew a sword on me. Of course, I planned for this, but I knew he would never use it. "Guards," I called out. Arkaz turned around, only to see perhaps a dozen guards, all armoured and armed, approaching him. He turned to face me again. "I don't take kindly to spies," I told him, "and your allegiance seems to lie with Termina. Which is a shame, any kingdom willing to hire the likes of you is clearly desperate." He was about to speak, but I stopped him. "Since you are loyal to Termina, I feel that you should be there, helping to guard the two kingdoms. Perhaps on the Yari-Amas ranges, particularly on border patrol for Snowpeak."

"No, no!" Arkaz yelled, "I'm not going to that frozen wasteland!" The guards took Arkaz and held him down, prepared to drag him. "Let me go! I have powerful friends; the regent appointed me herself! She'll hear about this! You can't assign me there!"

"As Master of the Law, I do have the power to demote anybody lesser than myself. That includes you," I gave a smile that made him hate me even more. "Say hello to Hyrule Castle's chef over there as well, will you? He's been quite a naughty boy, not unlike yourself." With that, Arkaz was carried off, and I lay back in my chair. I thought I was alone. But, one mistake I made was that I forgot this castle has ears. Markis heard my whole conversation. "Come out from the shadows. I know you're there."

Markis appeared from a corner, simply having watched the event take place. He had a smile, perhaps because he wore a new robe, coated in precious metals. "You're quite good at this, my lord," he observed. I nodded. "First the head chef, now Arkaz... tell me, am I on your list of people that you are ridding Hyrule Castle of?" I could not help but chuckle at that comment.

"No, no, you're safe, my friend. You heard my comment about doing justice to Hyrule Castle back at the New Dawn party, correct?" Markis slyly nodded. Of course he did; he listens to everything I say. "I intend to follow up on that promise. But to do anything outside of this castle, I need to make sure that the Crown's servants are utterly loyal to my cause."

"And how will Impa react to your... ambitions, should we call it? I doubt she would take it well knowing that you've just sent her assistant to freeze off several limbs as a member of the border patrol."

I frowned. "Ambitions is the wrong word. And we'll have to find a new assistant for her, one that will actually be loyal to Hyrule Castle." I stood up from the table. "Sometimes, I feel that you are my greatest ally in Hyrule Castle, and other times, I feel that you are my greatest enemy."

This earned a laugh from Markis. "How strange; I feel the exact same way about you, my lord."

I nodded, "yes, yes... perhaps we could help each other? You need information, I need a new assistant for Impa." I paused, waiting for Markis to tell me he refuses to do business with me. When the words never emerged from his mouth, I knew he was considering my offer. "And what kind of information might I have that you want, you may ask? Perhaps, that list of the people that I ridding Hyrule Castle of, hm? You might want that information."

"I'll have that information soon enough, when you actually rid... no, remove those people from the political scene."

I smiled. "And when will that be, you might ask? Years, days... months? And who am I targeting? A doctor, a scientist, or one of your birds? Are you sure you do not want to know? You did say it yourself: your job revolves around information. And I'm sure giving me the chance to find a new assistant for Impa will not be doing too much, except giving you the opportunity to pick the assistant out with me. If you owe a favour to somebody, you could promote them."

"You drive quite a bargain, I must say," Markis said. "Alright, I'll bring names for you to choose right after our first council meeting of the year, and in exchange, you tell me the list. Now. I want to know who you're targeting, and when."

I nodded. Triumph. "Jalgado of Ordon brings in supplies for Hyrule Castle's kitchen. He often poisons food whenever it is to his benefit. Six days from now; he'll have delivered the food by then, but a day before the Terminian ambassador actually arrives. That's your first name and date," I said. And onto the second. I spoke, "Saronia Gorbachesque; she's been smuggling money from the Royal Treasury and funding underground causes, most of which are illegal, including the Brotherhood of Lions. I plan on removing her whenever I have spare time, so I'll do that in two weeks, at the latest. That's my two names. I will share the other two after you bring me the names of potential assistants for Impa."

"And may I ask about your methods in arresting these people? Surely you will also attempt to bring them to Snowpeak as well, shortly after you reveal your infatuation for Gyla."

"A lie; something like that would surely be worth gold to the right ear, but alas, untrue," I quipped. "It is a lie that would create trust as part of my interrogation, in an attempt to make the guilty confess." I gave a smile. "Of course, the Ordon wine is something I use to ease the truth out of them. I have extra, if you care to have some."

The plump man laughed. "I do not drink, my lord, but thank you for the… most gracious offer. But perhaps you could give some to Thylo; that man has quite a few secrets to share and a loose tongue as well." We both shared a laugh.

Markis bowed, and left. If everything worked according to plan, I could eradicate crime in the city within two years, at most. But of course, rarely does it go according to plan. So, I also left the room moments after the Master of the Peace did so, and left the wine from Ordon there. If somebody were to enter this room of the castle, it would be their lucky day. It was only half an hour before the first Council meeting of this year, so I decided that I might as well see the room for myself before we start to discuss issues.

The room itself was quite spacious; certainly enough for seven people. Along the round, oak table were seven finely-crafted chairs, one for each member of the Council, one for the Regent, and one for the King. Shelves lined up the walls, filled with books. But what I found most interesting was that Impa sat in her seat, and was intently reading a book. "Why are you here so early?" I asked.

She looked up, "this is when we should be arriving, but the other members of the Council don't bother to show up until right before the King - or in this case, Regent - shows up."

"What is that book you're reading?"

"Oh, it's Old Hylian," she said. "It translates into 'The Minds of Criminals'."

"You read Old Hylian?"

She nodded. "It's my background. I'm Sheikah." That explains the red eyes. Among residents in Hyrule, everybody descended from three races: Hylian, Sheikah, or Gerudo. Of course, years of mixing have blurred that line, but for the most part, physical features remained distinct. Sheikah had red eyes, the Gerudo had red hair, which was often known as Din-Sai, and Hylians had brown or yellow hair, for the most part. Some had raven-black hair.

"Quite rare to actually meet a Sheikah," I said. "But then again, just about everybody has Hylian traits, but few have anything else. Especially after the-"

"The genocide that wiped out nearly every Sheikah in Hyrule," she finished, and in quite a rude manner. Clearly, I've struck a nerve. "But that's history, and over one hundred years have passed since then. But yes, it is rare to meet a Sheikah. I agree."

"What's the book about?"

She glanced at me, and spoke, "the name is self-explanatory. This book is about…" she thought for a moment. "This book is about crime, why it happens, and how it happens. I'm on the last chapter, and once I'm done, I'll give it to you. I think you'll like it. Tell me, you intend to reduce crime, correct?"

I nodded. If only you knew what measures I'm taking, I thought to myself. "I intend to reduce crime, yes. Possibly eradicate it, but that's far-fetched."

"You're only going to do big things if you think big," Impa quipped. "This book may prove invaluable information for your goals." She slid the book to me. "Turn to page eighty-nine." As I flipped to that page, Impa continued to speak, "that chapter is the history of smuggling items in and out of the city. It includes names, and their motivations. To catch a criminal, perhaps you need to understand how they think."

The thought never crossed my mind before, yet it seemed plausible. "Thank you. I'll keep this safe."

"Give it back, I need to finish the last chapter," Impa replied. "And don't keep it safe for my sake; it's property of the Royal Library. I found it there." I handed it back to her, even though I wanted to start reading it now.

"The regent comes in a moment," Markis said, entering the room. He found a seat, on the opposite side of mine, and gave me an overcast smile. Gyla entered a moment later, sitting beside him. Thylo came just before Princess Zelda did so, and he sat between Impa and I. Markis smiled, his voice calm and hushed, as he nodded to the princess, "afternoon, Your Grace."

She gave him an annoyed glare. "I know what time it is, lord Markis," Princess Zelda said. "You need not to remind me." Thylo snickered, and Markis returned a glare.

Gyla was the first to speak after that. She spoke, "Your Grace, we must make preparations for the arrival of the Terminian ambassador. There is much preparation, and I'm sorry to say that the New Dawn had costed the Crown quite a substantial amount.

"Find the money," Princess Zelda retorted, "you are the Master of the Treasury. This is your job." Gyla nodded. How unfair.

The firelight made the room appear brighter than it need be, as compensation for the lack of natural light. "Cruel, unyielding, and uncaring," the other Council members often called her, with the exception of Impa. She was completely loyal to the Crown. I myself am on the fence, as my allegiance lies with the Crown, and not a particular person.

"Where is the king?" I asked. Princess Zelda gave me a look.

"Naturally, he has his own business to attend to," the regent told me. I nodded. Although a courteous answer, it was lacklustre, and many men, including myself, know these meetings as the times when the future of the kingdom is decided upon. Why would the king not bring himself here. "I am here, as regent, and I carry his voice. That should be enough," she added.

"Thank you, Your Grace. Your wisdom is unmatched," I droned.

Gyla spoke immediately after, "Lord Jaylos, I propose that we bring back the First Containment Law for the time being." I nodded, and that was quite an excellent idea for bringing in fast money for the Crown, enough to pay for the arrival of the Terminian ambassador.

The First Containment Law was developed by my predecessor, the former Master of the Law. The law allowed for the Crown to tax anybody entering or leaving Hyrule Castle Town. It was simply a way to make money quickly. The Second Containment Law was a security measure, however, and was never used before. It stated that nobody could leave Hyrule Castle Town for any reason, nor could anybody enter, although a similar policy was instated two hundred years ago, when a plague spread through the Desertlands, killing a substantial portion of the Gerudo population.

"I think that the First Containment Law would be appropriate," I said, and Gyla smiled at me. "Many families will be returning to Hyrule Castle Town after celebrating the New Dawn with family in the countryside, and although they will not be particularly happy about being taxed, they might have spare money from travelling."

She nodded, "I agree."

Impa also added something, "the Hylian Guards will be well equipped for the arrival of the ambassador. However, as this is lord Jaylos' first Council meeting, I feel that it is only appropriate to assign him an assistant."

How ironic; I'm also assigning you an assistant, I thought to myself. But I pretended to act surprised, even though Thylo already told me how Impa had selected an assistant for me.

"Normally, we choose our assistants for us, but we understand how stressful this entire job has been for you, and how hard you've been working, so we have taken the liberty to find one suitable to your needs, if that is okay with you." I nodded. Impa called out, "Grey!"

Instantly, an old woman appeared through the door. She had an oak cane in his left hand, and walked with a limp. "Greetings, my lord," she said, in a dry, yet warm voice, that eerily reminded me of my own grandmother, only she had long since departed from this world. Her white hair was in in a bun, and the firelight framed the wrinkles in her face. "I served the old Master of the Law loyally, my lord. I provided him with advice, and many other things. I only hope to serve you just as well."

I don't need advice, I thought to myself. I already know what I'm doing. But perhaps I can counsel her with nothings irrelevant to my routine tasks, my grandmother liked that during my time as Kakariko's Master of the Law. "Thank you," I said, "your help will be invaluable."

She spoke once again, "thank you, my lord."

An hour passed, with nothing serious to be done. I discussed my background in Kakariko, we shared laughs, and everybody concluded it by leaving, except for me. I patiently waited – I waited for Markis to uphold his side of the deal we made earlier. And he did come, with a small stack of papers, perhaps twenty in total.

"These are the names of all of the potential assistants for Impa," Markis said, smiling. "The first one is my personal recommendation. Arianne Silven is loyal, and has served as an ambassador for Hyrule's internal affairs with Ordon and Kakariko for a great many years. She has recently retired, but has expressed interest in serving the Crown again."

I looked at him, "and you owe her a favour, correct?" Markis nodded. "Are there any people listed here that you do not hold a favour with?"

Markis nodded, "page seventeen," he instructed me. I turned there. At the title: Link of Ordon. "He is young; younger than you, my lord, yet capable. Even now, he serves as the assistant to the commander of the Forest Gate, so he has experience working under another."

"What else can you tell me about him?" I asked, eyeing through the information about him.

"I do not know him personally, my lord, but heard of him by a bird. If you wish, I can find out more about him-"

I shook my head. "No need. Impa will start to wonder what happened to her assistant, so let's find her a new one quickly. Contact him personally if need be, but please refrain from mentioning my name in particular."

"Of course, my lord," he said, bowing. "I'll need these papers back now. And I will contact Link about this." I continued to study the paper about Link, until Markis snatched it from my hands. I smiled as he left.

And I brought a pen and a blank piece of paper. I recited everything on the page about Link, word by word, before I forget:

Link Ordana, also known as Link of Ordon

Born September 16th, 1461.
Works as the assistant to the commander of the Forest Gate, Rusl of Ordon
Known friends…

My hand was unstoppable. I managed to write every single word perfectly from memory, and stuffed the paper into my pocket. Markis isn't the only one who can use information as power, I thought to myself with a strange sense of satisfaction. I was about to leave the room, when I noticed the book Impa was reading on the desk. I took it in my own hands. She must have finished it. I began the first chapter:

Chapter One: Understanding the Motives of Criminals.

~End Chapter~

Author's Notes:

This is a shorter chapter, but largely because Link's scene was so much shorter than what I had previously hoped for. Please note that each time the POV changes, it does technically count as a new chapter, but I call it a scene, so there has been 4 chapters (scenes) in this entire story thus far, and a prologue as well. A typical novel usually can amount from 2,000 to 5,000 words per chapter (in my story, I refer to them as scenes), the same here.

With this story, I wanted to keep the chapters long to somewhat emulate an actual novel. Of course, I'm no professional writer, but I try my best, and I'd like to think that I'm in the upper portion when it comes to Fanfiction quality.

Reviews are always appreciated, whether constructive, or positive, and I do tolerate flames as long as they are understandable, and I can take something from them.

Now that all of that is out of the way, on to the actual chapter as a whole! In Link's scene, you get to meet three of the characters that I introduced in the prologue: Pasco, Sendro, and the boy who had a finger cut off, named Farrell. But essentially, the prologue took place twenty-one years before the actual bulk of this story, so the boy is all grown up now. Of course, Farrell's little brother is not actually mentioned in the story, largely because of laziness on my part.

Link's relationship with his father and Farrell is somewhat awkward. Despite being Pasco's actual son, Pasco loves Farrell more, which Link does not see as just.

As for Jaylos' story, more has been going on. The end is where Link and Jaylos' stories finally connect. As for the centre, Zelda does appear quite rude, but it's all explained in due time, believe me.

Perpetual Darkness Document 003:
Humanoid Races in Hyrule

Three humanoid races exist: Hylians, Gerudos, and Sheikah. At one point, they were at fairly even portions. However, a plague spread in the Gerudo desert two hundred years before this story occurs that wiped out most of the population. And there was a mass genocide of the Sheikah generations before this story, so most of the people in Hyrule are Hylian.