Chapter: 4
Zelda could not believe her ears. Had her father told them to lash at her as well? She looked back at Link who seemed just as shocked. She turned toward her father's face and he stared at her with pure malice. Her mother just watched with no emotion. Zelda looked on in horror as the man with the whip brought his weapon high above his head and brought it down with much force. She heard a loud crackand felt a sharp pain on her arm.
They…they whipped me?
She looked down at her arm, finding the dress torn and her arm bleeding. The crowd roared in rage.
"How dare you!"
"She's your daughter!"
"Stop them!"
The crowd flooded into the arena, using everyday objects to fight with the guards. It was a small civil war.
Link growled, Zelda was bleeding and crying. Dyraati and Renaden were snarling, fur bristled and their fangs bared. This was how humans acted? For shame. Link, still tied to the post, was struggling to get out of the grip he was in. But to no avail he couldn't get out. The two wolves kept ramming their bodies against the cage they were put in.
"Harder man! Put your back into it!" Yelled the king at his worker. Zelda stared at him in disbelief too scared to even move because she was outnumbered. Again she was struck with the whip leaving another nasty cut in her leg. A man tackled the guard with the whip, punching him square in the jaw. Zelda sobbed quietly as she hugged her knees to her chest. What was this? The men never shown this much pain when they returned from battle! Is this truly…what it meant to be strong?
Link grew angry seeing such a poor defenseless girl be treated this way by her own father. And her mother! She won't even defend her own flesh and blood! He could never think of doing that to Dyraati and Renaden. Unable to stand because of the wound on her leg she stared into the eye of her attacker the man had taken care of him. There was so much commotion. Zelda looked up at the rafters and her eyes widened.
Archers!
"Everyone! Stop!" they didn't stop. A valley of arrows rained down on them. Some were killed on the spot, others ran with an arrow from their arm. Zelda shook, too stunned to move. Did she cause all this pain?
Dyraati and Renaden hit the cage door with one last strong ram. And at that same moment they both broke free. Link literally broke the pole in two and bared his fangs at a guard who was fighting a commoner with a club. The man's eyes widened with fear. There was one thing he saw in his blue eyes that the rest did not. Before he knew it Link jaws closed around his neck and there was a loud CRACK and the man's eyes rolled back in his head. Link looked at Zelda with his mouth soaked with the man's blood.
The wolves had their own problems. They were built to finish off one opponent with a group of wolves. Together, they worked together, mauling a guard and pushing him away from a frail old man that decided to join the fight.
"Down with the king!" a man shouted before an arrow pierced his neck.
"Run!" Link yelled as more came. He said something in a language only an animal would understand. Renaden did, however, understand and started to shove Zelda by force toward the exit of the castle and the city.
"Link!" but Renaden did not allow her to go back. He kept shoving the princess through the woods until she was safe. Hours have passed she hadn't know how long. By then she already taken off her dress to see her wounds so there she lay with a black wolf by her side dressed in under garments she waited for Link to come back. He did come back though. He and Dyraati both bathed in blood and in pain. Zelda winced and ran to Link's side. But his eyes brought fear in her. He growled which made her back away.
"Why" Link chocked out. Zelda looked at him. "Why did he do that to you?" Link asked. Zelda cast her eyes down unable to look at him.
"I will never go back to that place again". Zelda said not looking in his eyes. Link noticed this.
"Why aren't you looking at me?" Zelda didn't answer and that's when Link decided to drop the subject. He looked at what Zelda was wearing, and smirked.
"I see you weren't comfortable in that dress of yours". Link laughed. Zelda smiled sadly and started to stroke Renaden's majestic mane. Link noticed this and continued to stare at her.
Link grabbed Zelda by her arms and forced her to look into his eyes. But Zelda refused, got up and started to walk the other direction, which made Link growl deep in his throat. Renaden and Dyraati looked at him in puzzlement stamped onto their faces.
"Zelda" He said sternly. "Why are you running away from me? Are you afraid because you saw what I'm capable of?" She shook her head.
"No Link…come" she grabbed his arm and lead him to the lake for him to look at his reflection.
It made him wince. His eyes weren't blue, they were red. He lifted his head up to her and sighed.
Well, that's another thing he was going to have to explain.