Chapter 35: The Legend Grows

"How did you survive?" Link's words came slowly as he struggled with the Knight's revelation. "I saw what he did to the city."

Arswaine's shoulders stood rigid at the memory. "Some of us were kept alive so that Ganondorf could use us as symbols of his domination over Hyrule. He wanted us and all the other races to know that he held the power of life and death in his hands."

"But seven years…" Link shook his head. "It's too long. If that's all he wanted, you would have served your purpose a lot sooner."

"Yes. If Ganondorf knew we were alive, he would have had us killed long ago."

"He doesn't know you're here?" Link closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the cell wall. "It's probably a long story, but it looks like we're going to be here for a while."

"Perhaps." Arswaine rested his hands on his knees. "Of those who survived the first weeks, he took the strongest among us and executed them at the entrance to the valley. They say the bodies were dumped into Lake Hylia as a warning to the Zoras. A week later, some dozens more were killed and their corpses piled on the trail that leads to Goron City. The rest of us were left to die of starvation."

"Who told Ganon you were dead?" Link's question hung in the air as if Arswaine were waiting for him to answer it himself. "It was that girl, wasn't it? Nabooru. She seemed nervous about something."

"Nabooru has kept us alive at her peril," Arswaine said. "As his second-in-command, she holds administrative authority over the Gerudos. For seven years, she has stolen food from his storehouses and brought it to us in secret. When it seemed right for us to begin dying off, she begged the duty of carrying the bodies of Ganondorf's enemies to their graves. Alone."

Link opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling as if dumbstruck. "Go on."

"One night, she carried three of us to the common grave with enough food to last six days. Each night after that, she carried more, until all of us had been thrown into the pit. She could have left us to survive on our own in the desert, but between the sandstorms and Gerudo patrols, she believed it would be more of a risk than hiding us here."

"So she brought you back to your prison, and no one found out, because they all believed you were dead." Link whistled. "Unbelievable."

The scrape of stone on stone brought their attention to a hole opening in the north wall. No one had any difficulty identifying the two figures entering the dungeon as Navi and Nabooru.

Link held up his chained wrists. "I don't know what to say. If you hadn't thrown me in here, I wouldn't have known that the Knights of Hyrule were still alive…"

"But you don't understand why I brought you here to begin with?" Nabooru folded her arms around her midriff. "Confusion is understandable."

"Well? You're a Gerudo, but you don't seem to be one of Ganondorf's servants."

She spat. "I am his servant, however unwillingly. My mother was his chief adviser, and when she died I was required to take her place…or be executed as a traitor."

Sabooro the carpenter snorted. "How could they do that to a pretty thing like you?"

Ignoring the carpenter, Nabooru stepped closer to Link. "There are rumors among our people of a boy who carries a sword feared by our master. A boy who fought against him seven years ago and suddenly disappeared."

Link glanced at Navi. "Do we know anyone like that?"

"I don't think so," Navi said, giggling.

Nabooru smiled. "You are not as modest as you would like others to think."

"For someone I've just met, you seem to know a lot about me."

Bending down on one knee, the Gerudo unstrapped a small leather sack from her left ankle, just inside the cuff of her pink silk pantaloons, and tossed it at Link.

Link caught the sack in midair, his chains rattling slightly with the motion. Before he emptied the contents of the sack into his hands, he paused. "If no one knows we're here, why are we still chained?"

Nabooru stood to her feet. "A precaution. This dungeon was intended for those who commit the highest crimes against our people. For instance, a villager found guilty of murdering a Gerudo would be taken here, and you would be discovered. Finding you chained, most of my subordinates would consult me before taking any action. At the least, it would buy time."

Navi whispered in Link's ear. "Do you think Nabooru might be the other Sage?"

Link shrugged. "Sheik said none of the Sages knew who they were. Even if we could be sure, Nabooru probably wouldn't believe us. We have to find the temple first."

Catching the movement of Link's lips, Nabooru folded her arms again. "You don't trust me. I don't blame you."

"It's not that." Link glanced at Navi. It's just…there's something we need to do here, in the desert." Upending the sack, he munched on a few chunks of bread and beef that fell into his hands. "But you. If you wanted to help me, why didn't you just let me go?"

"You had no sense of stealth. When I heard you coming in the storm, I knew you were from outside the valley, because any villager would have taken shelter. Had I not brought you here, I'm sure you would have blundered your way into a trap." She hung her head, continuing in a low voice. "I admit I'm a thief, too, but I'm not like the rest. Ganondorf has always stolen from the helpless, and he will kill anyone who resists."

"Then we both want the same thing." Link clenched his jaw. "To see him answer for Hyrule's suffering."

"Yes…and you're right. I could have let you go, but even if you are who they say you are, you'll never reach Ganondorf's castle on your own. I haven't been told about all his plans, but I know his army grows by the day. If the people of Hyrule don't fight him now, his power will continue to grow, and he'll invade their lands one at a time."

"You know the desert. Will you help me find the place I'm looking for?"

"Yes."

Once again, Sabooro the carpenter interrupted. "You lost me when you started talking about legends and rumors and magic swords."

"I suspect anything more than drink and women would be beyond your capacity," Nabooru muttered.

The Knight Arswaine, who had been content to listen until now, spoke up. "Never let it be said that one Gerudo had more courage than twenty Knights of Hyrule." He swept his gaze from side to side. "By Din, I swear my aid in any venture that confounds the will of Ganondorf."

A chorus of agreement swelled from the rest of the Knights. Link felt their courage livening his spirits.

Sabooro grunted. "This may be fine for all of you, but my friends are still locked up in the fortress…if they haven't been killed by now."

Link raised an eyebrow. "How did you end up here if they're in the fortress?"

"The whole thing was my fault, really. The woman walked right by us. What could I do but wink at her? Then she cracks me over the head with the shaft of her spear, calls half-a-dozen of her friends over, and has us all behind bars before we know what's happening."

"It was fortunate I saw the…incident." Nabooru fixed her eyes on Link and did not look at the carpenter. "Gerudo law strictly regulates contact between men and women. As the first of the perpetrators, Sabooro had to be punished more severely than the rest. Of course, I demanded the responsibility of bringing him here myself. Otherwise, the idiot would have betrayed us all."

"Maybe…" Link watched Sabooro's expression. Then suddenly, he asked, "Can any of you make arrows?"

Sabooro grinned. "Why do you think they let us near the fortress to begin with? Ours are the best arrows around. We sell them here all the time. Arrows, spears, shields, you name it. If it's got wood in it, we can build it."

Arswaine nodded at Link. "I know where your thoughts lie, my friend."

Link turned to the Knight. "We probably don't have much time. If this is going to work, we'll have to divide ourselves into three groups. I suggest you take two of your best men and free the rest of the carpenters. Send the rest of your men east with Sabooro to Kokiri Forest; they can begin preparing what we'll need to face Ganondorf's army. Nabooru, Navi, and I will meet you when we've finished what we have to do, and we'll all join your men at the forest."

"Captain." One of the other Knights raised his voice. "I will follow wherever you send, but I would ask one thing."

"Yes?" Arswaine looked up.

"That we know who we follow, sir."

Arswaine turned back to Link. "My men would ask why you are feared among the Gerudos. I confess, though I would trust Nabooru's word with my life, I too would ask what legend this is that has fallen among us."

"Tell them, Link," said Navi. "Tell them who you are!"

It was the first time Link had ever been asked to shoulder the burden of so many men who were probably older and more experienced in war than he would ever be. He took a breath and hoped he would prove worthy of the task ahead.

"I am…the Hero of Time."

Sorry, guys. I know it's been longer than usual since I updated. I decided to make it up to you, my faithful readers, by uploading four chapters instead of the usual two. This takes us all the way to the end of Part Two. The next update will begin Part Three, "The Imprisoning War." Brace yourselves for the home stretch.

You'll have noticed more additions than ever to the original storyline this time around. First of all, there's Malon's presence in the Shadow Temple. I truly felt like sending Link back through time just to grab the Lens of Truth would be an unnecessary rabbit trail that would just slow the story's momentum down, kind of like the Ice Cavern. But I didn't want to do away with the Lens of Truth altogether, so I made up a way for Link to get ahold of it in the future.

I always thought those chains and streaks of blood in the Shadow Temple were creepy, and I wanted to explore why they were there. So as you can see, I invented a nasty backstory involving the Sheikah and Ganondorf. I hope you...well, "like" isn't exactly the right word, but I hope you found it satisfying.

Perhaps one of the boldest additions I make to the original storyline throughout the entire novel is the addition of the Knights of Hyrule. Yeah, it's kind of crazy to imagine that some of them would have survived for that long, ESPECIALLY in the middle of Gerudo territory. But it certainly allows Nabooru an opportunity to show off her courage and her ingenuity...and it gives us an excuse to set up an epic-scale battle with Ganondorf's army. Epic-scale battles have never been part of the Zelda series except in exposition and other forms of off-stage storytelling, but I felt like we needed something grand to finish with. So please look forward to reading the bang-up climax, coming your way in a few weeks' time!

That's it for now, folks. But I'll try to get back to my regularly scheduled updates from now on. Enjoy!