A Link to the Past
Chapter Twenty Three: A Village of Outcasts
Link wasn't unconscious for very long, just enough for the goat guards to capture the young man and drag him back out of the grove the way they came, with his eyes opening just as the group passed through the tree line. His ears were ringing a bit, and the blow from that spear had left him with a terrible headache, but at least now Link no longer had to walk the whole way to the Village of Outcasts. Not wanting to take any more chances, the goat guards were carrying him along the path, two holding his arms while two others held his legs, giving the young man no way to try running again. This was fine, though… after all that tree… person thing had told him to go to the forest north of the village.
Whether or not the forest would hold a way to escape this bizarre, perpetually sunset world, first Link would have to find another way to escape, but as they passed by the first couple houses this was starting to look unlikely. There were people around, dressed in the same kind of hand-stitched clothing that would be expected, but like Ganondorf and the goat guards, most of them possessed the features of different types of animals. They were armed, too; the foxes carried small, sharp daggers, while the larger animals had proportionately large weapons, all of these creatures approaching slowly when the group passed underneath a large wooden sign that read:
VILLAGE OF OUTCASTS
THOSE WITHOUT RUPEES ARE NOT WELCOME HERE
The bottom part of the sign was hastily carved, as if added at some point after the original words were completed, and now the goat guards were carrying the young man toward the center of town. It was remarkable how much this place looked like Kakariko Village, with houses and shops in the same position even those some of these were in bad need of repair, some of the people were fighting over something that one of them found off in the distance instead of getting along peacefully, and there was still a statue at the very center. Instead of a weathervane in the shape of a bird, however, this one was made to resemble a winged gargoyle, complete with a long stone pitchfork with points stabbed into the ground in front of some kind of black tunnel.
"What do we have here?" A raspy, almost hissing voice asked. "What is this that the guards bring to my humble little village? A bunny rabbit? Is this my supper? I didn't realize I was on a diet."
"A prisoner from Ganondorf, himself." One of the goat guards replied as a few villagers laughed. "This rabbit must be kept alive at all costs, other than that you are free to do with him as you will."
It was an alligator that that raspy voice belonged to, his long jaws clicking and snapping as he spoke, and this creature was wearing a different type of armor than the goat guards, possibly something that signified his position? Clearly he was some kind of leader, as the people moved out of his way so that the alligator could approach the prisoner, grabbing Link's ears and painfully yanking his head around to take a look at him. Snorting with what might have been disappointment, the alligator closed his fist and slugged the young man in the stomach hard, causing him to cough and fall to his hands and knees as soon as the goat guards let go of him. With a snap of his reptilian fingers, some of the larger animals came forward and grabbed Link's arms, allowing the goats to walk away while the young man was dragged closer to that gargoyle statue.
Instead of tossing him inside the black tunnel as he was starting to expect, the animals moved him over to a set of heavy wooden stocks, forcing his arms and head onto position so that it could be shut and locked. The wood this thing was made of must have been pretty thick, either that or the glove hadn't had enough time for him to use it again, because no matter how hard the young man tried to free himself, he was just stuck. Some of the villagers mocked him by laughing or miming how he was stuck and struggling, at least until the alligator held up his clawed hands, and the crowd fell silent.
"Welcome, bunny-rabbit, welcome to the Village of Outcasts." The alligator said, his jaws snapping just inches from Link's rabbit-like face. "I am Daira, the Mayor of this wonderful town, and also Warden of the dungeons below. I know, I know, you're thinking what's a handsome guy like him know about ruling a town? The answer is not a damn thing, but I know how to make Ganondorf's enemies squeal like little stuck piggies, so let's start there. Ten lashes for the newcomer."
The villagers cheered as a leather whip was passed through the growing crowd eventually into the hand of Daira, but then one of the villagers spoke up, claiming that they were being bad hosts, and that the rabbit deserved at least fifteen lashes. The alligator nodded his elongated head in agreement, moving behind the prisoner and preparing to begin this generous punishment, only to be stopped again by another creature, this time one of the foxes. This smaller citizen of the Village of Outcasts openly scoffed at the number, saying that their new guest would think them a village of the poor if all they could spare was a mere fifteen lashes on his first visit to their lovely little town.
And this number kept growing, with more and more of the creatures demanding that their Mayor be generous to the newcomer, thirty, thirty five, forty, the number of lashes that Link was to endure, with the final tally ending up somewhere closer to a hundred, and that was when Daira put his foot down. Being generous was one thing, but what kind of Mayor would he be if the whole village went bankrupt? This was met with cheers and laughter from the creatures, everyone except for a certain bunny-rabbit who was still trying his hardest to escape the stocks, but there was one bit of good news in this dire scenario. In all the times that the young man had seen his uncle have someone flogged for minor crimes, everyone who was whipped was in agreement that nothing could be felt after about twenty five.
"And the big eighty five!" Daira called out as he lashed the prisoner one last time. "Did you like that, bunny-rabbit? I know, I know, you're sad because all the fun you've been having in our village is over… but I've got a surprise for you. Guards, take him."
Link was left in sorry shape after the events that the villagers just couldn't get enough of, collapsing to the ground as soon as the upper half of the stocks were unlocked and raised, and now completely unable to move. Now a shadow was cast over the young man as two more alligators wearing armor appeared, each grabbing one of his ankles and dragging the prisoner away from the center of town, toward the statue where the pitchfork had somehow been raised so that the black tunnel was open. Convinced that he was about to be tossed down a long, dark hole, Link braced himself to be thrown, only to be surprised once again as the alligators kept walking, revealing that it wasn't a hole at all, but a stone tunnel that sloped downward.
"You know, I used to think I was cursed." Daira said, following them in as the pitchfork lowered back down over the exit. "Stuck here for decades in a village full of people just as dirty and underhanded as I am, where's the fun in that, eh?"
"You… you poor thing." Link replied weakly. "I feel… bad for you."
Continuing on with his talking as the tunnel opened up into a larger chamber that was lined with two floors of prison cells on each side, the alligator didn't seem to pick up on the young man's sarcasm, instead explaining that Ganondorf's order to convert the village's old storage cellars into a prison gave his life a whole new meaning. There were a lot more alligator like creatures down there as well, some throwing buckets of water or some other foul smelling substance on prisoners through the bars, while others dragged prisoners form their cells, all the while there were screams coming from somewhere, but the echoes made it impossible to tell from where.
"I'll be blunt, I love to torture things." Daira continued as they moved through the main cell block. "Men, women, animals, myself at times… Ganondorf has plenty of enemies, and I get to break them all. My favorite, though, is this crystal the boss gave me… it's got a really pretty girl inside, see? Dance for the bunny-rabbit… I said dance, you little brat!"
Something that sounded like a muffled scream was just barely heard when the alligator started shaking the familiar looking diamond shaped crystal, and then he must have gotten what he wanted because Daira started chuckling to himself before showing it to the guards, who also seemed to enjoy it. Was that the same crystal that held Princess Zelda? Was she somehow awake inside of it? Link knew that he had to free her, but at the moment he couldn't even move his arms, and… and now they were moving past the main cell block, and down into another sloping tunnel. The first floor had been illuminated by holes in the ceiling that allowed the orange light of perpetual sunset to enter, but now they were too far underground for that, meaning that flickering torches were mounted along the walls.
"I know, I know, you wanted to make new friends up in the cells, right?" The alligator asked as the tunnel bottomed out into another corridor. "But Ganondorf wants you alive, and some of the other prisoners, well… they tend to prey on the smaller, weaker ones in ways that even make me shudder sometimes. So you get a nice, big cell all to yourself, and if you get bored you can always talk to the freak."
Instead of branching off into different areas, this passageway seemed to be just one long hallway that was lined with more holding cells on both sides, each group of two blocked off with a heavy iron gate that needed to be opened with a key held by the two alligator creatures stationed in each area. Link's injuries were starting to catch up with him now, his eyes getting heavy as he was dragged through gate after gate, finally arriving at the last two that were side by side, with the left one being unlocked. The barred door squeaked a long, high pitched whine that was killing Link's oversized ears, and then the wind was knocked out of him when the guards picked him up and tossed him into the cell so that he crashed hard onto the floor.
"Now, you make yourself right at home, bunny-rabbit." Daira said as the door was slammed shut and locked, Link slowly passing out. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to scream and bash your head on the bars… we won't do anything for you, but it will keep the guards entertained. Good night, bunny-rabbit… welcome to your new home."