"Bow to the Great Demon King, peasants!"
"We will never surrender! My Sword of Evil's Bane and I shall defeat you!"
"What can a foolish Hylian wielding a toy achieve against Chaos incarnate? Futile hopes, now darkness shall seize you!"
"Hey! This is not how it's supposed to go! I need to thrust my sword in the Demon King, not the other way around!"
"Pah! It's always the same boring story. Why can't we mix it up?"
"Heroes vanquish evil in legends, Hyrule would have long fallen otherwise. We must respect the Fest's traditions, lest misfortune befall us!"
The racket reached Linkle like a wave of nostalgia echoing her own carefree childhood. She halted a split second to observe the playful children, as if yearning for a past she treasured yet could never come back to. Six years ago, she had deliberately made the choice of leaving her peaceful lifestyle and her loved ones behind in order to pursue her ideals. Was she regretting that decision now? Maybe. She could not say for sure.
"Linkle, we can't stop here, remember?" someone whispered as low as possible.
She could barely hear Groose's voice. With a last envious glance towards the youths, she sneakily hastened the pace and took her position in the formation. Unfortunately, her superior noticed her immediately.
"Soldier Aryll!" Ashei roared. "Is this patrol so unexciting you've lost all sense of discipline or are you simply too vain to consider focusing on your duty?"
"N-Nothing of the sort, captain!" Linkle stuttered.
"Then quit dreaming and keep up!"
Captain Ashei's reproaches prompted laughter amidst the civilians and sighs from her comrades in arms who could already envision the officer's barbed reports and their ensuing punishments. Embarrassed and frustrated, Linkle shook her memories off her mind and resumed her walk with a steady speed.
"My name is Linkle, not Aryll…" she mumbled.
No one had used her given name in so long. Aryll was a name she had discarded before her tenth birthday. She and her brother had always loved tales of the Heroes and Gods fighting Evil for Hyrule's liberation. In particular, they revered the legendary Hero of Time so much they had decided to take his identity as their own on a whim. And thus, they became Link and Linkle, though it took several years for those around them to get used to that. Even Malon had a hard time making the switch as she had called them Ravio and Aryll all her life. Who could blame them? Everyone thought it was just children's tantrums that would fade away with time but both were adamant to keep these surnames forever, though they could not change them officially.
Two weeks had passed since she was assigned to Ashei's squad in accord with her military course. After six long years inside lecture halls, physical training facilities and countless hours of detention for insubordination, she was now gathering experience in the field as a conscript of the Hylian army.
However, her main and sole missions during her first month consisted in patrolling in the streets of the Citadel. As a fresh recruit, this would double as a foretaste of her future tasks as a knight of the kingdom and as a way to learn the layout of the capital city. Obviously, this was a crucial moment for her studies, but she could not help feeling unimpressed as the uneventful days went by. Walking around the Citadel had only amused her for the initial couple days when she barely knew its districts. And as time passed, the suffocating routine settled in, her temper and motivation deteriorated drastically. Today, it had only taken her a glimpse of children playing around to completely give up on her duties and long for their freedom.
The squad continued to err for what Linkle deemed an eternity. Peace had not broken since the army had eliminated all the monster camps throughout the land centuries prior and why so many soldiers — most of them apprentices — were needed inside its walls escaped her completely. Nonetheless, she followed her orders to the letter and mulled over her doubts in silence until the group returned to the barracks right before dusk.
"Haaaaa, I'm fed up with those useless patrols!" she erupted as she sat down at a table in the mess hall, a meal tray clasped in her hands.
Only two or three other squads had stayed for dinner that evening, and some of their soldiers were on leave to enjoy the Maskfest for a whole week. As for the seven other students under Ashei's command, two had remained and shared the meal with Linkle.
"They don't make the most enthralling missions, I agree," the broader of the two replied. "Dare I ask, when will we finally get on the field?"
"Not soon, I'd wager," the smaller one with the prominent teeth answered. "Even if they let us out of the city, we'd just be patrolling along the roads instead and I doubt you'd love the trade Groose."
"Hyrule is just too damn peaceful, nowadays," Groose lamented as he chowed down on his grub. "Not a single monster has been sighted for so many years. What's the point of becoming a soldier if we can't even fight?"
"Need we really remind you that our duty doesn't solely rely on us taking arms? Our presence keeps the citizens safe and discourages criminal acts throughout Hyrule. Especially here, poverty still cripples many districts and it's our job to make sure the people suffering don't resort to desperate measures."
"Niko's right, y'know," Linkle intervened before Groose could retort. "The kingdom's balance hangs upon it. Though I do agree with you, I'd rather spend my days elsewhere."
"All right, all right, you speak the truth," Groose surrendered. "Still, I would not mind fighting off a vicious horde of evil beings. Gotta stay in shape and what better way to do so than battling monsters who only ask to die by my hand? And our commander is bloody captain Ashei! They say she's a devil of a fighter who can fend off ten Bokoblins by herself. Oh, I'd pay to see her in action! "
"Not surprised you feel that way," Niko said nonchalantly.
"Nor am I," Linkle added. "Seems like you live to flex your muscles, big boy."
"And what is wrong with that?!" Groose rose, almost knocking over his half empty plate.
Linkle and Niko laughed heartily. Groose's indignation lasted mere seconds before he joined them in their friendly banter. Their camaraderie had been built over all those years together at the Academy. They had sweat, studied, suffered from the school's trials and its instructors' harsh words ; and thus forged an unbreakable bond with each other.
To a stranger's unknowking eyes, they formed a tight-knit trio, albeit a very mismatched one. Groose was as strong as an ox, if not stronger and always resorted to power talks while Niko's weak constitution contrasted greatly with his creative and analytical mind. As for Linkle, she had demonstrated time and time again her nimble flexibility and her confident bravery. Those qualities had earned them the flattering yet derisive brand of the Academy's Apostles.
To mark them as weak copies of the deities would not do them justice, however. As opposed to their public demeanor, Groose had often proved calm and collected enough to restrain Linkle's hotheaded antics when she would dive into danger head first. And while he liked to act superior, he never failed to listen to his friends' precious advice. In particular, Niko would break out of his shyness and always outsmart and outmaneuver whoever stood in their way in mock battles. In return, both of them would rely on Linkle's decisive intuition in a pinch, as she always delivered the perfect speech to motivate them and spring them forward, whether encouragingly or tauntingly. Their outstanding teamwork and cohesion led them to the top of their class, even though their questionable behavior gave them all sorts of trouble.
In the end, they expiated their frustration of the day as usual: over an unappetizing meal. They were leading a bleak life that would undoubtedly carry over the next few days. Niko tried to lighten the mood by orienting the conversation towards the further future when their patience would finally be rewarded. Down to earth and realistic, he was not contemplating a career in the army, though his intelligence could easily land him an officer's position as a strategist. The ever ambitious Groose however, already saw himself revered by the Hylian subjects for his deeds as a Royal Knight of the Kingdom.
The two apprentices kept vigorously debating over their hopes and dreams, both shrieking so loud they could not possibly hear each other. As for Linkle, she did not even try defending her own perspective.
Ignoring her friends tasted foul every time she did and it was no habit of hers. Nonetheless, the sole mention of that topic always drowned her in a deep melancholy, and that was a side of her she would never disclose.
"Well, guys, I'm going first," she announced in a faint voice. "I'll train for a bit."
It took Groose and Niko five whole seconds to process her taking leave, shutting down their heated debate. She was outside well before they could protest. Though judging from her haste, they understood her need for space and solitude and sensibly decided not to go after her.
The evening breeze felt refreshing on Linkle's skin, soothing the muscle pain accumulated on duty on her twitching knees. She loathed the idea of slipping away from her friends, yet the doubt built over the last month finally overcame her. Long gone was the fearless teenager who stuck to her own decisions, wise or wrong. This new maiden had lost sight of her purpose and now viewed the path to knighthood as a tedious road to a crippled version of the heroic figures she had admired in her childhood. Foolish dreams and a naive mindset had prevailed, and years later, she reaped what she sowed as she could not distinguish between fantasy and reality.
She soon reached the near empty barracks and headed to the training grounds. Exercising and body maintenance were her go to whenever she needed some alone time to keep her uncertainties at bay. Despite her fatigue, she intended to stay for two hours at least.
And so seeing Captain Ashei practicing her bowmanship on a dummy came as a huge surprise. The officer fired with quickness and never missed, all her shots converging less than twenty centimeters from her target's heart. The dexterity she was displaying as well as her elegant posture drew a sigh of wonder out of Linkle, the recruit even forgetting why she had come in the first place as she studied her superior's form.
"Do you need something, soldier Aryll?"
Linkle jumped at her call. While she did not attempt to conceal her presence, she was not standing out at all.
"What are you doing here so late?" Ashei inquired with a severe look on her face.
"Captain!" Linkle saluted in a hurry. "I was thinking I could squeeze in a bit of training on my own tonight."
"Were you? At ease, soldier. There is no one beside the two of us here so let's drop the formalities. Did you mean to practice your swings?"
"Yes, captain. I also wanted to work with a dummy."
"Weaponry? Offensive or defensive stance?"
Her questions took Linkle aback. She had not planned that far ahead, a shame since Ashei always rambled that efficient training came with a clear image of its contents.
"The sword, I guess…?" she stuttered. "Sorry, I did not really think about it."
She waited, lips bitten, steadying herself for the harsh lectures she was about to receive. But Ashei only stared at her for a couple seconds and turned to the weapons yard.
"If you need an ear to rid yourself of your confusion," she answered softly, "know that mine will never close to you, Linkle."
The recruit raised her face, eyes wide in disbelief. That was the very first time Ashei had addressed her by her nickname, and not many could pretend having heard Ashei with such a maternal tone. How did she know, though?
"You are a diligent student, usually competent even though you clearly hate repetitive and mundane tasks," Ashei started. "You try very hard to comply with the strict rules that shackle you. Even when you cross the line, it is done with conviction. In other words, you are likely walking a road you have set for yourself a long time ago."
"And yet, I noticed your recent lack of commitment concerning your studies. You spend most of your time moping around or trying to perfect your fighting skills without assistance from your comrades, tonight is no different. And perhaps most of all, I have not received any report on your so-called perpetual mischiefs."
"Put everything together and the answer is relatively simple. Something weighs heavy enough on your mind for you to doubt yourself, to stray from what defines you. I may be a stubborn commander that expects nothing less than their squad's best, but I am first and foremost your instructor. It is my responsibility to make sure you take good care of yourself, Linkle."
The soldier could only nod imperceptibly, dumbfounded as the officer spoke the truth. She had vastly underestimated her superior's eye for detail and deduction abilities. Her respect for her shot up tremendously.
Therefore, she knew she could trust her and confessed everything, from her aspirations as a freshman in the academy to the dreadful future awaiting her at the end of the road she had herself paved. She poured her heart out as she told her tale, with each sentence easing her pain. Ashei listened attentively, arms crossed, dead serious and encouraging at the same time.
"So you enrolled, inspired by the Heroes of old, and realized a career in the military would not suit you anymore because it lacks diversity and is bound by rules you would hate complying to. Do I understand you correctly?"
"Crudely said, but right on the money."
"It is common to fear the consequences of our choices, especially those we make in our immature youth. We are not different in that matter. What you need to do is find the origin of your hesitations, assess the convictions you had when you decided to join our ranks, and bring your undesirables into the equation. What changed your perspective? Where are your ideals questioned? As long as you can not answer that, your doubts shall remain. "
Ashei patiently waited as Linkle explored her past. The young recruit still fondly remembered the day she resolved to become a knight of Hyrule. The sole memory of its events made her chuckle, the story could well pass as a children's fairytale. That fateful day, greedy and desperate thieves were hoping to pillage Toal and flee to the southern mountains where the army would not dare chase them. Their deeds were promptly stopped by the fortunate presence of commander Rusl, who used to live there and had visited with his unit to help farm the land. Linkle had unwillingly witnessed the ensuing struggle and the knights' display of heroism up close. Since then, she had set her mind to follow in their steps. Was that related to her headaches, though? To this anguish that ate her from inside?
"Linkle. Here," Ashei suddenly said.
The trainee caught the wooden sword the captain tossed her then saw her take a second one from the racks before striding to the center of the duel area.
"You were supposed to train, were you not? Then, let us fight."
Taken aback, Linkle obeyed hesitantly and took position five meters in front of Ashei.
"I promise you it is worth a shot. Do not hold back, because I will not. And do not limit yourself to whatever you were taught at the academy, use everything you can to aim for the win. Now, en garde soldier Aryll!"
No sooner said than done, Ashei took an unconventional stance that stretched her supporting leg and arm forward, with the other one brandishing her sword behind her, guard just above her shoulder, as if she was going to throw a javelin. Students of the Academy were not taught anything like it but Linkle remembered having seen it in books. Now interested, she met the challenge, thinking of Groose who would have certainly died to be in her shoes.
"All right," she mumbled with resolve. "If this is how she'll fare, I'll play along." Her left arm dropped, the sword it was holding following suit and almost grazing the dusty ground. She then folded her right arm to her chest and up her chin.
Ashei was going to use swift counterattacks so Linkle cunningly concealed her facial expressions to get through her opponent's defenses. Neither had taken a single step and yet, the duel already proved more stimulating than anything she had done the last couple weeks.
Linkle lunged first with blinding speed and aimed at Ashei's wrist. The latter pivoted and shifted her center of gravity downward, hoping to backstab Linkle before she could react. The recruit kept forward with her momentum and rolled out of the way. She turned and narrowly parried the officer's blade before the two engaged in a series of deflects, feints, thrusts and slashes to no avail. Their swords clashed one last time and Ashei jumped back to change her approach.
She switched from an elusive defense to an unyielding offensive style. Ashei now wielded her sword with both hands, tip pointed backward like a formidable claymore. Short of breath, Linkle studied her as quickly as possible and realized she would not be able to block any strike without the risk of losing her own weapon. As such, she too adopted a new form. Smiling mischievously, she went to a daring one which made her hold her wooden blade with a reverse grip and braced herself low, giving her time to react according to her superior's movements.
The officer pounced, her sword drawing a vertical arc and slamming down on the ground. Its curve was so predictable Linkle dodged perfectly. Now facing Ashei's back, she was about to end the fight, unaware of the trap she ran into. Ashei's powerful kick stopped Linkle in her tracks and the recruit had to raise her sword, palm pressed on the blade as support at the last second. The sheer strength of the impact sent her flying and crashing on her back, lungs afire. Miraculously, she had managed to hold her sword and risked everything on one swing. The weapon collided with Ashei's violently. Linkle put all her weight in it and her gamble paid off for it threw Ashei off balance. Surprised and staggering backwards, she received a mighty kick on her side, unable to protect herself.
Invigorated by this small achievement, Linkle went for the ending blow. She instinctively blocked Ashei's attempt at a leg sweep with her free hand, letting her slash disarm her opponent. The weaponless captain at her mercy, Linkle would put her sword right in front of her face and force a forfeit. However, Ashei was not about to surrender and pushed her trapped leg back, knocking Linkle off. The officer then deftly grabbed both of her challenger's wrists, pressured her into releasing her weapon and held her down in a position where she could break her arms, finally winning the duel.
Baffled by the sudden turnaround, Linkle hardly felt any pain when Ashei announced her defeat. And yet, she did not bear any resentment or frustration even as she got up in a daze and saluted her opponent by tradition. In fact, the rush of adrenaline did not seem to abate. Never had she ever thought of fighting on par with the famous Captain Ashei in such a grueling, intense struggle. She was fully satisfied with her performance, considering the officer's skills as a duelist were clearly above hers. Without any training whatsoever, she had pulled off tactics and techniques relying on styles she had never tried before. What's more, Ashei also showed her many uncommon moves she had never witnessed.
"Well, Linkle? What did you think of this sparring?"
"How incredible!" Linkle beamed. "I'm still shivering from excitement! I really had to dig deep in my arsenal to unsettle you and yet, it didn't affect you in the slightest. You were also way ahead in creativity! How are you so ingenious, I wonder."
"I must say, your unpredictable spirit is a really inconvenient asset for your foes," Ashei smiled. "Experience played a major role in my victory. I have been honing my fencing skills since the day I was able to walk. "
"Oh I'm getting jealous! Well, um… Would you mind teaching me more?"
"When time allows, I shall," Ashei nodded. "It looks like your motivation has returned."
"Indeed…!" Linkle gasped. "I haven't felt such bliss for so long, I feel… more alive than ever… But how?"
Ashei's lips curled into an enigmatic smile. "There lies the cause of your distress. All you needed was a new source of interest."
"I'm… not sure I follow…"
"Knighthood never was what fascinates you, nor did it ever push you forward. You mistook it for the real reason of your thrills: an unquenchable thirst for the unknown and genuine love for challenges. You have displayed astounding physical abilities and competitive sense for a woman your age. And yet, even after coming so close to defeating your teacher, you only looked at the prospects of learning more. A boundless curiosity is what forges your desires. Your earlier memories also confirm this theory. In joining the academy, you were actually seeking to satiate this particular trait of character."
The argumentation sounded correct. From that point of view, Linkle could see the connections between her enthusiastic spikes and the unique events that shaped her life. The boring and drearing routine she loathed did start with excitement to prove herself. She now finally understood her fears about the future. Deep down, she had already known the many redundant duties of a knight could never bring her the joy and freedom she had experienced as a child.
"You may still consider a different career path," Ashei suggested. "Actually, I can think of one domain that might suit your taste and could make good use of your aptitudes."
"Which is?" Linkle's eyes sparked with hope.
"Scientific research is one, archeology another. Both fall in the same category and contrary to popular belief, researchers do not stay indoors much. Studying books is a given considering their activities, but they do travel, experiment and explore remote locations and ancient ruins a lot more than one might imagine. The Kingdom of Hyrule is a gigantic country overflowing with secrets and danger. Many of the academy's alumni have actually joined their ranks because they possessed the necessary physical conditions to take on this job. Your course ends in little more than two years so I advise you to think carefully about what you intend to do. If you wish, I can get you in contact with an acquaintance in the field that could help you decide."
Wasting an opportunity like this would be foolish, so Linkle nodded vigorously. She knew nothing about research but Ashei's speech piqued her interest and she was willing to blindly give it a try, believing this time she would not get bored. An unusual sense of excitement mixed with eagerness and temerity had replaced the haunting dread and apathy that had overcome her. It was all thanks to the squad leader.
"I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me!" she bowed deeply with respect. "I owe you with my life."
Ashei's eyes opened wide. The captain never thought Linkle would show as much humility and the strange scene made her burst out laughing. To bring out such glee from the so-called Ice Princess truly was quite an achievement. While embarrassed by her superior's reaction, Linkle joined her in the mirth.
"Do not fret over trivial matters, Linkle," Ashei stated as an instructor proud of a brilliant student. "Make sure to follow your ideals and if you develop a fondness for science or archeology, work hard to unveil all the mysteries Hyrule has to offer. Tomorrow, you will stride from a brand new starting line, though I am confident you will take on the challenge with great success. Meanwhile, I shall wish you a good night full of rest, soldier. You will be busy as soon as dawnbreak."
"Yes, captain!"
They saluted formally then went back to their own quarters. The unreadable Ashei disappeared without looking back, her duty completed. Still euphoric, Linkle took her time returning, heart beating like drums. It took her a couple more minutes to calm down and finally reach her room.
A whole new life awaited her. Though the next few days would not change much, the darkness surrounding her spirit had vanished. Hope would dictate her steps once again. Thankful for the blessing, she prayed to the Gods and directed her wishes to her fearsome yet benevolent captain. She then swore to never let doubt corrupt her mind anymore. Lastly, she went to bed all smiles and glitter, and her thoughts wandered to the memories of the brother she was finally going to see after so long. And at the very least, she would have good news to tell.
