Born a Weapon

A Twilight Princess Fan story

Chapter 3

Where am I?

Am I dead?

I think I'm dead…

Dammit! I never found out where the hell I was! I am so pissed!

Link slowly became aware of a feeling under him. It felt soft, and all his pain was gone too.

I'm definitely dead, that much pain doesn't just go away. I am so going to kill someone for killing me.

Wait, killing me? Why did I think that? I could have fallen off a cliff for all I know. Well, I guess I'll be killing a cliff.

Link finally opened his eyes and saw a ceiling above him.

A ceiling? I guess I am in a house. In the afterlife. In a house in the afterlife.

He was brought from his thoughts as he heard a voice to his right, "You're awake! You were out for three days. How are you feeling?"

Link turned his head to see a man sitting in a chair looking at him. He was wearing a white shirt with green sleeves, grey pants and sandals, and a belt across his waist. He had blond hair, blue eyes, a mustache, and a small beard. But the first thing Link noticed was the sword handle sticking out above his right shoulder.

But while he was armed, he didn't seem hostile, but Link was still on edge.

"Well, dying sucks" Link said.

The man let out a small chuckle at his statement. "You're not dead. You almost were, but I assure you, you are alive."

Link pondered what he was told for a moment. And the man in the chair patiently waited for him to get his thoughts in order.

"Are you sure?" Link inquired.

"Well, I know I'm not dead, and I'm talking to you, so yes, I'm pretty sure you're alive."

"Hmm" Link replied, "I guess you got a point, but I was so sure I was going to die? How did anyone manage to fix me up?"

"We had to use the spring" the man replied. He must have noticed Link's confusion because he decided to elaborate. "Just outside our little village is a spring with magical healing water, we kept you in it for three whole days while you were unconscious. You're lucky you ended up here, almost anywhere else, and you probably would have died."

"So, this one village just has magic anti-die water?"

Another chuckle "There are four in total, all spread throughout Hyrule."

"Hyrule?"

He seemed very confused at Link's response and studied him for a moment before saying, "You must not be fully recovered just yet. Surely you have to know of Hyrule, it's the kingdom we're in!"

"Oh"

A few more moments passed in silence as Link pondered what he said before the man spoke up again, "What is your name?"

Link paused for a second, thinking back to the first thought he could remember having. "Link"

"I am Rusl."

"Nice to meet you, even under unusual circumstances."

I really hope me being on the brink of death is unusual.

"Very unusual, no one has ever stumbled into our village as you did, gave everyone quite a scare" Rusl replied

"Oops, sorry."

"Don't apologize. As I said, had you gone almost anywhere else, you would have died, it is good you came here."

"Thanks for helping me not die."

"Not a problem, Link, anytime, I will bring you some food and leave you to rest, if you need anything, my son is just outside, his name is Colin, he can bring me to you. Or if you feel up to it, you can take a walk around the village, but stay out of the forest, that place has become dangerous as of late, it's been infested by monsters." he declared as he got up and prepared to leave the building.

"Wait" Link said, there was still one question that was bugging him for as long as he could remember (which isn't very impressive considering how much he could remember) and he was going to get it answered. "Where am I?"

"You are in Ordon village" Rusl replied. Link gave him a nod, and he closed the door behind him, leaving Link to his thoughts.

He lay on what he discovered to be a couch, trying to process what he was told.

I was unconscious for three whole days? And healing water? Well, that's useful. Well at least I finally know "where the hell I am" he thought, laughing at how he always worded that question the exact same way.

But how did I get here? And why was I so injured? I doubt Rusl or anyone else in this village knows the answer to that, considering I just stumbled in out of nowhere, and they never met me before I lost my memory.

Before long, Rusl returned with a meal for Link, who gratefully took it and devoured it in record time. After giving Link the meal, Rusl left Link alone again. It wasn't long before Link decided he wasn't going to get any of his questions answered in the house and got up to take a walk. He prepared himself, expecting a wave of dizziness to wash over him as he stood up, but he was fine.

Guess that healing water really works. Well of course it does, the fact that I'm alive proves that.

He took a quick glance around the house, it was quite a humble home. From what Link could see, it contained only a fireplace, a table, two chairs, and the couch he was just on. But he did notice there was a sword propped up against the wall.

Guess he's got two.

Link made his way out of the house and was greeted by a child with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a white sleeveless shirt, green pants, and a yellow belt. "Hi!" he exclaimed.

"Hello."

"Are you feeling all better? My dad said you were hurt and needed to rest, but I didn't think anyone could sleep for three days."

Link chuckled at the young boy's enthusiasm. "I wouldn't have thought so either."

"Doesn't sleeping all the time get boring?"

"Well, I don't think it's possible to be aware of how much time passes while you're asleep, so getting bored should be impossible."

"I guess that makes sense."

"You're Colin, right?"

"Yup!" the boy replied, "What's your name?"

"Link"

"Nice to meet you, Link!"

"I'm going to take a walk around the village" Link informed Colin.

"Oh! Before you do that, you should know your horse in in the spring!"

Link's attention was immediately on the boy's words, "Horse?"

"Yeah, there was a horse nearby, and my dad said it was probably yours, was he wrong?"

A horse. Could it be his? And if it was, maybe it had something that could tell Link who he was or where he came from.

I really wish I knew Link thought.

"I'll head up there and check it out, thanks."

"You're welcome!" the boy chirped and turned his attention to a pool behind him, he seemed to be looking for something in it.

Link stepped onto the main path of the village he was in and looked around. There only seemed to be a total of six houses in this place, including the one he was just in and the treehouse he saw while he was dying. He looked past all the houses and spotted a hill to his left, but there was another hill when he turned the other way.

Which one leads to the spring?

"Hey, Colin!" Link called.

"What is it, Link?"

"Which way is the spring?"

"Up the hill to your left, past the treehouse!"

"Thanks!"

"You're welcome!"

Link turned in that direction and began walking but turned his head when he heard a door open to his right.

"Link!"

Rusl exited the building with a large man behind him. The man was bald and had a white mustache that split in the middle and curled up at the edge of his mouth. He had on a sleeveless white shirt, a red belt, brown pants, and sandals, and had his eyes seemingly closed. However he seemed to be able to see just fine.

"I guess you were feeling up to a walk, huh?" Rusl said.

"Yeah, no offense to your couch, but if I stayed there for any longer, I would probably destroy my back."

Rusl let out a small laugh as the larger man approached Link to speak with him. "Welcome to Ordon Link. I'm Mayor Bo" he said, extending his hand, which link shook. "Tell me, Link, what in Hyrule happened to you?"

"Uhm…" Link wasn't sure what to say. He had no idea, he couldn't remember anything before he was dying on the hill to his left, but should he tell them that? These people seemed nice, but he only just met them. How would they react to discovering he had amnesia?

"I uh… don't know."

The large mayor raised an eyebrow at this. "You don't know?"

"… no."

"Surely you must have some idea" Rusl stated. "You had several deep wounds all over you, and some even went straight through you!"

"Really?" Link asked, "Damn…"

"And I've never seen that outfit you were wearing anywhere before."

Link looked down at himself. He was wearing a white sleeveless shirt, which seemed to be the latest fashion around here, with an orange belt, and what appeared to be part of a green sleeve attached to his left shoulder leading down to his elbow. This part sleeve was poorly sown at the shoulder right where his torso ended, and his arm began. He had had baggy pants ending halfway down his shins and sandals on his feet.

"They don't seem that different to me."

"Those are not the clothes you were wearing when we found you" Rusl informed him. "You came in here with a black top, bottom, gloves, and shoes, only your head wasn't covered. We gave you those clothes because your original outfit was dripping blood everywhere."

"Thanks, I guess."

"Well" Bo started, "If you don't know what happened to you, can you at least tell us where you're from? We should contact your family! They must be worried sick!"

Shit.

Link didn't know how to respond. He managed to be vague in answering their last question, hoping they wouldn't press him for details, but he didn't see any way out of this one other than the truth.

"Uh" Link began, preparing himself for their reaction, "I… don't… know."

Rusl and even Bo's eyes, which Link now realized were blue, were wide as saucers. They stared at Link for several seconds before turning their gaze to each other. "I see…" Rusl spoke up. "What's the last thing you do remember?"

"The last thing I remember is dying up on that hill. I don't know how I got there, where I'm from or why I was dying."

Rusl and Bo thought for several minutes before the mayor broke the silence. "Well, we'll do everything we can to help you out. You can stay in this village until you find your home, for however long it takes."

Link looked at him with surprise. "Thank you… I… really appreciate that." He honestly wasn't sure how they would react to his news, but considering they saved him and watched over him for three days, he should have expected to be met with more kindness.

"No problem, Link, we would never turn away someone in need."

"I was going to ask if the horse we found was yours, but I guess it's just as much a surprise to you as to us."

"Colin told me it was in the spring you used to heal me. I was on my way up there, maybe it'll jar some memories."

"My daughter Ilia has taken the horse to the spring for a cleaning, there was quite a lot of blood on the steed, and she does love horses."

"Thank you for being so understanding" Link began. "But if you don't mind, I would like to see the horse now…"

"Of course, the mayor and I will try to figure out a place for you to stay in the meantime."

"Thank you again" Link said as he turned and jogged to the hill's base. When he reached the bottom, he noticed a faint red circle at the hill's base and a line training up.

That must be my blood he thought.

When he reached the top, he saw the familiar treehouse that he had tried to call to for help but received no answer. To his right, he saw some kind of scarecrow with a pumpkin for a head and to his left was a pathway, and on the floor in the middle was a huge red stain in the dirt.

Just how much blood did I lose?

Link tried to push the thought of his first experience out of his head and headed down the pathway to his left. He walked for only a few minutes before spotting an open gate on the left and approached it. Inside he saw a beautiful sight. Water was streaming down into a small formation of five rocks with intricate carvings on them. The water then dropped down a small ledge and amassed in a pool with a sandy shore. It was quite the sight to behold, but Link's attention was on the horse in the spring as something in his mind clicked.

Epona!

Link didn't know how, but he knew four things about this horse. It was named Epona, it was a girl, it was a very good horse, and had been a lifelong companion to him. But rather than triggering any memories as he hoped, seeing his beloved steed only reminded him of those four facts. He knew he knew Epona almost his entire life, but he still could not remember anything before arriving in Ordon. He cared deeply for Epona but had no experiences of bonding to justify those feelings. Regardless, seeing her there put a big smile on his face.

"Oh!"

Link then turned his attention to the girl next to his horse, who he inferred to be Ilia. She had blonde hair, green eyes, orange pants that went halfway down her legs with a pouch strapped to her right leg, and just like everyone else, a sleeveless white shirt. Before any dialogue could be exchanged between the two, Epona ran up to Link and began to nuzzle him, almost knocking him over.

"Hey, girl! You all cleaned up now?" Link asked as he pet her.

"Is this your horse?" Ilia asked.

"Yes."

"Well you should take better care of her!"

Link turned to Ilia, surprised at her sudden outburst, and saw an angry expression on her face.

"She was covered in blood, and she was hurt, not severely but hurt nonetheless!"

Link felt a wave of sadness wash over him at the news Epona had been injured. He turned back to Epona and gently pet her once more. "I'm sorry Epona… I wish I knew what happened…"

"You don't know?"

Link once again turned his gaze to the girl in the spring with him. He had already told Rusl and Bo of his amnesia, so she would find out soon enough, he might as well just tell her "I" he began, "I can't remember anything before I got here."

Ilia was not expecting him to say that. "Oh…" she felt terrible, she was just yelling at him for barely hurting the horse and nearly drowning her in blood, his blood, and he couldn't even remember anything.

"I'm… so sorry…"

"Don't be, it's not like there was anything you could have done about it" Link said, turning his gaze back to Epona.

Then she realized something "wait… if you can't remember anything, how did you know her name? Or even that she is your horse?"

"That," Link said, "is a good question." Link said, turning to face Ilia, "once I saw her something just, clicked, in my head." Link said as he pointed to his left temple. "I knew her name and felt the bond we share that was built over a lifetime, but I still have no memories attached to those feelings."

Ilia couldn't help but smile at that. This man was suffering from amnesia, yet his bond with his horse, Epona, was so strong that just seeing her reminded him of her name.

"What's your name?"

"Link"

"I'm Ilia."

"Nice to meet you."

Several minutes passed in silence while Link held his beloved mare in his arms. He couldn't describe how thrilled he was to have something from his past, even if there were no memories to accompany his joy. While he was hugging Epona, he caught sight of his reflection in the water. His face was about what one would expect on a teenage boy, it was simple, not decorated with jewelry or anything fancy. Just his face. He had sandy blond hair, blue eyes, and surprisingly long ears.

So that's what I look like.

Link soon began to feel tired, and decided he should rest. He was still recovering from his ordeal three days ago. Link, Ilia, and Epona were making their way back to the clearing with the treehouse when Link noticed something in the grass.

"What's that?" he asked, making his way over to the object.

"What?"

Link lifted a blue gem out of the grass he approached. "Some kind of blue gem."

"That's a rupee."

"A what?" Link asked, turning to face Ilia.

"A blue rupee, it's worth five green ones." Link was still confused. "It's money."

"Money?" Link examined the 'rupee' closer. "All right, nice, I guess I'm not completely broke now."

"You don't have any money?"

"Yes I do, I got five rupees."

Ilia laughed at his simple statement as they proceeded back to the treehouse. Once there emerged in the clearing, they were met by Rusl. "Link! So, is that your horse?"

"Yeah, don't know how I know that, but I do. Her name is Epona."

"You look tired, are you all right?"

"Yeah" Link said, he was pretty tired, "I think I should go to sleep."

"The mayor and I were just discussing that matter. If you wish, you could stay in one of our houses if you don't mind sharing the roof, or I suppose if you want, you could take the storage house" Rusl said, gesturing to the treehouse.

So that's why no one answered when I called for help Link thought.

While Link enjoyed the villagers' company, as they helped take his mind off his amnesia, he wasn't sure he wanted to sleep in the same building as them. "I think I'd like to take the storage house."

"Very well, I will get you some blankets and pillows for you to make a bed out of" Rusl said, then he turned and proceeded down the path.

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather sleep in one of the houses? They have real beds in them."

"I think I need a night alone to think about everything that's happened to me."

"Ok" Ilia replied as she began to make her way down the same path Rusl took. "I'll see you later."

"Goodbye."

It didn't take long for Rusl to come back with several blankets and pillows. He helped Link get set up inside the treehouse. There was one average sized room inside with a ladder leading up to a platform, which had another ladder leading up to a smaller platform, and a ladder leading down into a cellar. The cellar, main room, and platforms were all filled with boxes, but Link and Rusl managed to make enough room for someone to lie comfortably and set up the makeshift bed. Once they were done, Rusl told Link if he needed anything not to hesitate to ask and then left him alone to get some rest.

Link sat down on his blankets and thought about everything that had happened to him. He stumbled into a village with his horse. He made his way down the hill where the people here found him leaking more blood than any of them thought a person had, and saved him. They were kind and compassionate, offering him a place to stay and, so far, have demanded nothing in return. But why did he need their help in the first place? Why was he dying? Where did he come from? And why couldn't he remember anything?! Link began to feel many emotions welling up inside him, anger, a feeling of being lost, and fear.

Got to keep my composure, he thought, keep my emotions in check. Don't let them cloud my judgment.

But why? Why should he keep his emotions bottled up inside? Now was the perfect time to let them out, he was alone, no one was watching him. And yet, something inside him was telling him not to let his guard down, to be alert, and it was driving him crazy! He had so much emotion welling up inside but somehow releasing it felt wrong. He tightened his grip on the rupee he had found that he forgot he was holding, and threw it at the wall with a shout.

What's wrong with me? Why can't I remember?

Finally, Link popped the cork on his bottles of emotions and let out everything inside.