Chapter 5: Gerudo Lib

So I had a working plan to escape this world. It was a dangerous plan that could very well doom Hyrule to destruction, but it was a plan. I suppose the idea that Hyrule is a real place hadn't fully solidified in my mind, but as days passed, the prospect began to weigh on me more.

But things weren't as simple as they were in the games. The Bokoblins were violent, yes, but their survival was also at the mercy of a technologically superior enemy. Despite the story of the games, killing the Bokoblins' cows to starve them to death didn't seem like any form of justice I'd ever heard of. So, I made good on my promise to help them craft a rudimentary firearm.

It only fired a single shot, but that shot blasted a knight to the ground. The kickback from the gunpowder knocked Itchy back seven feet, but he survived. This surprise development caught the Knighthood off guard, allowing the Bokoblins to rally and force a retreat. The Bokoblins now knew how to make more of these weapons, and those pipe guns were more than an effective answer to Hylian bombs. I hoped this new weapon would protect their food supply.

With that success achieved, I began thinking about how I would approach the Hero. Klagnor took me aside before I left and said, "It's dangerous to go to Castle Town alone. You need allies. We still have a few friends in Gerudo Town that might be able to help you get closer to Link. Gerudos are human, which means the Hylians hate them less."

I mulled over it for a bit and, with a sigh of resignation, decided to head toward Gerudo Town in the southwest. Klagnor gave me the tamest horse the Bokoblins had, and I somehow rode all the way to the desert. This was my third time riding a horse in my 'lives,' so it was quite scary and not always easy. But Midnight, the horse, was really quite forgiving of my lack of experience. At no point did she refuse to ride unless she was thirsty or hungry. I definitely wouldn't have made it any further without her!

I put Midnight in the stables just outside the desert and began my walk. As a male, I wasn't 100% sure how I would proceed into Gerudo Town. But when I got close, I noticed that a Hylian Knight was guarding the gates of the town. He nodded his head and waved me on through.

The town square was quiet. There weren't many travelers, and it seemed much less lively than it had been depicted inBreath of the Wild.The Gerudos of this era were perhaps five to six feet tall. As I walked through, the Gerudos seemed to look away from me and avoid me.

I approached a shopkeeper in the bazaar and said, "Excuse me, ma'am! I was wondering where a Hylian could find lodging in these parts."

She didn't say anything. She merely pointed toward a hotel in the northwest section of town. I paid 10 Rupees for a bed and saw several Hylian Knights sitting in the lobby. I listened closely to their talk and inferred that the town was under Hylian occupation.

"We'll tame these Gerudos one day!"one knight said to the other."I was guarding the checkpoint at the west gate yesterday, and one spit on me!"

"They're just jealous of us and how we're the closest race to the gods,"the other knight said in response.

That conversation was unsettling, so I decided to go out and see the town. Next door, I noticed a school. Something told me not to peek my head in, but I did. A Hylian woman, addressing the Gerudo children, said, "If you hear someone talk about 'Gerudo Lib' or 'equal rights,' what do you do?"

"Reeeeport them!" the schoolchildren shouted in unison.

I closed the door as quietly as possible and continued looking around. I wondered if Klagnor's knowledge of this city was outdated. But as I walked down an alleyway, I met one of his friends. I immediately inferred she was a friend of Klagnor's because she mugged me!

She jumped down from the rooftops behind me, put a scimitar against my neck, and whispered, "Give me your Rupees, Hyrule-boy, and maybe I won't slit your throat right now."

"Okay, you've got me. I don't have but like 100 Rupees that the Bokoblins gave me, but they're yours if I don't die and get reincarnated again."

"That's… an interesting story," she said, still demanding my money. I pulled out my bag and put it in her hand.

She began to climb back up the building, but I shouted, "Hey, wait! Do you know Klagnor? I'm looking for friends of his."

She looked back at me, contemplating. "What if I do? Why would I tell you?"

"I just gave you 100 Rupees! Look, I'm not with the Hylian occupation, and I don't support what's going on. For my own reasons, I might need to cross swords with the Hero, and I could use some friends."

"They couldn't even get a Hylian woman to try to infiltrate us this time! Sheesh, how did we get conquered by such incompetent forces?" She hopped back down, sword drawn, and internally mulled over whether or not to stab me.

"Look, Klagnor of the Bokoblins said he had friends here that would help me."

"You keep namedropping, Hylian spy! Think that'll make a difference?"

"No, look, here's the truth: I'm a dark historian, of sorts." I made direct eye contact, hoping she wouldn't see through this story. "I'm sympathetic to the Gerudo people and Ganondorf's vision to claim land from Hyrule to free them from the desert."

"I'm a professional thief. I can tell when someone is lying. You are lying. And if you don't want to die right here, right now, you'd better spill the truth." The Gerudo woman grabbed me again and put the scimitar back to my neck.

"If I told you the real truth, you wouldn't believe it." I didn't try to struggle, really. She was really strong.

"Maybe not, but it's your only chance to avoid death." She winked at me as she wiggled her scimitar back and forth.

"Okay, so I… died recently. I was born in another realm called Earth. I need to return to Earth because I have a family there who needs me to be alive. Hyrule is known in our world, and I like Hyrule. That's why the gods reincarnated me here. But they refused to reincarnate me to Earth so I could be with my family. And since the gods will not assist, I decided to seek other options with the Bokoblins. They summoned Twinrova, and Twinrova said that if I bring them the blood of the Hero, they'll open a portal back to Earth."

She stared at me for a moment, reading me. The thought occurred to me that she might still kill me for this story. It is an evil plan, after all. But instead, she released me and looked around for any onlookers before whispering, "Blessed be the Mothers of our Lord and King Ganondorf. Their names are now forbidden here. Hylians believe that speaking their names increases their power, which it does. Do not say their names in public, lest you wind up in a Hylian prison."

"I'm James, by the way. I guess. I wasn't actually given a name when they reincarnated me into Hyrule Field."

"James, the Dark Historian. I love the cover story. Hold onto it, but maybe drop the 'dark' part in the presence of our enemies. I am Lasella, a fighter in the war for Gerudo liberation. If you are Hyrule's enemy, then I'd reckon you my friend."

Lasella took me back to their secret hideout. We spent the evening eating and catching me up to speed on Hyrulean politics. The occupation has been going on fifteen years now, and this building is one of the few safe places where Gerudos can speak out against Hylian domination without being arrested. As I saw, the children are being brainwashed into being good little Hyruleans. Of particular concern to Lasella was the 'Hylianizing' of the Gerudo statue in Desert Colossus.

I needed Link's blood to return home, and I felt reluctant to take it from him. The Gerudos in this room were more than happy to take it for me.