Power of the Triforce: Sequel to The Princess and Her Knight

X: The First Strike

Link's POV

*WARNING* blood, violence, gruesome depictions

I reached the Gerudo Canyon Stable in a matter of hours. My mind felt more relief than when I left, but I was still uneasy. Vague restlessness lingered in my mind.

On my ride, I decided I would seek counsel with Riju. She had grown very wise over the years, and I greatly respected her. I left my horse at the stable and began strapping sand spikes to the bottom of my shoes. I began the hike across the Gerudo desert. It was very cold.

The walk calmed my mind more. The soft sound of my footsteps in the sand soothed my unease. Slowly, I came upon Kara Kara Bazaar. I could still remember my first memory with Zelda there... it seemed so long ago. As I walked through the bazaar, I looked around me. Nobody was there. I grew suspicious and realized something felt off. I couldn't describe the apprehension...

Something caught my eye, moving swiftly on my left. I pivoted, reaching for my sword.

It was the old man.

Immediately, I darted after him, eager for answers. He moved behind a palm tree but when I reached the tree, he had vanished. 

I turned around, scanned the area, and turned again.

Where could he have gone?! I thought, agitated. Was this man just a figment of my mind?

The thought did not last long as something else caught my attention. I heard distant screaming... lots of it.

I turned my gaze towards Gerudo town. Something was wrong.

I tucked my head and sprinted for the town. The pounding of my feet in the sand synced up with my breath, and my mind raced with me. What could have the whole town screaming?

With Gerudo town in sight, I ran as hard as I could. Gerudo women were running out of the gates, and the Gerudo warriors were yelling at each other. Fully out of breath, I reached the entrance of the town.

"Master Link!" a guard shrieked.

"What is happening?" I yelled back.

"Go! Enter the town!"

My stomach dropped. The guards did not easily allow for the breaking of Gerudo Town rules. This was the first time I was ever able to enter the town not disguised as a vai, even as king!

I nodded, and pushed my way through women exiting the town. 

Amongst the screaming, there was one that pierced my soul, one whose agony was fully distinguishable amongst the others. It was Buliara.

I ran for the Chief's room. Buliara's howls did not cease. With my sword in hand, I ran up the stairs and reached the room. I froze.

My sword slipped out of my hand and the metal clanked on the ground. Instantly, all noise dissipated from my mind, and the screams were drowned out. I could not believe what I saw. My lungs could no longer inhale, and it felt like my heart stopped beating.

The bases of two spears were driven forcefully into the ground, the tips upright and meeting in the middle, forming a triangle with the ground. Impaled on the end of the spears was Riju. The arrows pierced through her sides and her feet dangled off the ground. Her body was perfectly balanced above the ground, and the spears stood firm. Blood dripped from her corpse and pooled below her. Her face was frozen in horror. Drawn in her own blood on the floor was the eye of the Yiga.

I collapsed to the ground and vomited. Despite all of the deaths I had seen in my life, nothing was a more macabre scene than this. I gasped for air and my senses refocused. Buliara's blood-curdling shrieks pierced my ears, and her fists slamming into the ground over stimulated my mind.

"HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN?!" she shrieked. "HOW COULD I LET THIS HAPPEN?!"

I was flabbergasted. I did not know whether to first feel grief, anger, or go face the foul Yiga clan myself.

I picked up my sword, a single tear dropping on the ground. It was all I had time to spare for Riju. 

"Buliara," I screamed, running over to her. "There is no time! While you still can, protect the rest of your people! Rally your troops, don't let any more deaths befall this town!" As insensitive as it was, I didn't know what else could be done.

She looked up at me and then returned her gaze to the flood. "Your majesty," she said through gritted teeth, grinding her nails into the floor. There was defeat and rage in her voice.

"That's an order!" I shouted.

Her eyes lifted with a look of shock on her face. She stood up and grabbed her spear.

"I am going to the Yiga hideout," I said, my voice shaking. "Make haste and protect your people."

She nodded and ran out into the town. I leaped out of the window, landing swiftly in the sand. I could only make it a couple of yards before collapsing on the ground. I began to sob.

How did this happen? I clenched my fist, sand spewing from between my fingers.

I blamed myself. I should have taken care of those wicked creatures right after sealing Ganon away.

After a few moments, I regained my composure, feeble as it was, and ran southeast.