Born a Weapon: Twilight Princess

Return to Castle Town

As Link rode to Castle Town, he had plenty of time to think and realized he didn't have a real plan. He promised to help Prince Ralis recover, but what could he do? Link may be a capable warrior, but he was no doctor, at least not that he knew of. He did seem to know some first aid, but he doubted that would be enough to help the prince. There was also Castle Town's unusual situation. It had been attacked from outside, which made no sense since the enemy was inside the castle and had portals. There was also no army in sight as Link made his way to Castle Town, even though it was suffering shortages that Link could only assume were from a siege. Then where was the sieging army?

His thoughts were interrupted by the sight of Castle Town coming into view. He quickly glanced around the area, looking for the seemingly invisible army. He didn't see any camps in the field or scouts in the distance, but he did see blood-soaked grass and the bodies of civilians and soldiers. It was completely devoid of all life. Once he finished scanning the horizon, his instincts told him to look up, even though there was no way an entire army could be above him. Forming in the sky was a portal with blood-red markings.

Link instantly spurred Epona, gaining distance from the portal before bulbins could form. He heard shouting, and more portals began to form all around him. The sound of hoof beats rang through the air as the bulbins began pursuing the hero on their oversized boars, and he quickly drew his bow and shot one in the leg, making it tumble and trip others. A group of archers began forming ahead of Link, but his experienced horse closed the distance faster than they expected, and their heads were swiftly removed in a single swing.

New voices could be heard, and Link realized the guards on Castle Town's tower were now in sight and had noticed the commotion, several archers grabbing their bows. While Link may not have a plan to help Ralis yet, he had a plan to get inside. Continuing to dodge and block attacks, Link slowly made his way closer to Castle Town. Once he reached the wall, Epona ran along it before jumping as high as she could. When Epona reached the peak of her jump, Link jumped as well before using his parkour skills to run up the wall and grab onto a handhold. Epona landed and quickly escaped the army of bulbins focused on the hero climbing the wall. They began to draw their bows to fire on the exposed man, but the guards on the wall unleashed their volley, striking them down mid-draw. With the bulbins running for cover, Link easily reached the top of the wall, grabbing a soldier's extended hand to assist in the last bit of the climb. With their target out of their reach, the bulbin army quickly retreated to avoid further casualties. Link only tore his gaze from them when they were out of sight and found every soldier staring at him. Everyone stood silently for several moments before Link decided to break the silence.

"Uhm... thanks." With the silence broken, the floodgates opened, exposing Link to the befuddled questions from the soldiers surrounding him. Link leaned back and raised his hands in front of him, but there was nowhere he could go. Soldiers surrounded him. Link regretted not planning beyond entering Castle Town, not considering the confusion and chaos his sudden entrance would cause. With an internal sigh, he resigned himself to a very long day of questions, most of which would not be answered.

"All right, quiet!" A voice rang out over the soldiers, and everyone fell silent, their heads turning. With the pressure off Link, he stopped leaning back and put his hands down. "What the hell is going on?" The voice asked, surprisingly calm. In response, the soldiers moved to the sides of the wall, creating a clear line of sight between Link and the man asking questions. Link recognized him as the Captain trying to keep Castle Town in order, Bryon. He stared at Link for several seconds with a look of surprise.

"Hi..." Link offered hesitantly with a small wave. Bryon turned to one of the other soldiers and cocked an eyebrow at him before saying something quietly. The soldier began speaking, and while Link couldn't make out everything, he could make out enough to tell the soldier was recounting the details of Link's arrival. Once he was finished, he turned his attention back to Link.