The Legend of Zelda - The Tainted Blade (Season 2)

Adventurers From Torin - (S2:E10)

Two gatekeepers waited for them. Adara scanned the low, barely fortified wall, and found no armaments to worry with. She pulled her horse up to walk alongside Zel.

"We are married - adventurers come from Lomei Island on our way to the Citadel before journeying on to Hebranta. Your name is Cam and my name is Lissa. We are from Torin. Repeat it back to me."

It took Zel a few attempts before he remembered everything. "Where's Torin?" he asked after finally getting it right.

"A small village on the western shore of Lake Akkala. You can see it from the cliffs of Terry City."

Zel nodded and asked no further questions.

The gatekeepers of Terry City didn't detain them long. They asked to see their weapons, asked their business, and let them pass. Though they eyed the horses with skepticism, one man lingering on the Master Sword as if he recognized it - replicas were common enough - they waved them through and returned to their watch.

Oil lanterns, hanging from curved iron hooks on tall wooden poles, lined the wide street. Businesses and merchant's booths, all locked up for the night, greeted travelers immediately upon arrival. Only two inns remained open near the gate. The inn on the left, Beetle's Boarding House carved beneath the sign of a red beetle, shone with lights from within, though the door remained closed and the interior silent. On the opposite side of the street, The Iron Knuckle roared with activity. With the sign of a knight holding a spiked ball and chain hanging above the open door, music and the laughter of patrons filled the street.

Adara veered to the Iron Knuckle.

"Are you sure?" Zel asked.

"When people are looking for you, it's best to hide in plain sight," she said, stopping in front of a hitching post.

They secured their horses, shouldered their packs, and entered. Inside, a full room made threading through the tables difficult. Most of the patrons listened to a wide soprano dancing and singing on a small stage as they laughed at the punchlines of her musical jokes and sloshed drink over their wrists. The innkeeper at the bar asked only the most basic questions of their identity and business, with a bored expression on his face. Adara spoke for them both, and the innkeeper gave them a room, passes to the bathhouse, a meal, and sent a stable boy to take care of the horses.

They stayed there for three days, mostly because of the horses. Upon inspection the next day, Adara found the galls on Storm much worse than she had thought. She paid the stable master extra to spend more attention on the wounds and to take Storm out for training. Though Zel and Adara had to share the same room, Adara insisted she sleep on the floor and Zel have the bed, claiming Zel's soft upbringing needed a bed every now and then. Adara also made sure to re-dye her hair during their stay.

During the day, Adara kept to the inn but Zel wandered the city like a tourist. Confinement was nothing new for her and she found the raucous patrons of the Iron Knuckle not too different from off-duty soldiers. A few tried to advance their affections on her, but a knifepoint pressed against their side or neck sent them fleeing.

Zel returned frequently. Though he claimed to be checking in on her, she knew the strange city frightened him. He told her about strolling through the old town, where the city officials lived in their mansions high above Lake Akkala on a plateau. He described the dizzying sensation of standing near the cliffs over Lake Akkala and how small the village of Torin looked far below on the other side of the water. He told her about his frequent visits with Storm and how many apples the horse liked to eat.

On the third day, Adara couldn't stand it any longer. Soon after Zel left to wander the city again, she stepped out of the inn door to stretch her legs. With one eye she scanned for soldiers. With the other, she studied the faces of passersby for recognition. Soon, she entered a residential street. Mothers swept their doorsteps, beat rugs, and hung laundry. Men who worked as craftsmen instead of merchants hammered at shutters, patched roofs, or worked at some other small project. Children ran about, playing with homemade toys, sprinting behind rolling rings, or chasing each other in a rousing game of deadrock.