The Legend of Zelda: Goddess of Secrecy

Overworld Chapter 4 - See You Soon

            Link laid out the bedroll before he went on to enjoy his small meal, pushing the thought of dead bodies out of his mind. The bread was a simple loaf of wheat bread, but the flask was filled with mead that woke Link back up a bit. He set the flask down after a few sips, wishing for some water instead. He didn't seem to have much of a taste for alcohol.

            The sunset over Hyrule Field as he finished. Monsters began creeping out. Link watched skeletons and their dogs pull themselves from the ground with hollow, red eyes that flashed across the landscape. Keeses and black-feathered guays perched in trees, watching dark skinned bokoblins patrolling the Field, and possibly something sweeter.

            “Those are bulblins, Link. They are stronger than the bokoblins by a considerable amount. They have only been seen at night though. Out here at least. The Demon Lord is not ready to risk his more powerful minions in the daylight.”

            Pulling out his whetstone, Link studied the green-skinned creatures as he sharpened his new sword. Most of them toted around heavy wooden clubs, a few having crude bows in their hands. They all covered their skin with tattered rags and crude leather, leaving Link only wondering where they could have gotten the material. He decided to leave it to his imagination after a while.

            As the moon began to rise, Link looked across Hyrule Field, comparing everything to his map. A red glow stood out even this far from the peak of Death Mountain, the relatively-active volcano rumbling off on the horizon. Mountains dotted the horizon on to the north, and if Link listened carefully, he could hear Zora River tumbling down its banks.

            Reluctantly, Link turned his gaze south, down passed the distant coast, and boggy border of Grim’s Vale, towards his home. He could see the outline of the Deku Forest appear just on the horizon, no taller than bushes from this distance.

            An arid wind drew his attention to the west. He couldn’t see it from here, but he knew the entrance to Gerudo Desert rest beyond that horizon line. He wondered if his adventure would take him there.

            The moon hung high at its peak before Link decided to sleep. The air was cold with only an occasional eastbound wind to keep it from being freezing. It was late summer after all. Link slept better than he had in months, even on the hard surface of the Shrine.

            As the sun cracked over the horizon, a pair of travelers woke Link. He glanced off to see the pair of riders, cadets most likely, racing across Hyrule Field, coming closer to the Shrine. Link folded his bedroll and stuffed it beneath his shield as he finished off the rest of the bread and took another swig of mead to help wake himself up.

            The two riders halted beside the steps to the Shrine, dismounting. If they saw Link, they didn’t stop to say anything to him. The two went on babbling to each other about how they were going to become the greatest knights in all of Hyrule and how the Hero would guide them in their quest. Link left these ideas to their imagination.

            Link noticed a third horse behind the two knights. It was a Hylian draft horse, built for plowing, not riding. It was loaded with luggage and gear, a young woman with red hair sitting in the saddle.

            Stopping next to the horse, Link waited to see what the girl was doing. She turned around, finding a strange man in green watching her. The girl jumped back, startling her horse as she tumbled out of the saddle. Link gripped the reins his hands, and patted the horse on the nose to calm it down.

            The young woman came storming around after she found her footing. She demanded, “Who are you?”

            Link replied calmly, “I was concerned. It’s hardly passed dawn, and there are dark things out.”

            “Do you think I can’t handle myself?” the woman retorted, swinging a punch at Link.

            Normally, Link would let her blow land, to let her feel more confident about herself. But in the middle of Hyrule Field, overconfidence wouldn’t help her. It would kill her, more than likely. Instead, he caught the punch and quickly let her arm go, saying, “I believe you can handle yourself, but not against anything. Not yet at least.”

            The woman was taken aback. The two cadets noticed them, and shouted, “Oh, not you again. Go home, already! You’d never make it as a knight!”

            She turned around and shouted back, “We’ll see about that when I tan your sorry hides!”

            One of the cadets spotted Link. He said, “You’re a knight. What do you think about her?”

            Link looked at the woman. He felt a bit awkward as he sized her up. Her red hair was cut short, framing her freckled face and blue eyes. She had a farmer’s tan and the hands of a ranch worker. She was short, but there was definite muscle definition in her frame.

            Then, he glanced at the two cadets. They were lordlings, and probably hadn’t worked a day in their life. They weren’t fat, but they weren’t fit. The first six months were going to be pure agony for them. He responded, “I think she’d last longer than either you. She’d excel through basic training while you two are struggling through it.”

            Their faces paled before turned bright red. The woman shouted, “You hear that? Grasshopper here thinks I’m the better fighter.” She laughed as she put her hands on her hips in success.

            The two cadets waved it off, and remounted. They quickly rode off, too embarrassed to admit. The young turned back to Link, saying, “Thanks for that.” She extended her hand, “I’m Rixa.”

            “Um…,” Link muttered as he shook her hand. He was right about her being strong, her firm grip confirming his judgment.

            “Well, I need to get off to training, Grasshopper, so I can show those two buffoons up,” Rixa said. “But you’ve done me a favor today. My dad works on Lon Lon Ranch. If you ever need a horse, be sure to stop by. I’ll send him a letter to tell him about you. Pick a horse, and I'll call your favor repaid.”

            Rixa swung into her saddle, and spurred her horse. She waved. “See ya, Grasshopper!”

            Link stood there for a moment in wonder. He wasn’t really sure what had just happened. He put a hand to his head, wondering if the mead was affecting him.

            “No, the mead has no effect on you. It would take a lot more than one flask of mead to make you drunk, Link. Not to mention you didn't even finish it. Now hurry up!”

            Adjusting his path, Link pressed on across the remaining distance to Castle Town. The walls loomed above him as he approached, Zora River crashing far below. The drawbridge was lowered over the gap. As Link crossed the wooden door, Yore darted around his head.

            “Castle Town is built on an island, Link, and protected by powerful magic. The easiest way in is across this drawbridge. All other access if heavily guarded by soldiers of the Crown and is too narrow for an army to come in through without being picked off by the defenders.”

            Looking up, Link saw why the walls had to be so high. Otherwise the iron gate behind its drawbridge wouldn’t be hidden when it was raised, and exposed to nature. He would hate to have to replace that. He looked back ahead of himself and walked passed the metal bars and into Castle Town itself…