Hero by Heart

Chapter 29

Zelda had barely let the Gerudo women introduce themselves before she begged them to help her.
     Luckily they were more than willing to do that and they agreed to explain their own purpose once they knew Link was safe.
     So after their short talk, Zelda stormed off to search the ground where so many monsters had died. As usual they had disappeared in a cloud of black fog, but their weapons and some parts still remained.
     She carefully shifted through the stinking mess in search of a sign of Link and gasped loudly when she saw it. His sword.
     The Master Sword was lying on the ground, on a clear patch of grass, almost at the top of the hill.
     Zelda knew one thing for sure. Link would never leave that behind willingly.
She grabbed the blade from the ground and carefully held it, before calling the Gerudo over. They started searching in a wider circle, but with no result.
     Eventually Zelda decided that they should check the Citadel, the most likely place where the monsters could be hiding.
     As they stepped onto the platform leading to the main bridge, which had half collapsed, Zelda spotted Epona standing under a tree, all alone and looking a little rugged.
     She quickly walked over and then slowly approached the horse, holding out her hands and trying not to spook her.
     Epona looked at her and neighed in what seemed to be recognition.
     Zelda smiled and patted her on the head, stroking her fur down. 'Hey there, girl. Can you tell me where Link is?'
     At the name of her master the horse threw her head up, but of course there was no answer.
     Zelda decided to leave Epona where she was, because she seemed to be safe here and they might need a horse. If Link was here there was no telling what state he was in.
     She tied the Master Sword to the saddle and after a brief discussion with Merina, the Gerudo Warrior who seemed to function as their leader, Zelda decided to find a way into the ruins.
     Surrounded by the well trained, armed warriors, Zelda felt much braver. She walked the stairs in search of a way in, not caring if any monster would get in her path. She was angry enough to attack it with her bare hands.
     After a while they reached a platform where there seemed to be an opening, but it was half barricaded with rocks and the other half was tightly shut by a large wooden door.
     Bertri and Laine started pushing, but the door wouldn't budge. Instead it stayed in place, secured by all the rubble lying on the ground.
Eventually Merina told them to stand back and help her, as she pushed away some of the rocks. With their combined effort they managed to clear quite some rubble, clearing a bigger part of the door.
Still there was no movement as they tried to get in. That was when Zelda suddenly had an idea.
She excused herself and ran back down the stairs. Not long after she started her descent she heard the footsteps of one of the warriors following her. She assumed that they didn't want to leave her unprotected here.
For a second she was a little insulted, like she could not take care of herself, but then she reminded herself that she probably couldn't. That was why she kept Link with her.
With him in her mind she ran faster, until she reached Epona and started rummaging in the saddlebags.
Immense relief washed over her when she found what she was looking for, and, without even glancing over at the Gerudo woman that stood gasping for air behind her, she started running back up the stairs.
When she reached the door again, she told the other women to step back and be ready. Meanwhile she lifted the small hunting bow that Link always kept with him, and nocked an arrow. Her left shoulder still hurt, but she bit her teeth and ignored it.
The arrow was one of the special ones Link carried, with some sort of red pouch at the tip. Zelda smiled as she lit the short fuse and aimed the arrow at the door. At this distance it wasn't hard to hit it, so with a loud explosion the wood cracked and was blown inside, leaving only part of the door still hanging.
The Gerudo Warriors had jumped backwards in shock at the explosion, but now regained their composure and stormed inside, weapons raised and shouting warcries.
With the sheer amount of noise they created, their little group scared off the closest monsters and were free to turn the first corner.
They were now facing a circular chamber, with stairs leading up and down, and multiple corridors leading away. There were so many options that Zelda felt her hopes shatter, realizing that it would take forever to find Link.
That problem was soon solved, however, when a large group of Bokoblins and Moblins poured out of one corridor, some still with food in their hand or mouth. They obviously had been sitting around their campfires, not expecting any form of attack.
Zelda shouted and pointed towards the corridor where they came from and the group charged forward.
The Gerudo Warriors were incredibly skilled and the monsters were trapped in a tight space, completely taken by surprise. It didn't take long for them to turn and flee the other way.
As the women followed them, there seemed to be some obstacle, preventing the monsters from going further. There was a big hold-up and for a moment the Bokoblins and Moblins didn't know what to do.
They ran back and forth, but had no way out. No matter what was at the end of this hallway, they clearly hadn't expected it and sure didn't like it.
Zelda could only watch as the Gerudo women took care of the monsters surrounding them, slowly creating a path further down the hall. She tried to shoot a few, but her archery skills weren't exactly impressive and she was scared to hit the wrong person.
As she stood trying to find a mark that was safe to hit, her heart suddenly leapt up. She saw a flash of bright blue. The kind of blue of a champions tunic.
Her hope now stronger than ever, she shouted more and pointed down the corridor, making the Gerudo push even harder and gaining more ground.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a body jumped into the small circle of warriors surrounding Zelda.
She barely had time to take in his filthy face and torn tunic before Link crashed into her. Zelda stumbled backwards, as he kept his arms tightly wrapped around her shoulders. With his strong hands he prevented them from falling, but they smashed against a wall and she widened her eyes in shock.
He now stood pressing her with her back into the wall, their noses almost touching. Time seemed to slow as she looked at his bright blue eyes, the row of white teeth that stood out even more in all the dirt and the immense relief that was plain on his face. He was panting, his chest heaving against her and his breathing shallow.
'Link,' she whispered, carefully reaching out to touch his face.
'Zelda,' he mumbled back, pushing some stray hairs behind her ear. 'You're alright.'
The sheer amount of relief in his voice almost made Zelda's heart crumble. She nodded and wrapped her arms around him. 'I'm alright,' she whispered.
She then softly pushed him back so she could properly look at him. Although his clothes were torn and filthy, he didn't seem to be wounded. He held a knife in one hand and a broken broadsword in the other, obviously missing his beloved Master Sword.
'You seem alright too,' she smiled. 'And here I was trying to rescue you.'
Link chuckled softly, looking over his shoulder at where the Gerudo Warriors took care of the last remaining monsters. 'You couldn't have had better timing. Thank you.' At that he looked her straight in the eye and it was clear that he meant it with all his heart.
Zelda just nodded, feeling her throat clench together. She was just so happy that he was okay. She needed him. Just the thought that she might have lost him almost made her tear up.
Link now finally stepped back, allowing Zelda to stand on her own, but he stayed close enough to touch her. 'Come on, we should discuss some things and I am very curious to hear how you found your friends over there.'

They were standing in the dark, cold cellar where the prison cells were. The place where Link had been imprisoned. The place where he had taken out his two guards and left them next to their fire.
They were gone. Somehow they had gained consciousness in time to find a way to escape. The only trace that showed they had been there at all came from the weapons Link had taken.
When he explained what they had looked like Zelda could see on the faces of the Gerudo women that they knew exactly what he was talking about. They had experience with this.
Merina kicked a loose pebble away as she looked between Link and Zelda, a serious look on her face. 'This is exactly why we came here in the first place.'
Link looked at Zelda, but she was just as puzzled as he was. They hadn't discussed that yet.
The whole group went back up the stairs, where they entered the comfortable living area where the monsters had made their camp. A few fires were burning and there was even some meat roasting above one of them.
Babi and Reeza used that and some other stuff they found to prepare a hasty meal for them all, while Zelda pulled Link apart.
She looked at his filthy face, where she now saw red scratches she hadn't noticed before. With water from her flask she wet a cloth and gave it to him, so he could clean up a bit.
Link smiled gratefully and wiped his face, while turning to sit down at the fire with the others.
From behind him Zelda suddenly noticed the blood caked in his hair. She reached out and gently touched his head, producing a wince from him.
'I guess that's how they knocked me out,' Link chuckled dryly, pulling her hand away from his head and holding it for a second.
Zelda noticed some looks of the Gerudo, but chose to ignore it. This was not the time to worry about what they would be thinking.
'We should get it cleaned up, before it gets infected or something,' she interjected softly.
Link looked up at her and smiled fondly. 'Don't worry, Zelda. We will do that later. First we need to talk.'
He looked around the group and Zelda followed his gaze, finding that all women were watching them.
She shrugged and smiled, not really convinced, but not wanting to make a problem.
'Okay, so tell us,' Zelda started, sitting down and turning towards the Gerudo, pretending as if nothing had happened. 'What about these guys brought you all across the kingdom?'
'We actually came to find you two,' Merina said, gesturing towards her and Link and sticking an applepiece in her mouth.
Link raised his eyebrows, but it was Zelda who spoke. 'Us? Why?'
Merina smiled, but motioned for the Gerudo woman next to her to continue, her mouth still full.
'Lady Riju sent us,' Kotta stated. 'There is something happening in the desert, as we said, and she wanted your opinion. She said it would be best if you could see for yourself, so we are here to ask you to come.' She smiled kindly at the princess. 'And we would serve as your guard, to make sure your travels will be safe.'
Zelda nodded thoughtfully.
'Well, as far as she will be needing protection,' Reeza butt in, chuckling. 'She seemed to be doing quite alright when we met.'
The others nodded, chuckling as well, making Zelda bend her head down shyly. She wasn't used to that kind of praise.
'What do you mean?' Link asked, confusion plain on his face.
Merina now turned to him. 'She came out of nowhere, from the midst of all those monsters, with nothing but a torch as a weapon.' She chuckled. 'She sure looked quite dangerous, I must admit.'
Link raised his eyebrows and looked at Zelda, admiration and concern battling on his face.
Zelda awkwardly chuckled and shrugged. 'I was just trying to find you.' She turned towards Merina. 'And to be honest, you were just in time. I don't think I would have lasted much longer if you hadn't shown up.'
She heard Link exhaling softly, before he reached out and grabbed her hand, in plain sight of everyone.
Zelda flushed bright red, but didn't pull away, instead squeezing back softly.
'So,' Merina went on, undisturbed, 'will you come with us?'
Zelda shot a questioning look over at Link, but he shrugged. Their plan had been to travel to the castle and then on to Rito Village, perhaps, but nothing was set yet.
So she smiled at the women around them and nodded. 'We will. If these people show up more around the kingdom we should find out who they are and what they want. That is more important right now than our current research.' She offered Link a sad smile. 'We will have to postpone that for a little while.'