In which Ganondorf is on a rampage toward Castle Town.
They came in the night. Link woke to the sound of screaming and the smell of burning. The thought of sleep vanished, and he jumped out of bed. No time to get dressed; he had to see what was going on. His mom met him at the door.
"Get your sword," she said in haste, then left.
Link followed her to the armory. It was really just a closet full of weapons. His dad met them there. He already had a sword strapped to his waist and handed a crossbow to Mom and a sword to Link. Dad and Link grabbed shields, and they left the house.
The world outside was in flames. Even their house had caught fire. The homes, the trees, everything burned. People ran in all directions.
"Let's get out of here," Dad said. "Stick together."
Dad took the lead, and Link followed behind Mom. They kept low, but Link tried to watch everywhere all at once in case of an ambush. Who knew what monsters might be lurking in the smoke-filled shadows? Someone had done this to their village, so of course, there would be monsters. The bokoblins that crossed their path were easy enough to dispatch, especially when Mom sighted them with her crossbow.
Soon, they made it to the edge of town. The buildings were all roaring with fire, so there was nowhere to hide. Three tall figures stood among the smoke and bokoblins, one double the size of the other two.
King Ganondorf had come to their village.
What? Why was he here? What did he want with their village? Why did he burn everything? All these questions and more flew through Link's mind.
King Ganondorf spotted them and said, "Ah, some rabble has come to play. Bokoblins, get rid of them."
The bokoblins advanced. Link and his dad became blurs fighting them. Mom hung back and sniped the monsters. She ran out of bolts before the battle ended, so Dad defended her. Link maneuvered ahead. Eventually, all of the bokoblins fell to the family's weapons.
King Ganondorf had his arms crossed and was frowning. Link pointed his sword at him, but he knocked the sword aside. Link's heart rate spiked, but he didn't budge. His mouth was dry.
"You dare point a weapon at me, the king of the Gerudo?" King Ganondorf questioned. "Nabooru, Volga, tie them up. They will have the pleasure of watching this pathetic village burn."
Moblins surged forward and grabbed Link and his parents. They resisted, but the moblins were too powerful. The moblins brought them over to some trees that were still standing, where the two who were named tied them up. Link struggled, and a moblin hit his head with a club. Link saw stars and slumped where he was tied.
"Leave him alone!" Mom called out. She was hit in the head, too.
"What are you planning?" Dad demanded. "Why have you come here?"
King Ganondorf laughed. "Why should I tell worms like you?" To his soldiers, he said, "Let's move out!"
They left the dead behind and marched toward Castle Town.
When the army was gone, Dad asked, "Are you two alright?"
"Mm-hm," Link muttered. His vision was clearing up, but his head throbbed.
"I'll be okay," Mom said quietly. "I wasn't hit that hard."
"We have to get free!" Dad said. "Are you able to loosen your bonds?"
Link shook his head, which was a bad idea. He stopped quickly and closed his eyes.
Mom said, "They're too tight."
"Keep trying," Dad said, though he didn't sound hopeful.
"Maybe someone will come along and free us," Mom said, though Link could barely hear her over the roar of fire.
Link opened his eyes and looked at the village. His eyes stung, and tears fell down his cheeks. How could this happen? Wasn't there peace between Hyrule and the Gerudo? Apparently not. And now, his village had to suffer for it.
Why? Why, why, why? If only he were stronger! The thought of fighting someone as big as King Ganondorf scared him, but he vowed to stop him.
Even if it cost him his life.
𝆘∴𝆗
Princess Zelda watched the oncoming army of monsters and Gerudo from her tower. Surely the walls and guards would keep them out? Alas, a fire mage led the charge, and the stone walls exploded inward. Where did King Ganondorf get a fire mage?
"Princess!" Impa shouted, running into the room. Zelda turned around. "It's not safe for you here!" Impa said. "You must leave immediately!"
"How can I leave my people behind?" Zelda questioned.
"If you don't leave, you will be captured," Impa said sternly. "If you're captured, you won't be able to help your people. Become Sheik and leave with me!"
"Where will we go?" Zelda asked.
Impa pulled clothes out of drawers to pack. "King Ganondorf attacked a village on his way here. We should see if there are any survivors."
"Agreed," Zelda said, and gathered her things to put on her disguise.
Minutes later, the women snuck down the halls toward a secret exit.
"Wait," Zelda whispered, stopping. "What about Mother and Father?"
"They have their own attendants helping them," Impa said impatiently. "They will meet us outside the castle."
"Thank you, Impa," Zelda said, and continued.
They hurried out of the secret tunnel, making sure no one was around.
The exit was in the middle of the forest. The sun made dappled shadows on the ground. Zelda breathed in the fresh scent.
"We'll rest here until the queen and king arrive," Impa said. "Remember, from now on, you are known only as Sheik."
"Yes, I understand," Sheik said.
They waited for what seemed like hours, but it was only minutes. Sheik paced up and down like a caged animal. Impa carefully watched the trees.
A strange noise came from the secret tunnel: grunting and shuffling of feet. Sheik's hopes perked up. Was that her parents? Impa sharply looked at the tunnel.
"Something's not right," Impa said.
"Light your torch," Sheik said. "I can't see them."
Impa set the torch ablaze and peered down the tunnel. "Stay back," she said.
"Why?" Sheik asked.
"I'm not sure that's… Sheik, run!" Impa backed out of the tunnel, grabbed Sheik's hand, and ran.
"What's going on?" Sheik yelled.
"Bokoblins!" Impa yelled back. "They somehow found the tunnel!"
"Where are my parents?" Sheik asked desperately.
Impa had no answer for her. They ran on in silence, dread filling Sheik with every step. Her home and her parents were gone! What could she possibly do? She had to do something!
After a long while, Impa slowed down to a stop and said, "I think we're safe here. Are you alright?"
Sheik threw up her hands. "Alright? Of course, I'm not alright! My parents are missing, and the castle has been overrun!"
"Please, be quiet," Impa said.
"We have to do something!" Sheik went on, though she lowered her voice.
"We will," Impa said, "after we go to that village. If you're not hurt, we can move on."
Sheik sighed and crossed her arms. "No, I'm not hurt. Lead the way."