Haunting Shadow of the Past

Part 15

TW: Blood Warning! [Nothing super graphic but nonetheless I'm putting this here because there will be blood]

Link woke up well before the sun had risen and he propped himself up. For the first time in a while he felt well rested and was glad he had a chance to sleep. Link looked outside of the sleeping area and to his surprise saw no guards. He scowled, they had been there when Link and Zelda had gone to sleep. Had they just walked off after Link had drifted off? Slightly annoyed Link turned his head to make sure Princess Zelda was okay only to find her bed empty. Suddenly Link felt much more awake and he jumped out of bed. He was thankful that he had chosen to fall asleep with his sword and shield on his back because otherwise the same people that had taken Zelda could have grabbed the master sword as well. Link kept trying to tell himself that maybe she had just gone for a late night walk around the village but when he left the rest area that idea instantly melted away. He saw that the Rito hadn't left, they had been killed.

Even more worry filled Link and he sprinted in the direction to leave the Village when he saw something that caused his blood to run cold. Laying in front of the small goddess statue Link had seen when he had first come in was Princess Zelda's body lying in a puddle of her own blood. Link ran down to her and checked for a pulse. When he failed to find one his head started to spin and he felt like he was going to pass out. Suddenly from a few yards away came several "Poof!" sounds followed by a chorus of maniacal laughter. Link turned to see several slim figures creeping towards him. They were all identical down to their masks which all had an upside down sheikah eye.

That's when Link realized what these people were. They were all part of the Yiga clan which was a tribe dedicated to bringing back Ganon. These must have been the figures he had seen ducking behind trees and large shrubbery, how had he been so blind? Link removed his sword and stood up when the 10 or so yiga rushed at him with weapons held for attack.

Link jolted awake drenched in cold sweat and breathing heavily. The knight let out a sigh, it was just a dream. The sky was still dark but Link could make out the two Rito guards positioned outside of the sleeping area and when he looked over to Princess Zelda's bed he was relieved to see she was still there sleeping soundly.

Now that he was awake Link had no interest in going back to bed. He climbed out of bed and did some slow stretches to wake himself up more. One of the Rito guards noticed he was awake and Link walked over to them.

"We are glad to see you are awake," He said in a gruff voice, "I will inform you that while you were asleep there was no incident. Now that you have awakened do you wish us to continue standing guard or...?" His question faded off.

Link thought for a moment before answering. "That should be fine, have a good rest of your night."

Both Rito gave a sharp nod before turning and walking off. Link walked back into the rest area and sat on the edge of his bed working on trying to quiet his mind. One of the many things that bothered him from that dream was the fact that he had never seen a Yiga before, not as a picture or drawing and especially not in person, yet in his dream when he had seen the yiga he knew exactly what they were. Their appearance was so unnerving, they were unnaturally skinny and their masks were all the same and that, combined with their inhuman speed, really shook Link.

...

Link waited in silence as the sky steadily grew lighter and Link enjoyed being able to watch Hyrule wake up. The sun had a soft pink glow and Link couldn't help but resist a small smile but it instantly disappeared. Looking at this caused his heart to ache. When he was younger he would be woken up early by his mother and she would take him to watch the sun rise. After she had passed away and Liliana was old enough Link would occasionally take her to watch their beloved land wake up. One of Link's favorite memories was a few weeks after Lilianan had been born his entire family had gone to watch the sunrise. Unfortunately, that also was the day that Link's mother and father had sat Link down and had told him that his mother was extremely sick and that she was probably going to die from it. The day Link's mother had died had been the day that Link's life had been turned upside down. Link had changed completely; he was quieter and more closed off and he became slightly more reckless. Sure Link had improved as a knight but he had lost a large part of himself.

Link was so deep in thought he had failed to realize that the sun had completely risen and Zelda had woken up. She cleared her throat and Link came out of his thoughts. The Princess didn't say anything she just turned and left after Link stood up. Link quickly followed and as they walked by the place Zelda had been lying dead in Link's dream a shiver ran up his spine. Reflexively Link scanned his surroundings expecting some yiga to appear and attack him and the Princess.

The pair left the village and when they were about to cross the last bridge when a gust of wind surrounded them and Revali gracefully landed in front of them. "I'm surprised you're leaving so soon," He said as a greeting.

Zelda nodded. "Yes, I have several more places I need to go and people that I need to talk to."

Revali nodded before turning away slightly. "I will advise a word of caution. There have been multiple sightings of members of the Yiga Clan around here and throughout Hyrule in general. They have managed to disguise themselves as regular Hylians. They tend to stand on the side of the road so I recommend you avoid them." Revali turned back to the pair and made eye contact with Link, "for the Princess' safety I mean."

Zelda gave a small smile. "Thank you, Revali, for the warning. We will be careful."

Revali nodded before taking flight again. Link frowned, he found it extremely strange that Revali had mentioned the Yiga the same day Link had had a nightmare with them. He was sure it wasn't a coincidence.

As they got to the stable Link paid close attention to everyone that was there trying to see if anyone was suspicious. Upon close inspection Link noticed the only thing out of the ordinary was a lanky man who was walking around with a giant backpack on his back in the shape of a beetle. When the man made eye contact with Link he hurried over and Link suppressed a sigh.

"Hello!" The man greeted them enthusiastically, "My name is Beetle! I'm a traveling merchant! Is there something I can get for either of you?"

Link shook his head. "I think we're good but thank you." Beetle gave a nod before walking off to go bug another person at the stable. Link then walked over to the man running the stable and asked for their horses. The man nodded and sent someone to get their mounts. Link and Zelda were waiting when suddenly someone screamed. Link grabbed the Master Sword and spun around to see two moblins running towards them. The person running the stable cried out:

"Quickly, everyone, get inside!" Everyone at the stable ran into the sheltered area and Link ushered Zelda in too. He then ran over to the moblins and prepared his sword. Link embraced the awakening feeling the sword brought him and he was able to gracefully spin out of the way as one of the moblins stabbed at him with his spear. The other one carried a heavy hammer and he didn't hesitate to attempt to bring it smashing down over Link's head. Link managed to jump out of the way and had a free hit at the Moblin. He slashed the Moblin's side and the monster let out a howl of agony. He ripped his hammer out of the ground and swung it at Link who managed to duck under it. He slashed at the moblin's stomach and it doubled over clutching at the fresh wound.

The Moblin with the spear charged at Link who feinted to the left. The moblin took the bait and Link was able to get a clean attack. He plunged the master sword into the moblin's side and it snarled. The monster then grabbed the sword, pulled it from his side, and threw it, Link still holding on. Link hit the ground hard and the air in his lungs was forced out. The moblin with the hammer had recovered enough and he ran over to Link and swung his bulky hammer down. Link managed to roll out of the way just in time before pushing himself to his feet. As he struggled to pull air back into his lungs he had to dodge the consistent and hard attacks coming from the two moblins.

Link tried another feint but neither moblin fell for this one and Link only managed to not get impaled by falling flat on his stomach and rolling away. He quickly jumped back and grabbed his bow and arrow, if Link couldn't get a clean hit with his sword without obtaining several injuries he would just have to use a different tactic. He nocked the first arrow, aimed, and let go of the string.

The first arrow found itself lodged between the moblin with the hammer's eyes. He stood dazed for a second before collapsing to the ground. Link then aimed for the moblin with the spear and that arrow lodged itself right in the leg. The moblin toppled and Link, unsheathing the master sword, ran over and executed the final blow.

Also a quick random thing. The Beetle in this is BotW Beetle's grandfather so don't worry I'm not having it where Beetle is over 100 years old haha.