Noble by Nature

Chapter 24

It was only just starting to get hot when Link, Reeza and Laine rode their sand seals up to the town's walls.
     They had left the stable early in the morning. There had been plenty of sand seals to choose from, left at the entrance of the desert by the Gerudo warriors now protecting the stable. With those they had been able to traverse the desert in no time.
     Link had dressed in his Desert Voe outfit so that his golden armour blended in nicely with that of the warriors around him. Still, the women in town stared at him openly. The ones he knew greeted him kindly enough, by now used to his free pass into town, but there were plenty who had never seen a man inside these walls.
     He did his best to ignore all those eyes as they climbed the stairs to the palace, where they found Riju already seated on her throne.
     She smiled when they entered, and jumped up to give each of them a hug. 'I'm so glad to see you!' She exclaimed. 'Thank the Heroines you made it here safely. I heard it's a mess out there.'
     Link nodded, unable to keep a smile from his lips at her youthful enthusiasm.
'What is it I can help you with?' Riju asked, settling back down on her chair.
     He stepped closer and quickly glanced around the room. Buliara stood beside the throne, her giant sword in hand. Two guards stood at the steps leading up to Riju's room, but other than that it was empty.
     He lowered his voice so that the guards wouldn't hear as he looked at Riju pleadingly. 'I need to speak with Ramella.'
     It didn't surprise him when Buliara let out an undignified scoff, but he kept his attention on the Gerudo Chief. The young girl seemed to take a moment to let the words settle in, then cocked her head. 'Why?'
     Link glanced around once more, uncomfortable with sharing this information in such an open space. 'She might know a certain... cure.'
     'A cure?' Riju repeated, thankfully keeping her voice low as well. 'What for?'
     'For me,' the knight grunted begrudgingly.
     Finally Riju seemed to catch on and she leaned back in her chair, her face full of sudden understanding. 'Lady Maud,' was all she said.
     Link nodded. 'Zelda thought Ramella might have some information about the poison she used. She is our only hope.'
     Riju slowly nodded. 'For your sake, and all of ours, I truly hope she does.'
     'So you'll let me talk to her?'
     'Of course. I know I can trust you. Buliara can take you to her.' She looked at the captain beside her, who nodded curtly.
     'I'd prefer to do it as soon as possible,' Link said, feeling a strange nervous energy coursing through him. All depended on this. If she didn't have an answer, he might never be able to be a knight again.
     'Very well,' Riju nodded. 'But maybe afterwards you can update me about everything going on in the kingdom?'
     Link nodded, and that was that. Buliara waved him over and he followed her out the throne room and down to the barracks.
     As per usual Gerudo warriors were busy practicing there. It seemed more crowded than he'd ever seen it. At a glance he could tell there were experienced warriors at work, as well as a large group of newcomers who hardly seemed to know how to hold a weapon. A mixture of relief and sadness washed over him when he noticed the group of young girls being instructed by a fierce-looking Gerudo.
     Riju had obviously not been idle and for that much he was grateful. He hated the necessity of making young girls learn how to fight, though.
     A few warriors recognized him and called out greetings as they descended the stairs, but Buliara kept walking and he was forced to keep up. She stopped not far from the final step, left of the raised dais, where a small hatch was placed in the dusty floor.
     'In here,' she said, rather needlessly. 'You two stay outside,' she added to Reeza and Laine, who didn't look too happy with those commands. But they nodded and chose position on either side of the opening, while Buliara pulled it open and gestured for Link to go ahead.
     He carefully climbed onto the ladder that led into darkness and started to make his way down. It was quite a deep hole, and quickly became rather cold. By the time he reached the bottom, his breath formed little clouds in front of him.
     He turned to find a long, narrow hallway stretching out before him, with torches lit at even intervals. The walls were made of tight-packed dirt and supported by wooden beams.
     'Go on,' Buliara urged from behind him. 'You can't miss it.'
     Link nodded and started walking. The hallway was straight as an arrow and he could see countless torches flickering in the distance, so many that he couldn't tell where it ended.
     'Do you have many prisoners here?' He asked over his shoulder.
     'At the moment it's just her and two old Yiga members.'
     He nodded absentmindedly, hardly even registering her answer. His mind was going into overdrive the closer they got. What if she didn't have the answers he so desperately needed?