Endless War

XVII

"And the world shall know fire and thunder when we are through with them."

-King Rhoam to the military in the aftermath of the Great Bombing

"Princess Hilda, please tell me you have some information that can help us."

The General and the Princess were sitting alone in the throne room.

"Anything will help us," he added. "I don't care how you got it. I need the intel."

It had been two weeks since Team Metal and Noble Team had fused into Task Force 141. Since they had no idea what to do, they decided to look for documents or papers that might give them an idea of what to do. So far, they had killed plenty of Yiga footsoldiers and captured a few more, but nothing substantial had shown up. On the plus side, the two teams from different nations had bonded over time, with the original Team Metal learning to respect their 15-year-old commander after he saved Grinch, who was highly toxic but still a good man.

So while the soldiers had embarked on countless expeditions to capture known Yiga lieutenants, often when TF 141 was ready to take them in, they chose to commit suicide rather than face interrogation. It was highly frustrating, and because the General did not like his troops getting frustrated and starting to fight amongst themselves, he went to see the princess, hoping she would guide him.

Hilda was nervous as she stared at the man in front of him. She had read his war record before she had decided to summon him here, and it was terrifying. He had faced several of the best swordsmen in single combat. He had led the Hyrulean Army to victory over several major Yiga offensives. As governor of Castle Town, he had turned a war-torn village into a thriving modern city. Also, he was handsome, especially with that mustache.

The princess thought back to what her ancestors had supposedly done long ago: they had destroyed Lorule's Triforce to stop wars from being fought over it. But it was a mistake: the Triforce needed to survive if Lorule was too, and slowly the once-beautiful kingdom turned into a lawless society where only the strongest survived. It was survival of the fittest gone mad.

Yet, perhaps the man in front of her could help... What if he could use his leadership skills to turn this country around and back to its former glory?

She remembered reading her spies' reports on him that he had an intense hatred for the Yiga Clan. 

The spy had claimed that two years ago, when Link was 13, one year after he had pulled Master Sword, his father had taken his wife and daughter on a trip around Hyrule. Protecting the family were 100 soldiers, some of whom were also on vacation. Link was unable to go because of injuries sustained during training. Agent 13 had noted that this was probably for the best for Link. 

Not far from the Kara Kara Bazaar location, the Yiga ambushed the entourage, having gotten wind of where the general and his family were. The details were hazy, as battles tend to blur what should be obvious, but it ended in the death of 32 soldiers and the man's family.

Then there was that other event which happened around the same time. She hadn't needed spies to learn about that. The atrocities were enough to overload the grapevine.

There had been eight towns involved, she remembered.

Goron.

Zora.

Hateno.

Rito.

Lurelin.

Gerudo.

Kakariko.

Tarrey.

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One year ago

Josefina Menendez woke up, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. Today was the Festival of the Lost, which only came once every ten years. It was supposed to celebrate Hyrule's heroes, but not the hero in green. No, this festival was dedicated to the soldiers who fell in battle with no family or friends to remember them, the ones whose names were never etched onto any wall or gravestone.

The little girl smiled. Her older brother had been in the Army for two years, and because she missed him so much, Mother said he was returning for the month-long festival. Raul had always told her stories of how the ghosts of the dead soldiers came back during this month and partook in the festivities, feeling human once more. More importantly, they felt happy again. That was good, she thought as she started brushing her hair and smoothing her blue and white top with black pants. I want Father to be happy again. Mother always looks so sad when I ask about Father. But this month, I will do my best to ensure Mother can hear Father's smiles and laughs!

"Josie! Look who's here!" her mother called from the kitchen.

On her little five-year-old legs, Josie ran as fast as she could, catapulting herself into Raul's arms.

"Big brother! You're back!"

The elder sibling chuckled as he hugged his little sister back and then put her down to kiss his crying mother.

Josie started bouncing up and down, desperate to get Raul's attention, finally pulling him away when he finished babying his frail mother.

"My, Josie! How pretty you look! You just need to braid your hair and you'll look just like the princess herself! Here, my friend taught me how to do it."

Mother was frail, but her mind was sharp. "Friend?"

The man blushed as he knelt to braid his giggling sister's hair.

Two hours later

"Big brother, over here!"

"Can we get this, please?"

"I want this plushie! The bunny one!"

Raul's hands and arms were full of the prizes he had won for Josie. He really should have taken a bag from home. The last thing he wanted was to drop the fairy wand. Or maybe the wings. No, for sure, not the mochi.

But despite that, he had to smile. He hadn't seen his sister in forever, and even though Sergeant Isabella was sweet, that hottie was no match for his sister's company.

She momentarily paused her running to look back at him with a smile that only an angel could have produced. He smiled back, and the little one squealed in delight. She ran back and jumped into his arms.

And then...a sound of thunder.

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Official transcript attached:

I: Dispatch 7 to HQ.

II: HQ copies all, five by five. How many casualties?

I: [Pause] Too many to count.

II: That's not an answer. How many?

I: [Sigh] Over 5,000 in this town alone. I've heard that there have been detonations in seven other cities.

II: Roger. That brings the death toll today to at least 23,000.

I: Sweet Hylia... We're going to make those Yiga bastards pay.

II: Count on it.

I: [Sounds of movement] These poor children... I remember Sergeant Menendez. He told me stories of his little sis. I hope they meet their father...

II: You're letting emotion get in the way, soldier.

I: Fuck you.

[End transmission]