Endless War

XXIII

"One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency."

-Princess Zelda to Joseph Turner upon becoming an officer

All too soon, Zelda had to return to Hyrule. In the hours after the funeral, they had quietly discussed their new advances on one of the castle's patios, and Zelda was all too happy to fill Link in on further information on the Divine Beasts and the Guardians. She eventually talked herself to sleep, or maybe from sheer exhaustion from excitement. Whatever the case, when she started murmuring to herself and giggling and smiling for no apparent reason, Link had picked her up from her seat and carried her in his arms to her guest room, where he tucked her in, fixed her hair, and hesitated before giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead. She smiled again in her sleep before shifting positions and murmuring about something or someone called Terrako.

The softest whisper.

"Sleep tight, Zelda. Let your dreams run wild tonight."

He gently closed the door and started packing her bags. She was leaving before he woke up. It was the best way he could say goodbye. He would leave the undergarments to her, though.

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We got an emergency.

Hear me? Emergency. Somebody kidnapped Princess.

Wake up, punk.

"WAKE THE FUCK UP, LINK!"

Link bolted out of his bed. The last thing he remembered was folding the princess' white pants and coat for cold weather before stuffing them in her bag. Now here he was, rudely awakened by Reznov slapping him so hard he thought one of his teeth had come loose.

He checked real quick before the big bear could hit him again. No, his perfect teeth were still, well, perfect.

Then he remembered what Reznov had said.

"Wait. The Princess. Has been. KIDNAPPED?! Where is she? Why didn't you wake me sooner!"

He scowled. "In case you didn't notice, fool, I did try to wake you. And relax, it isn't Zelda that's been kidnapped; it's that little brat, Childa. I mean, Hilda."

Viktor Reznov tightened his coat before continuing casually. "You know, I don't think we need to go after her, though. She's real moody all the time. I think it's okay to let the Yiga take her away to wherever they plan to take her."

It was Link's turn to scowl. "Listen here, you scrub-nosed plate of dubious food. It doesn't matter if we don't like her. It's our job as soldiers to protect people. Even the assholes."

Reznov laughed heartily. "That's the spirit, Link! It looks like you finally woke up. Now come on, let's go. Zelda hasn't left yet, and she's coming along for this adventure."

"She is? Wouldn't it be..."

"Dangerous? Maybe, but she's willing to fight with the grunts like us. That's the mark of a good leader. Now come on, we don't keep her waiting. She was with Childa when the kidnapping occurred."

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"Zelda, I'm -"

"Link, shush. I'm coming along with you. This could be our best shot at repairing relations between Lorule and Hyrule."

"Yeah, but it doesn't mean you must come along! Gaz, Griggs, Mason, Reznov, Yuri, and I can handle it."

"Are you saying that I'm useless?" Delivered in a dangerous tone but with a twinkle in those big eyes. She knew she would win with that line.

Link blanched, already knowing that he would lose this fight. He never won battles with the Princess. "N-no."

Zelda smiled. "Well, then, let's hurry up. We don't have much time."

"What about Soap and Ghost? Wouldn't we need them?"

"It's all been handled with Shepherd. Soap - such an odd name (a frown here) - and Ghost are going after intel."

"Where was the princess taken?"

"Gaz says a prison near here. Let's hope we don't become prisoners ourselves."

....................................................................................................

They became prisoners. All seven were tossed in with Hilda.

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"I'm going to give you one chance to live."

Link looked up to see the Yiga staring at him. Surprisingly, they hadn't beaten them, but starved him and everybody else. What he needed right now was some raw apples. He missed their crunch, their sweetness. Or maybe some raw honey.

The demon picked him up roughly before dragging Mason and a sleeping Zelda out with him into another cell, one hidden from the view of the others.

The man picked up a sickle lying nearby. He pointed it at Link.

"Your father killed my whole family in his war against us. But I will give you a choice. Either you die...or this man does. Or perhaps even the lovely Zelda?"

"Why?"

"BECAUSE YOU MUST SUFFER AS I HAVE SUFFERED...! Now one must die. You, Mason... or Zelda. Make a decision now, or in ten seconds, you're all dead!"

Link froze. He had never expected it to come to this. He knew they all had to live: every life here was meaningful. But how could he fight back? He was malnourished and weak; the enemy above him was physically fit and intimidating. There was no way he could win right now.

Mason began protesting, "Link... I can't; I have two kids, and they..."

And just like that, he had his friend's life in his hands.

Time seemed to slow as he tried to think of who to sacrifice.

Never Zelda. He would never let this vile bastard hurt --

"EIGHT! NI-!"

Mason suddenly shouted, "Fuck! Okay... ME! DO IT! DO IT!!!!"

The man looked back at Link. "You have a whole life ahead of you. Protect Hyrule for me, will you?"

It was the dying man's request, for the sickle fell silently.

There was a moment of silence. Zelda was, remarkably, still sleeping. Mason had just entered the final sleep. And that left Yiga and Link looking at each other.

Link couldn't help but feel the man's hatred for him, the Princess, and the whole rotten world. He imagined that if he took the man's mask off, he would see red eyes, red hair, and a mouth full of fangs.

But when the man did take his mask off, it was just a 40-year-old man, scarred and burned, with surprisingly good teeth. Yet those eyes...those eyes scared him.

"Your life will be consumed by total loss. Then and only then will you understand what you have done to me?"