Kingdom of Power, of Courage, and of Wisdom

Kyou's War - Ouki Mitagi

-Northwest of Kanyou, Zelda-

Zelda's horse descended from the trees toward the plains. The path had been windy and they had gone at a reckless pace for two days, but they had made it. They could have made it in half the time if they had ridden through the plains, but Ganon and she agreed to take roundabout paths through the mountains around the western edge of Qin till they approached from the north.

The mountains surrounded Qin on the west side and one mountain range pierced down its middle. This split Qin in half, making the Genyuu Pass an essential defense; but Kanyou had long been the former fortress of Qin that protected it from its easterly neighbors. King Shorlin turned the massive fortress into his capital when it was no longer necessary to use it as a defense against the east. The capital was nestled into a group of mountains near the pass. Not touching the mountains, but close enough.

She pulled the horse to a halt as the capital came into view. It was close enough she could near the ruckus of the towns within.

"So this is Kanyou." Ganondorf Dragmire descended from the tree line. His horse stopped by her side. His wolf kept an equal pace easily. As they stopped, the wolf sat and panted to catch its breath. Elder slowed to a halt.

"It is. What do you think?"

"It is much larger than I expected," Ganon replied. "I always figured the plains people were more frivolous with its space, but this is beyond anything I could have imagined. You could make so much farmland with these plains, and your children must be able to run freely without coming to obstacles."

She said, "Not quite. With the army so focused on our borders, bandits are rampant. Also, past wars have salted the earth... leaving much of it unable to grow crops. There is only so much that can be farmed. Most of it is a wasteland. So you can understand another reason why I am hesitant to give up valuable land. I would not want to damage relations by giving you useless wasteland, but to give up farmland would damage the country dearly."

Ganon sighed. "Didn't we already agree to discuss it later?"

"Yes, but-"

"So stick to it, High Princess! Focus on what is before you. Focus on the present! We have a palace to take."

Zelda nodded. "You are right..."

"Of course, I am." Ganondorf turned towards the trees and yelled out loudly a command in Majoran. Immediately the earth started to rumble. Ganondorf turned his horse forward and kicked it into motion. His wolf followed, and Zelda did the same to get her horse into motion, for not a moment later a tide of Majoran horsemen, massive wolves, and tree-centaur burst from the trees into the open. Link's horse joined into the stampede on its own, to his relief, and Zelda saw Matsubi and her Qin followers were keeping up as well.

Zelda spurred her horse on to catch h up with Ganon. His horse was as fast as the wind, and with his bright red hair in the wind, he looked like he was trailing fire. It almost sparkled in the sunlight.

"High Princess, where is this door of yours!" Ganon yelled.

"It will be just ahead! Look for a lonely bent tree!" She yelled back.

Knowing what to look for, Zelda saw it first and lead him towards it. She stopped by the tree. The tree itself was exceedingly old, struggling to survive in the wasteland. The well had dried up long ago and was sealed shut with a lid. The army stopped around her. Zelda dropped from her horse and tried to pry the seal open, but it would not give.

"Allow me. Time is running out. They can see us from their walls." Ganon stepped forward while flexing his arms.

Zelda took a step back. Ganon brought a fist down onto the wooden and iron planks with a yell, and they shattered to pieces. The Majoran cheered. Zelda was impressed. Shattering wood with a fist was impressive, but was doable by men of strength. To shatter wood reinforced with iron? She knew of only two men that could do it. Now she could make the list three members long.