[ZGen] The White Heron [M]

Hey there ZU. Thought I’d just slip in an introduction before I jump into the story.

I love Zelda with the bottom of my heart, but recently I got the idea to create an entirely new myth arc for the Zelda series, turning the focus away from the Triforce, and minimizing the effect Link can have on the outcome of the story; I’ve set it in a new land I’m trying (note the word trying) to flesh out. Any and all criticism is welcomed, and don’t hesitate to tell me elements of the story you don’t particularly like.

Without further ado

The White Heron

“I have not been well, these past few days. It pains me, this curse the goddesses have bestowed upon me, to see the shape of things to come, yet know so little of them. This is why I have called you here.”

“What have you seen?”

“I have seen Echizen burn. I know not who, or why, but it is engulfed by darkness, eternally.”

“What would you have me do?”

“Valesca, you are my most faithful messenger. I have a difficult task for you.”

“Anything”

“I am the guardian of this world, and I should be stripped of my title if I did nothing to save it. I have seen those who stand against this evil. They fail, as they are not guided by their divine purpose or supported by one another. I know little of whom or where they are, and I must ask you to find these heroes.”

“Yes, Master Sigurd. I will find them.”

Valesca closed her eyes as Sigurd shared his vision with her. With only faces, and buildings, she took flight from the Pinnacle. With no guide, and the threat of Armageddon, she flew towards civilization. Sigurd could only watch her disappear into the clouds.

“Go with haste, my beloved. You are their only hope.”
---- Act 1: The Levant ----

“It’s hard to tell when you’re listening anymore. The last few months you haven’t spoken a word to me, but I still find it comforting to speak to you. You told me about the dreams…the dream you had as a child. When you were still called Link; before you became the Hero of Time. You told me, you stood and faced the great evil that threatened Hyrule. I’ve had some dreams too, but they’re not of bravery. I die. The Triforce leaves me, and then I just get pulled under a sea of hell spawn. Is this my future? After abandoning everything for the sake of the gods, is this the grand exit they have prepared for me?”

---- Chapter One ----
“I said at attention, soldier!”

Piercing red pupils got the message across, and the iron-clad soldier’s eyes shuffled chaotically to look at a face that resembled a violation of nature. He called this man ‘Commander’. Commander looked very quizzically at his helmet, and then above it, as if he thought the man had mysteriously shrunk a few inches since he last saw him.

“Where’s Tether?”

“He died, sir” the soldier replied. “He died a few days ago. I’m Chane, his replacement.”

Chane had to have been rattled when he realized the Commander must have been given the position because of his ability to sneer, and had his baffling mental deficiencies overlooked. It took a good six seconds of a stare down into Chane’s bright, baby blue eyes before the Commander registered that Tether was a few inches shorter than usual. It had rather unfortunate implications surrounding the deaths of the previous XOs.

“That is unfortunate. But I don’t remember receiving a note about a new XO.”

“I’m here from Izmir’s old unit sir; they disbanded a few days ago.”

“Very well. Come with me, I have to fill you in on Tether’s job.”

The outside of the camp glared of someone completely unfit for duty. Any commander can value a lavish war room, but the wooden spears on the weapon racks screamed bloody murder on where the funds went. The earth underneath the camp whimpered as each green, scaly Bulbin foot trampled it. The sky shed tears for the large patches of land scorched by fire, sprawling miles to reveal a graveyard of timber, flora, and unwitting wildlife. Whatever fight Mother Nature had left in her died when Commander Rodker came and laid down the law.

“We’ve received new orders from the higher ups, but it was made very clear that no two men know the other’s orders. In the event of his death, Tether wrote a letter for his successor.”

Rodker smirked. He felt a misplaced sense of power, explaining things to the new guy. Having Tether explain things to him like he was a five year old left a very deep wound in Rodker’s pride, so he was compelled to micromanage the camp until he did something right. Rodker handed Chane the letter, which Chane quickly pocketed, not wanting to interrupt the Commander’s moment.

“Tether carried out his duty, last time anyone heard from him, so it is safe to assume that we can continue. If you’ll follow me to the downstairs” Rodker beckoned “Izmir vouched for each of his men, and from the signet on your arm I can trust you as I would he. Stalhn has been calling all of the remaining commanders together.”

“Who, sir?”

“I believe that, in the event of Izmir’s death, I am the only one left loyal to the contract. He will arrive today to inspect the project, and then, well, who knows.”

“Project?”

Rodker spun a combination lock every which way until it clicked. The wall popped out onto hinges, and led the way into a very dark antechamber, lit only by crude lanterns and rudimentary electricity. Each of the lights flickered in front of Chane’s face, and each showed the blood quickly draining from his face. The room was full of tables and chains. Two small rods in the center connected to a black iron orb, and sparks of lightning crackled in between the tips. The room was full of dark, misshapen familiars who hadn’t seen the daylight so long that their flesh was colored a milky white. The room reeked of death and decay, and the smell caused Chane’s delicate human nose to bleed and struggle to be free from his head. Corpses were everywhere. Attached at the base of the black iron orb was another slab of stone, at the moment held a girl. She was screaming as the crackling sparks slowly rendered her soft and smooth forehead into a smoldering, festering patch of seared flesh. A small detail of soldiers was called into the room while Rodker did inspections.

“Anything?”

The familiar gurgled and clicked its tongue to the soldier on its left, who translated its words in broken phrases

“He says there’s progress, Commander” spoke the translator.

“He shall be here shortly, and then you can resume your duties.”

Commander Rodker was many things, but he wasn’t patient. After a few seconds, a childish huff of impatience wheezed out of his faceplate, and he turned to Chane.

“I have important matters to attend to. Chane, I trust you shall accommodate Stalhn when he arrives.”

“Sir, what does the goblin…imp…thing mean by progress?”

Chane turned around, and Rodker was already up the stairwell. Bulbins had a knack for that. Suddenly, the Familiar decided to take a closer look at Chane, which disturbed him greatly. The glazed eyes of this abomination was almost as bad as the inherent *gurgle* that preceded each click. The Translator looked stumped.

“He’s…watching you” the translator said, turning to the other guard.

“I know I’m ugly, but tell him to try and not stare” Chane muttered.

The three other guards chuckled at this, but the familiar snarled, baring its fanged canine teeth. Seeing as none of the other guards paid him any attention, the thing struggled to make out human words.

“In….intrue…”

“What’s he on about?” A guard asked

“DURRR!!!!”

The familiar reared its hind legs, but had the dawning realization that they had been cut off. In the split second it spent floating in the air, the familiar saw the translator’s sword pierce straight through his malformed face.

An extended kick sent a guard tumbling into the black iron orb, muffling his screams with the sound of electric sparks brutally ending the familiars around him.

The second guard felt a soft, supple hand cup the backside of his head, and quickly meet it with an elbow. His last thoughts were of how his attacker managed his skin so well. Cleanliness was a thing one never saw often in a Bulbin camp.

The third guard had failed to pull either his sword out of his scabbard, or put his mug of mead down. The end result was an awful waste of booze as it splattered all over his attacker’s legs, but was quickly met with a sword in the belly. The third guard wondered if his years of alcoholism were really worth the painful death of stomach acid entering his veins, but that thought ended when he realized his head was no longer attached to his body.

The black orb had shorted out, and the translator leapt over the smoldering corpses to the table, and took off his helmet.

“April…April answer me.”

“Genji…”

“Link, she’s not answering me!”

“That doesn’t matter! Get her off of the table, and let’s get the hell out of here before anyone else shows up”

Genji quickly tore off his cloth robes to cover the still-fresh burns covering April, and as they slowly made their way out of the chamber, a very chilling ring resounded throughout the lab. In his final act, someone had pulled the alarm

“The other exit is bolted shut” Genji whimpered, quivering as his eyes darted around the lab

“There has to be another way out” Link said frantically, searching around the walls and ceiling.

“He’s…coming” spoke a rather high voice, and Genji looked down to see April holding his hand. Genji felt it too, somehow. A very dark presence was coming. “Link, I can’t let them take her again!”

All they could do was look at the stairwell.
>>>>>>>>>>
Retirement is never easy. Without a job to do, Arka thought, all that was left for him was to fade away into death, just like his father before him. As Arka walked up and down the cobblestone streets, he could remember the feeling of cold, iron armor blanketing upon his chest, and his fearsome battle cry, too weak to do now, in his old age. A year has a way of rotting the life from a man’s bones, and he now struggled daily to make sure no one took a closer look at him.

His house was a hobble in the ass end of Goa. It didn’t surprise him that his door fell to pieces when his grimy, skeletal hand gripped it. As he slowly entered the room with a rather nondescript brown bag, it was clear to the other tenants that Arka was going to be in his room for quite some time. However, they were unaware of his guest.

Arka entered his room, and came face to face with his worst nightmare.

“Hello there, Kalkorza” spoke a rather deep, rasping voice

Arka, Kalkorza, whatever his name may be, he had no response. His eyes were only shocked for so long until he came to terms with this situation. A face writhed in fear, for this man was here to kill him.

“It’s been a long time…” Kalkorza began

“A year. You look like hell”

“Send my thanks to your friend”

“He has his own message for you.” The figure said, inching closer to Kalkorza’s subtly shivering figure. “Don’t even think about going for that pistol.”

Kalkorza let out a mirthless chuckle “Come on, Stally, I know it wouldn’t work anyways”

“Did you think we’d just forget about you?”

Kalkorza paused for a moment to think. “Yeah. Stupid, huh?”

“You’re telling me”

Kalkorza and Stalhn shared a laugh. They then shared a rather awkward confrontation as Kalkorza reach for a pistol behind his cabinet. Being old, as he was, Stalhn beat him to it, and now held his arm in a rather uncomfortable position.

“Don’t scream. I don’t want to have to kill everyone downstairs, too.”

“The hell do you –” an abrupt crack cut Kalkorza’s sentence short. “Goddamnit!”

“I thought I told you to keep it down.”

Kalkorza’s free arm was straining to reach for the loaded pistol on the ground. “The hell is this? You gonna kill me or you gonna just hold me till I tell you that you’ve got a very pretty face?

Stalhn’s skull of a head chuckled, at least the closest thing a skull can do to a chuckle. A single red ball in his right socket looked down the hall. “There were four of you. Izmir died, and Rodker is holed up in the middle of goat country. Where is Dessou?”

“You think we send each other postcards?” another snapping bone did nothing to curb Kalkorza’s sneer. “You think coming here and busting my balls is going to do anything?”

“Yeah. How stupid of me.” Stalhn said, as he let go of him.

He knew a gunshot wouldn’t have much more effect than throwing road kill at a drawbridge, but he’d be damned if it didn’t make him feel better. He had hoped Stalhn wouldn’t react very quickly, but Kalkorza was, inevitably, left with a broken wrist as well.

“You know where he is. You also know exactly what I can do to you, though I’d rather not. We should really keep this little meeting civilized.”

Kalkorza sighed as his rather wisecracking self faded. He knew exactly what Stalhn would do to him, and it was much worse than a clean cut with a blade. “The last I heard of him, Dessou was in Palou, with the Levant.
”
“You gave him the Levant?” Stalhn asked, incredulously

“It was more like theft than anything else, but I’m sure you’ll have a fun time taking it back from him.”

Stalhn paused for a moment to think about this

“What exactly is he doing up in Palou, with the Levant?”

“Robbing banks.”

Stalhn sighed “I hate you people, so much. That is extremely counterproductive to our mission"

“You mind killing me, now?”

“How rude of me” Stalhn said, walking over to the fallen pistol. “I almost forgot”

Stalhn walked back to Kalkorza’s beaten body, and slapped a pistol into his palm. He winced in pain, and his eyes slowly filled with terror. “That’s right.”

“For God’s sake, just put one through my head and get it over with!”

“You abandoned your mission, Kalkorza. All we asked of you was to do a simple task until we arrived.”

“I was the only one smart enough to get out while I still could. You think a force of a few thousand stood a chance against an empire?”

“You have failed us, and for that I cannot grant you a quick death.”

Kalkorza struggled to crawl out into the hallway as Stalhn stood, taking deep breaths as he tensed his fingers.

“You sent us to die!”

“I have learned to serve the master. I am prepared to die for his cause. Perhaps you should have thought less of your reward and more of your resolve, you coward.”

“HEEEEELLLLP! HELP ME!” Kalkorza screamed down the hallway as Stalhn opened his eye.

It is a strange sensation, what happened next. In Kalkorza’s mind, it started as pricks. He felt needles pricking his skin, but it didn’t stop at that. They went deeper, into his veins, and his arteries, and his organs. They were not clean, or smooth, like needles. They were jagged metal wires, and they curved their way into his spine. It was the most agonizing pain, feeling his vitals abruptly shut down, one at a time. He felt his skin popping in bloody squibs, all the way up through his arms and wrists. Deep red blood spilled onto the floor, and he struggled to turn the gun to his own head before it was too late. Little did he know that decision was already out of his hands.

“You didn’t just fail us, Kalkorza. You betrayed us. I don’t give people like you a good death. I BREAK THEM!”

Stalhn turned Kalkorza’s hand toward the hallway, where he forced him to gun down the old housekeeper who had come up the stairs. He fell to the floor with a thud, and indiscriminate screams came from the residents below.

“Just shoot straight, you bastard, don’t make a mess of it.”

The wires removed themselves from his spine, and converged on his chest. Kalkorza was then the first person in the world to witness his own heart stop beating.
~
Later that evening, Stalhn took a leisurely stride out fifty miles from Goa. There, he looked for the tell-tale path of defiled land, and followed it another twenty miles to a rather large patch of scorched earth. He saw the remains of a Bulbin force, sprinkled with towers, shacks, and weapon racks. It was rather simple to find the commander; all he had to do was look for the gold-framed doorway caked in mud.
His entrance was rather awkward. Soldiers stood in confusion as to what exactly he was, and if they should bow their heads, or kill it with their wooden spears. Stalhn walked undaunted to the large tower in the middle, where he entered without warning. To his dismay, Stalhn realized how much he would have liked it if Kalkorza had been the one left loyal, or Izmir. He couldn’t stand being in Rodker’s presence longer than he could stand in feces without being bothered by the smell.

“Rodker, tell these consorts that they can leave now” Stalhn spoke with restrained annoyance

Rodker, not even acknowledging Stalhn’s presence, continued laughing and playfully groping the Bulbin women. Suddenly, one of them stopped short, and blood began quickly running from her mouth as she clasped her hands around Rodker’s face.

“Rodker…tell these women to leave, now!” She spoke, and collapsed to the floor in a mess of flesh and bone. Rodker turned around, surprised, and retracted in horror to Stalhn’s presence.

“My lord! Stalhn! I am so sorry, oh my goodness”

“How’s the project?”

“I…uh” Rodker began as he looked at the second consort fearfully backed against the wall. “Go…go on now”

“I will not ask twice”

“The familiar…goblin thing, said that there was a breakthrough”

Stalhn’s voice grew noticeably excited

“Show me.”

As the two walked outside, Rodker tried his best to sell how much progress his forces had made, and how fearsome and battle-ready they were. Stalhn, appropriately, ignored him, thinking only of the project. If they had truly divined the phrase, then it is only a matter of time…

Alarm bells rang. Soldiers were seen entering the sub-chamber. Stalhn recognized this as where he sanctioned the experiment.
An explosion rocked the ground, and no being on earth was as fast as the armor-clad skeleton rushing into the bunker. A blood-curdling cry soon followed.

“Sir, what’s wrong?”

“They’re gone, Rodker.” Stalhn spoke as he gazed on a pile of corpses strewn across tables. “And they took the girl with her.”

“Who, master?”

“I don’t know”

“I didn’t even know there was another tunnel, here” Rodker pointed out, staring quizzically at pipeline running behind the wall.
Stalhn didn’t fly into a rage. It wouldn’t do him any good. At best, he’d show what a child he was, throwing a temper tantrum over a sabotaged lab. He did, however, find much delight when he put two and two together.

“Rodker, who did I leave in charge of this project?”

“Me, master”

“And I told you that, above all other things; I wanted this lab to be kept under the best supervision”

“It was, master”

“Who did you leave in charge of security?”

“My XO”

“Tether is dead”

“Not him, master, a new man from Izmir’s unit”

Stalhn appeared to stop breathing, as he turned towards Rodker
“Everyone from Izmir’s unit is dead.”

Rodker took a few moments to put the pieces together in his mind.

“I don’t understand…does that mean…he wasn’t from Izmir’s unit?”

“Why did it have to be you? Why couldn’t Izmir have outlived you?”

“So where was he from? Master? I…AUGHGGHGUH!”

Rodker felt his limbs jerked every which way, like a ragdoll. His hand felt for his scabbard, and he drew his sword. He dangled lazily in the air, like a puppet.

“M-master, what are you doing?”

Rodker felt his arms twist the wrong way, and then felt the pain of metal rending his green, pungent flesh. He quickly fell to the ground, in a pool of his own blood, gurgling.

“IUKA!” Stalhn bellowed, and was followed shortly after by the sounds of steps on the stairwell.

“Yes, lord Stalhn?”

“You are in charge now, Commander Iuka. Get my army out of this swamp!"
>>>>>>>>>>
Two rather dilapidated doors swung open, as a rather grizzled swordsman entered the tavern. He was not exceptionally tall, muscular, or handsome, but some kind of aura came from him. Every eye in the house struggled to not stare.
He motioned his accomplice in, who was in great contrast to the rest of the bar. While rats and disease were strewn around the establishment, the accomplice was exceptionally clean cut. While the swordsman sported a goatee, and had his hair wrapped in a ponytail, the other had his rather neatly slicked back. They took a seat for a moment, where they began to exchange words.

“I saw him come in here. I know he’s upstairs.” Abel said

“I don’t know how safe this place is.”

“Then scope it out while I head upstairs. I think you can handle it, buddy” Abel said as he lightly patted Noka’s shoulder.

He walked through the black curtain, and vanished from sight. Noka couldn’t help but be uneasy in this place. He ordered a drink, relaxing in his stool and hearing it creak with age. The cracked walls spoke of countless friends, enemies, and lovers who had come through the walls. Noka was then reminded that, barring Abel, he had very few things in this world except enemies, and a rumor. He prayed that the rumor didn’t leave him, too.

“Hey, you” a rather nasal voice called out “you with the sword”

Noka didn’t even acknowledge him. It was a mistake, as the man was now uncomfortably close to his face.

“Your face looks familiar to me.”

“It shouldn’t. I’ve never been here before.”

“Yeah…yeah that’s what the last guy said.” Spoke the man, who was obviously drunk. “Gabon! C’mere. Doesn’t this guy look like Revo’s little brother?”

“I think he does, Jack.”

“I think you two need to sit down. Now.”

Shocked by the power in his voice, the two men concluded that they obviously had the wrong person, and sat back down at their table. Noka looked back at the room, and saw nothing but drunks, and a few men playing cards at a table. Noka turned back around to finish his drink, hoping Abel would return quickly. With his back turned, he was the easiest target. He didn’t even notice a man wielding a knife approaching him; no one in the bar said a word.

This man wasn’t the one who had tried to start a fight earlier. He looked different, cold, determined, and not even remotely drunk. Noka realized that this man had waited for him, and snapped his arm like it was a twig.
The screams were really not the best thing for someone trying to keep a low profile. Even worse, he quickly found out that the man he had assaulted had a number of accomplices at his table. Noka knew this because the table his assailant came from was empty.

A kidney shot brought Noka to his knees, where a third assailant attempted to hold him in place. The rest of the bar did nothing. Noka’s adrenaline kicked in when he saw another knife, and kicked in the knee of the second assailant. He went down screaming, and it was enough of a distraction to let Noka grab his blade. Strangely enough, after three well placed strikes, he began checking the third assailant’s wounds, to make sure he was alright. He took pride in merely disabling his attackers. As Noka got up, he saw the table full of card players had stood up, about a half-dozen of them, each with a weapon in their hand

Noka sighed. Heavily.
~
“Seven murders in the past month, and all of them were connected in some way. You’re insane if you think you’re safe.” Abel stated, bluntly

“If I am not safe here, why would I be any safer with you? Sure, your friend carries a big sword, but so do half of the people in the tavern downstairs.”

“You don’t know how well he uses that sword, Tarpas”

“What I’m saying is if they’re after me, they will find me. All I can do is put my affairs in order”

“All I’m asking for is your help, and I can promise you, Noka and I will make it a very safe trip to Palou.”

Tarpas sighed. “Whoever is after me, he makes it a point to only send two assassins.”

Abel’s brow furrowed in confusion

“When my escort of bodyguards died stopping the first one, the assassin made it clear that, should a second one fail, his master shall come and visit me personally. I have heard the stories, and I promise you, I would rather die a quick death.”

“Then just give us the information.”

“I’m afraid I cannot.”

“Why?”

“Because the second assassin arrived before you did. He wanted to listen and see if anyone else was looking for the tomb. I’m sorry, my friend”

Three darts pierced through the cloth and bamboo door, going straight into Tarpas’ back. A man dressed in black tore through it only seconds later, with a dagger in his hand. Abel didn’t have time to react, no one would. His hand had only begun reaching for his blade when a very painful grunt came from behind.

The assassin stopped dead in his tracks, and dropped to his knees. The edge of a sword stuck visibly out of his chest.

Another man entered the room, breathing heavily. He was covered in numerous cuts, and sweat was streaming down his face, like a current.

“Abel. We need to leave, now.”

“The hell happened to you?”

“I’m still figuring that out for myself."

Noka grabbed Tarpas’ now gurgling corpse, and searched it for anything of value. Pulling a key out of his coat pocket, Noka opened a small chest resting on a high shelf. He stuffed the contents into his pack, and quickly kneeled down to the assassin. Abel was already in the hall.

“What’s the holdup, man?”

“I’m checking his injury”

“Excuse me?”

Noka briskly exited the room as well, turning to Abel as he walked down the steps

“He’ll live”

Before they went back down, Abel stopped him. “What was in that chest?”

“A letter”

“About what?”

“Can’t this wait?”

“Just open the letter”

Noka shot his friend a nasty look as he tore open his pouch, and handed him the crumpled letter

“It’s just a letter, Abel.” He said, quickly moving down the staircase. Abel followed quickly behind, his head buried in the parchment, looking up only to see an empty bar.

“What the hell did you do?”

“We had company.”

“A whole bar?” Abel asked, shocked

“Some of them just got the hell out of here when it went down. That’s also why we need to leave; they’ll be walking and talking in about half an hour”
“You left them alive?!”

“We’ve had this conversation. What does that letter say?”

Abel took a closer look at the letter.

“It’s not just a letter, Noka. It’s a warning.”

Noka, curious, looked over Abel’s shoulder

“Right here”

By the time you receive this, I will most likely be dead. I am sorry that we must end things between ourselves on such a sour note, Tarpas, but I want you to know that, looking back on things, I truly consider you my friend. If I didn’t, I would not be warning you that a very dangerous person is looking for people like you. They were kidnapping people with certain blood ties, but now they’re just killing them. I have ties to this man, but all I can tell you is that they’re looking for the tomb. They will come for you soon, I can feel it. You would do well to get your affairs in order, and say your good-byes to your loved ones. I would, but I have been alone for quite some time now. I have hidden a very important parcel in Palou, far from where he can reach it. It may be of use to you
Your friend, always
Arka Revo.
---- End of Chapter 1 ----

No comments yet, but I have the second chapter written already. Once again, any and all feedback is appreciated.

“The history texts will never be unanimous except for one thing. “And the five kingdoms united against the great horde at their gates, and they lived afterward in harmony.” Such children’s tales were all too often believed without correction. People begin to develop twisted views of the world, and don’t know how to manage a real crisis. They’ll believe that the five kingdoms united, but they will conveniently forget about the sixth one. The one the others left for bait. They’ll believe that we now coexist in harmony, but they will never know of the secrets the higher ups keep from them. It’s all for the greater good I suppose.

Three months. Three long months I have been Commander of the City Guard, and for three months I go to sleep wondering if I’ll still be alive in the morning. I wake up and wonder what I’m protecting anymore. Today I saw a man steal bread so that he wouldn’t starve. I saw that man stabbed to death by my own men, and I fear that I have lost contact with humanity. I sat at a table, and did nothing. This city used to be such a beautiful place.

We’ve had people packing up and leaving after the last attack. I can’t blame them. I wish I could leave, but I have a feeling that anywhere I went would be just as bad. Another city bank was hit today, but this was much worse than the last time. The victims of the first strike told us that they witnessed some abomination wipe out the building, and we were rather hard pressed to believe them. Today, there were no survivors. They took out the entire city block and no one even saw the damn thing. I’m in way over my head, but there’s no one else for the job. All we can do is stand in the rubble, scratching our heads.” – Except from Commander Johan Pryderi’s journal, dated August 6th

“Tragedy strikes the city as Tarpas Palou, brother to Duke Archibald Palou, is found murdered in a tavern. Witnesses have identified the killers as two men, two very dangerous men, who have made a threat on the Duke’s life. The city is on full alert as they scramble to search for the assassins.

What a joke. A regiment of the City Guard deserted today, hanging up their shields and taking their families out of Palou. We are severely understaffed, and now have the threat against the Duke’s life as well. All these men need to do is wait another day or two. There won’t be anyone left in this city. We’re the largest city in the world, and the streets and homes are empty. We’re the world’s largest wasteland.” – Excerpt from Commander Johan Pryderi’s journal, dated August 7th

“I am dying. I have no delusions about my state. This will most likely be the last thing I shall write before I expire, so I will try and be brief. Something hit us. Something big and large hit us. I saw something, evil. He threw my men aside like they were children’s toys. He was clothed head to toe in armor, and his head was nothing more than a skull. I watched him tear a tower, stone and mortar, down with his bare hands. Our bows and our cannon-fire did little to stop him. I pray for Echizen, now, with my final breath. Against that kind of evil, there is no means of stopping it. We are all going to burn.” – Excerpt from Commander Johan Pryderi’s journal, dated August 9th

---- Chapter 2: August 8th ----

“There is no shade, though I am walking in the densest part of the forest. All of the trees bend painfully, with their rotting branches wilting and shaking off the dead leaves. The sunbeams bake the earth into a dry, cracked shell of its former self. I walk a deserted path, and with each step I take, I feel more and more a crippling fatigue. I continue walking. The heat is unbearable. The sweat that drapes my brow vanishes before it can cool my face, and my lips have turned a dark purple, sticking together occasionally to prevent me from gasping for air. I drop my sword and my shield, but I feel no lighter, and the trees appear to have vanished entirely. I am left, dying in the sunlight, and I pray for my rescue. I cannot even make out words. I swallow, but I swallow only air, as my mouth has become as dry and as barren as the earth around me. My left hand begins searing, and I watch as my mark of the Triforce fade from my hand. Within moments, something comes out of the forest, having waited for me to fall. Within moments the sunlight fades from the sky. I am dead.”
~
“I never said thank you” Genji said, sitting by Link’s side. “You saved both of us back there”

Link glanced over at his friend with a weak grin, as he bandaged his left arm. “How’s your niece?”

“She’s fine, thanks to you. How’s the arm?”

“It’s burned pretty bad, but I think I’ll be fine.” Link assured him, wincing as he applied the last wrap.

“I think I have something for the pain, just give me a sec”

Genji walked through the door and up the stairs. Link watched the scenery through the window, and with each shake of the wildlife, he was reminded again and again of Ordon. Slowly standing up from his chair, Link walked down the hallway to the outside, where he could get a better view. The last eight months he had been surrounded by little other than death and ruin. Seeing the small garden outside of Genji’s house was calming. He stared past the garden, and into the brook, and suddenly lost all of his cares in the world. Listening to the water was calming, and for the first time in eight months, Link smiled.

“Its beautiful, isn’t it?” a soft voice came from behind him. Link turned to see April, having changed out of the tattered rags she was in when they had tortured her. “The garden. It’s the one thing they haven’t taken from me yet.”

Link stared into April’s eyes, and couldn’t tell if she was really there or not. They were always unfocused, and her face looked like one of a statue. Though he only met her yesterday, Link couldn’t help but wonder what part of her was lost in Rodker’s lab.

“It’s very beautiful” Link murmured, thinking of very little else to say to her

“Where did you come from?”

“Excuse me?”

April’s ratty head of hair fluttered as she jolted her head “It’s not hard to tell you’re from somewhere else.”
“I’m from a village to the west, called Ordon.”

April gave him a weak smile, and Link somehow felt a little better. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but when she smiled at him, the day got a little brighter.
“What did you do in Ordon?”

“I was a ranch-hand.”

April tilted her head quizzically

“I herded goats”

April gave a subtle sigh, and her rather colorless eyes gazed to the brook. “So what does a shepherd look for in a place like this?”

“I’m looking for a friend of mine.”

Genji opened the door, and had a ceramic bottle in his hands.

“C’mere, we need to plan out this trip.”

Link followed Genji to what appeared to be the dining room, where he had a map laid out across the table. “Here, let me see your arm again.”

“I’ll be fine, what’s the deal with the trip?”

Genji hesitated for a moment, as if he was trying to find a way to make something sound better

“Just tell me.” Link said, not wanting to waste any more time

“My friend in Goa, well, I’m not entirely sure if he’s there anymore.”

Link shot Genji an incredulous glance

“It’s not that bad. From the last letter he sent me, he said something about heading to Palou.”

“And where’s that, exactly?”

“Palou is much closer, but there are other issues.”

“Like what?”

“The past few months, Palou has been nothing but chaos. It’s the largest city in the continent, and something has been turning it into a warzone.”

“You care to qualify that?”

“I couldn’t tell you what it is, but a trip there is going to be extremely dangerous.”

“Genji, you’ve done enough for me already. Just tell me where to go, and I’m sure I’ll be able to find this friend of yours. I know that you wouldn’t want to put April--”

“It’s not April I’m worried about. After the stunt we pulled over at the camp, we had to expect that we’d rattle a few cages. Whoever, whatever we took April from, they’re going to be looking for us.”

“If you’re telling me that I can find what I’m looking for in Palou, then that is where I’m going. I don’t have anywhere else to go, Genji, this is all I have left.”

Genji glanced at Link for a moment, and understood his resolve by what was in his eyes. He really had nothing left in Echizen. “All right. I’m going to get my things ready, and the trip will take a few hours at most.

“Thank you” Link said, as Genji left the room.

He walked down to the garden, where his niece was sitting. She still stared blankly at the garden. Genji couldn’t tell where her mind was anymore.

“Someone’s out there.” April murmured

>>>>>>>>>>
“I don’t have much time, so make this brief” an old man barked to a rather shadowy figure. They were outside a rather large and well-kept manor.

“Someone taken the girl from us, Master” Stalhn said “And we need whatever she knows”

“That is an issue, but right now we need to focus on our main goal.”

“Rodker only left us with a few hundred soldiers”

“Don’t worry. What I need from you is to take back the Levant. That is the most important task at this point.”

“But what about the two men at the tavern?”

“They’re just men. We will run into them sooner or later, and we will deal with them then. Not now.”

“And the girl?”

“Patience. You will find all of them within your grasp shortly. If you have the opportunity, You should re-acquire her but don’t put yourself at risk.”

“Yes master.”

“You’re not alone, Stalhn. Have faith, and you shall be rewarded. They are expecting me. The price to pay for this puppet.”

Stalhn quietly faded into obscurity, as the old man went back up towards the manor. Coming through the door, he was greeted by his butler.

“Jennings, I was just out for a breath of fresh air, don’t worry yourself”

“Very well, Lord Palou.”

>>>>>>>>>>
“I’m sorry sir, you cannot pass.” The guard stated, refusing to budge from the door.

Behind him were the wrecked remains of a building, obviously unsupervised.

“Listen, I have an heirloom from my father in there” Abel said, slipping the guard some coins. “Please, do you think you could give me three minutes?”

The guard glanced at Abel for a moment.

“Just three minutes, I promise.”

“You have two.”

Abel bowed his head graciously and motioned Noka to enter as well

“It has to be somewhere around here.” Abel muttered.

Abel looked around the room, but it really looked like a hollowed out shell. All of the memories that were once in this place, they were gone. All of them, gone with the wind. Noka observed the room quietly, and slowly placed his hand on his katana. “We’re not the only ones here.”

Abel, ignoring him, went upstairs, the charred wood splintering with each step. “What does the inscription on the letter say?”

Noka pulled out the letter again, and looked at what appeared to be a cryptic series of arrows on the border. “You read it, I can’t make any sense of this thing.”

Abel treaded back down the stairs, but this time the wood didn’t splinter. Abel felt the interesting sensation of having the floor come out beneath his feet.

“Damn it!” Abel half yelled-half hushed, as he pulled his now-bleeding leg out of the wood. Footsteps followed quickly behind him.

“You’ve got a minute, pal.”

Abel put on his best fake smile and bowed his head again. “Sorry, this floorboard just came out from under me.”

Noka went up the steps as well, taking caution to step over stairs that looked rather damaged, and went into what looked like the master bedroom. Whatever this place was, it wouldn’t be very hard for someone to find anything. Normally he could spot trick cupboards and drawers on sight, so whoever this friend of Tarpas was, he was either extremely smart, or stupid.

Abel took a moment to tend to his leg before resuming up the steps. He saw holes in the walls, where garbage from the other buildings had flown in, and tried to kick it out of the way.

“Noka, I don’t think there’s anything here.”

“Shh”

“Did you just shush me?”

“Quiet goddamn it!”

Trusting his friend’s instinct, Abel stopped speaking, and took a moment to observe the garbage a little more closely. Abel studied a rather interesting flyer that had come in.

Noka treaded quietly across the room, making only passing glances at the bed and the cupboard before moving on. The rest of the time, his eyes were fixated on the rather large closet in front of him. Before he reached it, Noka had taken the time to make a few observations; namely the drawers and cupboard had already been emptied by the time they had arrived, and there were rather strange blots in the ash on the floor. Whatever was there before, it was gone now.

“What the hell is this?” Abel asked, staring at the flyer.

WANTED: For the murder of Tarpas Palou, brother of Duke Palou. The two assailants were last seen at a tavern a few miles outside of the city limits. No pictogram is available, but the men are described by witnesses below.

Assailant One: Possibly named “Abel”, this man was dressed in a dark brown overcoat, and a pair of black shoes. His hair is black, cropped short, and clean-shaven. Average build, average height.

Assailant Two: Name Unknown, but is dressed in a blue robe, and with his brown hair in a ponytail. Very tall, muscular build. Also, witnesses reported that he carried a katana with him.

If you think you see any of these men within the city limits, contact a city guard immediately. These men have made a threat on the Duke’s life, and are considered dangerous. They are to be terminated with extreme prejudice.

All of a sudden, the closet doors flew open. Noka, distracted, was unable to react in time to catch him. The man inside had something in his hands, and he flew down the stairs, skipping the steps in favor of sliding off of the handrail. Abel immediately gave chase, but Noka remained, noticing the contents of whatever the thief had littered all over the closet.

“NOKA! Let’s GO!” Abel shouted, as he went down the stairs after him. The guard was immediately alerted at this noise, and inadvertently stood in the way of the thief. The thief was panicked as he saw the way blocked. Abel approached him menacingly. The guard, however, had a few issues to settle with Abel.

“The hell is this? You come here for an heirloom and you start looting the damn place?” The guard shouted, noting the number of valuables in the thief’s hand. Seeing an opportunity, the thief jumped out the window, landing in the street unharmed. Abel attempted to do the same, and was stopped by the guard. This caused him to tumble out the side, landing rather uncomfortably in a fruit stand.

The guard began blowing his whistle as Abel attempted to pursue the thief.

The streets all looked the same: Rubble, some body bags, a few disgruntled refugees. An entire quarter of the city had vanished overnight. Abel thought briefly about what exactly could cause that, and then realized he was losing the thief. He ran as hard as he could, but the thief ran harder. It wasn’t too long before Abel was out of breath, and decided to take a short cut.

Although unfamiliar with the city, Abel knew that a chance of catching up with him was better than nothing, so he broke through a building on his left as thief was doing so near the end of the street. Running upwards, Abel saw that people still lived in these buildings, and was chased to the rooftop. From the view, he saw the thief panting at a statue, trying to catch his breath. Abel was several stories high, and looked for a rather quick way down.

The thief was surprised when he saw a 5’6 man in a trenchcoat using a laundry rope as a zipline.

Abel didn’t land smoothly, crashing into several benches on his way down, but saw the thief running into a rather odd building. The top was uneven, curved, and it appeared to be made of metal, unlike the wooden houses surrounding it. Abel ran after him nonetheless.

The insides were akin to a maze. Abel wandered through corridor after corridor, each time losing hope that he could catch him. Not long after, he became lost, unsure which way led where.

A window crashed again, and Abel followed the sound to the right side of the building. He saw nothing apart from the shattered glass on the street. Looking around anxiously, he saw the thief pinned against the wall by a rather large man.

Noka waved.

Laughing excitedly, Abel carefully made his way to the ground.

After edging uncomfortably close to the thief, Abel stared him dead in the eyes.

“I would like my parcel back.”

The thief spat in his face.

“You little—” Abel began, but was interrupted by a rather piercing ‘whoosh’ that went by his head.
Noka, Abel, and the thief all stared at the arrow now protruding from the latter’s chest. The thief slumped against the wall. Realization dawned on Noka and Abel; they really weren’t very subtle about the chase.

Hundreds, if not thousands of people must have seen them.
Abel and Noka turned, and saw a unit of iron-clad soldiers at both ends of the street.

“Oh darn”

---- End of Chapter 2 ----