Eight-Bit Legends: A Link to the West

7/31/2019 Eight-Bit Legends: A Link to the West

1/257

BOOK ONE of the TRIFORCE TRILOGY


2/257

1

A Link to the West----------

A New, Fan-Fiction Take on the Classic Legend

Written By: Xavier WilliamsEdited By: Christopher James and B.K. Wells

Illustrations By: Rusty Nix2012

BOOK ONE of the TRIFORCE TRILOGY

Mudora Publishing, LTD


3/257

2

Disclaimer:

All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the

property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted

material. No copyright infringement is intended.

If you enjoy reading this fan-fiction story, please show your support for

the original creators by buying their products!


4/257

3

Chapter Index

Prologue: The Storm Gathers: 004Chapter 1: A New Day Dawns: 007

Chapter 2: The Grizzly Discovery: 012Chapter 3: The Girl with the Ice Blue Eyes: 019

Chapter 4: The Fog of War: 027

Chapter 5: The Plains of Gerudo: 036Chapter 6: Only Thieves and Liars: 044

Chapter 7: Question of Authority: 052

Chapter 8: Pieces in the Puzzle: 061Chapter 9: Once Upon a Rainy Night: 069

Chapter 10: Trail of Sorrows: 077

Chapter 11: The Death of a Hero: 085Chapter 12: A Revival of Power: 092

Chapter 13: Golden Origins: 103Chapter 14: The Great War: 111Chapter 15: Where the Heart Leads: 119

Chapter 16: No Rest for the Weary: 128

Chapter 17: Sanctuary Found: 136Chapter 18: And Ye Shall Know the Truth: 146

Chapter 19: Spirit Tracks: 154

Chapter 20: Last Call: 163Chapter 21: All Aboard!: 172

Chapter 22: Leap of Faith: 180

Chapter 23: The Iron Phantom: 188

Chapter 24: Uncharted Memories: 196

Chapter 25: Blood in the Water: 205

Chapter 26: Coronation: 213Chapter 27: The Talisman: 221Chapter 28: The Hero of the West: 233

Epilogue: Lighting the Future: 244

Character Illustrations: 247


5/257

4

PrologueThe Storm Gathers

Briars and cacti ripped at the young girls legs as she ran int o the night.With each footstep she felt the painful, jagged rocks underneath,digging into the soles of her feet. Her heart was beating so hard she

could feel it in her ears. The sound was almost deafening, but even then- she could hear the pounding of hooves slowly gaining on her frombehind. Try as she migh t, there was no outrunning the horses rider. Shepressed on even harder. Up ahead were some smaller caves at the baseof the gorge. Maybe if she could reach them she would be able to hidefrom her pursuer. Her body ached now from exhaustion, but she had nochoice: she had to push on! She had already been running for whatseemed like an eternity. As she ran, her mind flashed through theevents that had brought her here

Her family had moved to the plains outside of Hyland several yearsbefore. Her father wanted them to start a cattle ranch, but times werehard, and the cattle business proved difficult to get off of the ground.Just two years after their move, he had passed away. The doctor said itwas because of the fever. Her father had always pushed himself too

hard, and never looked after himself the way that he looked after bothher and her mother. She had always thought that if her father had justmoved back into town, and given up on the cattle, he would still bealive. Now here she was; wishing that she was back in the town herself,and in the safety of the crowds. Out here on the plains, in the darkest of the night: she was alone. No one would come to her aid this time. If her


6/257

5

father were here, surely he would have protected her in that farmhousebefore these men had snatched her away. Oh how she wished he were

still here! Maybe she should have started courting that young rancherfrom across the Zora River like her mother had told her. Maybe sheshould have gone with her mother to visit her family back east, and shewouldnt have been alone that night. Maybe if she maybe if maybe...the more she thought, the bleaker her situation became. All of themaybes in the world were not helping her to outrun the horsemanbehind her. Her determination was beginning to fade the longer sheran. She needed to reach those cliffs quickly to have any hope of escape!

The pounding hooves were getting louder now, and for the first timethe girl could tell there were more than one set of them. At least two, if not three, horses were bearing down on her quickly. Through thedarkness ahead she began to see the large rocks take shape. She alwaysloved climbing on these rocks when she was younger. Her father told

her that she was good at it because of her blood . If that was the truth,then the Native American blood that flowed through her veins boiled tothe top as she leapt onto the rock piles. She began to climb at a franticpace higher into the rocks. Below her, she heard snorts and grunts asthe group of horses slid to a stop. She climbed further, knowing thatthere were several caves ahead that would be able to conceal her. Shepassed up the first two that she climbed by, and decided on the third

cave. Bruised and exhausted, the young girl glanced over her shoulder,and looked back into the darkness. As she tried to calm her breathing,she listened for any sign of her pursuers. Her heart was too loud to hearanything else, so she ducked into the mouth of the tiny cave. Lookingback through the entrance, her eyes began to focus on the nighttimesky. Dark and cloudy, she could barely make out silhouettes of cacti andsagebrush. The tremble in her hands ran down her spine and gave her achill. It was a cold night too. The warmth of a bed would have been acomforting thought, but right now was not the time to daydream. Shereached up and took a hold of her necklace. Triangular in shape, it wassupposedly a longstanding family heirloom according to her father, andclinging to it gave her a breath of hope. She had finally made it to thecaves. She had escaped her kidnappers, and had made it to the caves!


7/257

6

Wind whipped by the mouth of her hiding place, and the sound echoedacross the plains. The girl closed her eyes. Her heart beat began to slow

down, and her breathing began to relax. As she sat there, a feeling of warmth trickled down her right calve and across the top of her foot. Thewarm blood that seeped from her wounds was in stark contrast to thewind that felt cool on the sweat of her body.

CCCCRRACKK!!!

Thunder clapped, and lightning flashed across the sky. In that brief instant, the young girl could see across the plains below. The frightenedneighs of horses echoed in her ears as she looked down on the path.After a quick headcount, there were three horses rearing back with oneman holding their reins. The other two were obviously searching thecliffs. She pulled back into the rear of the small cave, and stared out atthe blackness as the rain began to pour. Surely these men would stoplooking with the pounding rain, and the lightning and thunder right?She stuck her hand out into the rain and let the cool water run downher arm. She wiped the blood from her legs and drew them close to herchest. Her light blue nightgown wasnt very thic k, but it did help to keepher warm. Lightning crashed into the cliff across from her cave. Even if the men had left, this was no weather to venture out in. She would haveto stay here until the storm passed by. She had no idea how much timehad elapsed, but her eyes slowly began to grow heavy. Listening to the

rain always soothed her at night. She curled up into a ball and took hernecklace in her hand again. With a sigh, she looked out at the rain and,although she fought hard against it, she soon drifted off to sleep


8/257

7

Chapter 1A New Day Dawns

T he first rays of sunlight began to seep into the back bedroom windowof Arthur Moses ranch house. Soon the rooster would shout out thearrival of another day, but that was of no concern to Lincoln Rourke.

Already wide awake and staring at the ceiling, he waited for the exactmoment while counting to himself 3 2 1 At that instant, therooster let out a call that could have woken the whole town. ThankfullyLincolns uncle had moved out onto the ranch many years ago, so therewas no need to worry about a noisy bird in town in the mornings.Lincoln swung out of bed, and began getting dressed for the day. As hisuncles ranch hand, his daily uniform was fairly simple. He buttoned uphis sage green collared shirt and tucked the bottoms of his worn khakipants into the tops of his boots. As he walked to his wardrobe, thesound of his boots echoed across the room.

Clok clok clok

Lincoln liked that noise. It made him think of the legendary gunslingersof the west- walking across the wooden deck of a saloon to a duel in the

street. His uncle had often reminded him that those stories that trickledback east were few and far between and for the most part, the westwas a far more placid place. Ever since the death of his parents inGeorgia, Lincoln had lived with Arthur Moses. He had practically raisedhim for the past seven years. As Lincoln grew older, he began taking onmore of the responsibility of the farm, while his uncle grew increasingly


9/257

8

busier as Sheriff of the Town of Hyland.Link! A voice boomed from the other end of the house. Come get

your breakfast, boy! Im coming, uncle! he called as he grabbed the hunter green coloredponcho from its hanger.As he ran into the kitchen he caught the back of a chair with the cornerof his poncho. It tumbled to the floor with a loud crash.For cryin out loud, boy! Arthur Moses called as he turned from thewoodstove.Sorry uncle! I didnt mean anything by it! I was just in a rush You got a busy day planned out , Link? Looks like youre in a rushalready! Arthur slid a fried egg out of the pan onto the plate in front of the youngman, smiled, and turned back to fry another. Arthur had taken to callinghim Link, rather than Lincoln as his mother insisted. Link di dnt mind atall because he liked the way it sounded.Well, after I feed the chickens , Im planning on going to town. I heardtell from Doc Goron that some Army men from the garrison have gottensome new fancy weapons from back east and will be showin them off at the saloon maybe theyll sell us one I heard that too but I dont reckon theyll be doing much selling. Arthur said as he pulled up a seat at the table. Whats the matter withyour Henry rifle? Oh nothings wrong with it! Link said as he finished his egg. I was just

going to look and see what there is to see! I heard they may even havesome kind of new automatic repeating weapon too. An automatic repeater Arthur whistled to himself. Times certainlyare a- changin I remember when t hat Henry youve got was the top of the pack in weapons. Link stood up from the table and walked to the washtub. What aboutyou, Uncle? Busy day ? Well, he said as he stood and walked to the front door. There are acouple of spats that still need resolving from a fight at the Kasarikoyesterday. That s about all of the excitement that I can think of fornow.Link turned and followed his uncle. He grabbed his hat off of the hangerby the door, and pulled the wide brim down low over his eyes as hestepped outside.


10/257

9

Oh- and another thing, Link... Arthur said as he swung his saddle ontothe back of his massive, black horse. Twilight needs another set of

shoes. Can you ride over to Los Lonos Horse Ranch and pick up a newpair? Talon already knows his siz e. Sure thing. Arthur climbed into the saddle as Link tossed him his rifle. Make suresay hello to Talon for me dont just spend all your time a -talkin to thatpretty little daughter of his! Link pulled his hat even lower and nodded sheepishly. Arthur laughedand gave a light kick to Twilight s flanks. Hiya! Link watched as his uncle rode down the long dirt trail leading from the

ranch. When he could no longer see him, Link turned back to finish hismorning duties. Once all of the animals were taken care of, Linkreturned to the barn and unhitched his horse, Epona. After one lastcheck around the house, he gathered some of his money and gear into asatchel, and struck out for town. The trip wasnt a terribly long one, butLink enjoyed the ride regardless. Epona strode down the path leading

to Hyland with ease. Links uncle had bought Epona from Talon Lonosthe day before he moved in, and he had raised Epona from a foal intoone of the fastest horses in the county. Epona could make it from oneend of the land to the other in record time, so the journey into townwas but a mere instant for them.

Soon Link could see the sharp lines of rooftops begin to form through

the bands of rising heat in the distance . The town of Hyland wasnt anexceptionally large city, but it was still large enough that people camefrom miles around in all directions to shop in its stores, and eat in itstaverns. As he crossed the bridge over the Zora River, Link could see acrowd of people gathered out front of the Kasariko Saloon.He assumed they were waiting to see these new marvelous weaponsfrom the east. Just down the street from the saloon was his unclesoffice. Years ago someone had thought enough in advance to build theSheriff s office right next to the bar and alcohol. Arthur thought it was awise decision as well. In the other direction, was Dr. Amos Goronsoffice. A field surgeon during the American Civil War, the doctor hadquite the reputation serving with William T. Shermans forces beforemoving to Hyland. Since arriving in that sleepy little western town, hisreputation grew even more as did his appetite. His now somewhat full


11/257

10

figure suited his jolly personality well. For Link, the doctor had becomeanother father-figure; always looking out for him and giving advice. Link

rode past the crowds, and tied up Epona outside of the doctor s office.He walked to the door and reached for the handle. The familiar jingle of the tiny brass bell was followed by a hearty call from the back room.Take a seat; Ill be right with you! Instead, Link strolled up to the counter and picked up the newspaper

that had been printed the previous morning. He read the main headlineto himself: Dragmire buys Kasariko Saloon . As he read, the doctoremerged from the back of the building.Well hellfire, boy! he smiled, I didnt realize you were in towntoday! Link sat the paper back down and took the doctors hand in a firm shakeI figured I might as well come in and see all the excitement down thestreet. Bah. The doctor scof fed at he glanced out the window and pushed hisspectacles back on his nose. Traveling weaponry expositions are only

encouraging the very injuries that I spend my time having to fix. Ivedone my fair share of patchin up bullet wounds back in Georgia. Aww come on now, doc! Link smirked These weapons are the newestaround! Besides- all those boys you fixed u p that s been a while backnow. I dont think youll be having to patch anyone round these partsup anytime soon. I can tell you one thing - I did enough then to count for a lifetime... I

sure do hope youre right. Amos glanced at the paper Link had placed back down on the counter.I havent even got a chance to read this one yet. That ol Indianwoman, Impa, was in here earlier and she was sic k again. He picked upthe paper and settled down in a chair in the waiting room next to Link.You know - he continued, Ive been taking care of that old gal for thepast 15 years now, and she gets sick about every 6 months on the nose.Why this last tim e she sai The doctor stopped cold.What is it? Link asked. He followed Amos gaze to the same headlinethat he had read just moments earlier: Dragmire buys KasarikoSaloon.The doctor let out a long sigh: Well I guess I didnt realize that Mr.Dragmire was back in town.


12/257

11

Link furrowed his brow. Whos he? Just an old acquaintance from the past, son. No one to concern

yourself with. Link studied the doctors face as he continued to stare at the paper.Eventually Amos folded the paper and turned to Link.Enough about the past anyways! Tell me about the ranch. Hows thingsbeen runnin? Your uncle isnt workin you to death now, is he? Well, I reckon hes tried to, but Ive been fairing pretty well. And how is Miss Lonos? You seen much of her lately? Link shifted in his chair but didnt say anything. The doctor laughed. You can t hide that reaction from me! I saw you get all jittery when Isaid her name! Link just looked down at the floor and tried not to meet the doctorsstare. He knew that somewhere inside, the doctor s words might havebeen true, but to admit that to Amos face would mean never hearingthe end of it.So tell me more about this Mr. Dragmire fellow that you mentioned

earlier. Link said, hoping that would be enough to throw the doctoronto a new train of thought.Ahh I see how it is! The doctor said as he stared over the top rim of hiseyeglasses at Link. Trying to shake the trail and get me thinking about adifferent subject. The doctor leaned back in his chair and cont inued,Where to begin? Where to begin. Well, lets just start out by sayingthe first time our paths crossed was

Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by the fast gallop of hooves outside. The front door burst open. It was Links uncle: AMOS! AMOS!!! he called out. Good Lord, Arthur! the doctor said as he stood to his feet and walkedtowards the Sheriff who was sweating and out of breath. What is goingon? Grab your medical bag and gear! Youre going to have to ride with meright now! Youre uhh youre gonna want to see this one


13/257

12

Chapter 2The Grizzly Discovery

T he sound of the galloping horses echoed through the walls of thecanyon to the west of town as Amos and Arthurs horses ran at a fullgallop through the ravine.

Arthur! The doctor called, How much farther is it? You havent eventold me why we are riding out this far! There is a reason for that, Amos. he replied. Why wouldnt you let Link tag along? You know as well as anyone thatboy has been wanting to do something more than just tend to yourranch. I mean- hes 1 9 years old now, and you never let him come withyou! I hear tell that hes a decent shot too. I know that Doc, and he is a good shot. More than that - hes got agood soul. Never afraid to do what is right. Thats why I didnt want tobring him along this time. Hell latch on to this one, and wont let go. You cant be the Sheriff forever, Arthur. Men like you an me just keepon getting older. You need to start thinking about a deputy, and I guessI just dont rightly see where you could go wrong with him. Maybe youre right Amos. I guess I should start bringing him alongmore. But you know as well as I do this isnt an easy job. H e needs to beeased into it.

The horses rounded the tallest bend of the canyon and began headingtowards the exit of the ravine. As the walls around them began to slopedown, Amos could see a few men and several wagons up aheadgathered around the base of a large rockslide. Most of these men were


14/257

13

in military uniform... All except for one... Amos ground his teeth at thesight of that lone man: Ga nondorf Dragmire

__________

May 27th, 1864Paulding County, Georgia

Private Amos Goron dove into a small ditch behind a small patch of scrub brush. The last volley from the Confederate lines had barelymissed his location, but many of the men that were in front of him-were not so lucky. Marcus Crowden screamed out in pain only 5 yardsfrom his position. Amos could tell from where he lay that Marcus wasalready a dead man. He turned his ears to another cry, this one to hisright. Holt Camden had been hit in the leg by a piece of shell. From hisvantage point, it looked like a fast enough maneuver to reach him. Herolled out of the trench and scrambled towards his fallen comrade. The

Confederate cannons roared again as artillery screeched overhead. Hedropped to one knee next to the wounded man, and began pulling clothstrips from his haversack. Just hang in there, Holt Ive gotchya now. As he tugged on the shell fragment, Holt groaned from the pain.Just hang in there talk to me tell me where you were born again. Ri Rivington,Pen Penn-sylvania he stammered in agony. I bet its real pretty there this time of year, aint it?

Amos gave a quick tug as the metal shard pulled free. Holt yelped againbefore he had time to answer the question. Working like lightning, thedoctor began to wrap his wound.I wish I had more I could give you, Holt, I surely do... but Im runninreal low and I got to keep movin! Thank you, doc. Holt grimaced. Amos closed his bag and turned to stand up.K-klick Amos froze at the sight of the pistol barrel that was now pressed againsthis left cheek.Well well! said the man holding the gun looks like weve gotourselves a survivo r, boys!


15/257

14

Amos glanced as far left as he could without moving. There were a half a dozen men standing around him wearing ashen grey coats. He was

surrounded by confederate soldiers, and had nowhere to run.Shoot em already! a voice called from somewhere behind him.You cant shoot him! a familiar voice said. Amos glanced back to hisright to see Holt push himself up on one elbow. Hes a doctor! Youcant shoot a doctor! Maybe youre right the man said. Amos felt the gun barrel lift fromhis cheek, but he dare not move. But you, Yankee are not.

BLAMMM!!!

The flash of the gunshot almost blinded Amos as he fell to his knees.The throbbing in his ears made him question whether he himself hadbeen shot. He felt his haversack being ripped from his shoulder. Slowly,he opened his eyes, and in front of him lay what was left of HoltCamden. The pistol wound gaped in his chest, as the blood trickled into

a pool around the lifeless body. Amos haversack dropped next to hisface, empty. Through the ringing in his ears, he heard the voice of theman with the gun speaking again.Well doc, it looks like its your lucky day. Seems as if you had a fewthings we could use! The men who were with him laughed, as their leader continued:Besides - we can always use a good messenger so listen up good now,

you hear? The mans giant hand grabbed him from the dirt. Amos stared into theeyes of a massively built Confederate Officer. His grey coat was an evendarker shade of charcoal than most and this created a stark contrastbetween his uniform and bright red sideburns on the mans face. Fromunderneath his wide brimmed hat, the mans amber -colored eyespierced into the doctors own. Amos felt the sharp edge of a large bowieknife press into his side Ive been pu lled back from a very important mission further west fromhere to help deal with your pathetic excuse for an army. You run backand tell that devil, General Sherman; that hes more than met his matchwith my men and if h e continues his march and if it com es all the waydown to it - I, Lieutenant Colonel Ganondorf Dragmire, will personallydrive my blade into his heart if he holds up my mission any longer.


16/257

15

With those words, Ganondorf threw Amos Goron to the ground.Get up and run out of here before I cha nge my mind and get a

different message bearer! Amos scrambled for his bag and ran headlong back into the trees

__________

Amos horse slid to a stop next to Arthurs Twilight snorted andpawed at the dry dirt of the canyon pass as the two men dismounted.Amos couldnt tell what the military men had found quite yet, but as hebegan walking towards the crowd, a familiar face turned to greet them.Well now! Its about time! Ganondorf chided under his breath. Howsthe good doctor these days? Amos said nothing. Ganondorf was still as massive of a man as he was20 years ago, but his red sideburns gave way to a full red beard with afew salt and pepper-ish streaks. He had also gained about 30 pounds orso, Amos figured, but he was still a strong and imposing figure.

Oh come now, doctor! Its been a long time since I was around theseparts. All that time and youve got nothing to say? Amos pushed past Ganondorf and through the circle of soldiers. He wasready for a lot of things in his life. Dealing with Ganondorf Dragmire wasone thing that he hoped that he wouldnt have to do anymore, but nowthat he had bought out the Kasariko Saloon, it seemed as if he wereback for the long haul. He could handle it. He was ready for almost

anythingyes, he was ready but he wasnt ready for what he sawnext

There, on the edge of that dusty canyon path laid the body of a younggirl. A young Native American who looked no more than 18 years old,Amos thought to himself. He glanced up and down her lifeless body.Small cuts and gashes ran from her bare feet, up to her knees. Her lightblue nightdress was ripped and torn to shreds from her thighs down.There were various briars and thorns clinging to the tattered fabric.Amos knelt down for closer inspection- her torso had been stabbedmultiple times. One two three four five and more enough wasenough, he thought to himself as he shuddered. He would count therest later at his office. Glancing further, he saw her right arm was


17/257

16

severely mauled. Her flesh was torn and she was missing a hand. Mostdisturbing of all was that it appeared as if her eyes had been removed.

Its a sight, aint it doc? Arthur whispered from behind as he kneltdown next to Amos.My God, Arthur what happened here? he replied. Thats what I was hoping you could tell me. One of the soldiers called out from the group. Maybe she was one othem whores from the Spectacle Rock Saloon on the other side of themountain . Arthur was quick to retort. Does she look like a whore to you? Shes

jus t a young girl! From the looks of it, she was murdered in cold blood. The soldier shuffled back into his unit. Ganondorf made his way throughthe crowd.Sheriff , are you suggesting that youve got a murderer in your town,and you didnt know it? Ganon, thats not at all what I said! He could have been a passer -byand just happened to assault this poor girl as she was walking home .

Maybe it was the Gang of Thieves ! Shouted another soldier. Yea! agreed another, She aint got no eyes! Maybe it was even Blindthe Thief himself ! The crowd of soldiers began to laugh and murmur.Arthur hung his head. He had been in a firefight with Blind the Thief andhis Gang of Thieves 8 years ago. Several of Arthurs best deputieswere killed, but the reward for his loss was substantial: Blinds

headquarters caught fire, and most of the gang including Blind, wereassumed to have perished in the blaze. Most everyone believed that theGang of Thieves was no more, but rumors flared up every now andagain that they were still alive.Calm down all of you! Ganondorf shouted. You all know that Sheriff Moses dealt with that cretin a long time ago! Certainly looks likemurder, but I tell you now - it aint Blind the Thief. Arthur and Amos must have looked shocked as he turned back to them.Is there a problem, Sheriff ? Ganondorf asked.No he stammered I guess that I just didnt expect you touhh What? Defend you? Ganondorf laughed. Honestly Arthur! I knowweve had our rough times in the past, but I swear to you I am achanged man. Thats why I came back to Hyland! I wanted to. Makeamends for my previous actions.


18/257

17

Mr. Dragmire , why are you even out here? Amos snapped. Ganondorf glared at the man. Didnt Arthur explain it to you?

Arthur strode in between the doctor and the former Confederatecommander. Ganondorf was the one who came to me. Hes the onewho found the girl. Amos, Ganondorf continued, I was riding into town with these menso they could show off their new weapons at the Kasariko. As we camearound this corner, I spied a pair of coyotes working over a dead carcasson the road. As we got closer, I saw it was the girls body! I fired a shotover their heads and they ran into the rocks. Once we stopped and sawthe knife wounds, I rode on ahead and got Arthur. When he saw whatwe were dealing with, he rode back to get you. Arthur nodded in agreement. Probably killed this girl yourself, Ganon , Amos thought to himself. Helooked at the ground around her body, but there were no obvious cluesto where she came from. The storm from the previous evening musthave washed away a lot of the clues that would have helped him. He

reached down and gingerly placed his hand on her neck. From the touchof her skin, he could tell the girl had been dead for quite a while. Hegently rolled her to her side. The rain had not washed the blood fromthe ground underneath of her body, but he did notice that for hernumber of wounds, there was a surprisingly little amount of blood.Poor thing Amos said. She must have mostly bled out beforesomeone strangled her looks like she lost a lot of blood before she was

dumped here.. . What do you figure, Amos? Whyd she get herself killed? Arthur askedas he knelt down next to the doctor again.I wish I knew Sheriff looks like a case of her bein in the wrong placeat the wrong time. Id like to take her back to my place to have a betterlook.Doctor, Ill take some of the military mens gear on my horse if they willlet you use one of their carts. Ganondorf offered.The military men immediately began to move satchel bags from a smallcart to the back of Ganondorf s horse before Amos could answer. Thank you kindly, Mr. Dragmire. Amos said, still unsure of how he feltabout this new change of heart.


19/257

18

Within a minute more, the wagon was empty and the men helped toslide the girls body into the wagon. Ill follow you, sir. the young

private behind the wagons reins said to the doctor. Amos led the wayback into Hyland at a slow gallop. He knew that something was missing,but he just didnt know what. There was something bigger to thispuzzle. Why had Ganondorf come back to Hyland? Why his apparentchange of heart? Why were the girls eyes missing? He just hoped hecould find the answers he needed


20/257

19

Chapter 3The Girl with the Ice Blue Eyes

L ink woke up the next morning to the sounds of the rooster crowing hisdaily song. He got out of bed and slipped on his dark green poncho. Hisuncle had not come home last night, but this was not the first time.

Many a night, his uncle would stay in his office processing papers ordrowning his sorrows at the Kasariko. Link set to work on his daily dutiesacross the ranch. He didnt tell his uncle, but he was hurt the previousafternoon when he was told he couldnt ride with his uncle and Amos tothe canyon. He had waited on the steps of the Kasariko for the weaponsdebut, but nothing came of it, and the rest of the people waiting in thecrowds disbanded shortly thereafter. He had ridden by Los Lonos Ranchon the way home, but Talon Lonos did not have any shoes in Twilightssize ready for purchase. He said that he would have them ready by themorning. With the day turning out to be more of a letdown than heexpected, Link had returned to the house to sleep.

After tossing feed to the chickens, Link walked back to the ranch houseand picked up his fishing pole. He wished that he had as much time todo the little things like fishing that he enjoyed from when he was

younger, so days like this one were rare. He saddled up Epona and rodeto the Zora River. To the left of the main bridge crossing that led toHyland, was a well-worn path leading to the riverbank. Link rode downthe steep trail to the waters edge with ease , and tied Epona to asupport pillar of the bridge. He settled down on a rock, cast his line intothe current, and waited for a bite. He listened to the rumble of a wagon


21/257

20

as it crossed the bridge heading to Hyland. He heard another horsesometime later, and a distant hawks call as it echoe d across the plains.

From behind him, Link heard the shuffle of feet approaching.Lincoln Rourke! Does your uncle know that you re spending your timefishing when youre supposed to be farming? Came the voice frombehind.Link stood and turned with a smile: Hi there, Mallon. Catchin anything? No, not really just tryin to relax and get away for a bit. Howd youfind me?Dont you think I know you well enough by now? she laughed.Mallon Lonos always had a way of making Link relax. She was the first

person that he had met that was his same age after arriving in Hylandseven years ago. Since that time, they had been the closest of friendsgrowing up on the plains. Now, he looked at Mallon through older eyesas she sat next to him on the rocky edge of the river. Link smiled tohimself as he noticed her flowing purple skirt stopped midways down

her calves to reveal her mud-stained leather riding boots underneath.Mallon was all things woman, and yet her heart was on the range. Shecould still shoot and ride with the best of the men in Hyland. Today, Linkwas especially distracted by her long, auburn hair that waved in thebreeze as she tightened a yellow bandana around her neck. She reachedfor a smooth rock to skip across the river when she notice d Links gaze. What? She asked with a coy smile as she brushed the hair from her

face.Nothing Link replied, ashamed that he had been caught staring ather.Mallon tossed the rock into the wide stream. Skip skip skip skip skipskip skip splosh . HA! she excitedly exclaimed, pointing to the eightripples in the water. Beat that one, Lincoln Rourke! Link searched around the rock they were sitting for the perfect stone.To his right, he took a rock the size of a coal lump with two perfectly flatsides. The ideal skipping stone, so he thought. Link took aim, and with asnap of his arm, and flip of his wrist: the rock sailed across the river.Splosh .Mallon burst into laughter. Link plopped down on the rock again.Aww come on now! she grinned. I know you can do better thanthat!


22/257

21

Link laughed and shook his head- What are you doing out hereanyways?

Lookin for you like I said, of course!What for? Pa finished with those shoes for Twilight, and he wanted me to bringem to you. I checked at th e ranch and when I didnt find you , I headedinto town. When you werent at the Sheriff s Office or Doc Goronsplace, I figured youd be here. You didnt need to come all the way here for that, Mallon! I wouldhave stopped by this afternoon! Link stood from the rock, and untied Epona. Mallon took his arm as theywalked up the riverbank. She leaned in close and glanced around beforewhispering to him: Besides, I heard tell while I was in town of some bignews from yesterday. Whats that you heard, then? I heard that a man found a dead Indian girl on the side of the road! Link stopped. Are you serious?

Of course! Why would I make that up? My uncle said that I couldnt ride with him and the Doc yesterdayafternoon, because I didnt need to get i nvolved in something... I bet itwas that girl! Sounds about right from what I heard - it might be a good thing youdidnt go too! I was listening to some military men at the Kasariko thismorning when I was looking for you, and they said she was horribly

mangled up! Link helped Mallon swing up to her saddle. She handed a sack withhorseshoes in it back down to him. Do you want to ride back with meto the ranch? Pa might be getting ready to fix supper, and Im sure hewouldnt mind if you stayed on for a while. Thanks Mal, Link replied as he climbed into Eponas saddle. But Imgonna swing on by my uncles office and see if I can give him theseshoes. Maybe next time? Mallon offered a warm smile, but Link could tell it was also laced with atouch of disappointment. Sure thing, Mr. Rourke Ill be countin onit. I wont let you down! he called out as she turned to ride away. And I wont let you, either! she called back.


23/257

22

Link watched Mallon disappear down the long winding road out of Hyland back towards the plains. Spending more time with Mallon would

have been great, but there was far too much work to be done for hisuncle, and Mallons own father needed her help more and more everyday. He turned back towards Hyland and rode into town.

As he reached the towns center, Link swung a hard left at the Saloonand diverted his path from his uncles office, towards Doc Gorons.. .Twilights shoes could wait for a few more hours, he figured. Linkhitched his horse outside and crossed the front po rch of the doctor soffice to the door, but it was locked. He knocked on the door andwaited for a response. He wondered about what Mallon had said to himearlier the girl in the desert. Link wondered if what she heard wastrue. If it was, then Doc Goron would know. After a long while, Link puthis ear to the door to listen. Muffled voices came from deep inside thebuilding, but who it was and what they were saying was unintelligible.He remembered that the Doctor had added a back door to his office a

few years past, so he strode down the alleyway to the back of thebuilding. Link pulled the door open, and ran headlong into a tall andpowerfully built man who was exiting. Though the man was wearing adark pinstriped coat, and appeared to be on business, he could feel thelarge- caliber pistol strapped to the mans waistband on impact.Pardon me! Link nodded. The man stared down at the youth that crossed his path.

Who are you? he growled. My name is Lincoln.What are you doing back here, boy? I was coming to talk to Doc Goron. Beat it kid. The man snapped Hes busy now. Link furrowed his brow Who do you think you are, mister? Hes myfriend. The man stiffened his stance as a friendly voice came from behind:Hes ok, Ganon! Thats just Arthur s nephew . The large man shifted his weight to make a small gap between himself and the doorframe. Link squeezed through and glanced back at theman. He was staring back at Link, but spoke to the doctor.I dont care who he is, Amos you keep him out of this business. Hesgot no reason for bein back here with what s been going on .


24/257

23

The door slammed shut as the man walked outside. Amos entered intothe room from the other end, wiping his hands with a scrap of canvas.

Afternoon, Link... How can I help? Who was that man , Doc? That, my dear boy, was the new owner of the Kasariko: Mr. Ganondorf Dragmire. Link recalled their conversation from the previous day. That was theguy you said you had a history with? The doctor just nodded his head in agreement, and tossed the rag intothe wastebasket.Yes that was him. Link turned back to the doctor as he spoke. Well, I was actually hopingthat you would be able to confirm a rumor I heard being told thismorning. The doctor glanced over the top of his gla sses. What did you hear? I heard tell that someone found a girl in the desert this morning. Ifigured you would know if it was true or not, Doc. With a long sigh, the doctor leaned against the wall. Your uncle didntwant you getting involved in this one, Link. Why not?! You know that I have always wanted to do more than justwork on the ranch! I understand son, I do. But this is a pretty rough one. I just want to help out if I can. Maybe a fresh pair of eyes could help! Amos stared down at the floor for a long time without speaking. Finally

he glanced up at Link. Arthurs gonna kill me for this, but follow me. Amos led Link into the operating room. As he walked around the corner,he froze in his steps. Lying on the table was a young Indian girl... Dead.Not just dead, he thought to himself as he looked over the body-Murdered. Link did not know how long he had been staring until thedoctor broke his silence.You know Link, you dont have to stay here if it makes you uneasy. Link snapped out of his daze. Im sorry Amos. I guess I just didntexpect to see something like this. She looks to be about my sameage. She is. What happened to her? I only wish I knew... Mr. Dragmire and some military men found heryesterday evening, lying dead in the canyon.


25/257

24

Why is she missing a hand? Thats only one of the questions that I am trying to work out . Amos

sighed, as he pulled a stool up to the table with the girl. Why the missing hand? Why did they take her eyes? Link suddenly felt nauseous.I told your uncle that I would try my best to figure this one out, but itsnot going to be easy. Amos took the arm of the young girl in his handsas he pushed his glasses down on his nose. Looks like Ganondorf wastelling the truth. He mused to himsel f.About what? Well, he said that there were a couple of coyotes workin her over realgood when they found her. The whole end of her arm, and the missinghand might be explained by that. He said as he pointed to the bitemarks and torn flesh.Link did nt say much, but watched quietly from the other side of thetable. Amos realized that he was doing the majority of the talking, so hedecided to try a change of pace.

Did you see your Uncle this morning? No he didnt come home last night. I reckon tha t he was a bit toowound up from finding her. Amos nodded in agreement. Sleep had not come easy for him thatprevious evening either.Do you know if he is in his office? Link asked. I would guess so, but if not hell probably be at the Kasariko. Some o f

the military men who were supposed to be doing that weapons showyesterday were the ones who found her. They were staying the nightthere, and I know that Arthur wanted to get their sides of the story. Link still didnt respond. Amos was about to speak again, when Linkchimed in.Do you think that the coyotes did that to her eyes too? Amos looked at the hollow expression on the girls face. I doubt it son.That looks like it was done cleanly and with precision. If they were removed with that much care, then did the killer want tokeep them? Like some kind of trophy? Amos didnt like the thought of that. Then again, that thought had notcrossed his mind about the eyes.Could very well be but if that s the case, then theres a mightydepraved man somewhere in this part of the countr y.


26/257

25

Link walked towards the doorway any glanced back at Amos who satwatching him.

Thank you, Doc. I appreciate you showing me, I do. Dont mention it, Link. Run along now and see if you can catch up toyour uncle.

Link walked around to the front of the building, and across the street.His mind spun from the encounter with the dead girl. Amos was right totell him it was a gruesome discovery, and truth be told, Link wasnt verysure himself if he wanted to know any more about what had happenedto her. Still, he was having a hard time thinking of anything other thanthat poor lifeless girl. Suddenly there was a roaring sound growing in hisears louder louder. Link could feel it in his bones! It felt like theground was going to give way underneath him right there in the middleof the street. wait the middle of the street? Link darted his eyes tothe left and saw the team of horses barreling down on him quickly. Hedove out of the way as the driver of the large white stagecoach brought

the horses to a panicked stop. The dirt of the street tasted horrible, Linkthought to himself as he picked himself up from the ground andbrushed off his poncho.

Hey there ! The driver called out angrily through the settling dustcloud , You almost got yourself killed! Sorry! Link replied as he tried his best to brush the dirt from his hat.

The man stared at Link for a moment. As he did, Link thought he feltanother person watching him as well. He glanced back to the window of the stagecoach and saw a face... It was the face of a young Indian girlabout his same age. She was flawlessly beautiful, with long black hair,and the iciest of blue eyes. He had never seen an Indian girl with eyeslike hers. As their gaze locked, Link fel t something hed never feltbefore. It was almost if she was trying to speak to him without saying aword. His world seemed to grow dimmer except for the brightness of her eyes. He felt a warm rush of familiarity, like they had known eachother forever was that it? No, it was a f eeling that she needed hishelp?

The crack of the coachmans whip broke Links focus as the horsesbegan to trot down the street. He glanced back to the window as the


27/257

26

stagecoach rumbled past him. The beautiful girl returned his stare withthose eyes, accompanied by a soft smile and slight wave. Link went to

tip his hat in politeness towards her, but realized that by the time hehad done so, she was already out of sight. He pulled his hat back snugon his head and stared at the dust trail that followed her stagecoach outof town.Who was she?


28/257

27

Chapter 4 The Fog of War

Arthur Moses sat his mug down with a loud thwack on the tabletop. Hisfourth drink of the day, and it was barely past noon. Im telling you,he sighed, It just don t make a lick of sense! Amos and I went over that

young girls body with a fine tooth comb last night and this morningboth. She was violently murdered, but there aint been a soul to comeforward saying that s hes missing... not here, and not in any of thesurrounding counties! It just dont feel right, Horace.

Major Horace Agahnim remained silent and stared at Arthur as heleaned back in his chair. In the past, Arthur would have been tooprideful to admit when he was stumped and needed help, but sitting inthe back of the Kasariko Saloon that afternoon with Major brought out adifferent side of him. Horace Agahnim had been in and out of Hyland forthe past few years in his work with the Military. A decorated officer inthe U.S. Cavalry, Agahnim was a tall man of Middle Eastern descentwho, despite his absolute propriety in Army dress code, chose to give anod to his heritage by wrapping a yellow and black shemagh around hisneck and face when riding across the dry western deserts. Arthur had

first met the Major while working on a series of cattle thefts that haddevastated Hylands ranchers a few years back. His keen ability to noticedetail paired with Arthurs own experience had brought the thieves to

justice. Although he was grateful for the help, Arthur was reluctant toask for it, as the Majors arrogance was at times almost unbearable. He


29/257

28

needed Agahnims help, but the look on his face was showing the samesmirk that annoyed Arthur whenever he had to deal with the man.

And you are saying that there is not a single person in Hyland who iscapable of this kind of crime? The Major scoffed.Arthur glanced at the floor and shook his head. I wouldnt havebelieved it yesterday morning if you had told me. Perhaps then you need to look at the possibilities of this being arandom occurrence. Maybe it is the body of a passerby who was killedby another. Maybe neither the victim nor the perpetrator is from thisarea? But why drop the body here, Horace? It feel s like someone wanted meto find this body on purpose! The major shifted in his chair: Why was there a murder in the firstplace? Maybe you should focus more on that issue before you get toooverwhelmed in your conspiracy here, Arthur. Thats not what I meant Oh trust me, The major laughed, Y ou small town lawmen are all thesame! You all look for an outrageous story in the most simple of placesto help validate all of those calls to help get Bertas cows back in thepen .

Arthur could feel hi s anger build at Agahnims snide remarks. The majorpushed away from the table and walked to the bar for a moment.Arthur didnt even know why he was bothering to tell Horace any of this

information if he only enjoyed mocking his efforts. He tipped his mug tohis lips again, but the glass was still empty. Five drinks before noon maybe a bit too much, but as of right now, he didnt know what else to do.He had interviewed all of the Majors men who had first made thediscovery, but their information failed of open up any new leads. WhatArthur really needed was a fresh set of eyes to look at this case

Hey Uncle! came a familiar voice from behind. Afternoon Link... Arthur sighed with a forced smile as h e pushed backfrom the table, his mind still on the dead girl.Link sat quickly in the Majors vacant seat. Do you know who roundthese parts owns a white colored stagecoach?


30/257

29

The onl y one I know of belongs to the Mayor of Hyland: Jonathan D.Nohannson why do you ask? Arthur noted that Nohannson was an

easy word to slur.Oh I was just wondering. Link said, staring towards the window at thestreet outside.Arthur looked the boy over and figured that he still had more on hismind.And? What? Link asked, turning back to Arthurs gaze. Why do you want to know? It was just. There was this. Girl he said, turning back to thewindow.What girl are you talking about, boy? said the Major as he pulled achair back up at their table.Arthur was bothered again by the Major cutting in, but he held histongue. Link turned back and looked across the table at Agahnim. Whoare you?

I am a friend of your Uncle . he replied. Friend Arthur resisted the urge to roll his eye s, and simply shrugged.Link, this is Major Horace Agahnim. He and I were talking business. Sorry Uncle, I didnt mean to break in. I just wanted to know about thewhite stagecoach because of the girl th at I saw in it. Im telling you, shewas the most beautiful creature I think Ive ever seen! She looked likean Indian, but had the brightest ice blue eyes youve ever seen!

Blue eyes on an Indian girl, you say? The Major raised an eyebrow. Itseems like that might have looked pretty unique It surely was! Link continued. I dont think Ive ever seen another girllike her I mean, I dont know what that dead girls eyes looked like, butI doub- WHAT? Arthur exclaimed loudly, then quickly brought his voice to awhisper . How did you find out about that girl? Link held his gaze sternly for a moment without speaking.Did Amos tell you about her? Arthur pressed.Link sighed. He only wanted to help Arthur, but every time he tried, itfelt like his uncle condemned his actions even more. I overheard sometalk from in town, so I went by there this morning, and he showed methe body .


31/257

30

Arthur shook his head. Gorramit , boy! I didnt want you getting in themiddle of this one!

Link tried to keep his calm, but his uncles heated questions werebeginning to grade against him. I didnt mean any harm by it, but younever want my help u nless its on the farm, and ev - Enough! Arthur yelled as he slammed his fist on the table. The Majorseyes darted from Link to Arthur and back again, and an uneasy quietsettled on the Kasariko.Run on home. Well talk about this later. Link stood to his feet. He wanted to yell back at his uncle and tell himhow he felt. He was sick of farm work, and wanted to do more. But withevery person in the saloon staring in his direction, this was not theplace. Link tossed the heavy satchel on the table in front of his uncle.Those are for Twilight. You can take care of them yourself. He spun on his heel and darted from the building.Arthur stared blankly at the bag of horseshoes on the table in front of him. He knew that he shouldnt have snapped at Link like that, but at

the same time, he didnt understand why Link was so upset. Theyneeded to talk, but at that moment, Arthur couldnt get his ownthoughts straight, let alone deal with the thought of a seriousconversation.Ice blue eyesArthur snappe d out of his thoughts What? The Major was staring out the door where Link exited. He said the

young Indian girl had ice blue eyes He meant another girl, not the victim. Oh I know but that is strange that he would correlate the two Just what are you getting at here, Horace? The Major drummed his fingers on the table top for a moment as heproduced a small silver pocket watch from inside his jacket. He woundthe mechanism tighter as he processed ideas. Nothing I suppose ...

__________

The soft glow of an amber sunset in the distance illuminated thewestern slopes of Death Mountain. This was the perfect spot to finishher painting, Mallon Lonos thought to herself as she placed the finalbrushstrokes on the canvas. Just about there... finished! She sat back


32/257

31

on the log she had been using for a stool and admired her work. Fromher perch on Tal Tal Ridge, she could look just to the North and down at

the City of Hyland and the Zora River below. To the far North, themighty Death Mountain range rose from the steppes high into the air.Even though the plains around the city were dry and sparse of vegetation, the mountains to the North were tall enough that theymanaged to collect a fair amount of snow this time of the year.Something about the layout of the Hyland with a snow coveredmountain in the distance reminded Mallon of a sleepy little medievaltown. Maybe next time she would paint the town from this same ridgeand add in a few more trees and a castle in the middle of the city. Shelaughed at her own imagination. Tal Tal Ridge was a special place to her,as she had spent many an evening here looking across the Zora towardsHyland. This was the first place that she had ever remembered seeingLincoln Rourke too. That made it special enough for her. The memorymade her smile as she glanced to the main trail that crossed the river.She remembered the day that Arthur bought Epona and proudly

announced to her father that his nephew was coming to live with him sohe needed the best foal he could get . Mallon had run to this samespot on the ridge to watch Arthur ride into town to pick up the youngboy. She recalled the giddy feelings of how nice he looked in his fineclothes from back east. Now seven years later, she thought that helooked more handsome than ever in a worn out duster, and wide brimhat.

Very handsome.

Link puzzled her at times because he was a bit of a mystery. On onehand, they had been the best of friends throughout their teenage years,but at the same time Mallon felt more. She had loved that young ranchhand for several years now, and would follow him anywhere he choseto go but s he never could tell if he felt the same for her. At times shewas absolutely certain he cared, but then again there were times wherehe seemed to miss all of the signals. She desperately wanted him to feelthe same, but wanted to keep their relationship intact as well.

Worryin will get you nowhere, Mal. She whispered to herself.


33/257

32

Mallon brushed her long, auburn hair out of her face, and back behindher ears. She reached down and slid her bare feet back into the old

leather riding boots that she wore all the time. She didnt know why shesometimes preferred to paint in her bare feet, but she did all the same.This painting would be one of her best, she thought to herself as sheexamined it... A few more brush strokes later, and Mallon was done.She took the canvas from its stand, and strapped the canvas to the backof her horse, and tossed her paints into a small haversack. As she wasabout to climb into the saddle, she heard faint voices down on the roadbelow. It was getting too dark for a young woman to be riding by herself and stumble across a random stranger, so she thought it was best to letthese travelers pass into town before coming down from her ridge. Asthe voices drew closer, Mallon could tell that the two men were inserious conversation

I know he got what he needed, but if you ask me, leaving that girlsbody in the desert was too reckless . said the first man.

Why do you say reckless ? We dont know what the sheriff believesyet! asked the other. I mean, he knows that most of us burnt up in that fire years ago Yea, but if you were in his shoes, wouldnt you reckon that some of theGang of Thieves made it out of that building al ive? The first man scoffed, Dont you think that the boss is covering histracks? Hes been workin in the shadows for years to make this happen.

He said he was getting closer than ever. Hes also getting reckless! Moses is a clever man, and I doubt that if wewere to ho- Moses is getting old! the first man barked. Anyways a lot of deception went into this whole ordeal. Youll see the boss has areason for everything he does.

By now the two men were riding across the Zora River Bridge towardsHyland, and the sound of the river placed them out of earshot. Gang of Thieves? Mallon thought to herself. S hed remembered the stories of Blind the Thiefs gang when she was younger. Her father was one of themen who rode out with Arthur Moses the night they finally corneredthe gang in Gerudo. He was injured, but thankfully he survived theordeal. As best as she could tell, these men were part of the same


34/257

33

infamous Gang of Thieves. Obviously, the gang was still around! Whenshe was certain that the men were well out of range, Mallon carefully

guided her horse down the ridge to the road below. Even though it wasalmost totally dark, looking both ways, she knew she was alone. Shereached underneath her skirt and pulled a small pocket Derringer fromthe holster concealed on her right thigh. She checked the chamber:Both barrels loaded. Good. She tucked it into her waistband, andsnapped the reins. Like a flash- Mallon was speeding down the pathtowards Los Lonos.

__________

Link had spent a quiet evening by himself. Arthur had come home, butLink was still not in the mood for talking. He ate his supper outsidewatching the sunset. He wondered if he should have gone to Mallonshouse to eat dinner with her and her father after all. He knew thatMallon loved sunsets like the one this night. Hopefully she had noticed

this one too. While there was a little bit of light left in the sky, Linkmade his rounds around the farm to make sure everything was settledfor the night. The chicken coops were closed up, and the gates to thegarden were shut. Epona snorted a tired huff from somewhere in thedarkness of the barn as Link cracked the door to check on the horses. Hewalked back to the ranch house with his Henry repeater tossed over hisshoulder. Glancing in the window, he saw Arthur passed out in the chair

of the parlor, empty whisky bottle on the floor. Link loved his uncle butdidnt understand why he drank so much. If it was because of the stressof being the Sheriff of Hyland, Link only wished that Arthur would askfor his help more often. Perhaps this particular instance was due to thedead Indian girl. Maybe it was because he had gotten involved againsthis uncles wishes. Maybe it was because of that military officer whowas chastising him at the Kasariko. Link quietly closed the door behindhim, and walked over to his uncle. Whatever their disagreements, Linkwas still eternally grateful to Arthur for providing him with a home. Hecovered his uncle up with a blanket that had been lying on top of thecedar chest in the den. He snuffed out the oil lamp that rested on thetable next to Arthurs chair, and quietly slipped off to his bedroom. Ashe lay down, his mind raced with the thoughts of the day: the dead


35/257

34

body, the girl in the white stage coach, his poor uncle Mallon. Heclosed his eyes and began to quiet his mind

What was that?Link opened his eyes and sat up in bed. It sounded like the wind blowinginto his bedroom. He walked to the edge of the outside wall of hisroom, and checked to make sure the window was closed tightly. He laidhis head back on the pillow and drifted off to sleep.There it was a gain Link sat up in bed. He looked around his room. Everything seemednormal, but Link was certain that h e had heard wind or a whisper. H ewalked to his door and peered out into the den. His uncle still lay in thechair where he had fallen asleep hours before. Link figured Arthur musthave been snoring, so he slipped back into bed and soon off to sleepagain.Lincoln His eyes jolted open.Lincoln Clearly as day he had heard the voice this time, but as he looked aroundthe room, he couldnt see anything. O nly blackness.Whos there? Link stammered. Lincoln Rourke I know you you are the one! Links heart raced. The voice was soothing and at the same time,ethereal. Th ... The one w-w hat?The one who will uncover the truth! You must seek the truth find it at

Gerudo. What are you talking about? he stammered.The voice began to fade away: Hurry Lincoln! There is little timeexpose the darkness expose their lies lift the fog that blinds menseyes... With those words, a gust of wind and flash of light filled the room. Linkclosed his eyes tightly . In an instant, all was quiet

__________

The glow of a lone oil lamp cast long, menacing shadows across theroom as Ganondorf Dragmire walked towards the window of his officeoverlooking the street out front of the Kasariko Saloon. At this time of night there was no one out on the streets below. He doubted that there


36/257

35

was anyone even awake in Hyland. Ganondorf liked being alone likethis. The solitude gave him time to think. Thinking improved his

patience. If nothing else could be said about him, Ganondorf Dragmirewas a patient man. Smoke curled from the fine imported cigar heclinched in his teeth, filling the air around his head. With a long, drawnout exhale, Ganondorf pulled the cigar from his mouth, and with thesame hand drew his reading spectacles from his right breast pocket.Placing the glasses low on the bridge of his nose, he began reading atelegraph he had received earlier that evening. A slight grin parted hislips as he read farther. As he reached the end of the dispatch, he foldedthe paper in two and walked back to his desk. Sitting down in the large,leather chair behind the desk, Ganondorf placed the cigar into anashtray and took the folded letter in both hands. Such a simple thing, hethought. It was just a single piece of paper, with a few drops of ink inthe form of words. The meaning of those three words, well... thatwasnt si mple. That was a different story:

WEVE FOUND HER.

Ganondorf reached out and removed the glass cover of the oil lamp onthe desk. He held the paper over the open flame until smoke began tothe rise from the corner. Dropping the smoldering page on the desk, hewatched it burn, as he pulled his Schofield revolver from his waistband.Ganondorf emptied the ammunition from the gun, and checked the

barrel condition using the light from the burning telegraph. Heinspected each of the cylinders as he replaced the .45 caliber cartridges.He snapped the latch of the heavy gun back together and sat it on thedesk in the blackened ashes of the telegraph. Yes indeed; if nothing elsecould be said about him, Ganondorf Dragmire was truly a patient man.He could wait a while longer


37/257

36

Chapter 5 The Plains of Gerudo

Mallon had made it back to her fathers horse ranch, but was stilluneasy from the conversation she overheard on the trail. She wanted totalk to her father about what the two men said, but Talon Lonos didnt

like to talk about the Gang of Thieves. Frustrated, and still feeling likesomeone needed to know about these men, Mallon waited until herfather was asleep before she slipped out of the house. She quietlysaddled up her horse again, an d set out for Arthur Moses ranch. It waslate, and she figured Link and Arthur were probably asleep already... butshe needed to talk to someone!The soft glow of the moonlight reflected across the open plains, whilethe cool air off the Zora River carried across and whipped through herhair. Mallon followed the road leading towards her destination. Shedidnt even really know what she hoped to accomplish by talking toLink, but those two men had mentioned his uncle, and from what shecould tell, it wasnt good. As she rounded the sharp bend just pastOctorock, the roofline of Arthur Moses ranch house came into view. Ina few short minutes, she was trotting up to the hitching post behind thebarn. Mallon dropped from the saddle, and slung the haversack over her

shoulder. She turned to walk towards the house, but stopped short atthe sight of a shadowy figure slinking around the corner of the buildingtowards the barn. Oh, no! She thought to herself- What if Im toolate and someones gotten to them befor e I could? What if they saw me? She crouched down and ducked into the shadows of a waterbarrel by the front door of the barn. Her heart raced as she reached into


38/257

37

her bag and drew out a large framed Colt Peacemaker. Yes, she carrieda small Derringer when she was out and about during the day, but she

actually preferred the power and weight of her .45 revolver. Mallonheld her breath as the footsteps drew closer. The man walked right infront of her and began unlatching the doors of the barn. Its a gorram horse thie f! she mused as she slowly cocked the hammer of herrevolver. Epona may belong to Link now, but Mallon was there whenshe was foaled, and helped to raise her. She felt her natural instinctsbegin to kick in.

C-Click

The man froze. Mallons heart pounded in her ears. Did he hear thehammer of her gun? She stared, unblinking; as the silhouetted figureslowly glanced around and then threw open the door to the barn. As heslipped inside, Mallon rose from her hiding spot. It was now or never,she thought to herself. Moving as quietly as possible, she crept around

the opening of the door and into the darkness of the barn. It was stilltoo dark to see inside the structure, but she pushed deeper. Suddenly aheavy hand fell on her right shoulder. Before she could react, the manhad spun her around and thrown her into a stack of hay in a nearbystall. Epona whinnied loudly at the noise, as Mallon franticallyscrambled to her feet. Before she could get her footing, the mancrashed into her, and knocked her down into the hay again. Mallon felt

the man crawl on top of her, and pin her down. Struggle as she might,he continued to overpower her. Not being able to see her attackermade it all the more difficult to fight back. Even though it was dark, shestill closed her eyes and braced for the worst.Who are you? he growled. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. The barrel of alarge pistol pressed against her ribcage.Answer me! the man snapped. She began to cry. Please dont hurt me, mister! she sobbed out between the tears. Immediately, the gun barrel that dug into her ribs jerked away therewas a brief pause before the man spoke.Mal? What are you doing here?! he whispered. She felt the mans hand gently cup the right side of her face, as histhumb wiped a tear from her cheek. She slowly opened her eyes and


39/257

38

looked up into the familiar gaze of Lincoln Rourke. Mallon began to cryagain: Link! I didnt know it was you! I thought you were a murderer! I

thought that some murderer had killed you and your uncle and wastrying to steal the horses! I could have shot you! Link helped her to her feet. She pressed into him and cried some more.Link held her close until she calmed down.

You still didnt tell me what you were doing here at this time of thenight, Mal. Whats gotten into you? he finally asked.Mallon pulled away and cleared her throat. She brushed off her hay-covered blouse and straightened her scarf. Well, she stammered Iwas just concerned. I heard of some trouble, and I wanted to informyou and your uncle. Link was confused at her sudden change of posture, but pressed on withthe questions regardless. What did you hear? Mallon told Link about the conversation that she overheard while on TalTal ridge. He listened intently before replying.

So you didnt see who the two men were, but they were talking aboutthe Gang of Thieves and the girl in the desert? Not just talking about it, they said they were part of it! Ill be sure to tell Uncle about it first thing tomorrow. Link turned andflung his gear onto Epona. He walked out of the barn, and returned afew minutes later with his rifle.What are you doing? Mallon asked, concerned at what Link could

have been thinking.Mal, I need you to promise me that you will be safe. Ride on home andget some sleep. What are you doing, Lincoln Rourke? She demanded. Youd never believe me if I told you. Try me! Ive known you for ages! I know when youre tellin tale s ornot. Link paused. Mal... I heard a voice a womans voice came to me in thenight and told me to seek the truth. Who was it? I havent the foggiest clue. It was a womans voice , and that is all Iknow. She said to find the truth at Gerudo. Mallon froze with fear. Link! Gerudo is where the Ga ng of Thieves wasfrom! If they re still around like those men said they are, then-


40/257

39

Then I doubt they will still be using their old hideout that was raided bythe law! Relax Mal besides, I have my gun if I need it.

But what is this truth youre supposed to find? Link swung into his saddle. I dont know, but I suppose that Ill find outsoon enough! Now promise me that youll go on home. Mallon nodded, gathered her belongings, and got on her horse. Shefollowed Link as far as the intersection at Octorock.Be safe, Lincoln Rourke ... She called out. I promise I will! he shouted. Dont worry, I wont let you down! And I wont let you! she yelled back.But Link didnt hear her last words because Epona had already brokeninto a full gallop to the North. She watched as long as she could, andthen turned back on the trail towards Los Lonos. She felt like she shouldgo with him. She was a good shot, and would be more than able to helpif he ran across trouble. At the same time, she knew that he would bevery upset if she followed. Mallon thought about it for a while morebefore making up her mind. It would be morning within a few hours,

and as soon as she could, she would tell Arthur where he had gone.Mallon was worried about Link, but at the same time she could not helpthe sheepish smile on her lips. She had gotten scared at the barn... thatwas legitimate.She had almost shot Link that was stupid. She had thrown herself into his arms and cried that was stupid too. Link had held her close, and wiped away her tears... that was, new

__________

The first gusty winds of the pre-dawn hours blew the sage grass aroundLinks face as he lay on top of a hill looking over the abandoned town of Gerudo. He pulled out his uncles pocket telescope, and scanned theruined buildings and wrecked homes for any sign of life any signs of the truth he was in search of. He had made it to the outskirts of townunder the cover of darkness, and tethered Epona to a dead tree at thebottom of a small ravine behind his position. She would be out of sightfrom the road there, and Link would be able to remain in a low profileuntil dawn. He remembered the stories his uncle told him about thistown very well. Like many other western towns, Gerudos prime faded


41/257

40

as the railroads passed it by. Abandoned, it soon became a den foroutcasts a home to the Gang of Thieves.

Arthur said that the Gang of Thieves was once the most powerful bandof outlaws in the west. Their leader, Blind the Thief was a verycharismatic, yet psychotic man who almost single-handedly united all of the criminals from Hyland to the Rio Grande under the same banner andcause. Despite his infamy, no one outside of the inner circle of the ganghad ever even seen his face. Link always imagined that folks took tocalling him Blind because he was a sort of invisible figure, striking outfrom the shadows of anonymity. Arthur Moses had been personallyassigned by the governor to track down Blind and put an end to hisdeadly gang. After many long months of searching, Arthur and his teamof deputies surrounded the town of Gerudo, and fought their way to thebank building at its center. At some point in the firefight, the bankcaught fire. With law enforcement on all sides, the criminals inside thestructure were forced to either run into the waiting arms of the law, orperish in the flames. Remarkably the Gang of Thieves loyalty to theirleader was strong enough that many men fought to the bitter end.Gunshots continued to ring out from the smoke filled windows until theentire building was consumed by the flames. Blind the Thief never raninto the streets to escape the fire, and was assumed dead along withnearly 30 of his most devoted followers. Doc Goron had counted thebodies. Amongst the equipment retrieved was a uniquely nickel platedLeMat revolver, the very gun that Blind had terrorized the west with for

years. It was clutched in the charred, boney hand of a corpse.

Link stared intently at the bank building and tried to imagine what thatnight would have been like. Years had passed, but the scars remained.The bank was still mostly standing, but the roof was long gone, aportion of the second floor had collapsed, and most of the exteriorwood was blackened. He scanned the rest of the town. The fire hadobviously spread to several of the nearby structures as they showedequal signs of damage. To the left he noticed the old Gerudo jailbuilding. To the right edge of town he spotted the old postal branch. Tothe north of the bank he saw wait!Link jerked the scope back to the jail. There were three brown horsesstanding behind the building. Upon further inspection, they had been


42/257

41

tied to a hitching post. He collapsed the telescope and placed it back inhis pocket. So there WAS still someone in Gerudo after all

__________

Arthur Moses had woken up that morning to the sound of pounding onhis front door. He jumped from the chair in his parlor, tripped on theempty bottle at his feet, and crashed into the wall in front of him.Gorramit! he muttered under his breath. Suddenly waking up fromsomewhere that isnt familiar to you, especially with this kind of headache, was proving to be difficult. The knocking on the doorcontinued.Boom! Boom! Boom!Might as well be an old Hyland Indian Powwow out there.. . Arthur

thought to himself as he walked to the door. Throwing the door open,the brightness of the morning sun nearly blinded him. Ugh. The day wasnot getting better.

Arthur! called a voice from somewhere in the light. Nngguh he moaned in return, shielding h is face with his left hand.Are you ok, Arthur? Talon Lonos asked.Just come on in, Tal. He motioned with his hand. Talon walked in the door to the ranch house, followed by his daughter.Arthur pointed to the bench seat under the window and made his wayback to his comfortable chair. As least he could see inside. Talon slowly

made his way to the bench, supported by his cane. The old gunshotwound must have been bad that morning.What brings you my way this early, Talon? Talon slid into the seat and glanced at his daughter, who just stared atthe floor.Well, he cleared his throat, propping his cane on the wall next to him,Last night it seems as if our kids took a little umm roll in the hay inyour barn. Arthur s eyes widened. This was, well slightly unexpected. He tried tospeak, but found it hard to come up with a response other than:W-what? Talon let out a hearty laugh. Its not like that, Arthur! He was alwaysone for practical jok es. Arthur rolled his eyes wow, even that hurt.After a brief laugh, Talons face turned serious.


43/257

42

You do need to listen to what she has to say about it, though. Mallon began to recount to Arthur Moses the events of the previous

evening. She told him about the two men on the road, the Gang of Thieves, and her encounter with Link at the barn. She told him aboutalmost shooting Link, and about Links visions. Arthur liked Mallon a lot.He always knew that she was a spirited girl, and this time shed almostkilled his nephew in the process. As reckless as that was, it made himlaugh on the inside. His focus snapped back into the conversation at theword Gerudo .What?! Arthur blinked. What did you just say? Link rode out across the Gerudo plains towards the old abandonedtown of Gerudo , and thats the last I saw of him. Arthurs heart sunk. I was awake when I heard Mallon trying to sneak in so late last night,so I confronted her. Talon continued. At first I thought the worst,seeing her all disheveled and covered in hay, but I know when my girl istelling the truth. The more she talked, the more I believed her Arthur rose from his chair and grabbed his vest and gun belt from thecoat rack by the door. He turned back to Talon and Mallon as he donnedhis hat. Ive got to go find that boy before he gets into trouble! Hesbitten off more than he can chew if the Gang of Thieves is back intown. He sped to the barn and unhitched Twilight from his stall. As hetrotted back outside astride his horse, Talon and Mallon were mountingtheirs.

Mallon! he called. Yes, Sherriff? she replied as she swung into her saddle. Take your father home. If I dont come back into town by noon, I needyou to tell Doc Goron where I went, and have him mount up a posse ! I surely will! she yelled as Arthur snapped the reins and Twilight leaptdown the trail.Hang in there, Link... Arthur whispered as his steed broke into a fullsprint. Dont go doin anything stupid!

__________

Link slowly made his way down the back of the hillside and into theravine where he had tied up Epona. Perhaps he could slip into the townof Gerudo from the western edge. It was that farthest point from the jail


44/257

43

and whoever might be inside. He dropped from the edge of a rockyembankment and ducked over to Epona, who lay down, in a deep sleep.

The sound of the rocks sliding over the edge of the rocky ledge as Linkhopped down startled the sleeping horse, which jumped to her feet andlet out a loud, frightened neigh. Link grabbed Eponas snout in his handsto quickly calm her down. Link could imagin e the sound of Eponas braycarrying out across the open plains. Once the horse had been soothed,he furiously worked to untie the reins from the fallen tree, and saddledup. Epona began navigating their way out of the canyon. No doubt themen in the jail had heard that noise, as would soon be looking for them.As they climbed up the embankment approaching the road, Link heardthe unmistakable sound of a group of horses. He stopped cold, andswung down from the saddle, crouching next to his steed. From hisposition, he couldnt tel l which way they were traveling. Were they thehorses from the jail? Had their riders come to find him? What if theywere MORE men on their way to join their fellow gang members inGerudo? Link couldnt tell for sure but he did kn ow one thing: theywere definitely getting closer.


45/257

44

Chapter 6 Only Thieves and Liars

L ink held his breath as the group of horses drew closer to where hewaited. He listened for the distinct sound of individual men or beasts.More than six, he thought. Must be some friends come to join the

party... Suddenly, the riders brought their horses to a stop.Look! He heard a voice call out. The tracks drop off of the road overthere at that ravine! Fantastic. Link closed his eyes. They had been tracking his trail? Hewondered how long they had been following him. He turned to see if there was another way out of the ravine that would allow him to avoidthe men, and guided Epona to the right-hand edge of the ravine where

he began to slink away.Hold it right there , boyo ! came a shout from behind.Too late.Link froze in mid- step as the man called out again. Get your hands inthe air, and turn around!Dropping the reins, Link slowly raised his hands and turned towards hiscaptors. As his gaze lifted to men on the road above him, he recognizedthe distinct coloration of US Cavalry uniforms. Link let out a sigh of relief: It was the Army! He dropped his hand and spoke:Boy! Im sure gla - CCCCRRACKK!!!Link dropped to the ground as the .30 caliber roundripped past his right ear, and thudded into the rocks behind him.Hands up, boy o! I aint fixin to tell you again! the man yelled. Link raised his hands over his head again and stood to his feet.


46/257

45

Get on up outta that ditch and out on this road right now! Link climbed out of the ravine and faced the man. He was a crude cut of

a soldier, all of 54 sporting an unkempt red beard. He seemed as if hewould be better working at the Kasariko as a traveling fiddle player. Linkglanced around himself quickly. At least 15 other soldiers trained theirrifles on his head, and another two descended into the ravine toretrieve Epona. There were far too many to try and run away from.But why did he feel like he needed to run? He wasnt doing anythingwrong. He didnt do anything illegal. See, thats where I think youre tellin a bit o crock! the man snarled. Had he said that out loud? Link caught himself and responded.What am I supposed to be lying about? he asked the gruff man. The sol dier continued to trail his rifle right between Links eyes. Im guessing that we found you out here so far away from Hyland, youmight be part of some kind of gang amirite, boyo? Link knew that he wasnt , but it would be a different story convincingthese men of the fact.

Honestly, sir! He replied, I am not in a gang, and I never will be! I wasout here because I was looking for umm Links mind raced. Herealized that if he told the men that he was looking for the truth thathe had heard about in a vision during his sleep, the men would groweven more suspicious.Well then? What was it that you were so diligently looking for out herein Gerudo, my young Mr. Rourke? Came another mans voice from

behind the military men. At that question, the men lowered theirweapons, and parted like the Red Sea...Major Horace Agahnim strode through the crown of soldiers and stoodface to face with Link. The Major was a stern and imposing man whostood several inches higher than Link or his uncle. His piercing, tealcolored eyes felt as if they were burning a hole into Link fromunderneath the brim of his front-creased Carlsbad.I was looking for forsomething. Link finally managed to stutter. The Major remained motionless. Arms crossed, feet firmly planted atshoulder width apart. A light breeze lifted one tail of his shemagh in theair, and gently laid it back onto his shoulder. Link couldnt rememberthe last time that a man had struck so much fear into him withouthaving to speak a single word. He cont inued staring into Links eyes, as if he was searching for information. Link tried to look away, but every


47/257

46

time he glanced back, the Major was still staring at him. After whatseemed like an eternity, the stoic cavalry officer parted his lips.

Define something. he hissed. If I tell you, you wont believe me! Link replied. Try me. Link began to recount to Agahnim his vision from the night before. Hetold the Major of the mysterious voice in his dreams, and about a friendof his who had overheard some men talking about the Gang of Thieves.The major seemed unimpressed. The more Link thought about it, theMajor didnt seem anything. He simply listened and kept his eyeslocked onto Links gaze. And thats i t. Thats the whole truth. He sighed.Afte r a long period of deep thought, the Major spoke again: So youexpect me believe that you just had a vision that told you to explorearound a dangerous ghost town? Actually, I was hoping that you would. Without so much as turning his head, Agahnim sighed and then called to

a soldier behind his right shoulder. Only liars and thieves come this farout in Gerudo. Curtis, put a set of shackles on the boy and tie his horseto mine. Were going to take a ride back to the barracks.WHAT? Link shouted, I didnt do anything! I was trying to help you! The cold, wrought iron shackles clamped around his wrists, and theArmy men picked him up and slung him over Eponas saddle. The younghorse whinnied angrily in protest, but began to trot along as the Majors

horse turned and headed back to the town.Major! You have to believe me! Agahnim didnt even turn around. Link jerked his head to the right justin time to see the butt of a Springfield rifle slam into the side of histemple.

__________

Arthur Moses could see a column of dust rising into the air headingacross the Gerudo plains. Whoever it was, they were coming fromGerudo and heading towards Hyland. There looked to be around 20horses he figured, but he was still too far away to see their riders. Hereached into his pouch on his gun belt for his telescope, so he could geta closer look. Gone? Arthur grumbled to himself that Link must have


48/257

47

taken it earlier that morning. He didnt want to rush into aconfrontation with the Gang of Thieves if they were indeed back in

town. After all, their former leader perished in the flames because of him, and they may still be holding a bit of a grudge. Arthur needed toget closer. He snapped the reins of his steed, and broke into a full gallopacross the breadth of North Ridge in the Canyons of Mystery. The big,black stallion kicked at the earth with tremendous power and speed.Where Epona may have been the fastest horse that Talon Lonos hadever bred, Twilight was one of the most powerful. He effortlessly leaptacross spans between rocks, and thundered down the ridge crest. If hewere fast enough, Arthur thought, he c ould beat them to Majoras Pass .From there, he was sure he would be able to ascertain the identity of the traveling horsemen. He hoped that he wasnt too late to save Link. If these men were with the gang and if they had found Link he didntwant to think about that. The boy was all he had. Majoras Pass rosefrom behind the rocky ledges in front of him. Arthur spurred Twilightforward

__________

Horac e Agahnims steed brayed at the sharp prongs of his spurs. Notwanting to be exposed in the open plains to an Indian or outlawambush, they had accelerated to a fast gallop towards Hyland. Upahead, the road veered to his right and underneath a natural rock

bridge known as Majoras Pass. Once they had passed under the cliffs, itwas but a 15 minute ride to Hyland. Horace was a stoic man, but thethought of parading the Indian girls killer through the streets of townwa

Eight-Bit Legends: A Link to the West

Documents

Transcript of Eight-Bit Legends: A Link to the West