Chapter Text
In the light of day, the destruction of the Yiga fortress was even more pronounced. A haze of smoke still lingered on the mountaintop, and charred remnants of the fort's hidden guard towers crumbled into black nothingness in the snow. A part of him hoped that the guards escaped the blaze. A larger part hoped they were consumed. He didn't know which side of him he hated more.
When he rode up this path, he was impatient to get to their destination, eager to take on the archers and blademasters that terrorized Central Hyrule. His father tempered his enthusiasm, reminding him that their enemies were cunning, and he needed to be on high alert. Passing by the ring of stones left over from where the knights made camp just before launching their assault, Link wanted to be sick. Smoke and death hovered around him, even in the clean air.
"Link?" Persi's soft voice cut through the darkness that gripped his soul. He flinched at her touch, jerking his arm away before he registered who it was. She held out her hand, wrapped in the dark gray of Sheikah fabric. "It's steep down this way, and the ice is slick. Will you let me help you get down?"
Tearing himself away from the tragedy he couldn't change, he set his hand in hers. They didn't have much to offer him in terms of protection from the elements, but at least his feet weren't getting cut on sharp stones. Persi took off her leg wrappings and offered them to him to wrap his feet with. It wasn't much, but it was more than he had. He tried not to think about how much he had lost.
At the bottom of the path, the ground flattened out. Water bubbled up from the rock, the start of a cold spring that flowed into a north-bound river. Tied to a small dock, a raft bobbed on the surface. It was little more than a series of young trees cut and tied together. The sail was long-ripped and barely hanging on, and the binding rope was weathered and gray. He flinched when the hempen rope creaked.
Rito Village was their next destination. Quinli was the Fireflies' alchemist. With any luck, he'd be able to brew a tonic for Link to help him speak again.
There wasn't much Link wanted to say.
Veriet held the raft steady as he climbed on, Persi and Caia following soon after. The rope snapped with a slice of Veriet's scimitar, and Link tried to stay out of everyone's way, holding onto the mast. The spring's current rippled beneath them, and the raft began to drift steadily north. Link sat on the rough bark. The riverbanks passed by, a blur despite their slow drift.
"What's the plan from here?" Veriet asked, sheathing her scimitar again. "Someone's bound to notice a group like us floating down the river. The bright red doesn't exactly lend itself to camouflage."
Caia plopped down onto the edge of the raft, letting her feet dangle in the cold water. "What, you don't like it? It's the height of Yiga fashion, you know. Supposed to strike terror into the hearts of our enemies, like blood seeping from the mountain."
"Caia," Persi said softly, "maybe stop with the violence stuff for a while."
"Hm?" The raft creaked a little behind him. "Oh, shit. Link, you okay?" Caia lowered her voice. "Veriet, can you check on him? He might need help redirecting that storm in his head."
Link was halfway toward the edge of the raft when Persi caught him. His hands shook as he tried to sign, repeating the gestures until he was sure Persi understood it. Pain. Fear. No.
Persi released her hold on him, careful to not shift the balance of the raft too much as she gently guided him back toward the center. "He's afraid of us hurting him," she told them, checking with him to ensure she translated that correctly. He nodded, and she continued. "Let's keep the magic and the violence to a minimum, alright? I doubt he's slept properly in days, and he's in pain."
"I can still fix that," Caia chimed in, which only got her Persi's boot shoving her into the water. She splashed and flailed, trying to get back onto the raft. "What the hell is wrong with you, Pers?!" She spluttered.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Persi shot back. "Leave him alone!"
Grunting a little, Caia climbed back onto the raft. Cold water dripped from her hair and darkened her uniform, turning from crimson to burgundy. "Gods, I get it. Not like I saved his life or anything. But clearly I'm the villain here."
Before Persi could shove Caia off again, Veriet picked up Persi by the back of the collar, lifting her off the raft just enough to startle her. "Both of you need to stop," she warned, fixing a stern glare at the quarreling girls. "Until we catch a stable, I don't want to hear a word out of either of you, understood?"
After a little grumbling, both complied, sitting on opposite corners of the raft. The rest of the ride down the river was refreshingly quiet.
The sun climbed higher into the sky, ducking between thin, white clouds. The rock of the Highlands soon gave way to the green grass and rolling hills at the edge of the Rigdelands. Birds flew overhead; pink and blue herons dropped loose feathers onto the earth below, almost like tiny boats as they floated alongside the raft. As the tallest among them, Veriet kept a lookout, letting the more conspicuous passengers remain hidden by the raised banks. It was nearly midday when Veriet spoke again.
"There's a bridge ahead," she observed, craning her neck a little to see over the top of the narrow banks. "There's probably a stable not too far from it. Can I trust the two of you to be patient and wait here while I scope it out?" Link didn't see the girls' reactions, but by Veriet's frustrated sigh, he guessed what it was. "Persi, you're coming with me."
"But why?!" She whined. "Make Caia go!"
Veriet raised a dark red brow. "You want me to take a Yiga to the stable?"
Even Link had to admit the logic in that decision, though he also wished that it was Persi instead who would stay with him. As Veriet tied the raft onto a nearby tree, he caught Persi's worried expression. She soon disappeared over the edge of the tall bank, following Veriet beyond his sight.
For several minutes, the silence of the river surrounded him, leaving only the lapping of the waves and the rustling of leaves overhead. Though he cast the occasional glance toward Caia, she didn't appear inclined to interact, still pouting on her side of the raft. Since they were likely going to be there a while, Link took the opportunity to wiggle out of the soot-stained Yiga clothes and slip off the edge of the raft and into the water.
Cold rushed over him, the shock of the water a welcome sensation. Though it wasn't much deeper than his waist this close to the banks, he still dunked his head underwater. Popping back up, Link flung his hair back, wiping the soot and ash from his face. Despite Persi's best efforts, he was still covered in the stuff. Cool water soothed and numbed the bruises. The remains of choking fires washed down the river. He started trying to scrub the ash out of his hair.
"Hey," Caia said softly, and Link almost missed it, "why didn't you tell me that the spell bothered you?"
He turned toward her, confused. It took him a moment to remember the appropriate sign. What?
She shifted on the raft, leaning back on her hands. "The numbing spell. You freaked out when I used it back in the cave. But I told you what it was the first time, and you didn't tell me not to. I used it three times, and you were fine. What was the difference?"
He thought for a moment, studying his distorted reflection in the rippling water. The difference? Nothing should have been different, but it was. He welcomed the comfort of nothingness before, when all he had was pain. But, in that moment, trapped in the cell, he might not have been in pain, but he was dying nonetheless. He didn't have a sign for it, but he did his best. He wrapped his hands around his throat.
It took her a second to understand him. "You were choking?"
He nodded. Fear.
"And you were afraid," she said, frowning. "The difference is that you were scared because you were choking, and my spell made it harder to breathe. Is that right?"
Again, he nodded. It wasn't exactly what he intended to say, but it was close enough.
"Hm," she stared up at the clouds overhead, white wisps gently gliding across the blue sky. "Yeah, I can see that. I meant to come by and undo the spell before I set the fire, but Taro asked what I was doing there, and I didn't want to risk him getting suspicious, so I said I was just checking on you. I was going to undo it as soon as Taro left, but I forgot. I…I'm sorry."
Link nearly fell over in shock. Was that an apology?! He didn't know the Yiga knew the word.
"That rescue didn't exactly go as planned, but you knew that already," Caia sighed. "It was supposed to be a simple distraction fire, something to get all the guards on the other side of the hideout and leave your side unattended. It spread faster than I thought it would. And then Persi got lost trying to find you, and then I had a hard time trying to find her." She kicked at the water, splashing her feet as she spoke. "I fucked up, I guess. That's what I'm trying to say. I fucked up, and I hurt you without meaning to. And…I'm sorry." If he weren't so astounded by the confession, he might have laughed at the way she winced when she apologized.
For a while, he didn't know how to respond. He sank down into the water, giving himself enough space to breathe. Light sparkled over the surface, the sun shining straight down, warming the top of his head while rest of him floated in comfortable numbness. It wasn't exactly the same feeling as the spell she used, but it was pretty close. The pain left, but so did his senses.
"We're not evil, you know," Caia said. She pulled her feet up out of the water, sitting cross-legged on the raft. "The Yiga don't really believe in the good and evil thing anyway. From our perspective, the words are meaningless. To the rest of the world, good is what the King of Hyrule does, and evil is everything that we do. Hyrule calls us evil just for being who we are, daring to oppose the dynasty that exiled us for trying to stand up for ourselves thousands of years ago. Some of us are definitely…more inclined toward causing suffering." Her nostrils flared and her jaw shifted. "I can think of a particular sadistic asshole who might deserve the word. But the man who baked the rye bread has never hurt anyone. Taro doesn't actually harm anyone either; it makes him ill, so he just does the paralysis and illusions. That…probably doesn't absolve him in your mind, though."
Link tensed at the mention of Taro and the spell that had him completely trapped and helpless. While Caia's spell left him without sensation, his body was still his, even if he couldn't feel it. He felt everything acutely when Taro cast his magic, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do to defend himself. If Pare wanted to gut him alive, he would bleed out on the floor, frozen in agony until the life drained from his body. It soured his stomach to think of, and he plunged his head under the water again.
No, it didn't absolve him. It didn't absolve any of them of the crimes that they committed. All of them were complicit as far as he was concerned. Even Caia. Sure, she saved his life, and he was grateful for that, but how much blood did she have on her hands? Who did she hurt before she decided to help him? Does preventing one person's suffering negate all of the suffering inflicted on others?
He popped back up, his head slightly clearer. No, he signed.
Caia didn't say anything else.
About half an hour passed before he heard familiar voices approaching. Link had hoisted himself up onto the bank to dry in the sun, partially hidden under the shade of the broad-leafed tree the raft was tied to.
"We're back!" Persi called, "And we brought presents!"
Curiously, Link peeked up over the edge of the bank. Far in the distance, puffs of smoke rose in wide rings from the nose of a fabric horse head. Much nearer, Persi and Veriet walked along the packed-down road heading toward the bridge, their arms laden with fabric-wrapped bundles. When Persi spotted him, she broke into a wide smile. A flash of something like panic ran through his blood, his heart beating too fast for just a moment. It faded when the two women slid back down the bank. Veriet handed her bundle to Caia, and Persi's to Link.
"Sorry if it doesn't fit quite right," Persi said, her face redder than it was when she'd left. The heat must have gotten to her. She kept looking at the ground as she passed the bundle to him — thick, soft wool wrapped around a heavy parcel.
Immediately, Link unwrapped the bundle, the wool soon revealed to be a cloak wrapped tightly around a set of traveling clothes and leather boots. Though these were nowhere near as nice as his clothes back home in Castle Town, they were leaps and bounds better than scorched Yiga prisonwear. Link broke into a bright smile. He opened his mouth to thank her, but only a thin wheeze came out, and that made him start coughing again. Pinpricks stuck at him from the inside of his lungs, ripples of minuscule stabbings. He fought to regain his breath.
"Sorry!" Persi apologized again, her eyes wide with worry. "I didn't think-! Are you alright?"
Link nodded, his heart still beating faster than he would have liked, even as his breathing started to even out again. Rather than try to thank her again, he offered her a small smile, and hoped that was enough. He pulled on the tunic and trousers, grateful to finally have something decent to cover up all of the awful mottling on his body. They didn't fit right, but that was fine. They were a bit too large, and the boots a bit tight, but he could live with that. He cinched the belt around his waist, containing the worst of the excess fabric. He wrapped the black cloak over his shoulders and clasped it in the front. It wasn't amazing, but it was serviceable. Judging by the geometric patterns in the stitching, it was Necluda-made.
He felt almost…normal.
"What the fuck is this?" Caia scoffed, holding up a set of dark leggings and a white dress. "It's hideous."
Irritation made Persi's eye twitch when she glared at Caia. "It's Sheikah-made," Persi said flatly. "You know, the tribe that you supposedly belong to? Unless you'd rather dress like Hyrule's traitor."
Static tension crackled between the two of them. Veriet's snap struck them both in the chest with a minor shock. "We're not doing this again. The Sunset Fireflies do not in-fight. If you can't say anything nice to each other, don't say anything at all. Understood?"
A pair of mumbled "yes, ma'am"s followed, both of the girls rubbing away the static from the spark.
Satisfied that the quarrel was over, Veriet nodded toward Link. "There's another stable up the road toward Tabantha. We can rent horses here and ride them to the next stable. The river curves too far east for it to remain a viable path for us."
Running through the map in his head, that sounded right to him. This river eventually curved around Hyrule Castle, and channels were diverted to flow into Castle Town. He swallowed, watching fallen feathers float along the surface. He could follow the river home. It wouldn't take much more than a day for him to reach the walls. The gate guards knew him, and wished him luck on his mission. They'd recognize him, let him in, and he could sprint all the way back to his home. The thought of running into his mother's arms made his heart ache with longing. Now that he was out of the Yiga prison, he could just—
"Link?" Persi asked, halfway up the bank and onto the grassy field above. "Are you coming?"
Sparing one last look at the river, Link nodded and followed her to the road.