Link carefully set his gear down by the spring and scanned the area. The battles had been going on for so long now, he couldn't relax, even in such a tranquil oasis his nerves had him on edge.

After all the blood shed, he was willing to do what ever it took to aid the Princess and bring an end to this war, even if that meant seeking out the King of thieves himself, Ganondorf Dragmire.

Zelda commissioned him to meet with the man in her stead, her champion of sorts.

Link couldn't understand why she chose him, but he would never refuse her.

He held her written accordance in his hand as he shifted nervously, waiting. He had of course read them, and he truly believed they had the well being off all parties involved well covered but if Ganondorf disagreed and it turned into a negotiation he was ill equipped.

Being mute had its disadvantages.

Link leaned down and ran a calloused finger over the surface of the water making it ripple. As the bands of liquid expanded a rustle caught his attention.

With nimble agility he leapt back from the water, ducking into the shadows of the rocks. He watched and waited as Ganondorf and a small band of elite assassins passed by him and made their way to the top of the Spectacle Rock, North east of the Gerudo Dessert.

The large open area should have been a great meeting place since there wouldn't be any hidden troops lurking nearby. Of course, that didn't much matter since the Dark lord had openly brought his most trusted killers with him, ignoring the Princesses request to meet alone.

Link was young, but he was a skilled swordsman and a confident warrior. Still, he did not wish to test his proficiency with the blade against so many of the Yiga clan. Those rogue Sheikah warriors were a challenge on their own but being so sorely outnumbered Link would have to have a death wish to enter into battle willingly.

He had orders to abandon the meeting if he deemed the situation too risky, but he felt it was his duty to at least try. Hylians, Gerudos, Zoras, Gorons, Sheikahs, and humans had all lost much in this fight for supremacy. And if his one life might bring a peace to the thousands caught in the cross fire then so be it.

Link left the majority of his gear by the water; the cumbersome pack would just get in the way if this ended in a fight.

He was not a soldier in the Royal army, so his uniform was not that of the Hyrule knight or foot soldier. The only thing that bore the symbol of the royal family was the parchment in his hand.

He was dressed simply, with chainmail and blue leather armour, light pants, traveller's hood, and sturdy leather boots. On a casual glance he would be overlooked as a threat.

With a determined sigh he made his way up the dirt path Ganondorf had just used to the mountain plateau.

The King stood front and center with his personal guards placed in a simple battle wedge formation behind him.

The group had been talking amongst themselves, Ganondorf even cracked a grin a one point and laughed before, as one, they noticed his approach.

With head high, and back straight Link advanced on the the massive man directly.

The King stood well over six feet, with muscular arms and chest encased in black armour, accented in gold. His Gerudo heritage was apparent in his deeply tanned skin and thick, flaming red hair. Gold eyes watched the boy's approach with open amusement.

Link's own five foot eight, athletic frame seemed dwarfed standing so close to the man, and his pale skin, blonde hair and bright blue eyes were in contrast to his adversary in so many ways.

Remembering the reason he was there, Link dismissed the snicker's from the Yiga clan and bowed to Ganondorf out of proper etiquette.

"What is this? Does the Princess have so few warriors left that she sends a child to do her job? Begone welp, tell her majesty that when she wants to take this serious, she knows where to find me!"

Link did not budge, nor did he look away from the man's intense stare. Instead he swiftly produced the royal parchment and held it out expectantly.

He scoffed but took the paper none-the-less and unfurled it. His eyes swiftly moved across the delicate handwriting with a serious, frown forming.

"Ghirahim," Ganondorf called over his shoulder. The man standing to his right sauntered forward, and almost lazily removed his mask.

Link was surprised when the man revealed himself to be something other then a Sheikah. In fact, if he remembered the reports from the frontlines, this man might very well be Ganondorf's Demon general. A General that was said to have an unrivaled blood lust.

The Gerudo male passed the paper over to his ally then turned his glare back to Link.

"What is your name boy? Why were you chosen to bring me this?" He gestured to the scroll vaguely. Link would have liked to have been able to answer the simple questions but instead of conveying his inabilities he remained stoic and unmoving. "You are starting to try my patience maggot!"

It took everything in the teens will power not to flinch as a dagger was drawn and pressed into his cheek.

The two held each other's stares as Ganondorf tested the boys resolve by first drawing a droplet of blood with the tip, then slowly carving a line across his cheek bone.

Link would not whine or whimper, or even blink in pain. He simple accepted the gash and waited for the next move.

The man narrowed his eyes as he tried to figure the boys angle in this silent act, but he was interrupted by an amused laugh.

"Her majesty is delusional with this proposal! We hold her forces on all fronts. We do not need to compromise to get what we want, we are still poised to just take it!" Ghirahim declared.

"Agreed. Why settle for a part when we can have the whole thing?" Ganondorf stated. He rolled the parchment back up and held it out to Link. As the Hylian reached out to take it back the bigger man snared the front of his tunic and effortlessly lifted him to his tip toes before leaning in. His breath was hot in face in the teen's face. "So, boy, is there anything else I should know before I walk away from this?" He demanded, not expecting an answer but instead gauging the teens reaction to being manhandled. While maintaining his grip on the armor Ganondorf used his other hand to cup the boys chin. "Anything else that is being offered?" He added, lower and more menacing as he rubbed the boys jaw and traced an intimate line down the side of his neck.

Ghirahim grinned savagely and even took a step closer to watch the show.

Link could not stop from scowling at the King of thieves, but he did not break, and offered no other rewarding response so, growing bored Ganondorf dropped him and stepped back.

"We are done here." He turned and started to stride away before addressing his subordinates. "Onox, Ghirahim. With me. You four, kill the brat and send his head back to the castle. Zelda will have her answer."

Link was not happy that the meeting had taken this turn, but he did not have time to dwell as the Yiga clansmen zeroed in on him.

Their forms teleported in and out of positions all around him. Arrow's started to fly from the two archers, while the swordsman simply waded in with their massive two-handed weapons drawn.

With a swift motion Link drew his shimmering blade and cut the first two arrows aimed at his head from the sky. His buckler seemingly appeared out of nowhere on his right arm, blocking the swing of a mighty sword.

Link leapt into the air and used the bigger enemy as a stepping stone to get higher, as he predicted where the archer would appear and cut him through before he even realized he was doomed. As the teen came back down, he focused his energy into a downward strike against the swordsman's waiting blade. The force stunned the Yiga for the split second it took to stab the man through the chest.

There was a spray of blood as the sword was torn from the dead man in order to catch the other archer by surprise. The edge cut his bow string while the shield coming in behind it shattered his orbital bone and nose. As his body fell limp against the metal Link stepped back and used the human shield to stop the next sword from finding it's mark. The Yiga roared in anger as his blade chopped his comrade in two.

Link danced away only to glide back in with an uppercut from his blade, a bash with his shield to knock the bigger man's arm wide, then a downward swing that went through flesh and bone like butter.

The second swordsman screamed in agony as he fell clutching the stub where his arm used to be. Link ended his suffering quickly with a stab down into his heart.

Ganondorf and his two generals had stopped walking and were watching the scene with frozen expressions. The King did not care that his four soldiers were just cut to ribbons in front of him. He had more to replace them. But what he did care about was the fact the seemingly ordinary boy was now staring back at him, casually wiping his blade clean on a downed clansman.

Link inwardly flinched as Ganondorf's expression changed from blank to giddy.

General Onox had pulled his own weapon free and was waiting, non-too patiently for the order to attack, it was so rare for him to find a worthy opponent. The other General Ghirahim, was caressing a black dagger that had materialized in his hand, looking Link from head to toe, licking his lips.

"Well, that answers my question as to why the Princess sent you to this meeting." Ganondorf smiled. It was a smile that held no warmth but an unbridled, sadistic joy. "I think you will make a fine addition to my collection. Admittedly tt will take weeks before I break you, but eventually you will obey me! It will bring me such happiness to watch you unleash that skill on Zelda herself."

The three men moved as one, but Link took a page out of the Yiga clan handbook and disappeared into a flash of smoke.

Ganondorf snarled as he turned a full 360 to realize the boy really had escaped but then the delicious thought of hunting the little warrior down made him giddy. His dark laugh echoed off the surrounding rocks.

Link appeared beside his gear on a floating blue Sheik medallion. He stepped off and promptly placed the smaller, stone version into his pouch. The ancient trinket allowed him to instantly travel to its location, which was a useful tool when escaping a fight, he couldn't hope to win.

He was making a quick retreat when a menacing laugh echoed down the mountain. This time he physically flinched. The last thing he wanted was to be on the King's mind but it could not be helped now.

The Princess needed to know the outcome, and that was the first task on his list, so he took off in a hurried jog towards the distant speck that was Hyrule castle with a look of grim determination on his face.