Link tightened his oversized hood under his chin and tried to melt further into the shadows of a back alley. Many had seen him over the course of the day, but apparently the residents of Kega did not find men clad in black hoods the least bit odd. He mentally cursed his carelessness; if King Kearney found him, he would be in trouble.

When the street had again cleared, Link crept out of the alley to another one across the street. He flattened himself against the wall and peered around the corner at the magnificent castle he was to infiltrate. It was an imposing fortress of grey stone, supported by elaborately carved buttresses. Red turrets rose seemingly into the clouds. Soldiers flanked every obvious entrance to the place. Link supposed that getting inside the castle could be a bit of a problem.

Of course, that was why he had been sure to bring with him an overabundance of Deku Nuts. If all else failed, they would be sure to remove him from a difficult situation. But then again, he was the Hero of Time – how could he possibly get into a difficult situation? From what he had heard, the Kegan soldiers did not put up much resistance, and he could see why. The city looked poorer than dirt. He did not understand why Zelda thought they might pose a threat to Hyrule.

"Um… sir? Are you alright?"

Link whirled around, his black cloak flapping behind him. He glared suspiciously at the young maid who had spoken. She regarded him with wide, worried brown eyes as she shifted her breadbasket to the other arm.

"You shouldn’t sneak up on people that way," he hissed, clutching his heart. "Go about your business. Pay me no heed."

With a curtsy and an apology, the girl hurried off. Link glared after her, his heart still pounding from the sudden scare. For a moment he had thought it was a Kegan soldier. Although he knew he would have no difficulty dispatching one of Hyrule’s enemies, it wouldn’t do to cause a scene in the middle of a crowded street.

He squatted, thinking of what hour would be the best to sneak into the castle. He knew it would be no good to attempt such a feat in broad daylight. Every guard would see him, and they would arrest him in the blink of an eye. And every entrance to the castle was being watched, including the ground floor windows.

He decided to find a niche near the castle walls, and remain there over the course of the day to gather information regarding the king and his purposes. He climbed up on top of some old crates and managed to crawl onto the roof of a small house. He lay down on his stomach, peering out at the heavily guarded castle gates. His eyes roamed the castle thoroughly until he lit upon a hole in the city walls behind a small growth of pine trees.

Carefully, he slid down the roof to fall to the ground. His boots made a soft thudding sound as he bent his knees to absorb the shock. He took a moment to plan his route: he would have to cross in front of the castle to reach the trees, which he supposed was not much of a problem, since the guards did not know who he was or why he was there.

He stood up straight and brushed the dirt from his cloak. He pulled the hood down, freeing his short blonde ponytail, in an attempt to make himself seem less conspicuous. The people who passed him didn’t look twice. A reassuring thought, no doubt.

He started forward. Dust rose around his brown boots as he walked. He wrinkled his nose, missing the cobbled streets of the Hyrule Town Market. He had almost forgotten what it was like to walk on an old dirt path; after all, he had been living in Hyrule Castle for two years, away from the Kokiri Forest. His old home seemed like a hazy dream now, a place he could never again return to.

He had been staring at the ground as he walked. His head suddenly snapped up when he heard people shouting. The guards outside the castle had their sabers drawn. To his horror, he found that they were looking directly at him. He stood frozen for a few seconds, then started to run, his cloak flapping in the wind behind him.

"Halt!" roared a guard. "In the name of the Kegan government, you are under arrest, sir!"

He heard their feet pounding the ground behind him. He suddenly turned and drew the Master Sword, brandishing it at the foolish soldiers who had chosen to challenge him. His blue eyes flashed, daring them to clash swords with him.

"Lower your sword," ordered one soldier. "Remove all weapons from your person. If you do as I command, no harm will come to you."

"What sort of harm?" queried Link. In truth, he was not at all interested in what the man had to say, but he was quite familiar with a thing called surprise. "Will you lock me up and torture me to bloody pieces? Or will you cut me to ribbons on the spot?"

"Lower your sword," the soldier growled. "I will not tell you again."

Link raised his hands in defeat and dropped his sword. It clattered to the ground by his feet. He looked up at the soldier, hiding well the smile which might have given away his intentions had it appeared upon his lips. The soldier, however, did not seem to notice that anything was wrong. He stepped forward and tried to put a rusted set of shackles around Link’s wrists.

The Hero’s knee flew up and struck the solider in the gut. He doubled over. Link kicked him swiftly in the legs, knocking him to his knees. He grabbed the soldier’s hand axe from his belt and buried it in his neck. Warm blood spilled over his hands. The soldier gurgled, and Link buried the axe deeper in his skin.

He turned and lunged for his sword. He grabbed the hilt and rolled away as a kick was aimed at his head. He swung the sword, slicing a leg off at the calf. A soldier howled and fell hard to the ground. With a grunt, Link plunged the sword through his heart, and the sentry went still.

"Cease and desist!" roared another soldier.

Link growled. He went to move forward, but his opponent was faster than he had expected. The soldier pulled a knife out of his boot and hurled it at Link. It embedded itself in his shoulder. Pain spread like wildfire throughout his chest; he grunted, but did not scream.

The soldier stepped forward as he sank to his knees. He ripped the blade out of his skin and wiped it on his shirt. Taking Link by the hair, he pulled the Hero’s head up to look directly into his face.

"You will go with me to see His Majesty," the soldier growled. "Look at the mess you have made! He will not have mercy on you. Get up!"

He jerked Link’s hair roughly, pulling the youth to his feet in a rather painful manner. He placed the shackles around his wrists and started to lead him into the castle. A crowd had gathered, and they watched him as he passed, expressions ranging from curiosity to disgust evident on their faces. Link regarded them with disdain, wondering how such peasants managed to live the way they did.

His captor kicked the doors to the castle open. The inside was dark, lit only by a few candles on the walls. A red carpet led to the throne room directly across from the entrance. Several sets of stairs spiraled off in different directions.

"Your Majesty!" the soldier cried as he entered the throne room. "I have brought to you Link of Hyrule, as you have asked."

He and the others who had followed them into the room bowed their heads. Link alone remained stoic. He stared up at the king who, he found, was rather large muscle-wise, with a mop of unruly black hair. His sheer size dwarfed the throne he sat upon. His strong fingers were bejewelled with rubies and sapphires of varying sizes. Link privately wondered if he hadn’t sold the possessions of his subjects in order to obtain such jewels.

The king stared back at him, his black eyes narrowed, his face twisting with a cruel smile. He stood up and approached Link, the only other person in the room who remained on his feet.

"My people and I have heard many tales of spies from Hyrule," he said, slowly circling his prisoner. His subjects stood once again and looked at him, listening to his every word. "I had no idea that Queen Zelda would send a useless blond. Although you are rather pretty."

The room was suddenly ringing with laughter. Link’s face scrunched in anger.

"Do not speak of the Queen as if you were comrades!" he snarled. "Do not think for one second that Zelda won’t send an army to save me when I fail to return to Hyrule. What do you think you can accomplish by locking me up here?"

Kearney shook his head. "My, but you’re foolish, boy. Did you think Zelda sent you here on a mission? No doubt you have noticed that my people are too weary and haggard to go to war. My forces are limited. To engage in war now would only lead to a crushing defeat. You’re a warlord, are you not? You should know of what I speak."

Link nodded, his eyes hard, though he was not entirely certain what the king was talking about. The way he spoke of Zelda as if they had known each other for many years was more than a bit disconcerting.

"For a spy, you really are quite pathetic," Kearney tutted. "But then again, you truly were not sent here to spy, correct?"

"I have no idea what you’re talking about," Link growled. "So either explain, or let me go. I promise I’ll return to Hyrule if you do."

Kearney roared with laughter. "Return to Hyrule? What a ridiculous notion. Do you not realize that the very reason you are here is to prevent you from ever returning to your homeland? No, boy, you will not be leaving this castle unless it is in pieces."

"What?"

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" Kearney said in exasperation. "Queen Zelda sent you here to be killed, but I think I shall have a bit of fun with you first. You look like the type to be broken easily."

Link mouthed soundlessly. The soldier who had defeated him stepped forward to address the king.

"My liege, he managed to kill several of our men before he could be captured. It would be wise not to underestimate him."

Kearney turned to speak to Link, but his words fell on deaf ears. Zelda… kill him…? He somehow felt that those words did not fit together in the same sentence. He did not believe that such a thing could be true. His Zelda, plotting to kill him? He would not believe it!

"You lie!" he screamed suddenly, whirling on the king. "Your words cannot deceive me! I demand that you release me at once!"

"He is clearly quite unstable," said Kearney to the soldier. "He has the eyes of a madman. Take him to the dungeon. I shall see him when he has calmed somewhat."

The soldier saluted and took Link’s arm. The Hylian had fallen silent, recognizing that resistance was futile. He allowed himself to be led off down the winding hallways, and he wondered…

Could Zelda really have betrayed him?

Author’s Notes: Okay, before you flame me to Hell, please realize that you do not know the entire story behind the supposed "betrayal" so you have no right to judge yet. When I DO reveal the truth, then you can judge. Okay, sorry to be rude. Thank you for reading!