Blighted Memories

Chapter 4. Far Away Memories

Link was sleeping outdoors that night. He'd ventured pretty far into the East Necluda region but it would still be some time before he made it to Hateno Village. He was grateful for the dirt path that was leading him. Without the Sheikah Tower's map data of the region, Link had no idea where exactly he was. The path at least told him that he was going in the right direction.

The brown coated, black maned horse that Tasseren had provided Link neighed behind him. His name was Talon, named after a former ranch owner that bred a legendary horse for a hero of a time long passed. Link was liking him so far. He probably wouldn't have made as much progress today if it weren't for Talon.

Link handed Talon an apple for the night. Once he ate it, he stroked the horse's mane. The horse nuzzled him in response.

Link tied the reins to a nearby tree for the night. He got as cozy as he could on the grass, and closed his eyes.

Link awoke in the middle of the night. He wasn't entirely sure what woke him up. As far as he'd known, he was sleeping like a baby.

Link wasn't sure if he wanted to stay awake or close his eyes for a bit longer. He decided to check what the Sheikah Slate said. It had a useful function that helped Link tell the time and predict the weather. He had no idea how it worked, but he wasn't complaining.

To his surprise, the Sheikah Slate wasn't there.

Link sat up and started checking the surrounding area. He didn't want to think what it would mean for his mission if he'd lost the slate. Everything would be ruined. He wouldn't be able to get into any shrines, reprogram any of the Divine Beasts, track his location, dowse-

Link stopped searching when he realized Talon was missing as well. Then he felt all around his being.

All of his items were gone. Nothing was left on Link except the clothes on his back.

Who did this? Bandits, perhaps? Link thought it was too dangerous for bandits to be roaming a land as monster infested as Hyrule, but he didn't discount the idea either. But if it had been bandits, Link would've noticed signs that other people had been here. Yet, he saw absolutely nothing.

He stood still for a moment, trying not to panic and mentally going over the most likely causes of the disappearance of his things. That was when he saw it. Or more accurately, he saw it for the second time.

Standing on the dirt road to his far right was a large man riding a large horse. All of their traits were obscured by the darkness of night. Link recognized it as the same strange rider he'd seen on his last night on the Great Plateau.

The man and his horse were facing him. Link wondered if he was the one who had stolen his things. But if so, why was he still here? Why wasn't he running? Why didn't he run a while ago when Link was still asleep?

The man started to approach Link on his horse, slowly. The horse was eerily silent, not a whinny or a neigh to be heard of. When he observed its movement, Link wondered if the horse was hurt. It moved stiffly, almost rigidly. It never moved its head as it approached, remaining perfectly still.

The man stopped a few feet away from Link. Even up close, he couldn't make out any features on the man.

There was a moment of silence. And then the man began to speak. It was a strange voice. It seemed to reverberate as soon as any sound came out, giving it an almost ethereal quality.

"They hate you, you know." His tone was soft and gentle, almost comforting, directly contrasting the scathing and horrible statement he just made.