He stood there, fighting the Stalkid, in the difficult battle. He heard King Link cry out his name, and his cousin Christopher yell for him, but he kept fighting. He fought in vain though, as the Stalkid drove a spear through his chest, and in a blinding flash of light, he disappeared.

Breath, he told himself. Just breath in the air, he thought again. Now open your eyes. Finally, he did.

He was in a cave, a small cave. There were bats hanging from the ceiling and water dripping onto his brow. There were also people.

The people wore tunics and looked slightly similar to Hylians, save the fact that their ears were not pointy. There were men and women, all of whom were very beautiful. And all stared at him with fear.

He sat up and looked at the people. They all backed away from him. "Hello," he said. "Where am I?"

The people shied away. "Why are you afraid of me?" he asked.

One brave young girl, about eight years old, stepped forward. She began talking to him. "You've been cursed," she said. He looked at her puzzled, and then she pointed at his chest.

A long, narrow spear was going through his chest and coming out his back. He was bleeding profusely, but he didn't feel bad at all. He grabbed the spear and pulled it out. He looked at it, puzzled. He had stopped bleeding and showed no wound. He threw the spear down and looked at the people. He decided it would be best to speak to them.

"My name is Jeffery Conard," he said. "I am Knight Captain of the United Armies of Hyrule. Please tell me what land this is and how I may get back to Hyrule as quickly as possible."

The little girl stepped forward again. "You are in Catalia," she said. "And we know of no Hyrule."

"No Hyrule?" said Jeffery, puzzled.

"No Hyrule."

Jeffery stood up and looked out of the cave. "Take me to your leader."

The people surrounded Jeffery and bound his hands. He made no attempt to stop them. They walked slowly out of the cave and into another. There, he found himself in what appeared to be a throne room.

On the largest throne sat a woman. She was very beautiful, with long black hair and great blue eyes. She had an air of elegance to her that the others didn't have. On her head, she wore a golden ring, signifying her superiority.

"All hail Queen Alazala!" all of the people, save Jeffery, said in unison. "At ease, my subjects," she said. "Whom is this dirty fellow you have brought before me today?"

Jeffery was pushed forward. He looked at the Queen and then spoke. "My name is Jeffery Conard, your highness. Knight Captain of the United Armies of Hyrule and protégé of Rikard Trents. I request a transport back to Hyrule."

The Queen laughed. "Oh, I'd send you back if Hyrule existed." Jeffery glared at the Queen. She continued. "This is Catalia. We know of no Hyrule. This is the only land in the world. You must be crazy."

"I'm not crazy," said Jeffery.

"That is what all of the others think. You shall be thrown into the cells!"

The Queen's guards grabbed Jeffery and drug him away.

The guards aren't very nice to prisoners. They drug Jeffery around and eventually flung him down steps into a cell.

He stood up and rubbed his head. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his spine. He spun around to see a woman holding a knife. "Oh god," she said. "I thought you were a guard!" Jeffery felt his back. There was no blood.

"Well," he said. "That is a nice way to say hello." Jeffery lay down in the corner. The woman who had stabbed him dropped the knife and began to cry. Jeffery stood up and walked toward her. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"They'll kill me now!" she said. "I shouldn't be in here, and now I killed you and they'll kill me!"

"No," said Jeffery. "I'm fine, I'm not even bleeding!"

The woman looked up. She looked at Jeffery's back. Sure enough, there was now blood. "How?" she asked.

"I don't know," said Jeffery. He sat down beside the woman. "How old are you?" he asked.

"Twenty," she replied.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Bridget," she said. "And yours?"

"Jeffery Conard, Kni-." Jeffery paused. "No, just Jeffery." He now looked at her. She was covered in dust, and in ragged clothing, but was a very attractive woman.

"What did you do to be thrown into this… asylum?"

"I told them I came from a far off land," she said. "A land called Hyrule.

"I'm from Hyrule," said Jeffery. "Why don't they believe us?" he asked.

"I've been in this prison ten years and am only now figuring that out. The Queen believes us, but says she doesn't. She wants nothing ton interfere with her or her master's rule."

"Master?" asked Jeffery.

"The wizard Baris."

Jeffery leaned forward in interest. "Who is Baris?"

"Baris is a wizard from the mountains that wants to keep these people under his control. He dreads change. That is why he fears you. He thinks that if you tell the people about Hyrule, they will leave."

Jeffery looked around. "Baris." He smiled. "What is to become of you and I?" he said.

"Now that you are here, they will behead us," she said.

Jeffery heard the guards approaching. He knew that he was being taken away.

Jeffery placed his own head on the chopping block. He had insisted that he go before Bridget, simply to give her longer to live.

The man with the axe had no eyes, and the sockets were sewn shut. A smaller man positioned him to chop.

A priest stood in front of Jeffery. He dipped his hand in water and ran it through Jeffery's black hair and stubble of a beard. He looked into Jeffery's golden eyes and said a final prayer. He ordered the chop.

The man with the axe didn't see Jeffery move. Jeffery kicked the axe man in the gut and grabbed the axe. He killed the guards, and then the men in a rather bloody battle. Bridget stood in shock. "Nice job," she said.

"Rikard Trents trained me," said Jeffery, stealing a sword and shield from one of the guards. He grabbed Bridget's hand and ran up the stairs. The Queen was there waiting.

"Hello, son," she said.

"Son?" said Jeffery.

"You are the son of Arthur Conard?"

"Yes," said Jeffery.

"Then you are my son. I was his wife for years." She smiled. "I see you have my gift. The immortality. There are only two ways for you to die: to lose you head, or to reach the age of 100. I don't intend to see you live that long," she said.

Jeffery quickly sliced his own mother's head off. It rolled on the ground and then stopped. He kicked it away and then kept going.

"How could you do that?" asked Bridget.

"If that woman was really my evil mother, even though I'm immortal, do you think she would tell me everything?"

Bridget shrugged as she and Jeffery exited the cave. She screamed at the light because she hadn't seen it in ten years. Then she began to laugh a little. Jeffery wasn't laughing.

Before him stood a tall, dark figure. The mage known as Baris stood there, with a battle axe in hand. "You are Jeffery Conard, Knight Captain of the United Armies of Hyrule, immortal and brave."

"And you are Baris, leader of the people of Catalia, scared of change."

"I am only afraid of the change letting you rule would bring." Baris bowed and attacked Conard. He swung his axe left and right. Jeffery though blocked the attack and countered it. Baris blocked it. It was a back and forth battle, until Baris used his magic to pin Jeffery to the ground. He raised his axe, but Bridget interfered.

She jumped on his back and began kicking him. Suddenly, he grabbed her and threw her away. The distraction was enough.

Jeffery stood and pierced his sword through Baris's heart. The wizard fell down, and grasped his chest. He looked at Jeffery and began talking. "Oh," he said. "You… have won. The kingdom… is yours. My fears… they have been realized. Why lords, why? Why side with the outlander? Why…?" Baris closed his eyes. Jeffery knew he was dead.

Several years passed. The land of Catalia was now a paradise, one that rivalled Hyrule, a nation it had befriended. Jeffery ruled over Catalia fairly, governing all he could see. His wife, Bridget, was Queen and worked hard to keep the country's relationship with Hyrule a good one.

Now, Jeffery stood on a balcony, looking out at the stars. And doing so, he realized Baris's dream. Why let the people leave? It was a beautiful place, and to the people, ignorance is bliss. But now, as he looked back, he had to ask himself, Was I right? Was it worth it? But he knows in his heart the answer is yes. And that he was right. At least he hopes.

The End

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