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The Legend Begins: Ganondorf Dragmire

Chapter 4: Rauru Town

The very next day, before the sun had fully risen, Ganondorf and his company rode out for the town of Mido. Overall, the morale was high. The road would be simple to travel, the weather was pleasant, and countless bandit rabbles had fallen to experienced Hylian soldiers and mercenaries without fail in the past.

Ganondorf, as always, rode in the front. He kept an eye out for any ambushes, not just from Tathis Dragmire's bandits or desperate idiots with death wishes, but from any Moblins or Goriyas that might take advantage of the situation. Thankfully, there were none to be seen. Ganondorf figured that even if they did, there was a chance they would not be hostile, as past military campaigns had left him with diplomatic ties with a few of the tribes.

Maybe I can enlist their aid against Tathis, Ganondorf thought to himself.

Not two days later, the company arrived in the town of Rauru, the midway point between Hyrule Castle and Mido. The sun was setting as they arrived, and the city gates had already shut.

Ganondorf ordered his company to halt a good distance away and approached the gate, flanked by two knights.

"Hail, watchmen!" Ganondorf called when he arrived at the gate.

"Who goes there?"

"I am Ganondorf Dragmire, and my men and I-"

He was promptly interrupted by archers lining the walls and pointing their arrows at him.

"What is the meaning of this?" Ganondorf demanded and held his hands up, his entourage doing the same.

"You have a lot of nerve coming here, Dragmire!" a guard called back in response. "After what you did in-"

"Hold!" a captain ordered angrily, with the guards giving him a confused look in response. "Stand down, all of you! That's the wrong man! Stand down, or I'll have you all hanged!"

With some muttering, the guards all lowered the weapons and Ganondorf cautiously lowered his hands.

Soon enough, the gates were opened and the captain stepped out to meet Ganondorf.

"Many apologies, my lord," he said graciously with as minimal a bow as protocol required. "With what happened in Mido, everyone's a little jumpy around here."

Ganondorf raised an eyebrow. King Dalson had told him to head to Mido, but he didn't mention anything else about the town.

"What happened?"

"Tathis attacked and burned the whole place down. He left only one survivor to send a message to the king."

"What?"

"You hadn't heard?"

"No," Ganondorf responded, becoming increasingly frustrated. "When was this? What's the situation now?"

"Let's get your men inside, first. I'll buy you a drink and tell you everything you need to know."

The captain, whose name Ganon soon learned was Cawlin, helped the company get sorted out on where to stay and where to eat, and he soon led Ganondorf to the tavern. The tavern was warm and inviting, though the people spoke in hushed tones. Over cups of mead, Cawlin and Ganondorf discussed the recent events. Furthermore, Cawlin had someone for Ganondorf to meet.

"Lord Ganondorf, this is Geoff of Mido Town."

Ganondorf looked at Mido's sole survivor. There was a great deal of anger in the man's face, and sheer hatred in his eyes. Ganondorf's eyes widened when he saw the symbol branded on Geoff's forehead.

It was the Dragmire family crest.

"Geoff," Ganondorf addressed him simply with a nod of his head, completely at a loss for words.

"My lord," he muttered in a forced manner. Before anyone could say anything else, two scouts entered the tavern and requested Captain Cawlin's immediate attention. He excused himself and left Ganondorf and Geoff alone.

"Listen, Geoff, I know that you must hate me for my relationship with Tathis," Ganondorf started to explain, but Geoff shook his head.

"Not at all, lord. I have no quarrel with you. It's your mongrel cousin that I will have words with. It's his head that I intend to take," he added with venom in his voice.

"I'm leaving tomorrow for Mido. I don't know where Tathis is, but if he's there, I promise you we'll put an end to this."

"I offer you my sword, my lord," Geoff said, a fire in his eyes. "I will avenge my people. Please, I beg you to let me ride with you and have that chance."

Ganondorf sighed, considering Geoff's offer. In his experience, enraged men had only served as an easy target for the enemy.

"I can take care of myself," Geoff argued, seemingly reading Ganondorf's mind. "I was one of the best swordsmen of Mido's guards. I have a horse and money for my own provisions. You needn't waste anything on me."

"All right, very well," Ganondorf finally answered.

"Thank you, my lord. I promise you won't regret it."

"Lord Ganondorf!" Captain Cawlin called, reentering the tavern. "Scouts have reported bandit sightings close to the town!"

Ganondorf immediately stood and left the tavern, Cawlin and Geoff following close behind.

He quickly located his captains and began placing his men to supplement the guards on the walls.

"Any idea if they will attack tonight?" Ganondorf asked.

"It would appear so, lord. They appeared to be mobilizing when our scouts found them."

Ganondorf looked out over the wall. The fields were clear, and the full moon allowed for acceptable visibility. However, Ganondorf saw neither torchlights nor movement in the distance.

"If they were mobilizing," he said to no one in particular, "then they should be here by now. Something's not right.
"Captain, how many men did your scouts see?"

"They counted about eighty, my lord."

"Tathis's men?"

"Without a doubt. They had his banner, but Tathis himself was not with them."

Ganondorf growled. Tathis was smart enough to raze Mido. Even if he didn't know that Ganondorf's company had arrived in Rauru, Tathis would know better than to launch a direct assault on the town walls with such few numbers.

"Thank you for your help and cooperation, Captain," Ganondorf said. "I'll have orders for you soon."