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  of his actions, or even his emotions at all. The only thing he did have reign over were his thoughts as he watched in horror as even more deadly fire emerged from his

  own hands, plummeting to the disaster below and spreading wildly. He desperately tried to stop himself from doing anything else, but it was as though something foreign

  had taken over him entirely, something that the hero soon realized was nothing less than absolute hatred.

  "Hear this prophecy, for our words ring true…"

  A sudden voice rang out from nowhere, and though on the outside, the hero didn't appear to take heed of it, he had certainly heard it from the inside.

  "Of things guided not by our hands, but by fate's, that's who…"

  Rage continued to well up within the hero, though from where he wasn't sure, and the flames in his hands grew even hotter. Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground

  from his whirlwind, taking slow, calculated steps as he simply paused and looked over the damage he had caused, grinning in dark satisfaction as he did so.

  "In the days of Twilight and of eternal night…"

  The skies above the town were completely covered in dark smoke, obscuring everything as everyone tried to escape from them. The square was empty, but the hero

  could tell that no one was escaping the town through other means thanks to the walls of ice he had created to cover every exit of the town, which were unmeltable even

  despite the fire thanks to his magic.

  "A great conflict shall arise between shadow and light…"

  The hero's smirk deepened as he took perverse pride in what he had done on the outside, while on the inside, he could feel nothing but absolute despair and grief over

  what he was doing. The poison of his own hatred was slowly tearing him apart, to the point that he had never experience such dark emotions before nor did he ever want

  to feel them again.

  "And while the Blood of the Goddess will still stand for good…"

  "Link!" a sudden cry sounded from behind the hero, and he turned to see none other than the queen herself standing before him, tears in her eyes as she took in the

  destruction of her precious Castle Town. "W-why are you doing this?"

  Even on the inside, the hero felt a sudden burst of rage upon seeing the queen who had so carelessly broken his heart. Even if he wasn't taking any pleasure in the

  destruction he had caused, the look of agony on her face suddenly made it seem somehow justifiable.

  "The Spirit of the Hero will be corrupted into evil, even though it never should…"

  After a moment or two, he simply smiled maliciously at her, watching with excitement as she backed away from him nervously. "Why do you think I'm doing this, Zelda?"

  he asked coldly and twistedly, wanting to make this as slow and painful for her as possible.

  "Dark desires and deep depravity will fill the hero's soul…"

  The queen shook her head as she stared at him with wide eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I… I don't know…" she muttered fearfully, shaking her head as she

  soon found herself with her back against a wall.

  "And consumed in his hatred, he shall ravage the land whole…"

  He kept up his dark grin as he kept her firmly pinned to the wall with one hand, forming a sharp spire of ice in his other hand. "Then I guess you need to learn exactly what

  it feels like to have your heart broken, just like how you destroyed mine!" he exclaimed as he finally glared hatefully at her, his burning ire for her clearly showing.

  "Link, please!" the queen cried in absolute terror as he held the icy spike high in air, intending to bring it down upon her. "This has to stop! This isn't you!"

  "Like all lost souls, he will have the chance to choose the light again…"

  From the inside, the hero suddenly froze, realizing that even though the queen had hurt him immensely, he would never wish death upon her, especially from his own

  hand. And yet, the hatred that was consuming him swelled heavy within in, driving him to an almost insane lust for blood and death that simply could not be satisfied.

  "Sorry, 'your highness'," he said, his tone dripping with malice as the queen quickly closed her eyes and glanced away from him. "But this is who I was always meant to

  be!"

  "But if he rejects this call, then he certainly shall meet his end…"

  With a sadistic laugh, he plunged the spike right into her heart, his silver eyes flashing with wicked delight as he heard her ragged scream of agony. As his hand left the

  spike, she collapsed to the ground limply, the life fading out of her light blue eyes almost instantly, tears still within them even as she died.

  "Let these words ring out across time so that all will know…"

  His dark laughter continued as he reveled in the world of destruction, pain and death he had created, but on the inside he was absolutely horrified at what he had just

  done. He had no idea what had taken hold of him, but the queen had been right about one thing: this certainly was not who he had once been. Now, instead of Hyrule's

  noble hero, he was its evil destroyer, the one who was claiming it in the flames of his oppression. He was indeed what all of the townspeople had accused him of being. He

  was destructive. He was a demon. He was a monster.

  "Of the one who was once so high, but as fallen so low…"

  And while on the outside, he rejoiced in his newfound evil ways, on the inside, he abhorred them, wondering how he could have ever slipped down such a dark path.

  Perhaps he had saved Hyrule once, but it was clear now that his destiny was to ultimately destroy it. It was a fate that he desperately wanted to fight against with every

  fiber of his being, but as he took in the complete and utter devastation and death he caused everywhere he went, he knew that he was absolutely helpless to stop the

  heartless, destructive monster he was all too quickly becoming.

  "The tragedy of the Hero of Shadow…"

  The steady cover of nighttime silence remained over Ordon Village in what the villagers supposed was the late afternoon, though it was hard to tell considering the

  unending darkness outside. Snow still blanketed the ground, but the children of the village did not play in it as they usually would have, since the lingering night had most of

  their parents concerned. After all, the last time they had lost their children, it had been to a similar cover of shadows, and they were not about to allow it to happen again.

  Ilia stood in front of her window on the upper loft of her house, looking out towards the entrance of the empty village worriedly. Over the course of the past day, she had

  often found herself looking that way anxiously, wishing for something that she knew would never be now. Of course, the girl knew well that the hero most likely wouldn't

  be returning to Ordon any time soon, especially after what had happened in the woods right before he had left, but she still held onto the small hope that he would come

  back eventually, even if he had already promised himself to the queen. Even despite her broken heart and broken dreams, Ilia still deeply cared for Link, just as she always

  had since they were both little, and she was certainly concerned his well-being and the poor choices he seemed to be making.

  And of course, the girl was still unnerved about the hero she had known almost her entire life suddenly having what appeared to be magical powers. She had not told

  anyone in the village about it for Link's sake, but Ilia still thought about it quite often. Though her initial reaction had been a panicked one, she had quickly realized once she

  had calmed down that the hero had also been taken aback by this revelation, meaning that this was all new to him as well. And because of that, the girl couldn't help but

  regret how she had hastily retreated from him out of both fear and anger, when she should have tried to help him in any way tha
t she could.

  But he has Zelda for that… Ilia thought scornfully, knowing that certainly Link would have no reason to return to his hometown as enamored as he was with the queen.

  This thought soon gave way to another one though, one that made Ilia's heart sink even more: what if he never came back at all? What if she never saw her best friend,

  whom she had found herself hopelessly and unrequitedly enthralled with over years of longstanding devotion to one another, again?

  The girl's thoughts were suddenly shattered by a familiar sound breaking through the still silence of the village outside. Ilia's breath caught when she heard it, her hands

  flying to her chest as she stared out the window with wide eyes. Though most in the village would most likely ignore the lofty, almost nostalgic sound, the girl knew

  exactly what it was, and exactly where it had come from. It was a melody that had been a long kept secret between her and the hero, one that was something of a

  symbol of their friendship and the bond that they shared: the horse call. And Ilia knew that hearing it now could only mean that Link had returned, but for some reason he

  couldn't come into the village. He was using the call she had given him as a signal, one specifically meant for her. And though she had abandoned him after their last

  encounter, she wasn't about to let him down now.

  "Goddesses, that looks bad…" Midna commented with a fretful frown as she inspected the heavy wound on Link's side, which had bled out quite a bit over the course of

  the night. They had finally made it to Ordon mere moments ago, and yet it had been immediately clear that the hero was unable to keep going for much longer. The strip

  of cloth wrapped around his middle had been soaked through with blood and his skin had paled to the point that the newfound Twili markings upon his face were much

  more visible than they had been before. The exhaustion and pain in his expression were clear to see as he leaned against Epona for support, since he had gotten to the

  point that he wasn't really able to remain standing on his own anymore. "What makes you so sure that she even heard you play that thing?" the Twilight Princess asked,

  her tone doubtful as she glanced down at the horse call that had fallen out of Link's hands the very moment he had finished playing it.

  The hero simply shook his head as he shut his eyes and cringed in pain once more. Though he was too tired to offer a proper answer, he knew that there was a very large

  chance that Ilia wouldn't come, even though he was really the only one in the village he could depend on to keep the secret of his powers. And yet, after the falling-out

  they had the last time they had seen each other, Link wasn't entirely sure that Ilia would even want to see him again, which would of course make sense. After all,

  everyone but Midna seemed to be turning on him, so why wouldn't the girl he had so openly rejected, just as Zelda had rejected him, turn on him as well?

  Midna bit her lip worriedly as she looked at the hero, noticing just how despondent he was. She had seen him tossing and turning in his fitful sleep the previous night, giving

  her the impression that his rest had been riddled with nightmares, most likely of what had happened the previous day. She had tried to coax him into telling her about

  them, but he had scarcely spoken a word all day. And for someone who used to converse with so freely and openly, his solemn silence was deafening.

  The sound of footsteps lightly crunching in the snow could soon be heard approaching the clearing that the two of them were in. Upon exchanging a brief glance with Link,

  Midna gracefully retreated into the shadows, leaving the hero alone to receive whoever was coming.

  Ilia stopped in her tracks as she stared at Link from across the clearing, her heart pounding when she saw how he was weakly slung against Epona, barely even able to

  find the strength to glance over at her. However, once the initial shock wore off, the girl didn't hesitate to begin rushing towards him, her boots crunching in the thick

  blanket of white covering the ground.

  "Link!" Ilia exclaimed with concern as she wrapped her arm around his shoulder, gasping in horror at the sight of the blood covering his midsection. "Goddesses! What

  happened to you?!"

  The hero let out a heavy sigh as he hung his head, knowing that he was too weak at the moment to discuss what had happened. "I… I don't want to talk about it…" he

  muttered softly, using his physical pain to mask the shame in his tone well.

  The girl frowned and bit her lip, but nodded compliantly nonetheless. "Come on," she said, allowing Link to lean against her as much as he could while she helped him limp

  over to the ladder leading up to his house. "Let's get that wrapped up right."

  Link gratefully accepted Ilia's help, not even bothering to think about the fact that she was openly aiding him and not mentioning his powers or their last encounter. It was

  strange, since the girl was usually one to harp on things for quite a while, but it seemed that the moment she saw the hero wounded, all of that suddenly disappeared into

  immense worry for him. And though his injury was quite possibly a deadly one, he couldn't help but feel the slightest bit relieved that after everything, he had not lost the

  care of the girl who had been his closest friend since they were both little.

  Though it took some doing, Ilia eventually managed to help Link up the ladder and into the house. Since the hero was already worn out from climbing up that one ladder

  alone, the girl regulated him to the first floor, having him take a seat and rest while she hurried in building a fire in the hearth and getting the necessary supplies together.

  As soon as she had gathered some gauze and rags, Ilia knelt down beside Link and immediately got to work on cleaning the blood from his wounds, taking note of the

  vacant expression he held as he averted her gaze and stared solely into the fire. The girl bit her lip apprehensively as she tried to summon the nerve to say something to

  him, but the tense silence filling the room had grown to the point that it was nearly suffocating. That is, until the hero finally spoke up.

  "You were right…" Link said quietly, still not looking at her as he closed his eyes and hung his head.

  "…About what?" Ilia asked hesitantly, hearing the hurt in his tone clearly.

  "About… About Zelda…" the hero said, a hint of distain lacing his tone as he mentioned the queen's name. "I went to go see her, and the whole time I kept thinking you

  had been wrong, but… you weren't…"

  "What happened?" the girl urged him to continue gently, staring at him intently as she paused in her work of wrapping his wound up.

  "I don't even understand what happened…" he said, shaking his head morosely. "She just… told me that she didn't want anything to do with me, and then her guards

  chased me out of Castle Town…"

  "Is that how you got hurt?" Ilia asked with a sympathetic frown.

  Link nodded, desperately fighting back his returning tears so he wouldn't break down in front of her. He didn't dare tell her about how the citizens' terrified reactions to his

  powers had been just as instrumental in driving him away from the city. Thankfully, his powers had not emerged again since then, most likely because of how weak his

  body was from blood loss, and the fact that he was trying harder than ever to suppress his emotions in any way he could, since he knew how dangerous they could prove

  to be for him.

  "Oh, Link…" the girl whispered softly, her heart breaking for him upon seeing his despondent expression. Instead of feeling entitled and satisfied with hearing this news like

  she thought she would have, she only felt empathy and sadness for the hero. And it was for this reason that she didn't laud over the fact that she was right; instead, she

  quickly finished up patching his cut up cor
rectly, before moving to kneel in front of him and take both his hands in hers. "I'm so sorry… You didn't deserve to be treated like

  that. But… it'll be ok. You can forget all about her and stay here… where you're supposed to be. Things can go just back to the way they were…"

  "No, they can't," the hero said succinctly, finally feeling better enough to stand, albeit weakly. "Ilia, you were there in the woods; you saw the ice. And it's not just ice

  anymore; its fire and wind too. And what's worse is that I can't even control them… It might not be safe for me to stay here anymore…"

  "Link, don't be ridiculous," Ilia reassured him, still holding onto his hands tightly, though he was trying to retract them away. "Ordon is your home; it always has been and it

  always will be, no matter what happens or how much you change. You'll always belong here with us… with me…"

  "Ilia, you don't understand…" Link said with a remorseful sigh, finally pulling his hands away from hers as he remembered the horrendous nightmare he had the previous

  night and all its horrifying implications. "I don't want to hurt anyone…"

  "You won't hurt anyone," the girl insisted. "I know you won't. You're not like that."

  "You don't know that anymore, Ilia," the hero said morosely, turning away from her in shame. "And neither do I. Things have changed… I've changed…"

  "No, you haven't!" Ilia exclaimed, overwhelmed with concern for his decaying emotional state. "Link, please, just listen to me. You can't keep thinking like this. You know

  for a fact that everyone here cares about you; I care about you. Just because you have this magic, or whatever it is doesn't mean you're any different than before."

  Link was tempted to argue with her once more and try and prove that her encouragements, though warm and heartfelt, were wrong. Certainly, with powers as out of

  control and dangerous as his were, he was a far cry from the courageous, strong hero he had once been. His entire world had been turned upside down so suddenly that

  catching up with all of these adverse changes was nigh impossible. And yet, he decided against telling Ilia any of that, knowing that she would continue to foolishly insist

  that he was the same, even if he never would be again.