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  struck him brutally, quickly beginning to melt his metal armor in a way that caused the guard unbelievable pain. And yet, even despite the fact that he had already brought

  on severe burns, Link still did not relent. He wasn't about to let the leader of the group that had been antagonizing him so relentlessly go so easily. As the guard's flesh

  continued to burn while he rolled around on the ground in anguish, the hero slowly approached him, drawing his sword as he moved along. For a brief moment, Link simply

  stood over him, his expression cold and almost cruel as he prepared to plunge his sword into the guard to put him out of his misery, before he finally caught himself. He

  froze as he glanced away from the burning guard and over to the crowd of Ordonians, all huddled closely together as they stared at the hero in amazement and fear, their

  jaws all dropped in shock. The look of absolute terror in all of their faces was clear as all eyes were locked on Link, whose rage had melted away into sudden shame. He

  knew well that even though he had somehow been able to control his powers, he had lost control of himself.

  The hero's breathing began to pick up as he surveyed the scene around him, seeing all of the guards lying on the ground, most of them heavily injured, though four of

  them were indeed dead. The two he had initially burned to death, one that had been bashed against a rock when he had used wind, and the one he had impaled with

  multiple ice shards. And, as the screams of the scorched guard below him were finally silenced, he realized that he had just killed another one.

  Link slowly lowered the Master Sword back into its sheath and nervously backed away from the newly-dead guard, looking to the villagers once more, none of whom had

  moved so much as an inch. All of the children were huddled in close to their parents as they looked at the hero they all looked up to and admired with wide eyes filled with

  fear, fear that was mirrored in the expressions of the adults as well. They didn't say anything all, but Link could already tell what they were going to say about him once

  the silence broke: the very same accusations that the people of Castle Town had thrown at him.

  "He's so powerful!", "He's destructive!", "Someone has to stop him!", "He's a demon!", "He's a monster!"

  The hero knew that by revealing his powers in such a violent, destructive way in front of the people of his own hometown, he had forever tarnished their view of him.

  Certainly, Ordon could no longer be a safe haven for him after he not only led the guards to it, but also proceeded to kill several of them in such a merciless manner. Link

  had never actually slaughtered another human being in cold blood before, and yet now it was clear that he had quite a bit of blood on his hands in the aftermath of this

  attack. He had lost control of his own actions and emotions so easily that for a moment, it had almost felt good when he had been taking the guards down. And yet now

  that it was all said and done, all the hero felt was a sickening sense of guilt and horror that he had been responsible for taking the lives of others, even if they had not

  exactly been entirely innocent. All at once, it seemed as though his horrible nightmare from the previous night was coming true. And what's worse was that Link knew that

  it was so easy for his emotions to overcome him in a way that could give way to him losing control over his powers again, meaning that there was a chance he could

  hurt, if not even kill, anyone he came in contact with. Ilia had been wrong; clearly, he didn't belong in Ordon anymore, lest he destroy it and all its inhabitants entirely. He

  didn't belong anywhere.

  The thick silence still lingered throughout the village as Link took another step away from the villagers, though Ilia took a small step forward, her expression laced with

  concern instead of fear like the rest of them. The hero clenched his fists tightly as he shook his head, unable to bear their stunned, frightened stares any longer. The only

  thing he wanted and needed now was to be alone, in a place in which he couldn't hurt anyone and where he couldn't be hurt himself.

  Without so much as even saying a single word, Link rushed away from the villagers, all of whom stayed in place as they watched him run to the exit of the town. The only

  one that attempted to chase after him was Ilia, who desperately wanted to convince him to stay even despite what had happened. After all, he did what he had to in order

  to save all of them from the guards' oppression, even if it had been in a rather gruesome way. However, before she could even call out to him, her father quickly grabbed

  her by the shoulder to stop her, knowing that as the hero was now, he could prove to be a danger to all of them, as much as none of the Ordonians really wanted to

  believe that.

  Meanwhile, Link ran out of Ordon Village without even bothering to look back, his heart aching over the fact that he could no longer even stay within the safety and

  warmth of the place that had been his home for as long as he could remember. He couldn't stay in a place filled with people he constantly feared he would hurt because of

  something as natural and unrestrainable as his very emotions, the very thing that made him human.

  However, as soon as the hero cleared the exit of the village and into the clearing where his house was, he stopped in his tracks to find a sight that made his blood run

  cold. His humble home was engulfed in flames, all too quickly burning to the ground entirely. Fortunately, Epona was no longer in her spot tied up next to the house,

  meaning that she must have fled before it got too bad, though Link was unable to call for her, since the horse call, along with essentially all of his gear save for his sword

  and shield, was inside the smoldering house. The hero knew well that this inferno must have been set by the guards on their way to the village, but even so it absolutely

  devastated him. Even if he had no intention of staying in or near Ordon any longer, it was still a crushing blow to see his home, one of the few things he had left in the

  world to call his own, be completely destroyed right in front of him.

  Unable to bear the sight of his house burning any longer, Link was quick to push his hands towards it, thankful that his heavy emotions for once translated correctly into a

  strong burst of ice, which struck the burning house and doused the flames almost instantly, forming into jagged crystals that pointed out from every angle. The hero was

  taken aback by how sinister they looked, reminding him yet again that the only things his powers brought were destruction and pain, to both others and himself.

  Knowing that Ilia or someone else would try to pursue him sooner or later, Link continued to run away from the village, knowing that the further he got away from it the

  better. He strayed from the path that led towards Hyrule Field immediately, knowing that certainly more guards would be on the lookout for him if Zelda had truly

  demanded his capture. And yet, it wasn't as though he really had a right to run from them any longer, considering he was a legitimate murderer now. But even so, all he

  really wanted to do now was just get away from it all; from Ordon, from Hyrule, from his powers, from himself.

  All the while, Midna remained concealed in Link's shadow, trying to figure out what to say or do to calm him down somehow. Clearly, he was beyond distraught now,

  something that could be clearly seen due to the trail of ice that followed his every step and the racing winds circling all around him. And after everything that had just

  happened, she couldn't really blame him; after all, he had just killed several people in front of his entire village. Coping with all that had went wrong for him over these past

  two days alone certainly couldn't be easy, which most likely explained why his emotions were running wildly out of control. And yet, even though she wanted to help him,

&n
bsp; the Twilight Princess had no idea how to console him in a way that would finally set him at ease once and for all. As much as she wanted to stop Verona, she knew that

  she had to help Link conquer both his powers and his emotions first in any way she could, even if that meant saving him from his own self.

  After running for what felt like hours, the hero eventually burst into a clearing, his heart racing and his breathing coming out in short, almost panicked gasps. Already, the

  winds were starting to spiral around him, blowing through the dead branches of all of the nearby trees as it stirred up the snow on the ground. Link shook his head as he

  remembered that he was the one creating these winds, as well as the thin sheet of ice that covered the ground he was standing on as well. The ice only continued to

  spread as he stood still, even though he held his shaking hands out towards it and desperately tried to internally command it to stop, though it only did the opposite as it

  continued to expand.

  "Calm down…" Link commanded himself tensely, his breathing still broken as he gripped his arms with his hands tightly, shutting his eyes in an attempt to relax himself. And

  yet, even despite this, all he could think about were the fear in the eyes of every last Ordonian as they looked upon him, the blood of the guards he had just brutally killed

  still fresh on his hands. "Calm down," he repeated to himself a bit more firmly, but he knew it was no use. His frustration, grief, and fear were all overwhelming him, to the

  point that he was completely unable to control any of them.

  "Link," Midna finally said as she slowly rose out of his shadow from behind, her expression awash with concern for him. The hero backed away from her apprehensively,

  having admittedly forgotten that she was still tucked away in his shadow after everything that had happened.

  "Stay away," Link cautioned her as he kept his hands close to him, knowing that in the emotional state he was now in, almost anything could happen. "I don't want to

  hurt you."

  "Hurt me?" the Twilight Princess asked incredulously, letting out a small, friendly chuckle in the hopes of cheering him up. "Don't be silly, little wolf. I know you won't hurt

  me. I'm not afraid of you and I have no reason to be."

  "You should be afraid of me," Link said as he looked away from her, the shame in his tone clear. "I… I just killed five men, Midna! Five! With my own hands! What's

  stopping me from doing the same to anyone else, including you?!"

  "Now you've really lost it," Midna scoffed, crossing her arms. "You only hurt those guys because they provoked you, and honestly, they had it coming. You wouldn't hurt

  anyone who was actually innocent, even if you tried."

  "No one deserves to die, Midna!" the hero exclaimed in absolute shock at how callous she was being about the whole thing. "And it wasn't like I was trying to kill any of

  them either! I… I just lost control and… I couldn't stop myself and I…" He trailed off anxiously as he glanced down at his hands, seeing that the aura surrounding them

  constantly shifted from red, to blue, to green with each passing second. "Midna… what am I going to do…?" he asked in an almost inaudible whisper as he continued to

  stare at his hands, the very harbingers of the death he had already brought about, the death that he had so much capacity to bring about.

  "I'll tell you what you're going to do," the Twilight Princess said as she glided a bit closer to him. "You're going to learn how to control them, once and for all. I told you I'm

  not going to leave you, and I mean it. I don't care what we have to do; we'll figure this out. Together."

  "Don't you get it, Midna?!" Link nearly shouted in increasing frustration, clearly unable to restrain his emotions any longer as the winds blew even harder around him. The

  Twili imp struggled to not get blown away by them as the hero continued. "I'll never be able to control them! They come from my emotions; they're a part of me! All

  they'll ever be good for is hurting people! That's all I've been doing since any of this began!"

  "So that's it then?" Midna asked harshly, growing angry with him herself. "You're just going to give up then? Run away to some unknown place where you won't have to

  face anyone you might have a small chance at hurting?"

  "If that's what it takes," the hero said coldly, turning away from her entirely as he bowed his head in shame. "It's clear I'm far too dangerous to be around anyone, so I

  might as well be alone."

  "Well… what about me?" the Twilight Princess asked, her tone suddenly distraught as she realized she was being faced with losing him in the last way she wanted to.

  "You'd just… walk away from everything you've ever known and cared about for the rest of your life… even me?"

  This was the question that finally caused Link to hesitate the slightest bit. He remembered how he had desperately begged Midna not to leave him the previous day,

  knowing that in light of everything, she was the only one he had left amidst all he had lost. And yet, if he somehow hurt her, if he destroyed the only thing he was still

  absolutely certain he mutually cared about, he would never be able to forgive himself. "Yes…" he finally said, much to Midna's absolute shock. "Even you…"

  "W-what?" the Twilight Princess asked softly, tears welling up in her eyes.

  "Midna, I've just lost everything," the hero said morosely, slightly glancing back at her. "My home, my dignity, Ilia, Zelda… I can't lose you too."

  "Then let me come with you," Midna begged, attempting to get even closer to him. "Please, Link. I don't care where you think you have to go. I'll follow you, no matter

  where it is."

  "I'm not your problem, Midna," Link said with a guilty sigh, realizing that she was willing to give up far too much for him. "I can't be. You have your kingdom and your

  people to worry about. I won't let you give all that up for me."

  "And I won't let you throw your life away like this," the Twilight Princess said, finally managing to take one of his hands, ignoring his feeble attempt to pull it away. "I'm not

  abandoning you, Link. I can't. I care about you too much to ever leave you behind again."

  For what seemed like ages, the hero simply stared at her with pain in his silver eyes, wanting to believe that they could still be together, wanting to believe that he

  wouldn't hurt her, wanting, but only wanting and nothing more. "No," he said tersely, finally pulling his hand away from hers as he looked away from her.

  "But Link-" Midna began to protest, before she was abruptly cut off.

  "I can't let you come with me, Midna," Link said assertively. "This is my problem and my problem alone. I'm the one who has these powers, not you. This… this is just

  how it has to be…"

  "Link, please!" the Twilight Princess exclaimed, desperate not to lose him as she watched him take a step away from her. "Don't go!" Tears were streaming down her

  cheeks as she reached out and grabbed his hand once more, holding onto it tightly so that he couldn't escape her reach. And yet, as she did so, aggravation and rage

  boiled up within the hero, who, as much as it pained him to leave his closest companion behind, simply wanted to finally be alone at long last.

  "Leave me alone!" Link shouted fiercely, spinning around as he thrust his other hand out to pry her away from him, though he was unable to stop the burst of fire that

  came with the sudden movement. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the hero watched with wide eyes of horror as the fire flew from his hand and struck Midna's left

  arm brutally, something she was unable to protect herself from. The Twilight Princess let out a scream of pain as the force of the blast knocked her back several feet,

  sending her colliding roughly into a nearby tree.

  The raging winds suddenly came to a complete halt as Link stood on the oth
er side of the clearing, completely frozen as he took in the sight of Midna's arm. The dark Twili

  flesh of it was nearly glowing red from the intensity of the burn, which stretched all the way from her shoulder to her hand as it hung limply at her side. After a broken sob

  of agony, the Twilight Princess finally opened her closed eyes and met the hero's stunned gaze, tears flowing from her eyes as her mind raced for something to say, even

  though she was still in shock from the injury. All she could do was shake her head slowly, her mouth hung open though no words would come out of it. She wanted to tell

  him that it wasn't his fault, that it would certainly heal with time, but all she could do was sit there and cry, her heart breaking for him more than ever before.

  At the same time, all the hero could do was stare at the long burn across the Twilight Princess's arm, feeling sick with guilt and despair. This was exactly what he had been

  afraid of: hurting her above really anyone else. And yet, clearly it was far too late to stop that from happening. In a moment of blind fury, he had hurt her in such a horrible

  way, one that he certainly would never forgive himself for. Whatever she had tried to convince him of before was wrong; he was out of control, a monster, unfit to be

  around other people and incapable of causing anything but pain and destruction wherever he went. And as far as he was concerned, there was only thing he could do to

  avoid bringing either of those things upon anything or anyone else.

  Midna let out a small sob of both pain and pity as she watched Link run out of the clearing, trailing ice behind him once more as he ran away from her as fast as he could.

  The Twili imp desperately tried to pick herself up off of the ground to try and chase after him and comfort him, but she found that the immense pain of her burnt arm

  prohibited her from even doing that. Her words were still caught in her throat, keeping her from calling out to him as her heart ached for him, knowing that if she was

  losing him to both his powers and himself. And so, she simply lied there, wishing that she could do anything at all to save the hero she cared about so much, the hero was