As the World Falls Down

by: Starlight Sonata

"As the pain sweeps through
Makes no sense for you
Every thrill has gone
Wasn't too much fun at all
But I'll be there for you-oo-oo
As the world falls down,"

- David Bowie

Boy and beast were entrenched in a battle to the death, sword against claws, teeth against steel. A ring of fire blazed around then, flames licking hungrily at the rumbling heavens. Rain poured like a deluge from the heavens, though unable to quench the magic-infused inferno.

The battle appeared more-or-less one-sided with the monstrous demon charging after the boy, its razor sharp claws cutting into stone and nicking flesh. The boy simply ducked and dodged, every now and then taking a swat at the monster's tail. Though the strikes were few and far between they seemed to be taking their toll, as the beast's pace began to slow and his accuracy began to lessen.

Blood mixed with water and dripped toward the ground. Scarlet red blood from the Hylian boy and thick, ebon blood from the demon. The blood was spread across the entire ring, marking not only the ferocity of the battle, but the length of it as well. It seemed like it had lasted for an eternity, stretching on and on, tiring both combatants but not quelling them.

More time passed, more circling and slashing, more dodging and grunting. Now, the battle was even. The beast was tired, as was the boy. But, the boy still possessed his smaller body and speed, the monster only had his gruesome axes, which it would swing side to side every now and then, but surely miss the boy.

As the rain poured and the night moved onward, it seemed that the battle would never end. The two foes would be forever locked, blood thirst pounding through their veins, determination keeping them upright. But, that thought was dashed when the boy rolled through the demon's legs yet again and brought his hammer down on upon the spiked tail. The beast released a grisly bellow and collapsed to the ground, the overall pain far too much to ignore anymore.

The boy sped from it, as the walls of fire fell, revealing a worried princess and a magnificent sword. He ripped the blade from the ground and stalked back into the ring, poised to destroy his enemy.

Impa closed her eyes then, unable to watch further. The image before her rippled angrily, as if demanding her attention. She stood with the other Sages in the Sacred Realm, watching the final battle between the King of Evil and the Hero of Time. The image was projected inside of a glittering well of water, and they all circled around it, watching with baited breath.

Every slash and slice would elicit a gasp from Ruto or a shout from Darunia. This was the culmination of all their combined efforts, the ultimate fall of Ganondorf, the

Great King of Evil. It would have been putting it lightly to say that the tension in the room could have been cut with a knife.

She wanted to say she didn't care, no, she wanted to scream it. She wanted to stand on the peak of Death Mountain and yell to the world that none of what was happening bothered her. She knew she'd be lying, but at least she'd feel a little better about the whole situation. But now, as the chips were laid down on the table and the game had begun, she couldn't even lie to herself anymore, even less to the whole world.

Her impassive wall had gone up the instant Link had entered the Dark Castle; her thick veneer that she utilized whenever she knew the going was going to get tougher. It had, of course. She had helped him, as she was expected to, maybe even got a little satisfaction out of it, as well. It's not like she didn't know this was going to happen. It's not like she hadn't predicted it from the beginning.

"Your pride is going to be your downfall one day,"

That's what she had said, she knew he heard her, he had been there looking at her with those piercing eyes. He even looked like he was listening. Of course, he hadn't been. In one ear out the other, that's the way he always was when she tried to warn him about things. He didn't need her warnings, he had it all figured out. Well, look where all his figuring got him now; on the sharp end of the Master Sword.

She sighed and opened her eyes. The battle still raged, with Link, the Hero of Time, taking the lead. Ganondorf's, no, it was Ganon now. Nothing of the King of Gerudo's remained, his humanity had withered away leaving only malice and depravity in its wake. He now resembled the beast that he had become, how ironic...how sad.

There was nothing she could have done to save him; he was too damned stubborn for that. He'd rather fade away into the shadows than admit that he had been wrong, that he had been an utter idiot. Oh, and he had been. This whole rule the world deal was absolutely ridiculous. Did he really think he could win? No, knowing him he probably knew he couldn't, that's probably the main reason he did it. He always liked to swim against the current. Stupid man.

Not like she really cared that he was about the be decimated. Bastard sure deserved it after what he put everyone through. He deserved to be sent to some dark dimension, to rot with the demons he created. She was happy he wouldn't be around the bug her or confuse her. It was better this way, it really was. Now she could focus on the important things, like...caring for the Shadow Temple. Yeah, that seemed important, besides she was a Sage it was her job now. No time for stupid men in there at all. Her schedule was completely full up.

All right, she wanted to scream again. Stupid, stupid Ganondorf. He'd done a number on her for sure. He made her want to tear up her schedule (even though it really was empty), he made her want to give up being a Sage. Oh yes, and he made her want to scream and kick her feet like a two year old having a temper tantrum. But most of all he made her want to fly out of the Sacred Realm and grab that Master Sword out of Link's hand before he hurt someone with it, specifically speaking, Ganon, and tell Ganon that it was okay he was a giant mutant pig and that they could someway find a way to work things out, she was sure they had clinics for these type of things, so if he'd only stop trying to destroy the world, they could find a way to make everything right again...somehow.

Yeah, she was crazy. A certified nut ball, complete with delusions. She knew she could never make it right, not the way she wanted it to be. She wanted Ganondorf to be sane again, she wanted Zelda and Link to be safe, she wanted, she wanted, she wanted. She wanted everything at the same time, but she knew when one wants things too much they receive very little in return. Greed was never a good characteristic to possess...Ganondorf being the perfect example. His greed had consumed him, and not even her pleas could bring him back from the brink. He was lost to the world now, consumed by the Triforce of Power. Oh, and sweet merciful Din, she hated him for it. That hatred for him, for his selfishness, was the only thing that kept her going these past few months. This need to show him what a fool he was, and if locking him up in the Dark World was the only way so be it. If keeping him away from her was the only way that he could realize his folly, then that was the way it had to be. Though, it may kill her in the end.

She'd been like the walking dead for far too long. Just going through the motions of everyday life. There was no way she could consciously do what she was doing and survive mentally intact. Even now, she knew she was pushing it. Allowing herself to think on it, think on what they were doing, what she was doing, was dangerous. There was a chance she would lose herself and really find herself flying out of the Sacred Realm and fighting alongside Ganon.

The battle was nearly over when she refocused, Ganon was limping badly, black blood pouring like little waterfalls down his bulk. Link looked pretty beat up as well, there were an endless multitude of tears in his silly green tunic, as well as bloodstains. There was also quite a nasty gash on his forehead; she was sure the blood was pouring into his eyes.

But, in an instant more, none of that mattered. The master sword fell upon Ganon's torn flesh, eliciting an agonizing roar. He fell then, his giant bulk causing the ground to rumble. Zelda jumped at the opportunity to hold him with her magic, a brilliant ray of light emanated from her outstretched palm onto the heaving demon.

"Link! Finish him off with the sword of time, the Master Sword!"

Link complied, raising the mighty weapon in both hands, looking completely the part of the Hero of Time for the first time in Impa's eyes. With a battle cry, he struck Ganon in the forehead, allowing a black stream of blood to gush from the wound.

"Ancient creator's of Hyrule," Her voice, though strong and powerful, was muffled slightly, like she was screaming through water. Impa winced at the words, knowing full well what was to happen next.

"Now, open the sealed door and send the Evil Incarnation of Darkness into the void of the Evil Realm!"

She felt the air around her begin to swirl as a purple light began to radiate from her body. She considered fighting destiny for an instant, if she didn't comply they couldn't seal him. If they didn't seal him maybe she could find a way...no, she knew that was foolish. He was lost to her now, lost to the world. This was the way it had to be. As she said it, it was destiny.

"Six Sages, now!"

The light around her grew larger, as did the glows from the other Sages, this was their part, the part where they ushered Ganondorf to his sentence in the Evil Realm. The Purple glow flared suddenly, suddenly feeling like someone had turned on a vacuum and it was sucking out her energy. A stream of violet light shot upward, joining with the other colors to create a great white ball of radiance above them.

...and, all she could think about was how she was never going to get to say goodbye.

"Oh sealed door opened by the Sages...Close forever with the Evil Incarnation of Darkness within!"

The white ball above them exploded in a brilliant burst of light, leaving only sprinkles of white energy falling like snow around them. The draining sensation stopped and all was quiet.

"Curse you..."

It was a quiet at first, like a whisper, but audible if one really strained. Obviously, she heard it, it wouldn't make sense for her not to. How else could she acquire that deep knot of regret? She knew who it was, she could recognize that voice anywhere, like the rumbling of thunder or the growl of a predator.

"Curse you, Zelda..."

Well, she guessed he had a minor right to be pissed. Everyone had kinda rained on his parade. He probably would have owned half the world right now if the sages and Link hadn't butted in. But, of course they did, and of course she was a member of them. Maybe, that only served to make him angrier, that she had the gall to betray him. It wasn't like she had a choice. She hadn't volunteered to be a Sage, the fates kinda just pushed it on her, like a sack of potatoes. No, like a sack of bomb flowers about the explode. Yes, that sounded about right.

"Curse you, Sages..."

Though, it wasn't like she could just say no. You don't say no to the Goddesses, no matter how much you don't want to do something. You say, okay, sure, why don't I bend over while I'm at it? So she did. Of course, she got stuck with the creepy temple, the one in a graveyard with hands crawling around it and a huge ass drum-playing ghost. Of course, that was her temple. She couldn't get the one in the middle of the nice, peaceful forest; hell, she would have been content with the one in the middle of the boiling hot volcano. But, as the fates had decided she was, once again, given the short straw.

"Curse you, Link..."

So, if it wasn't bad enough that her job entailed chilling out in the creepiest place ever to exist, she had to help Link. Now, it's not that she had anything at all against the kid, hell, she even liked him. But, she definitely didn't want to help him. It was fine for him to save Hyrule and kill Ganondorf on his own, well, not fine, but it would have made her feel better about it. But, no, she was charged with helping the kid by lending not only her powers, but eventually sealing away Ganondorf after the Hero of Time dutifully pummeled him. Not exactly her cup of tea. But, she did it anyway. She did it for Zelda, and Hyrule; she did it to save him from himself. It wasn't pleasant in the least, but she had sucked it up.

"Curse you, Impa..."

She gasped and everything around her stopped. All other sounds, all thoughts, all time. It was just her and those three words that she swore she had heard. She knew he didn't say them, she knew it was just her guilty conscious that she had no reason to have. She didn't betray him, he had betrayed her. He had promised...

The sages stood frozen with time around her, all wearing triumphant smiles. They knew they had won, they knew he was gone; they, also, had no reason to care. They didn't care if Ganondorf lived or died or was locked in some Dark World. They only cared about Hyrule, about their families, about their people. They cared about the things that good guys were supposed to care about. Good guys aren't supposed to care about the villain, it went against good guy nature.

But, she wasn't really a good guy now was she. Sure, she was dedicated to Zelda, but that was different. That wasn't because she was her princess, it was because she was like her daughter. No matters of race or alignment factored into that. Her oath sworn to her wasn't based on royalty, she would have sworn it if she was the daughter of a peddler. She swore to Zelda alone, because she was simply that...she was Zelda.

She wasn't bright and happy like the other Sages; she was sarcastic with a scathing sense of humor. Okay, maybe she hadn't always been that way, but as of late it seemed to be her new thing. If anything, she was the reluctant hero, only acting out of duty not desire. If circumstances were different she would have helped happily, but not now...not with the way things were.

Time picked up and the cheers of the others Sages erupted suddenly. It seemed that the last few words had been products of her imagination...or maybe they were only meant for her. Maybe, it was his way of saying goodbye, I hope I see you here rotting alongside me in a few years, you traitorous bitch. Oh yes, Ganondorf always had such a charming way of proving his affections.

Darunia slapped her on the back, a riotous laugh bubbling out of him. She forced a smile, which only seemed to be a pathetic excuse for the curving of lips, but he seemed to accept it as her way of joining in the celebration. Everyone was prancing around, even the dignified Ruto was jumping for joy. She wanted to join in, but she didn't have the heart to. She just wanted to scream, again.

She wanted to curl up into a little ball and die or something. Because, she didn't think she could wake up tomorrow with the cold realization that she would never see him again. She didn't think she could survive day to day without knowing that somewhere he was okay, plotting evil things, maybe even thinking about her. Because he wouldn't be, he wouldn't be ever again. It would always be just her and her memories.

But, in reality, that was what it had been for awhile wasn't it. Her remembering how great everything used to be, and falling in love with that memory time and time again. Even when he was taking over Hyrule, even when he was fighting against her and her compatriots. She remembered him and how glorious he was, so she forgave him. How could such a great person go sour? Why did her great person have to go sour?

She closed her eyes again, fighting back the tears that she knew had to be coming. She wouldn't cry; she wouldn't be the wet blanket on the greatest day in Hyrulian history.

Opening them again, she looked to the Sages who looked so happy. Breathing in and breathing out, she stepped forward towards them. Not ready to celebrate, not even wanting to be around people, but knowing that you don't always get what you want.

She'd eventually let him go, but not today, not tomorrow, maybe even not next year. But, someday she'd be able to let go of him and his glorious memory. But, for now she'd just have to settle with saying a fleeting goodbye.

A goodbye to the Great King of Evil, and to the King of Theives, and to the King of the Gerudo, as well as to that cocky, young Prince of the Gerudo, her friend and her lover.

A/N: Oh man, I don't know if I'll continue this, but I decided it would be fun to start. Ganny just happens to be my favorite character and Impa just happens to be pretty cool. Yes, I know I took some liberties with her, but she didn't really talk all that much, so you can't really say she's not that way. :P So there. Anyhoo, if I do write anymore, It'll be a back story leading up to the ending. I probably will even I don't get any reviews, because I'm a nut ball. Anyhoo, if you like this please tell me so, if you don't…well be gentle, okay? First Zelda fan fiction, so be nice!

A special thanks to Galaxy Girl for the idea of smooshing these two poor souls together.