Her bedchambers…her sweet, comforting space was now invaded by Gerudo guards. The princess forced herself to bow her head towards one of them before he took the time to open up the door for her to enter. Her home was not her sanctuary anymore.

As she brought her attention back to her chambers, she couldn't help but gasp; it wasn't what she saw, but what she didn't see that shocked her. To her awe and confusion, there was not a single object removed, broken, or changed. Everything, or at least from what she could tell, was exactly how she left it. She had actually thought that Ganondorf would've torn the place apart and change her room to his liking in order to further break her spirit. For the moment, Zelda took comfort in the fact that her captor was a bit more respectable than to do something so savagely.

"Princess!" A voice gasped from behind her.

Zelda squealed in surprise, despite the gentleness of the voice. She turned on her heel to see Impa taking careful steps towards her.

"Impa?" Zelda asked, dumbfounded. She shook her head as though she were coming out of a daze. She was about to speak again when she noticed a very familiar looking black stain going across Impa's neck. "Oh my…"

"Oh, Zelda," Impa sighed, stopping before the princess. "What have they done to you?"

"Never mind me," Zelda brushed off Impa's concern. "what about you? Look at you…but they…did they harm you?"

"No," Impa muttered, brushing back her white hair to show off the black mark that stained her trachea. "not long after I helped you flee, they had me surrounded. I tried to fight them off, but one of them cut me across the throat! I thought I was going to die."

"But they marked you." Zelda concluded, involuntarily bringing her hand to her own neck.

Impa nodded, lowering her eyes. "They didn't harm me passed that. They knew I would behave from then on, and they were right." Malice leaked into Impa's voice. "Damn him… Ganondorf gained the Triforce of courage, and the Triforce of power. I can only imagine it'll be a matter of time until…"

Zelda's eyes fell to the floor as Impa trailed off. Her knees felt like rubber the longer she stood before the older woman. Knowing that she was Hyrule's last hope, she had to stay strong. She met Impa's sorrowful eyes.

"All is not lost." Zelda told Impa, reaching for her hands. "I'm still here. I have lost the battle, but I can still win the war. I may not be able to speak to the Goddesses anymore, but I swear I will not let Hyrule's story end here."

Impa placed a hand on Zelda's bruised cheek, rubbing her thumb down the soft skin, gingerly. "You always had a strong will, Your Highness. Ganondorf never frightened you even when he was so much stronger than you."

Zelda gave the woman a light smile before allowing her hands to fall back at her sides. "Wait here." She ordered, maneuvering around the woman towards her doors. She turned the golden knob and swung the door open only to be met by a pair of golden eyes.

"Ah!" A chipper voice greeted her. "Your Highness!"

"Nabooru…" Zelda breathed, feeling her heart struggle to get back up to pace. "You've startled me."

"My apologies!" The Gerudo woman replied. Up close, Zelda could truly admire this woman's beauty; her skin was a smooth coffee brown, contrasting to her vibrant red hair that was tied in a high ponytail. Her radiant eyes peered at Zelda through thick black lashes. "I just wanted to greet you."

"Greet me?" Zelda inquired.

"Of course." Nabooru giggled, as if to say "why do you think that's so odd, silly?"

"Oh." Zelda forced herself to respond. "Hello."

"You know, you don't have to be too worried." Nabooru assured Zelda. "I know it was a bit barbaric downstairs, but Ganon sometimes needs a firm hand. He's like a child. It's not like you have to marry him, or anything."

"Oh?" Zelda queried, now fairly interested.

"No." Nabooru continued. "In all honesty, a part of me had stopped by just to tell you that. I had a feeling you were worried that he would force you to become his queen for the public to quiet down."

"Then, what does he intend to do?" Zelda asked, allowing a bit of irritation to slip into her voice.

"Mostly, to just keep you hostage." Nabooru uttered, nonchalantly. "Hey, it's not my idea of a good time either, but his thought was that if your people knew that you were alive though in danger, they'd keep the ruckus down until he can come up with a more solid plan."

Zelda opened her mouth, but quickly shut it. Nabooru's response was a bit more than she had originally expected.

"I would like to see Link." Zelda stated, confidently.

Nabooru took a few steps back and placed her hands behind her back, gracefully. "It's your castle."

"Your 'boss' isn't going to care that the prisoner is wandering around unguarded?" Zelda asked, suspiciously.

"Where will you go?" Nabooru retorted. "Every nook and cranny of this castle is being watched…especially the dungeons. If you're smart, and I'm assuming that you are, you'll do well to remember that there's no possible escape route on the inside."

Zelda nodded, mentally cursing herself. She glanced down at her chest, half expecting the black stain to have grown in size like a rash. Despite its disheartening appearance, it just sat on her chest like a leech, yet never expanding. "Nabooru….thank you."

Nabooru smiled at Zelda before trotting off down the corridor. The princess heaved a heavy sigh before taking insecure strides in the opposite direction. At this point, every part of Zelda's body began to ache. The adrenaline that pulsed through her veins had subsided and now gave way to the aftermath of being tossed and jerked around. Her hands played with her raw wrists as she carefully stepped down the stairwell.

Soreness sunk deep into her thighs as she reached the first landing. Her lethargic eyes burned as they shifted from side to side. Her calloced hands swelled from their labor. No matter what Zelda tried to think about, she couldn't distract herself completely from the pain. A few of the guards leered and taunted her, but she couldn't bring herself to jeer at them.

After fumbling down two more stairwells and three corridors, she reached her destination. Her shaking hands grabbed the metal handle and gave it a labored tug. As she entered the dungeons, looking down at the cells, she suddenly felt utterly…alone.

"Your Highness," A guard greeted, nodding his head.

"I'm surprised you would use such a title for someone such as myself." Zelda mused, frowning in confusion. "I'd believe that you would be expecting me to be honoring you instead."

The guard let out a hardy chuckle, resting his armored hands on his knees. Zelda nearly fell over in fear.

"Why, Princess," The guard began again. "we are but humble servants. Yes, our King has conquered this land, but we are not above you."

"Nor do we really want to be." Another guard chimed in. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead. He took out a handkerchief from the pocket of his baggy pants and wiped his face dry. "Running a country is hard work. Not really something we could possibly think of managing by ourselves."

The other guard scoffed at the other's response.

"You're just saying it that way because you're too nervous about people liking you." The first guard sniggered. He turned his attention to the young woman standing before him. "My name is Meltíta. That, over there, is Güro."

"Pleasure to meet you!" Güro nearly wheezed. "Oh, dear, King Ganondorf won't be pissed that we're getting chummy with the prisoner."

"Ah, grow up." Meltíta groaned, rolling his eyes. "If King Ganondorf has an issue with being civil towards our company, then he can personally take it up with me."

Zelda raised her brows at Meltíta's assertiveness. It was refreshing to see after all of the cruel gestures she had received earlier. Though this interaction was interesting, it was at this moment that her head started to feel like a cotton ball.

"I do wish to grow up." Güro argued. "I can't if I'm dead!"

"It's also nice," Zelda giggled, feeling a little loopy. "that you're speaking Hylian for me."

"Well," Meltíta replied, pensively. "rumor has it you can speak Gerudo, anyway. With that being said, it's more polite to speak in the company's native tongue as opposed to the host."

Zelda gave a polite smile before recalling why she was originally there.

"I wish to see Link." Zelda slurred as if she was speaking for the first time that day.

Meltíta gave a sympathetic smile to Zelda. He folded his hands behind his back and bowed his head. "Then, it does pain me to give you this news…yet in a way, it is good news."

"What?" Zelda's brows stitched together in confusion. She stumbled backwards, slightly. She blinked a few times, trying to focus.

"Link is receiving medical treatment in the East Wing." Güro answered, craning his neck to make eye contact with the woman.

"Oh…" Zelda replied, disappointedly. "That is good news, but I must know that he is okay."

"Your Highness," Meltíta purred, warmly. "I assure you that he's being given top quality treatment. He'll be better in no time! That's a guarantee."

Zelda felt hazy. She knew she wasn't thinking straight, but the urge to see her friend was overpowering.

"I must see Link." She whispered to herself. She placed her hand on the heavy door to leave. She was so weak that she had to put her weight on the metal surface in order for it to budge.

"Y-Your Majesty!" She heard one of the guards stammer, but they sounded too distant.

I have to find Link. Her knees gave out, bones popping from the sudden impact.

"She's going down!"

She felt the stairs collide into her side, stabbing her ribs.

"What is going on here?" She heard the great, mighty voice, but she didn't care that he was standing over her. She could barely see him, anyway. The darkness was consuming every corner of her vision.

Find…Link…Her eyes gave in to lethargy. Despite her effort to fight sleep, she knew this was yet another battle she was going to lose.