A/N: Well, I didn't reach my goal of reviews, but thank you who reviewed any way :) Much appreciated. Part of this change in heart is that I am ECSTATIC 'cause I just finished my first college class (I'll be a senior in HS in September) with a ninety nine point six percent! I'm pretty freakin' happy, I wound up with a two thirty three out of two hundred on the final. I have not been this proud of myself in a while! So I thought I'd share my happiness with whoever finds this :)

Now, I usually save my author's notes for the end of the chapter, but I have a few things to say before this one gets rollin' (Winebibber! Codswallop! Shenanigans!). There are parts of this chapter that are SUPPOSED to be confusing. This whole ending sequence, chapter eight/nineish to the epilogue, is supposed to be confusing and rapid. They WILL get explained in the epilogue, don't fret. Just read slowly in the confusing parts (you'll know when you get there, 'cause you'll either be confused, and you'll know, or you'll understand, and it won't be a problem), take your time. You're not really supposed to be able to tell what's going on, but you might be able to. Just keep in mind that the hallucination scenes are symbolic. Now, without further ado, I present to y'all the FINAL chapter:

Chapter Ten

Ganondorf laughed as he finished locking the door and advanced towards them. "How interesting. You've had your whole lives, but you wait until your final minutes to pledge your undying love to each other. You mortals have a strange way of living."

Link said nothing. He adjusted himself so he was in between Zelda and Ganondorf, even though no human could pass through the bars and Ganondorf couldn't really harm her. It just felt right. It seemed like the gentlemanly thing to do.

"Why defend her, young Hero?" Ganondorf asked almost politely, tilting his head and folding his hands behind his back. He smiled a little, devious smile and walked along the wall, his cape swishing behind him. "You both will die anyway. Why prolong the inevitable? This all could have been avoided, you know. Had you stayed with her last night, she would not have sought me out and we would not be here."

"You're wrong," Link said. "This was not inevitable. It is our story and our fate. The same tale has been told, and they all end the same, Ganondorf. I kill you. That's the ending. So I'd get ready if I were you."

Ganondorf's lip curled into a snarl as he prowled along the wall, panther-like. He was edging himself up towards the Triforce, which was now almost completely surrounded by darkness. Link started to formulate a plan in his head. Just as the gears began to whirl, Ganondorf pounced. From the inside if her cage, Zelda shrieked and began to convulse. She beat herself against the floor as the two began to fight, totally out of control of herself. She knew the Darkness was causing her to do this. No one could have Darkness literally wrapped around them and not be affected. It was just beginning, and Link knew it too. It was going to try to possess her.

"Don't give in!" Link shouted to her as he sparred with Ganondorf, who had materialized his own long, black sword. "Listen to your heart!"

Zelda screamed and lost touch with reality.

She was wearing a pink tee shirt that ironically said, "Princess" on it, written over a cartoon crown. She wore jean overalls and a pair of pink Converse. Her curly blonde hair was in two braids. She was four years old.

Her brother was fourteen. He held his younger sister's hand as he led her up the meadow. He walked with her, smiling at the simplicity and joy of her innocent laugh.

"Hide and seek, Sheiky! Let's play!" she cried out, twirling away from his hand.

"Zelda, don't let go of me," he warned. "There are bad guys out here. They'll snatch you if you don't stay with me!" He listened to her tinkling laughter as she spun into the trees, away from him. He sighed and as he began to follow her.

He then heard the voice, the voice that had been haunting his nightmares. He quickened his pace and tried not to look away from the path as his thoughts roamed. He'd been dreaming of horrible things lately. He'd dreamed of death and destruction and torture. He dreamed of his own sister, coiled and helpless and bleeding beneath his feet, and in his dreams he was proud. He would do it a hundred more times, as long as the voice told him how.

The voice was always with him now.

He had tried to resist it by going to the chapel and praying after his dreams. He would try and connect with the Goddesses, but they didn't listen or speak to him like the voice.

It whispered to him from the shadows, muttering words he couldn't quite make out. Feeling a strange allure, he looked to the trees and saw the pair of glowing, red eyes peeking out at him from the shadows. He felt the call to join it, but his sister's face popped into his mind.

"Zelda!" he called, a little creeped out. "Zelda, it's time to go home!" He looked away from the eyes, but the voice whispered to him.

"I will find you. I am a part of you, young prince. You cannot run forever. I am here."

"Zelda!" he called, jogging now. He ran away from the voice, but heard it whispering all around him. He had been running and fighting for too long. He had called on the voice's terrible strength to fulfill his own wishes. The voice had helped him cheat on tests and skip out on chores. The voice had made all the girls like him. The voice had made him handsome, where as before he had been socially and developmentally awkward. The voice had done all this for him, and now the voice would come for him. Everything comes with a price.

"Zelda, I give up!" he yelled as he ran through the trees. The shadows were closing in on him. "Zelda, time to go home!"

She was hiding not far away, watching him, her eyes wide. She saw the sweat on his skin, the fear in his eyes. She watched as the darkness took him down with a scream and rolled him onto his back. She watched him writhing and shouting in pain as the darkness filled him, stealing away his spirit. She watched the darkness finally fade, leaving her brother almost exactly the same as he had been before. As he rose to his feet, she noticed his previously chocolate eyes now had a tinge of red to them, very unnoticeable unless one was looking for it. He approached her slowly and soundlessly.

"Zelda, it's time to go," he said, his voice sounding hollow. His eyes looked empty. She stared up at him, her own blue eyes wide. Wordlessly, she took his cold hand in hers and let him lead her home.

She was still writhing on the floor.

"Zelda, the Darkness is attacking you! He's making it!" Link shouted, ducking away from Ganondorf's blows. "It's showing you things that you don't believe, memories that aren't yours! Stay strong!"

"Silence, fool!" Ganondorf growled, shooting a ray of shadow at Link. Link shouted out and was knocked into the back wall by the door. He felt his back crack as he came into contact with the old boards. He heard and saw the chapel sway and was sure, for a horrifying moment, the whole turret was going to go down. However, it continued to hold steady. Link rolled out of the way and was on his feet again, shielding himself as he dueled with the King of Evil. Ganondorf brought his sword down and Link met it with a metallic clang. Their swords clashed again and again, the two men equally matched in skill.

"The memories are symbolic, in case you were wondering," Ganondorf said conversationally, as if the two were casually working together instead of trying to kill each other. "And yes, I am causing them. I'm working on converting your princess to darkness as well as the Triforce."

"You're sick," Link said, spitting. He lunged towards Ganondorf who flicked him away as if he were nothing.

Link made a dive towards Ganondorf and the King of Evil leapt back, and seemingly vanished. Link ducked behind his shield, peeking over the top. He heard a chuckle and looked up to see Ganondorf hanging from the rafters. Counting on his Goddess-gifted agility, Link made a jump at the wall, bounced off, and swung from a rafter from the ceiling. Quick as a flash, he flipped himself up onto his feet and drew his sword. Ganondorf was already on his feet, waiting.

"Impressive," said Ganondorf condescendingly. "But, tsk, tsk. You will have to try harder than that."

With a roar, Link lunged again.

"Don't leave me," she whispered, pleading. She was now a young adult. "They're coming. They'll get me."

"I'll be right back," Link told her, kissing her hand and heading out the door, leaving. He was always leaving. He never stayed when she needed him.

She sat alone in the kitchen on her stool, waiting for his return. She began to hear the voices and bit her lip, rocking back and forth nervously. She heard their laughter, their high-pitched, evil, laughter.

"Hello!" one of the imps said. It was hanging from the windowsill and had impossibly twisted its head upside down. It had scaly, violet skin and electric green eyes. It stuck out its tongue and blew a raspberry at her. Gasping, she stood up and covered her ears, trying to ignore the awful voices.

"Hello, Princess!" another one said when she entered the living room. She clutched the wall and turned back around. She ran out the front door and began walking through the narrow alleyways. She was wearing a black skirt that touched her ankles and a gray, long-sleeved shirt. She had a black, netted veil over her blonde hair. She pulled the veil tighter as she wound her way through the town, trying to avoid the voices. But, they followed. They always followed. They cackled and spat at her as she passed.

"Link! Link! Link, where are you?" she cried out, running. "Help me! They're coming! You promised you would come back! Where are you?"

As she rounded the corner, she saw a slim, dark man waiting for her. He leaned against the wall, casually, beckoning her to come towards him. Like a child, she slowly walked to him.

"I can make them stop," he said softly. "I believe you. I can help you. I will protect you."

"Do you promise?" she asked him.

"I promise," he vowed, holding her in his arms. He stroked her soft hair and sang to her a lullaby. Slowly, the voices in her head stopped. Even her own voice gradually faded away until the only one she could hear was the olive-skinned man with the fiery hair.

Link spun around the room dodging blows left and right. The screams of the ReDeads and their victims were getting closer and closer as the battle below crept up the old, wooden stairs of the turret. Link wondered how much longer it would take before the battle found itself right outside the door.

"Die, Hero of Time!" growled Ganondorf, bringing his sword down on Link. Link grunted and spun away, plunging his sword towards an opening he spotted near his enemy's shoulder. He hit his target and Ganondorf shouted out with pain. He reflexively jumped backwards and lost his balance, toppling down and landing on the wood floor with a mighty bang.

Link jumped down to meet him, his sword at the ready. Their blades met again, but then Ganondorf thrusted his hands out on either side of him, sending dark magic shooting out all around. The dark magic instantly shattered the stained glass windows, showing Hyrule's burning fields and besieged buildings in the distance. When Link noticed this, Ganondorf seized his opportunity and sliced at his face. Link saw this at the last possible moment and jumped away but was just a little too late- the King of Evil's sword had pierced through the skin on his cheek. The red line began to weep blood as Zelda continued to scream and convulse in her shadow cage.

She felt cold, inside and out. She didn't so much walk as glide across the grassy forest floor. The mist all around her shrouded her from the view of any pedestrian that may be walking. Her skirts swooshed around her as she came into a clearing.

He was sitting on a boulder, his head in his hands. His shoulders were heaving and he was making a series of what she first thought were awkward grunts. She then realized he was crying. She felt no pity.

"You didn't come for me," she said coldly. At her voice, his head popped up. His blue eyes were swollen and red.

"Zelda?" he asked, surprised. "You're alive?"

"You didn't come back when you promised that you would," she said again. He leapt down from his boulder in a fluid movement and jogged to meet her. When he tried to touch her arm she stepped away from him. He looked at her, hurt obvious in his eyes. "It's too late. They got me. I'm one of them now."

"No, you're not," he said. "You're still Zelda. You're still my girl."

"I am one of them," she repeated. Alarm began to show in his eyes.

"No you're not," he repeated with more persuasion. "Listen, I'm sorry I didn't come. You're just having a spell right now, you'll be yourself in a bit."

"A spell?" she asked delicately, tilting her head. "A spell of what, insanity?"

"No, that's not what I said," he said a little too quickly.

"It's what you are thinking," she answered. "It's what you all think. I know. The voice told me so."

"Come on Zelda, you're not yourself right now," he said nervously, reaching again for her arm. "We can go find help for you."

She pulled away again and made eye contact with him. She spoke again, very slowly, very deliberately. "He appeared to me."

"Who did?"

"The master."

"Who?"

"The master came to me," she said. "He made the voices stop. His is the only one I hear."

"Fight it, Zelda," he told her. "Fight him! Don't give in! Stay yourself!"

"You're too late," she said, her mouth twisting into a mischievous smile. "This could have been avoided if you had stayed. You know how it is when I am alone. I have chosen to be with someone who will always be with me. We all make choices. And for every choice, there is a consequence." With the last ominous pronouncement, she looked up to a tree branch. She stared with such intensity that his gaze followed hers. When he looked, he saw that a noose had materialized from the branch. His face drained of blood as she set her eyes on him once more.

"Don't do this," he said, his tone switching to pleading. "You're not yourself. This isn't you."

"But you are wrong. This is me. He allows me to think for myself," she said, staring at her companion. He tried to run, but her telekinetic powers overcame his own and he was drawn to the noose as if an invisible hand were pulling him. He awkwardly struggled against the invisible force, but he was no match. The Triforce on her hand was already ominously glowing.

"I'm sorry!" he yelled as the hand lifted him into the air. "I'll stay with you! I'll never leave again!"

"You are too late," she said. "We all make choices. You chose wrong. And now you must pay the price."

She watched ruthlessly as the telekinetic force that he was fighting beat him. She watched his legs dance when he was hung from the rope. She watched his body grow still. She watched his cold, lifeless eyes, his mouth still open in betrayed shock.

From the shadows, another man appeared. He wore the battle armor of the Gerudos. On the back of his olive hand glowed a Triforce identical to her own. The breeze blew about his fiery hair as he walked towards her. She waited for him.

"Master," she said breathlessly as he advanced towards her. "I choose you. I choose to succumb to the darkness." She embraced him, wrapping her arms around his neck, twining her hands in his fiery hair.

"This is different," he said, his voice low. "The princess never chose darkness in the past. As pleasant as this is, I never expected it for a moment."

Zelda smiled over his shoulder and caught her reflection in a small pond. Her eyes were glowing red.

Link didn't know how much longer he could go on. He was tired and Ganondorf seemed to be showing no weakness. He carefully watched him as they dueled, scanning his every moment, searching for an opening. He could only stay strong for so long, and the longer they fought, the angrier he grew. Link was hoping he would grow careless and forget to cover a spot. Then, he saw his chance!

With a roar of victory, Link slashed down on Ganondorf's hand. With a cry, Ganondorf released his sword. It clattered to the ground and he threw his hands up in the air. Link pointed his sword to his throat and forced him to the ground. Link stood directly over him and looked down into the King of Evil's face. He was panting and sweating. His neatly gelled hair had come undone. The whites of his eyes were more yellowy than white. Spit frothed around the corners of his mouth. The two glared at each other and listened to Zelda's irregular panting and the battle raging on around them.

"You hear all this death and destruction?" Link asked, his voice low. "You are the source of all this. No one will follow you. The people will rebel. You are a worthless existence and a pitiful man. It's no surprise that your mother left a disgusting worm like you alone in the desert."

"If you are going to kill me, Hero, do it now," Ganondorf said.

"No, I want you to hear this," Link said. "I know your history. I know when you were born, the Gerudos were disgusted by you. They saw your hair, your devilish eyes and knew you were no good from the start. Your mother abandoned you. Your father killed himself. From the beginning, you have been a worthless existence. You would do better if you had never been born, you filthy mongrel."

"A peasant like you should not insult a king like me," said the King of Evil as he lay on the floor, unarmed and at the mercy of Link's sword.

"A king like you? King of what, rats? An army of the dead?" Link mocked.

"Kill me now. I will die with dignity," Ganondorf said.

"You lost that long ago. But if you wish…" Link said, bracing himself for the final blow. Ganondorf tensed. Even Zelda stopped her racket making for a moment. "Nah. Not like this. See, I know you. I know that physical wounds will only hinder you. So even if I were to chop your head off right now, it would inconveniently reattach itself somehow and you would come back another day."

"How do you plan to end this, then?" asked Ganondorf. With a smile, Link dropped his sword.

"I'm glad you asked," he said, reaching behind him and drawing the bow and arrow Zelda's father had given him.

"The Light Arrows!" Ganondorf said, real terror in his eyes now. Link did not respond. The time for talk was over. This ended now. He drew the arrow and pointed it at Ganondorf's heart. He imagined Zelda's sweet face, the purity of the water of Lake Hylia, the spirit of the Kokiri. He saw the loyalty of the Gorons and the honesty of the Zoras. He saw the innocence of the Kokiri. As he channeled all these thoughts, the arrow suddenly began to glow an ethereal gold. He knew it was time.

As he started to fire the arrow, he suddenly was slammed by the ominous feeling that this was the wrong thing to do. The legends echoed through his ears, all of them whispering that this would be a waste. If he shot Ganondorf now, nothing would be fixed. Not with the darkness still here. Without really any thought or foresight, he aimed away from Ganondorf and shot over his head, piercing through the darkness that was wrapping itself around the real Triforce on the altar. When the light hit it, it screamed. The wail nearly deafened Link and even Ganondorf clapped his hands over his ears and rolled over. The ground beneath them shook as if an earthquake were happening and the Triforce grew so bright that they were all blinded. Then, as quickly as it had happened, it stopped.

The darkness was gone and the Triforce was safe. Zelda's smoke bars had disappeared, as well as the shadow chains that had bound her. Her eyes were wide and she appeared stunned. Link leapt over Ganondorf's body towards the Triforce. Ganondorf tried to grab his ankle but was too late. Link was going, going! He was going to touch the Triforce and make the wish that the legends promised. Just as he neared it, a bolt of purple shot out, stinging him and sending him flying away. When he looked up, he saw that Ganondorf was concentrating his magic yet again on the Triforce, surrounding it in a purple barrier that Link could not cross. However, the Triforce now appeared to be fighting back. As the violet wind whipped around it, it was shooting out lightning and striking it. Had the scene not been so nerve wrecking, the sight would have amazed Link.

"He's blocking it, Zelda!" he shouted at Zelda, who was now picking herself up. "He can't put the same spell he had earlier on it, not now. He has to focus his magic on it now! Yours is stronger than mine, I can't do it! Zelda, you have to overpower him!"

"I don't know how, Link," she answered, her voice like ice as she curiously drew closer to Ganondorf. Her blue eyes were fixed on the King of Evil. "You never showed me. I tried to tell you I don't know how to control my powers. You failed."

"Zel?" Link said, shocked by her behavior as she drew even nearer to Ganondorf.

"We all make choices," she said. "And they all have consequences."

"Zelda, it's the darkness! It's talking to you! Fight it!" Link said, as close as he could get to the Triforce.

"I'm myself," she said. "I am making my own decisions. I have chosen," she whispered, embracing Ganondorf, a sultry smile on her face. She wrapped her arms around his neck, twining her hands in his fiery hair. Link's eyes went as wide as dinner plates and he felt a heaving sensation when he realized he had been betrayed. "I have chosen," she whispered again into Ganondorf's ear. With surprise, Ganondorf lowered his hand and placed it on the small of the princess' back. She turned and gave Link a look, and he suddenly realized what she had done.

She had done the totally unexpected thing and caused a distraction. Ganondorf had dropped his hold on the Triforce. With a victorious cry, Link leapt forward and touched the gold. At the same time, Zelda leapt away, throwing herself as far away as she could. Ganondorf screamed.

The Triforce has been touched by a pure soul, said a heavenly voice that thundered all around them. Tell me, Link Finlay. What do you wish?

"I wish for him to be trapped away to wherever he came from, and that all his creatures go with him!" Link shouted to the voice. Without further ado, light chains began to wrap around Ganondorf just as he had made happen to Zelda. He screamed again.

"DAMN YOU LINK! DAMN YOU ZELDA! DAMN YOU ALL!" he shouted as Link ran across the shaking floor to Zelda and protectively stood in front of her. Ganondorf crashed his fists into the floor and darkness shout out all around before he was vanished away in a porthole of light along with the Triforce, screaming all the way. He was not totally gone, however. The darkness that he had shot out instantly exploded, instantly setting the chapel to flame. It began to quake and heave.

"RUN!" Link shouted at Zelda, keeping his arm protectively over her head. They ran to the door.

"It's locked!" she yelled as she tried to open it so they could escape. The last thing that Link saw were her beautiful blue eyes looking into his before the chapel collapsed and the tallest and oldest turret of the castle fell all the way to the ground.