Holy crap. I can't believe it. It's actually the last chapter. I mean, there's still an epilogue, but still it's pretty crazy. Fun fact: this is the longest chapter I've ever written. I know for a lot of you it's not very long, but it definitely is for me, haha. I was gonna divide it again, but I was just like screw it, it's the last chapter, go big or go home, am I right? :P

Something was wrong.

But that was obvious.

They were in the middle of a war. Thousands of bokoblins roamed the land, threatening to destroy anything that came in their way. The Demon King was here too, and chaos ensued. So obviously there was something wrong… but this time it felt so much different.

As Hylia approached the goddess statue with caution, she realized that there were people surrounding it, praying to her. She knew there would be people here, and finally she felt like she would be able to protect them, and not just tell them from afar to be brave.

But she got an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. The only main reason she would have to protect them was if Demise would show up… if Link failed….

And that's when it hit her. Link had not yet succeeded. The sky was still dark. The adrenaline was still high. Fire was still burning. There was still tears in her eyes. And that's when her biggest fear crept into her mind.

Stop, she thought to herself. Stop thinking like that. Link will be fine, just like everyone else. But if that were really true, then nobody would have died yet, and plenty already have. Not everyone was fine, and Link had the furthest thing from immunity right now.

She forced herself to stop thinking such thoughts, and instead replaced it with one single plea.

Oh Link, please, please be alright…

As the blurriness of his vision finally came into focus, Link realized that there wasn't much of a difference between opening his eyes and keeping them closed. Both images were black and neither were very inviting.

Confused and disoriented, Link wondered how in the world he ended up on the ground, and how long he had been here. But the sight of his sword in front of him, just out of reach, was enough to remind him. As he brought his left hand away from his abdomen, the sight of his own blood didn't alarm him as much as it annoyed him.

A stab wound. A stab wound was what caused him to collapse here in the middle of this field, unable to move. Unable to fight.

My village… He thought as he pictured what was once a cheerful town, filled with happy people and with no fear in their eyes. He could not say the same of the people that were still alive now.

The beautiful air… the mountains…the streams… It was all gone. All of his best memories, were now only memories. Everything had dwindled into something so small that it could no longer exist.

He stared into the distance, past the sword, and into the forest, which now held not only bokoblins but Demise himself. How cruel… That this shall be the last thing I'll ever see…

And as Link closed his eyes, knowing there was nothing more that he could do, the sound of a familiar voice resounded from the back of his head.

Come, ride atop my back.

Link's eyes snapped open. He wasn't sure where the voice came from, but he didn't think it was entirely something he had imagined.

He was weak, but he managed to roll over onto his back, look to his right, and see what had made those words he had heard. "A… A loftwing?!" he said, but came out as more of a pitiful whisper.

Hylia's giant red bird stood before him, as majestic as ever. To Link's surprise, the loftwing lowered its beak and closed its eyes; it was bowing to him.

"You… you mean you'll take me as your rider?"

I have kept a close watch on your fight. Your heart is both valiant and true. It seems our goddess's assessment of you was correct.

Link had no idea how, but he found himself standing, with the Master Sword in hand. It was odd; he felt weak, but had no pain. He concluded it must have been the adrenaline, but he couldn't shake the feeling that maybe it was because of something else.

Link climbed onto the loftwing's back, with a warm feeling in his chest. He had never expected to ride this loftwing ever again. Afraid that taking up too much energy would cause him to die faster, Link slumped onto the its comfortably, with the sword still held firmly in his grasp.

Before the loftwing took off, it turned its head, trying to look into Link's eyes as best as it could. Let us fight together for all eternity!

"See," Link said with a small smile, with his cheek pressed against the bird's feathers, "I knew you were warming up to me."

The loftwing took Link slightly towards where he was before. They came across the outskirts of castle town, but Link didn't like what he saw. There were human bodies lying everywhere, and villagers fleeing from the oncoming bokoblins as a few knights attempted to fight them back. Everyone was so afraid, and nothing bothered Link more than his inability to help them.

But Link had noticed something. Yes, the knights were fighting back, and even though there weren't many in sight, they still fought well. But there was something that he hadn't thought about before. Not until he rode the loftwing now, and looked at how bad things really were.

No matter how hard the humans fought, they would still lose. Why? Because they were incredibly outnumbered.

Link really wished there was something he could do to help. There must be some alternative to leaving them to die. If fighting wouldn't work, then what was the next best thing?

And then he remembered something that seemed like ages ago. On that one day, the one of many, that would change his life forever. A giant red monster appeared in the sky, in the company of a beautiful woman with long golden hair on its back. She had proposed an idea that everyone seemed to disagree with. But it wasn't until now that Link realized that she had been right all along.

"Loftwing, will you show my people to the skies? I must ask for your guidance."

The loftwing was silent for a moment. Link wondered if he remembered that conversation well, where Link had to stand up for everyone else and say they weren't interested in being sent into the sky like birds. But Link knew that he probably did remember, better than he himself did. He expected some kind of argument, since it was a huge request, but he never heard one.

Instead, the loftwing had only one wish.

As long as you will continue to fly with me.

Link smiled with relief, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to fly much longer. "Yes. It's a promise!"

At that moment, Link heard distant roars all around him, and saw small blue, red, and yellow blobs coming from far away. Before he knew it, he realized it was the three dragons materializing from the sky, approaching from the different directions of their provinces. There was a glow that seemed to emanate around them, giving Link hope that maybe they were here to help the people somehow.

And he was not let down.

The dragons circled around the pair, as though offering a blessing. Suddenly, Faron, Link's least favorite dragon, approached him and even startled him a bit. He didn't know what to expect, but as her face was up close to his. He noticed she wasn't even looking at him, however; she was looking at the sword in his hands.

"This mark…?!" Faron said.

Link held the sword up steadily, just then understanding what she was talking about. Near the hilt of the sword was the symbol of three triangles on it. The Triforce glowed on command, and he couldn't take his eyes off it.

"The legacy of the gods dwells within the Master Sword." Eldin declared.

Lanayru's voice boomed in the sky. "Its truest form, at last!"

Eldin continued. "O Hero, present thy sword before the goddess!"

And in front of Link's eyes, the weapon he was holding began to disappear. The tip of the sword dissipated into thin air, followed by the rest of the blade, then the hilt, and then it was gone.

The scene was beginning to change right in front of her eyes. From the woods, one by one, came bokoblins and keese at a steady pace, terrorizing the humans here. They began to scramble away, desperately looking for an escape from the creatues. Hylia tried her best to defend them with the help of her arrows, but she knew that there was more than likely an endless supply of these monsters, and she wouldn't be able to keep this up forever.

Just as she was beginning to realize this, she saw a shimmer from the corner of her eye. When she looked, it was not at all what she had expected to see.

Suspended in midair floated the Master Sword, as clean and beautiful as ever. But there was something different about it, and it wasn't until Hylia was inches from it that she realized what it was. The sword was glowing with a mystical light, somehow much stronger looking than before.

For a brief second, she was terrified that she was in possession of the sword while it was Link that was supposed to have it. But she understood that if she was the one that had it, then there must be a good reason for it. And as she stood there, watching even more enemies emerge from the forest, that reason couldn't be any clearer.

"My country…" she whispered as she grasped the hilt, "My beloved Hylians… my humans.

"Live, and pass my legacy on to your children. At the highest limits of the sky, beyond the great sea of clouds, where the claws of the demons will not reach you."

She thought about what she would have to do. With the power of the sword, she could draw a break in the ground, allowing the ground there to be raised. According to the prophecy, it would work. It was a last resort, but at this point there didn't seem to be any other way.

"Protect the Triforce, the legacy of the gods, from hands of the wicked!"

And with a single sweep of her sword, the goddess Hylia rent the earth. The ground around the statue cracked and crumbled, and even began to rise and separate itself from the terrain. The people on the moving piece of land were scared senseless until they caught sight of their goddess, to which they then realized that the sky was their best chance at survival.

Hylia spoke softly, but they could still hear her clearly. "You'll be safer there, I promise."

And as the massive chunk of land began spiraling upward, Hylia didn't even notice that the sword had disappeared from her hand.

"We're going to the skies!"

"Gather at the castle!"

"If you tarry, you'll be left behind!"

"Hurry!"

As the loftwing's talons touched down onto the surface for Link to dismount, he heard these cries from all around. With a miraculous ability to stand, he found himself just outside of castle town. But it was difficult to pay attention, because he couldn't take his eyes off the massive chunk of earth with the goddess statue on it ascend toward the sky in the far distance.

The sound of someone calling his name brought him back to his senses.

Link! Now!

A few feet away, the ground surrounding the town began to crumble. The people scurried in the direction of the castle, trying to find family and friends. If they were going to the sky, they wanted to be sure their loved ones weren't left behind.

Take the sword!

Link now realized that the voice, once again, belonged to the loftwing. He was referring to the Master Sword, which was floating in the air next to Link, who hadn't even noticed.

Link held the sword, with a strange feeling of power surging through him. He looked at the loftwing that was in the air, circling the castle. He looked at the people with tears in their eyes, and the grass that was no longer green. And he knew what he had to do.

"Beautiful land of Hylia…" Link said, with the Master Sword pointed towards the sun, "May you endure for all eternity!" He then pierced his sword into the earth with great force, which promptly created a wall of light where the land masses were cracked from the surface, as well as the goddess statue from in the distance. The separated portion of the earth in front of Link moved upward with ease.

The Master Sword had become a pillar between heaven and earth, with Hylia's large red loftwing guiding it to the heavens, as it had told Link it would. The sword had been transported to underneath the land mass, following it into the sky, where it would be safe.

And it wasn't until now that his adrenaline had worn thin, that his body went slack. He clutched his side where he had been punctured not long ago. He hadn't noticed, but blood had seeped through to his tunic to the point where his abdomen was entirely soaked in red. But he didn't go unnoticed to his fellow knights, who were now just slightly too far up to help him.

"Link! Jump into the light! Please!"

"Link, you can still make it! What are you doing? Hurry!"

With no more strength left to bear, Link collapsed to the ground, being slightly propped up by a large rock. He looked up to locate the sources that were calling his name. Among the few knight that were there was Scrapper, who apparently had not made it back home, and probably never would. But he also saw Ginger, the woman that Ryker had been engaged to. Link hadn't seen her in so long, and all he wanted to do was embrace her, apologize for not being able to save him, for not being able to attend his funeral. It was so surreal to see her face again, but also relieving. She had obviously been through hell, just like the others, but at least she was safe now.

"Go and thrive, comrades," Link said softly, "I pray with all my heart for your happiness." With immense pain rushing throughout his whole body, he tried his best to continue. He wanted to make his last words matter in some way, even though nobody would ever hear them. "I really did want to take to the skies with you… But my body is so heavy… I can't move. I feel as though I'm stuck to the ground… Curses!"

He could see a pool of blood forming around him. He thought maybe, just maybe, Hylia would come running around the corner, to make him feel better again. But, even in his deteriorated state with clouded thoughts, he knew that that was not going to happen.

He looked up at the castle, which was by this point very high, almost higher than the birds. He could no longer hear the voices of its inhabitants, calling out for him.

"Loftwing… I'm sorry that I couldn't keep my promise. But I hope that you can somehow grant my last wish."

He kept his eyes on the sky, hardly noticing that everything around him was becoming brighter and less clear, somehow happier.

Ah… It doesn't hurt anymore…

And as the whiteness surrounded him, even as his eyes closed, his last thought was of a girl. She wore a white dress, had long, golden hair, a beautiful face, and the most gorgeous voice you had ever heard. She seemed too good to be true, but she wasn't. She was one of those people that could completely change your life, and yet you'd never been more happy that your life had changed. And the thought, just the mere thought of her, could make you the happiest person in the world.

And for that last moment, despite everything he had lost and everything he would soon lose, he was the happiest person in the world.

My spirit… will always… be with… you….

Exhausted and sore from the pain of previous injuries, Hylia stared at the crater in the earth, shaped like a giant spiral whose path lead downwards to a small, flat area. It was strange to think that a few minutes ago, this land was undamaged. But what was even stranger was how quiet it was now. Even the monsters had fled, probably due to all the noise that had been made and it scared them off.

That was, until Hylia heard booming footsteps heading in her direction from not too far away. She looked into the forest to where they were coming from and she could see trees shaking and losing their leaves with each boom, coming progressively closer.

And then, she finally saw him in person. The Demon King, Demise, was standing a few yards away from her, much larger and taller than she had expected. His flaming hair danced in the air that was monopolized by ash, and she tried her best not to show her fear from the large smile on his face.

He stood menacingly in the same spot, observing Hylia and seeing what she would do. After a moment of only eye contact, Demise spoke first, cutting right to the chase. "What have you done with the golden triangles?"

"They have gone to a place that you will never reach. A sacred place that will never be violated by demons." Hylia then looked up, indicating the sky. When Demise realized this, his smile quickly transformed into a scowl, and he held out his sword, angry. And then she finished, "Protected by my loyal people."

"They rest in the hands of humans?!" he shouted. "Humans are weak! Too weak to understand such power! They are unworthy!"

"And yet, they still possess the Triforce, which is something that you never will. What does that say about your unworthiness, then?"

The implication that humans were somehow better than Demise had made him furious. He lunged for the goddess, but that's what she had been expecting. A strong blue light emitted from her hands, and catching him by surprise, she managed to knock Demise into the large, corkscrew indentation in the ground.

Demise rolled until he stopped in the flat surface of the spiral. "Curse you, goddess!" he shouted once he realized that he, himself had become significantly weaker from the impact she had onto him.

He tried to stand to fight back, but he wasn't quick enough. A jet of blue light approached him harshly from where the goddess was standing, pushing him further and further into the ground. The dirt around him began to circle him, like a whirlpool that would suffocate him. He tried to fight against it, to free himself of this circumstance and release his rage on her, but he couldn't find the strength.

"Don't think it ends here," Demise threatened, since it was all he could do. "You will live to see that almighty power fall into our hands. That is when we demons will become the rulers of the world…!" He continued to speak, but it was muffled by his enclosure underground.

With her goddess powers, Hylia conjured a sealing spike to contain and lock the seal more efficiently. With the power of the gods on her side, she struck the spike into the ground, creating an intricate circular design into the dirt. It glowed with radiance for a moment, and then faded to black, and still remained.

Hylia sighed with relief. She knew that this seal wouldn't last forever, but it would have to do for now. The most important thing for now was that everyone, along with the Triforce, were safe.

Well, everyone, except for one person.

Hylia couldn't wait anymore. She had been walking for five minutes before she became too physically and emotionally exhausted to continue. Desperately, she prayed to the goddesses that she would be able to teleport to the edge of castle town. She knew that's where she had to go because she saw the Master Sword leave with the castle, so Link would have to be around there somewhere.

Eventually, she was delighted to feel a tingling throughout her body, her new power ready to be awakened. She focused on where she wanted to go and thought hard about the location.

And then suddenly, she felt like she was flying. Like on a loftwing, but it was just her there. She felt as though everything was just out of her reach, and nothing was too far away.

The feeling stopped after a second or two, and her feet were firmly on the ground again. She found herself next to another crater, but this one had no spiral. It just looked like an incredibly large lump of dirt missing.

She looked to her left, and gasped almost immediately.

Because she saw him.

Link…

He lay on the floor, his back up against a large rock. His eyes were closed, and he was incredibly still. He even looked like he could have been sleeping. But the pool of blood that surrounded him made Hylia know better. He was most certainly dead.

"Link!"

She walked to him as quickly as she could without tripping over her own feet. And when she finally got to his body, she had the habit of putting her hand over the wound, expecting it to heal, to hear him sigh in relief like usual. But when she realized it never would, that's when the first tear fell.

It all just seemed so unreal. It was just hours ago that she was feeling his warmth in his bed, her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat. But now his skin was already beginning to grow cold, and his heart would never make another sound again.

And with one hand on his neck to support his dangling head, and the other around his waist, she brought him closer, thinking of all the things she should have told him. The good and the bad, it all hurt her to think about. Her thoughts were growing so flooded that she had to let some out. So she spoke with the first thing she thought of.

"Link…your… your imprisonment was the will of heaven…something to make you stronger," she confessed quietly. "Like a sword, beaten and tempered with until it would never break. It was necessary to turn you into the one who could wield the Master Sword."

Her voice cracked and she paused, rubbing the wetness away from her eyes. She swallowed, and when she continued, she spoke a little bit louder. "The Master Sword awoke, tempered by your spirit. You will be its master for all eternity…"

She looked up to the sky, towards the place her people would now reside. "That is because, like me, you love the land of Hylia, and all of its people. You've always been their hero, Link. I may have been the one to create the pieces of land they shall now dwell on, but you were the one to send them off to the heavens, to command the loftwing to guide them, to send the Master Sword to a safe place. You have given this land and its inhabitants everything you have, and asked for nothing in return."

Her voice shook, but she made herself continue. "But, because of this, your life has always been a bitter one. Watching you, I have come to know the pain that rends your body and soul. I've come to know you so well, Link. To think that I was once just a stranger to you is unthinkable to me now. I became your acquaintance, a friend, and then I had the privilege to fall in love with you. And I can never thank you enough."

And as tears streamed down her face, she realized she didn't know where she wanted to go once she left his side. It was a good thing she had already started mapping out a plan awhile ago, because she was in no condition to think rationally right now. She would start acting upon her plan tomorrow.

But for now, all she could do was cry and recall all of the memories she had of him. And so for several more hours, that's exactly what she did.

Two Days Later

"Are you sure you've thought everything through, Your Grace?" Impa asked. It was a complex plan, and she was trying to sort out all of the components in her head.

They stood in the temple, deep in the forest, that had once been in such close proximity to the goddess statue; the one that Link had received the Master Sword in.

"I believe so," Hylia responded.

"What about the shield?"

"I returned it to Lanayru," the goddess said. "I told him to keep it safe for the next hero, and to test those with promise to someday find a worthy recipient."

"And the silent realms?" Impa asked, going through a mental checklist.

"Yes, those have been taken care of too."

"And the sword? And have you told the dragons about—"

"Impa," Hylia said with a kind smile, "I'm positive I've prepared everything."

"Forgive me, Your Grace."

"You have nothing to apologize for, Impa. I can see that you're nervous, am I correct?"

Impa looked down at her feet for a brief moment before returning Hylia's eye contact. "I am, indeed. I only wish to carry out this task successfully, regardless of its complexity. I strive to not let you down."

"It is as I've told you before, Impa. I believe the goddesses sent you information about the prophecy, knowing that you were the most worthy of carrying out to me, and you passed that test. I would trust you with my life, and I trust you will carry out your duties to the most of your abilities. And that is all I could ask for. I believe this is the 'greater plan' they have for you."

"Thank you, Your Grace. It truly is an honor to serve you. I will stay here and carry out my duties for thousands of years if I must."

Hylia smiled at her, genuinely grateful for her. "Thank you so much," she said as she hugged her tightly.

"It is my pleasure."

When Hylia released her, she then turned and faced the giant slab of stone with ancient text and symbols on it. With a small wave of her hand, markings on the stone began to glow. The symbols began to emit light, and some formed light patterns. Eventually, these patterns took over the entire slab, and it burst into an explosion of bright light.

Then, suspended in midair, the light patterns had formed into individual cubic pieces, all circling around the center of the room, as if there was an unexplainable force of gravity that existed only to that spot. After a moment of this lustrous sight, the pieces eventually connected together again like magnets, this time in the shape of a large cog.

After another burst of light, the large object had formed a smooth surface. Spinning images appeared on the surface, and then the cog itself began to rotate, like clockwork.

"It is beautiful," Impa remarked.

"Thank you. It is called the Gate of Time," Hylia said, and took a deep breath. "You know what you must do?" It was more of a statement than a question, but Impa understood.

"Of course." The Sheikah approached the Gate of Time and put her hand on it. The surface made a rippling effect from her touch, and the images on it disappeared to black. And then, several more cogs appeared on the surface, one by one, until the image looked like a type of vortex.

"Do you remember where the other one is?" Hylia asked.

"Indeed, I do. I suppose I should leave now?"

"That would probably be best. It's time we set this plan into motion." Hylia smiled graciously at her. "Thank you again for everything. This is only goodbye for now."

Impa smiled and nodded. "I shall see you soon, Your Grace. In another life…" And she walked through the Gate, and then she was in another time, numerous years from now.

All alone again, Hylia decided to sit on one of the stairs in the temple. She knew it was time to say her goodbyes. But the problem was that there was nobody left to say goodbye to. So she decided to talk to her hero, just in case somewhere, somehow, he could hear her.

"Link," she began, "I shall ensure that your gentle, heroic spirit will live forever."

Suddenly, a distant memory resurfaced from the depth of her mind. She thought about a promise she had made a long while ago. She could remember it word for word. Abandonment is something I will never do to him. An eternal goodbye will never escape my lips.

And an eternal goodbye was still something she would never do.

"And, as for me… I shall cast off the name of 'goddess'. The next time we meet, I would like to stand before you as a simple human, not what I am now."

On the side of the step she sat on, leaned her golden harp. She picked it up, smiled, and prepared herself to play it.

"I know how much you like the sound of this," she said, strumming the harp to make a beautiful, yet nostalgic melody. And she said softly, "When the time comes that the land of Hylia is visited by danger once more… we shall be reborn together."

She turned to look at the Gate of Time. It would be so easy to go through it, to find her new Link, to be happy again. But as tempting as it was, she knew she couldn't do it. It would disrupt the flow of time, and her plans would be unsuccessful.

"One day…" she mumbled, continuing to strum.

Light began to form around her. She closed her eyes, focusing on leaving this place. Her skin glowed, along with her hair and even her clothes. And then, with a small flash of light, she had vanished completely.

And there was no sound of a harp being played, or of somebody attempting to talk to the dead.

The only remaining sound was the ticking of time itself.