A/N: Thanks to ZeldaRubix, alwaysingirl, Kirkysaurus, RoseWing-chan and EvanEssence for their reviews!
Holy footballs you guys are awesome! Thanks for the 125 reviews! The thanks section will be getting a slight overhaul to avoid it getting too long.
ZeldaRubix: Haha, thanks ZR! Sorry about the cliff. I thought about putting that chapter and this one but decided against it later. It would've been way too long :P
alwaysingirl: Thanks! I hate stalfoses too, what with one respawning EVERY SINGLE TIME I DIED IN THAT ROOM IN THE SHADOW TEMPLE! -_-
Kirkysaurus: I know, sorry about the cliffhanger. But I explained all that in ZR's response :)
RoseWing-chan: I LOVE the Redeads in Twilight Princess. They are freakin' epic!
EvanEssence: Thanks! As I said, I can't believe I'm making some of you guys feel nostalgia. That gives me so much motivation to continue.
Sadly, this fic is coming to an end. This is the penultimate chapter, but as I said in my profile, I'm working on another fic to be released at the end of this. Sorry this is a day late as well. I was kinda sick yesterday.
As always, thanks to TheZeldaDungeon for their walkthroughs. This chapter was inspired by 'Awesome Video Game Music 75' by peanut3423 on YouTube search it up and it will make sense :)
Ganondorf has been reawakened! What will Link and Zelda do?
Read on!
Chapter 36 - Redemption
Flames gushed out of the ground around the two warriors, blocking Zelda from rushing to Link's aid. Ganon slashed his twin blades around heavily, causing a beautiful blur of golden light to form as they cut the air. Link barely parried the strike, which was aimed for his face, but the force of the slice was so great his sword left his hands, flying through the air until it came to a rest in the ground next to Zelda's feet. She gasped and turned back as Ganon roared with power and a savageness that Zelda had never heard. The ball of light floated around Link's head.
'There's no way he's going to hold me back again! This time, we fight together!' it shouted with optimism. In return, Ganon roared again, holding up his blades over his head in an attempt to intimidate Link. In this stance, he was easily three times Link's height. He set his swords down and focused as Link pulled out an odd metal contraption and some Deku Nuts. Through the soft light of the flames, Zelda could barely make out that the metal thing was actually a Longshot, a device that shot out a chain with a point on the end in order to cross gaps. The sharp end that somewhat resembled an arrowhead could also have been used to hunt either fish or small animals. But Zelda was sure that it would have no effect at all on Ganon, the lord of all evil and the holder of the Triforce of Power.
Surprisingly, when the point hit, Ganon seemed stunned, and had to shake his head as if gathering his bearings. Link took this opportunity to roll athletically behind him and throw a Deku seed on his tail. The tail glowed red for a second and Ganon roared in what seemed to be pain. Link jumped back before Ganon's flailing blades could slice him in half. Ganon righted himself and focused back on Link. Link tried the same strategy again, shooting the hook at Ganon's face. Again, Ganon didn't shield it and was stunned once more, leaving Link ran around to reach his tail. Unfortunately, Link was quite far away from Ganon, and before he could run behind him, Ganon sapped out of his trance and swiped at Link. The blunt end of the blade hit Link's hip, sending him sprawling to the ground.
'Link!' Zelda shouted in panic. Link groaned and stood, holding his hip in an attempt to sooth it. Ganon walked toward him slowly, as if his bulk was an equivalent of the armour used by the Hylian soldiers. Link's hand left his hip as he took up his original battle stance. It was like a back and forth conversation. Link's stance and attacks were a shout of defiance against the dark lord's reign, while Ganon's swipes and resilience were the rebuttal of a madman protesting against his wardens.
After a few more attacks, Link threw the Longshot and instead produced the Light Arrows. Ganon drew back as if in fear of them, but then returned to his battle stance. Link notched one of the arrows to his bow and let fly, the projectile careering straight into Ganon's face. Ganon screeched and threw his head back. His back arched, as if he was falling backward, and his arms were flailing in order to regain his balance. Link quickly ran around to his tail and shot it with another readily notched arrow. Ganon screeched again and fell forward, his blade burying themselves in the ground. The flames surrounding the field of battle started to flicker, and Zelda looked over at them. They seemed to sink into the ground, and Link seemed shocked for a second. Zelda had to snap him out of it.
'Link! The Master Sword is here! Hurry up!'
Link obliged and sprinted over to where the sword was stuck into. He threw the bow and Deku Nuts back into his pouch with ease and yanked out the sword. Ganon started to awaken, and the first blossoms of flame started to emerge from non-existent torches on the ground. Link knew what this meant and quickly passed the blazing barrier before it erupted again. Ganon, with the large amount of bulk that he housed in his altered body, was taking a long time to stand. Link quickly somersaulted behind him and almost bifurcated Ganon's weak-point, his tail. Ganon screeched unnaturally and Link jumped back. It was as if the strike from Link had given him the energy of a sprinter, for he roared and almost ran after Link. Link barely jumped back before Ganon's blade slashed him. Instead, it hit a mound of bricks which were left behind in the sinking of the castle. It crumpled to dust instantly. Zelda guessed, with some horror, that if Link were to be hit by one of those slashes he would also disintegrate into small bits of skin and organs.
Thankfully, Link's reflexes were sharp and he dodged every swipe with ease. Zelda was worried that if Ganon had a smidge of sentience, he would trick Link and scatter his parts across the ruins. Link seemed to know what he was doing and dodged each glowing blade, unflinching as the bricks around him collapsed and fell into dust. He took out his bow mid-leap and notched an arrow to it as he reached the ground. He let it fly and again, with supreme accuracy, it hit Ganon's jaw. The circle of light enveloped Ganon's face again and he staggered back, blinded. Link quickly circled him, reaching his mangled tail, and sliced it again and again until Ganon's cry of pain caused him to back off, knowing that the blade would come slashing down at any given moment. It did, and Ganon roared in uncontrolled rage at yet another miss.
Link ran as Ganon chased him, notching another enchanted arrow to his bow. Ganon slashed and screamed as he ran, like a swordsman thrown into the thick of a battle with no prior experience. Link on the other hand was calm, collected, a knight from the front lines, a valuable asset of the royal family. The arrow that he had notched to his bow was waiting patiently for the chance for a kill, glowing subtly. Its wish was realised as it was let go, smashing into Ganon's face with the force of a street brawler's fist. It stuck in his skin and the essence of light ran through his veins and arteries, joining the small pods of light already making their way through his body. Ganon screamed and threw his head back, convulsing as the repulsive substance flowed through him with every erratic heartbeat. Link flipped around and slashed Ganon in the tail again, and Ganon roared and flailed about before resuming his chase.
Meanwhile, as Zelda watched, Rauru's voice seemed to form beside her ear. She could barely hear with Ganon's roars and the crackling of the flames preventing her from entering the field of battle.
'Zelda. I can sense Ganon's power fading. Very soon, Link will deliver the final blow. When this happens, call upon the Sages, and we shall do the rest.'
Zelda nodded as if Rauru was right beside her, watching her every move. Her attention focused back on Link, who was acrobatically flipping over Ganon's blades. Yet another arrow was notched to his bow, but Ganon seemed too bent on utterly decimating Link did he didn't seem to notice. But Rauru was right; Zelda could literally hear his breath as it entwined with her own. It was a ragged, shallow hyperventilating breath, as if Ganon had just been drowning. Link quickly swivelled and shot the arrow with unfailing accuracy at Ganon's face. Ganon roared, but it was so much weaker than before. This roar seemed resigning, as if he was begging for release, but there was still a tinge of resistance. Link flipped around and rolled through Ganon's legs, slashing up at his tail as he did so. After he got up, he continued to slice at the glowing appendage as Ganon screeched with every laceration. Eventually, Ganon fell forward and his blades lodged into the ground again. The flames around the field dimmed and disappeared, but Link was oblivious, still slashing at the already horribly wounded tail. Ganon started to stand, and the flames around them started to rise again.
'Oh no you don't!' Zelda shouted, firing a beam of light from her palms. Ganon's face, already riddled with arrows and a glowing substance, bore the brunt of the attack. While it was only a basic attack, he fell and the flames fell again. Link stopped slashing the tail and looked up at her.
'I'm using my power to hold the Evil King! You use your sword and deliver the final blow!'
Link nodded and ran to the front of Ganon, just as Zelda's power diminished. His blade shone a beautiful blue as he raised his sword and he looked straight into the expressionless eyes of evil. They didn't say anything of Ganon's emotion. All that could be seen was an evil thing, something that had to be destroyed no matter what the cost.
The blade came down, first on the right cheek. Ganon roared and blood splattered everywhere. The sword came back and hit the opposite cheek, and blood spattered again. An arrow lodged in Ganon's jaw snapped in half as the beast's head was flung back to watching Link neutrally. Link's hand drew back, sword poised for Ganon's head. Ganon gave a soft, inaudible whimper, knowing that this was it. The end of his glorious rule that had only lasted for seven years. It all came back down the point of the blade, the decider of whether he lived or died. It chose the latter.
The point struck his forehead, slicing through his skin, skull and brain at the same time. There was a pause, as if Link and Ganon were trying to comprehend what had just happened. Then Ganon jumped up on his feet, flailing around as the blood started to spurt from his head. Zelda was mesmerised for a second, but she remembered what Rauru had said.
'Six Sages! Now!' she screamed into the air. A golden light formed over her, and she raised her arms. The energy required was so intense that when the light faded, Zelda collapsed and fell forward, breathing heavily. Rauru's voice echoed through the air.
'Ancient Creators of Hyrule! Now, open the sealed door and send the Evil Incarnation of Darkness into the Evil Realm!'
Ganon's body seemed to shudder as he was pulled by an invisible force, dragging him down into a void of emptiness. His body seemed to vaporise as he was pulled into the ground, and Link watched him die with a look of interest. His body disappeared from view, and Zelda stood up.
'YOU...' Ganon's voice, thick with venom, hissed from nowhere.
'CURSE YOU... ZELDA! CURSE YOU... SAGES!'
His voice seemed to be decreasing in volume as he spoke. He was falling into an abyss of nothingness, grey all around him. He was destined to fall forever, into nothing. Nothing that he could dominate, invade, rule with the utter savagery that he had once done. What he said next was so distant, but the venom was so concentrated in it Zelda had to wince. It was a single phrase, but it was as if it was it was the final jab at Link. The one who had ruined it all for him.
'CURSE YOU... LINK!'
Link winced as well, but Ganon's voice ran on, lessening in amplitude as the words reached his ears.
'Someday, when this seal is broken... That is when I will exterminate your descendants!'
His voice was so soft now, even though it was meant to be a shout.
'As long as the Triforce of Power is in my hand...'
The word 'hand' was so quiet, Zelda couldn't quite make it out. Link couldn't either, for he shook his head disapprovingly. Zelda smiled and stood, and for the first time in ages, her smile transformed into a grin of the widest calibre. The realisation of what had just happened started to dawn like the sun rising on the horizon.
Ganondorf was dead.
It was finally over.