Kali had never been in Zelda's rooms before. She hadn't expected the guards to allow her to knock on the door, and was even more surprised when the handmaiden at the door had allowed Kali to enter the space. The room was the same white marble as the rest of the castle, a whole wall with a row of tall arching windows lined with deepest royal blue curtains allowed the last bits of light from the dipping sun to settle a warm orange glow onto everything. The walls were lined with bookshelves, maps of Hyrule and other kingdoms splayed onto an impossibly long table. The same thick blue fabric embroidered with gold made up the canopy of the massive bed. The princess was seated at a desk that was festooned with a variety of loose papers, piles of books and journals. All of this for one person's room… It somehow made it seem both impossibly full and empty at the same time, Kali thought.

It was the first time she'd seen Zelda in dark colors. Her usual petal pink, or lavender purple, or robin's egg blue dresses were replaced with one of deep burgundy, embroidered in black. Some Hyrulean grieving tradition she thought distantly. Her eyes met with Zelda's, and could feel the overwhelming wave of sorrow practically radiating off her like the heat from a flame. As strong as the princess built her icy walls around her, nothing would hide how the loss of Impa devastated her. It was clear that Zelda had been crying before she arrived by the tinge of red in her eyes, making the blue practically glow in the dimming light of the room. But her face didn't puff up or become red and blotchy like Kali's did when tears came. Zelda's normally perfect honey blonde hair was slightly rumpled, and there was a bend to her back that cracked Kali's heart. As they watched each other, it felt as if they understood the other's pain perfectly - both of them having a similar relationship with Impa, though Zelda's easily was a much longer and more intimate one.

Impa had filled some maternal role in both of their lives in Hyrule somehow. She was a guardian, a teacher, a mentor, a dear friend to them both. Tears filled their eyes at the same time, and as Zelda slowly stood from her chair, Kali was propelled forward by her own grief towards the princess. She wrapped her arms firmly around Zelda's neck, pulling her tight to her. Surely nobody dared to actually hug the princess of Hyrule, nobody would ever even try it. But Kali's time in Hyrule was acutely limited now, and damn the consequences. It had felt so unbelievably good for Link to hold her together the past several days, and she wanted Zelda to know that she wasn't alone, to feel it in the strength of her arms. Zelda stilled at the gesture, and after a moment Kali felt the shift in her weight as she leaned into her, trembling hands grasping at her back.

Then they were both shaking as they sobbed together, clutching to each other like a pair of lost children - holding each other afloat in a sea of devastation that threatened to drown them both. "It's all my fault." Kali muttered as her grip tightened on Zelda, "I'm so sorry, Zelda. I'm so sorry for not being able to reverse it…."

At that, Zelda's knees gave out as a keening sound escaped her but Kali held her up in her embrace. She tried to think of what Link would do in this situation. He was always so good at handling situations like this, able to say or do just the right things. She gently settled Zelda back into her chair at her desk, and knelt before her, clutching at her hands. "I'm sorry…" Kali whispered again, staring openly at the princess's crumpled expression.

Zelda was shaking her head, swiping at her eyes, at her damp cheeks, "Don't say that." she managed through her tears.

"But…" Kali started, but the fierceness of Zelda's gaze gave her pause.

"You avenged her, Kali." the princess seethed, her expression somehow furious, and lost, but satisfied all at once. "You ended that horrible man that k-killed….Impa."

Kali's chin wobbled at that, and she remembered that world ending rage that coursed through her after Impa had drawn her last breath - the satisfying rattle of Bia's life escaping him. "That was more than any of us tried to do in that moment...That was more than I could have asked from you." Zelda went on, her sobs began to ease into tearful hiccups and she tried to steady her breathing.

Kali couldn't think of what to say in response to that. She could have done more. She could have stopped Impa from dying, surely, if she'd been stronger. "I don't believe your powers can bring someone back from death." Zelda said, as if she read Kali's mind.

After a long pause, Kali rasped out the question of which she desperately wanted an honest answer to, "Truly?"

Zelda gave one firm nod and pawed at her wet cheeks again. Kali squeezed Zelda's hand once, and her gaze went to the floor as she knelt before the princess she'd managed to grow fond of. "The sealing….failed." she said hesitantly after another quiet moment, unsure of how to lead into what she wanted to talk about.

The princess didn't respond, and as Kali looked up she continued with a shaky breath, "I...have to return home."

Understanding softened Zelda's wet, ice blue eyes and her still trembling fingers squeezed her hands in return. "If that's what you want."

Kali nodded once...twice, just to be sure. "I want to keep you all safe."

Zelda took a tremulous breath and then gave a long sigh before she searched Kali's face and tilted her head, curiously, "Did you follow my advice?"

Kali bit her lip, assuming she meant in regard to Kiden and Link as she recalled Zelda's warning to not make any rash decisions in a fit of passion or high emotion. She'd completely blown that idea apart, and really, did she ever have a chance at following it to begin with? With her hot temper and even more intense emotions? She gave a heaving sigh, and managed a small huff of a laugh, "Of course not…"

Zelda's lips curled softly at one corner as she shook her head and shot Kali an exasperated expression, "I should have expected as much...Do you have regrets?"

"Only a thousand…" Kali responded, sounding very tired. "But...I think they will be alright now at least."

"And you?" Zelda questioned cautiously.

"Me?"

Zelda shook her head again before squeezing her hands pointedly, "Will you be alright?"

She considered the question for a long moment, her heart pounding slowly...sadly at the prospect of leaving her friends behind and rejoining regular human society. "I'll have to be alright, I guess." she responded flatly. "I'll figure things out. After everything I've done here, maybe it'll feel a lot easier to sort things out there. My world is not like yours."

Zelda paused, and searched Kali's face before leaning forward to fix her eyes with a meaningful expression, "This could still be your world, you know. If you want."

She felt the temptation of it creeping into her heart, threatening to take root there - of staying in Hyrule and finding some other way to seal Pallas away, of spending her days exploring Hyrule field and lands beyond. But she resolved herself at the mental image of Link risking his life for her, of Kiden's wounded expression after she screamed at him, of Impa's cold body in the grass. She gave a shake of her head, "No, this is the only certain way to make sure you all are safe."

Zelda released a held breath and her shoulders relaxed slightly, as if she'd been anticipating something else and was disappointed by her answer. "Very well...How soon?"

"Tomorrow morning." Kali said quickly, certain it was best to just end it as quickly as possible. No need to drag things out, to allow herself more room for error, for more pain to be inflicted upon her friends.

After several moments of pained silence, Zelda only said, "As you wish."

A storm had rolled in that night, the gentle rumble of the coming thunder echoed in Kali's bones - to the core of her being as she sat in her room. She curled her feet beneath her on the loveseat with some tea that had long gone cold as she watched the drops of rain cascade down the windows. Her room lit up with the flash of lightning, and she remembered when she was little she used to be afraid of thunderstorms. Now it calmed her somehow, knowing that this was the least of her fears after some of her very real terrors had become a reality. Her door opened with a click and she glanced over to see it was Link as he stepped inside. He was only checking on her, she knew, but her gut twisted with anticipation as she thought of how to tell him she would be leaving. He drifted over to her and she drew her legs to her chest to make room for him on the love seat as he sprawled next to her. He didn't ask her anything, but only followed her gaze towards the window until she finally spoke, "I left my room today."

"Oh?" he responded, his voice sounding casual but not insistent. He was so careful about the way he spoke to her, about not overwhelming her.

"I went to talk to Zelda, to tell her I was sorry about everything." Kali went on, sounding tired. And her eyes slowly shifted to his face, memorizing the sharp line of his jaw, the firm set of his mouth, the attentive, deep blue eyes that she'd grown to know so well. "And to tell her that I'm going home tomorrow morning."

He stiffened, and his eyes gazed sharply back at her. He was carefully deciding how to react, what to say. She waited for him patiently, unsure of what to expect from him. He swallowed once, and carefully leaned towards her, "Is that what you want?"

Kali gave a hesitant nod. Then he started, a hint of desperation entering his expression, and it sent her heart hammering, "If this is because of what happened to-"

She cut him off, "It's not just because of Impa. It's about all of you. I can't be the reason that something...happens to you again."

Link's lips pressed into a thin line and he glanced towards the window again. He didn't look hurt, or sad. Just thoughtful, almost disheartened as he considered his next words, "We would all fight for you...you know."

Kali nodded and reached out to grasp his hand, and her voice was gentle, "I know that. I do."

He squeezed her fingers and gazed down at their interlocked hands. She continued, "But you all need to stay safe, to be happy. I need to know that you are." And she needed to be worthy of their fondness, deserving of all they'd done for her. She needed Impa's death to have not been for nothing.

He gazed deeply into her eyes, searching for any cracks in her resolve, for an excuse for her to stay. But his jaw set and he gave a nod of his head before pulling her hand up to his lips, pressing a long kiss to her knuckles, his eyes shut tight. "Please be happy after I leave." she said, her voice wavered as emotion tightened her throat.

Link gazed up at her and pulled her close to him. She let him, seeing no point in resisting him as she circled her arms around him in return. She settled into his embrace as she lay upon him, both of them sprawled on the loveseat together in a jumble of twisted limbs. "I will. If it means you'll worry less, then I swear it." he muttered into her hair as his hold around her tightened.

She pressed her face into the hollow of his shoulder and sighed shakily. She listened to his even breathing until he said quietly against her ear, "Kali…Look at me."

She pulled back, her brows pinched together slightly with curiosity as she took in his expression. His eyes were filled with a yearning that gave her pause, and she stilled as his hand slipped carefully, gently over her cheek to cup her face. She felt the other hand glide to tangle in the knots of her hair and settled at the back of her neck before he slowly lowered his face to her's. It felt as if everything slowed like pouring honey as she felt the warmth of his lips gently, timidly press to her own. His eyes were shut tight - with anticipation, or with resignation she wasn't sure - but she didn't stop this whisper of a kiss He paused, their lips just barely apart as he drew back slightly to see her reaction. When he found no argument in her eyes, he pressed another kiss to her mouth, more firmly this time. And it was like the clap of thunder outside her window, like a volcano erupting, a wave crashing over her, like a firework bursting within her. It was both the storm and the calm after the destruction as his lips pressed to her's, his grip firm and it felt never ending - until it did end. He pulled back, breathless. "I had to do that...at least once." he muttered, sounding slightly embarrassed.

Tears filled her eyes as the emotions swelled in her chest, overflowing from her heart. Her hand brushed his cheeks, and he leaned into the touch, "You can do that as many times as you like." she said, her voice sounding shaky.

But he only shot a rueful grin at her, and brushed the tears from her lashes - heartbreakingly gentle. "Later." he promised, and tucked her head into his chest, "You'll have a long day tomorrow."

She could hear the savage pounding of his heart, beating like a war drum beneath her head as more tears spilled from her eyes. But she did not sob, she didn't tremble with sorrow. She only focused on the soothing strokes of his hand on her back, on the steady hold of his arm around her until she was lulled to sleep by the steady thump of his heart.

The next morning, a mist settled over Hyrule like a blanket. The pale blue dawn warmed the still damp earth with rays of light. Kali had decided that due to the uncertain nature of creating a portal between entire realms, it would probably be best to return to the spot where she'd entered Hyrule - meaning around where Link and Impa had found her passed out in the woods. She was unsure of how much energy it would take for her to create the portal, and wanted to make the entry as easy on her as possible, knowing full well she'd have to hike back to her old home and pack her belongings. There was no way she would be living with her piece of shit ex any longer. She wasn't sure where she'd go, maybe her dad's house, assuming he wouldn't have a stroke from the shock of her return. She'd sort it all out later. But she'd be lying to herself if she tried to say that she wasn't trying to delay this goodbye for as long as possible.

She dressed in her normal training clothes, resolved that those were the clothes that she wanted to keep forever, as well as her leather kidney belt, gauntlets, her daggers, and short sword. What else was she to pack? She only sat in her room, considering this until her time ran out, and Zelda along with Link, and Kiden had arrived to collect her. To make their way through the Lost Woods, led by Link to the right location.

The morning was cool against her hot skin, tingling with nerves as they all made their way silently through the forest. Nobody spoke. What could any of them say? Kiden watched her with wary, sad eyes but other than that, didn't make a move towards her. Link only led them, holding his head high, maybe to show her how strong he could be knowing full well he was about to lose her. Zelda lingered by her side, her eyes still wet with grief for losing Impa and maybe for Kali's departure. She'd told Zelda that if she wanted to stay at the castle, she could, and that she'd understand but the princess insisted on going along.

Link halted, and they all followed suit. There was a long stretch of silence between them as they all realized that this was the spot. The abruptness of it settled on them like a heavy weight. It was so...ordinary. She tried to imagine her own curled up form in the grass, which had been dead when she arrived - her face coated with dried tears, still wearing her mismatched pajamas. It was difficult to form that picture in her mind, it felt like years ago. It was such a vague spot in the forest, and she wasn't sure what she expected to find - some kind of landmark, a lightning struck stump of a tree, a surprise goodbye party. But that was ridiculous, and her hands clenched so hard her knuckles turned white as her gaze found her leather boots. A knot closed her throat as she felt Zelda's arms circle her shoulders and a huff of air as she whispered into her ear, "You are so brave for this. I will make sure they both are hail and whole. I thank you for saving my kingdom." Then something warm was pressed into Kali's hand. When she looked down, it was a glinting golden chain with a delicate Triforce hewn from the same gold captured in a ring. A necklace. "Keep it, and never forget the time we've spent together and the strength of your own spirit."

She returned the embrace with a loose grip as she felt her eyes begin to sting, clutching the necklace tight in her fist. She turned to Kiden as she slid the necklace into her pocket, searching his eyes for any resentment but only found regrets, and solemn understanding there instead. He stepped towards her, and pulled her into his arms, squeezing her to the body she'd grown to know so well. She sighed shakily and returned the hug, not stopping him as he pressed a kiss to her cheek and pulled back to meet her eyes, "I meant what I said before." he said quietly, and she knew he referred to when he said he would always remember her. That was all the goodbye she needed from him.

Her chin quivered and she gave a curt nod, before kissing his cheek in return.

Then she turned to Link, who was watching her with sad eyes. But there was something hard behind them, a reassurance he was providing for her, a surety that he would be alright once she left his life. "Impa would be proud of you," he said evenly.

It was the truth, she realized. He knew Impa almost as well as Zelda had, and her tears spilled over her cheeks before she threw her arms around his neck. They collided like two boulders during a landslide as he secured his arms around her waist and only then did she notice the tremors shaking his hands. She breathed in the metal and smoke smell of Link one last time as he pressed his mouth into her hair, close to her ear as he murmured so quietly nobody else would hear, "May we meet again in another life, may we find each other in the same realm again someday."

One hard sob shook her chest at his words, and she nodded into him. She hoped to be able to find them all again someday. She pulled back, brushing her own tears with the palm of her hand, attempting to look strong for him - for all of them.

Kali took a step back, and turned towards an empty space of woods before her. She took a steadying breath and held out her hands, concentrating. She drew the memories of her old home into her mind's eye, of the sharp, jagged edges of the mountains against the open sky, of the dirty pale blue house of her previous lover with an overhang that would serve as a car port if it weren't practically collapsing in on itself, of her parents, her sisters, her old school and job - of the entirety of what had been her world as she felt the flame of her power ignite within her. She grew hot with the sensation of it as it swirled in her gut, extended to her fingertips, past them. She willed a portal into existence that would return her to her own realm, and before her eyes, the air began to shimmer. She absently wondered if she'd still have her powers in her world, where there usually were none as she let her hands fall, gazing into the swirling air of the portal.

Her heart pounded with anticipation, and she felt the stares of her friends on her back. She glanced back towards them, and offered a smile that didn't reach her eyes, and she opened her mouth, hesitated - then said, "Thank you isn't enough to express how much this world has meant to me. There aren't words that can…." she paused, and then laughed, embarrassed, "Goodbye."

As she turned towards the portal, she took a step towards it and it felt as if the world had been twisted upside down in a swirl of color. Was she falling? Flying? No...she had been thrown.

Pain burst through her whole body, and a shout left her lips as her back collided against a tree. She couldn't breath, and she rolled painfully as she tried to get her lungs to work. What happened? She blinked hard, struggled to make the world stop spinning as her eyes made out the form of a dark shadow...It was Styx. The surviving twin shadow, his face contorted with rage as he descended upon her, kicking her in the gut while she was down. She opened her mouth in a silent cry of pain, but with no air in her lungs, no sounds escaped her. There was shouting, and the slicing draw of a sword from its sheath. This was bad. She had been so close - so ridiculously close to preventing something just like this.

She was struck again, again, again. She had no room to react, to dodge, to even block the swift blows her eyes barely registered. "Don't have your little shadow friend to detect me now do you? Little wench!" Styx punctuated his scathing words with a swift punch to her jaw.

The dirty penny taste of blood filled her mouth, and she turned her head painfully towards the raging shadow, "An eye for an eye asshole. Did you think I would do nothing after you killed my friend?" she growled as she fumbled for her daggers, her sword, anything.

Then she heard the thump of boots running towards them. She glanced past Styx to see Link rushing towards them both, his eyes as hard as the steel he held at the ready to cut him down. "Halt!" Styx commanded, and Kali felt the cold point of a blade at her throat.

Link slid to a stop, blazing blue eyes hard on Styx. Then she saw the frustration with himself wash over his expression for not realizing immediately that it was a bluff - Styx couldn't kill her without killing his master. But that little pause was enough as Kali saw the abrupt unnatural rigidness in his body as somewhere nearby, Pallas paused his movements entirely. But Link's fierce blue eyes were still on her, unable to move anywhere else as Pallas stepped from the mist like some kind of phantom.

His face was more haggard than it had been before, like he'd not slept in days. But it put a wild glint in his eyes that promised nothing good. He stood close enough to Zelda and Kiden that he was a definitive threat, especially with his powers keeping Link frozen and unable to assist them. So they did nothing to move against him.

"That's quite enough fun for you isn't it Styx?" Pallas laughed, and it was as if he were unable to stop the uneven burbling chuckle that shook his chest.

"Not nearly enough.." the twin growled, pressing the point of the blade more firmly into her throat - no doubt wishing he could slice it open.

Pallas made a show of turning towards her shimmering portal to examine it. He circled it slowly, nodding his head as if he were impressed, but there was something mocking in the theatrical way he did so. "A portal back to your own time." he drawled, as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I will admit, I figured you too much of a selfish coward to do it. It appears I continue to underestimate you, and your capacity to save these….friends." He finished menacingly, a wicked grin twisting his face - madness glimmered in those shining green eyes.

"Leave them be." Kali ground through clenched teeth, feeling the sting of the blade as it barely broke skin.

Pallas chuckled, and it echoed off the forest around them as it grew into full blown, maniacal laughter. The sorcerer nearly doubled over, laughing at her words. Zelda shifted to stand protectively in front of Kiden, and Kali remembered she knew how to fight - trained by Impa just as she had been, but they both knew full well that would never be enough to defend against Pallas. When his laughter subsided he strolled towards her, "Oh I'm not going to hurt them...yet." he seethed, his grin widened. He dropped his hand from Link, and without hesitation her friend was rushing at them all again, his sword and shield poised for a fight. Styx darted into the action, defending Pallas against Link's attacks. Kali shifted quickly to her feet, but was pinned hard by her neck to the tree behind her as Pallas made quick work of relieving her of her blades. She grunted, brought her knee up to his gut, accelerated by her powers.

Pallas groaned and his grip faltered on her, and in response she drove all of her weight combined with more speed into a sharp uppercut to his chin. His head snapped back, and she felt the weight of his powers working on her body, willing her to a stop. But she pushed back, rendering her back to her regular powerless speed. "Kali!" Link cried out, between clangs of metal.

Then there was blinding pain that shot through her skull, and black spots swam in her vision. Pallas had headbutted her square in the face, and she felt hot blood pour from her nose, over her mouth. She could barely breathe through the blood, pain radiated through her entire skull, and she couldn't collect her thoughts to even react as her body was swung around like a ragdoll. Move, move, move! She thought somewhere distantly, but wasn't sure how she could move when the ground was rolling like a wave beneath her feet.

She was facing her friends now, Pallas held her from behind with his arm secured tightly around her neck. Her hands scrabbled at him to no avail, she was still disoriented and she tried to blink the stars from her eyes as she heard Pallas's voice in her ear, "Take one last looong look at your precious little friends, girl. Because it's the last you'll know them as your friends." He chuckled darkly.

"Wha-" Kali stammered as she watched Link's blade clash with Styx's viciously. He tried desperately to find an angle that would allow him to get around the shadow, to get to her. Zelda watched her with wide, confused blue eyes with a small blade raised in her hand as she stood defensively in front of Kiden. And Kiden's eyes were determined, shifting between the fight and Kali as if urging Link to get through. "What does that mean?" she finally gasped out as she pulled at Pallas's arm again. He was simply stronger than her, and had a good enough grip that she couldn't pull him off.

She felt like she was about to pass out, the pressure on her neck cutting off her blood flow but just as black swam at the edges of her vision Pallas relieved the pressure as he turned her around to face him, both of his large hands secured on either side of her head. His fingers dug into her scalp, twining sharply with her hair, "You see, I figured out just how to get you on my side." he said, insane laughter burbling from him again, "It's because of these worthless friends of yours. You're attached to them, so much so that you would even leave this world behind just to keep them from harm." He made a mock pouting face at her, and then threw his head back in wild laughter.

Kali's fingers clawed at his hands, trying to remove herself from his grip but he shook her head violently, effectively tossing her hands from his and sending fresh waves of pain through her skull. "So I had the most wonderful idea. I would remove them from the picture, your picture without killing them since that would only fuel your hatred even more. Isn't that merciful of me? I'll even remove those pesky memories of your life in your original world as well." He shook her head against when he felt her nails on his skin. He leaned in close, so that those awful, poisonous green eyes took up all of her vision as he said, loud enough for them all to hear, "I am going to remove your memories of them."

At first she didn't believe him, not initially registering that ability to be within the range of either of their powers. But then a memory flashed in her mind. She had lost her temper with Princess Zelda in the study during training the day that she demanded the princess explain why she cut Link out of her life, but the princess had merely been reading a passage from the journal of Jarrill Kirindok that effectively held all the information they knew of the timekeepers before she snapped it shut.

"You are capable of prophetic visions, removing painful memories, and having knowledge of things that happened in the past."

Those were the princess's words, but Kali had been so caught up in the prospect of looking into the past that she didn't pay attention to the other things. Then again, another memory shot through her like a lightning strike, sending her heart plummeting into her stomach. It was Kiden, reading a passage directly from the journal itself.

"This shaman had the ability to reverse wounds, make people forget painful memories, and claimed to have visions that were prophetic in nature."

She'd never had the chance to learn the full extent of her powers, but Pallas had trained under the shaman himself. He knew how to remove painful memories, so what would stop him from removing the entirety of her memories. Her eyes widened in horror and she heard her friends shouting behind her. They heard his words, they all had read the journal and knew that it was possible - the terrible truth of it washing every other thought from their minds.

They shouted with despair, and the idea of losing every memory of them, of all the beautiful, horrible experiences she had in Hyrule, of Impa's long hours of training, caring for her, of Link's last kiss, of Kiden's joking tenor, had a trail of tears streaming through the dirt and blood on her face. Link shouted for him to stop, he screamed her name as he fought more ferociously now. Kali's voice trembled as Pallas's hand clamped more firmly to either side of her head, "P-Please…" she rasped out, pleading entering her tone, "Don't…"

At that Pallas laughed in her face, "You're so tame now! How adorable.."

His words sent a white hot spike of rage through her and before she thought too hard about it, she spit all the blood that had been pooling in her mouth into his face. He recoiled, squinting his eyes before using the sleeve at his shoulder to wipe it away. He growled at her, his nails digging painfully into her scalp and she felt an odd pressure begin to build where his hands were. "You selfish bitch.."

She felt the air shift around them both, her hair picking up in an invisible breeze as her head began to tingle - like static white noise was slowly pooling into her. "NO!" she heard Link yell from behind her.

Kali resolved to fight it, thought she wasn't sure how - but she just needed to push back, right? To push his power far away from her memories? So she did, she pushed and pushed, envisioning a wall of steel blocking the sliding oily feeling of his power. Pallas grunted and she squeezed her eyes tightly shut, unable to think or do anything else as she defended herself against him. This would take all of her concentration, all of the focus Zelda had taught her, all of the determination Impa had beaten into her, every ounce of willpower she had within her. She would not give in.

His grip tightened on her head as he tried to use pain to distract her, but she used her hands to lessen the pressure by pulling at his fingers. He shook her, he thrashed her, he tried anything he could to break her focus but she ground her teeth together and held fast to that shield in her mind. The air around them both whirled and swirled, picking up the edges of his cloak, whipping her hair in the air, stirring the long grass beneath their feet and the tree branches above them. Pure power created a cyclone around them as they struggled for control over each other.

Then, a heart dropping pain shot through her head - through them both, she felt as Pallas groaned softly. Kali had never been prepared to defend against something like this before. She had already reached her limit, the pain shooting through her like a bolt of electricity, coming in waves. They were slow at first, but increased in intensity and she knew that it was affecting Pallas as well. Dread washed over her as she felt fresh blood begin to trickle from her nose. She opened her eyes, meeting his gaze defiantly as he glared into her eyes, into her soul. She felt cracks in the shield she'd created around her mind, felt the skin crawling, oily smear of his power begin to invade her thoughts. No, no, no….She pushed harder, a whimper escaping through her clenched teeth. "You...stubborn...girl…" Pallas ground out as he drove his power forward.

It felt wrong in every way. HIs power was invasive, possessive, it ate up everything in its path. She held onto every memory she could, the red brick bottom of her mom's house, it's green shutters, her favorite vegetable soup recipe, her favorite spot to sit and read in the park, her sisters smiling faces….What were their names again?

"Nooo…." she whimpered, thrashing against his grip. "Please…."

"Stop. Struggling." Pallas commanded, and she saw a trickle of blood begin to edge out of his nose as well.

She tried to collect all of her memories to cocoon them in a protective blanket of her own power. She had to stop his power from spreading like a plague in her mind. Kiden's flirtatious grin, the firm press of Impa's hand on her shoulder...Who was that girl from the ranch that lent her that horse?...Did she even know how to ride a horse?

Panic rose in Kali like the wave of a tsunami, threatening to overwhelm her, consume her, drown her. Who would she even be without her memories? She heard the sound of Link's voice, but it was distant somehow. It felt as if she were thrown deep into a tunnel, and her friends were very, very far at the mouth of it - trying to reach her. "Link!" she cried out loud, unsure why it was him she was crying out to. Unsure of what she could even beg for that would stop this.

"Pallas! STOP!" she cried, more tears pouring from her, giving another desperate shove against him. Those pesky black spots were filling her visions again, and the pain in her head radiated throughout her whole body. Her soul was going to split into pieces, into impossibly tiny shards. Everything hurt so badly.

She saw Pallas's knees nearly buckle, and the blood was pouring freely from his nose now, "You stupid girl! You'll kill us both!" he gasped, sounding much weaker than mere moments ago. His teeth were colored red from his own blood as he barred them at her.

Kill them both? Wouldn't that solve everyone's problem? With renewed vigor, Kali pushed even more fervently. "Good…" she seethed, willing everything she had into resisting him.

"NO!" Link's voice was much closer now, and her heart sank for him. He was going to have to watch her die, but if it meant she could die remembering him, Kiden, Zelda...Impa...Everyone she had ever loved. She wouldn't let Pallas take that from her. "Kali! Please! I'll find you again!" he begged between the metal clang of blades clashing together. "Please stop this!" His voice was ragged with despair.

"I can't…" she whispered, nearly to herself.

Pallas gave a cry of rage, and one final devastating push. Hot pain blinded her, filled her vision with white. She remembered the sound of Link's laugh, the gentle kiss on her cheek after the Spring Ball, the heat of Kiden's hands over her skin, the trembling figure of Zelda in her arms as she grieved for their lost friend. And she'd be lying to herself if she tried to say that she wasn't trying to delay this goodbye for as long as possible. Then the questions began to fill in spots of her mind that were suddenly, terribly empty of something ….Did Link actually kiss her? What color were Kiden's eyes again? How did she even know how to focus her powers? What was her dad's last name?

More and more questions came as she got lost in the vision of white light and then suddenly she was consumed by darkness as Link's words chased her down, echoing in the depths.

"I'll find you again!"

Everything had stopped, Styx had backed towards Pallas and Link's chest burned with the heavy breaths that heaved in his chest - not from the effort of the fight, but with the panic that tore through him. His heart galloped wildly and he watched in horror as Kali's form crumpled to the ground, nearly taking Pallas with her. She looked so small….so unbelievably small and broken, when so many times he had watched her get up, pinch those brows together, square her shoulders to get ready for another fight. Was she….? No, he refused to believe she was dead...gone out of his grasp forever. His teeth hurt from the pressure of grinding his teeth together with a wild rage he hadn't felt since….well since Ganon. He watched, unable to move until he knew Kali was alive...was breathing...as Pallas attempted to straighten himself, his face covered with his own blood and with Kali's. The satisfied, exhausted look on his face sent Link's heart plummeting down, down, down. It couldn't be. There is no way she let him win. He couldn't have overcome her.

His eyes shifted to her collapsed body, her bruised, bloodied face and he took a single tentative step forward as she stirred at Pallas's feet. He wanted to fall to his knees in relief when those large, green eyes slitted open. She groaned, and rightly so after the beating she just took. "Kali.." he breathed, barely a whisper.

Kiden's voice called out her name from behind him, sounding strangled with fear, but Link didn't dare tear his eyes from Kali as she struggled to sit up.

"Quickly!" Pallas's voice cut through the silence as he reached down to grasp her arm, but his voice was different. It was a tone none of them had ever heard from him before - filled with concern, almost fearful as his eyes shifted uneasily from Link, to Zelda and Kiden behind him. Kali let herself be yanked from the ground, but recoiled upon seeing Pallas's concerned expression. And with dread consuming him like an icy lake, he realized what Pallas's plan was. Her brows furrowed, confused as she gazed upon the sorcerer and in her predictably stubborn way she tugged her arm from his grip. Then her eyes were on Link, and the look she gave him felt like a kick to the gut. He lost the ability to breath as he felt her heart starting to crack at it's ragged seams.

She was….scared as her eyes shifted from his savage expression, to his sword, then to Zelda with her knife. At the now unfamiliar sight of all these weapons, she actually backed into Pallas - her stance automatically becoming defensive. "Who...what…." she stammered in a trembling voice, as if she was unsure of the right questions and he found no recognition in her fearful eyes as they settled on him again.

He'd won….Pallas...had stolen her memories of them, of everything they'd been through, of her previous life, everything. He had stolen all the pieces of time from her mind.. "These people attacked you! Don't you remember?" Pallas said swiftly into Kali's ear, using his arm to push her behind him protectively.

She glanced from him, to Styx and her brows pinched together as she tried to regain her concentration, and then back to them. She was trying to grasp any recollection of what had just happened to her, but she would find none. She only shook her head hesitantly, "I don't...I don't know." she said, and then groaned, her hands going to her head.

Then she said those words that had Link lowering his blade, everything in him going watery, numb, "I don't know who I am. Or where….I don't know anything."

"It's alright, I'll protect you. Come! Quickly! Before they can attack us again!" Pallas said, pulling her with him as one of those shimmering portals appeared behind them and he began to step through with her arm captured firmly in his hand.

She gave one final glance over her shoulder, and something glimmered in those halting, beautiful eyes. Something like curiosity, or maybe doubt before she let herself be pulled through. They all disappeared, and he hadn't even tried to stop them. Pallas had made them into the villains of her new story….

Link felt his legs give out from beneath him, and his knees pounded painfully into the grass below as his sword and shield fell from his hands. He'd failed to stop him, to save her - but that last look flashed in his memory and he held onto it with an iron grip. That one last look from Kali was all the hope he'd needed. She always seemed to have a good intuition for things, and despite her memories being gone - she was still Kali. She was still the girl he cared deeply for. And he would keep true to his word. He would find her again.

Author's note: The plot twists are probably giving yall whiplash at this point. I almost feel sorry, but I was so excited to write this chapter and don't worry, we are still a ways away from the end. :) Thank you for reading! And thank you for your kind words!