Errin saved her life. The huge horse, acting on terrified instinct, had tried to skid to a halt in the last few seconds, hooves the size of dinner plates cutting deep grooves into the grass, slowing just enough that he could rear up just before the fireball hit less than quarter of a mile in front of him.

He had reared so fast and so hard that Malon, sitting on her blanket and holding on with her knees, had been thrown back like a child throws a toy, not falling but flying backwards in a whiplash tangle of limbs and hair, curled up by speed and physics so the rearing horses's body had shielded her from the blast of the impact.

The explosion had been more force than heat, smashing the field aside to punch a crater deep into the earth, sending cracks through the bedrock for a mile around that fountained tonnes of earth into the sky to fall like heavy rain onto a battered landscape. The heat and the burst of burning air had been concentrated in the crater, baking the earth into slabs of clay and stone that then buckled under the pressure wave that carried the majority of the force up the sides and into the field. The angle of the crater had send most of the explosion into the sky, but what spilled over the edges was enough to scorch grass and pulverise the flesh and bone of the unfortunate horse that had reared up to scream nearby. The front of the huge creature was smashed away instantly, the second part of the wave shredded the meat inside into fragments, sending half of a flayed skeleton spinning backwards, but the pressure in this dead zone was rapidly fading and the majority of it had been spent and redirected by the horse so that what wrapped around the airborne farmgirl was just slightly less than lethal. The burst carried her further through the air, spinning backwards as the pressure battered every inch of her body at once, so that by the time she hit the earth and carved a thirty foot groove out of the cracked soil, she was already unconscious.

—

…

—

Pain blistered Malon's brain, welling up and bursting apart to make way for the next wave, exploding in her mind like the fireworks the Gorons made, leaving patterns seared into her thoughts that were just as lurid. The pain was like a living thing inside her, and she struggled against it.

'…!'

The curse was more in her thoughts than the real world, lost into the charred soil her face was pressed against. She lay for a second while a thought formed. Breathing was hard. Her arms dragged themselves over the ground, wincing internally with every muscle movement, and she managed to get a palm onto the ground and slowly lever herself up. A racking cough from a burned throat splattered blood onto the earth, where it sizzled. Her arm wobbled under her weight and she jerked herself up high enough to flop onto her back.

Everything hurt. Breathing here wasn't much easier. The air was thick and hot. She had only been to Goron City once, but the air had been like this, not burning her throat like it was now, but that was the only comparison she had. Her nose was clogged with blood, which didn't help. Too sore to clear it.

Her eyes cracked open gently, to see the snow gently swirling around her. That didn't make sense. No time for that. Just time for pain. Feels like everything is still there, fingers wiggling, though it hurt enough to regret it. The pain roared inside her, etching a path of fire through her body. Her eyes drifted shut.

She lay for a long moment, chest heaving as she sucked in the hot air, then her eyes snapped open wide as a guttural animal noise sounded in the distance. She had never heard a dragon howl, but some ancient instinct grabbed her wandering thoughts and screamed at them to pay attention, and it had the effect of jolting her aching body into motion. She sat up quickly, ignoring the pain in her muscles.

Nothing made sense for a second, then her brain caught up with the rest of her. The field was unrecognisable. The only landmark was the distant outer wall of the ranch on top of the hill to her left, they had looped around the walls rather than away. A huge tree to her right had been blasted into a blackened trunk that even now was crumbling into charcoal. She was sitting at the end of a torn up line of earth that was steadily filling in with the snow - no, ash, she realised - and earth that rained sporadically from above. The groove ran down the middle of a wedge of grass that was slightly greener and less scorched than that on either side. Her heart caught in her throat as she spotted the ragged tangle of charred flesh and bone halfway down the wedge that had been her horse mere moments ago, full of life and power. Everything else paled though, compared to the lip of the crater that had punched its way into the world, a line of rock and baked earth that loomed up into the darkened sky a few hundred meters away.

'Wh-' she paused to spit a thick glob of blood to the charred grass, where it sizzled and stank. 'What… how the f-'

'Malon!'

The sound came fuzzily into her ears, as if she was underwater, and she turned, wincing, to squint behind her.

'Malon!' Link leaned far enough over Epona's head to be in danger of falling in front of her, but fear gave him strength to hang on. His faithful horse, brave as she was, had shied away in fear from the distant calamity, bucking and snorting even as the crackling hot wave had washed over them, diminished by distance, but he had forced her back on track with a roughness he hadn't known he was capable of. Malon had been directly under the… thing… and he had only been able to watch in utter horror as the world had erupted in front of him.

'Come on girl. Come on.' He patted Epona's neck as she swung around, his hand trembling for the first time in years, and they were back at the gallop before the first clumps of earth had spattered across the field.

The world was in turmoil up ahead as the effects rippled outwards, the earth shook and wobbled like water as the field floated on shifting bedrock, the sky had been replaced with earth, and by the feel of the air as they neared the roiling cloud of smoke and clay, the air had made way for fire. Every second, despite the breath boiling the back of his throat, his insides turned number and colder. How could she possibly have survived this? How could anyone? Was it over?

A burst of golden lightning sprayed up the middle of the maelstrom, and he cursed as it lashed his eyes that still adjusted to the growing darkness. The afterimage swam as he strained to see more, and he could just make out the rim of a tremendous crater, a wave of rock and fire that had been pushed out of the field he knew so well, and then they entered a world of shadow where the swirling ash and soil obscured the sun.

'Malon!' He yelled, his throat choked by ash and heat, his voice shaking as he realised that maybe, just maybe, he didn't want to find her, didn't want to see-

The smoke passed, leaving a world of ash, and Epona snorted to turn towards a spiky, black shape that might once have been a tree who's shade they had once enjoyed, and suddenly he picked out a bright smear of red in the gloomily monochrome world, and his voice cracked as he yelled again, nearly frantic.

'Malon!'

The shape moved, the red swung aside as she turned to look, and he almost collapsed from the saddle in relief.

The girl raised a feeble hand as Epona skidded to a halt beside the strange wedge of grass, Link's feet hitting the ground before she had even begun to stop.

'Oh, Link, thank the goddesses-' Her voice crackled, dry and weak, and he paused as he crouched next to her, some of the fear returning. She was a mess, ash sticking to the blood that streaked her pale skin, her clothing stained and tattered and scorched around the edges, and he checked the wild embrace he was about to throw around her, in case she crumbled entirely. She saw the expression on his face and she choked out a laugh.

'Don't worry. It looks worse than it is. Just… sore. Nothing broken though.'

'You can't be sure-'

'I've stitched you up enough… to know what I'm talking about. More than you do anyway.' Her blue eyes flashed at him and he permitted himself to relax a fraction, lifting her into a gentle hug that still trembled with intensity.

Her fingers dug into his back and she buried her face in his shoulder. Tough talk, but she was shaken and hurt and the relief flooding her body was paralysing.

'I saw it hit. I thought-'

'I know. Me too.'

'I thought you were gone.' He said it with a simplicity that barely masked the depth of emotions behind it, and she squeezed as tight as her aching muscles would allow.

'I'm sorry. Errin, he, he just ran, I couldn't…'

Link glanced over at the shredded heap of flesh that had probably once been Errin, shuddered at the thought of what could have happened, and then cursed as another burst of golden lightning rippled over the top of the crater rim beyond. Then, a distant howling scream rose, oddly flat in the heavy air. He frowned as Malon squeezed him tighter.

'There it is again. I heard that before, I've no idea what it could be…'

Zelda's words came rushing back. In the turmoil of the last few minutes, he had forgotten all about her dire predictions, but now the hairs on the back of his neck rose again.

'It's something that landed here.'

'What? How could anything survive that?' Malon's voice shook, even under the rasping dryness.

'Nothing normal could. Here…'

Link stood and, placing gentle but firm hands under her arms, lifted Malon to her feet. She was a little unsteady and grasped his tunic, but made no complaints other than hissing gently through her teeth. Epona nuzzled her as they turned to face the crater, and she smiled briefly.

'Good girl.'

Link stared ahead with a curious intensity she hadn't seen in a long time, his jaw clenched. The whirling air stilled, the ash now mostly a carpet on the grass around them, the earth had fallen. The whole scene was oddly still, as if the world was embarassed by the tremendous fuss it had just made, and now held it's breath.

'I'm going to go have a look. Stay with Epona, and-'

'Wait! Look!'

A figure stood on the lip of the crater. Hulking and formless as the air shimmered with heat behind it, they both still felt a shiver that could only mean it's gaze had found them.

Link gritted his teeth and in a rasping whirl his sword was suddenly in his hand, shield raised as he stepped partly in front of Malon. She felt her blood run cold.

'What is it?' she whispered.

'I hope… that I don't know. Nothing good.'

The figure slid down the side of the rock, crunching onto the baked earth of the field. It trembled and fell to one knee as it landed, and as it knelt there was a twisting, bizarre wrench to it's movements, as if it struggled with something.

Suddenly it lurched upright, and Malon held back a gasp as she realised it had been hunched over before, disguising it's bulk. The lurch carried it forwards in a stumble, zig zagging left and right through the scorched ground, the crunch and crackle of new clay under it's feet the only sound in the stillness around them.

The stumble was erratic, but fast, carrying the figure towards them rapidly, even as the erratic movements became more measured, more infrequent. The figure was struggling with something, as if restrained, but the struggles ceased as it neared, the stumble becoming slower, more measured paces.

Link felt cold sweat prickling his skin under his tunic. The thing had drawn to a halt a few meters from Errin's remains, and he tried to reach out mentally with a warning. Zelda, you were right. Goddesses help us, you were right. Golden lightning crackled around the figure's feet as it heaved in place, the ground cracking beneath it with each convulsion, then with one final heave all movement ceased.

Ganondorf straightened up.

He stood, stiffly, unfolding each limb separately as if needing to focus on one movement at a time, until he reached his full, imposing height to glare down at the couple in front of him.

Yet, Link felt a little sick with the realisation, it wasn't the glare he remembered in his nightmares. The huge figure was the same, clad in burnt and shattered armour, but the face… the face had mutated, the man's dark green skin had shaded to purple, purple streaked with lurid colours, bright yellow spikes jutted from the sharp jaw as if they had forced their way through the flesh, similar spikes burst crookedly through his flaming hair, but it was the eyes that held him in place, eyes three times as large and blazing with an intense yellow stare, tiny pupils vibrating with rage as they focused eerily on him, staring at him out of the past, from another world.

Link blinked the sweat from his eyes and when he looked again the creature's eyes were the gold and brown of the man from the desert, before shimmering back into those of the ancient monster, then back…

It's not using him, he thought. The most fear he had felt in years was flooding through him, paralysing him, and his mind retreated into analysis rather than action. He's too powerful for it to use him, and it's too powerful to be worn, so they've… fused… He remembered Zelda's words. Something powerful enough to break into the Sacred Realm… More than powerful enough, he thought, his thoughts suddenly back in the frantic battle inside the moon where he had hung on, barely in control-

Ganondorf stared at him, fingers flexing and creaking at odd angles, but unmoving besides an occasional twitch of the head. The mask clamping on tight had drawn his skin back to expose his teeth in a horrible grin, then the head twitched down and he began shaking as if struggling to stand again.

Heart in his mouth, Link chanced a glance behind him. Malon was clinging to the saddle, drawn in and staring in numb terror as Epona trembled, clearly wanting to run as fast as she could.

'Malon.'

She ignored him, eyes wide. His sword made it awkward, but he touched her cheek gently.

'Hey. Look at me.' He whispered, and her gaze whipped to him.

'Link… is that…'

'Listen to me.' He interrupted firmly. 'You need to take Epona, get on her, right now, and run to the castle. Stop for nothing, ok? You have to find Zelda, tell her she was right, tell her it's worse than she thought and I'll need her help. As soon as possible. Ok?'

She blinked furiously at him. 'Yes. Got it. Find Zelda.' She frowned. 'You're not staying here-'

'I have to. I'll hold him off as long as I can, but she needs to-'

'Link!' Her gaze jerked up over his shoulder and he spun just as fast. The creature was focused and moving again, lurching forward, golden lightning crackling at it's feet even as the purple fire of the masks power rippled under the skin. The bolt of lightning crackled on the remains of the horse as it stumbled past, burning the flesh into a bubbling black mess.

'Go! Go now!' Link shouted as he darted forwards, trying to put the confrontation as far from Malon as possible, to give her time to haul herself onto the horse, not even looking to see if she was still there, all of his focus and will concentrating in front of him in a way he hadn't had to manage for years. He shook off the feeling of being a kid back in that bizarre space inside the moon, of being not much older in a shadowy throne room, this was the here and now, and the movement sent focus flooding through him, banishing the fear in an instant, the whole world shrinking to the few remaining meters between him and his enemy, the creature just staring crookedly at him as he darted in and swung the huge gleaming sword, finally awake to its purpose again-

The blade bit into the palm of a hand that had raised faster than the eye could follow, jerking to a stop, purple fire licking along the edge as the creature stared down at him, completely unfazed.

Link blinked in surprise.

'Wha-'

In one sudden jerk of a movement, the thing shifted its weight slightly, the hand dropping from the sword as it spun away, and he barely had the presence of mind to swing his shield around to intercept a massive fist that streaked in on his right. The fist drove the shield right into him, breaking his arm as it caught between the metal and his body, and the breath burst from him as he was ripped off his feet by the terrible force of the blow. The bottom half of the shield cracked into fragments, the sword snatched wildly from his hands as his suddenly limp body soared into the thick air as if yanked by a rope, limbs trailing wildly as he flew, mind unable to process what had just happened, his shadow racing across the grass until it passed over the ranch's outer wall. He was still fuzzily wondering what had happened when he hit the house, plaster and timber caving in behind him.

'Link!'

Malon gasped in disbelief and horror as he vanished over the crest of the hill more than a hundred meters away. In a second the whole world had turned upside down, and he had been smashed away with ease, the huge sword all that was left to spin through the air to thump down into the blackened grass by her feet.

The distant crunch of timber and the sudden blooming of a cloud of dust behind the wall of the ranch was all she could make out, her eyes wide with fear as she stumbled, letting go of Epona's saddle, empty of any thought other than fear for his safety, she had to go, to run up to the gate and see what had happened… then a growling, crackling wheeze whipped her head around to the hulking nightmare in front of her.

She had only seen Ganondorf once, when she was eleven, on the night he had searched their ranch and flipped their worlds upside down, but there was no mistaking that this… thing… had once been the same man who had sneered at the frightened little girl she had been. But… had this been the same man Link had beaten before?

The monster heaved with each sound, and she realised it was laughing to itself, two twisted voices in concert as it stared at its fist, the split flesh spilling a livid purple flame, and roared with laughter, completely absorbed in victory…

I need to find Link, and fast…

About to turn away, she caught sight of the gleaming metal in the grass. The sword… he would need that. Heart in her mouth, she darted forward, ignoring the tremors in her legs from her wounds, and crouched to grab the handle, heaving it upright with trembling arms. It seemed a hundred times heavier than the last time she had held it, jokingly posing with it to pretend to be the hero. Now she had to do it for real, if only briefly… she glanced up and froze.

The second she had touched the blade, the creature had stopped laughing and stood like a statue, still clutching its fist, the massive yellow eyes burning into her own, into her brain and down the length of her soul, her insides withering under that terrifying focus. She heaved the sword up and clutched it to her chest. She had made herself the new target.

Ow.

Link blinked the dust from his eyes. Consciousness returned slowly, riding waves of agony.

Where…?

Pain and more pain. Every muscle and bone he had was in agony. He concentrated.

Focus on the pain. It's like every other time. Focus on it and wall it off and put it somewhere you can manage it. Wall it off.

He gazed around fuzzily. Recognition. This was… home. The main room of the ranch house.

Why am I here? Where's Malon?

The pain came again, his shattered arm announcing itself.

Wall it off. Beat it.

Light spilled through the wall in an unfamiliar place. A hole gaped in the side of the house, surrounded by shattered timber and plaster. More light flickered on the inside of the walls. He focused, pushing the pain down, and remembered. He had been hit harder than he had thought possible, and has arrived… here. Through the wall. The hole. He had missed the main structural timber on the way in, the softer wall had slowed him down enough that when he had hit the beam on the other side of the main room, he hadn't died instantly. Just cracked it and flopped to the floor like a ragged doll, smashing onto the big table. And… yes. There had been a lantern on the table, for some reason. It had shattered and…

He coughed, sending more pain through him. The flickering light was accompanied by smoke as the broken lantern spilled oil across the wooden furniture. Fire. He coughed again, on dust or smoke he didn't know. The cough sent a spasm of pain through him.

Wall it off, ignore it…

It wasn't working. The pain was beating his walls, washing over his mind. He groaned. His arm was blazing with agony, and he gritted his teeth as he realised it was the second time it had been broken by the same man.

The flames licked at the edge of the table he was draped across.

Have to move. Can't contain the pain, can't contain the fire… Not important.

Malon was still out there with the creature. He hoped against hope that she had managed to climb onto Epona and flee.

Flames licked at his hand and he cursed as he snatched it away. Forget the walls. Accept the pain. There's not time to sit and feel sorry for yourself.

Zelda's words echoed in his brain.

Use the mask…

How had she known? He winced at the memories. He had worn it only once, transforming into something feral, feeling himself reduced to a single blade of grass in a vast field of fury. No… not the mask.

He glanced around. Not too much smoke yet.

No sword…

He groaned. Even if he had the sword, so what? The creature had stopped it without effort and nearly killed him in one blow. He couldn't face it again like this. That fury was the only thing that had stood against this monster before, riding that power like a saddle on a thundercloud… it had been… it had been too much… hadn't it?

Fire licked at his arm again. He swore and heaved himself up on his good arm, forcing his legs to roll him across the table and slide to the floor, away from the flames that even now caught on the timber in the walls.

Can't stop the fire. No more home… doesn't matter. He screwed his eyes shut to drown out the pain as he staggered upright. Homes can be rebuilt. Find Malon. Save her from the… thing.

No sword…

He swore again, feeling the golden gaze watching him from under the floor. You want to though, don't you?

He snarled at the voice in his head. It didn't feel like his thoughts.

No choice…

He stumbled through the dust and shattered timber on the floor.

Don't keep lying to yourself, the intruding voice snapped. You want to ride that lightning again. You stood on equal footing with the gods, and it took their interference to hobble you afterwards. Don't you want to taste that again?

Not in the slightest, he snapped back. Never again. He staggered into the room he shared with Malon, flames at his back, pausing for a moment in agonised indecision.

Then why did you keep it?

A roar of frustration burst from him as he heaved the bed aside with one good arm, muscles straining.

You wanted this.

A fist smashed the floorboard, small bones fracturing, the pain barely registering in the storm in his mind. The eyes stared back at him through the sack. Had it known? Was that why it had been in his dreams? The painted gaze drilled right through him.

Finally.