The lamp light shone brightly in Link's eyes, blinding him. Noises beat into his head, ridiculously loud, giving him a headache. He was on his back, and the pain was unbearable. He groaned, feeling blood trickle down out of the corner of his mouth. Lifting his right hand, his only hand, he covered his eyes and tried to see.

The room erupted into sound. Around him, people rushed in and out of his line of vision. They wore white or blue tunics, their faces covered by cloth. His hand was forced back down and strapped in place. He closed his eyes against the harsh glare of the lights. His head swam and he caught tidbits of conversation.

"He's awake! Dammit, he said his spell would last longer than this," a man said loudly to his left. "Someone put him under again! And quickly, before he moves about!"

"His heartbeat is slowing down!" a woman on his right. "He's fading quickly!"

"Goddesses dammit!" said a gruff voice.

Link opened his eyes and found himself looking into a dark face, dark red eyes shining back at him, framed by glasses. The blood rushed in his ears and he felt like throwing up. He coughed instead, spattering blood onto the man's face. The man flinched slightly, pausing only to wipe the blood from his lenses, but otherwise ignored him.

"He's no doubt bleeding from within and his left hand has been cut off at the wrist," the same man continued. He walked out of his line of vision, only to return moments later. "I'm going to spell you to sleep again, alright?" he said to Link now. The Hylian hardly had any strength yet, and none to complain otherwise.

Link could feel the gauntlet on his arm being pulled off, and the fabric of his under shirt was rolled roughly up his arm. Something pricked his in the crook of his arm, the pain barely registering among his more serious wounds. His head rolled off to one side, and caught sight of several machines, their displays lit up and beeping. Someone gently turned his head and place a mask over his mouth. Link coughed at the foul smelling air, but he breathed it in anyway, unable to fight back. Suddenly, he grew tired; unable, and unwilling to fight it off, he drifted into restless sleep.

He stood in a large oval room, was surprised to see that it was the throne room in Hyrule Castle he'd grown familiar with over the years. It was strangely quiet and although the room was in perfect condition, something felt wrong. All around him, he noticed people standing, their heads bowed, swaying slightly as they approached him, now seated in what should have been the King's throne.

The person closest to him drew back their hood; Ilia stared at him with empty eyes as she placed a box at his feet. Picking it up with his left hand, which was strange enough on its own, he opened the simple chest and was surprised to see it was the whistle she had given him nearly two years ago.

"Ilia," he said, his voice oddly gravelly. "What's happening, why are you here?"

"Only to serve you, my Lord," she said, her pale saddened face splotched red by crying. She walked away, and one by one, the crowd drew back their hoods, revealing them all to be friends and people he had met on his many journeys. Most were crying silently, or standing defiantly with their eyes shining the sadness within.

They're mourning someone, he realized as he stood. People turned to look at him, and he gazed over the crowd. Everyone looked at him with disdain, nothing but pure hatred permeating through each of them. The crowd parted to show one figure, a small boy standing resolutely, tears streaming down his face.

"I will never bow down to you," Colin said, his voice wavering with emotion. He withdrew a knife from his pocket. Afraid the boy was going to attack him, Link backed up, Bulblins surrounding him in an instant. They did not attack him, but seemed to surround him, as if to protect him.

Colin held the small blade in his hand, and looked sadly to his right. Following his gaze, Link watched in horror and fascination as the crowd parted again, revealing his corpse, beheaded and lying in a pool of dried blood. He gasped once, his voice deep and sinister. His gaze went back to Colin, just as the boy drew the blade across his throat. Rushing forward, he stopped as another hooded figure stared at him.

Midna? No, it's not possible! He watched in silence as she pulled a mirror from within her robes, and brought it to his face. Ganondorf stared back at him through the glossy surface, his gaze murderous. He smiled maliciously and Link's screams echoed throughout the castle.

If not for the horrid nightmare that woke his mind, Link was sure that the sudden and jarring scraping of wood would have. Although it was a brief sound, it pounded through his head. He tried to sit up, but found his body strangely unresponsive. He shivered, feeling sick. His body felt hot and he sweated profusely. He moaned as his head swam.

"He's waking," someone murmured from a far, their voice only ever so slightly breaking through Link's fevered mind.

Link felt a hand on his forehead and opened his eyes. At first he thought he was blind; everything was black and formless. His sight returned in waves; he caught white flashes as something crossed his face. Something neared him and only then did the darkness fade away. Red eyes stared at him, attentive and focused. Link's eyes widened as he stared back.

"You've got a fever," the man mumbled. He disappeared from Link's view, and he heard noise ensue from somewhere far away. The man returned, this time on his left. He looked at Link with a grim face, sighing. "You've got one helluva fight in you, I'll give you that."

Ganondorf... Link's mind processed that one, singular word that had been the bane of his existence for many years. A wave of nausea took him over and he closed his eyes, trying to calm himself. It can't be... he managed to think. He opened his eyes again, only to discover his sight was fading again. Unable to take any more of it, Link let himself go, red eyes watching him as he fell into darkness.