A/N: I'd like to start off by saying, thanks for the fucking brutal reviews. Although some ripped at my heart strings, I endured them nonetheless. It is not as if I was oblivious to the fact that the majority of you were going to be pissed off by my final chapter. It wasn't my intention, just the way things turned out. I cannot explain why I had the sudden notion to have Dark crushed alive. Shit happens. Hopefully this epilogue will cheer many of you up. I didn't mean to strike so many nerves.
Epilogue
Link quickly realized why Dark had not wanted him to remove the large boulder from on top of his withered body. It was difficult to keep from vomiting as he stared at the blood bath beneath, littered with crushed bones and tattered flesh. However, he kept a strong stomach for he was not going to let his lover's body rot in this hell hole. Link already knew exactly where he was going to take him.
Zelda could not bear to look at the deceased man so she had returned to the Temple of Time to discuss the future plans of Hyrule with Sheik. Navi followed her, knowing very well she was not wanted given the current circumstances. As Link trudged slowly down the bare streets of the deserted town he barely noticed the lack of redeads and monsters that once roamed there. They had disappeared with the King of Evil. That wasn't important to him now. As he was walking he could see Sheik in the corner of his eye standing on the steps in front of the temple watching him. Link didn't stop or call out to him but continued what was going to be a very long walk to Lake Hylia.
He could have teleported the two of them to the destination but the memory was all too familiar. Link considered taking Dark to a fairy fountain to see if they could possibly do anything to help him but he already knew the answer. This wasn't a stab wound or heat stroke. His entire lower half had been mutilated and even if they could bring him back he knew he would be paralyzed at the least and Dark wouldn't want that. Dark understood his fate when he took his first steps into Ganon's Castle and he accepted it bravely.
His skin had since gotten very cold, almost freezing to the touch. Completely opposite from the warm and comforting sensation it used to give off. He suddenly looked extremely weak, pale and limp but one thing that remained the same was that faint curve of his lips. Link was beginning to despise it.
It was morning by the time the gates in front of the lake came into view; however, Link was paying no attention to the time or the hour. He wasn't thinking about future plans for his life or what he was going to do next. He just didn't care anymore. Motivation and endurance were things of the past. His happiness had died with Dark. Link had spent the majority of his childhood alone, and after he met Dark he had built his whole life around him. Now that had changed, and he was scared… really fucking scared. It wasn't just about being lonely, he felt defeated and wronged, as if something had been taken away from him, ripped right from his grasp.
Link quickly noticed the lake had lost some of its beauty. The water didn't glisten the same and the sun didn't shine quite as bright as it used to. The grass wasn't as green and the serene atmosphere that had once given him peace now made him anxious. He glanced wearily around for a nearby tree and then remembered there being a perfect one amongst one of the small islands in the middle of the lake. He shifted Dark in his arms to get a better grip and marched tiredly across the wooden bridge, twitching every time the wood creaked.
Link considered removing the stone that rested here, the one that foretold about the fire arrows but that would be vandalism. Dark would just have to rest peacefully amongst it. Link set him down gently to rest against the trunk of the tree while he stared forlornly at the spot in which he was going to start digging.
He could have walked to the scientist's laboratory and asked him for a shovel. Or he could have used his megaton hammer to help break up the ground. Hell, he could have even used his sword but instead he dropped to his knees on top of the designated spot and began to dig his fingers into the dirt, ripping through the grass and clawing out chunks of the ground. This was going to be a labor of love, and he wasn't quite ready to bury him yet. As he was digging he failed to notice a familiar blonde in blue tights perked on top of the roof of the laboratory spying on him.
Sheik was a bit disturbed at the route Link had taken to bury his companion yet didn't speak out against it. What was even more bothersome was the conversation Link was having with his dead lover.
"Remember… the time," Link grunted as he flung a chunk of dirt behind him. He wiped his brow and burrowed his hands back in, "We were breaking into the Gerudo fortress? And… and…" Link then began to laugh, quietly at first, but then progressively louder, "You, you always had the best ideas! Who would have thought a deku nut would become so useful… and then we made a break for it and were surrounded… and… and… you left me."
Link suddenly stopped laughing and Sheik could feel a shiver of trepidation shoot through his spine at the sudden abruptness and cold tone in his voice. He started to squint his eyes into the distance and noticed Link staring blankly at Dark, shake his head, and then begin digging again.
"But you came back for me," Link stated eventually after a long moment of silence, "You always come back for me."
Sheik watched Link for hours through the sunset and the sunrise. It wasn't until early the next morning after a painful show of Link talking to the dead and working himself senseless that he had finally dug a hole deep enough for a body to fit. The blonde pulled himself out of the hole and threw himself onto his back to rest. He was panting heavily and had since removed his tunic that was drenched in sweat. At any time he could have taken a break to cool himself off in the lake but he declined.
Dark was beginning to look more dead by the hour, if that was even possible. His smile had since faded and every now and then Link would frantically scramble over to place his hands on his cheeks and examine his face as if he could have sworn he saw him blink or move. At one point during the night due to Dark's dead weight and the steady wind he had toppled over which sent Link screaming like a maniac. Sheik endured the shrill wail until it finally ceased minutes later. Link spent the next half hour grabbing at Dark's hands and shaking his shoulders whispering words like, "Wake up." And "I know you're there."
As painful as it was to watch, Sheik wasn't leaving until he knew for sure Link wasn't going to do anything risky or self detrimental. After a few seconds of some much needed rest, Link crawled slowly over to Dark and began to remove his sword. He had decided to keep it for himself so that he would have somewhat of a memento to remember him by. He let Dark be buried with his shield since it had once belonged to Link. He scrambled through Dark's pockets until he pulled out a tan and green ocarina. He glanced from the instrument to Dark a few times before placing it gingerly within his pale hands, closing his fingers around to secure it. He then lifted Dark up bridal style and placed him ever so gently into the ground.
Link stood up and peered down into the hole, shifted his gaze to the pile of dirt to his side and slowly began to kick and slide the dirt in. He was about halfway done when he began to panic. He leaped back into the hole and began frantically clawing the dirt back out until he could see Dark again. He threw his arms around his body and began to let out that horrific shriek again, screaming, "No!" and "Please!" too many times for Sheik to count. There were many times when he suspected he should intervene yet he couldn't bring himself to get involved. Link would have despised him for it.
Link's voice was beginning to grow hoarse from all of his yelling and eventually Sheik watched him crawl back out, covered in sweat, tears, snot, and dirt and began to cover Dark up again, this time successfully. Once he was finished, he surprisingly did not spend much more time there. He stared for a few more seconds and with that began to drag his feet back across the bridge. Sheik lowered himself further back on the roof to keep from being seen and watched as Link slowly walked to the exit of the lake, dragging Dark's sword behind him.
Link was not prepared to return home. He should have gone back to Zelda and had her care for him for a few days or perhaps taken refuge in Kakariko Village; but, against his better judgment he returned back to forest only to fall into an even deeper depression. He avoided the stares of the forest children, carefully maneuvering through the woods so he wouldn't have to talk about his battle with the Evil King. When he approached his house, a fair amount of calmness washed over him. He took a steady breath and slowly pushed his front door open.
And there in the middle of his floor, lay the biggest reminder that he was all alone and Dark was now gone forever: the pile of blankets and pillows in which they had shared many of their nights together. An old tunic of Dark's along with a pair of blood stained tights were sprawled to the side. The whole room reeked of Dark and in a fit of anger Link went on meaningless rampage, picking up Dark's things and the things they shared together and cramming them in a nearby drawer. He glanced to Dark's sword leaning against the wall, and out of angst picked it up, and chunked it under his bed, "Be gone, with the rest of you…"
He tore off his clothes, kicked off his boots and flopped down on his old bed that was too small, too cramped, and too hard to sleep in. He eventually succumbed to his inner wishes, and yanked the sheets, blankets, and pillows out of the drawer and placed them back in their original spot. He even reached under his bed to retrieve Dark's sword and placed it gingerly on his side of the bed.
Link rolled onto his back and gazed at the stars through his window. He was too tired to cry yet too tired to sleep. He laid there for hours, glancing to make sure Dark's sword was still there every twenty minutes before he finally fell into unconsciousness. At some point during the night, Link felt a cold breeze brush against his face. Cranky and irritated he pulled the covers over his head and curled into the fetal position only to have the blanket ripped off of him. Link instantly whipped around to his side to see Dark's sword was missing. In a frenzy he began glancing frantically around his room and once he was determined no one was in the building with him he began rummaging through his things, tossing everything around in a hunt for Dark's sword.
"Looking for this?"
Link froze. Every hair on his body was standing on end and he could feel his heart drop lower than his stomach. He was too scared to move, too scared to turn around. That voice. It was…
"Dark." Link stated while still facing the other direction. He slowly began to turn around, fearing what he might see. Once he had completely performed a 180 he witnessed Dark's sword suspended in the air for only a second before it fell to the ground with a clank. Link stumbled backwards in shock, falling to the ground and scooting quickly away from the weapon. He was breathing heavily, his heart racing beyond control, and his vision was distorting until everything was a mere blur. Through all the confusion he saw the silhouette of a ghostly figure stepping forward, kneel down in front of him, and whisper in his ear, "Fear not, my love. I'm still here."
Link instantly fainted from distress. When he awoke the next morning he was convinced it had all been a dream until he looked around at the mess he'd created the night before from fumbling through his things. As he scanned the area his eyes fell upon Dark's sword in front of the door way where he'd seen it fall the previous night. That day he returned to Lake Hylia and placed the sword on top of Dark's grave.
The rest of the week was extremely stressful and draining to poor Link who only wanted to relax. He locked himself up in his house, never once venturing outside except for when he needed some water. He'd stopped eating days ago. Zelda had sent many letters asking Link to please come visit her so they could discuss the rebuilding of Hyrule. He ignored all of them for he'd already done enough for the sweet little princess. Weird things were still happening around his house. Many times during the night he'd wake to footsteps, a cool breeze, or a faint whispering in his ear. It was driving him absolutely mad.
Sheik had stopped by for a quick visit one afternoon and was absolutely shocked with the hero's appearance. He was lanky without any muscle build, obviously emaciated from the lack of food. His eyes were sunken in; a dark purple ring surrounded the blue orbs. He'd also been biting his fingers nails to the point they would begin to bleed and the tips were stained a dark crimson. His hair was long and disheveled and he mostly lounged around without a shirt staring out his window. Sheik had brought him some food and water and wished him well. Link barely spoke a word during his visit and when he did it had nothing to do with the conversation and was rarely directed towards Sheik himself.
One night Link was curled up on his bed staring at a drawer on the other side of the room. Every now and then he heard a thump in that direction and the knob in the front, loose from age, would jiggle. All of his weapons he'd used during his adventure of being the hero of time were placed upon it and he was watching carefully thinking one might fall. Link had gotten used to the odd things happening around his house. He'd killed the King of Evil. He was not afraid of ghosts. At one point there was a large bang that caused Link to jump ever so slightly, and also sent a familiar purple item sliding closer to the edge. Another bang and it was nearly falling off. Once Link realized how valuable the item was he stood to his feet to retrieve it and just as he was approaching the dresser it fell, sending Link stumbling to the ground to catch it.
It was the lens of truth. He glanced around suspiciously, ignoring the cold breeze he could feel grazing across his back. He flipped the item around in his grasp, gazing through its glass when he saw a flash of black dash across the small circular window into the other world. He stumbled backwards a bit from the shock and sat down at the edge of his bed. He took a deep breath before raising the lens of truth level with his eyes. There, standing on the other side of the room with a hand on his hip while tapping his foot was no other than Dark.
"Took you long enough." He muttered through a grin. Link was speechless, he just continued to gawk with his mouth agape, his heart beating faster than a field mouse, "Aren't you going to welcome me into your humble abode?" Dark chuckled while prancing merrily to Link's side, flopping on the bed and resting his hands behind his head. Link moved his head to the side to gaze beyond the lens to see an impression of a figure in his bed. He tilted his head back to center to see Dark sitting there with the same familiar smirk, "You aren't doing well for yourself, blondie."
"Dark… I," Link stuttered while reaching out his hand to touch Dark's knee, only to be thoroughly disappointed when he didn't feel a thing, only the sheets of his bed.
"Don't bother sweetheart," Dark stated a bit solemnly, "As far as physical contact goes… I'm just a breeze of cold air."
"How are you here right now?" Link finally asked after a few minutes of painful silence.
"I'm a tortured soul!" Dark cried out over dramatically with a hand over his heart, "Who can't be put to rest!"
Link didn't enjoy the joke and maintained his blank expression, "Why are you here?"
The look on Dark's face was hard for Link to look at and he eventually turned away. The question had obviously pained him beyond measure. Although it wasn't practical, Dark was convinced Link would be at least a little happy to see him. The grief quickly changed to anger and Dark's red eyes began to glow fiercely like a ghoul, now twice as intimidating by his ghostly figure.
"I've come to give you a message, hero." He stated firmly before standing to his feet and brushing himself off, although it was rather pointless. He was obviously not accustomed to living life—or death amongst the poes.
"Don't call me that—
"I'll call you what I want." Dark snapped through clenched teeth, "Have you read any of those letters Zelda has sent you?"
"No… what does that have to do—
"They look opened to me."
"I only read the first couple of sentences… why?" Link was growing uncomfortable holding up the lens and switched arms.
"She wants to send you back in time," Dark began, holding up a hand when he noticed Link about to protest, "It's the only way to fully restore Hyrule to its previous state."
"I can't go back." Link replied simply with a shrug of his shoulders, "I just can't. I… I won't."
"It's for the betterment of Hyrule." Dark retorted with arms crossed.
"Since when do you care?" Link retaliated a bit too harshly, quickly covering up his mouth afterward.
"I don't." Dark snorted, "But I do care about a pissy little blonde boy who had better stop giving me shit before I bitch slap you from another realm!"
Link remained quiet.
"Look at you. You're a mess. You can't go on much longer living like this. You're going to die and when you finally come to the other side I'm going to give you the bitching of a lifetime. Quit moping around and take care of yourself for goddess' sake. You're not the only one who's alone now."
Still Link did not speak.
"You need to start over, Link. Sometimes it's easier to just forget and leave things in the past. Time is going to keep going whether you like it or not."
"You know you're completely contradicting yourself by telling me to return to the past to forget my past right." Link muttered with a small laugh.
"For the love of Din, you know what I mean! Past, future, ocarina of time! I'm sick of it. You know what you have to do. I hope you make the right decision. It's what I would want…" Dark trailed off while looking away from Link's gaze.
"Well, if you're going to guilt trip me I guess I have no other choice right?" Link teased with a slight grin.
"Correct." Dark replied with a smirk, "Just trust me on this."
"How many times have I heard that before?" Link had to force out a laugh. It was just like old times. All he wanted was to speak to Dark again, and he was getting that chance.
"And how many times have I been right? On second thought, why dwell on the details. So buck up buttercup and go see Zelda tomorrow."
"Alright."
"You swear?"
"Yes…"
"Swear on this ocarina." Dark demanded while whipping out the tan and green object from his ghostly pocket.
"How can you have that? I buried you with it."
"In a lovely spot, might I add!" Dark gushed, "I couldn't have picked one better… and I don't know how all this ghost shit works man! How can poes carry around lanterns? You should know this whole world just denies the laws of physics…"
Link bust into a fit of laughter. He had certainly missed Dark's sense of humor, "So I suppose I won't be seeing you again after this?..."
Dark's face fell a bit but he tried to keep a smile, "I'm afraid not darling."
"I suppose that's alright. Are the goddesses treating you well?"
"You try living with three women who have the power to rule the world!" Dark cried out while waving his hands in the air, "But I must get going sweetheart…"
Dark took a few steps forward and placed a kiss on Link's forehead. All he felt was an ice cold breeze. The next day, he set off to talk to Zelda.
"All I have to do… is return the sword to the pedestal?" Link asked with a shaky breath as he approached the sacred sheath.
"That's it!" Zelda confirmed, nodding her head with joy. She was thrilled Link had decided to go along with the plan, "I'll take care of the rest!"
"Stay safe, hero." Sheik called from Zelda's side. Link replied with a smile and nod. He turned back around to face the stone structure he was all too familiar with. He raised his arms high in the air, the master sword still in his clutches, and placed it one last time back to where it belonged. He turned quickly to wave goodbye to Zelda and Sheik as the blue light quickly enveloped his body.
Once he had returned to the past, he noticed the sword had disappeared. That was his only connection to his time with Dark and Zelda had removed it from the world. He was never to return to the dark ages of Hyrule. As he stepped outside of the temple, into the bright shining sun, he noticed everything was exactly how he'd left it. There wasn't a care in the world amongst the citizens of Hyrule. They would never know what could have become there fate. Link made his way through the bustling crowd of the market towards Hyrule field where he would make one more stop before leaving the country of Hyrule forever.
He'd already made his decision that he needed to move on and make a new life for himself, somewhere that wasn't here. There was just one more place he needed to go.
He knew Dark's grave would no longer be there, but that didn't mean he couldn't relive there memories one last time. As he was approaching Lake Hylia he glanced down at his wrist and was thrilled to find that he still had his bracelet Dark had given him. The tiny blue earring was sparkling in the sun and the leather strap was worn with time.
As he approached the bridge he could hear somebody laughing in the distance. He squinted out towards the island and saw a kid taking a toll on the tree with his sword where Dark had been buried. Anger began to boil within Link's body and he yelled out to the intruder, "HEY! KID, CUT THAT OUT!"
The boy ignored him and continued to slice and dice amongst the burial ground. Link grew furious and sprinted across the bridge in a frenzy. Once he'd reached the island he instantly tackled the other boy to the ground. They began rolling across the dirt, squirming and flailing legs and arms in all directions until finally Link had the boy pinned down.
"Don't you have any fucking manners! This place is very important to me and I don't appreciate you, going sword happy on old tree! This is a memorial for my—
Link tilted his head to the side, examining the boy beneath him. His dark hair was swaying gently in the breeze and his eyes… those eyes. Red as the fires of hell. Red as a beating heart. Passionate, fiery, loving red. Could it be? The boy just grinned from ear to ear, his pearly fangs glistening in the light. The pale boy squirmed a bit, furrowing his brow as if he were thinking of something witty to say when finally he muttered,
"I told you not to give up just yet. I was sure you would be as pleased to see me, as I am to see you."
A/N: Now if that doesn't tickle your fancy, I don't know what does. Those last words were said in the water temple yet on different circumstances. So… yeah. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it. A Dark Truth is FINISHED! WOOO!
