They left, their destination towards the tower over the cliff's edge. From there they would summon the Goddesses and finally return to their own world. Link watched them for a short moment, taking in the last sight of his friends, as well as Kagome held tightly in the half demon's arms, unaware of his final goodbye.

It was the only right thing to do. Link wouldn't belong in their world, not as he was now. Without a real body to call his own, he was just a wandering spirit, lost in this purgatory, waiting for acceptance to claim him. For years he hid from that fact unknowingly, and it had slapped him across the face only recently. That pain remained upon his chest almost suffocating.

"I've been waiting centuries for this moment…" Armaros's voice rang out in all bitterness, his amethyst eyes glowering at Emmett from beside Link. "For what you've done to this desolate land! For destroying the dream of a peaceful reality!" Armaros remembered it like it was yesterday. The day Emmett had lost his mind to the hellish mask and brought destruction to their Kingdom.

Flashback

"Emmett, do you realize what you've done?" The sorcerer questioned as he prepared a sudden battle stance. In truth, he'd been following Emmett since their encounter with the demon last night. When he had learned Emmett had stolen a cursed mask with a living demon trapped inside it, not to mention it had Emmett doing its evil bidding, it caused his blood to boil. "Do you realize just what kind of catastrophe you've laid upon this Kingdom?"

Emmett only feigned innocence. "Catastrophe? I don't know what you're talking about. How could you think something so foul of me, Armaros?" He asked with an arched brow, but he had a feeling his suspicions of his follower was the one standing before him. "Have you been stalking me since our broken ritual last night?"

"Indeed. And as of right now, you shall hand over that demon atrocity. This is not the way in which our elder wished for the King's demise!" He voiced in a harsh whisper so as not to alert the citizens of their bickering. He moved closer to Emmett, watching the younger sorcerer back away a step before standing a few feet apart where he could faintly hear his breathing. "To put our own people, nay, our own Kingdom in such jeopardy, why I would think that'd be the last thing on your mind!"

He scoffed at this. "I warn you, Armaros. Don't get in my way." Emmett didn't want a fight to escalate within the city. There were too man eyes and ears around, and the thought of losing his mask brought great protectiveness upon it.

When Armaros had failed to back down on his intention to stop Emmett from continuing to use the demon mask, Emmett had attempted to use his powers to cause a form of distraction so he could escape, but it had not gone as planned. Armaros had seen straight through him and had conjured up a small spell to literally stop Emmett in his tracks.

Armaros's plan to retrieve the mask from him seemed almost a reality, but something strange happened. The power emitting from the demon mask had stilled him in his tracks so much so that he thought he saw the eyes on the relic glow. Emmett was immediately consumed by a strange red aura, as if he weren't in absolute control of himself, and before Armaros knew what to expect, Emmett had somehow broke free of his spell.

One after the other and quite ruthlessly, Armaros found himself dodging countless spells thrown at him from the young sorcerer. The screams of the civilians who had been protesting only recently had suddenly fled from the unexpected fight, screaming frightfully.

"Emmett what are you doing?! Stop this!" Armaros cried out as he attempted to put a stop to his out of control rival. The people of Ikana were now in danger of Emmett. It seemed however that Emmett was aware of what he was doing, and because of his defiance to hand over the mask, he was embracing the powers emitting from the relic.

Armaros didn't want this. Of course he was all for having the King step down from his supremacy over the Kingdom, but never had he ever wanted for something of this magnitude to occur. He knew what Emmett was doing and he certainly realized at this moment just what the sorcerer was capable of with that dangerous mask in his possession. Armaros had to put a stop to this. If not him, then who? For all he knew, Emmett could plunge this entire Kingdom to hell in a matter of hours or worse!

"Emmett!" Armaros shouted as he once again dodged another spell. In horror, he watched as a large statue shattered on impact from the fire ball, its shards flying through the air as the citizens cried out in surprise trying to escape from their paths.

This was proving too much!

With his strongest spell in hopes of subduing Emmett, Armaros pulled his spell book from out of his sleeved cloak before opening the pages. At the same time, he continued to side step away from the attacks, often times teleporting out of Emmett's reach.

"I warned you…" Armaros seethed before a blinding light erupted from his spell book. In a matter of seconds, a blast of dark energy sped directly for Emmett, and as Emmett dodged the attack, he hadn't expected for it to continue to follow him. Armaros stood there, as well as many of the people, watching as Emmett fled from the dark energy chasing after him.

Emmett jumped from roof to roof, to statue to pillar, attempting to rid himself of the annoying spell. As he turned left, he locked his gaze with the Palace that sat across the river before him. He heard the mask grasped tightly in his hand; it was talking to him; it incited him to do it, and Emmett did just that.

At the last possible instant, the young sorcerer leapt into the river to avoid the collision of the dark energy, and after re-emerging from the stream, he heard from behind impact onto the Palace.

The citizens cried out in fright and surprise at the attack upon the Palace gate as Emmett crawled out of the stream, the mask held tightly in his grasp. He turned around and smiled in satisfaction. Part of the Iron Gate had broken away and a large hole was seen within one of the walls of the Palace, smoke immediately rising into the sky.

Almost forgetting that he had been in battle with his rival, Emmett didn't expect the sorcerer to hit him from behind before it was too late. He hit the ground quite roughly and as he quickly went to pick himself up, he realized the mask was gone.

His scarlet eyes looked up into Armaros's, and he saw the triumphant smirk spread across his face. He was holding the mask. HIS mask! At that moment he would have lunged for him, but he realized his chance to steal the mask back would prove futile. Already the Royal Guards were on the scene, running towards the chaos he and Armaros had created.

When Armaros saw that the Royal Guards had arrived, he immediately hid the mask within his cloak before turning to where Emmett was last standing, but he was gone.

Armaros felt his eye twitch at this. He ran away! Well whatever the case, at least the mask was out of his reach for the moment. Yet before he could turn and explain the situation, he was suddenly apprehended by the officials, with each guard holding him by each arm while the others held their swords unsheathed before him.

The Royal Guards parted as a tall and slender amazon woman approached him, and she too had her sword unsheathed. She saw that the man was dressed in a suspicious looking dark cloak and he wore a golden crown atop his forehead. She saw how the crowd had separated themselves from the young man and as she accessed him from a few feet away, she felt great magic flooding through his veins. "Judging by the citizens' reactions, are you the one responsible for this mess?"

Someone in the crowd had cried out suddenly. "I saw him do it! He demolished the statues and used dark magic on the Palace gate!"

Armaros turned to look into the crowd with disbelief. "It was not my intention to! The true culprit ran away at the last second!"

"Witnesses claim you are guilty of attacking the Palace and causing turmoil within the city!" Roshan exclaimed bitterly.

Armaros kept his glare focused onto the Royal Guard. "It was not my fault! I was trying to stop him from—"

Roshan glared. "Silence! You will be judged for your actions before his Majesty. Make no mistake about that!" Yet, before the guards dragged him into the Palace for his sentencing, Roshan stopped them and approached the young man with spiked curiosity and genuine worry. "What is this power…You have something of tremendous evil hidden away in your cloak."

He swallowed. "Yes. Please, take it and destroy it! It's caused nothing but despair, I assure you!"

The Royal Guard sent him a confused look when he said this, but she was even more confused when he was willing to give it up entirely after his arrest. "Is that so?" Though he did not protest, she searched his cloak and she felt her fingers slide across something jagged and rough. To her surprise she withdrew a strange and terrifying mask from his person, its eyes somehow piercing her soul; it left her feeling very uneasy.

"Please, burn it! Cast it away in shadow never to return to this world!" Armaros pleaded earnestly, and it only confused and worried Roshan further.

'Just what is this mask anyway?' Roshan thought. After reading the stares of the guards around her, Roshan turned her thoughts away from the mask. "Disable his powers."

The Royal Magic Users, who had been standing along the side lines, approached the young man surrounded by the Palace guards. With their powers combined, they placed a seal upon his form. After which, he was dragged towards the Palace with Roshan leading the way.

End flashback

Eventually a terrible catastrophe befell the Kingdom that very night as he was locked away in the dungeons beneath the palace. He sensed it was the ruthlessness of the mask's powers that brought forth spilled blood of the Royal Family, and inevitably, his own death when the earth shook, and he succumbed to suffocation and crushed limbs.

"I never meant for things to happen as such!" Emmett, however displayed his remorse and feigned ignorance to the sorcerer, his defiance to admit the truth, urging Armaros to scoff. "It was the mask. I succumbed to its wickedness, not fully understanding its powers, and I admit I was at fault for the destruction of this land, but we must put this behind us, Armaros!"

Armaros raised his hand up to his face as if examining it briefly. "It's all behind us? We should forget about the past?" He inquired, causing Emmett to swallow nervously. "It's more than that, Emmett. Lives were lost that day. And what's more, you went against our tribesman…" He scoffed, clenching his fist suddenly. "To think you managed to live for such a long time after, and in your possession, you still keep the mask? You still haven't learned your lesson."

That wasn't true. He still regretted his actions back then. Because of his mischief, he led Termina to what it was now. "I did not mean for you to lose your life, Armaros. I am still repenting. I have been for a millennium…"

"I tire of your lies!"

In an instant, a tremendous wave of energy surrounded Armaros, so strong that it caused the earth to shake violently around them. However, Emmett was quick to react, easily putting up a force field around himself and Link. The power that resonated from the sorcerer easily destroyed everything around them, however it wasn't strong enough to hold for long before shattering.

Emmett narrowed his eyes, his fingers nimbly turning the pages in his book. Armaros was surprisingly stronger than he once thought. A spell left his lips within seconds and a ring of fire sped at Armaros, unfortunately Armaros teleported out of harm's way before reappearing behind them.

When Link turned to block an oncoming attack, he was caught off guard when he saw Emmett immediately, and with great speed, block the attack aimed for them. As he stood there, almost dumbfounded, he watched helplessly as the two battled one another, appearing as fast blurs in battle. It was almost impossible to discern what was transpiring before him, but Link kept his guard up, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

So Emmett expected him to believe his words, just like that? From the very beginning, Emmett was the odd one within their tribe, always mysteriously disappearing and reappearing, feigning an innocence to their people, but Armaros saw through his disguise. Emmett wore many faces, and he used his talent to confuse his opponents and loved ones.

Armaros leapt out of Emmett's intended attack, and stood hovering a short distance from the duo, his hand burning with an immense dark flame. "I truly believed we wished for the same future of Ikana. However, you turned your back against all of us. Now look at what you've done! You say you regret your past mistakes, but you have not been forgiven!"

Baffled by the words exchanged between rivals, Link glanced at the peddler beside him. Before he had only thought the cause of this land's defeat was due to the curse of the mask, but to hear from Armaros that it was Emmett's doing, surprised him. Emmett didn't deny it, and this led Link to ponder slightly. It was a fight against good and evil, and Armaros saw Emmett and possibly himself as the evil ones.

As if hearing Link's troubled thoughts, Emmett suddenly spoke. "I was so overwhelmed with power and greed, and with the mask in my possession, nothing seemed impossible, Link. When I learned of a secret tribe spying on our Nation, I killed their men and blamed it on our King. The war upon the land was in fact my doing."

Link's eyes widened at this. It was a complicated misunderstanding, and Armaros was none the wiser. These two would fight to the death, and Link realized now this was not his battle, but theirs. Link found himself at a crossroads of decisions; either he could fight alongside Emmett or he could allow the fight to commence without his presence there. The only problem was he didn't know how long the fight would last or if it would give his friends enough time to summon the Goddesses. No. He had to help Emmett. Misunderstanding or not, this had to stop. He lost Serena because of this entire ordeal; this wasn't just Emmett's fight; it was also his.

Armaros scoffed. "See how he admits the truth? When our world plunged into darkness, what did you do after? You ran away with the mask. You never thought twice about saving anyone or myself for that matter, Emmett. You only thought about your own greed!"

Armaros lunged again at Emmett, completely ignoring Link. This time he managed to hit him, sending the peddler slamming against the canyon wall. The force was enough to leave him sprawled on the ground. With a dark chuckle, Armaros walked towards him, his sword drawn this time.

Seeing this, Link rushed to Emmett's side. Before Armaros got closer, Link stood in his path, his own sword drawn. "That's enough, Armaros. This is nothing but a misunderstanding between you two!"

Picking himself up, Emmett wiped the blood from his mouth and regained his footing. As Link stood between him and Armaros, he thought to himself. It was a misunderstanding, but he didn't deny Armaros's words this time. It was the truth. Back then, he did run away after awakening in the Throne Room. He realized he had become a monster, and fearful, he fled from the room and saw the damage inflicted upon the land from outside. The mask was still held within his hands, and he knew that if he left it by itself, more danger would befall the world. "I was punished by the Goddesses for my sin. My punishment was to wander this world, guarding the mask and carrying the guilt for all eternity."

It was a pitiable punishment, but it wasn't enough to satisfy Armaros. "Then allow me to relieve your torment. I'll put an end to your immortality but I won't promise it won't be long and excruciating. You'll die the same way I did within the prison cells, and after which, I'll revive Ikana from its long slumber…"

At this moment, Link had had enough. He saw the disapproving glare from Emmett to back down, but Link ignored it. He stood at least ten feet away from Armaros, accessing him slightly before scowling. "This fight is not only yours, but also mine. The magic that once dwelled within this land has been eradicated because of your pent up want for vengeance Armaros. While this may only be a misunderstanding between you and Emmett, lives were lost. Let's make that clear. You say you wanted to make your Kingdom a better place to live, but is destroying everything and everyone in your path the right answer?" Link questioned, and at this Armaros was silent, his gaze narrowing at every word.

OOO

After managing to climb the tower with Kirara and Shippo's help, the gang stood at the top, their eyes turned upwards towards the cloudy sky. From there, they saw a swirling green vortex.

"See that?" Inuyasha asked. At his friends' nods, he continued. "That's the portal to the Heavens. The Goddesses are up there." A while back when Kagome, Link and him had traveled back in time, he remembered when Link explained that the three Goddesses resided there after abandoning the land a millennium later.

Miroku felt a sense of contentedness come over him. "It's finally time. I can't remember how long it's been since we've been trapped in this world."

Sango nodded at this before looking back in the direction they left Link. She wondered if he would be okay. He said his final farewells to them, and although he gave Shippo hope that he would return, in truth, she knew he wouldn't. Her honey brown eyes shifted to Kagome, sleeping in Inuyasha's arms. The moment she would wake up, her friend would fall in tears.

"I hope Link will be ok…" Shippo said, looking back. He had heard the multiple explosions while they fled, but he knew Link could take care of himself; after all, he saved him and his friends multiple times, even at the risk of his own life.

Noticing the sadness on his friends' face, Inuyasha felt a heavy pressure on his chest. He didn't like this either, but what else could they do? No. There had to be a way. He promised Link he would find a way to bring him back! "Let's do this."

Sharing Inuyasha's look, Miroku retrieved two of the pendants from his sleeve while Shippo and Sango revealed the others within their open palms. Turning his indigo eyes to the portal above them, he called out the names of the Goddesses. "Farore! Nayru! Din! We call upon your help!"

For a while there was only silence. Nothing happened, and no answer came. A minute went by and still there was no sign of the Goddesses. Had their calls not been heard?

Sango gasped in realization. That was right! "Wait a minute. Didn't the Great Fairy say only one with a pure heart can summon the Goddesses?"

Inuyasha fervently nodded before sweat dropping at Miroku. "There's nothing pure about the monk, that's for sure…"

Miroku was offended. "Just because I might have a cursed hand that goes against my wishes, doesn't mean my heart isn't pure in itself, Inuyasha," He retorted back, but Inuyasha only rolled his eyes.

Sango pondered. Her own heart wasn't as pure either. She had killed multiple demons, as well as humans in the past, and she knew that Inuyasha was just the same. The only others who had spared innocents were Shippo and Kagome.

"I'll do it!" Shippo exclaimed, already reading his friends' expressions. "I'm the only one who can," he replied before stepping towards the middle of the tower. Without any trace of nervousness, the child shouted to the Heavens. "Please help us! Farore, Nayru and Din! We need your help!" He cried.

Minutes rolled by and still there was no answer. An immense tremble of the earth followed and startled, the gang looked around. At first they thought it was the approach of the divine deities, but it wasn't. Instead, it was another explosion and they realized Link and Emmett were caught up in it.

Shippo felt nervous all of a sudden. "Link?!"

Inuyasha tightened his hold on Kagome. He could smell the scent of Link's blood carried upon the wind. He was badly injured. 'I made a promise to him…' Annoyed, Inuyasha turned towards portal above. "Hey! We were told you could help us! Why aren't you answering?!"

His friends looked back at him, their hearts pounding worryingly. Nothing was working as they had hoped. Had they left Link behind for nothing?

Unable to hold back his tears, Shippo cried. This wasn't supposed to happen. "Why won't they come? We have to save Link! We have to get back home!"

As the child's tears fell, splashing upon the surface of the gemmed pendant, a warm energy suddenly resonated from the object. Shippo's mouth opened slightly in curious wonder when the pendant suddenly lifted itself into the air before him and his friends, and to everyone's surprise, the others followed just the same.

It was happening. Their pleas had been heard and were now being answered.

OOO

It had all happened too fast to comprehend, and Link found himself lying upon the cold earth, struggling to regain his standing. Fresh wounds reopened and blood slipped from his lips. Although he had tried to intervene, he was incapable of stopping the sorcerer; he was no match.

Thoughts of Serena surfaced, and Link felt a heavy weight upon his chest. Even attempting revenge was not enough. The battles he had faced within Hyrule and Termina had finally taken their toll on him, and he felt weary. Although he was dead, the pain and weakness he felt were too great to ignore.

"Forgive me … Serena,"

As he laid there, he shifted his blue eyes towards the continuing battle between the two a great distance away. Emmett was almost evenly matched in power to Armaros, and it seemed Armaros was now sporting serious injuries. If he could, Link would pick himself up and aid the sorcerer, but he could not.

Instead, Link turned his gaze up towards the cloudy skies. By now he was sure his friends were summoning the Goddesses. Closing his eyes, he began praying for their return to this cursed world and that his friends would return safely.

Just as he did, he felt a tremendous energy infiltrate his vision, and opening his eyes, he saw a ray of golden light part the dreary skies of Ikana. A weak smile graced his face and he closed his eyes.

OOO

When the clouds parted above the entire sky of Ikana, and an almost blinding golden light flooded their vision, the gang realized their pleas had been answered. Within mere seconds, they were encompassed by the light and they felt a strange sense of freedom and calmness fall upon them within the empty void.

When they opened their eyes, they saw the distinct outline of three tall deities hovering before them, however it was almost impossible to discern their appearance except for the radiant glow encompassing them. The sight was unbelievable and they didn't expect anything less.

When they spoke to the foreigners, they spoke at the same time, their melodious and rich voices echoing within the void. "Why is it you have summoned us to this lost and forgotten world?"

At awe from such a sight, Shippo felt his legs begin to tremble in nervousness. It had worked. They were finally able to return home! He wanted to celebrate right that moment, but the sight of his friends standing tense beside him told him that doing so at that moment would not be appreciated.

Inuyasha didn't bother lowering his voice when he stepped a couple feet closer to the Deities. They questioned why they were summoned? It shouldn't be any more obvious! "First let's get one thing straight! Why the hell did you abandon this world in the first place? Do you know all the hell we went through in order to summon you?! Why the hell did you bring us here in the first place!" In all honesty, all they had accomplished when they arrived in Termina was searching out all the pendants in order to simply summon the Goddesses.

A silence fell between them as the Deities scrutinized the group. They never moved nor turned their heads away, but simply stared at them. "We're afraid you are misguided. It was not our doing that which has brought you to this forgotten world."

The gang was startled by this answer. If it was not the Goddesses that brought them to this world, then by who or what?

"This land … we have abandoned long ago. The wickedness still pours from the soils. Although we need not answer all of your questions, it does seem you are from an entirely different world, outside the dimensions of time."

What the hell were they saying? "You expect us to believe that?! Do you know what we went through all this time?!"

Sango tried imploring Inuyasha to speak more softly to the Deities, but he refused. She sighed and turned to them. "It's just that, we were told by the Great Fairy it must have been your power which brought us here. The world is in peril, Great Deities. We simply want to make our wish and return to our own world."

"Interesting…"

Stirring from her restless sleep, Kagome opened her eyes, her brown gaze shifting around her. She was held tightly within Inuyasha's arms, his gaze glaring directly before him. It was then that Kagome realized they were encompassed by whiteness. Voices were talking at once, as if they were mingled together, and turning her head, her eyes widened. What was going on?

OOO

Struggling to catch his breath, Emmett avoided another attack before leaping back a distance away from a tiring Armaros. This battle wouldn't last for much longer. Looking back in the direction where Link was thrown, he saw the young warrior unmoving and eyes closed near the fallen debris of the canyons.

The power surging from the tallest tower of Ikana weakened Armaros. It was so pure and so strong that it shook his entire core where the Sacred Jewel resided. His dark powers were becoming unclouded, and he realized he could not use his magic any longer. Skeletal hands greeted his eyes and it was then he understood he had lost the battle.

Armaros cursed. "Nooooo this can't be happening! I've come too far and waited too long for this moment!" Armaros glared at Emmett. "It's always been your fault! You should be the one to perish, not I!"

Seeing his chance by Armaros's distraction, Emmett used his teleportation and appeared right behind the skeletal form of his nemesis before shoving his fist into his lower back. Easily he acquired the jewel which had belonged to the priestess and her friends.

After which he watched somewhat disheartened as Armaros's bones turned to dust, his tunic and crown lying upon the ground unmoving. "I'm sorry…"

It was over now.

Moving away from the clothes, Emmett approached Link's fallen body before kneeling beside him. "Link. Can you hear my voice?" He asked, and for a moment he thought the boy hadn't heard him, but when he opened his eyes and shook his head, Emmett smiled. "This is the end of the road Link. It's almost time…"

"Not … yet…" He weakly replied. "Just a little longer…"

Emmett glanced back at the tower in the distance. So Link wanted to wait until his friends finally returned to their own world? He looked back to Link but was taken aback when he saw small tears slipping from his eyes. "Very well, Link. Just a little longer then."

OOO

"What's happening?" The priestess asked, turning to her friends in question and at her voice, everyone turned to her, especially Sango and Shippo.

"Kagome? You're okay!" Sango almost cried, reaching out to touch her shoulder.

Kagome blinked at the slayer and everyone else, however she shrugged off the slayer's hand. What had happened? The last thing she remembered what being ambushed the moment they entered Ikana. Everything else was a blur. "Wait … where's Link?" She asked, realizing he wasn't with them. "What's happening?"

Setting her onto her feet, Inuyasha awkwardly looked away. "He is in battle against Armaros."

Kagome gasped. What? "And you just left him?" And at everyone's hurtful expressions, she guessed right. "I don't understand…"

Jumping onto her shoulder, Shippo decided to clarify everything to his mother. "Well you got kidnapped by Dark Link and you were taken to Armaros. He stole the jewel and suddenly became a lot stronger," He explained and at this Kagome gasped. "Emmett saved you, Link and I after that. But Link stayed behind to help Emmett fight Armaros. We were told to summon the Goddesses."

So that's what happened? Link stayed behind to help, giving her friends enough time to summon the Goddesses. Looking back at the Deities before her, Kagome felt a sense of calmness secreting from them but it did not stop the priestess from her worries. Link. Was he okay? "We have to wait for Link…"

Inuyasha immediately looked at the Goddesses. "After making our wish, we want Link to travel back with us to our world."

Hearing such a demand, the Goddesses looked at one another as if contemplating such a big decision, and after a moment's pause they turned back. "That is impossible."

Impossible? Kagome couldn't believe this. Why was it impossible? "No you don't understand. He has no one here to call family and he lost everything he loved back in Hyrule," She explained. Link would be unhappy staying here, all alone. He had already lost those he loved, and Kagome couldn't bear for him to lose them as well. "Please, there must be a way."

"One without life cannot possibly return to the world of the living. It's impossible."

"What?" Kagome blinked at this. What were they talking about? When she turned back to her friends in question, they all looked away from her remorsefully. "What … do they mean by that? One without life?"

Inuyasha placed a hand upon her shoulder, and she looked back in curiosity. "Kagome … Link didn't want to tell you until he was able … but—"

The look in Inuyasha's eyes scared her. Even her friends wore the same expressions, and Kagome pulled away from Inuyasha's touch and backed away fearfully. "No! He's not dead! How can he? He's alive!" As they continued staring at her pitifully, Kagome found herself walking away, searching for some kind of exit out of this void.

"Kagome wait!" Inuyasha grabbed her arm, but she pulled relentlessly. "Stop!"

She refused to listen. "He's supposed to come with us, Inuyasha. What if he's hurt right now?" After all her friends had abandoned him in battle. Anything could happen. Here he was fighting for his life while everyone else attempted to run away. "We can't just leave him!"

Seeing her friend stubbornly refuse to listen to the truth, Sango couldn't help but fall into tears. If only there was a way to bring Link back with them in complete health, but it was impossible. Even the Goddesses couldn't change such a fate. "Kagome … the truth is … Termina is an afterlife. Link is dead. Just like everyone … in this world," She explained, causing the priestess to still suddenly. "He's always been dead."

Kagome immediately stilled. Dead? Termina was an afterlife? Everyone was dead? No. It couldn't be the truth. "Y-you're lying…" No longer pulling from Inuyasha's hold, Kagome stared at Sango and Miroku. "Why would you say that? Link is alive. The whole world feels alive. How can he be dead, Sango? You can't be in the afterlife if people around us are dying. Serena was alive from the start and she died after saying her farewells. Link is alive Sango. How can he be dead if he is breathing?"

The pain she was feeling was great, and Inuyasha was conflicted by his own emotions. What could be done? Giving her shoulders a comforting squeeze, he spoke softly to the priestess. "I know you don't want to believe it. Hell I didn't believe it at first. We only found out recently from the peddler. He knew about everything…"

Her chest hurt. No. This wasn't happening. Link was definitely alive. How was it possible he was always injured in battles alongside them, almost losing his life? Was this truly purgatory? "This can't be true … it's not fair …"

From the sight of her downcast expression and silent tears, her friends wanted so badly to console her, however they could not allow themselves to reach out to her. They were to blame for keeping this from her, and they felt guilty.

Unable to contain her emotions, her cries became louder. Although the entire conversation was heartbreaking, she couldn't stop herself from crying. Her hands clenched at her sides and she refused to look at the others. "How come everyone gets their happy ending and I'm left with nothing?" Kagome suddenly expressed sorrowfully. It wasn't fair. Although she sounded full of herself, she couldn't help her emotions. "Back home, in the Feudal Era and now here? Miroku hand Sango have each other and Inuyasha has Kikyou, but what about me?"

Inuyasha looked away disheartened but never released her shoulders. He didn't blame her for acting this way. There was a lot he wanted to pour out to everyone else, but he kept himself together. Truthfully, it did seem Kagome had the worst of luck when it came to such, and they understood her feelings entirely.

Unable to hold back her tears, Kagome collapsed onto her knees, covering her face from everyone around her. Shippo immediately jumped from her shoulder and tugged on her blouse, his own eyes welling up in tears. "That's not true. You have me, Kagome. You'll always have me," he replied.

Wiping at her tears, she hugged Shippo to her chest tightly. Although the tears did not stop, she looked up at the Goddesses from her place on the ground. "Is there any way to bring him back to life?"

Inuyasha wasn't surprised to hear this from Kagome. He also wondered how they could bring the boy back, but his friends on the other hand were surprised at her question.

"Kagome, he's dead. He can't come back with us," Sango replied. It was better to just let Link's soul rest in peace.

She couldn't give up. "There's got to be a way, right?" There was always the sacred jewel! It was then she remembered she didn't have it. Armaros had it at the moment, and Kagome frowned. No. Even if they used the power to bring back his life, eventually they would need it back to stop Naraku and return peace to the Feudal Era.

"Your wish is impossible," The Goddesses answered after a moment of silent listening. "Although your arrival into this world is questionable, we cannot stay for much longer. Tell us your desire and once after, we shall return you to your respective world."

More confusion came to Kagome, and she looked at her friends. "Wait, you mean the Goddesses didn't bring us here?"

Inuyasha nodded. "We thought they brought us here to fix their screw up, but it seems it wasn't."

A sudden and familiar laugh echoed within the void, and confused by the laugh, everyone turned around. The Happy Mask Salesman was standing behind them, smiling like always with both arms at his sides. "The truth is, I summoned you here."

What? Everyone couldn't believe their ears. Did they just hear Emmett right? This peddler brought them to this purgatory?

The Happy Mask Salesman went on to explain as he approached the others, including the curious stares of the Deities. "I wished to fix the wrongs I have committed long ago. I admit, I was at fault for everything and it stirred the wickedness of war upon the land," He explained before kneeling before the Goddesses respectfully.

Everyone was silent at this reveal. It made sense, however. The Happy Mask Salesman did possess great powers, but they never would have expected his power was enough to bring people from other worlds to his. They felt they underestimated him.

"I knew there were other heroes in different worlds out there, and I found these who were suited enough for the task. I have lived for many decades and have come to repent my past mistakes."

The Goddesses listened to his words, albeit surprised he was finally repenting. From his words however, he was repenting not only for his own mistakes, but for those in this world.

"I believe it's unfair that everyone else should suffer for something I caused. The people of this world believe they are alive, but the truth is, the curse has killed everything and everyone. So that's why I broke the law and brought these people here. Termina should not be forgotten just because of the selfishness of the beings you have created. There is still good in people," Emmett replied.

Looking back at the gang, Emmett took pity on the crying priestess before shaking his head. "They have risked much and lost a dear companion along the way on their task to save this world. If you must curse someone, then curse me for as long as I remain living. Let this world live in sunlight and not in darkness."

Surprised by his humbleness and his change of heart, The Goddesses made their decision. It did seem he was apologetic for his past mistakes. "You wish to life the curse on this land shall be fulfilled. Emmett, you will no longer be afflicted by the curse, however for your humbleness, you shall instead guide others when their time has come to move on. You should consider it a privilege."

A light much brighter than the Goddesses themselves appeared within their outstretched hands and as they raised it above their heads, the power scattered throughout all of Termina. The light brought forth the blue skies and the Golden Sun. It also brought forth the lush greenery of the environment and the clear waters. And with a flick of Din's fingers, a different power manifested in front of her.

"You wish has been granted. Now it is time to return to your proper places."

Noticing the distress radiating off the priestess, Shippo frowned and touched her wet cheek. "You know I love you, right mommy?" He asked, and at her surprised stare, she nodded, snuggling him close to her. "Then why are you just sitting here? If you hurry, you might be able to make it to Link's side. He's waiting for you. I know it. You can still have your happy ending."

Kagome's tears refused to stop. While the others were distracted by the Goddesses, she focused her attention on the child in her arms. "What about you and everyone else?" Although she had a duty to fulfill back home, she realized her duty was to be with Link one last time.

Shippo grinned at her reply, however he couldn't stop a few tears from falling. "Sometimes we all have to make sacrifices. It's okay. I have Inuyasha and the others. I wouldn't want you to return with us missing Link and feeling sad all the time…" He replied as he wiped her tears away. "You deserve much more, Kagome."

With one final look at Inuyasha, Sango and Miroku, Kagome kissed Shippo's forehead and hugged him one final time. "Take care of yourself. Take care of everyone else. I love you sweetie."

Putting Shippo on the ground beside her, Kagome stood up before backing away from her friends, her vision becoming hazy from her tears. She didn't want to leave her friends, but she couldn't leave Link.

"Run Kagome…" Shippo softly voiced. "Don't look back."

With that small encouragement, she turned and ran through the whiteness. At her retreat, her friends suddenly turned and watched helplessly as she fled.

"Kagome?!" Sango and Miroku cried out.

The only person not surprised by this was Inuyasha, who looked on with a small smile. Although he didn't want to see her go, he couldn't help but cheer alongside Shippo. "Keep running Kagome!"

Sango and Miroku were surprised by their friends, but Inuyasha only looked at them with a smirk. "It's time to head home." As he and everyone else began fading away, he looked over at Emmett before calling out. "Hey, watch over Kagome!"

With a nod, Emmett reached into his pocket and retrieved the Sacred Jewel. With a smile, he tossed it to Inuyasha, who caught it easily. "Don't worry. I'll return her soon enough."

Soon enough, the Goddesses as well as the Inuyasha gang disappeared from the white void, and Emmett turned back in the direction the priestess had fled. She would no doubt become lost within the tower if she continued on blindly. So with a flick of his finger, he decided to assist her.

OOO

When the whiteness of the void disappeared, Kagome found herself at the entrance of the tower. Everything in her surroundings had changed. Rather than seeing the bare canyons and red soils, she saw lush grass and trees everywhere and vibrant and colorful flowers within the vicinity.

"So Termina is finally saved…" It was a relief and while she was thankful, she still felt extremely guilty for abandoning her friends. How could she ever face them again? "I'm sorry…"

Determined to find Link, Kagome quickly sped off through the renewed environment. On her way towards the cliff's edge, where she remembered their ambush, she couldn't help but admire the beautiful scenery.

Everything had changed. It was beautiful, so much so that she couldn't help but cry when she came to a full stop. The castle. The castle where she had befriended Cathleen and met Flat was still dilapidated. If only the Goddesses had reset time, then no one would have suffered such a cruel fate. She hoped Cathleen had found peace after her murder as well as Flat.

Shaking her head, she continued on down the path towards the cliff's edge. If she remembered correctly, they had all been ambushed down in the gorge, and she had a feeling Link was there. When she finally arrived, she stopped and peered down into the ravine at the destruction before her.

The form of Emmett suddenly appeared beside her, and surprised, Kagome jumped. He merely laughed before placing his arms behind his back. "That was very brave of you, priestess. To make such a difficult decision between the man you love and the friends you cherish."

She frowned. It wasn't an easy decision. She practically only said her farewells to Shippo, and her and Sango separated on bad terms. "…" Despite that, Kagome knelt down and began scaling the mountains, much to the peddler's surprise.

While she struggled to descend the cliff's edge near the rushing waterfall, Emmet bent down and grinned at her. "Do you intend to scale this mountain side just to reach Link?"

She nodded. "Do you have a better idea?" She asked, and at his laugh, she watched him extend his hand out towards her. Blinking for a moment, she soon came to realization before laughing to herself. She took his hand and in an instant, she was at the bottom of the gorge. "I forgot all about that."

Looking around, she saw that a great portion of the canyons had fallen and she saw the destruction of the battle that had previously taken place. When her eyes caught sight of a young man lying among the rubble unmoving, Kagome was quick to run to his side. "Link?!"

Once there, she knelt down and shook his shoulders, in hopes of rousing him. "Link?" She called, and when his eyes opened to look at her, she cried.

As he struggled to sit up, he hadn't expected Kagome to throw her arms around him. He also hadn't expected to see her again. "Kagome…" One look at the Happy Mask Salesman was enough to answer one of his questions. He had brought her to him.

"I was afraid I wouldn't see you again," Kagome cried while her arms tightened around his shoulders.

Link smiled at this. He was afraid he wouldn't see her either, but she came back. Was it possible she already knew the truth about him? "Kagome … do you already know?"

Pulling away, she wiped at her tears and nodded dismally. "Yes. They told me everything…" Her brown eyes searched his for a long moment. If only there was a way to reverse this, but it was impossible. "Inuyasha … and the others went back. I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to stay here…" She suddenly explained. "After all … I am the guardian of the Shikon No Tama … and I have a duty to help my friends still…"

Link nodded at this.

"That is true. Kagome your role is not yet finished," Emmett replied from beside them, smiling ever so joyously. As he watched the two embrace before him, crying tears of joy, the peddler smiled to himself. They did indeed possess a great bond; one he knew that would surpass time itself. "But for the time being, I shall allow you to stay here with Link. It will only be for a short time, mind you. After all, Link also has his own duty to fulfill, isn't that right?"

He nodded. That duty was fast approaching; he could feel it. For now, he would focus what time he had left with the woman he cherished. Even if it was for a short time, he wouldn't let it go to waste. Grasping her hand, he pulled her into his embrace yet again, and the two stayed like that until the Happy Mask Salesman disappeared.