Saving A Lost Kingdom

Part 5: Link

Zelda jumped in front of me and stood between Ganon and I. She used her sealing power to fend off Ganon as I sat there, stunned. Wow. I guess I didn't realize that she was willing to risk her life for me. I watched as she blasted Ganon, knocking him back, then stopped to catch her breath. As I stood up and walked to stand side by side with her, she turned to look at me. "I can't protect both of us. Go, I can finish this." "What? No. Zelda wait-" As she turned to face Ganon again, he caught her off guard and threw a fast punch at her. It caused her to hunch over in pain. I tried to get his attention but he was too focused on Zelda to care. Then he picked her and threw her out of his way. "No!" I yelled as I watched in terror as she fell to the ground with an audible thud. I am not going to make the same mistake again. As I ran towards her, Ganon prepared for a second attack. I raised my sword and shield ready to deflect the attack. I managed to push him back a few feet. I quickly looked around to see if anyone was able to help only to realize that it was now up to me to finish the job. It's now or never. I put my shield on my back and ran towards Ganon. I jumped up to his level using some giant pieces of rubble. When I was close enough, I jumped off. Ganon knew what I was trying to do and swung his arm, knocking me out of the air. As I hit the ground, the Master Sword and my shield went flying. I just laid there for a few seconds as my ears started to ring. Immense pain shot through my body like a fiery sword. I knew that I was seriously injured but there was no time to acknowledge it. By now, the once green tunic was almost entirely a dark shade of red. I tried to reposition myself hoping that my pain would dissolve a little but my slight movements only made things worse. Then I remembered the two major jobs that I hadn't yet completed: protect Zelda and defeat Ganon. I had to fulfill my duties even if it was going to cost me my life. With a developing spark of inspiration and determination, I scouted out my sword as I slowly stood up. The Master Sword was resting several feet away from me. I knew it was required for this to end. I also knew that my body was on the verge of giving up but I ignored it as I ran towards the sword. I had to act fast. Without a sword or even a shield, I was leaving myself in a dangerous position. When I was close enough to the sword, I reached down to pick it up but Ganon was quicker and struck again. He threw a hard punch at my back causing my legs to give out from underneath me. My whole body face planted the ground. Unfortunately for me, a stone was perfectly placed where my chest was. It felt like someone had physically tried to break my heart. I rolled over to relieve myself of the pain only to realize that the stone had created a hole in the tunic that led directly to me. My extreme amount of blood loss was making my vision spotty but I turned to see that the Master Sword was lying next to me. Dismissing every red flag my body was giving me, I reached out for it. Once I could get my hands on it, I used it to stand. I was extremely drained but my adrenaline and determination took over as I tightened my grip and sprinted towards Ganon. I used the rubble again, and once I was high enough, I jumped once more. With both of my hands glued to the sword, I put it behind my head. "Hyaaaaaahhhh!!!" Then I quickly brought it down and tore through Ganon from top to bottom. As I approached the ground, my body lost all structure and I failed to land on my feet. When I finally hit the ground, all the previous pain came back to me and all my senses were overloaded. The pain was so overwhelming that all I could do was lay on the ground in unmeasurable agony. My ears rang as if huge church bells had gone off next to my head and I could hardly see anything. I tried to keep my eyes open because I feared that if they closed they may never open again. However, I was ready to accept the darkness.

As I laid there, awaiting my impending demise, I saw who I hoped was Zelda. I couldn't hear a word she was saying and couldn't really see her either. She was probably telling me to "hang in there" but honestly I didn't want to. I had fulfilled my duty but at what cost? I had protected Zelda and helped save Hyrule but lost Marin in the process. Why would I stay alive just to carry more guilt? Things became darker as my eyes started to fall. I still couldn't tell if the person was really Zelda but it didn't exactly matter. I just had to trust that my message would get to her eventually. I hope that Zelda hears this. "Zelda.....I love you." Then I embraced death.