Notes at the end of the most recent chapter.

Link rode alongside the princess all the way to the foot of Mount Lanayru. He attempted small talk, but he quickly found that his tongue wasn't as sharp as his sword. His sentences tended to trail off, as if Link forgot what he was going to say. Zelda found that trait particularly adorable.

Zelda's aura of wisdom seemed to grow stronger as she spoke with him.

It was an alien feeling for the boy. He was beginning to feel something he hadn't felt since Sikumar defended him from the field masters back at Hyrule Castle.

Trust.

Link trusted Zelda for the first time. Atop the freezing mountain, they would by secluded and alone. He could finally tell someone his whole story.

The trek up the mountain was longer than expected, yet the knight and princess enjoyed every moment of the journey.

"Wow, look at that..."

Zelda dropped to her knees, staring in awe at the Spring of Wisdom.

An ice pathway led out across a freezing lake, flanked by towering spikes of ice which glowed a faint blue.

She slowly—cautiously—walked out to the center of the spring, hoping the ice wouldn't give with each step she took.

Finally, kneeling before the iconic statue of the beloved goddess that marked each Spring of Power, she began to pray.

Link backed off and watched the princess from the trail head. Eventually, he decided to sit down. This is her last chance to unlock whatever power she was supposedly granted by Hylia. It will take time.

Hours passed. If Link wasn't constantly kept alert by the freezing gusts atop Lanayru, he very well may have fallen asleep.

He could tell that Zelda was exhausted, and his own strength was also beginning to wane. Even the sun had enough for one day, dipping below the horizon.

The princess wordlessly got up from her prayers and trudged over to Link, who had already taken off his pack and retrieved a two sleeping wraps fabricated from the warmest fibers in the world: warm safflinas.

"Link, I hope you won't mind, but if we are to survive this sleep, we must conserve body heat and stay as close as possible."

He nodded, reaching once again into his pack. He pulled out a needle and a roll of twine and fastened the sleeping wraps together, forming a single large one.

The pair found a small hollow in the ice that would protect them from the wind, huddling as close as possible under the sleeping wrap and quickly slipping into a cold sleep.

In the morning, Link folded up the sleeping wrap and stuffed it back in his pack. Zelda again tried prayer, but she knew it was obvious this wasn't going to work.

She ran over to her knight and fell into his arms. He rubbed her back and held her close.

"Z-Zelda… it's not your fault. This isn't the way, you'll figure it out. I'm here for you, it's okay," Link comforted.

That seemed to work. Being that the sworn knight seldom talks, his words are often special; bound with truth and honesty.

Zelda looked up from his chest and into his eyes. A tear fell from her cheek, but this one was unlike any of the others that preceded it. This one represented joy… hope… love.

A similar tear fell from Link's cheek, and at that moment the two embraced harder than ever before.

The princess and the knight had finally found peace in that moment, holding each other as if the next second they may lose each other.

Link didn't have friends in the training field, only mentors and adversaries. Anyone Zelda thought of as her 'friend' at Hyrule Castle was nothing more than another suitor or thief trying to get something from her that they couldn't offer in return.

Her silent knight was a true friend.

His lost princess was a true friend.

On top of that mountain, time stood still. A bond was made; stronger than the mortar of Hyrule Castle; truer than the steel of the Master Sword.

Link and Zelda discarded their cold weather gear as they neared the foot of the mountain once more.

The champions of the Divine Beasts must have caught wind of the princess's journey. Each of them sat at the East Gate, deep in thought until they saw the princess and the knight approach.

Daruk spoke first: "Well? Don't keep us in suspense. How'd everything go up there on the mountain?"

Zelda let out a faint whimper, shaking her head 'no.'

Revali asked next: "So you didn't feel anything? No power at all?"

"No..."

"Then let's move on," stated Urbosa. "You've done all you could. Feeling sorry for yourself won't be of any help. After all, it's not like your last shot was up there on Mount Lanayru. Anything could finally spark the power to seal Ganon away. We just have to keep looking for that.. thing."

"That's kind of you. Thank you."

Mipha approached Zelda.

"If I may… I thought you, well, I'm not sure how to put this into words. I'm actually quite embarrassed to say it. But I was thinking what I do when I'm healing. You know, what usually goes through my mind… It helps when I think—when I think about—"

The Zora champion was cut short by furious tremors and thundering roars echoing though the valley.

The group could barely keep standing.

Ganon emerged from beneath the castle, soaring high into the clouds and littering blood-red lightning wherever it went.

"Let's stop wasting time! We're gonna need everything we got to take that thing down! Now Champions! To your divine beasts! Show that swirling swine who's boss! Link will need to meet Ganon head on when we attack. This needs to be a unified assault! Little guy! You get to Hyrule Castle. You can count on us for support. But it's up to you to pound Ganon into oblivion!"

Daruk'd pep talk seemed a bit dramatic, but so is Daruk.

Urbosa placed a hand on Zelda's shoulder.

"Come. We should go. We need to get you someplace safe."

The princess whirled around.

"No!"

"I am not a child anymore! I may not be much use on the battlefield, but there must, there must be something I can to do help."

Ganon outsmarted the inhabitants of Hyrule. It defeated the champions and took control of the guardians, annihilating any hope of defeating the beast.

Link and Zelda rushed to the castle, but things had already turned for the worse. Sikumar led the High Guard around the ramparts of the Sanctum. Each of the twelve knights were clad in glistening steel plate, adorned with the golden symbols of the Hyrulian royal family and the triforces of power, courage, and wisdom. One by one, each of the guards fell, and the captain was the last one standing. Ganon itself came down from the heavens and ravaged his soul, causing his mind and body to shatter from existence. King Rhoam charged for the last time from the Sanctum, his two bannermen vanguard braver than ever, rallying to their king under any circumstance.

Just like the faithful military captain, the fair and just leader of Hyrule met the same fate.

Zelda screamed a bloodcurdling cry of fury and hate. Ganon turned its attention to the princess.

'IF I REALLY DO HAVE THIS STUPID POWER OF THE GODDESS, NOW WOULD BE A GREAT TIME TO USE IT!' the princess thought to herself.

Nothing came.

Suddenly, Link yanked her away from the scene and began sprinting out of the castle. A drenching rain fell from the skies.

"No! Link! Ganon is right there! You need to fight him!"

"You know I can't do that anymore! The beasts, the guardians, it's all over! But I can still protect you, and that's what I intend to do!"

The knight skillfully drew his sword just as he had done every time in training. Only, this time, the sword shone a brilliant white light and hummed with divine power.

Hundreds of Ganon's minions and tens of guardians charged at Link, and the same number were cut down by the sword that seals the darkness.

"We need to get the last stronghold of the Hyrulian army! Princess, try to keep up!"

Again, he started to sprint, but he lost his grip and Zelda fell into the mud.

The knight whirled around and dropped to the ground in front of her, sheathing his sword.

"How? How did it come to this? The Divine Beasts… the Guardians… They've all turned against us… it was… Calamity Ganon. It turned them against us. And everyone—Mipha, Urbosa, Revali and Daruk… They're all trapped inside those things… it's all my fault. Our only hope for defeating Ganon is lost all because I couldn't harness this cursed power! Everything… everything I've done up until now, it was all for nothing, so I really am just a failure! All my friends, the entire kingdom… my father most of all… I tried and I failed them all. I left them… all to die."

Zelda collapsed into Link's arms, sobbing loudly as she held him close. She could feel his heartbeat and his warm breaths.

"But we have to push on. You're right, Link. We need to go."

The princess sprung to her feet, and again Link drew the Master Sword. They pushed through the pouring rain, fought off the forces of Ganon, and kept their hopes up when hope had vanished from the world.

After several hours, the princess and her knight found themselves in the middle of a battlefield. Soldiers of Hyrule did what they could to fight off the onslaught of guardians, but their efforts were fruitless. The guardians were simply too powerful.

Even Link's strength has its limits. His legs finally gave up after hours of running, dodging, and abuse. He ungracefully fell to his knees, catching his fall with his sword.

A guardian spotted him.

"Link, save yourself! Go! I'll be fine, don't worry about me! Run!" Zelda pleaded.

The knight drew his last ounce of strength and will to stand up.

The guardian's laser locked on to him, and he raised the Master Sword.

The princess's heart stopped. This was her only friend; her only companion in this world. This world, which would soon meet its end if her companion was lost.

The guardian's eye flashed a brilliant blue, and—

"NO!" Zelda ran in front of him, engulfed in a golden light. She raised her hand, catalyzing the golden light into a single blast of sheer power, which instantly shattered any curse Ganon had on the guardians and obliterating any minion of evil in a huge area around her.

She looked at her hand, dumbfounded.

"Was.. was that… the power..." she muttered.

Link grunted as he fell back to the ground, blood dripping from his lips. He curled into a small ball, his eyes feeling heavier than stone.

Zelda rushed to his side. "No.. NO! Link! Get up!"

She sat him up, holding his head. He coughed up more blood and turned his head toward the princess's.

"You're going to be just fine."

The boy's brilliant, lovable blue eyes shut one last time as his body went limp.

Zelda cried into his chest. How could she have possibly been so naive and blind? It wasn't prayer, dedication, or anger that gave her power. It was love. She had finally made a connection with another soul and that sparked her power.

The princess swore she would keep fighting until she could not, just like Link had done for her. Everything about the boy's life was unfair, and he still gave everything for her. She will do the same.

As she swore her silent vow, the Master Sword told her how to revive her companion. He would lose his memory, but he would come back to defeat Ganon while she holds it at bay.

"Princess!"

Two Sheikah warriors sprinted at unimaginable speeds toward her.

"Are you alright?!"

She ignored their question. "Take Link to the Shrine of Resurrection. If you don't get him there immediately, we are going to lose him forever! Is that clear?"

The warriors nodded, scooping the boy up.

"Then make haste and go! His life is now in your hands."

She'd worked so hard to build a bond with Link, she wouldn't let it slip away so easily.

Zelda ran to the castle to use the entirety of her power to temporarily seal Ganon inside the castle.

The princess only hoped she could re-establish her connection with Link, if only his memories will return.

Author Note

Thanks for reading. I had a blast writing this piece over the past few months. Leave a review and let me know what you think!

Special thanks to Serenity Dragonhart (See DeviantArt for more of her pieces) for creating the cover art for TKO.