Day Two

[Illidan Stormrage]

So much for Ganondorf's healing skills. His arm was fully broken now, he was sure. It didn't answer to any of his commands, and the pain blitzed through his shoulder worse than ever. He hobbled along on an impaled leg, the arrow still poking through the flesh. With a disabled arm and Ganondorf's plethora of injuries, there hadn't been a good time to stop and try to remove it. At least they were still alive, he supposed.

The Gerudo king grimaced as they stumbled forward. One of his arms was out of commission too, and his face bubbled from some festering malaise. It was incredible, in a bitter and painful sort of hindsight, that they had managed to stay alive during all of their encounters. Broken and bleeding they may be, but their combined strength had decimated much of their competition so far.

Link took another weak step. He put his weight on the arrowed leg, too much weight, and a stinging heat awoke brighter. With a sharp cry he dropped to his good knee, panting heavily, sweat running down his face. How could he continue on like this? He could barely even walk. What would he do in their next encounter? It would have to be stand and fight or die; there was no retreating from a battle in this state. And if he died, the Triforce of Courage would be lost. The Master Sword, in the hands of that mechanical woman, would be stolen.

It would all be for naught.

He looked at Ganondorf, who had stopped to survey his companion. This was karma, wasn't it? Allying with his nemesis, the man who single handedly plunged Hyrule into a seven year abyss, had brought about his failures, his ... destruction. What had he been thinking? If his destiny was to die on this insipid island, he could have at least done it with his morals and ethics intact. Instead, he turned to the only source of support, discarding any responsibility for what it actually meant. All that mattered was survival, but now he saw that there was more to life than just living. Life held more significance than simply extending the opportunity to breathe.

And yet, Link saw a flicker of sympathy in the dark lord's eyes. Indeed, despite their tenuous alliance, Ganondorf had not rescinded his word. Every fight Ganondorf was there, clashing with their foes, offering insightful advice, even battering down a bear to save him. And Link never expected him to know about one of his most cherished pastimes; fishing. If anything, Link could've already been dead without his help.

Oh goddesses, why does this have to be so hard? Link thought to himself. A lifetime of experience told him one thing, and insistently, while his time in Dante's Abyss introduced new factors he'd never even considered could be real.

Had fate punished him for his selfish decision, or was it just luck of the draw?

"You can't walk," Ganondorf noted, voice low.

Oh no. Time to put the adversary out of his misery. Link locked eyes with him but didn't speak. He swallowed hard. Nothing he could do would stop what was about to happen.

The Gerudo crouched down. "This might hurt your pride, boy, but it is necessary."

Link furrowed his brow as Ganondorf scooped him up in his good arm and flung the Hylian over his broad shoulder, carrying him like a sack of grain.

"Hey!" Link shouted indignantly. "Put me down!"

"Stop it," Ganondorf said, his tone thin and worn. "Conserve your energy."

Link sighed out. He didn't have the strength to keep up this struggle. Now at rest, he fought his closing eyelids, his expended body craving sleep.

As his lashes meshed together, he wondered if he would ever wake up again. The true part of his mind, however, knew instinctively that Ganondorf would make sure that he would.