He remembered... Ilia was gone... Talo, Malo and Beth were gone... Collin was gone. He failed at keeping them safe, turning and looking out of the window the Princess followed Link's gaze.

"I can tell you feel pain... But you must leave this place if you want any chance at saving your friends." She stated, Link glanced back to Zelda, she knew? "I felt your pain when you remembered them being taken... You must go before someone comes to check on me... Midna," she added, looking to the imp. "Make sure he escapes this place... You need to escape as well." She stated and the imp rolled her eyes.

"Trust me, Princess... I'm not sticking around... Come on, dog." She mused and mounted Link's back, kicking at him.

Link didn't want to leave yet, he still had plenty of questions... But he wouldn't get them answered if he was captured again. He nodded and trotted towards the door, he turned and took one last look at Zelda. She nodded to him before turning to gaze out of the window. Link frowned and began galloping down the stairs, however a rough pull at his left ear made him wince and stop in his tracks, Midna then gently patted his cheek as Link heard the opening of the door below them.

"That warden sure is prompt!" She scoffed before looking for an alternative exit.

Noting an almost vent like structure above them, she leant her powers to Link and managed to allow them both a reliable escape. Now on the roof Link paused as Midna floated forward. He had an impossible mission ahead of him... How was he supposed to help the kids and Ilia if he was this fucking beast? His head hung for a moment before Midna's shrill, almost taunting voice filled his head.

"Don't go feeling sorry for yourself now." She scolded, Link picked his head up and looked to her, thankfully it seemed that Midna could read his questioning gaze. "... We have to go where it began for you... See that mark on your paw? That prevents you from becoming a useless spirit... But I can't do this for you." She mentioned and crossed her tiny arms over her flat chest. "... I can help you, but in return, you have to help me... Deal?" She asked with a devilish smirk, and Link nodded with no hesitation. "... Let's go then."

With her power, Midna teleported Link back into the Ordan Spring... Where he and Ilia-

Wait... Was he still a monster? Link looked to his legs in a panicked fashion and with a defeated aura, looked around.

"So... Are we going?" Midna's disembodied voice asked, earning a startled jump from Link, watching as she manifested from his shadow. "Don't worry, I'm still with you and just because you're in the world of life, you won't just become a human again... Doesn't work that way." She giggled. "But before we go anywhere, I need adequate protection... I'm well aware that you were going to transport a highly valued sword and shield to Zelda... So, we're gonna get those, but remember... You're a beast, these people won't realize it's you... So be careful, I can't bring you back from the dead." Midna said before disappearing back into his shadow.

Link huffed before beginning to canter down the familiar path towards his home, the undiscovered smells hitting his novice nostrils like a sledgehammer... He smelled something definitely more than familiar... Ilia... The smell of her hair. However, before he could dread on it, he noted strange bandits lurking towards his homestead... They looked exactly like the bastards who took his friends... And he was not happy about it.

The wolf snarled a feral snarl as the bandit looked over and began panicking. Reaching behind him to equip a club, it was too late for him. The beast lunged forward, tearing his fangs into the throat of the bandit, ripping wildly and violently ripping the throat of the creature out, blood painting the scene in a rather gruesome fashion, his maw and chest now coating his pelt. He trekked forward, noting two more... They also met the same fate, deep red splotches all over his front yard.

"If for one second, the villagers might not have thought you were threatening, well..." Midna's voice chortled and trailed off as Link continued his stride towards the village.

"Wait!" A squeaky voice called, earning a growl from the majorly pissed off wolf. "... You smell like the trees of Ordon... Those bad guys took the village children and hurt one of the men... I dunno where they went... But please get them back!" A squirrel called. "Don't hesitate to ask us animals for help." He said before scurrying back up the tree.

Huh... Even the animals missed the children? He wasn't surprised. Without the kids the village was lifeless. Trudging forward he could feel the tense atmosphere of the village, he was curious about who could have gotten hurt... He had a feeling but he didn't want to go find out.

Maneuvering throughout the village, he sniffed the ground and looked about, where would he find the Sheild and Sword? He knew that he was transporting it but not where it was being kept...

"About the Sheild-"

"Shh! Not so loud!" A sudden hush from the Mayor entered his newly developed ears, turning his head he trotted over the bridge towards the watermill, crouching and crawling in the grass as he heard the conversation further. "You've hidden it inside right?"

"Yeah... Is Rusl going to be okay?" Jaggle asked.

"I don't know... What's important is we keep the royal gifts safe until we can find the children, he has the sword at his house." Bo replied in an unsure mutter.

Link then took the opportunity to stand.

"Too late!" Bo yelped in a frightened fashion as he and Jaggle ran back inside.

The bloodied wolf stepped forward as Midna showed herself once again, pointing to an open window.

"Look, up there! This village is full of idiots." She said and shook her head, watching as Link turned his head to her with a sour expression. "... Am I wrong?" She asked before fading back into his shadow.

Link shook his own head at Midna's words before walking back over the bridge to a proper area where he could use Midna's power to help him. However as he approached the wheel, Hanch turned to him where he was standing on one of the pillars above him.

"M-Monster!" He shouted in panic. "M-My daughter! Return her and take this!" He spat and blew the hawk summoning grasses.

Before Link could even get his bearings on how to deal with this situation, the hawk flew towards him and with his devastating talons, dug them into Link's side almost tossing him three feet. Yelping out in pain of the gashes now oozing blood from his side, his only option was to run. Sprinting away as fast as he could, he turned back as he reached Sera's shop and was thankful that the Hawk didn't follow... Whimpering and cringing as he glanced to the multiple stab wounds in his side, he noted a very familiar calico cat approaching him. Sera's cat, he remembered when he had stolen the fish off his line to return to Sera.

"I'm sorry... That is my masters... Husband. The hawk is too strong, you cannot defeat him, however, he is scared easily... Perhaps just use that to your advantage?" He questioned and Link glanced to the roof of Sera's shop, following the pillars to Hanch... Bingo.

Link nodded thanks to the cat and Midna, catching onto his idea, appeared from the confines of his shadow and nodded in agreement to his idea. As Link hopped onto the roof, he stumbled slightly from the wounds. He would have to get over it, if this journey was going to be as intense as he envisioned, he would have many wounds just like this, if not worse. After regaining his balance, Link lunged towards the first pillar, and then to the next, barking in a threatening manner and watching as Hanch cowardly yelled in terror and jumped into the lake for protection.

Midna appeared and chortled at the sight before turning towards the window once more and lending Link her power to get across. Once inside, he was happy to see that no one was around to stab him with a pitchfork or anything else just as gruesome... Reaching the Sheild wasn't a difficult task with Midna's help. She took the Sheild in her hands and her face scrunched up, noting Link's expression of: Choose your words carefully.

"It's... Kind of cheap." She mumbled watching Link's expression turn from warning to offended. "Calm down... Let's go get the sword." She mused as Link sent her one last glare when he hopped out of the house before he could track too much blood on the floorboards.

Landing in the water below, the coolness helped provide some relief to his harmed side while effectively washing the sticky blood off his strikingly beautiful coat. As he climbed out of the water, he shook his pelt free of the water, leaning over and examining his wounds, they were still oozing but nothing serious. He then watched as Rusl limped out of his house, he probably heard the splash and went to check on the noise... It hurt Link to see Rusl all banged up.

After successfully maneuvering around Rusl and Uli, Link dug his way into their house, he felt bad for invading their privacy and stealing to add to their stress... But he took the encased sword in his maw before escaping both the house and the village.

Ready to pass the spring, a hollow, almost enticing voice called out to him: "Wait... Come to my spring..."

Link stopped in his tracks and glanced over to the Ordan spring... What on earth could have called out to him this way? However as he entered the water, a sudden, unrelenting forced appeared with red walls of twilight and evil.

"Beware... An evil force approaches..."

Link looked around in a panicked fashion, but looking up, he watched a Shadow Beast fall from the infested portal. He growled in a threatening fashion and before it had a chance to attack him, he lunged, his fangs locking on its chest and violently thrashing his head back and forth. The beast howled and with a massive hand, flung Link away like a rag doll. However as Link stood back up, he could see the heart of the monster was exposed and beating. Link locked his sites on it and sprinted forward launching himself forward and with great force, ripped the monster's heart out, the blackened blood tainting the spring and his body as it spurted upon him.

Link made a cringed expression as he felt the blood he had swallowed beginning to corrupt his insides... However, he watched the barriers disappear and the remaining particles of the monster disperse and disappear back into the portal. Seeing as the portal turned from a deep crimson to a light blue, he figured that the portal was now purified. But before he could celebrate a victory, the wolf collapsed into the shallow water of the spring, Midna appeared and gasped, knowing the tainted blood was rotting Link from the inside out. Her twilight magic could do nothing.

"Come on, dog! Get up!" She shouted, watching the energy beginning to fade from Link's eyes.

Shit.

The wolf struggled to stand but failed, falling to his side. He couldn't die! If he died all was lost! Before Midna could panic, the pool began glowing and a golden light surrounded Link, healing his wounds and purifying his body. Link's eyes opened again and Midna sighed a discreet sigh of relief. Link, still a bit panicked, looked around in question but as an orb rose into the air, Midna was quick to disappear back into his shadow.

Link's questions were answered as the fabled and revered spirit of Ordana appeared before him... A large stag crossed with some kind of fox creature? Link couldn't tell.

"O, brave youth." He lamented, Link was unsure whether to bow or not, but all he knew, was that this journey had barely begun...

I know this chapter is a tad shorter, but the first chapter was the intro, I didn't wanna stop the intro in the beginning because it would feel choppy and not together if you get what I mean, but the rest of the chapters should be between 2,000 and 4,000 words. This just seemed like the PERFECT ending for this chapter.~

-Eros