Curse

Chapter XI: Last Moments

"Show respect, will you!" shouted one of the guards before both threw the man they were handling onto the marble floor of the throne room. Royal eyes were upon his green tunic and his blond hair as he slowly rose to his knees, only to be held in a bowing position in front of the king and queen of Hyrule. The boy could feel the worried eyes of Zelda, his childhood friend, as she wondered why he would return after being sentenced to death. The king, on the other hand, seemed calmed and annoyed by the presence of the young man. This person that all the guards admired secretly, even though the hard handling they were doing.
"You dare show your face back in Hyrule knowing full well what awaits you, Link," Ragnaros stated without feeling, being impassive as he had always been.
"You're a coward, Ragnaros," the blond muttered under his breath, which only made him return to the floor, the warm skin of his left cheek touching the cold stone.
"Care to repeat that?" the king obliged, looking at the groveling man with a certain satisfaction. Yet, it did not stop Link from repeating the words he had just said and adding a certain flourish to them.
"You're a coward! Covering yourself with enormous titles just so you can have my head! You're nothing but a weakling!"

The boy saw his vision fade and felt his unconscious slip away, but couldn't care less. Siphia, the guardian spirit of the cursed, had told him that he wouldn't hurt the ones he loved. Zelda was safe from that point on. He gave into the darkness, unafraid of what was to come.

The king watched as the guards holding the blond man down flew in every direction, scaring the ones at the door who didn't wait for an order to flee. The sunshine hair turned white within mere seconds as blank eyes returned the stare he was being given. Without a word, Link brought out the double edged blade, ready to tear the king into pieces. Only a smirk appeared upon the king's lips, happy to see that the boy was acting this irrationally. All the more reasons for the sentence. Attacking a king? One had to mad to do such thing. The young man thought he was afraid, didn't he? Well, he was about to prove him wrong.

Zelda left the throne room as her guards kept calling her to get into a safer place while the castle began to shake, cracks appearing along the solid ground. She watched her childhood friend block every stone thrown his way as her husband assumed the hideous form of a black dragon, one of which her caretaker had told horrible stories of. Sky blue eyes gazed in fear as, although Link's gained speed, he was taken by one of the creature's hands and brought him near the mouth where it blew fire at the boy. A terrible scream resounded as the now white man was let go after cutting of a finger, the sword landing a few meters away. The weapon reappeared in his hands and he plunged it into the dragon's stomach, making a deep cut along it. A torrent of magma was freed, drowning the young man into the hot liquid.

Pain shot through the boy's body as his conscious began to take control, hearing the sound of the creature shouting from newly done wounds that weren't his doing. Blank eyes shifted to catch sight of a tiger attacking the monster's face before being thrown away. It landed heavily on the stone floor and the dragon didn't wait a second more to send a stream of fire its way. The young man moved just in time, protecting the feline from the fire as they licked his back, hurting him mercilessly. Only seconds passed before he heard a small cough coming from under him, making the boy rise to see Elianne, his companion in the last few days. Unable to say a word, he watched her as she laid her hand upon his cheek, smiling slightly.
"I see that I'm a bit late," she laughed lightly. "Link, I have only realized what is it that you carry, and for that I am sorry. I guess I can give you this last information. The two man fought over the same thing. The love of a woman."

Blank eyes widened at her last words, making her smile. Yet, the dragon made little of their moment, grabbing the girl without warning and throwing her aside, making her head hit the wall forcefully under the white-haired boy's gaze. He didn't shout, not finding it him to do so. He simply turned to the monster that occupied half of the throne room and muttered, "You really are a coward, Ragnaros."
The turquoise and blue sword reappeared into his hands and the young man jumped, eyes hidden by his bang. Yet, the boy didn't have the time to finish his attack as the tail of the creature grabbed him in mid air, mouth ready to blow fire at him. Trusting the curse he had been given, Link threw the sword into its throat and willed it to spin on itself. One last scream was freed before the head began to slide off and the monster turned back into the now dead king. Link fell to the floor as the curse was broken, his clothes turning back to normal.

He rose slowly before being embraced by the queen, her blue eyes sparkling. Nevertheless, he paid her no heed, moving away from her to the young lady with red hair and whose purple eyes were still to open. He knelt near her, his hand passing into her hair while hoping she would awaken. But her non-existent breath and her non-beating heart made it clear. He slowly got up without a word, picking her up, and walked the the devastated entry, droplets following his tracks.
"I should be the one asking for forgiveness, Elianne," he said while smiling grimly. "You'll need a proper burial. Don't worry, I'll take care of it."

Sky blue eyes lifted to the window from which a tomb could be seen. A year had passed since Elianne had died and nothing had changed. Even Zelda, who came almost weekly to argue his return, hadn't managed to make him move. He sighed, stepping out of the house he had built at Lake Hylia to kneel in front of her grave, smiling slightly and beginning to speak as if she was there.

The screech of a bird tore him from his talk, and his cerulean gaze caught sight of a peregrine falcon diving for the tomb. It landed upon the grave before screaming yet again.
"Rocko?" the boy asked, curious as of the reason of the presence of Elianne's feathery friend after a year of absence. It took off and landing in the nearest tree, beckoning the young man to follow. Link didn't need to be gestured twice as he ran inside to gather the sword and shield he had forged before beginning to follow the bird, a warm feeling embracing him. She was alive. Elianne was alive.

The Dmgirl: There you have it! The new version of "Curse"! Hoped you like it! Thanks to all those who read it.