**The Chains of Contentment**

As the others left, Zelda remained in the room, determined to free her friends from their restraints. She approached Lila first, gently reaching out to release the golden chains that bound her to the chair. But as soon as the chains fell away, Lila's peaceful expression crumpled, and she began to whimper and cry. "No, no, no," she sobbed, rocking back and forth in her chair. "I don't want to be free. I don't want to leave this place. I'm so happy here." Zelda was taken aback, but she tried again with Lander. She released the iron cuffs that secured him to the pedestal, but Lander's joyful glow immediately turned to despair. "Please, don't take this away from me," he begged, tears streaming down his face. "I feel so alive, so connected to something greater than myself." Zelda's confusion turned to concern as she realized that each of her friends seemed to be experiencing a strange, twisted sense of happiness in their restraints. She tried to free Lyra, but the enchantress began to wail and thrash about, her silver threads glowing with an otherworldly energy. "No, no, no," Lyra screamed, her eyes wild with fear. "Don't take away my peace." As Zelda made her way around the room, she encountered the same reaction from each of her friends. Leo began to sob and tremble, Lachlan's eyes went wide with terror, and Lucien's grin faltered, replaced by a look of anguish. Lucas, the young mage, simply shook his head, his eyes closed in a serene, almost beatific expression. But when Zelda reached Link, she was surprised to find him happily chatting to himself, rocking back and forth in his chair. "I'm so close, I can feel it," he muttered, a look of intense concentration on his face. "I'm going to unlock the secrets of the universe, I just know it." Zelda's heart swelled with relief as she reached out to free Link from his restraints. But as soon as the iron cuffs fell away, Link's expression changed, his eyes widening in horror. "No, no, no!" he shouted, his voice rising to a panicked scream. "Don't take this away from me! I was so close, I could feel it!" Zelda was taken aback by Link's reaction, but she quickly realized that she wasn't going to leave him behind. She grasped him firmly, pulling him out of the chair and into her arms. "I'm taking you with me, Link," she said, her voice firm. "Whether you like it or not, you're coming home with me." Link struggled and kicked, but Zelda held him fast, a determined look on her face. As she turned to leave, she glanced back at her friends, each of whom seemed to be basking in their own, twisted sense of happiness. She shrugged, a wry smile on her face. "I guess you could say they're all getting what they want," she said to herself, as she carried Link out of the room, away from the strange, creeping sense of calm that seemed to permeate the castle's basement.