"Huh. This is kind of suspicious..." Silver bars slammed behind the duo, leaving them trapped in the multi-platformed room. Two creatures began to rise from the lava, screeching as their reptile bodies emerged from the flames. They leaped onto the plateaus farthest from Link, wailing as they beat their weapons against the ground.
Navi let out a cry, slipping behind Link's shield in fear. "Those are Lizfaldos, Link! They like to take turns attacking... scary creatures!" She was over the Saria incident, apparently, and was now shaking with fear. The boy had never seen his fairy so shaken, and decided to take extra precautions.
The first of the Lizfaldos leaped forward, reaching out with its sword. Link instantly placed up his shield, and Navi whipped out, turning yellow and giving Link help in targetting. The reptile shrieked, leaping back and allowing its friend to step forward. The second one was larger and bulkier than the last, not giving it much room to manuver. He hissed, using his club to try and bash Link's head in.
He rolled out of the way, stabbing at his enemy's leg while he was still on the ground. He yowled in pain, grabbing the now bleeding calf and jumping back. The first leaped forward again, cackling madly at its friend. "Kana says you be dyin', fairy-fairy boy!"
"Holy crap! It's a girl!" The one named Kana scowled, sticking out her tongue in frustration.
"What 'chu be thinkin' Kana was? A stupid male-tom like Tort there? Kana chose bad mate, guess. Gerudo said Tort was best for Kana!" She waved her dagger at her injured mate, who was licking his leg wound and wailing.
"Why you be talkin' to tha 'truders, Kana-she? Tort is scared of Gerudo! Kill the fairy-fairy boy, female-she!" She hissed, her tongue portruding as she jumped at her mate. He yelped, rolling back and nearly falling off the platform. Kana caught him, pulling him up and slapping him.
"Kana ain't scared of no Gerudo, Tort-tom! Spit in Gerudo's face and stomp it, Kana is! Come, fairy-fairy boy, Kana-she be showin' you da way to safety." Tort growled again, rising and looming over his mate. She showed no fear, though, her eyes meeting his. Navi and Link watched their staring contest until Tort looked away, grumbling as he leaped towards the door and clicked a hidden switch. The bars rose, allowing them all to exit. Tort shrugged.
"Guess if Kana be showin' ya, Tort be showin' ya too. Gotta be lookin' for Goori-she an' Jita-tom, though. They be loyal to da Gerudo. Lived in peace wit' da Goron before Gerudo came. Then there be chaos." Kana flicked her tail in agreement, her beady eyes narrowing as she opened the door. She leaped forward, sniffing about until she found herself satisfied with the path she had chosen.
Navi was unsure if she could trust the Lizfaldos, but she followed reluctantly. "Are you taking us to the Dodongo King?" Kana laughed madly, tail twisting into many different shapes. Tort also began to cackle, though a bit nervously. Navi flinched, looking back at Link, "What's so funny...?"
Kana wiped away a tear, nodding at the fairy. "Haha, Kana be takin' the fairy-fairy boy ta King of da Beasties...? Yeah right! Not even Kana-she or Goori-she be 'llowed in da chamber, and Kana be high rankin'! Can bring fairy-fairy boy close, though. Not ta there, though." She leaped into the next room, revealing a huge block of stone surrounded by bomb flowers. The Lizfaldo grinned, showing off yellowing teeth. Tort followed after, scampering on all four legs with his bludgeon strapped to his belt.
"Be blowin' up dis, yeah? We be seein' ya do it before, fairy-boy. Kana-she be seein' stairs before, here. Not dere now, but here before. Boom flowers be makin' stairs!" He pantomimed an explosion, falling to his back and twitching his tail. Kana nodded, scampering back a few steps. Navi turned green, hovering on top of the single bomb flower not connected in the chain. Link picked it up, throwing it in the slot not taken up by a bomb. The entire room shook with the explosion, and the giant stone block lowered, revealing steep steps.
The Lizfaldos showed no issue with it, leaping from step to step and quickly reaching the top. Likewise, Navi just slipped up the stairs, avoiding all of them by simply flying. This left Link, who struggled up each step. He wasn't tall enough to just take them one at a time, and had to literally climb up each one. After he reached the top, Kana grinned. "You be havin' dat fightin' spirit, fairy-fairy boy. Kana-she respect dat, and so be Tort-tom. Be blade trappies in da next room. Can't be killed or stopped. Just be killas." Navi blinked.
"Wait, wait. How exactly do you know all this?" Kana shrugged.
"Be in dere when Gerudo be pickin' traps. Said ta neva go into da room. Be killin' machines o' somethin'. Sorta like them stachoos in da main room." She grinned widely, allowing all of her yellow and black teeth to show. Tort cackled before leaping into the next room. As Link moved into the large, open cavern, he noticed that the Lizfaldos were correct. They had already made it halfway across the room; Kana was clinging to the center pillar, while Tort was gripping onto the second bladetrap, claws just barely gripping onto blades. They looked expectantly at him, waiting for him to make a move.
Unlike the reptiles, he could not cling to walls or blades and had to manually avoid them. He jumped into the pit, narrowly avoiding the first trap that slid towards him, trying to send him to his grave. Navi had taken to flying above him, almost at the same height that Kana was at. "Jump, jump fairy-fairy boy!" She cackled as the bladetrap took another swipe at him, and he narrowly dodged it yet again.
Three traps later, they were all safely on the other side of the pit. Tort had gone ahead to scout out the area, which left Kana with the two intruders. She was licking her claws, having caught a particularly juicy Skulltula in the trap pit and having just finished eating it in front of them. "Never be havin' too many spidies... Yum!" She was quite literally purring at this, which disturbed Navi. Tort returned minutes later, tail flicking.
"Be a bad eye in dere, Kana-she! Be watchin' wit' da flames!" Kana scowled, then began to quiver. Navi took the moment to approach them both,
"Bad... eye? It's not silver, is it?" The Lizfaldo nodded, biting the broken third claw on his left paw. Kana hissed at just the mention of the thing, tail tucked in between her legs like a submissive dog. It was surprising that such a simple concept could scare even the most confident creature.
"Goori-she be waitin' after dat bad room. She be evil now! Bad, bad... Gerudo turn Kana-she's sista bad!" She growled, now with rage rather than fear. Tort nodded solemnly. Navi hesitated, looking back at Link. He was absently picking at the Kokiri Sword, trying to clean off the solidified blood. She thwaped him, causing him to come to attention.
"Well, we know how to get past the bad eyes if you can show us where they are..." Both of them leaped up, and without another word fled into the next room. Sure enough, over the door located at the other side was a giant silver eye. Link realized it was similar to the one above Queen Gohma's room. As he stepped closer, the center of the room sank and two giant pillars rose from the new pit. Flames shot up from each of the columns. Tort shrieked in fear, leaping back onto solid ground.
Link drew out his slingshot, firing a seed and striking the eye dead center. It closed immediately, and the first flame died down. As Tort and Kana began to jump, Navi let out a 'Hey!'. "Be careful! That flame may pop back up without warning." At this they both stopped, allowing Link to jump first. He turned to his left, where another eye was hidden in a crevice. Another well aimed seed caused the second flame to go down and the floor to rise back up. Both Lizfaldos hesitated, carefully placing one paw before the other.
Where they reached the other side, Kana was shivering. Tort curled himself around her, trying to warm her smaller body. The female was having none of it though, shoving him off and letting him tumble to the side. "No be cold, Tort-tom. Be feelin' Goori-she an' Jita-tom... Kana be feelin' Goori-she movin' in da fire-rock... Sista, can Kana-she be savin' Goori-she?" She let out a rattling hiss, then looked back at Link, "Be leadin' Kana inta battle, fairy-fairy boy." He nodded, opening the door.
As soon as the four entered, silver bars clamped down behind them, blocking any escape. The room was much smaller than the one Kana and Tort had been placed in. Two Lizfaldos emerged from the lava, leaping onto the platform and shrieking. The smaller of the two was slightly smaller than Kana, more lithe and quick. The other was comparable to Tort, but more muscular and armed. They both held swords, compared the first ones which held a dagger and a mace.
The smallest, which they both assumed to be Goori due to Kana's constant hissing, leaped first, her beaded necklace swinging around. "Beee-traaaayy-oooorrr! Kana-she be be-tray-oooor!" She slashed, and Kana ducked. As Goori recoiled, Kana stabbed with her dagger. It was obvious who the more experienced of the two was.
Link took the chance to strike at the tiny female, slashing at her sword arm and causing her to drop her blade. Goori spat, bouncing back and allowing her mate to take over. The massive Lizfaldo roared, picking up her fallen blade and slashing at both Kana and Link. Tort shoved him out of the way, taking the blow instead. Kana let out a shrill shriek, stabbing at Jita in rage. He gurgled, jumping back. "Why be betrayer, Kana-she an' Tort-tom? Gerudo be nothin' but nice... Offerin' us da caves an' takin' dem from da Gorons!" At this Goori jumped forward again.
"Be listenin', Goori-she an' Jita-tom! Gerudo be lyin'! Be not peace, but war!" The two screamed eagerly at the word, leaping up as if in a victory dance. Kana hissed. "Be beyond dat point, huh? Gotta kill ya, den." She grabbed Jita, flipping hit back into the lava. He wailed, not having a chance to flip his scales. He burned near instantly, leaving only his bones before they crumbled as well. Goori sobbed.
"Be sparin', sista. Kill Goori-she's mate... Been lovin'!" Tort leaped at her, though, taking her by the neck and waiting patiently for his mate to give an order. Kana hissed, pointing at the lava.
"Die, den. Be wit' Goori-she's mate fereva!" Tort dropped her, and she screamed as she melted away. Navi gasped at the gruesome sight, looking back at Kana. Despite trying to keep up her tough exterior, Navi could see tears forming in her small black eyes.
"If you were going to be sad... why kill her...?" Kana shrugged.
"Betta ta die den be slave, fairy. Gotta get fairy-fairy boy ta King o' de Beasties, yeah?" He nodded dumbly, following the pair of Lizfaldos to the next room. She was growling at the first of the statues, baring her blackened fangs. Tort had already leapt onto the platform in the center, batting his tail against the ground.
Navi took the opportunity to tell Link about his newest enemy. "Those are Armos. Some of them come to life, while others... don't? Just be careful what you grab! They are nearly impossible to stop, so get your Deku Nuts ready!" She turned yellow, hovering above the Armos that Kana was snarling at. She was like a pointing hound, set in the stance and not moving. Tort chuckled at his mate's enthusiasm, leaping upon the statue and bringing it to life. It instantly charged at Link, who threw a Deku Nut against its face and stunning it. He slashed against it, causing it to crumble beneath itself.
Tort nodded, impressed. "Da stachoos be killas. Fairy-fairy boy be strong! Tort-tom likes dat!" He then jumped back onto the platform, pulling Link up with him. There was a large chest sitting on the top. Kana grinned.
"Be bag o' boomies in box! Grab 'em fairy-fairy boy!" He kicked open the chest, lifting out a huge bag filled with bombs. Kana clapped excitedly, "Be skippin' da rest, fairy-fairy boy! Gotta toss boomies inta da beastie skull!" She sprinted off on all fours, arriving on a ledge overlooking the main chamber. The Beamos in the center was still spinning, unaware of the enemies above.
"Link, let's be careful here. I don't know how much I trust this bridge..." It was quite unstable, and even Kana's weight caused it to rock. Still, she strode across it confidently, nodding at the holes in the bridge.
"Throw dem boomies, fairy-fairy boy." He leaped across the bridge, carefully dropping a bomb into each eye. The ground started to rumble as he reached the second hole, and the skull began to creak open. Link grinned, ignoring Navi's sudden yell.
"Link, watch out!"
Five Keese had been shaken by the explosion, and they were swooping towards Link at a quick pace. He didn't even have a chance to react before they shoved him off the bridge, leaving him falling. "Fairy-fairy boy!"
"Link... you'll come back safely... right?"
"See, fairy boy? Epona likes you!"
"I'm your fairy, Link! Let's make this as painless as possible..."
"It's your fault that the Great Deku Tree died! I... I hate you!"
"I'll never forgive you if you die!"
His eyes snapped open and he struggled with his shield, flipping himself over belly first and placing the shield in front of him. It would only give him a few moments extra, but perhaps he could figure a way of cheating death again. As he landed in the lava, he coughed, feeling the shield beginning to give into the heat. Panic filled him as he realized that he had shorter than he had first thought.
Then he heard the splash directly behind him. He yelled, turning his head and trying to make out the shape of whatever had landed. The heat distorted everything, though, and he couldn't see anything. Then Kana's head emerged next to him, her claws gripping onto the shield. She dove back under, toting him back to solid ground. As soon as he crawled up onto land, Navi slapped him in the face.
"You idiot... you idiot..." She was sobbing, collapsing onto the ground. Kana spat the lava stuck in her mouth out, shaking out her scales and switching them back to her normal layer. Tort snorted, handing Kana back her dagger.
"Be a fallin' floor over there, fairy-fairy boy. No be needin' ta fall." Link bowed his head in thanks to Kana, who shrugged.
"Be stupid, but be killin' the King o' the Beasties be good for Kana-she! Be goin' now!" She pointed at the open skull. Both Link and Navi bowed before departing. Tort stepped forward, yelling after them.
"Tort-tom be waitin' for fairy-fairy boy, so hurry!"
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"That's one big Dodongo." Navi whistled as the beast slammed itself down from the ledge above. It roared, rolling into a ball immediately and thrusting off.
Link fell to the ground, avoiding the bulk of the attack as the Dodongo rammed into the wall, hissing and shaking out its head. As he slowly turned around, flames began to build in his massive maw. "Watch out!" Link ducked again, leaving the fires to hit no target. As he drew the pillar back into his mouth he began to cough, choking on his own smoke.
Navi blinked, putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "Smoke... Fire... Dodongos dislike smoke... LINK!" He looked up, a bit irritated at her poor timing. The beast had just started to roll again, and her talking had been distracting. He hadn't been crushed, but he had been thrown to the side like a paper doll.
"The Bomb Bag, Link! Throw a bomb into his mouth and then hit him!" Realization dawned in Link's eyes, and he grabbed his bomb bag and charged at the brute. As he opened his mouth to let out a blast of fire, Link chucked a bomb into his mouth. He began to choke as it exploded, falling to the ground and moaning with pain.
Link took the opportunity to strike, letting out his signature yell before he landed. The King roared again, rolling into a ball and taking off again. Link just barely managed to get out of the way before he was crushed. Again the Dodongo crashed into the wall and let out a flame. "He's going in a circle, Link! If you wait here, maybe he'll be vulnerable again!"
He heeded her advice, grabbing another bomb and lighting it. The King landed in the exact same spot as before, and again tossed the bomb. Over and over he used the same process until finally the Dodongo let out his final moan of pain, rolling into the lava pit in the center of the square room. As he melted away he let out a cry for help, reaching out with his left paw.
Finally he vanished, and the lava solidified. As Link made for the blue exit, he heard a shriek behind him. "Wait, wait for Kana-she, fairy-fairy boy!" The two Lizfaldos were panting, as apparently they had charged in just as the King fell.
"What do you two want, anyway?" Navi wanted to get out, feeling to heat getting to her. Kana cracked a grin, her black teeth showing completely.
"Did good, fairy-fairy boy. Kana-she be impressed! Be leavin' now, yeah?" She cocked her head, allowing the bones on her neck to clink together. Link nodded. She sighed, then chuckled, "Kana-she be seein' fairy-fairy boy 'gain, yeah? Gerudo kill Kana-she's sista and mate, and Kana isn't takin' dat layin' down!" Kana spat, digging it into the now hardened ground. Tort nodded in agreement, though said nothing.
Navi approached carefully, meeting Kana in the eyes. "Thanks, you know, for showing us around. And for saving the idiot over there." Link nodded, ignoring Navi's jab. The Lizfaldo grinned, bowing gracefully before them.
"Be goin' now, fairy-fairy boy. See ya again, Kana-she will promise!" As they stepped into the exit, the Lizfaldos watched them leave before scampering back into their rooms.
o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o
"You did good, Link! Here's your reward!" Darunia handed over the Ruby, which Link shifted around. Whenever the sun hit it, flames would flash within. Navi chuckled, at which Link gave a questionable glare.
"Now that we're brothers, how about a big Goron hug, huh?" Three other Goron landed beside Link. He yelled, trying to run away before being blocked by yet another. As they glomped him, Navi burst into laughter.
"Guess the guys can't get enough of you either, Link!"
A/N: This chapter is long... Three thousand two hundred words almost! I know that the ending is pretty weak, but I wanted to wrap it up.
As I said at the beginning, there are going to be some changes. For example, the Lizfaldos don't talk and are definitely not friendly, haha. We will be seeing Kana and Tort again after the seven year skip, just because they're fun to write. Neither of them are going to be much more than support, though, and they're definitely not going to be taking any sort of major role (such as Sage or royalty).
I would really appreciate reviews on how to make boss fights more interesting, as I found this one very not satisfying. Constructive reviews for that would make me very happy ^_^
