Dimitri finally reached over the edge of the massive stone bridge and pulled himself and Zelda up onto it. They overlooked the entire lake. Twili were slowly arriving and multiplying on the shores below them.
"We made it." Dimitri felt like his arms had been doused in oil and set on fire. His entire upper body was ablaze. "We have to get moving before any Twili show up."
"Don't you need to rest?" Zelda asked.
"Yes, but I'll use my legs while I rest my arms." Zelda sheathed his swords for him because his arms wouldn't cooperate. She helped him to stand up. "Where's my horse when I need it?"
Dimitri ran alongside Zelda into some woods at the southern end of the bridge. He looked ahead and saw several Twili on the road. He didn't think he could take care of them in this condition.
Zelda grabbed the Master Sword from his back and winked at him as she went by him.
"Wait!" Dimitri called out as Zelda massacred the Twili with the Master Sword, barely breathing hard. He emerged from the wooded area, seeing several dead Twili. "Not bad."
"Remember when you told me a couple of years ago to learn my way around a sword? How about that?" She smiled and put the sword back in its sheath. Dimitri watched her closely, giving her proper dues for what she had just done.
They kept going along the path, coming to the border of the Faron province. It was a large field that led to a wooded area containing Ordon. And of course, Dimitri counted over a hundred Twili in the field simply waiting.
"Figures. What now?" Dimitri looked at Zelda. His arms still were numb from earlier. He knew that no matter how impressive, Zelda could not take all of them by herself. "Zelda, hand me that rock."
She did as she was told and handed him a very sharp rock near her feet. He used his numb fingers, and cut the lengths of his arms, letting blood flow out, and regenerating nerve endings, giving feeling back and coordination.
"This is going to be one hell of a battle." Dimitri unsheathed his broadsword. "Stay here and defend yourself with the Master Sword if you need to."
He rushed into the heat of battle, finding comfort in it, knowing that he was truly alive. He slashed, sliced, and slaughtered the Twili as quickly as they would enter the battle. He expended everything in order to kill every last one of them. They kept coming, no matter how many he destroyed. He didn't care if they had been Zoras, Gorons, or Oocca, they were dead, and that was all that mattered.
"I know you're watching me!" Dimitri screamed to the heavens. He felt her eyes on him. "Is this what you saved me to do?"
He received no answer but kept killing anyway. The Twili just kept coming. His arms were ablaze with searing pain and soreness but he couldn't stop now. Too much was at stake.
"Why did you not let me die?" Dimitri resumed screaming to the heavens. He picked up the pace, killing ten or more with every swing of his sword. "You always watch me! Why not just end my misery once and for all?"
The Twili finally began to dwindle, piling dead bodies everywhere, coating Dimitri with even more blood. His rage was still unsatisfied and he didn't stop, showing no weakness. He grabbed the last surviving Twili by the throat.
"Why the fuck are you here?" He snarled into the face of the creature.
"To… conquer this realm… for ourselves…" The creature had difficulty speaking the Hylian language. Dimitri dropped the Twili, who tried to scurry away.
"I'm not finished with you." Dimitri threw his sword, impaling the creature, pinning it to the ground. "I want to take my time."
"Then take your time with me." A very small Twili stood behind him. There was smoke coming from the entity. "You will remember me as the Goron elder Gor Amoto."
"Amoto?" Dimitri turned from his wounded prey. "Why are you here?"
"Midna told me to look for rebels. You look as much a rebel as anyone. And I've seen some rebels in my time." Amoto laughed. The sound was like a witch's cackle. The transformation into a Twili hadn't changed his age. He was one of the ancient Goron elders, in his 150's. "You seem to have no problem with defeating Twili."
"Why should I?" Dimitri went back to the wounded Twili. He wrenched his sword free, and then decapitated the creature with a flick of his wrist. Amoto chuckled. "What's so funny?"
"You remind me of someone I once knew." Amoto inched close on his extremely short legs. Dimitri felt euphoric for a second as he breathed in the death he had caused. The blood ran on the ground like an endless river, comforting him slightly. "You act just like him."
"Who?" Dimitri sounded unusually calm.
"Ganon. He killed for fun, and reveled in it." Amoto was now only a few feet from him. "I do believe you could be greater than he, with some help."
"I've heard something like this before." Dimitri remembered what Ralis had said. All of these former friends were trying to convince him to join their misguided crusade. He knew the rewards would be great, but there was someone watching over him that would not allow that. "I can't do that."
"Why not?" Amoto questioned.
"There is someone watching over me…" Dimitri swung his sword, flinging some of the blood off. The blood made the sword heavier in his hand. He normally wielded it one handed, but he was going to have to use both hands. "Which means you'll have to move out of my way, or die."
"Just like Ganon." Amoto looked down in disappointment. He blurred out of sight.
"I know he's not letting me go." Dimitri said, looking around. He heard a buzzing sound and ducked in time to avoid Amoto flying in the direction of his head. He brought his sword up and deflected Amoto to the ground. "Let's go old man. Show me the benefits of the Twili."
"Is that how it's going to be?" Amoto got up smiling. He shifted his weight and grew larger, the darkness making him swell. He grew to Dimitri's size and height, and then the darkness cleared. He had become an exact copy of Dimitri. "This is what Midna gave me. The ability to copy someone exactly. Their weapons, strength, speech, etc."
"Copying huh?" Dimitri showed no regress.
"Oh yes. You have an exquisite body. So this is what it's like to be a human. If it weren't for the short life span this wouldn't be so bad." Amoto assessed Dimitri's body, moving around to test it out. "But that doesn't matter when I gain my immortality."
"Immortality isn't going to be in your lifetime, Amoto. I'm going to end your life right now." Dimitri clenched his jaw and tensed his entire body. Amoto shot him a grin.
"Someone is watching over you, huh? We'll see." Amoto continued smiling. "You have quite an interesting body. You even bear Ganon's triforce of power. This is an interesting development. I can't allow you to continue anymore. I must bring you to Princess Midna."
"You're pretty funny for an old Goron. You will not be able to take me alive." Dimitri ran full speed at Amoto.
"How clichéd." Amoto drew an exact replica of Dimitri's sword from his back. He threw off Dimitri's signature cloak, revealing his muscular body. "This is a nice body. Perhaps this will be my new form."
"You won't need a form when I kill you." Dimitri lunged vivaciously, rabid with anger. His attacks were all guarded against, providing Amoto with the openings he needed. He couldn't dodge as Amoto split his shoulder open and cut along his back. He fell to the ground in a heap. "You won't… take me…"
"Yes, I know. Alive, right?" Amoto drove the sword though his other shoulder, preventing him from getting up. Dimitri cursed under his now almost nonexistent breath. His body was going into shock. "You will please the princess rather well, though you did go down a lot faster than I had anticipated. I thought you had more in you than that. Oh well, it doesn't matter anymore. You are going to join us now whether you consent or not."
"Bastard…" Dimitri faded from consciousness. His life hung on the verge of darkness. He felt the darkness taking hold of his spine and legs. They were turning him. Dimitri couldn't move an inch while the darkness reached his shoulder blades.
Dimitri's mind reeled from the assault of the darkness. He couldn't fight it forever. He flashed back on all of the things in his life. Princess Zelda, the years they spent together. The lives of his parents that he took in a blinding rage.
Don't let it end here Dimitri. You are stronger than this. A voice pierced the darkness overtaking him. It was his guardian angel again. You still have so much to do. Resist the darkness and vanquish the threat.
Just as the darkness was about to cover him completely, it began to recede.
Dimitri, you need to stand and fight. Her voice soothed his soul. He tried to cry out for her, to be with him, but she simply coaxed him to fight back.
"How did you resist the turning?" Amoto gasped as he watched Dimitri rip the sword from the ground, still in his shoulder. He raised his arm and forcefully removed the sword from his body, letting blood flow freely. "How did you survive?"
"I have someone watching over me. You know that." Dimitri gripped a sword in each hand. "Do you want to see how your life is going to end?"
Dimitri's body was wrecked. There was no way that he would be able to recover for months after this battle. He had to give everything to win.
"Now you are the funny one, boy. My life will not end here!" Amoto charged forward, head on into Dimitri. Dimitri slipped under him and planted a sword. Amoto tripped over the hilt, sending him face first to the ground. Dimitri jumped onto his back and placed the heel of his boot on the back of his head.
"Anything to say before I send you to hell?" Dimitri applied pressure gradually to his skull. His sword was raised, poised for the final blow.
"It will not end here!" Amoto cried as Dimitri delivered a perfectly placed curb-stomp to the back of his skull, and tore his body to shreds with the twin swords. Dimitri sheathed the swords on his back, keeping the copy of his original Claymore. Amoto was a worthy adversary, but now he had paid the price of darkness.
Dimitri didn't even glance at his wounds. He knew his body was done. He staggered limply to where Zelda had been waiting before the fight but he found that she was not there. The Master Sword was tossed aside in a group of bushes. Swearing under his breath he put it on his back, and fought to stay upright. He looked around and couldn't find Zelda.
"They took her." He cursed himself for being so stupid and for not being able to help Zelda. They just took her while he was distracted. He should have known it would happen.
Not being able to stand any longer, his body crumpled beneath him. His head spun as he lost all consciousness and faded to black.