"Eek!" Midna cried when a spider suddenly jumped up at her. Dozens of others followed the first creature's example, their thin, branched legs scraping her skin. A moment later, the Master Sword slashed through them, freeing the imp from her all too vivid nightmare. "This is the last time I'm coming out in places like these!" She exclaimed in a high-pitched voice, jumping back into the hero's shadow.
Link sighed. Sheathing his weapon, he looked down at his shadow. After the strange puppet creatures in the Sacred Grove, her tolerance for shocks had decreased. Apparently, the spiders had snapped it completely. He did not blame her. He himself did not find the crawling creatures at his feet any more appealing, however he did not have a choice.
Walking up the stairs, he was greeted by even bigger arachnids, hairy and with one big eye, staring at him. Ignoring the shiver running down his spine, he made quick work of them and climbed the stairs to the top, halting in front a giant scale. Letting his gaze wander across the room, he analysed his surroundings. Even more of the unusual miniature statues were lined up at the wall above him and, well, spiders crawled across the floors everywhere. He had already defeated multiple foes and cracked riddles, but the temple did not seem to end.
The young hero made his way through the building, encountering even more foes, until he came upon a room which was quite dark in comparison to the other halls he had already been to. Suddenly, bars dropped from above the door, blocking his way out. His head swung around, realising what was about to happen.
Slowly, he turned back, looking ahead to eye the room for suspicious activities. This time however, he did not have to wait for a giant toad to drop from the ceiling. In the centre of the room, a gloomy knight stood still. He was heavily armoured, his back turned on Link. The hero gulped. Each shoulder plate of his foe was already bigger than his own head.
"There! Above him!" Midna's voice sounded from beneath him. Gazing upwards, Link spotted the statue, matching the one from the entrance hall. He stepped closer, eyeing it with curiosity. It looked exactly the same – a stump for feet, a giant double axe like hammer in both hands, which covered the hole in its torso. The hole, which all the other tiny statues had, too. The material seemed to be alike as well.
"Link!" Midna yelled. She sounded desperate. He turned to his shadow, but she remained where she was. "Watch out!" He heard her warning, just before the enormous claymore of the Darknut swung a heavy blow at him. Link stumbled backwards.
The scene appeared to him like slow motion. The blade barely missed him; he could see it pass his face just inches away. He had to forfeit the tips of the strands of his hair, being cut by the foes attack.
Time started flowing normally again. Link caught his fall with one hand, looking up over the blade, which was stuck in the tiles of the marble floor. He stared into utter darkness for the short moment he tried peering through the helmet of the knight. It lifted its weapon. Link could not get up – he would have to stand right next to his dangerous enemy. Tensing his muscles, he pushed his feet off the ground, spinning backwards on his one hand, which was still on the ground. Landing on his feet, he rose and quickly drew the Master Sword. Panting already, he knew he did not have the time to develop a tactic. At the same time, he was well aware of the heavy armour of his opponent, not giving him the option to mindlessly attack.
The next blow came before he knew it. The heavy blade crushed into the ground once more. Link had rolled over his shield, escaping underneath the blade within a heartbeat. He jumped to his feet, slashing the Master Sword towards the unguarded arm of his foe. The Darknut did not wince once. It simply heaved its claymore up again and turned. Shocked, Link broke into a sprint. He ran across the room, since there was no way for him to climb up the high ledge of the statue. Almost falling against the wall, he supported himself with both arms, turning back quickly. He stood with his back against the wall, watching as the giant knight let its blade sink. Before Link could even sigh in relief, his enemy had started walking towards him. Feeling the sweat roll down his temple, the hero panted, a discouraged expression across his face.
"Link, use your skills." Midna reported from within his shadow. "The hidden stuff, you know? Your private lessons." She spoke quickly, hurried and with concern ringing in her tone. Link swallowed down his heavy breathing. Private lessons… he thought, unable to supress his smirk. You make everything sound so easy. He suppressed a laugh, breathing it out through his nose instead.
Taking a deep inhale, he stepped away from the wall. She was there. She always made him feel light, comforted and strong. He really needed a break, but he had also made a habit of taking more breaks than usual, since the imp would join him. When this was over, he would be allowed to rest. They could rest.
Already picturing them in his mind, eating, chatting and (hopefully) cuddling until they'd doze off, he had to smile. For Midna, he told himself with determination, walking towards the Darknut with new strength.
After several minutes of intense combat, Link had only avoided attacks. So far, he had not landed a single hit. He was dodging as much as he could, but he knew he was being too careful. If he wanted to win this battle, he had to fight more offensively. Gripping the handle of his sword tighter, he fiercely stared at his enemy. The knight swung its blade at him, only this time, it hit. With all his force, Link had slammed his shield against the large weapon. He exhaled shortly, surprised and relieved that his strategy had worked.
The Darknut stumbled for just the split of a second, giving the hero time to strike. Forcing the Master Sword forward, he stabbed between the plating of the knight's chest and arm, drilling through the hauberk. Before his opponent could even react to the pain, Link had jumped up, crashed his weapon between the chest plate of the armour the hauberk, and thrust it away from his foe. He finished his move with a summersault above the knight's head, grabbing the helmet with his right hand and pulled it off. Twirling around, he delivered another slash across the – in comparison to before – lightly armoured back of the knight.
The creature let out a strange sound, almost resembling a groan of pain, jerking with every attack. The remaining plates that were protecting its body scattered across the floor, clattering against the damaged marble. Link gritted his teeth at the sounds. Ready to sheath his sword, the hero straightened, drawing a deep breath.
His inhale was cut off, almost causing him to choke when the assumed to be defeated foe, turned around. Lunging at Link, the Darknut threw its heavy blade at him with a flick of its wrist. Barely avoiding it, the hero jumped to the side. Tripping over a piece of the former plates, he fell backwards. To his horror, his opponent had gained speed and agility upon losing its outer armour. Seemingly beaming forward, the knight had drawn a slim sword and lunged at Link. He could feel the air of the attack blow in his face, but the pain did not come.
"Get up, fleabag!" Midna shrieked. Link opened his eyes. His companion had shielded him with the power of her hair, holding the sharp blade above his head in her giant hand. Right! He slid across the stone, beneath the imp and shoved his sword upward, drilling it thought the Darknut's chest. Stumbling backwards, the creature lost its balance. It swung the sword Midna had let go aimlessly through the air. Its body tensed, both the imp's and the hero's eyes widened upon seeing the monster tremble before bursting apart, leaving behind dark clouds that dispersed quickly.
Simultaneously, he two let out a heavy sigh of relief. Link relaxed his tense limbs, the Master Sword gliding out of his grip. Midna turned around, eyeing him with concern, before letting her gaze soften. He was barely injured. Only bruised and exhausted. She floated down, kneeling on the ground next to his face. He was panting, had his eyes closed and lay on his back. The imp frowned upon watching a smirk stretch across his face.
"You thought it would be a ridiculously giant spider, didn't you?" He laughed hoarsely – not yet knowing about the dungeon's boss. Midna pushed her lips forward in an annoyed pout.
"You're such a child." She huffed, not believing him. Crossing her arms, she waited until his chuckle died down. Obviously, he needed more time before continuing, still panting and not moving an inch. With a lopsided smile, Midna lightly shook her head. Well done, moron. She kept the praise to herself, leaning forward and placing a gentle kiss on his forehead.