"It's due East from here," said Midna as the three companions strode out of the Palace. The Twilight Princess took a step forward. Link and Zelda decided, wisely, to leave her a moment to take in the sight that surrounded them. Sadly, Midna observed the scene as flames gradually engulfed what had once been her kingdom to govern. She stood unwavering for a few moments before she turned to Link and Zelda.

"No use standing here and doing nothing," she told them with a sad smile on her lips, "We should really be going as fast as we possibly can."

A snap of the fingers. Link and Zelda had become wolves again. Midna strode up to Link and threw one leg over his back.

"I hope you don't mind," she said softly, "But you have to agree transportation is much quicker this way."

Link chuckled inside; The old Midna he knew was gradually creeping back. A motion from Zelda indicated that she was ready for the journey, which caused Link to push with his paws, heading towards the East.

In the never-ending Twilight, Link and Zelda almost seemed to fly as the landscape passed by in a blur. A sense of urgency pursued them as they closed in on their destination, the Temple of Night. Soon enough, two gray and sombre towers rose up in the distance, alerting them to the fact that the Temple was there in front of them. As they ran nearer and nearer, the horizon settled down to reveal a broken-down stone structure that dwarfed the nearest trees in sight. Its domed roof appeared to be on the brink of collapse, and its dark shades almost allowed it to camouflage into the Twilight. How the Temple remained standing, Link did not know, for it looked as though its walls would come crashing down at any minute.

"I know," mentioned Midna as Link slowed to a stop in front of the Temple's giant doors, "It isn't the most attractive building you've ever seen. But you'd be surprised to see what's inside. At least, what I think is inside. Ganondorf sealed the Temple with his own magic, therefore I don't know what to expect."

"No matter," replied Link, "We'll have to go and find out."

Midna gave a small chuckle, "You were always so keen on taking action, that I remember. Now tell me, would you both prefer to be your Hylian selves for this?"

Both nodded, and Midna snapped her fingers, eventually falling off Link's back as he suddenly straightened. Hoisting herself up, Midna could not help but grin. Link was ready, and she knew it.

The inside of the Temple was just as bleak as the outside, perhaps even more so as the darkness double coated the stone walls. Cracks had formed here and there, including the ground, forcing Link to watch his step as he progressed through. Taking a look around, Zelda turned to Midna.

"Please tell us, where is the portal?" she asked.

"Did you both notice a dome as you approached? That would be where it is," explained Midna, "It can only be accessed through one of the two towers you saw on the way down here, though."

During this time, Link had made his way to a stone staircase that led to a giant, dimly-lit room at its top.

"Which way, then, Midna?" he inquired, his steely eyes bearing into the Twilight Princess.

"Just up those stairs, Link."

Breaking into a run, Zelda caught up with Link as Midna followed. With the two behind him, Link stepped into the room.

Boom!

All three turned to see the doors close behind them. Soon after, the torches that lined the walls of the chamber extinguished themselves, taking away their sense of sight. Link whispered to Zelda, "Is it possible for you to use your magic and make some light?"

"That I am able to do," came the reply, "However, if something attacks us I'm sorry I cannot use my magic to defend us. The Goddesses haven't granted me back my full powers since the last time we fought Ganondorf."

And with that, a clap of the hands and a small ball of fire illuminated from Zelda's hand, lighting a small area. The Princess stepped forward, "I'll walk in front. You two follow behind me."

Stealthily, the three companions crossed the floor of the chamber. In spite of their efforts, the sound of their footfalls echoed and bounced off the stone walls and ceiling. Link was on the alert, sword in hand; He sensed that despite the quiet that was prevailing, something was bound to happen. Ganondorf would not ever allow them to pass through so easily. He assumed Midna felt the same way, although he could not entirely be sure. This was unlike his intuition about Zelda, who he knew for was experiencing the same feelings due to some deep, immeasurable bond the two had with each other. At times, Link found it a tad startling how complete of a painting the Princess had of him, and how much he had of her.

His thought was interrupted by a sudden beat of dark feathers, and Midna falling to the ground, cursing in her native tongue as a trail of blood trickled from her left arm. Sensing danger, Link drew out his sword and turned to Zelda, who shook her head, motioning to the ball of flame in her hands, indicating that she could not shoot her bow. Link and Midna were left to fight. The Hero shoved his sword up into the air, just in time to prevent a dark figure from hurting him. Looking up at the monster, Link realized that it was a harpy. The hideous creature had the appearance of an old woman, but with black, feathery wings and a screech that suggested otherwise. Moreover, its sharp talons, Link observed, could dig into ones flesh and cause great damage.

To make matters worse, there were more than one of them.

"Midna, stay by Zelda!" he commanded the Twili, "I'll take care of this!"

Swinging his sword, Link made his way to the edges of Zelda's light and was caught slightly off guard by a flurry of attacks from the harpies. He slashed and hacked at the air, drawing blood from some of the flying creatures. Yet his efforts proved to be futile, as he brought down not one single harpy, their abilities in flight aiding them to avoid his blade. As determined as always, Link blocked each blow with his shield, and parried each talon with his sword. At one point, Link felt a sharp sting across his upper back as a harpy took advantage of an opening and clawed at him. Gritting his teeth, Link slashed backwards, only to miss the monster as it screeched and flew upwards, readying itself for another attack.

During this time, Zelda could no longer stand by. As great of a warrior as he was, Link was outnumbered six to one while the two Princesses went virtually unnoticed. Unnerved by Link's troubles, Zelda ran forward, holding out the ball of flame in front of her while she pulled out her dagger. Midna, seeing the Princess run, immediately gasped and followed, holding up the train of her skirt.

"Link! I'm almost there!" she hollered as she neared him.

Midna was tempted to shake her head. "This girl is practically insane," she thought to herself, "Although she is rather brave."

She had gone only two feet towards Link when suddenly, the harpies let out cries of absolute terror and flew upwards, their wings batting as forcefully as possible. Link turned around and stared straight at Zelda.

"Zelda," he almost growled, "Stay back. Do you hear me?"

Hearing his tone, Zelda glared due to both hurt pride and also a feeling of disappointment that Link, still, did not appreciate her willingness to aid him. She watched as the Hero distanced himself and, once again, the harpies fell upon him, even more fervent than previously. Stubbornly, Zelda sprinted forward yet again, leaving Midna almost in the dark. Just as the Twili was about to trail Zelda, dark wings attempted to engulf her, making Midna cry out in rage before she managed to move forward. Suddenly, the harpies seemed to lose interest in her as well, and flew back, quick as arrows, towards Link.

"Well thank you very much Princess!" yelled Midna in a highly unpleased voice.

But what had just occurred did not escape Link's attention and in that instant, he was able to decode Ganondorf's challenge.

"Zelda!" he forced out as he backed nearer and nearer towards her, "You need to light the torches in the direction of where we want to go! The harpies are afraid of the light!"

Midna's ears perked up upon hearing this, and the Twilight Princess mentally chastised herself for not observing the phenomenon earlier.

Zelda remembered the torches that had extinguished themselves, and turned to Link. "The torches are very high up. I'll have to stand on Midna's shoulders but even then, she'll only be half covered by the light."

Link looked at her sternly. "I'll defend you, Princess," he solemnly pledged, allowing a small tinge of how he felt about her into his voice.

The two of them gazed at each other for a few fleeting moments until Midna broke their connection. "I hope I don't offend anyone, but this is slightly inappropriate at this point in time," she reminded the two with a tone of irony.

Zelda motioned to the right with her head, and Midna and Link ran with her over to where the first torch was. Crouching down, Midna felt the Princess' light footsteps on her shoulders before she dared to rise. In fact, she was rather hesitant despite the necessity of Zelda's action as she was frighteningly aware that the harpies were waiting, just waiting for her to plunge into the darkness.

Higher. Just a bit more...

The harpies did not hesitate the least bit, causing Midna to almost lose her balance out of fear. She was amazed with the willpower she had in her heart to not fall over, as Link blocked a slew of talons from approaching her body with a swipe. Unable to look up, Midna prayed that Zelda would rapidly finish lighting the torch as the noises of battle were growing deafening for her. After what seemed to be an eternity, she heard Zelda's voice. "Midna! We're moving on to the second torch now!"

As she allowed the Princess to make her way down the small of her back, Midna dreaded the next time the harpies would attack.

One by one, the three adventurers found each of the torches. As each torch was lit, the harpies grew increasingly furious and attacked with more fervor than each and every time they could. Link was beginning to sustain some injuries which showed as a few parts of his green tunic were darkening due to his blood. Zelda, noticing this last fact, was beginning to grow increasingly uneasy and extremely anxious, dreading that with each light of the torch, Link would suffer a fatal injury. With this in mind, each time she stood on Midna's shoulders, her body shook from a bit of fear, greatly affecting Midna who, unlike Zelda, was much closer in terms of reach for the harpies. Eventually, the tension rose to a level where Midna and Zelda snapped at each other, unsettling the two Princesses even further. The harpies sensed their fear and gradually built up the force of their attacks, testing the Hero to new heights every time they struck. Sweat mixed with blood as Link held his stance for his two companions, swinging his blade without mercy and desperately trying, in vain, to strike down at least one of the harpies.

Suddenly, the harpies completely lost their guard and Link delivered a final stab, impaling one of the harpies in the middle of its body. Squawking and croaking, the harpies flew helter-skelter in fear as light conquered each and every corner of the room. Black feathers dispersed here and there as the light blinded the monsters. They had accomplished their task. With a final sigh of relief, Midna leaned against a wall in order to calm herself, and watched Zelda approach Link.

"When we are out of this Temple, you can be sure I'll be closing these wounds, Link," said the Princess with a serious look on her face as she closely examined the cuts on Link's body.

Link all but shrugged her off. "Let's go!" he commanded, his voice drowning those of the still-screeching harpies.

The Hero broke out into a run for the end of the room where another door stood. Zelda and Midna ran with him, trying to match his speed as the rush towards the door continued. Suddenly, and without warning, the stone in the floor cracked. Not knowing what exactly was happening, Link sprinted with all his might, determined to reach the door that was just within his grasp. He stretched out his arm to grab the stone handles, his fingers felt the coolness of the stone at their tips.

But it was too late.

Soon Link was falling, down into a dark chasm with his two companions following him. They, too, had been caught as the floor below them ruptured. It wasn't long before Link felt cold metal clamp onto his wrists and ankles. As he tried to glance at his limbs in order to see what was restraining him, Link felt the sudden presence of water swallow him up. The liquid was almost icy cold, a sensation that was rendered worse as the chains on Link's wrists drew him up until half his torso was out of the water and cold air was able to batter at his body. Turning his head quickly to his left and right, Link found that the two Princesses were in the same position as he was, and they were struggling to undo themselves from their bonds, but to no avail. Link let out a roar of frustration, and twisted his body side to side, attempting to somehow release himself as well. Yet a sight interrupted all three short of their goal.

A dark figure was looming towards them in the water.