His own heartbeat filled his skull with wave after wave of unbelievable ache. Link's eyes slowly opened to let in a world of darkness. The hard ground he laid upon was made of a strange reddish-purple stone, and a faint light in the distance revealed thick, iron bars surrounding him on three sides. Behind him was a rock wall, dampened by some kind of fluid that Link dared not to touch. Rubbing his head, he slowly rose to his hands and knees. He swayed as he tried to secure his sense of balance, and noticed that he felt significantly lighter physically. He gasped when he realized why. His hand darted up to his shoulder.

The Goddess Sword was gone.

"Fi?" he called aloud.

There was no response. All he could hear were the echoes of dripping from somewhere far off, adding a damp eeriness to the already ghastly place.

"Fi?" he thought, hoping she could hear him telepathically.

More dripping.

His shield was also missing. Rising to his feet, he began looking for any way out and was soon interrupted by an aggressive growl. On the other side of the bars, he saw a mean-looking green Bokoblin approaching, snarling more harshly with each step. Link curled his fingers around the whip, but kept as close to the shadows as he could. The angry Bokoblin reached the iron bars and began bashing its thick metal weapon against them. The sound rattled terribly in Link's aching skull, and he had to fight the urge to cover his ears. He watched carefully through his own wincing, timing each of the beast's loud thrashes until he saw a prime opportunity. Flicking his wrist, he sent the whip outward. Through the bars, it managed to latch onto the creature's weapon. It drew back several steps, giving Link the chance to pull the weapon from its warty fingers.

With a stamp of its deformed feet, it growled and approached to retrieve its weapon, only for the whip to then latch around its neck. Link pulled back as hard as he could, bashing the creature's face against the bars, rendering it unconscious. Link pressed a palm against his throbbing forehead and let his back rest against the cold stone wall while the pain eased. However, his eyes were quickly caught by something shining on the Bokoblin's belt. Upon closer inspection, Link saw that it was a ring of keys, the realization of which ushered what ache had been left over. With another flick of the whip, he was able to pull it through the bars to himself. He fumbled with the keys, trying each one on the lock on the other side of the bars, until finally he heard a loud clank, and the door creaked open.

Though he did not know where, Link took off running down the long corridor, past other cages similar to the one he had been trapped in. A short incline of uneven steps led him to an opening, at which he could only stop and gasp. It was as if he had stepped into an entirely different world. Purple smoke rose from the bubbling hot lakes of thick, reddish-brown liquid. The ground was eerie, dark, and purple, and everywhere he looked, sharp rocks jutted out from the ground and the ceiling. Worst of all, it was crawling with green and blue Bokoblins, the sight of which made him crouch down low. Link saw several large, spinning cylinders high up, and occasional holes in the ceiling, from which beams of light illuminated the floor. He gave his lips a lick and ran a hand through his honey-blonde locks as he thought of what to do.

"Fi? Fi, can you hear me?" he thought again.

Hearing no response, he angrily pounded a fist against the hard red rock. Scanning the area once more, he paid closest attention to the apparent holes in the ceiling, through which light from above was showering through. He slid down an incline of rock as quietly as he could and quickly made for rock shelter nearby. Peering out through several cracks in the rock, he saw two Bokoblin marching about just outside. Holding his breath, he tip-toed to the end of the rock shelter and found himself at the edge of a large lake of thick, hot, bubbling liquid. The smell coming from it almost made him gag, reminding him of a long-dead beast out in the open summer sun. It stung his nostrils and throat terribly. Still, he found a series of large stones jutting out, and began leaping from rock to rock as best as he could.

Suddenly, a whistling echo filled the cave. To his left, something splashed in the liquid. Upon further inspection, Link saw that it was an arrow, which was slowly being dissolved by the lake. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw two Bokoblin archers taking aim at him. His heart quickened along with his pace of his diving from rock to rock, while a barrage of arrows flew at him. Most landed in the lake, though some came close enough to strike the rocks, prompting an occasional yelp from the boy and propelling broken pieces of rock into his face. At long last, his body rolled onto solid ground, yet the arrows kept coming. He scrambled to his feet and ran to a nearby wall, above which were the large spinning cylinders.

Before he began scaling the wall, Link noticed that the arrows ceased, and the area became eerily silent. Looking this way and that, he observed that all of the Bokoblin, green and blue alike, seemed to be drawing away. Link readied the whip as a feeling of lurking danger arose in his gut. His forest green eyes were drawn to the ground. Some small hills were beginning to form around him, almost reminding him of a Mogma emerging from its hole. However, what came forth was not a Mogma in the slightest. Before Link rose four red Bokoblin. Their warty skin was darker than normal, and in some areas it had paled to a dead gray color. Bones and muscular in their arms, legs, and abdomens were exposed, as if the skin previously covering them had been carved off. Their faces drooped terribly, and their eyes were pure white.

Until this moment, Link had only believed the undead to be tales and myths. Now, his stomach knotted itself over and over again at the sight of these zombified Bokoblin. He tried to catch them with the whip, yet to his dismay, it slid right off of their slimy, decaying skin. He knocked one to the ground with his slingshot. The others, he began punching at wildly, though they seemed unphased by this. Realizing he could not best the undead foes, he turned and tried to make his way up the wall as quickly as possible, but was stopped short when he felt a clawed hand come down on his shoulder, followed by the searing pain of fangs sinking into his neck.

A primal scream erupted, echoing through the entirety of the cave. In a fit of rage (or perhaps panic) Link dislodged the creature and continued his climb, aided by the pure adrenaline firing in him. Reaching the top, he escaped into a small cavern of stalagmites. He exhaled sharply as he leaned his back against one. He could feel a disturbing and nauseating pain now coursing through his veins, pooling at the bite wound in his neck. Resting against the sharp rock, he tried to slow and channel his breathing.

"Fi?" he tried once more, praying he'd hear even a hint of his companion's voice somewhere in this horrific place.

The silence that followed was perhaps more painful than his fresh new wound. But then, his mind was filled with a soft yet melodic sound. He was taken back to the last nightmare he had before the Wing Ceremony, the very first time he heard Fi's voice.

"L...i...n...k..."

His breath froze in his chest. Was he just remembering? Or was he hearing?

"L...i...n...k... Mas...ter..."

His eyes flew open. He had heard her.

"Fi, I'm here!" he thought as loudly as he could. "I'm coming, just hold on."

A renewed sense of strength and determination welled as he left from behind the stalagmites. Seeing the only obvious way to go was up, he began scaling the rotating cylinders, leaping from one to the other as best as he could, though it aggravated his neck and previously injured shoulder terribly.

"Fi? Can you still hear me?"

"Affirm...ative... you... are... drawing... closer."

Reaching the highest point, he saw a large opening to another rock shelter ahead of him. Yet before it stood a large, menacing Moblin. It snarled and readied its weapon and shield. Seeing this only reminded Link more of the agonizing absence of his own. He launched a seed from his slingshot into its belly, and it promptly bounced off. The Moblin looked down at where it had been struck, a confused look morphing into its features. It then looked up at Link and snarled.

"Can't blame me for trying," Link said with a shrug, trading out the slingshot for the whip.

The Moblin charged forward with a roar, and Link ran to meet it head on. It raised its weapon, yet before it could strike, Link wrapped the whip around its stumpy leg. Link swung to the side of the Moblin and pulled the whip as hard as he could. The beast fell to the ground, skidding to a stop with its face buried in the rocky ground. Link charged forward again, this time wrapping the whip around the creature's neck. However, when he stepped closer to the creature, he saw something very familiar hanging from its back.

It was the Goddess Sword in its sheath.

Link pulled on the whip as tightly as he could and watched the beast gurgle and sputter for breath. Any time it came close to hoisting itself up, Link tightened his pull, until at long last it ceased its moving, slowly dissolving into a cloud of malice. The sword fell to the ground with a clank. Link scooped up the sheath in his hands.

"Fi, can you hear me?" he asked, a hint of a smile crossing his lips.

"Master, do not-"

Link wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the sword. No sooner had his fingertips felt the pattern etched into the hilt did a burning pain rage from his hand, up his arm, collecting at the wound in his neck. A shriek escaped from him. He wagged his hand around to rid it of the residual burning. However, a dark sense of ache continued to pulsate from his neck.

"Fi, what is happening?"

"You have been infected with malice, Master," she replied in her melodic voice. "As such, you cannot wield the blade until the malice is dispelled from you."

Link stifled a growl.

"What about you?" he inquired. "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"I am unharmed," she confirmed. "However, I am incapable of leaving the Goddess Sword in this environment."

"Hang it all," Link huffed, before swallowing his annoyance. "I'm glad you're here and you're safe."

"Likewise, Master. Let us find a way out and restore you as quickly as we can."

Link slung the sword on his back, being careful not to let the hilt touch his skin. He ran through the cavern ahead, which turned out to be a long, dark tunnel.

"Any ideas how to get out of here, exactly?" he asked, scraping against a wall in the unyielding darkness.

"There are several large gaps in the ceiling," she replied.

"I gathered that," he said with a hint of a chuckle.

"I am detecting a key nearby."

"Oh yeah, these places tend to have those, don't they?"

The tunnel ended at a ledge that overlooked what appeared to be a large pit. Above it, a long beige rope dangled from the light above to the dark mauve ground below. In front of the rope was a black, menacing chest, with two rubies set in it to look like eyes. Link cautiously approached the chest, his breaths growing tighter with each step closer. Inside, he found a golden key, shaped like a statuette of the large structure in the front room of the cistern. It was rather jarring to find such a beauteous artifact in an otherwise evil-looking chest. Link was studying it when his attention was drawn to the ground. The empty chest began to rattle, and small hills began bubbling up on the surface once more.

Pocketing the key, Link quickly made for the rope and began pulling himself up, wincing and straining with each pull as the pains in his neck and shoulder were magnified immensely. Below him, dozens of undead Bokoblin gave chase, piling on top of one another, all scrambling to climb the rope. Link shrieked as he felt one grab onto his foot, though he quickly managed to kick it off. More followed right behind. As Link inched closer to the top, more and more of their arms grabbed him by the legs and waist, and one even managed to swipe his arm. Still, with massive beads of sweat dripping down his forehead, he climbed as feverishly as he could.

"You are doing well, Master," Fi tried to encourage. "The closer to the light you draw, the less they will give chase. Just a few more meters and you will be in the clear."

With an impassioned shout, Link quickened the pace of his climbing, trying to ignore the malice flowing through his veins and how terribly it pained him to move in the way that he was. At long last, as Fi predicted, the undead Bokoblin gave their own disgruntled cries and began falling from the rope. Link climbed into the light, and found himself hoisting himself up into a small yet bright room. He laid on the ground for a time, while Fi emerged from the sword and inspected the wound on his neck.

"It's good to actually see you," he said breathlessly, forcing a chuckle to hide his agony.

Fi observed that the veins running closest to the wound were dark, almost blackened, even.

"Do you feel well?" she asked.

"I'm not sure I would call it that," he replied.

"I am uncertain of how to dispel this malice within you, Master," she stated plainly, tilting her head. "I sense that we are drawing close to the demon that is weakening the dragon Faron. Master, should you proceed, I advise doing so with utmost caution."

Link observed the space more closely. There appeared to be a large door high above them. Near the top, he could also see what appeared to be the impression of the statue they saw in the front room, except the impression was inward.

"Are we... inside the statue?" Link asked, straining up to a seated position.

"I am ninety-nine percent certain that you are correct."

They looked around the room, finding a wind up key on the floor with them, as well as others scattered about on different heights on their own platforms. Equipping the whip, Link pulled the first wind up key, from which a powerful stream of rising water came, leading up to the next key. Carefully, Link stepped into the stream and was propelled upward. He continued this until finally reaching the top. Using the key, he entered into the next room. The door was quickly sealed with iron bars, and another sealed door lied ahead of them.

The room was dark. The walls were a deep shade of burgundy, with large, red pillars with gold trimming lining the circular space. In the center was a massive, gold statue that appeared dormant. Its face was turned away from them. Link's leather boots echoed as they tapped against the floor. It was eerily quiet, until...

A burst of sharp laughter filled the room. Link instinctively reached for the Goddess Sword, but drew his hand back before touching it. From the other side of the golden statue came the thin, pale, menacing frame that was Ghirahim. He appeared to have recovered well since their last battle.

"At this point, your survival is nothing short of comical," the demon lord said between laughs. "Please tell me how you've made it this far, because I cannot seem to figure it out for the life of me."

Ghirahim tucked a gangly hand under his chin and tilted his head, giving Link a once-over.

"Something's different about you, and it's just on the tip of my tongue," he said. "Oh! Is that a smudge I see on your neck there?"

Link stood, fists clenched, eyes bearing into Ghirahim's.

"Or... could it be?" Ghirahim's dark eyes grew wide with amusement. "Link, do you know what separates monsters from true demons, which I have the pleasure of lording over?"

His thin fingers spread out and slowly curled into a fist. Link's neck began throbbing, and a searing pain stretched from the wound through his entire body. He tried with all of his strength not to let it show, but as Ghirahim's fist curled tighter, a pained groan began emerging from the back of his throat, soon turning to a scream as the boy's knees buckled beneath him.

"Malice," Ghirahim said deliciously, almost in a whisper. "Which means now, I have some control over you."

Ghirahim threw his fist to the side. Link felt as though a chain had been wrapped around his neck. Though he tried to resist, his body scraped across the floor. His neck pulsated terribly with each beat of his heart, and he could feel the malice spreading out through his body. Suddenly, his body was slammed against one of the nearby pillars and held there by Ghirahim's force.

"I can only imagine just how much you are loathing this moment right now," he said with a laugh. "Now, Link. I can be nice and make all of this end for you. Just be a dear and let fate have its way, and it will all be over soon."

The demon lord turned to face the dormant statue.

"Awaken, my Koloktos!"

The joints of the golden statue began to crack and move. From the other sides of the room, giant arms wielding weapons three times Link's size flew toward the statue, connecting at each of its joints, six altogether. Link tried to free himself from Ghirahim's otherworldly grip to no avail. Fi came forth from the sword.

"Release him," she said, perhaps more loudly than Link had ever heard her speak.

"Oh, if it isn't the emotionless little sword brat," Ghirahim spat, quickly becoming agitated by her presence.

"Release him," she repeated.

"Or what?" the demon lord mocked.

Link's gaze darted back and forth between their exchange and the golden enemy that was rapidly assembling. He did, however, notice that Fi appeared to be enveloped in a beautiful radiance, alternating between a deep, sapphire blue and a bold indigo. Meanwhile, Ghirahim was also shrouded in his own dark shadow, with occasional bursts of orange energy. Just as the Koloktos was rearing back to strike, Fi sped forward, her light clashing with Ghirahim's, creating a blind burst of radiance. Link was released from Ghirahim's hold and quickly dove out of the way just before the pillar was smashed to pieces by one of the Koloktos' enormous weapons. Link shot a glance back at Fi, who appeared to be chasing Ghirahim, both gliding through the air by their own power and magic.

While he could, Link turned his attention to the Koloktos.

"This must be the demon draining Faron's power," he said to himself. Then he gasped, "Faron!"

An overhead strike bore down on him. He scrambled to run behind a series of pillars. Pressing his back against one, he said a quick prayer.

"Faron," he began, shakily even in his thoughts, "You sent me with one of your scales to aid us. Now please, aid us!"

Dozens of rocks and shards of stone and gold were showered down on him as the pillar he hid behind was obliterated by the Koloktos. Link darted out into the room, but was once more taken into Ghirahim's grip and sent to the floor, landing on his back.

"Be a good boy now," the demon lord said. "Stay still, and I promise I'll make it as quick and painful as I can."

With much groaning and straining, Link managed to take hold of the whip. As the Koloktos raised an arm to strike him, Link flicked the whip, catching him by one of the exposed joints. The golden monstrosity's head turned to observe its new snare. With an impassioned shout, Link pulled the whip as hard as he could, and to his amazement, the joint separated, falling to the floor with a room-shaking crash. Ghirahim was momentarily distracted from his conflict with Fi.

"No!" he growled.

He wielded his weapon, and in a turn of events, he began chasing Fi, flicking his blade at her every chance he got.

Link could feel his strength rallying, enough to pull himself up from the floor. The Koloktos appeared to be in a state of shock at its new injury. Link noticed, however, that a series of iron bars that had previously covered its belly had been raised, revealing a large, circular, ruby-like gem. Knowing the whip itself likely wouldn't deal any damage, and that he was still unable to wield the Goddess Sword, Link opted to try something daring, if not foolish.

He pried the beast's disembodied fingers off of its weapon; a giant scimitar. His strength continued to well as he lifted the weapon. His arms and chest burned terribly, and beads of sweat quickly formed on his forehead. Still, he lifted the weapon, and with a scream, hurled it into the monstrosity's belly. It unleashed some kind of a wail as it curled in on itself.

"How is this possible?" Ghirahim raged.

He clenched his fist once more. Link grasped at his neck as he felt Ghirahim's hold on him intensify. Then, he found himself flying through the air. His own body smashed through another pillar before rolling to a stop on the hard floor behind it, showered in rock, gold, and dust. Ghirahim roared and raised a hand, trapping Fi in a barrier of orange light and dark malice.

"Master?" she called.

"Save it, filthy sword spirit," Ghirahim spat back.

With long strides and a proud smirk, he crept over to where the pillar's rubble was settling. He searched the area, though failed to find Link. His smirk quickly melted into a scowl as he began looking this way and that for the green-clad hero. Suddenly, he heard the boy yelling from behind. Before he could react, Link rammed his body into Ghirahim, knocking the blade from his hand and pinning him to the wall.

"How can you be so lucky?" Ghirahim sputtered, Link's wrist pressing against his throat.

It was then he saw that the veins in Link's neck. They had previously been growing darker, yet they now appeared as pale white as his own skin, and the whiteness was spreading up to the bite wound, slowly yet surely.

"Faron's blessing is upon you, Master," Fi stated from behind the barrier. "Surely she is strengthening and protecting you by the power of her scale."

Link pressed harder, forcing a bit of a gag from the demon lord. As if unbothered by the now choking force against his neck, another slick, slimy smile crossed his thick, pale lips. Then, without warning, the demon lord vanished in a cloud of malice. Link turned in angry search of him, only to be met by the Koloktos' double-bladed weapon roaring toward him. He ducked down just before his head was severed from his neck. As previously, Link hooked the whip to its extended joint, and with a shout, pulled it from the beast's socket. Taking hold of its weapon, Link spun it around until he had built enough momentum to smash it into the red orb in its belly once more.

"Master," Fi called out, "while your strikes are landing, I do not believe the Koloktos is weakening."

"No," Link replied breathlessly, "only something capable of dispelling malice can kill it."

He reached behind his back, yet he could tell by the beginnings of a burning sensation in his hand that he still could not yet wield the Goddess Sword. Then, another thought occurred to him. Reaching into his pocket, he took out the dragon scale. It was glowing, like a pure diamond exposed to gorgeous sunlight. He could feel its power tingling on his fingertips, and the pain in his neck was subsiding even more rapidly with the scale in-hand.

Turning his fierce, green gaze back to the Koloktos, he readied the whip. The Koloktos delivered an overhead strike with one of its blade, which Link dodged. Then, it hurled one of its golden hands his way. He managed to avoid it by dropping to the floor. Rising to one knee, he flicked the whip, catching it by its sword-bearing arm. With another shriek, Link tore the arm free from the beast, thus opening its weak point.

As quickly as he could, he ran toward the beast, lifting the scale over his head, before finally driving it into the Koloktos' belly. The beast screeched and shrieked, its arms flailing wildly as cracks of pure radiance appeared in its solid gold frame. The Koloktos began shaking, and then finally burst into a cloud of malice, throwing Link back a considerable distance, his body scraping against the hard floor while pieces of gold rained down around them. Fi was freed from her barrier and sped her way to Link, who was slowly rising to his feet.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I am well," she replied with a bow. "More so, I can confirm that Faron's power is still restoring you. I estimate that soon, you will be able to wield the Goddess Sword again."

"Good, because I have a hunch that the flame is just beyond that door," he said.

"A hunch, Master?"

"You may call it an estimation or a calculation," he said with a smile, rotating some ache out of his shoulder.

They entered into the next room, and found that it was made entirely of stone, with ancient images etched into the walls and floor. Before them, a bright, fierce fire burned with emerald green flames licking the air wildly. If he paid close enough attention, Link thought he could feel the spirit vessel around his neck responding to the flame, like a strange vibration. Fi appeared to be enchanted by the flame, as she quickly glided over to it. Link was a little more cautious in his approach.

Suddenly, the flame grew higher and brighter. Then, it attached itself to Fi, surrounding her in furious flames. Before Link could even respond, she flew into the air, crashing into the wall with earth-shaking power.

"Fi?" Link uttered, his voice faltering some.

A sudden sense of terror filled him. Fi then sped to the opposite wall, again, shaking the entire room upon impact. Finally, she roared down until she was directly in front of Link. She was utterly consumed in the emerald flame.

"Fi!" he shouted, taking a step forward.

To his amazement, he saw her gentle, unchanging face peer out from the fire. She held herself in a crouched position as she looked up at Link.

"You are ready, Master," she said, her voice as calm and melodic as usual. "Please, raise the Goddess Sword."

After a moment of hesitance, Link reached back and took hold of the hilt. Slowly, he glided the blade from its sheath and held it out before him. Bursts of flame flew from Fi and attached themselves to the sword. With each one, Link felt more and more that he would drop the sword under this immense, new power filling it. Alas, with a loud strain, he held strong, until Fi herself entered the sword with mighty force. The flame continued to dance across the blade, its light reflecting brightly off of Link's own forest green eyes. Then, in one sudden burst of light, the flame vanished. The sword appeared to have grown in length, and its blade was more polished and reflective than ever. It felt like pure magic being held in Link's palm.

"Amazing," he thought, his eyes continuing to dance over the blade.

"Indeed, Master."


Link returned to Lake Floria to find the Parellas abuzz in their gossip, and the lake filled with reflected moonlight. Instead of eyeing him curiously, the Parellas rushed to greet him with jubilant gladness. Despite all he had just endured, Link felt overwhelmed, ambushed even, and he found himself at a loss for a response to their many expressions of gratitude.

"Don't flood the lad," Jellyf said, pushing her way through the others, "you'll just scare the boy off. Please, don't crowd around him."

She wrapped one of her tentacles around Link's hand.

"Please, hurry!" she said, before leading him back to the platform.

He hoisted himself onto it. The dragon was not there. Link's heart immediately fell to his stomach.

"Did we take too long?" he asked, his breath growing faster.

"Just wait."

Her words had all but faded to silence, when suddenly all of the water in the lake began to ripple. The leaves in the trees started to dance in a strong wind, and the Parella's took turns leaping up from the water with shouts of joy. Then, beside the platform, a wave of water flew into the air, inside of it was the mighty dragon Faron. She soared into the sky with a mighty roar, which the Parella's echoed with their own cheers. Her lengthy body shrouded the moon as her war cry filled the entire forest. Link found himself covering his ears, though the moment was certainly one to behold.

The dragon slowly descended, coming to rest just above the platform. Her wild, orange eyes gazed into Link's.

"Child, you have done well," she said, bowing her head. "Against unfathomable odds, you managed to slay the demon who took my power from me."

Link's eyes darted over to the dragon's side. While a dull glow still emitted from her, the wound had already closed considerably. Swallowing dryly, he looked up to meet her gaze.

"I couldn't have done it without you," he said, a bit shyly.

"Surely I will continue to aid you however I can," she said, blinking her large eyes slowly. "We will meet again soon, Brave One. Until then, go and find the two remaining sacred flames, that you may carry out your duty given by the Goddess."

She lowered her long face until she was an arm's length away from the boy. He felt amazingly terrified in that moment, and yet, he reached out his hand, gently touching her radiant face. She felt like a smooth surface of diamond ores dancing against his palm. A small sound escaped him as he found himself flooded with pure gratitude for the awe-inspiring experience.