The ground quaked beneath his feet. Link, now back in Eldin, fell to the hot, red earth as the mountain shifted and swayed with loud, ominous roars. Dust was shaken from the nearby rocky hills, and smoke spewed from the peak of the mountain like Link had not seen previously. The night sky was lit with an eerie, reddish-purple glow from the agitated volcano.
"It wasn't like this when we got here, was it?" Link inquired from the ground.
Fi came forth from the sword and studied the area, seemingly unphased by the surrounding chaos.
"Ghirahim is here," she say plainly.
Link felt a heaviness hit in the depths of his stomach. His brow furrowed as he drew in a slow, frustrated breath. The quaking slowly fizzled out, and the region became calm once more. Despite this, the feeling of urgency was tangible between them.
"Let's find out what's going on," Link said with a nod.
"And locate the next sacred flame."
He started up the mountain pass, sword drawn and charged with a skyward strike. There did not appear to be anyone in sight, neither Mogmas nor Bokoblins, nor the demon lord himself. They came to the underground passage where Link had first encountered the Mogmas. Wondering if they would be gathered inside once more, Link ventured down the long, dark cave, with nothing more than the light of the sword to guide him. Reaching the bottom, there was nothing and no one to greet him, apart from the echoing of his own breaths and footsteps. The chamber split into three cave passages, all with beams of wood lining the walls and ceilings to support what had been dug into. Recalling it from his previous venture in Eldin, Link headed down the center passage, occasionally coughing to clear his throat of the dust and dirt in the air.
Rounding a sharp corner, Link felt the beginnings of more tremors rumbling beneath his boots. He paused and held his breath, waiting out the tremors until they slowly died down. Every beat of his nervous pulse could be felt on the side of his neck as he waited in grueling anticipation. When all seemed steady, he let out a sigh and continued forward, but not two steps later, a full-blown quake erupted. Link tried to steady himself against one of the wooden posts, but was promptly thrown to the ground with violent force. He shielded himself from falling dust, yet as the quake intensified, larger rocks and pieces of wood began raining down around him.
"Master, the structural integrity of this mine is being compromised," Fi stated from the sword. "Seek shelter at once."
"Where?" Link called out, though he could barely be heard over the quake.
The solid rock floor beneath him began to split, emitting fiery bursts of dust and steam. His throat tightened as the hot, dust-filled air choked him. Suddenly, through the chaos, Link felt something grab him by his upper arms. Next thing he knew, he was being tugged and squeezed into a terribly tight space, which offered greater protection from the falling debris. After several more painfully long seconds, the quaking ceased, and all fell silent, save for several gasps of breath happening simultaneously.
"Link?" a familiar voice called out in the pitch blackness.
Link felt several claws cup his face. While he did not appreciate it, he put up no resistance.
"Cobal?"
"Twist my whiskers, it's really you!" the Mogma exclaimed, squeezing Link's cheeks in his paws. "You're a sight for sore eyes! Or at least you would be if I could actually see you."
"What's happening?" Link asked, his tone quite serious.
"Follow me," Cobal replied. "I'll explain on the way."
Cobal led him through a series of dark, terribly cramped tunnels, almost too small even for the Mogma to navigate through. With no light to guide him, Link relied on the sound of Cobal's voice to keep up with the feisty critter. He frequently bumped against a piece of budging earth.
"An army of Bokoblins and Moblins showed up not three hours ago. They made quick work of taking the majority of us Mogmas captive. They're being held as prisoners at the Fire Sanctuary."
"Fire Sanctuary?"
"Another one of those sacred places. There's a lot of 'em around here, if you haven't noticed."
Link was growing breathless from the tedious crawling through the horribly small, rocky and dusty tunnels.
"What about Ghirahim?"
"Oh yeah. he's here too, but he's off fighting Dinraal for the time being. That's what's causing all the shaking and quaking."
"Dinraal?"
I keep forgetting you're not from these parts," Cobal chuckled. "Dinraal is a big, mighty dragon. He dwells in the volcano and is usually only stirred when Eldin needs serious protecting."
They came to a point where the tunnel broke off in three directions. Cobal took a moment to scratch a claw against his chin in thought.
"Ah yes, this is the way," he said with an enthused head nod. "Anyways, I escaped and started looking for help. Lo and behold, I ran into you again. Must be a stroke of fate or something, yeah?"
"This Fire Sanctuary," Link pondered, "you don't happen to know if there's something called a sacred flame housed there, do you?"
"We Mogmas proudly dig for treasure in there all the time," Cobal replied. "Can't say I've ever laid eyes on a sacred flame myself, but I do know there's one of those rooms we can't access. And it ain't like the spring in the Earth Temple. That's just off limits. The room in the Fire Sanctuary is different. We couldn't get into it no matter how hard we tried, so we gave up. Does that sound like what you're hoping to find?"
"It does."
"Well then, let's get you there. Do you think you'd mind helping me free the Mogmas while you're there?"
Link paused his crawling, shooting a look in Cobal's direction. While he couldn't see it in the darkness, Cobal could feel his gaze quite strongly.
"Of course you wouldn't mind. I knew that. Just didn't want to assume, y'know?"
The next while was spent with Link trying to snake his body through the cramped corridors while recounting events for Cobal, who absorbed it all in stride. He was most interested in the Imprisoned.
"So that thing is Ghirahim's supposed master?"
"More or less."
"Well, let's hope you can get 'em both for good real soon. Still not sure why they want Zelda so badly though."
"Neither am I, if I'm being honest."
The venture through the tunnel was grueling, especially when the path led them to a steady incline. The further they climbed, the hotter the tunnel became, until both Link and Cobal were panting, with Link frequently batting beads of sweat away from his eyes. When at last they emerged from underground, they found themselves surrounded by walls of hardened lava. The heat was dizzying and exhausting, yet Cobal urgently beckoned Link through the volcanic environment. A few minutes in and Link's shoulders were slumped and his steps were growing weaker and slower as his body was being severely depleted by the elements. His mind was blank as he trudged behind the Mogma.
"Link, watch out!" Cobal shrieked.
He suddenly hurled himself into Link, knocking the boy to the hard, hot floor. The sound of their bodies crashing to the ground was followed by a loud splash and a distinct sizzling. Link rolled his neck upward in time to see some steam and bubbles rising from the place where he had just been, along with strands of some green foliage strewn about.
"Look up there," Cobal said, pointing to the ceiling above.
From it dangled large, green and leafy plants. They were perhaps the first green things Link had seen in Eldin.
"Those are water fruits," Cobal declared. "If you couldn't guess it by the name, they're filled with water."
"And?"
"Hello? Has the heat melted your brain?" Cobal asked, poking him in the forehead with the tip of his claw. "The water fruits are great in a nice, cool, cavern or somewhere further down the mountain. In here and in the Fire Sanctuary, they break open, and the water inside immediately starts boiling. It will melt your fur... err.. skin... right off. Don't go asking me how I know that."
Pressing on through the tunnel, they finally came to a progressive opening surrounded by tall, red mountain peaks. Ahead of them was what appeared to be a castle made of bright white brick and lined with gold and turquoise trimming. Link's painfully dry mouth fell agape at the sight of it. Surely the place had been built for royalty of some kind. It was unlike anything he had seen on the journey yet. There were massive bridges connecting three buildings. The two opposite each other appeared as dome-like buildings with turquoise outer walls and massive crimson pillars with gold trimming. The main structure towered over the others, and its roof was spiked with gold.
"I know, I know," Cobal said, observing Link's awe-stricken expression, "it's a great view. But time is not on our side, my friend, so let's get moving!"
He led Link into the leftmost building. Upon entering, Link saw that the room was mostly filled with lava, flowing from several spouts and moving through the space in a curving pattern.
"Got any ideas?" Cobal asked with his paws on his hips. "Because we usually just dig underneath this."
Fi emerged from the sword and offered a curtsy to Cobal.
"If I may make a suggestion?"
"Yes, please do, blue lass," Cobal replied with a bow of his own.
"I have observed several water fruits hanging from the ceiling," Fi stated. "The water inside them may create a hardened platform when it comes in contact with the lava. Judging by the force of the flowing lava, the platform may float to the other side of the room."
"Twist my whiskers," Cobal exclaimed. "She might be right."
"She knows she's right," Link said with a chuckle.
"I can confirm with ninety-eight percent certainty that this plan will be successful."
"See?" Link sighed.
With the slingshot, Link downed one of the water fruits, which hit the lava with a burning splash. As Fi had suggested, the water spread out into a circle and hardened into a dark brown platform, which began floating away faster than they had expected. Link leapt over and caught Cobal as he followed suit. The heat was nearly unbearable, but they finally made it down the lengthy, winding river of fiery lava and quickly got as far from it as they could. Proceeding into the next room, they were met with several Mogmas suspended upside down in the air with their hind legs in shackles.
"Oh, look who's here to save us," one of them drawled with an eye-roll. "Cobal the brave."
"Sheesh. Well, if that's how you feel, then maybe we'll just leave you all here after all then," he quipped back.
Naturally the Mogmas protested. Suddenly, a shriek familiar to Link filled the room, followed by another. Turning around to the door they had just entered from, two Lizalfos were abruptly there, each bearing a sword and wearing armor made of stone and iron. Cobal rushed off to try to free the Mogmas while Link worked on the Lizalfos.
"Holler if you need backup, okay pal?" Cobal called out as he frantically tried pulling the lever that would release them.
The agile Lizalfos wasted no time in ambushing Link. He fended off one with the Goddess Sword in his right hand and guarded against a barrage of attacks with his new shield equipped in his left. One of the Lizalfos lowered itself and spun around. Its sharp tail swept Link's feet out from beneath him, sending his body to the warm floor with a crash. The onlooking Mogmas all cringed.
"Don't worry, he's got this," Cobal said confidently, continuing to work at the mechanism holding the Mogmas captive.
Link rolled to avoid a fierce downward stab, rising to his feet soon after. He managed to land his own blow, sending one of the green, scaly beasts back with a shriek of pain. Meanwhile, Cobal was becoming impatient, as he could not pull the terribly heavy and rusted lever on his own.
"I'm gonna need Link's help," he uttered to himself. "Looks like he might need mine, too."
Link was slowly being driven back by the duo of Lizalfos. Between the two, it was nearly impossible to commit to an offensive strike, as he found himself constantly defending. Suddenly, he felt four small paws land on his back, the force of which made him hunch forward. Then, Cobal the Mogma sprang forward, launching himself right into one of the Lizalfos' faces.
"Hyah!" he shouted in mid-air.
With Cobal occupying one, Link turned his attention to the second and quickly took control of the battle. It batted away a few of his sword strikes before Link finally sent the blade into its belly. With one more swift flick of the Goddess Sword, the beast faded into a cloud of dark malice. Link turned just in time to see the second beast fling Cobal away, sending the beige-furred creature into the wall with a painful thud. It stepped forward to finish off the noble critter, but was stopped short when its belly was impaled by the Goddess Sword. With a shriek, it too turned to malice. Cobal was coming out of his daze and shook his head side-to-side.
"Whoa, I think that might have knocked me out for a moment," he said breathlessly.
"Are you hurt?" Link asked.
"Not terribly," he replied, rising to his stubby feet and brushing himself off. "Now look lively. We've got to get that lever."
Cobal tried a few more times to pull the lever back, but to no avail. Link gave his valiant effort with the same result. Taking several steps back, Link readied the whip and lassoed the lever. All the Mogmas marveled at the bright blue glow of the whip. With a strong tug, it finally drew back with a loud clank, and the Mogmas' shackles opened, dropping them to the ground.
"C'mon, Link. The others are across the bridge!"
They quickly made their way back outside. Link and Cobal continued toward the second building while the others sought shelter in the mountain. Halfway across the bridge, however, they were stopped by a violent quake.
"Sounds like things between Ghirahim and Dinraal are really heating up," Cobal quipped.
Inside the second structure, they quickly found the second group of Mogmas also dangling above them by metal shackles. In this room, however, the floor was nothing more than a grate, with hot, molten lava flowing several yards underneath. Though Link felt faint in the scorching heat, he and Cobal made quick work of freeing the other Mogmas.
"Say Link," Cobal began as they made their rounds, checking on the wellbeing of the others, "has this seemed suspiciously easy to you? Especially compared to the last room?"
"It's a bit hotter in here," Link replied, helping a Mogma to its feet, "but otherwise, yes."
They ushered the Mogmas outside. However, before Link could follow them out, the door closed and was promptly sealed by iron bars. The ground began to rumble. Cobal rushed to the door and tried to pry it open. Alas, from the outside he was powerless to help Link, who was now trapped. The green-clad hero stumbled around the grated floor as the room continued to shake. Then, a low rumble came forth, seemingly from the lava itself.
Drawing his blade, Link turned, ready to meet whatever monster or demon was coming his way. To his amazement, the lava below him began to slowly rise. Not like an eruption. No, this was intentional movement, as if the fiery fluid itself had come to life. Link watched as it slipped itself through the grated floor and continued to rise high above him. The mass of lava slowly pulled itself apart, splitting in two, though it didn't seem to appear any smaller despite this. Lastly, five lengthy fingers appeared on each. Whether the hands themselves were the monster, or just the extremities of an even larger beast below, he did not know. Nor did he understand how to defeat them. Fi sensed this from within the sword.
"Be cautious, Master," she said. "This is the Magnamos. It will be impossible for you to inflict damage in its liquified form."
Link's brow raised as Fi's warning inspired an idea. He recalled what Cobal had told him earlier about the water fruits. Looking up, he could see several of the large fruits dangling from the ceiling high above. Before he could devise a way to get them down, the Magnamos attacked. With horrendous speed, one of the hands reached out for Link. He managed to slip past it, though the ensuing heat that followed nearly took his breath away. The second hand also barreled itself at Link, missing him, and crashing into the wall. The force of the impact shook the room. Link noticed a few small rocks falling from the walls and the ceiling, which inspired yet another idea.
Link sped to the center of the room and flourished the sword, hoping to provoke the beast to strike again. Slowly, the hands turned towards him, their fingers twitching and curling like a hungry beast ready to devour its prey. Link slowly crept backward toward the wall, keeping his eyes fixed on the fiery hands. One of them suddenly reared back. Link held his breath until it lurched forward. He dove out of the way at just the right moment, and the Magnamos slammed against the wall, shaking the room even more strongly than before.
Several large chunks of rock fell from the ceiling, each with its own loud, dusty crash. Several of the water fruits came down as well. Link scrambled, sword outstretched, with a wild plan to catch one of them before it could hit the floor. The first two to hit the grated floor were beyond him. The third, however, was within reach. Link's scheme worked, and the sword pierced through the fruit without breaking it open. With no time to spare, Link pivoted and hurled the fruit at the nearest Magnamos hand. The boiling water burst, and slowly the hand shrunk back, slowly turning into a stiff, blackened rock.
Link ran to the Magnamos and unleashed a barrage of sword slashes, each causing more and more of the solid, black, steaming rock to crumble. While Link finished off the first hand, the second slowly sank under the grated floor and disappeared into the river of lava below. Link tried to follow its movements, to no avail. Pushing his sweat-soaked bangs aside, he sighed.
"You are vulnerable to an attack from below," Fi observed. "I suggest utilizing one of the fallen rocks from the ceiling as cover for the time being."
As Link scrambled to climb atop the rock, the room began to quiver, with a deep groaning of sorts filling the space, followed by a loud rush. As the massive, fiery hand reached upward, it propelled the rock high up off of the floor. In fact, it threatened to send it directly into the ceiling. Link clenched his teeth and held his breath as the upward rush dizzied him quite terribly. Keeping his wits about him, he rose to a crouch, steadying himself just as the rocky platform reached its peak height near the ceiling. Link stretched out the sword and spun himself around with as much force as he could muster. One-by-one, he cut down a cluster of eight water fruits. Then he, the rock platform, and the fruits all began their inevitable descent. Link's stomach climbed up into his throat as he and everything around him fell.
With a thunderous crash, the rock collided with the floor and shattered into tiny pieces. A yelp of pain escaped from Link as the force of the crash sent him flying forward. Amidst the chaos, the searing hot bursts of water splashed wildly throughout the room, much of it landing on the Magnamos. As before, it began to harden into a solid rock. Link delivered a final volley of sword slashes, and the Magnamos progressively fell apart into heaps of lifeless, blackened stone. Sheathing the sword, Link rested his hands on his knees and caught his breath, wiping his brow with his dusty sleeve. Fi emerged from the sword and gave a pleased nod.
"You fought the Magnamos quite masterfully, Master," she said in her typical flat yet melodic voice.
Link offered her a genuine chuckle before letting his head hang low. It was then that both Fi and Link observed the lava below them. It appeared to be draining, revealing a deep pit in the center of the room. Link also noticed that in the center of the floor, there was a portion of the grating that was distinctly formed in a circle. They ventured over to it. Link took hold of the metal grating and twisted. To their amazement, it came loose, allowing Link to remove it completely. Once they were certain the lava had all drained, Link jumped down, landing in hot mud. Ahead of him, in a small indent carved into the wall, Link saw a dark, ruby-eyed chest, similar to the one he had found in the Ancient Cistern. He tried to open it, but the residual heat immediately singed his hand. Recoiling, he opted instead to thrust his booted foot into the chest, which worked far better. Inside, he retrieved a key made of many golden cubes forged together.
Outside, while the distant roars of Dinraal the dragon filled the sky, Cobal sat sadly on the bridge, tracing the intricate design of the blue stone with a claw and sighing frequently.
"I sure hope Link's alright in there," he mumbled, his heart sinking further by the minute.
His pointed ears were caught by a sound behind him, followed by a bright light illuminating the ground. To his amazement, he turned and found an exhausted-looking Link emerging from the structure.
"Wowza!" Cobal exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "I was starting to think maybe you got cooked in there."
Link simply nodded, still composing himself from the fight. The night air, while hot, felt leagues better than the volcanic air trapped in the previous room, and rejuvenated Link rather nicely.
"Are there any other Mogmas trapped?" he asked finally.
"No sir, we got them all," Cobal replied proudly.
"Good," Link nodded. "You should get yourself to safety until Ghirahim is finally dealt with."
"If Dinraal doesn't fry him up," Cobal began, a bit sadly, "then I'm sure you'll finish him off real good."
The Mogma offered Link a toothy grin and extended a clawed hand to him, which Link shook firmly.
"Come back and see us again soon," Cobal said. "Maybe next time we won't be in crisis. Or, even better, maybe we'll actually get to rescue you for once."
"You've done that more than enough times," Link added with a chuckle.
"Yeah, I guess you're not wrong about that."
Cobal burrowed off while Link made his way to the center-most structure. Inside was a spiraling path, with bright, white arched half walls following it up. He thought himself alone at first, until the whistle of an arrow soaring through the air and crashing against the ground nearby alerted him otherwise. His forest green eyes darted upward and were met with about a dozen Bokoblin archers spread out along the path above him. Shielding himself from a nearly constant barrage of arrows, Link progressed up the path, slaying the Bokoblin one-by-one until they were no more. At long last, he reached the top and found a massive door with a large, golden chain sealing it tight. Fitting in the key and undoing the chain, he charged into the next room, which itself was wide and with an impressively high ceiling. To Link's surprise, the room was empty. He half-expected to find Ghirahim inside, but alas, the demon lord was nowhere to be found. Fi emerged from the sword and confirmed his absence.
On the other side of the room there was one more sealed door, which was unsealed once Link and Fi came toward it. Inside was dark and gray, lit only by a flame, redder than any Link had ever seen, raging furiously in front of a statue of the Goddess Hylia. Fi approached the flame and opened her arms, lifting her gaze high and spreading her cape wide. Though he had witnessed it in the Ancient Cistern, Link was still gripped by a momentary fear as the flames grew savagely larger and wrapped Fi up into a ball of furious fire. It burned brighter and higher until it morphed into a pillar of flame, almost reaching the ceiling with its wild licks. Fi sped forth, smashing into the stone wall with a room-shaking crash. She then flew forward, colliding with the ceiling, before finally landing in front of Link and bowing low to the ground.
"Ready your sword, Master," she said calmly, glowing in the red light of the flame.
Pivoting his feet to steady himself, Link held the blade out, ready to accept the sacred flame. Burst after burst pelted the sword, until the blade and the hilt were both glowing red and burning hot. Link managed to keep a tight hold until the sword had swallowed up the last of the fire. In one final burst of crimson light, the blade shone bright white as if it had been newly polished, and the hilt itself somehow seemed thicker, and fit into Link's hand more perfectly than before. Lastly, Link noted that the blade felt heavier, yet he felt all-the-more capable of wielding it, even in its newfound density. Fi offered him a curtsy, and her red glow began to fade.
"Only one more to awaken to sword, Master," she said with a nod.
Suddenly, she floated over to where Link stood. Her glossy, blue eyed fixed on the door behind them.
"What is it?" Link inquired.
"Ghirahim is here," she replied plainly.
Back in the previous room, they found the demon lord alone, studying the many inscriptions lining the wall above them. Link's gaze bore into the pale white fiend, though he seemed not to care.
"Tell me, Link," he said rather casually. "Did you know there hides another Gate of Time somewhere in this forsaken world?"
He took lengthy yet slow steps, his dark eyes remaining fixed on the inscriptions.
"These ancient drawings hold a lot of information. Now I can see why that pesky dragon tried so hard to keep me from finding this place."
Link noticed blackened skin, stained as if by malice, up to Ghirahim's boney shoulders. Whether this was part of his true body or he had been terribly burned by Dinraal, he could not tell. Ghirahim drew his weapon with a loud, metallic swish. Link flourished his own blade, ready to take him on.
"What I haven't quite yet been able to decipher, however," Ghirahim snarled, "is where the Gate of Time is and how to open it." He raised his blade to Link and Fi. "I suspect the two of you know, and I, as kindly as I can tolerate, ask you to yield the answer to me at once."
When neither Link nor Fi responded, Ghirahim only laughed, though they could both sense the irritation rising in his slithering voice.
"As much as I would enjoy beating you to a pulp until you deliriously spill your guts to me," he chuckled, "I don't have the time. Tell me what I need to know."
There was no response.
"Please?"
Silence.
Ghirahim massaged his forehead with his wiry, black fingers and sighed.
"How overbold of me to expect you to be the least bit helpful for once."
Ghirahim snapped his fingers. In tiny puffs of malice, six shining arrowheads appeared in the air before him, all six spinning rapidly. With another snap of his fingers, the projectiles flew forward. Three broke off towards Link while the others targeted Fi. Fi flew out of the way most gracefully, keeping her gaze fixed on Ghirahim. Link flung the sword, cutting them down quite easily. He charged forward, sword at the ready, and was met with another half-dozen of the projectiles. He almost dodged them, though the last two nipped at his boots, causing him to stumble.
Link met Ghirahim head-on while Fi approached from the side. With ease, the demon Lord deflected Link's sword strike and raised his free arm, trapping Fi inside of four walls of malice as he had in the Ancient Cistern. Recalling their initial battle in Skyview Temple, Link vowed to hold nothing back and prevent Ghirahim from striking as much as he could. Each accompanied by an impassioned shout, Link bore down on Ghirahim with strike after strike after strike. All were deflected with equal force.
One deflection was particularly strong, causing Link to falter backward some. Ghirahim snapped his fingers, and in a moment, Link was surrounded on all sides by more arrowheads, at least a dozen hovering over him, locked on and ready to strike.
"I don't think all of them are going to miss, no matter what fancy razzle-dazzle nonsense you do," Ghirahim laughed. "Yield, and I'll call them off."
Link's fierce gaze flickered to the demon lord, then back to the arrowheads. He tightened his grips on the sword and shield.
"Never," he replied through gritted teeth.
Ghirahim tsked.
"Don't you sky people like those feel-good, flowery phrases like, 'never say never' or whatever?"
Following another snap, about a dozen more arrowheads appeared above the first wave.
"How about now?"
Link tried to step away from the projectiles. One flew forward, exploding on the ground before him, and was immediately replaced by another. With three more finger snaps, three more rows of numerous arrowheads appeared.
"You're insatiable," Ghirahim exclaimed. "I like that."
With a wave of his hand, one-by-one, the arrowheads flew down at Link. At first, he managed to shield himself or bat them away with the Goddess Sword. However, it became obvious that he would soon be overwhelmed. To make matters worse, each burst came with a puff of malice, and soon, Link was covered in a cloud. Though they could not see him, Fi and Ghirahim could hear the continuous bursts from inside the dark cloud of malice.
"You serve a truly stubborn idiot," Ghirahim chided, turning his attention to Fi. "Yet you are tasked to aid and protect him, are you not?"
Fi said nothing.
Ghirahim rolled his eyes and spat.
"If I can't get what I want out of him, then perhaps I'll just have to pry it out of you instead."
He raised an arm and threw it down. The barrier around Fi vanished, and Ghirahim immediately began swinging his blade wildly at her. She dodged most gracefully, occasionally even spinning her cape around as if it was an offensive strike. The illumination surrounding her grew brighter, causing Ghirahim to draw back. Just as he was about to return with another wave of slashes, Link emerged from behind and intercepted.
"You really are starting to infuriate me, boy," Ghirahim spat once more, his brow furrowing intensely.
He blocked one of Link's strikes with one hand, then reached out the other just as Fi was closing in. His black, gangly fingers wrapped tightly around her neck, and for the first time Link had ever witnessed, she appeared to be in distress.
"Fi!" Link exclaimed, straining harder against Ghirahim's blade.
With a seemingly effortless push, the demon lord sent Fi flying backward. Her hard body scraped against the ground and was immediately surrounded once more by four walls of malice. Link tried to pursue her and was cut off by Ghirahim, now on the offense. He bore down with an overhead strike. Link raised his own sword to defend, however, out of exhaustion, his arms failed in offering as much resistance as he'd hoped. He fumbled down to a knee. Ghirahim glided his own blade down the Goddess Sword. Then, reaching the hilt, he swung to the side with terrible strength. The Goddess Sword broke free from Link's grip, landing on the ground with an echoing clank. Link blocked another overhead strike with his shield. Then suddenly, a sharp pain struck him in the mouth and nose as Ghirahim's knee was thrust into his face, causing blood to pool in his mouth instantly. Link's body was twisted backward by the force, though he caught himself with his arms. Before he could recover, Ghirahim bashed the backside of his head with the pommel of his sword, immediately opening a fresh wound.
The room around him spun rapidly as Link's skull screamed out in pain. Disoriented, he looked to the side in time to see that Fi had recovered, though she was still trapped behind the wall of malice. She looked on as Ghirahim reached down and took Link by the arm. He pulled it backward, setting his booted foot at the base of Link's shoulder. A groan escaped from Link as his arm was stretched in such a horrific way.
"You know," Ghirahim began in a slithering tone, "all you're really doing is delaying the inevitable. I will capture the spirit maiden and she will be used to free my master." He pulled Link's arm back further, enough to feel the tense resistance in the boy's shoulder. "You think yourself valiant and noble for protecting her, but in my opinion, it is the cruelest thing you could do to the poor girl. You're giving her a false sense of hope, which honestly makes me question if you really care for her at all."
His boot moved from Link's arm to the side of his face, pressing down until the boy could practically taste the dust on the floor.
"The better thing for you to do would be to just let it be. Get this all over with quickly, like pulling a splinter from your finger."
He yanked Link's arm once more, getting a yelp of pain from the lad.
"Being the fair lord that I am, I'm going to give you one last chance, Link. Do you yield?"
Without hesitation, Link shook his head (as best as he could from the ground). He then gritted his teeth and closed his eyes in anticipation of Ghirahim's retaliation, though nothing could have truly prepared him for it. The demon lord let out a sigh and rolled his eyes. Then he allowed his fury to erupt. With a shout and a swift pull, he ripped Link's shoulder from its socket, causing a terrible sound that even Ghirahim felt sickened to hear. In the same movement, he took his foot from the boy's face and thrust it into his upper arm just below the shoulder. He could practically feel the bones shattering underneath. The room was filled with Link's blood-curdling scream.
Everything spun around him once more, and he was immediately nauseated by the unimaginable pain coursing from his mangled arm. Shock quickly set in and he found himself fighting to stay awake and alert. His vision tunneled and his breathing became erratic. Fi watched helplessly from behind Ghirahim's barrier. The demon lord let the boy's shattered arm fall to the floor. He then put his sword to Link's neck, turning his fierce gaze toward Fi.
"Don't you dare think I won't end this feckless worm's life right now," he warned her with a snarl. "Tell me what it is I need to open the Gate of Time."
Fi stared at him plainly. He pressed the sword against Link's skin.
"Now," he ordered.
"Forgive me, Master," Fi said.
Link met her gaze, though she could see in his eyes that he was still very much disoriented from Ghirahim's abuse. Finally, she conceded.
"The sword."
Ghirahim's brow raised.
"You had better not be lying to me," he growled.
"Relaying inaccurate information is not a function I possess," she nodded. "The sword is the only key capable of opening the final Gate of Time."
Ghirahim stroked his chin in thought, wrestling with whether to believe Fi. He knew the Goddess Sword was made to be wielded only by Hylia's chosen hero. Yet the sense of desperation and his own pride welling in him quickly tried to convince him otherwise. His dark eyes peered down at the sword as he pondered on ways around this predicament. The longer he stared, the more alluring the blade appeared to him. Surely someone as powerful as himself, at the command of his master who had once bested the Goddess Hylia, could withstand a lifeless sword. He sheathed his own weapon and took a cautious step closer to the blade. The more engrossed in his thinking he was, the weaker the barrier around Fi became.
Fi managed to catch and hold Link's delirious gaze. She lowered her head, though she did not speak to him, not even telepathically, knowing Ghirahim would hear her as well. Link, however, was able to speak to her freely in his mind.
"Farore..."
Fi nodded and returned her sights to Ghirahim, who was now standing over the Goddess Sword. His fingers twitched as he continued to wrestle with what he knew - versus what he wanted - to be true. Foolish temptation got the better of him as he slowly reached out his gangly fingers toward the blade. Setting a fingertip down on the hot metal, he felt a sting that quickly traveled up the length of his arm. His white skin crawled to touch something created by the enemy. He also noticed he felt weaker, though only a little, and perhaps that was just in his head. If this was all he would have to endure after taking the sword for himself, then surely he could power through it. He ravenously gripped the hilt. The resulting pain was like boiling water being poured over his palm. He could hear his very skin sizzling, and yet, the sword seemed to bind itself to him, inflicting worse agony with every passing moment. Ghirahim writhed and screamed, trying to pry the sword out of his grip as it continued to scorch him terribly.
At last, with a flail, the sword was released and sent flying while Ghirahim continued to recoil. With another loud clang, it landed near Link, who mustered every last bit of strength he could to reach for it. Meanwhile, Fi broke free from the barrier and approached her master as hurriedly as she could. Both Fi and the sword were outlined in a dim, green light as the power or Farore was being invoked. She reached Link just as his fingers were loosely wrapping around the hilt. She hunched down low and covered Link and the sword with her cape. Then, channeling as much power and energy as they could, they summoned the power of Farore's Wind, and with a burst of green light, it sapped them out of the room. The strong rush of air whipped through Ghirahim's hair, messing it terribly. He shielded himself from the blinding light, and once it faded, saw that Link, Fi, and the sword were gone. Ghirahim howled in pure rage and hatred at the sight of this. Zelda, and now the key to finding her, were once again out of his reach.
"Curse you, Link!" he screamed savagely.
