A/N: I own nothing except a copy of this great game. Second note: A single singer is demarked in italics "like this", while a crowd singing is demarked "like this."
The last of the Stalchildren went dark, their magically burning eyes turning back into husks with their bodies crumbling back into ash. Midna wiped her brow.
"Whew! You know, for all of my bluster and bravado, it really does take a lot of effort to put together that many of those bonebags." The Twili said. She floated over towards Ishaka, Lana and the highest-ranking Ravagers that Ishaka had called forward. "These your lieutenants?" Midna asked, pointing rather openly towards the trio. One of them was Ryu, and she didn't particularly like feeling like an animal in the zoo.
"Put the finger down or I cut it off, your majesty." Ryu said, not so much speaking as spitting those last two words. Midna smirked.
"Sheesh! Touchy, touchy. Want my advice, cueball? You should try getting laid. It'll do wonders for that bitchy disposition."
"Midna!" Lana said, gasping a little bit. "That's uncalled for!"
"Nah, she's got a point." Ryu said. "It's been a while, I guess."
"Movin' on." Ishaka said, clearly wanting no part in this discussion. He looked over at Midna. "So, if'n yeh don't mind me askin': how inna name o' th' Goddesses are we gonna fin' th' Gate o' Souls?" He looked exasperated. Midna snickered.
"Glad you asked, cubby."
Everyone looked at her funny.
"What?" Midna asked. "I can see spirit auras in people. He's got the aura of a big ol' bear. Grizzly, maybe." She went down the line. "You're a dove." She said to Lana. "You're a viper." She said to a lean and mean-looking Ravager. "You're a…wolf." She said to the other Ravager. She turned to Ryu, and smirked.
"Out with it, prissy. What am I?" Ryu asked. Midna looked smug.
"I can't say it, there are children present."
"Ladies?" Ishaka said. He was getting impatient. Ryu tried not to smile at Midna's cheekiness.
"Right, Gate of Souls." Midna said. "Well, funny you should mention it. Right before I got deposed, I remember there being a rift of some sort getting opened up right in my throne room. I'm guessing that that's your Gate of Souls?"
"It sounds like it." Lana said. Midna laughed.
"Then I'm afraid that we're currently out of luck! My castle is in the Twilight Realm, and this is most definitely not the land of the Twilight. But…" She put a finger to her chin in thought. "…you got any wizards in your company here?"
"A few." Ishaka said. "Whacha need 'em fer?"
"Backup." Midna said. "Give me enough backup magic, and I can open a rift into the Twilight Realm and take us where we need to go."
"What about getting back?" The viper Ravager asked. Lana spoke up.
"I can combine with Midna to open a rift back to this place." She said. "I'm more than strong enough for that."
"You got spunk, sis! I approve." Midna said. "Sounds good. Give me an hour or so to gather my strength again, and then get your wizard folk over by me. We'll open up the portal, and then go kick butt!" She smacked her palm into her other hand.
"Soun's good." Ishaka said. "Get yer comp'nies rest'd up." He said to the Ravager captains. "We 'ave 'nother portal ta hop in an hour. Oo rah?"
"Oo rah." The Ravager captains said in unison. They ambled off to prepare their respective companies.
There was a plodding noise, and Meathook walked up to the remaining trio. Sitting atop his shoulder was Agitha.
"Ooh, this is so much fun!" She said. "Mister Meathook is a most lovely friend, indeed!"
"Glad yeh think so, yer highness." Ishaka said. "Now, I be guessin' yer th' only one tha' can 'andle them Goddess butt'rflies, eh?"
"That's right!" Agitha said. She had a cherubic smile on her face. "I can take you anywhere that you need to go, once we cross to the next dimension! Oh, this is such a lovely adventure!" She looked down towards the face of her mount. "Come along, Mister Meathook! Would you like to see my butterfly collection?"
The Goron rumbled, and they could have sworn he looked like he was enjoying himself. Ishaka chuckled.
"How 'bout tha'." He said. "Ol' Meat'ook is a big ol' softie." Lana giggled.
"Maybe it's just Agitha. She does have that effect on people. There's something…adorable about her naivete."
"You two sound like pages from a self-help book, or a trashy romance novel." Midna said, sticking out her tongue. "And by the Twilight, have I read too many of those."
"You read trashy romance novels?" Lana asked. She put her hands on her hips, an amused smirk crossing her face.
"First off, get over yourself, feather head." Midna said. "Secondly, duh. When you're the Ruler of the Twilight Realm you get to do damn well whatever you please. If I wanted to be fanned by svelte Twili warriors while reading a smutty book, that's my pleasure!" She suddenly looked dreamy, putting a finger to her chin in thought. "Mmm…now there's an idea."
Lana rolled her eyes with a small smile. She turned to Ishaka.
"What about you, Ishaka?"
"Huh?" The Ravager leader looked like a deer in the headlights.
"What do you read?" Lana asked. His reponse was unlike anything she'd ever seen from the big man: he looked rather small, sheepishly scratching the back of his head and looking at the ground. "Ishaka?"
"Erm…" The Ravager commander stammered a bit. "I, uh…I don' read to much, ta be hones', miss Lana."
"Baloney." Midna said. "You gotta have a favorite." She leaned in close, grinning deviously. "Out with it, beardie. What's your guilty pleasure? Cliché crime? Bad history? Trashy romance?"
Ishaka turned to look at her, and to Lana's surprise there was no joking look in his eyes. Instead, he was positively glaring at her.
"None 'a yer fuckin' business, Twili." He said. He turned to Lana. "Lemme know when yer done wit' th' port'l." He walked away. Midna and Lana watched him walk away, and then they looked at each other.
"What was that all about?" Midna asked. Lana shrugged. She'd never seen Ishaka like that before.
.
After a few minutes of small talk, Lana excused herself from Midna. The Twili started meditating on her own, and left the white sorceress to her own devices. Lana glanced over to the left of the ranks. Ishaka seemed to be in deep discussion with two of his commanding officers. Sighing, knowing that he probably needed to talk to them about whatever it was they were talking about, Lana decided to walk to the right flank.
She'd barely gotten through them before she heard a voice.
"Hey there, witchy. Not sure what to do with yourself?" Ryu was sitting on a fallen tree, currently whittling something with her jagged knife. When Lana shook her head, Ryu gestured with her head. "C'mere and have a seat."
Obliging, Lana sat down next to the Ravager captain. For a few moments, Lana watched her whittle the piece of wood, before speaking up.
"What are you making?" She asked.
"A totem." Ryu said. When Lana didn't immediately respond, she clarified. "In my old tribe, the elders used to mark up pieces of wood like this and stick 'em in their tents. They were like little sacred statues." Ryu snorted. "I don't do it for that, per say, but whittling takes my mind off of things."
"I can see how that would help." Lana said. Ryu smirked.
"What do you do for fun, witch?" Ryu asked. Lana shrugged.
"I don't know. Read mostly. Walk amongst the woods, enjoy nature. Silly stuff."
"If it ain't hurting someone and it helps you, then it ain't silly." Ryu said, not talking her eyes off of her work. "At least, that's my motto." She held up the piece. "How about that? Pretty fucking good, eh?"
Lana peered at the piece. It looked like a miniature totem pole, with an eagle's head at the top. There was a symbol in the middle of the the totem that, upon closer inspection, Lana recognized.
"Is that-"
"-the Gerudo* symbol?" Ryu finished with a smirk. "Yep."
"Are you…" Lana began. Ryu laughed.
"Not one hundred percent. More like 25. My grandmamma was a Gerudo. As my momma used to tell me, grandmamma was one of the prettier ones in her branch of the Gerudo Tribe. At least, Grandaddy certainly thought so." Ryu smirked. "Heard he hoisted her out of their camp and carried her bridal style out of the Gerudo camp."
"Wait, what?" Lana asked. "Was she okay with that?"
"Are you kidding? She suggested it!" Ryu said. "She figured that when it came to men, maybe you'd better not knock it till you've tried it." Lana blushed so hard she looked like a tomato. "Easy there, witchy. Not everyone has a classical falls-in-love story. Some people are crazy." She chuckled. "I miss them, granddaddy and grandmamma. They got to go peacefully: in their sleep, literally holding hands."
"Oh, that's adorable!" Lana said, holding her hand to her heart. Ryu snorted.
"Yeah. Mamma thought it was the cheesiest thing in the world, and I don't blame her. I hope I die before I get that old."
At that moment, Ishaka came walking past the two of them, deep in conversation with one of the Ravager captains. Ryu watched after them both a little too long.
"Boy." She said as soon as she was sure they were out of earshot. "I wouldn't mind getting to know him a little bit better."
"Uh…yeah. He seems like a mysterious fellow." Lana said. Ryu rolled her eyes when she saw that what she'd said had gone over the witch's head, and decided to roll with it.
"No kidding." She said. "Ishaka is practically a ghost. Lots of fun in parties and stuff, but when he wants to…he just fucking disappears. Goes off somewhere to smoke in private, or talk with his buddy Itami." She shrugged, putting away her knife and absently twirling the totem in her hand. "Can't believe those two are friends. Itami is even grouchier than I am."
"How close are they?" Lana asked.
"You've heard the story of how this all started, right?" Ryu asked. Lana nodded. "About how Ishaka took a couple of mercenaries out from under the nose of some drunken asshole and grew them all into an army? Well, the way I heard it: when Ishaka tried his mutiny, he was standing alone at the fire. The leader of the bandits laughed and said that if he wanted to die alone, that was his own damn problem. But then Itami, without a word, just gets up and stands next to Ishaka. The two had never really talked that much before, and yet out of the blue Itami throws his lot in with some kid. He was the first Ravager, I guess. The rest followed suit, but it was Itami that went first. And Ishaka considers him a blood brother." Ryu shrugged. "I just wish it made Itami a little sunnier, you know? For a doctor, he can be a real pain in the ass."
.
At that moment, there was a buzzing sound. They all turned to the source of the noise. Midna had obviously gathered up her strength, and had discreetly called over the Ravager shaman. They'd put together their magic, and had opened up a portal to the Twilight Realm.
"Everybody get in!" Midna said. "This isn't as easy as it looks!"
Ishaka whistled sharply.
"Get a move on!" He barked. "Las' one in, gets th' lights!"
Like a tidal wave, the Ravagers raced for the portal. Some of them straight-up dove into the opening, while others were more dignified. Lana got up from the tree, and ran up to the portal. She saw that Ishaka was standing to the side of the portal, ushering Ravagers in and giving them encouragement. When the last of them (Meathook with a giggling Agitha on his shoulder) had leapt through, Ishaka gestured to Midna and the shaman.
"Let 'er go!" He shouted. Midna finished the holding spell, and now the portal was starting to fluctuate and warp. The shaman and Midna all leapt into the portal. That left Lana and Ishaka. Ishaka looked at her and grinned.
"Inta th' breach wit' yeh!" He shouted. He grabbed Lana around the waist before she could react, and dove through the portal just as it closed.
.
It was dark and forboding. The Twilight Realm was a strange combination of ashen lands, strange ruins, and an incomplete sky. Ruins of an ancient and dead language traced the sky, and some of the ground as well. The trees were un-trees, and the ground was hard and nasty. The Ravagers, for the most part, huddled together with a growing sense of unease.
"Yahoo!" Midna shouted, racing to the front of the pack. "Home sweet home!" She looked at the rest of the army, and had the audacity to look smug. "What's the matter? You all afraid of a little dark?" She gestured around with a glowing look on her face. "This is the Twilight Realm. This is my land, and the Twili are my people. Now, enough with the formalities." She pointed ahead to the distance. "Let's go take that castle!"
It was quite a big one. Tall, stout, and built out of brick blacker than tar. Strange, glowing ruins pulsed with a red energy along the walls. Midna was practically racing ahead of the army, forcing everyone to keep a brisk jog to keep the pace. To Lana's surprise, they were able to do so. Perhaps that was the benefit of wearing lighter armor: easier to move the force from one place to the next.
"I don't like this place." She said quietly. Ishaka was jogging alongside her, and nodded.
"Jus' keep close, miss Lana. I be th' one ta pr'tect yeh if'n thin's get 'airy."
Lana could take comfort in that.
.
They reached the castle grounds roughly ten minutes later. The Twilight Kingdom's castle, big in the distance, was now positively gigantic up in person. They were roughly half a mile from the front gate. Midna looked upon it, and her eyes narrowed.
"I sense a presence in that castle…" her eyes widened. "Zant?"
"Who is that?" Lana asked. Midna was clenching her fists so tightly that her knuckles were whitened.
"A scum-sucker I should have put to death years ago…" She snarled. She turned to Lana and Ishaka. "He's a Twili 'nobleman' from my court." Her use of air quotes around the word "nobleman" did not go unnoticed by the rest of the group. "Look, us Twili are totally fine with being on the flipside of the World of Light. But not him. He has this persecution complex that would make the most fundamentalist zealot take pause. But that's not the weird part."
"What's the weird part?" Lana asked.
"Zant's…well, Zant's dead." Midna said.
There was a pause.
"Yeh lost me." Ishaka said. Midna groaned, and facepalmed.
"No, no, he's clearly not dead now. But that's the problem. Because I fought him before, with a friend of mine, and he got killed. Snapped his own neck like the insane creepo he is. So what I want to know is how the hell he got revived, and why the hell didn't my morticians incinerate his bones and scatter his ashes to the wind like I explicitly instructed them to."
"Hold on." Lana said. "If what we're doing here is, well, after the Battle of Twilight*, then…how were you able to come back to the realm of the light?" Lana asked. "I thought you shattered the Mirror of Twilight?"
"I did." Midna said. "But that doesn't mean that I wasn't trying to find ways to repair it." She said with a sigh. "I guess…I just missed my friend. He's off somewhere with his princess, doing what they earned the right to do: be together, in the world of Light. I just…I just tried to build a little makeshift mirror so that I could at least check in on him every once in a while. Of course, in comes that witch who turns me into this and then unceremoniously dumps my ass out on the World of Light again. If it wasn't for you and your spare shaman, I don't think I would have had the energy to pull myself back into the Twilight through my new, unstable mirror." Midna said. She turned to look at them. "That's why I was so mad at first. I thought that my only chance at killing the witch was in the world of Light, because if she escaped then I couldn't follow her back home. But I guess fate intervened and sent me you two, huh?" She looked rather hopeful. "Is…is there a hero in your land? In your time?"
"Yes." Lana said. She looked as sad as Midna did. "His name is Link. He's blonde, has blue eyes and has the air of-"
"-a true hero." Midna finished with a smile. "Just like mine." She looked around. "When Zant is back in the ground where he belongs…I'd like to see him. Your hero. If that isn't too much to ask?"
Lana and Ishaka looked at each other, and then smiled warmly.
"Not a bi', yer highness." Ishaka said.
"We might need your help with dealing with Cia." Lana said. "To not honor this request would just be mean." Midna smiled.
"Thank you. That means a lot to me."
Ishaka nodded, and then gestured towards the castle with his dagger.
"Now, if'n yeh don' mind, who we be dealin' wit' in this 'ere Zant fella?"
Midna rolled her eyes.
"Ugh. Zant. He likes to put on this big show in public about what a refined and proper gentleman he is…but I've seen his true colors." Midna said, glowering. "He's stark-raving crazy. Like, complete psycho. It's kind of scary to see him fly off the handle. When I got passed over him to be the ruler of the Twilight Realm, he went nuts." She shuddered a little bit. "He's also incredibly vain, and tends to think that he is much more clever than he really is." Lana took this all in with a nod, clearly unsure of how to go with it. Ishaka on the other hand, started to smile.
"So yer sayin' tha' he be a bit o' an ov'r conf'dent fella?" He asked. Midna rolled her eyes.
"Ugh. Incredibly. Like I said: not nearly half as clever as he likes to think of himself as." She looked at Ishaka, and cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Why? What have you got in mind?" Ishaka smirked. He turned towards the Ravager army standing at watch behind him, and silently gestured for the captains to come forward. He brought everyone in close.
"'Ere's wha' we're gonna do…"
.
Lana felt her heart pounding a bit in her chest as they walked to the front gate of the castle. It was tall, dark, and ominous from a distance, but now it seemed positively nightmarish up close. Ishaka seemed a little bit wary of it as well, but Midna seemed positively delighted to be so close to it. They kept walking until they reached the front gate. The drawbridge was up, and they could see several archers on top of the gate battlements staring at them suspiciously. From the height they were at, along with the fact that it was rather dark, and Lana wagered that the Bokoblins were too stupid and unsure to start firing immediately.
Midna floated a little bit forward, and then let out a shriek of rage.
"ZAAAAAANT! Get your foppish ass out here, NOW!"
There was silence, save for the slight echo her words made across the valley of Twilight. The Bokoblin archers were tensed, but still weren't yet ready to fire. There was a sound of movement from above, and the sounds of armored boots walking across stone. Several ugly-looking Moblins peered down at them, leering angrily. But it was the one that they were flanking that had Lana, Ishaka, and Midna's attention.
"I thought I smelt vermin." Zant said. The disdain was clear in his voice. He placed his hands on the battlements, and leaned over a bit to look at the trio. "Midna! What an…unexpected surprise to see you here. I thought you were dead?"
"I thought the same about you, fop!" Midna fired back. "What, you wanted to find a better way to die than exploding, and then getting your neck snapped?"
Zant gave a haughty laugh. Goddesses, he was a creepy-looking fellow. Ishaka winced as his eyes adjusted and he got a better look at this freak. A pale, kabuki mask-like face with feminine lips and glowing yellow eyes. A strange symbol on his forehead, barely visible but clearly the sign of a dark magic. His neck was rather thin, almost to the point that the Ravager captain figured he could choke him to death by barely squeezing his hands. Zant looked dismissively down at Midna.
"If I recall correctly, I nearly burned you to death via the light of Lanayru*!" He said. He seemed to be smirking. "Maybe it's just me, but I think that that's a bit of a wash, don't you?"
"How about my friend?" Midna asked, smirking right back. "He didn't fare too poorly. Beat the shit out of your scrawny butt himself, didn't he?"
Whatever smile Zant had promptly disappeared. Ishaka could tell that Midna was getting to him.
"…A jaundiced account…You should learn to speak like a noble, your highness." Zant said. "It would better mask your barbaric tendencies."
"Maybe you could teach me," Midna countered. "And in return, I could teach you how to fight: seeing as how you do so little of it!" Zant snorted.
"Please! As if I would sully my mighty blades with the blood of that ragged pile of filth you call an 'army.'" He looked at Ishaka. "Oh yes, I know all about you and your little Ravager army, boy. Mistress Cia was most kind in briefing me on you and your whelps. Tell me, boy…" He grinned. It was not a pleasant sight. "…How did it feel to taste Black Lightning? Did it hurt?"
"I can't r'member much, ta be 'onest." Ishaka said. "But I betcha it'll hurt less t'an watchin' me piss onna side o' yer castle!"
"Don't you dare!" Midna said under her breath. Zant snarled.
"You think to mock me? You, of all people? Look at you: a boy pretending to be a commander. A King in rags, leading a drunken army of thieves and whores!" Zant snapped. Ishaka laughed.
"Oh, tha' ain't too nice, Zant." Ishaka said, adopting a mock-hurt expression. "Some o' us Rav'gers be thievin' whores as well!"
Veins were starting to form on Zant's neck. But almost as soon as they appeared, they were gone. Zant seemed to be taking a deep breath to calm himself down.
"Ugh. Why do I waste my time debating with scum such as yourselves?" He said. "I grow bored of this. If you three have a death wish, I would be happy to oblige you."
The drawbridge slowly started to lower. As it reached the halfway point, they could see the ancient steel chains on both sides responsible for lifting and lowering the mechanism. They creaked with age and stress. The drawbridge slammed into place with a loud bang. Lana could see a veritable army of Bokoblins, Moblins, and a few Bulblins making their way through the courtyard towards them. Midna turned towards Ishaka.
"Now?"
"Not yet…" Ishaka said.
The army of darkness was walking across the bridge, weapons drawn. Lana and Midna got into ready stances of their own. Ishaka calmly lit his pipe.
"Now?" Lana asked, a little more urgently than Midna had. Ishaka smirked.
"Not yet…"
The army of darkness was almost completely across the bridge. They were twenty feet away at most. Midna and Lana turned towards Ishaka with frantic looks on their faces.
"Now?" They both asked. Ishaka took a deep breath of tobacco. He blew the smoke out of his mouth, and then pursed his lips.
WEEEESSSHHHTTT!
.
On cue, Ravagers burst forth from their hiding places throughout the valley and began running towards the drawbridge with wild, crazed frenzy. The Bokoblins and Moblins stopped in their tracks, registering the fact that they were suddenly about to face an army. The move was so sudden that the archers on the battlements either forgot to fire or dropped their arrows in shock. Zant's eyes bulged in shock.
"Close the drawbridge! Close it!" He shouted.
Slowly, the drawbridge started to rise back up. But with so many Bokoblins and Moblins on it, the already slow process was reduced to a snail's pace. It was so slow that by the time the first Ravagers got to the bridge, they were able to leap up and grab onto the edge. Hoisting themselves up, those first few crazed bastards hopped to their feet and started to attack the confused and disoriented dark forces.
"Get them off! Clear the bridge!" Zant shouted. No one could hear him over the din of battle.
Several Goron Ravagers made their way towards the edge of the bridge. They got on one knee, and each started hoisting more Ravagers onto the bridge. The ancient structure began to groan, and the steel chains began to scrape and whine over the added pressure. It was so much that the bridge itself was starting to get forced down under the additional weight. It kept lowering. Lower. Lower.
There was a horrible shrieking noise as the metal gave out, and the steel chains snapped in an explosion of shards that whistled through the Bokoblin ranks like shrapnel. Blinded, maimed, or killed outright were the ones right next to the chains. The bridge slammed back down onto its holders, the shockwave knocking most if not all of those that stood on the sides of the now-wrecked bridge into the murky water below. Some of the Ravagers were about to lose their balance, but any of them that came close were quickly grabbed by comrades and pulled back into the fray.
"CHARGE!" Ishaka roared, drawing his weapons. He joined Midna and Lana with the masses as they stormed the castle.
.
Agitha clenched tightly to the shoulder of Meathook as they entered the courtyard. While she was having a great deal of fun right now, she got the feeling that if she was knocked off of Meathook's shoulders she might get hurt or otherwise in trouble. Meathook seemed to recognize this himself, as he was keeping one of his massive arms crooked up and back so that he could hold his hand around Agitha's back to brace her. Not that this was affecting the big guy too much. He was crushing Bokoblins with one arm just fine and dandy.
"Oh, hello Mister Shasa!" Agitha called out to Ishaka, as the latter finished decapitating a Moblin captain. "Isn't this most exciting?" Ishaka took a moment to stare at her, and then forced himself to smile.
"Er…yeah! Yeah, it be th' best, yer highness. MEAT'OOK!" He barked to the Goron. "Somethin' 'appens ta 'er, an' I'll skin yeh myself!" He resumed battling, taking down a pair of archers.
Meathook rumbled in agreement, and decided to stay close to Ishaka. The two of them were probably the safest people that Agitha could be by.
The other two candidates for that role were currently off to the other side of the courtyard, driving Bokoblins out from the terrace and directly into the waiting weapons and spears and arrows of the Ravager forces.
"Come on out and play, maggots!" Ryu barked. She ducked under a swiping sword from a Bokoblin, and then lunged forward. She headbutted the creature with a resounding THWACK, and then stabbed a knife into the creature's neck as it lay stunned. Yanking out the weapon, she turned towards Lana and Midna. "They can't stop us! We took 'em by surprise!" Lana, despite the fact that she was very much preoccupied with zapping enemies on her own, couldn't help but agree with the brash Ravager captain.
.
Trying to keep himself from losing his cool, Zant stomped towards the inner sanctum of the castle. He brusquely shoved aside the brainwashed Twili guards that stood guard, and stood in the center of the room. He felt the room begin to light up, and a dark magic circle began to form around him.
"From the depths of Twilight, I summon thee. From the pit of despair, I call thee!" Zant chanted. "Rise! RISE! Take flight and feast on their blood and bones! Come forth, ARGOROK*!"
.
Midna was the first one to hear the shrieking roar. She looked to the skies, and sighed.
"Oh…crap."
Swooping over the castle battlements came a red-eyed black dragon, powered by the Twilight and its master's hate. Argorok landed right in the center of battle. With one roar, a jet of fire erupted from its mouth. Ravagers and Bokoblins and Moblins alike ran screaming from the heat, the unlucky ones burning alive in the flames.
"Take cov'r!" Ishaka roared. He dove behind a rock, and saw that Midna was hiding next to him. "How th' 'ell d'we kill it?"
"We have to bring it down, first!" Midna shouted. "But it requires powerful magic!" She glanced out the towards the courtyard. "I can create a magic circle, but it'll take me a bit of time. Can you keep me safe?"
"'eart promise, yer highness!" Ishaka barked. Following right behind her, the Ravager leader raced out into the open along with Midna. Argorok was currently floating high in the sky, content to take potshots at anyone stupid enough to come out into the open, or those hiding fearfully under cover. Midna knelt on the ground, and began to speak in an ancient and fabled tongue. A small circle of light and runes began to form around her feet, and the runes in her fur began to glow as well.
"It's almost ready!" Midna said. "I just need to get it closer!" She looked at Ishaka.
"Why you be lookin' at me lik'…aw, shit." The Ravager leader moaned. He raced out into the open.
In the midst of its roasting of the little vermin on the ground, Argorok became aware of a sound. A high-pitched, grating sound. Roaring in pain and in annoyance, it turned towards the source. There, standing out in the open, was a single vermin. It was hopping back and forth, puckering its lips and making that awful, awful sound. It made eye contact with the great and mighty Argorok, and then made a face. In addition to that, it raised its paw into the air, and extended one of its grubby claws upwards and wagged it back and forth. Argorok was not familiar with human customs, but it was smart enough to know when it was being mocked. With a roar, it flapped its wings and dive-bombed towards the foolish creature.
"Any time now, yer highness!" Ishaka shouted, as he watched the floating hell-creature come screaming through the air towards him. His shoulder, perhaps subconsciously, was starting to throb in anticipation. The beast was getting closer now. He could see its teeth, and feel the heat in the air.
At that moment, Midna completed the spell.
Ishaka felt a whooshing noise as several purple-black chains erupted from the ground and whistled past him, crashing into Argorok. The beast roared as the chains locked in tightly around it, squeezing it so hard that it looked like they were drawing blood. Embers flew from the creature's enraged mouth as it flailed about. With a titanic screech, Argorok let loose a Jetstream of fire as it forced its way out of the chains with a terrific bang. It staggered through the air, and then flew off to areas unknown to lick its wounds.
"Damn!" Midna shouted. "We were so close, too! At least it's gone." She looked at Ishaka, who hadn't moved. "Ishaka?" She floated over to check on the Ravager captain. He was shaking quite badly, an utterly petrified look on his face. He had put his pipe in his mouth, but his hands were shaking so badly he couldn't get the match to light. Sighing, Midna took his hands and gently guided hi through the process. As soon as the pipe was lit, Ishaka started taking so many puffs it looked like he was about to disappear in a cloud of smoke. Midna made a pointed effort to express her disgust, coughing and wiping away the smoke out of her face.
"S-s-s-sorry, yer highn'ss." Ishaka said. "Th-th-tha' jes' be a close 'un, is all."
Midna chuckled.
"I don't blame ya, big guy. That was pretty scary."
.
Zant watched this development, and snarled in rage. How dare these rotten little creatures harm his great and mighty beast! Well, it was time to even the odds. He let out a cry.
"Capture the enemy captains!" He shouted. "Gut them like fish!"
.
Ishaka thought he heard Zant's voice giving an order. Swiftly, he ran a mental check. Ryu was in no danger, Sevip was wounded but had wisely retreated, and he thought he'd seen Gorga in the mess of poor souls who'd been hit by the Dragon's fire. And Lana was running up to them right now. That left-
"Ag'tha!" Ishaka shouted, racing away from the confused witches in the direction he'd last seen Meathook barreling off towards.
"Hey, come back!" Midna shouted. "I need someone to watch my back if that dragon comes back!"
"I can handle that." Lana said. "Just let me know what you need. I can deal with the dragon." She looked worried. "How much did that last one take out of you?"
"A good bit, but not too much." Midna admitted. "I got enough in me for one more good magic circle. So let's hope that does the trick! Why, do you have a plan or something?"
"Er…something like that." Lana said. Midna smirked.
"I like that attitude, Lana! Ishaka and I must be rubbing off on you!"
.
Agitha giggled a bit as Meathook swung his massive arm, clubbing a pair of Bokoblins and causing them to go splat against the far wall. They were deep within the walls of the castle now, along with many of the Ravagers who'd fought out of the hell of the courtyard and into the depths of the Twilight castle. The few Ravagers that had gone with them had been killed by these awful beasties, and it was quite delightful to see Meathook get a degree of revenge against them. Agitha decided that she'd serve as a sort of director, pointing to where Meathook needed to swing his fist.
"Watch out, Mister Meathook!" She cried, pointing to the left. "Baddies with long sticks!"
Meathook turned just in time to feel a Moblin prick him in the bicep with a spear. It wasn't a clear shot, but the graze was enough to cut skin. He roared in pain, and responded by pounding the Moblin on the head so hard he nearly caved in the creature's neck. He felt another lazy prick from the right, and realized that the Moblin spearmen were luring him into a corner, in order to gut him against the wall. He roared, and tried to break out of this semi-circle, but none of them were budging. He risked looking behind him, and saw a ledge up high. It couldn't hold him, but if worst came to worst he could throw this little girl up there to safety where she could run away.
He felt the cold, hard surface of the wall press against his back. This was it. He blocked a spear strike, and prepared himself to throw the girl up to safety.
"I can help, Mister Meathook!" Agitha cried out. "Let me try!"
Meathook had to admire her innocence. There was no need for her to lose her life this day.
Suddenly, they heard a most terrible roar. They turned to the right to see Ishaka veritably sprinting towards them, with a crazed look in his eye. He tackled the closest Moblin he saw, slamming the creature to the ground and burying his knife in the back of its neck before it could react. He rolled out of the way of another Moblin spear (which stuck in the dead body of its fallen companion), and then swung his sword with enough force to cut through the Moblin's spear and the arm holding it. He turned around to see a Moblin charging with spear raised-
-only to get hit so hard in the side of the head that it was killed instantly by Meathook's clothesline. Ishaka glanced up at the wounded but still very-much going Ravager Goron.
"Thanks, Meat'ook!" Ishaka said, flashing a grin.
There was a series of howling. They saw that a veritable platoon of Bokoblins had entered the hall, and had surrounded them. Considering their position trapped against the wall, it was fair to say that there were too many of them to fight off.
Before either Meathook or Ishaka could react, Agitha had slid off of the Goron's arm and walked in front of the two of them, facing the Bokoblins. She reached into her basket, and pulled out a small jar.
"You awful little creatures!" Agitha said to the advancing Bokoblins. "This is your last warning! Stay back, or I will be forced to hurt you!"
The Bokoblins responded by either laughing or licking their lips.
"Ag'tha, git b'hind us!" Ishaka said rather frantically. Agitha unscrewed the jar, and let out a tiny black beetle.
"Don't worry, mister Shasa!" Agitha grinned. She gestured to the little creature. "Mr. Beetle will save us!"
There was an incredulous pause. Even the Bokoblins stopped moving to stare at the little bug. Then they started laughing.
"H-how wuh-jgb-bluh-" Ishaka never got to finish his sentence.
Agitha giggled to herself as she shook the jar some more, sprinkling some glittering dust on the beetle. The dust seemed to be absorbed right into the skin of the little creature. There was no discernable affect at first. Then it started to glow. With frightening speed, the creature grew and grew and grew until it was the size of two Gorons put together. Letting loose a most awful roar, the beast charged the Bokoblins with its antlers drawn.
The Bokoblins weren't laughing anymore.
Now they were screaming.
Agitha giggled as she watched Mr. Beetle toss the Bokoblins around like little children, either stomping them to death or goring them on the end of its horn. Agitha turned to look at Meathook and Ishaka, and smiled.
"Isn't he amazing? Mr. Beetle is my great knight protector!" She said. There was an undeniable note of pride to her voice.
Ishaka and Meathook's jaws were agape, hanging loosely and stupidly in the air. They glanced bug-eyed at the sight in front of them, and then back at each other. After a moment of staring, they did the only thing they could.
Let out a war cry, and chase after the magic bug.
Meathook, to his credit, at least took the time to scoop the giggling girl up off of the ground and place her back on his shoulder before taking off.
.
They heard the roar again. Argorok had emerged from the horizon, and had begun flying towards the square towards them. Lana glanced over at Midna.
"Are you sure you can bring it down close to the ground?" She asked. She was gripping her Deku spear so tightly her knuckles were white. Midna nodded.
"Yeah, but what on earth are you planning on doing?" She asked.
"Don't worry about it, just grab it!" Lana said as Argorok buzzed close over their heads. Lana raced out into the open, and pirouetted a bit to get the creature's attention. Evidently not having learned from the last time, Argorok let out a shriek and divebombed towards her.
Instead of looking at the creature, Lana looked at Midna. As soon as she saw the magic chains begin to form, she made her move. Lana reached up into the air, and grabbed ahold of one of the chains as it flew past her. He felt the wind whipping in her face as she was carried high into the air, up above the castle grounds and right into Argorok's belly. As the beast thrashed mightily against the chains that bound it, Lana scrambled upwards so that she was astride the beast like a horse. That was the exact moment that the chains broke.
Argorok let out a roar, and realized that it had picked up a hitchhiker. It barrel-rolled through the air, trying to shake her off. Lana leaned forward, hanging on tightly. She inched forward, climbing up the creature's spindly neck. The scales were sharp and rough, and Lana was sure she felt her arms and hands acquiring small yet painful cuts. Argorok's movements were getting more and more erratic as Lana shimmied her way closer and closer to its head. At one point, Lana got the sensation of being upside down, but refused to look down.
Finally, she was right at the base of the creature's head, at the point where the neck ended. Argorok was shrieking and spitting embers, as if that was going to get this most awful little beast off of it. Lana wrapped her legs around its neck, clenching her thighs as tightly to the beast as she could in order to hold on. She whispered a spell, and watched as the tip of her Deku spear began to glow as it sharpened. Then, with a cry, Lana jabbed it.
The spear pierced right through the eye of the dragon, and by the way Argorok suddenly jerked she knew she'd pierced its brain. The beast let out a strangled screech, and then began a spiraling descent towards the ground. Knowing that leaping off of the beast at this height was death, Lana instead held on tight and tried her best to ride it out.
This was insane, what she was doing. It was impossible. She was going to do it anyway.
.
Argorok crashed into the ground belly first, skidding across the stony ground so sharply that the ground was getting torn up underneath it. Lana hugged tightly, her eyes squinted shut. Her felt pieces of rock nick and scratch at her face and neck and arms and legs, and knew that she was probably going to be bleeding somewhere when this was all done. That is, if she wasn't dead outright.
Argorok finished its death descent by crashing face-first into the wall of the castle, slamming up against it with a sickening thump. Lana had anticipated this, and at the last moment had pushed off and backwards. She tumbled head over heels backwards down the length of the creature's back, and righted herself just in time to slide on her feet down the tail of the beast like an ice skater.
All was silent on the battlefront. Even the Bokoblins and Moblins had stopped fighting to stare at this in shock. There was a pause.
"HOLY SHIT!" Ryu suddenly shouted. "HOW THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT?"
Clang.
The first Moblin dropped its spear in surrender.
Clang-clang-clang.
Like a cacophonous percussion section, the air came alive with the sounds of Bokoblins, Moblins and Bulblins tossing their weapons to the ground in surrender. They raised their arms in the air, and each and every one of them went to their knees in servitude. A roar of cheers and huzzahs went through the air. Lana saw the way that they looked at her, these crazed Ravagers, the way that they seemed to put her on a pedestal with their cheers and looks, and gave a tired smile. It was nice to feel like she belonged.
"AAIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
The celebration was interrupted by a most horrific shriek. There was Zant standing at the entrance of the royal chambers, his eyes bugging out of their sockets and his neck veins bulging. Spit flew from his crazed lips.
"YOU-YOU-YOU…how DARE you kill my pet, you disgraceful WHOOORRRREEE!" Zant shrieked.
"Yep. That's the Zant I know." Midna commented to no one in particular.
"It's over, Zant." Lana said. "Surrender now, and I promise that we will be merciful in negotiation." Zant laughed. It was a crazed, shrieking noise. He drew his scimitars…and then raced back into the royal chambers like the coward he was.
"H-hey!" Lana shouted. "Get back here!" She started running after him.
"Secure the prisoners!" Midna shouted over her shoulder as she flew off after Lana. "We've got a rebellion to put down."
.
The two of them raced through the corridors of the royal chambers, dispatching the few foolish Bokoblins and Moblins that hadn't decided to surrender. Finally, they reached the throne room. Zant stood there, his back to them, gazing at the throne and the Gate of Souls above it.
"Do you know what it is like to die, Midna?" He asked. His voice was little more than a soft whisper. "To breathe your last, your brain begging your lungs to continue working, while your body slowly shuts down piece…by…piece?" He was shaking now. The scimitars in his hands dripped with blood, blood that Midna saw came from the fallen bodies of Twili warriors strewn through this room. "To live through that…and come back, why…it's enough to make any man…" He slowly turned around. "…crazy."
His eyes were practically pinpricks, sunken deep within their sockets. The veins in his neck were now joined by veins in his temples and forehead. He looked like he was frothing at the mouth slightly. He twirled his two scimitars, and slowly turned his neck and back so that he was practically staring at them from upside down.
"No….no…" He said. "I won't go back…I…I won't. I won't die again. You? You die. Yes. Yes. You will. Die. Die. Die." He started to walk towards them, his steps off and staggered. "Die. Die. Dead."
"Why wast' yer time?"
They were all interrupted, and turned towards the source of the noise. Standing in the doorway was Ishaka, with Meathook and Agitha right beside him. He walked forward, and eventually stood protectively in front of Lana and Midna. Zant hissed.
"Out of my way, boy." He snarled. "I…I have to kill these two harlots, and I have to kill them now. I-I need…I want to kill them. Ooohhhh, let me kill them now!" He suddenly shrieked. Agitha covered her eyes and turned away in fear. Meathook set her down on the ground, and protectively covered over her so that she didn't have to hear or see this. Ishaka remained unperturbed. If anything, he seemed to be having fun.
"Yeh don' wanna kill 'em, Zant." He said. Zant seemed just as confused as Lana and Midna were.
"I-I don't." Zant asked. Ishaka shook his head.
"Nah…yeh know wha' yeh really want?" Ishaka asked. There was a singing sound as he drew his blade. "Yeh wanna put a knife in me." He said. He was slowly walking towards the crazed Usurper King, twirling his sword in one hand and calmly holding the dagger out in front of him with the other. "Yeh wanna…an' look me inna eyes, as yeh turn it." Ishaka's eyes were wide and almost as crazed as Zant's. Midna and Lana wondered what the hell was happening. "Innit tha' wha' yeh wan', Zant?" He asked.
Zant looked positively enthralled, his head twitching violently and froth forming in the corner of his lip.
"I…I don't need to kill them…" He said finally. He was walking forward towards Ishaka now, twirling his own scimitars. "I…I don't want to kill them now!" He stood in front of Ishaka, who was ice-cool. Zant suddenly shrieked.
"IMMAKILLYOUNOOWWWW!"
Like a mechanized defense feature, a lizard-like helmet formed over Zant's face. Ishaka hadn't expected this, and readied his weapons. Shrieking like a lunatic, Zant spasmed and flopped over towards the Ravager leader. He stood his ground, refusing to anticipate where the Usurper King would move next.
He waited.
Zant lunged, his blades locking with Ishaka's with a loud clanging noise. The Ravager leader calmly parried, and held his blades at a defensive stance. Lana watched with rapt attention and awe. Ishaka wasn't using his regular weapons, but still was a natural. And Zant was getting frustrated. Not a single time did Ishaka launch an offensive move. He simply let Zant come to him, blocking and redirecting every move.
Zant was screaming like a lunatic now, furious that this ragged boy wouldn't take the bait. No one fought like this! No one this young was this calm! No one! NO ONE!
He shrieked, and lunged forward for an X-pattern cross slice. Ishaka calmly caught the blades with an x-block of his own. They held heir blades there in that position, neither budging.
"BRAT!" Zant shrieked. His mask covered his face, otherwise spittle would've flown in Ishaka's face. "You are a coward not to attack me! Fight! FIGHT!"
Suddenly, Ishaka snarled.
"How 'bout this?" He said.
He raked his blades down the edge of Zant's scimitars, and then almost immediately thrust them upwards at a furious speed. The sudden friction between blades was like rubbing two sticks of flint and tinder together: sparks. A shower of them flew forward, and Ishaka could see that they'd gotten through Zant's mask and into his face.
The Usurper King let out a ghoulish wail, and dropped his scimitars to the ground. He tore off his helmet, and frantically began to rub his eyes.
"AIYEEYEEYEE! My eyes-my eyes-my eyyyeeesss!" He said, staggering around and flailing as he tried to restore vision to his ruined eyes. Lana could see trickles of blood coming from them, and winced. Zant continued to scream. "I can't see! I can't see! I CAN'T SEE! I CAN'T SEE! I CAN'T S-"
Those were his last words, as Ishaka had taken this opportunity to ram his dagger directly into the Usurper King's exposed throat. He leaned in real close.
"An' now yeh can't talk."
He twisted the blade violently in the wound, felt Zant go limp, and let go.
The Usurper King collapsed to the ground, a lifeless wretch.
.
Ishaka was panting, breathing heavily and noisily sucking in air. It was at that moment that Lana realized how exhausting it must have been to restrain himself so.
"Whew!" Ishaka said, plopping down unceremoniously on his backside. "Tha' was a tough 'un!" He reached for his pipe, lit it up, and started smoking. Clearly, he didn't notice or didn't care that Zant's lifeless body was a mere few feet away from him. Midna floated over to the body, and then proceeded to kick it once. Twice. Several times.
"And stay down, you freak!" She shouted. Ishaka looked over at her, and smiled. Lana shook her head at this insanity. She didn't know how Midna still had the energy. She personally was just as tired as Ishaka no doubt was. She walked over to the Gate of Souls, balancing herself on her broken Deku spear, and cast the Spell of Containment. The Gate of Souls warbled and warped as it reacted to this burst of light, and then disappeared into nothingness. It was closed forever.
.
There was a soft, repetitive sound that drew their attention. It was the sound of single person clapping.
Slowly, sarcastically clapping.
Everyone whipped around to see the source of it, and a collective chill went through the air.
Cia.
"Lana?" The dark sorceress asked, a wolfish grin on her face. "Whatever are you doing here?" She looked at the lifeless body of Zant, and her grin changed to a look of mild surprise. "Really? He died so quickly? It truly is so hard to find good help these days…"
"Cia. This has to stop. It has stopped." Lana said. "Even as we speak, you have to know that our friends have closed the Gate of Souls in the other planes of existence. Please, let this all be over!"
"Over?" Cia asked. She walked forward slightly, her hips swaying slightly. "Why, my dear delusional little conscience…it hasn't even begun." Her wolf-like grin returned. Without seeing her eyes, it looked positively ravenous. "If Link isn't snuggled safe and warm in my arms as he belongs…then I'm not done." She spit these last words with extra venom, and the faintest traces of dark energy pulsated off of her.
Meanwhile, Midna was positively livid. Frantically, the imp-like Twili gestured towards the dark witch.
"She's the one! I'm cursed to look like this because of her! Because of you!" She turned towards Cia and snarled. Cia was unimpressed. In fact, she seemed positively amused.
"Well, if I may say, that look suits you. Quite fitting for a big-headed princess of Twilight." Cia said. She gave a haughty laugh.
Midna was enraged.
"Suit THIS!"
She snapped her head forward, and her pretensile hair lashed forward like a fist. Faster than anyone could react, the hair-fist scored a direct head right at the bridge of Cia's nose. The dark sorceress gave a yelp of pain, shock, and rage.
Everyone was stunned. Despite everything that they had planned to do once they'd met the source of all of their troubles, it hadn't occurred to any of them to…simply punch her in the face. But soon their shock was replaced by an even greater shock. For nothing could have prepared them for what they saw next.
Cia was hunched over, her face in her hand as she brushed the ruined pieces of her mask off of her. Some of the jagged pieces had pierced her cheek and forehead, and she was bleeding slightly from those spots. Partially covering her face, Cia stood upright and glared at the heroes. But one hand loosely held was not enough to obscure how she looked.
Beautiful. Radiant white hair, and violet eyes. A small and nuanced jewel in her hair. There was a most elegant and refined look to her features, and you could tell that men would be intimidated to talk to her.
But she also looked incredibly familiar.
Cia gave a gasp of pain, and swiftly cast a portal behind her. Taking advantage of their shock, she leapt through the portal and disappeared.
For a moment, no one said anything. Midna was the first to react. She looked to where Cia had stood, and then back at Lana. Then she looked back and forth again. As she kept looking, she grew more and more frantic.
"Lana...C-Cia has your face." Midna said. It was flat, as if she hadn't quite registered. Then her eyes widened. "Cia has your face." It was starting to sink in, even if it didn't make sense. She tugged on Lana's shoulder like a small, confused child. "You-I-jgb-whugh-Cia has your FACE. Why does Cia have your face? Why does you look like you?"
"She don' look like miss Lana…" Ishaka said quietly. He'd slowly gotten up from his rest during all of this, and had walked over to where they stood. Gently, he'd sheathed his weapons. He turned to face Lana, who still wasn't making eye contact. He rest his hands on her shoulders, and stared at her. He wouldn't look away. Lana finally made eye contact with him, and the Ravager commander could see that her eyes were watering. When he spoke, he was as soft and gentle as an older brother.
"She is miss Lana. Ain't she, miss Lana?" He looked her in the eye.
It was a good thing, she decided, that the rest of the army was not in that room with them.
Because, she thought as she buried herself in his chest, she couldn't bear the thought of them seeing her cry.
Et sic concludit hunc actum
A/N: Whew! The big reveal of Hyrule Warriors, brought forth onto the page! Hope it was worth the wait. A couple of thoughts:
Obvious changes to the overall structure and location of the battle, for the sake of narrative purposes
No Great Fairy like in the game. I like to think that Great Fairies don't often live in the Twilight Realm, and out of all of the ones in this game that one felt the most Deus Ex Machina-like
The "Mr. Beetle" gag is something I've been planning since the very beginning, and was very happy to put it to paper finally
I know that I previously mentioned my excitement for writing Zant but this chapter…hoo boy. Maybe it's just a case of me getting too far into the narrative (and into myself), but writing Zant's breakdown gave me goosebumps.
I know that it might seem hackneyed that Ishaka is the one that puts down Zant, but I did give Midna and Lana Argorok. And it's not like those two aren't done kicking ass. There's plenty more ass to kick in this story.
If someone wants to draw a picture of Agitha sitting on the shoulder of a massive Goron and send it my way, you will get written into the story. Absolute promise. That has to be the greatest image I have ever put into my head. God, Meathook and Agitha are swiftly becoming some of my favorite characters.
And So We Fight has a TVTropes page! If you're a Troper (like yours truly), feel free to check it out at this URL: /FanFic/AndSoWeFight
Feel free to add in edits, tropes, and/or discussion as you see fit! I promise not to be too stingy.
As always, Reviews are much appreciated. Hope you're enjoying this ride as much as I am! Till next time.
HYRULIAN CODEX
Gerudo Tribe – A near-mythical tribe of thieves and mercenaries who keep to themselves in the desert. While that in and of itself is enough to give an aura of mystique to the tribe, there is more to them: The Gerudo Tribe is a tribe that consists solely of women. What's more, the only male Gerudo is said to be born once every hundred years.
Gerudo warriors have dark tanned skin, golden eyes, and hair in varying shades of red. They are deeply suspicious of outsiders, and have been known to capture or outright kill those who mistakenly wander into their sacred grounds. Sadly, Gerudo tribeswomen are most likely reclusive and shy in nature, but are the victims of a most unfortunate stroke of luck: it is rumored that the first incarnation of the Great Evil that threatened Hyrule was a Gerudo King. Thus, it makes sense that they treat any outsider with suspicion or outright hostility: they are often used as a scapegoat for the problems in the world otherwise.
Despite this, there are rumors of Gerudo women sneaking away from the tight-knit tribes they live in to see the outside…and periodically have relations with outsider men. "Kiss of the Gerudo" is a colloquialism to refer to a relationship or act that would be frowned upon if discovered by others: it is named after the fact that, though Gerudos are not on terribly friendly terms with outsiders as a whole, some individuals have found that these women are quite attractive and…well, one can fill in the blanks from there.
There is a popular rumor that the Gerudo tribe is directly designed from Din, Goddess of Fire and Passion, but that appears to be an old wive's tale.
Battle of Twilight – Considered the finale of the Era of Twilight's struggle. In it, the Hero of Twilight, as well as the Twilight Princess, banded together with the Princess of Hyrule to defeat the Usurper King…as well as the dark puppetmaster that controlled him from beyond. At the conclusion of the battle, the Twilight Princess returned to her throne…but not before shattering the Mirror of Twilight, effectively severing the link between worlds forever. Though this might have been necessary to prevent another Twilight invasion…that does not do much to heal the broken hearts that resulted from that decision.
Argorok – A mythical beast of Twilight. The only Dragon known in the Twilight, Argorok was cunning, cruel, and took a special delight in feasting on mortals. However, despite its razor sharp claws, atomic fire breath, and incredible speed in the air…it was easy to anger, and when angered was easy to take advantage of. Argorok was somehow the loyal servant of the Usurper King Zant, though it is unclear how a low-level servant to the Twilight nobility was able to acquire enough power to command such a beast.
Either way, Argorok was a legendary scourge of the skys, and many breathed a sigh of relief when it was slain during the Era of Twilight.