A/N: Yay! Another chapter of 'A Dark Truth'! :D I love this story. I really want to draw the scene with Sheik, Dark, and Link where Dark is all half dead and stuff… hehe. I don't know why… I think I finally figured out how this story is going to end. Oh the suspense must be killing you. ;D Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter! Sorry, the last one was so short! DX

I don't own Legend of Zelda or any of its characters.

Chapter 27: One Step Closer pt. 2

Link was running quickly away from the oncoming Iron Knuckle, dodging the golden pillars that decorated the room. Dark was clinging onto the beasts back, wrapping his arms tightly around its thick neck that was covered by plates of metal. Link had retreated behind one of the large columns to regain his breath for a quick moment until the creature swung his mighty axe against the pillar, belittling it to pieces. Luckily he had not been hit by the blade or crushed by the falling bricks. He sighed as he took off running towards the other side of the room.

"Link! Throw me my sword!" Dark shouted while pointing to his black blade that was lying at the far end of the room, near the exit door. It had been knocked from his hands when the Iron Knuckle swung his massive weapon towards Dark and he used his sword instinctively to block the blow. Link picked up Dark's blade, instantly noticing it was a bit heavier than his own. He decided to question it later and took off running towards the monster, throwing his body into a roll to dodge the impending swing of the axe and tossed the weapon to Dark. Upon catching his sword, he reared back his arm pointing the sharp tip towards a space between the metal plates and thrust the blade through the back of the beast's neck and through the other side. A dark green fluid started to spew and secrete from its wound, covering Dark in a rancid smelling liquid.

The Iron Knuckle howled in agony and started to attempt to buck Dark off of him. Dark kept his hands gripped firmly on the handle of his sword still lodged in the monster's throat and when the beast finally managed to swing Dark off of his back and to the side, the sword slid with him, slicing through its neck and decapitating the monster. Finally, the Iron Knuckle fell to its knees and its head that was still inside its steel helmet, went rolling across the floor towards Link's feet. Link kicked the head like a soccer ball and the body at last ignited into an explosion of green flames sending the creature back to the underworld. Sighs of relief filled the room as the beast was finally slain. Dark walked over to his counterpart with a grin and pulled at his right arm.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he delicately examined the large wound on his forearm.

"I'm fine." Link answered quickly while wincing in pain.

"We should wrap that up." Dark drew his sword to begin sawing at the bottom of his tunic but Link reached out a hand to stop him.

"Don't. That tunic is too valuable. You already ruined the pants."

Dark's jaw dropped and he put a fist to his hip, "I'm trying to be considerate and that wasn't my fault."

Link just rolled his eyes and removed his hat, "Here. Use this."

Dark simply shoed him away with his hand and pushed past the blonde boy, "Do it yourself, hero."

"How am I supposed to tie this around my own arm?" Link asked dumbfounded.

"You should have thought of that, before you got sassy with me." Dark replied coldly narrowing his ruby eyes towards his lighter counterpart. Link let out a sigh of frustration and began struggling to tie the piece of fabric around his bleeding wound.

"Dark! Quit being such a big jerk and help him!" Navi squealed while flying in the dark haired boy's face and crossing her tiny arms.

"Oh, because a bug like you telling me what to do will obviously make me comply…" Dark groaned sarcastically, "Scram ugly."

Dark caught sight of Link sitting on the floor while scrambling to use his knee and left arm to try and tie his green hat around the gaping gash. He scowled resentfully in his direction and then rolled his eyes at his incompetence. He let out an over dramatic sigh and walked towards the struggling boy. Dark knelt down and grasped both ends of the fabric then began wrapping it tightly around his forearm before finally tucking the ends underneath the binding. Link lifted his head with an apologetic smile and Dark simply returned a smirk.

"What would you do without me, hero?" Dark stated bitterly then stood to his feet. Link opened his mouth in shock and grabbed onto Dark's wrist tightly and dragged him back down to the floor.

"That isn't funny, Dark!" Link shouted with rage.

"I wasn't saying it to be funny, Link." Dark responded coldly while staring into his sapphire eyes with a blank and frigid expression, "You need to be able to take care of yourself. I can't come to your aid or your rescue every time you put yourself in harm's way. You're too reckless."

"I can take care of myself!" Link retaliated irritably, "I did just fine before you came along and I'll do just fine when you're gone!" Link's eyes widened and he let out a gasp of surprise once he'd finished his sentence. He immediately brought his hands to his mouth as if he'd just cursed to his mother or told an embarrassing secret. A slight sheen began to twinkle in Dark's crimson eyes and the faintest of smiles crept upon his lips. He grabbed Link's hand and entwined his fingers around his.

"Good," Dark finally replied firmly, "That's what I wanted to hear."

He then stood to his feet and retreated out the exit door, leaving behind a speechless Link. Once on the other side, Dark realized he was standing on a high ledge on the outside of the Spirit Temple. He shielded his eyes from the bright desert sun and glanced downwards to see a large wooden chest. After kicking it open he knelt down to retrieve what lay inside. Dark reached his hands inside the box and pulled out a shield with a large mirror on the front that was outlined in red. He glanced at the item curiously as he gazed back at his own reflection, thinking to himself how excited Link was going to be once he gave him the new shield. Dark then sighed heavily as he looked out amongst the vast desert. He'll be fine…

When Dark turned around to return to the previous room he found himself colliding head first into his lighter half, sending the two boys falling to their bottoms. Dark rubbed his aching head while groaning in pain while Link apologized frantically over and over. Dark just smiled at the stammering boy and held out the mirror shield for him to take. Link immediately stopped babbling and started to gawk at the item in his grasp.

"Wow…" He muttered while looking curiously at his reflection, "It's a mirror shield… I wonder what I'll need it for."

"I suppose the final boss." Dark stood to his feet and brushed himself off, "Hey would you point that thing somewhere else! It's blinding me! Anyway… I don't remember Sheik saying anything about it…"

That's when Link remembered what Kaepora Gaebora had told him when he'd returned to the past and defeated the first part of the Spirit Temple as a child. Two witches inhabit this temple, in order to destroy them turn their own magic against them!... "Hmm I guess we'll have to wait and see." Link said with a smile and equipped his new shield. He frowned as he parted ways with his blue hylian shield and sadly set it on the ground.

"What are you doing?" Dark asked curiously as he watched the boy dispose of his old shield, "You've had that thing, forever."

"I can't carry two shields…" Link muttered while thinking about the sentimental value the item held.

"Can I have it?"

Link looked to Dark with a wide smile and nodded approvingly, "Please! Take it!"

Dark tossed his black shield off of the ledge and to the ground below. He picked up Link's old shield and situated it on his back, "You ready?"


"Well that's odd…" Dark muttered as him and Link stared at a huge mirror positioned on the wall in front of them, "I'm starting to find that i hate mirrors…"

"Why's that?" Link asked curiously as he hit a nearby switch behind a gate to open the door across the hall. They hurried through and Dark began to explain.

"One reason is… they remind me of the water temple. Constantly seeing my reflection in the water… and that's the other reason."

"What do you mean?"

"I hate looking at my reflection."

Link turned to face Dark with a confused expression, "That's silly. How come?"

"Because every time I look… I expect to see you staring back at me."

Link was about to answer but was caught off guard by an attacking Lizalfos. The two young men cut the poor lizard to bits and went deeper into the room to explore the area. There was a window cut out of the stone wall letting in a beam of light and another cobra statue with a shiny reflective surface. Link quickly glanced around to look for a sun sculpture but he couldn't find one.

"Link! This wall is cracked!" Navi shouted while flying along the wall to the left. Link pulled out a bomb, lit the wick, and then ran for cover. The stone wall went crumbling to the ground and a new room was revealed with yet another cobra statue. Dark and Link ran to check out the new area and discovered that it was the room behind the gate where the previous switch was.

"I got it!" Link exclaimed then began pushing the first cobra statue to face the other, "Dark! Move that one towards the gate. It'll shine through to that mirror on the wall!" Dark fulfilled his order and the two boys ran to the previous room with the large mirror that Dark had found disturbing. They jumped off the ledge and down to the lower ground where the light was being reflected to. Link noticed a sun sculpture to his left and decided to put his new shield to some good use. He pulled it off his back and began aiming it properly so that the light would reflect off of his shield and towards the sun. Sure enough the beam of light shone brightly on the sculpture and the platform they were standing on began to move downward until it came to a halt right in front of the face of the large Gerudo woman statue in the main area of the temple.

Link still had his shield out in front of him, and the light being shone downwards was reflecting off the surface and towards the sculptures face. The two boys were completely unaware that the heat from the light was causing the statue to crack and they jumped back in surprise when the face crumbled to the ground below, revealing a door. Link looked to Dark with a raised eyebrow and shrugged, then pulled out his longshot, and Dark his hookshot and the two pulled themselves across to the new entry way and entered the boss's chamber.

"Ho ho ho! Looks like someone is here, Koume." An ugly old hag stated as the two young men walked into the room with their swords drawn, ready to dual battle.

"Hee hee hee! Looks like it Kotake!" The horrid twin sister replied while turning to view their visitors. They were standing in front of an Iron Knuckle whispering some sort of spell when Link and Dark had walked in.

"What outrageous fellows they are! To intrude so boldly into our Temple… Ho ho ho!"

"We should teach these outrageous fellows a lesson! Hee hee hee!"

"Would you two shut up!" Dark shouted to the babbling elderly women, "Cut to the chase! I'm ready to slice you two to pieces!"

The ladies ignored Dark's outburst and turned towards the Iron Knuckle, "Oh loyal minion… Destroy these intruders on our behalf!"

The hags then began to spin circles on their brooms, and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. The Iron knuckle stood to its feet and raised its arms in defense, yet it had no large axe to dual battle with.

"What are you doing…" Dark groaned as he looked at the ridiculous weaponless enemy. The beast looked down to its hands in shock and then with a snap of its large armored fingers an axe appeared within his grasp, "You've got to be kidding me…"

The monster began to impend on the two men while Dark and Link prepared their strategy, "I'll distract the big goon while you attack from his back side." Dark ordered. Link replied with a nod and they took their positions. Dark began teasing the large warrior by running towards it then retreating in a backflip every time it would swing down with its axe, while Link took his opportunity to slash at the armor with his sword. The two continued this process until the Iron Knuckle grew tired of Dark's antics and turned to face Link.

"Switch!" Link shouted, referring to their role in their strategy. Eventually, with the last swing of Dark's sword the plating that covered the beast began to fall from its body revealing… Nabooru. She fell weakly to the ground and Link ran to her side, fearing that they had injured her terribly. Dark looked curiously at the Gerudo and then shifted his eyes towards his sword to see if it was stained with blood.

"Uhmmm… where am i?" The woman muttered tiredly as she glanced around at her surroundings. Luckily the armor had protected her.

"Well… well… looks like she's back to normal Koume!"

The three jumped back in surprise as the witches reappeared into the room.

"She's just a little girl but she demands a lot of respect amongst the Gerudo, Kotake."

"Maybe we should make her work for the great Ganondorf for a little while longer! Ho ho ho!"

"Then we should brainwash her again! Hee hee hee!"

The two witches began forming orbs of energy in their right hands with their skills of black magic and reared back their palms to shoot the balls towards Nabooru. The poor Gerudo tried to make a run for it, but was struck by the powerful blasts and disappeared into oblivion. Link gasped in shock and stared hatefully towards the old hags while Dark narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He was weary of what these two were capable of. The witches retreated with a hearty laugh through the next door with Link and Dark following behind. The boss's lair consisted of high platforms with ladders on the side to climb up if they should happen to fall off. Dark glanced hesitantly around and then elbowed Link in the side, "This looks like the boss's room in the Water Temple…"

Before Link had time to reply they heard a loud squeal of the old women come from above them.

"Look at these stupid kids! They came on their own to offer themselves as a sacrifice to the great Ganondorf…"

"With my flame, I will burn them to their bones!" The first witch shouted collecting a dark red aura around her.

"With my frost, I will freeze them to their souls!" The other cried from the opposite side of the room. They began to spin circles around the two boys, in an attempt to look threatening for the treacherous fight to come.

"Alright, Link it's time to put that shield to some use." Dark said quickly while keeping an eye on each of the witches' location in the room. Link gulped nervously and nodded. He was feeling a bit uncomfortable with killing two little old ladies. Dark didn't know exactly how to go about attacking the hags. They were levitating in the air on their broomsticks and he could not jump that high. This battle was up to Link. The witch Koume began spinning the end of her broomstick, forming a large red ball of fiery energy. She aimed towards Link and sent her power barreling towards the poor boy. Link instinctively held up his shield preparing for the worst and gasped in shock when he saw the magic being reflected back towards them. Kotake, the ice witch, happened to float by within range of the reflected energy and was caught on fire by her own sister's attack. She cried in pain and scolded her twin frantically. Two witches inhabit this temple, in order to destroy them turn their own magic against them!...

Dark gave Link a pat on the back and a wide grin. Link now knew what Kaepora Gaebora meant by his last piece of advice. The witches were flustered. They had no other attacks than to shoot their orbs of fire and ice, and now they were aware it would only turn against them. They continued to try and use their magic to attack, trying hard to avoid the beam of their own magic that Link shot back at them. After the elderly twins had been made fools of for too long, they turned to face each other amidst the air.

"Ok, let's get serious now, Kotake!"

"Oh ok, Koume."

"Kotake and Koume's Double Dynamite Attack!" The two hags shrieked in unison followed by a fit of shrill giggles. Dark and Link watched in awe as the two witches pressed their bodies together and began spinning at an intense speed, making them appear as misty swirls of blue and red. A strong beam of light emitted from the misty blend of colors as if an explosion occurred.

"I suppose that's the 'dynamite' part…" Dark muttered while rolling his eyes. When the smoke subsided all that was left was a single large woman, about the size of the Great Fairy. Link and Dark's jaw dropped at the figure left behind once the two hags had merged together. She looked much younger than the previous old women and she was wearing Gerudo style clothing and way too much makeup. Because she was wearing Gerudo clothes, she was showing off a lot of skin and her breasts looked as though they were about to pop out of her top. Link blushed fiercely as the beast of a woman sent the two young men a seductive wink. Dark pretended to gag and cringed at the creatures green skin and bulging eyes.

The horrid witch had two large wands in each of her hands that looked almost like two torches. One held fire and the other, ice. She thrust one of the weapons towards Dark, who retreated frantically behind Link. His shield would be useless against her attacks. Only the mirror shield could protect them against the magic. Twinrova attacked again, this time towards Link who held up his trusty mirror shield. Instead of being reflected back towards the woman, the shield absorbed the power and the red outer rim started to blink and beep like an alarm.

"What the hell does that mean?" Dark asked referring to Link's lighting shield. He simply shrugged and blocked the next beam of fire. The shield began to beep and blink faster and with the next ball of energy the shield sent an explosion of power barreling towards the witch sending her tumbling to the platform in front of them, "Now Link! Get her!"

Link stood still, staring sadly at the weak woman who was breathing heavily and struggling to move, "Link! Get her now!" Dark repeated desperately. The witch looked up and smirked evilly at the two boys and then stood to her feet. Dark became infuriated and turned to face his lighter side, "What the fuck are you doing!"

"I… i… can't…" Link stammered, and then pushed Dark out of the way of an oncoming energy beam.

"What do you mean you can't?" Dark shrieked but Link ignored him and used his shield to absorb the energy and shoot it back towards the evil witch, "Link that will only stun her! You need to kill her with the master sword!"

Twinrova fell once more and Link once again remained still. He grimaced as he heard Dark shouting at him from his side but still refused to go slash at the woman. He was hoping that the blasts would eventually finish her off and that he wouldn't have to actually go and stab his sword through her heart, "You kill her, Dark! You've yet to do anything!" Link finally screamed towards his darker counterpart. Dark narrowed his eyes and cocked back his fist, only to send it sailing into Link's left cheek.

"This is your battle, Link! You are the hero of time!" He replied and continued pointing at the fallen witch. Link looked shamefully away and down towards the ground, "Now finish her before she does, us!"

"I can't… she's a woman Dark…"

Dark was outraged, his eyes became a frightening shade of red as they glowed menacingly at the cowardly hero. He drew his sword and he glared at Link with half shame and half pity, "You are weak. How do you suppose you are going to defeat Ganondorf with that kind of defiance?" He spat through a hasty tongue then approached the stunned woman on the far platform. Dark grabbed the back of the demon's wretched hair, pulling her head back to expose her throat. Link watched in horror on the sidelines as he watched Dark mercilessly thrust his sword into her throat. The witch cried in agony until she was no longer capable due to the blade lodged in her neck. In one swift moment, Dark slid his sword to the side finishing the woman off while Link watched with wide eyes as her body fell limp to the ground. Dark walked away, sheathing his sword then turned to give the witch one more glance. Her body started to levitate in midair, and then began to disperse into two separate mists, one blue and one red. The two auras then began to form faint translucent figures of Kotake and Koume with suspicious glowing rings above their heads.

"Shoot, what a fresh kid! This time we'll get serious, right Kotake?"

"What?"

"Hey, Koume, what is that above your head?"

"I don't know, but you have one over your head to, Kotake!"

"But I'm only 400 years old!"

"And I'm just 380 years old!"

"We're twins! Don't try to lie about your age!"

"You must have gone senile!"

"Who are you calling senile? Is that how you treat your older sister?"

"We are twins, how can you be older?"

"Keeyahh! How heartless, you are!"

"How can you be so ungrateful!"

"You're heartless!"

Dark and Link continued to watch in astonishment at the bickering old hags until a beam of light sucked them away into the great beyond.

"That… was weird." Navi called from Link's tunic. Link let out a sigh of relief and began to walk over to Dark.

"Thanks…" He muttered softly while kicking at the ground, "They were just—

"The sages are waiting for you hero." Dark answered bitterly while pointing towards a blue portal on the far side of the platform. He walked away hastily and towards the exit of the Temple, without giving Link so much as a 'goodbye'. Link watched him leave with grief stricken eyes and then walked delicately into the beam of blue light to be taken to the Chamber of Sages.

A/N: Darky's got an attitude problem. Hehe… cheese and rice. I apologize if i randomly fast-forwarded through the temple. It's a story not a walkthrough! lol Hope you liked my super long chapter! And how I took the time to put in Kotake and Koume's death scene. Haha best part! Oh by the way I ended up drawing the Dark, Link, and Sheik scene but… I haven't done the background or drawn Sheik yet. I'm going to put what I have so far as my avatar but it might take a while to show up. I do have a deviant art account (under smuttylove)… but I don't want to put anything on there that I'm not super proud of so… yeah. I want it to be awesome first! Oh by the way, thank you for all your reviews! You know who you are! I'm in a rush or I'd thank you each personally. Love you guys! :D