Ganondorf continued his rampage through the city once his energy was at maximum capacity again. It was not long before Dora became aware of a group of Hylians in matching uniforms rushing straight toward them. She hoped they had finally encountered true resistance. Being battle wise, she immediately checked her left and right to find more men dressed in the same clothes, but moving discretely at a slower pace.
"Ganondorf," she said to warn him.
He was already plotting a counter attack. "Fools," he chuckled. "You attack these knights," he ordered, waving a finger toward the group directly in front of them. "I will handle the others."
Dora nodded confirmation, and stood in front of him protectively with her sword straight out at her side. She moved forward, each step quicker than the last. Her eyes narrowed as she scanned her enemy, and determined the best method of attack. The knights ahead of her were all in their middle ages, but she could not confirm the age of the others. Based on their tactic, these men knew their lives would be ended one way or another, because their only purpose was to act as decoys. Dora felt that took most of the fun out of it, but she hoped they would put up a good fight.
Ganondorf remained as still as a statue, just watching his wife's back side as she expertly approached her target like a starving, ravenous predator. Her hair was pulled up tight, and braided, so it trailed behind her like a red tail as she ran. The sun glistened and danced against her outstretched blade, his perfect gift to her, when she prepared to strike. She met the knights head on, and viciously swung her sword in a unique style of swordplay. She gracefully shifted from one victim to the next, never killing, only injuring. Ganondorf chuckled and enjoyed the entertainment, while he waited for his time to strike.
He glanced from side to side to judge the distance until the knights were upon him. They ran with incredible speed, as if they feared he might try to escape. Ganondorf raised his forearms so they were parallel with the ground. His power became equally balanced in his hands and feet, which caused him to rise into the air. His timing was exact so that he was out of reach of their swords when they arrived where he once stood. Some of the knights exchanged glances of apprehension, and began to slowly back away. It would be impossible for them to escape his attack.
Thin beams of blue magic zoomed by Ganondorf's head. He was caught off guard and quickly scanned the ground to find where the attack originated from. The knights directly below him held weapons that fired weak magic at him. The direct hits gave the boys with the desire to flee the courage to remain, only because they did not realize quickly enough that their artificial magic had no effect on the Demon King.
"Watch out," one of the knights shouted. Only a few heeded his warning and prepared to run.
With a mighty roar, Ganondorf thrust his fist toward the ground and plummeted straight down as if he weighed a ton. His fist and feet impacted with equal force and the ground caved against the force of his power. Those knights directly below him were crushed and died immediately, while others suffered the pervasive dark magic until it killed them. The rest were thrown hundreds of feet in all directions by magic that burst from his core like a shockwave when he landed. Some of the knights were lucky enough to land with only a few bruises and scrapes, while others slammed into light posts that snapped their spine in half.
Ganondorf conjured his favorite trident and hastened to finish off the few that remained alive. The ones too injured to stand screamed as the point of the trident crashed into their skull. A handful of knights found their courage, and they stood to fight and protect their wounded comrades. The armor they were equipped with made killing them more difficult. It was nearly impenetrable to an average blade. While the trident was imbued with corruptive magic, Ganondorf still encountered resistance slicing through their armor.
The Hylian Knight who shouted to warn his comrades of the deadly attack helped the wounded to their feet and urged them to retreat. "We are not equipped to fight this type of enemy. We must regroup!"
Ganondorf targeted this blonde knight and tossed the trident like a spear, but the knight avoided it. The Demon King was alerted to a new threat when he heard shouting that grew louder. The knights Dora fought refocused their attack on Ganondorf after realizing their plot failed with devastating results. She successfully reduced their numbers to only three, and was on their heels to finish the job. Ganondorf wondered why she did not use her crossbow to strike them in the back. He concluded she did not trust her own aim and feared hitting him instead. Or she was still toying with them.
Dora caught up to the slowest moving knight and slashed the back of his legs where the armor did not cover. He collapsed, and she ensured the wound was deep enough to prevent him from standing back up. Dora snatched the arm of the second knight, which spun him around to face her. She shoved her sword up through his jaw and into his brain so he instantly died. Her fast pace never faltered as she ripped the blade back and left the corpse behind to slay the remaining knight. Her only focus was to keep Ganondorf safe, and she refused to fail.
The King of Evil held no fear that Dora would complete her task, so he kept his focus on the younger knights. The bold one who tried to aid his friends brandished his sword, and rushed toward Ganondorf. He blocked the downward slice, and snatched the boy's left wrist. His valiant fight to break free was rewarded, but only by sacrificing his glove. Ganondorf's face twisted into a despicable grin. "Link, the hero chosen by the goddesses. How fortunate I am to find you so early on in the continuation of our game," he mocked.
Link remembered the mark on the back of his hand suddenly, and tried to hide it at his side even though it was pointless. "Who are you? What do you want?" he yelled. "Why are you killing all of these innocent people?"
Ganondorf inspected Link, and was disappointed in what he found. "You lack the Master Sword, and you lack even an ounce of courage. Have the goddesses really chosen such a pitiful maggot to be Hylia's hero? To be Hyrule's savior?" he said to taunt the young knight. "I have battled all of your predecessors, and you are the weakest of them all. I am here to reclaim what is mine: Hyrule, the Triforce, and I will take as many lives as necessary to be feared as the Great King of Evil once again!"
Link's face and wide eyes read of pure horror. His muscles were petrified. He quickly learned why this man earned that title, because he choked just standing within range of his powerful aura. "No. I can defeat you," he said. He intended to sound brave, but his voice was timid and afraid.
Ganondorf laughed cruelly, as if Link told a rich joke. The knight's soft eyes narrowed at his enemy's reaction, angered that he was not being taken seriously. Link had no time to consider his next move. His breath caught in his throat.
"Dad!" He bolted from his spot straight into a dash. Ganondorf watched, and allowed him to pass by unharmed. "Look out," Link yelled as a warning, but never considered he might be more of a distraction.
Horus led his comrades in an all out sprint for Ganondorf, but the Gerudo king seemed to ignore them entirely. It was impossible that their approach went unnoticed, so the King of Evil's ignorance must have been intentional. Did he place such immense faith in the woman chasing the knights that he would pretend an attack was not imminent? Even after Link's warning shout, Ganondorf did not turn to face Horus. He glanced back to find he was all that remained of his group, and Ganondora was closing in fast. His only options were to reach Ganondorf and strike a killing blow, or meet his death at the hands of the Queen of Evil.
Dora pounced in a leap of faith, and tackled the knight to the ground when she collided with him. He scrambled to stand and gain higher ground first, but she was swifter and deadlier. She was back on her feet in the same breath that she knocked him down, and kicked Horus to keep him grounded for a few seconds longer. He twisted onto his back and swung, but she blocked. Dora spun with enough force that when her leg collided with his arm the sword went flying. With the knight disarmed, she wasted no time gloating and stabbed him through the stomach. The enchanted blade that never dulled encountered little resistance in penetrating the knight's tough armor.
"No!" Link yelled, still yards away from reaching his father. Dora ripped her sword from her enemy's gut, and steadily marched toward Link. She prevented him from reaching his father by snatching him around his throat. He gasped as her grip tightened on his esophagus and nearly knocked him off his feet.
Horus spoke up with a painful grunt. "Do not fear her, Link. They can never win if we do not fear them. Link will claim the Master Sword and slay you to continue the peace in Hyrule, because I believe in him."
"Aw, how touching," Dora mocked. She glared at Link and tightened her fingers around his neck, digging her nails into his skin. Tears tumbled from his eyes, and she scoffed. "Pitiful!"
"No, Ganondora," the King of Evil commanded at sensing her desire to kill.
Her grasp weakened at his words, and Link escaped. "But, why?" she whined.
"He is not worth our time, my queen," he said, using a firm tone to help her understand. He walked toward her, casually stepping over corpses. "He is no hero, and unworthy of wielding the Master Sword. I will allow him to suffer his grief, and mourn, so that he might find his courage. Then he will be a challenge, worthy of your skill. Now, he is nothing more than a boy."
Dora pouted, but he was absolutely correct. Link kneeled at his father's side. Shock and confusion dominated the storm of emotions swirling in his head. "Fine," she acquiesced, when Ganondorf stopped beside her. "I will wait to have my fun."
He smirked at her child like disappointment, and obedience. He led her passed Link and his father, but she sped up and slid her hand into his to interlock their fingers. They continued down the road as calmly as if they strolled through a park. "Our next target," Ganondorf explained, "is the cause of your anger and loathing."
The Queen of Evil clenched her free hand into a fist and glared at the road ahead. "Zelda."