The half circle path in front of the castle was strange to Ganondorf, and the cars driving on it even more so. Three cars were lined up just on the other side of the long iron gate, their engines roaring, and lights bright enough to make him squint. The gate was thrust open by two guards. The wheels of the cars screeched as the drivers tromped on the pedal, and raced toward Ganondorf at full speed.
The King of Evil raised his hand to eye level with his palm up. Three black orbs, the size of marbles, appeared within the span of his hand and spun in a perfect circle. They shot out of his hand faster than Dora's crossbow bolts. Each one collided with an engine, and all three cars exploded simultaneously. They were catapulted into the air, burst open the closed gate, and crashed into the castle walls. The occupants of each vehicle were gravely injured, and their painful moans filled the air.
Dora marched straight forward. "I have never seen so many people that are this eager to die," she mocked, speaking loudly enough so he could hear.
Ganondorf saw that she referred to the nearly fifty castle servants, from maids, to chefs, to the steward, that rushed foolishly into battle, armed with swords and weapons that projected beams of magic. The magic fired from their guns was pure white. They were specially equipped to deal with a user of dark magic. Leaving Dora to fight all of them on her own was suicidal, even at her skill level. Ganondorf held his right arm straight out at his side, and his trident appeared in his hand. It would be the two of them against all of the castle's caretakers.
Dora brandished her sword when she collided with the first victim, and her sword cut clean through her torso. She moved like a blur, constantly shifting from one victim to the next. Castle servants outnumbered the two of them by incredible odds, so each strike needed to be the one that killed. They tried to overpower her with melee weapons, but she was so swift that close combat put them at a disadvantage. Her instincts guided her, and her battle experience made her an impossible competitor to defeat. Dora's sword cut without mercy or prejudice. When her blade sped by, it slayed whoever stood in its way. She was not physically intimidating, which was an excellent disguise for her truly ferocious and relentless attacks that sent her opponents running.
Ganondorf was the opposite. He was as powerful as he was intimidating in size and appearance. Each wide sweep of his trident sent his enemies flying in all directions, and they rarely stood back up. They fearlessly rushed at him, like an ocean wave, and were blown back as if the wave crashed into a mighty cliffside. The magic beams fired at him from the annoying toys were not even powerful enough to slow him down, but did cause him brief moments of discomfort. Compared to facing true sorcery, like the sages and the Master Sword, this childlike magic was irritating.
There were many close calls, especially as the battled waged on beyond what the King and Queen of Evil expected from average castle servants. Dora noticed there was wisdom behind their attacks. Instead of rushing everyone in at once, there was a space of time between each wave. This allowed anyone remaining to rest, while she was forced to continuously fight for her life.
With the numbers stacked against them, Dora and Ganondorf quickly transitioned from a block, to a parry, back to aggressive offense. One mistake meant slipping into defense until they could grasp the opportunity to return to offense.
Dora finally cut through enough enemies that an opening was clear, up a gentle sloping hill of trimmed, green grass, to the front doors of Hyrule Castle. Before she could turn to help Ganondorf finish off his work, she was struck in the back by a powerful force that sent her straight to the ground.
Ganondorf was distracted by the shriek of a familiar voice. His eyes quickly searched, but could not locate Dora's fiery head of hair. He narrowly avoided a sword swinging for his neck, and maneuvered his way toward the last spot he saw her fighting. He followed the trail of bodies, and found her face down at the center, with a Zora man pointing a gun at the back of her head.
The raw heat of rage rushed from his chest into his limbs at the sight of his strong wife being set up for execution. When Ganondorf drew near, his massive figure cast a shadow over the Zora. The servant glanced up into the contorted face of anger. Ganondorf thrust his trident forward and impaled his victim on the center spear. He swung the point straight into the air, and the Zora's body dangled like a slab of meat from a fork. Ganondorf snatched the servant's face in his large hand, and pulled with all his might. "Angering me is the last thing you will ever do!" He ripped in both directions, one way with his hand, the other with his trident, until the Zora separated at his spine. He flicked his trident to toss the remains far to the side.
The fighting was over. The defeated servants were dying from fatal wounds, or were already dead. The few who were well enough tried to move their comrades back inside to seek help from a doctor. They recognized their need to retreat and regroup for the sake of the royal family.
Ganondorf turned back at hearing Dora groan and mutter incoherently, but her anger at her broken pride was obvious in her tone. He reached his hand low to the ground, where she accepted it and he easily helped her rise. The wound on her back was small and perfectly round. The center was dark red, pink on the outside, and bubbled and blistered like a direct burn from a hot coal. While Dora sheathed her sword, Ganondorf moved to stand behind her. "Hold still," he ordered, his tone softer than usual. His hand hovered just an inch away from her wound. It was close enough she tensed in preparation for pain, but none came. He concentrated dark magic to transfer from his palm to her shoulder like a shimmering, visible aura. Its power reversed the energy of the white magic attacking her body.
The pain she expected came, and much worse than she anticipated. Dora closed her eyes tightly and gritted her teeth. The fresh burning of the wound was unbearable, as if someone shoved a finger covered in salt into her raw skin. Not only did she endure the pain, but also the overwhelming sensation of Ganondorf's darkness. Her breaths came in short gasps that made her dizzy, and then she remembered to take long, deep breaths to avoid hyperventilating. She blindly groped for his free hand in the air behind her, until she snagged his fingers successfully in a tight grip. He instinctively stepped closer, without moving his hand that purged her magical affliction. He wrapped his free arm fully over her chest, until his fingers rested on the front of her wounded shoulder. He lent his strength to her so she could endure. The level of her suffering was obvious based on how she squeezed his arm. Dora found comfort and serenity in his presence. His warmth eased her tension. Her deep breaths became full of his power that was incapable of being contained within his physical frame. She drew from his energy, she did not fight it. She welcomed it until her veins turned black with his magic, until the process of healing her wound was complete. The darkness faded, and as terrifying as it could be to accept, she longed for it when it was gone.
Ganondorf removed his hand, and the wound was erased entirely from her flesh. Dora still breathed heavily from the process, so he leaned down and whispered, "Anyone who harms my loyal queen deserves worse than death."
That made her smile and laugh, which eased her aching shoulder. The shout of a young girl drew their attention back to Hyrule Castle's front door.