Link sat stiffly, doing his best not to move as Linebeck fiddled with the chamber in the back of his neck. The engineer had been muttering to himself since opening it, mostly about inane details of the tracker. It was the morning of the third day, and Linebeck had spent every hour since starting his project building, editing, and testing the tracker. It turned out to be a small, triangular object with tiny lights.

In addition to the tracker, Linebeck created an item used to map out the surrounding area and pinpoint the tracker. It worked as both a map and a companion to the tracker. Damien was the one who helped Linebeck figure out how to get the mapping function to work, acting as an assistant and as the one keeping Linebeck sane. As Link watched him work for the last few hours, his periodic twitching and flinching implied that he had started hallucinating due to lack of sleep. Not even Bellum seemed aware of whatever he was seeing or hearing.

Midna and Ghirahim were practically inseparable for that period of time, working tirelessly on their magic and occasionally sparring with Link and other Zora soldiers. Mipha sometimes joined them, her timid and shy personality belying her skill and power when fighting. She fought with her Lightscale Trident, a weapon as deadly as it was beautiful, and even the three of them together had a hard time contending with the Zora princess. "You're all very skilled," she told them after one match of sparring. "And you all have certain strengths and weaknesses. With more experience and training, I bet you'll all be able to defeat me on your own. I've had special training all my life, so I had an advantage from the start." The rest of that day, Mipha gave them a number of tips and extra training.

No more Zora were taken by the lizalfos after Mipha spoke with Link, due to her halting any patrols until the problem was solved. What she would do if they were to fail, none of them would know. There were rumors that Mipha's father initially objected to her caution, but eventually supported the move. Zora healers that had looked tired from helping injured guards looked relieved.

Linebeck set the tracker into some part of the compartment in Link's neck and held it there with a finger. "Don't move," he muttered. Link didn't dare breathe as Linebeck picked up some new tools and parts and began to delicately screw the tracker in place. "It's small enough to fit into your neck panel," Linebeck mused. "But it's not fragile. I used some of that strange material we've been picking up, and that stuff is durable as hell. We can now track where you are with this slate we created," he said, referencing the thin tablet, "and use it to map out the surrounding land."

Once Linebeck was done, there was an uncomfortable pressure in his neck, like as if someone had pressed a syringe into the nape of his neck. The pressure eased quickly, however. Link felt at his neck once Linebeck closed the compartment. The only hint that there was a control panel there was a pair of slight bumps under his skin, the hinges. The last time it was opened, Linebeck was checking his code for the first time.

"How does that tablet work?" Link asked, slipping off the bedside and stretching.

Linebeck held it up, looking it over. It was thin, about the size of a small book. Its screen was made of black glass, and there were a few buttons and small compartments along the sides. "It connects to and locates the tracker using some kind of electromagnetic wave. Don't ask me what kind, these past two days have been a frantic and weed-fueled blur. If I pass out in a few hours, don't be surprised. Anyways, we can use this thing as a map. It can cover about two miles tops, so we'll have to keep moving to keep track of you, but it's a good distance."

"We've tested it, it works!" Damien added. "It's good to go whenever, so you guys should be able to go ahead and locate the lizalfos hideout today."

Linebeck nodded, turning the tablet over in his hands. "Yeah," he murmured. He wasn't looking at anyone, talking to himself. "We can get going sometime today. I just need to put the finishing touches on my other project, and I'll be ready. I think... where are the others?"

Link found the other two in the training ground, as usual. Mipha was with them, and he let them all know that the tracker was finished and that they could get started. The Zora princess sighed. "I must admit that I'm impressed that he made that tracker in under three days." She shook her head. "Does it work?"

Link nodded. "Yeah. He tested it and managed to make a tablet-like thing that also maps out the area and locates the tracker. A tracker by itself doesn't seem too useful."

"...Wonderful. I assume you will leave soon, then?"

"I think. Linebeck did say that he had another project to add some finishing touches to. We should be ready in an hour."

The four of them gathered at the gates of Zora's Domain under an hour later. Ghirahim took nothing but his saber and a healing potion he'd picked up from the local store. Midna swapped out the Zora spear she'd been using in training with her usual spear, claiming that it was more powerful on a base level. She also brought along a small pouch of other potions, having spent her free time making them after picking up her spear. The guardian sword and wooden shield were all that Link needed to bring, so he waited at the gate longest.

Linebeck took the longest and brought with him a bag. He refused to tell any of them what was in the bag, only that it was the project he'd been working on. Link even tried to get information from Bellum, only for the AI to repeat what Linebeck had been saying.

Link shot an angry glare at Bellum after being given no information. "I don't understand how you're such a little shit but also so loyal."

"I'm programmed that way, simple."

Mipha was the one to send them off, Zelda watching from the back of the crowd. She and a number of other Zora wished them luck, and they were off, walking down the main bridge. Linebeck was fiddling with the tablet, a distant look in his eyes. "Link?"

"Yeah?"

"Try not to fight back while taken. They might damage you. If they do begin to try and kill you, don't fight back unless you're in danger of shutting down. I brought some tools and supplies if we need to repair you. That's not all that's in the bag, but that's most of it." Linebeck reached back and dug through the bag and tossed a smaller pouch at Midna. "Those are some deku nuts, they'll cause a flash of light when thrown onto the ground. We can use them if we need to fight against a group of lizalfos; you need to make sure and close your eyes when using them and tell us when you'll use them."

Midna stared at the pouch. "When'd you get these?"

"Picked them up in Kakariko for cheap."

"What... were you going to use them for?"

"None of your business," Linebeck snapped. "We have more important things to attend to, anyways. We'll find a group of lizalfos and send Link in. I have the tablet working now," he turned it around to let the others see the yellow dot in the map. "All we need to do is make sure that Link has been taken and trail them at a decent distance. We should try and stay close. If we lose sight of him, we can follow the map. The tracker should be nearly indestructible and it's well hidden." He flipped the tablet back around. "Do you guys have anything else to say?"

Ghirahim shrugged. "I mean, not much. We don't know what to expect. At least we're ready for a fight." He held out his saber, looking it over. "I've never fought a lizalfos before."

"Neither have I..." Midna mused. "Link, do you have any information on them?"

Link nodded. "Yeah. They're like large lizards. The ones around here should have no impressive talents other than roughly blending into their surroundings. They usually jump around when attacking and run around pretty quickly and will often... shoot their tongue out at you. I don't know any other way to put it. You'd initially think it wouldn't hurt too much, but there's some kind of acid coating their tongues that does more damage that you'd think."

"Gross," Linebeck muttered. "So, uh, your guys' new job is to protect me, too." He shot a smug smile back at Ghirahim and Midna. "Anyways, let's actually get started. The lizalfos should be deeper in the forest, right?"

"Yes," Link mused. "Do you want me to go ahead? You can follow from a distance, like you said."

They allowed him to go off on his own, and Link jogged into a cluster of trees. He was alone, running past trees and hopping over their roots. The lizalfos would be found in open spots. They weren't too quiet, so he would be able to hear them well enough. He took note of everything nearby, taking note of things that most humans wouldn't see. He spotted small lizards and birds in the trees, hopping over an anthill. His shield, stowed on his back, was a bit noisy but didn't scare away any animals. He focused on what he heard- his heightened hearing something he didn't notice very often. Linebeck had told him that his senses were considerably more sensitive than most humans'- Link supposed he had never noticed until now. He hadn't had to sprint through a forest to find noisy lizards before-

And he heard it. The squawks and grunts of lizalfos. Link froze where he was and spotted them- five lizalfos dancing around a campfire. Barely a few yards away. Link froze. Just walk in and surrender. Easy enough.

It was quick- Link walked into the middle of their camp and they immediately jumped him, hitting his head hard enough to knock out a human and tying him up. They dragged him on the ground as they walked into the forest and leaving their camp behind. Fear flooded his mind at first as he pretended to be unconscious but was reminded of the tracker. Scanning the edges of the trees nearby, he caught small glimpses of his friends trailing him.

He was dragged down a pathway, one lizalfos dragging him while the other four followed with their jagged spears. After nearly ten minutes, they walked by a river, and took a sharp right turn- walking towards a tall wall of stone up against the nearby mountainside. This section of the river was very well hidden- Link couldn't spot his friends until the lizalfos stopped at the stone. They huddled on a cliff above the river, watching.

Based off of Mipha's testimony on the kidnappings, they always lost track of the lizalfos around the river. Most Zora said that the lizalfos always just... disappeared.

Link stayed limp to keep the lizalfos from realizing he was awake. He peered up at them, however. The lead lizalfos was hidden by the one dragging Link, so he couldn't see what it was that the monster was tapping. Hopefully, Linebeck could send Bellum closer to get a look. The lizalfos stopped what it was doing, and, inexplicably, they dragged him through the stone wall like there was nothing there.

He was dragged into a long, dark chamber. They dragged him across the smooth floor, going quiet. Their tails curling and uncurling, they paused for a moment, peering down at Link, then continued. Link stared at the entrance of the hall for what felt like hours as he was dragged across the ground, and hope blossomed in his chest as he spied three figures slowly tailing the lizalfos.

If Link didn't have an internal clock, he would have thought he was in the darkness for hours, dragged unceremoniously down a long hall while his trio of companions followed at a distance. But they'd gotten farther than the Zora. The only difference was the tracker- it helped them follow the lizalfos's zig-zagging path.

The lead lizalfos opened a door, and brutally bright light streamed into the hall, burning Link's eyes until he closed them. They started to walk through the doorway, and Link's friends sprinted at them. The lizalfos turned and had the time to let out gargled squawks before Ghirahim and Midna wasted nary a second in killing them. The lead had an extra moment to try and escape, but Midna threw her spear, the weapon sailing through the air, the blade burying itself deep into its skull. All of the monsters turned to purple smoke.

Link barely had time to figure out what was happening as Linebeck cut off his ropes with his razor. "W-we got in!"

"My tracker worked like a charm, of course." Linebeck said, smiling. Ghirahim and Midna were standing in the doorway, and Linebeck glanced up at them. "What are we dealing with?"

"It's a prison," Midna said. Link and Linebeck walked over to them, standing in the doorway with them.

They were in a larger hall, created with stone and silver and lit by luminescent stones and torches. There were cells along the walls, each cell was small and had thick bars keeping the prisoners in. Link jogged up to the nearest cell, and called the others in. A pair of young Zora were huddle in a corner inside.

Linebeck flicked his left wrist, causing a pair of lockpicks to slip into his palm, and started to pick the lock. The door swung open once he was done, and he stepped aside, letting Link inside. The Zora children shied away from him, but Link crouched down and held his hands up, showing that they were empty. "It's okay. We're here to help you; we're here to help all of you."

They stared at him, and one of them quietly whispered, "You want to save us?"

"Yes," Link gently responded. "You can leave, but you should wait until everyone else is out before returning home, okay? We'll free all of your friends." He got to his feet and backed out of the cell.

Ghirahim and Midna searched for a way further into the building while Link and Linebeck freed the rest of the Zora. Most of them were adult guards, but a good number were children or older Zora. They all thanked Link, asking how they found them and if it was safe to leave. Linebeck avoided most of the Zora, gruffly letting them know that he didn't like being touched. Once all the Zora were freed, they were left lingering in the middle of the room. Link had spread the idea that they could leave if they wished, but none left.

Link frowned at the crowd and tilted his head to the side. "Why are you all staying?"

One of the older Zora shrugged. "It's dangerous out," he rasped. "We have agreed to wait until you leave with us- we're weak and starved."

One quick talk with his friends later, Link reassured the Zora that they would be back for them once done in the prison. The younger Zora were worried, but the former guards promised to protect them if needed. Ghirahim still lent them his healing potion in case they needed it.

Waiting until they were sure that the Zora were okay, Link followed the group further into the prison. They found another hallway, leading deeper into the facility. Link activated his sword but left his shield on his back. "How long do you think this place has been here for?" Link asked, glancing around.

Bellum peered around and mused, "Looks to be a few hundred years old. Maybe over a thousand years." Linebeck repeated his words to the others.

"It's younger than me," Ghirahim muttered. He sighed and said, "I hate that I'm technically a few thousand years old."

"You aged wonderfully," Midna said, sounding like she was consoling a child. Linebeck nodded in agreement, looking Ghirahim up and down.

At the end of the hallway they found a large room, very open and with at least four other hallways. On the other side of the room was a large door with a large keyhole. "I'm just guessing," Linebeck started. "But I think that door's really important."

They walked into the room and were instantly ambushed by a team of lizalfos. Linebeck shrieked and fell into a crouch, shielding his head with his arms. Ghirahim and Midna and Link dispatched the monsters quickly and efficiently. Watching the monsters turn into smoke, Link glanced back at Linebeck, still cowering close to the group. Ghirahim stalked over and gave him a swift kick to the side. "Get up, you've got us to protect you."

Linebeck peered around with wide eyes and got to his feet. He hurriedly tugged his goggled down around his eyes. "How, uh, are we going to do this?" he asked, gesturing at the doorways. He started to dig around in his bag while he waited for an answer.

Midna frowned at the four doorways. "It would be the best to split up and go into two of the halls. Mainly because we can't do one to each hall because Linebeck will be killed."

Linebeck's face went red. "Wha- You don't know that! I have a knife!" He withdrew an odd machine from his bag. "I have this!"

Everyone stared at it for a moment. Linebeck scowled and held it out, holding it by some kind of handle. A trigger was sticking out from one of the two stone-like parts and he flicked it. A pair of limbs flipped out and a blue wire appeared between the two ends. "A bow?" Link asked, astounded. Wires were from the handle to the limbs, some kind of thin cylinder taped to the bottom limb, most likely to be used for aiming.

"Ya think?" Linebeck asked, glaring at Link. The bow was about four feet tall. Linebeck kicked at the bag. "I've got about thirty arrows in here. I can defend myself!"

"Prove it," Midna sighed. "How long have you practiced with that?"

Linebeck's face went red again. "I-I finished making it yesterday." He looked it over. In the black stones and along the tan limbs were engravings with orange lights within. He glanced at everyone. "It's made with some of those ancient parts, using one of those stolen blueprints." He looked it over, tugging on the bowstring. "...I started making it once we got to Zora's Domain."

Ghirahim blink for a few moments. "What. How. What the hell? How in the hell did you manage to make this in under a week, and make a working tracker and map?"

Linebeck shrugged. "It felt like I'd done it before." He looked the bow over once more, and his gaze snapped to Midna. "So, can I go alone-"

"No." Midna pointed at Ghirahim. "He'll go with you. I'll go with Link." She took the robot by the arm and marched him down the right doorway closest to the large door.

"Why am I stuck with babysitting?!" Ghirahim indignantly whined.

"Babysitting?! You bastard! You're lucky if I don't shoot you in the back!"

Midna sighed to herself halfway down the hall. "Ghirahim had better keep him safe," she muttered.

Link nodded. "Yeah. Jokes aside I'd hate to see Linebeck get hurt. I doubt we'd be able to properly do this whole quest without him." He frowned around at the dark hallway. "This place doesn't seem to be too complicated. Just a few rooms and hallways." He held out his sword, casting a pale blue glow in front of them.

They walked the rest of the hallway in silence, exiting out into a large, square room. It was well lit, and their pathway seemed to lead down into a maze of sorts. Midna walked over to the railing and peered down. "There's some kind of pressure plate down there."

Link walked up to the railing, frowning down at it. He peered at the path down to that pressure plate. They were well concealed, but he picked up traces of traps. Looking around the room more, they spotted a second path spiraling up to some platform. Midna frowned. "So... I guess someone did need to go down that other hall. I'll head that way. Wait for me, and we'll do this at the same time. I assume that's what we need to do."

Link nodded. "Right. I'll wait for you. Try not to get hurt."

Ghirahim wished he had brought earplugs. Linebeck was whiny when he had to talk to people, or when he was nervous about something, and he decided to have a running commentary on how much he hated this experience. He had his bow at the ready with an arrow nocked, but Ghirahim doubted that he'd manage to properly aim with how jittery he was. "...of course, it's dark enough for anything to jump out at us, like a keese or a ghost..."

With a heavy sigh, Ghirahim snapped, "This place is infested by lizalfos, we'd notice them if they were hiding."

"But it's dark and there could be anything lying in wait. Spiders, monsters, ghosts... even a twisted version of some kind of concept..."

"What in the hell are you talking about, 'some kind of concept'?!"

"Listen, asshole, I recently read a horror story where the main monster was the goddamn concept of spirals. Spirals! That shit was terrifying. Let me be scared about this!"

Ghirahim scoffed. "That's a goddamn fictional story! This is real life, you coward."

Linebeck shot back with, "You don't know whether we live in a fictional world or not!"

"Are you high? Did you smoke some weed before we got here? Goddesses, why did I have to get stuck with you right now..." Ghirahim grabbed the collar of Linebeck's coat and forced him to walk faster down the hall. "You're making it so I'll be less inclined to save your ass."

"Why are you so mad at me all of a sudden?" Linebeck asked, not even trying to mask the quiver in his voice. "We were fine on the way here."

"But you're pissing me off now." Ghirahim sighed and stopped, letting go of Linebeck's collar. "I'm making it worse. Let's just keep going. Just... don't whine like this. It gets annoying." He shifted his weight and muttered, "Look, if you want me to protect me, make me want to. Goddesses, it's like I'm talking to a child."

Linebeck's face went red once again, but he remained silent, if not a little downtrodden. They walked down the hall and found themselves in a large, long room. Pressure plates and suspicious tiles dotted the long bridge in front of them. Ghirahim stepped out a few feet and peered around. "There's a second bridge," he muttered. "Maybe a second person was supposed to head down the other hall."

"D-don't leave-"

"I'll only be gone for a few minutes, and then across the room. You're an adult, so act like it for once."

Midna waved at Link from her path. "It's not much different from yours," she shouted. "It seems simple enough."

Link nodded, and they got started. Link tread carefully, hopping over pressure plates and warning Midna of traps. The room was silent and every time they spoke it echoed all around the cavernous space. There were cliff-like platforms along the walls and near the paths. It difficult to see what lay on them unless he got near them. Midna's were simply too high to see, while Link's had walls. Link paused, and shouted, "Hey, Midna?"

"Yeah?"

"Watch out for those platforms. They might be for lizalfos to hide on."

Midna nodded, changing her grip on her spear. Link sighed to himself. She could handle herself. If she needed help, she'd probably tell him. He slipped his shield from his back and prepared to fight if needed, tiptoeing past pressure plates and around holes that implied spikes. His synthetic heart pounded in his chest. Nothing had happened yet, but the threats were practically breathing down his neck, yet not quite doing anything. Like the chain of traps was waiting for him to relax enough to catch him off-guard.

As time dragged on, and he neared the first column, he noted that Midna was nearby hers as well. Link sped up to get it over with and was barely surprised when a lizalfos jumped at him. Before it could hit the ground, Link managed to stab it in the throat. Unfortunately, its corpse slammed into a pressure plate a fraction of a moment before it turned into smoke. From the distant lizalfos shriek, Link could assume that Midna got rid of her monster, but he didn't hear the sounds of gears clicking from where she was. There was a distant clunk, and part of the floor fell out from where Link was standing.

He jumped out of the way just in time but landed on one of the hole tiles- managing to just barely escape. Link jumped out of the way again and felt as though he'd began a chain reaction. Every step landed him in danger, triggering traps that shot arrows, fire, revealed lava, and he simply decided to run away from any lizalfos, letting them fall victim to the traps that they very obviously didn't set up themselves.

Now that he thought about it, in the middle of frantically outrunning the death that was at his heels, the deal with the lizalfos made little sense. Why kidnap the Zora rather than killing them? What were they doing in this dungeon? How were the monsters returning? He tripped over his own feet and tumbled onto the pressure plate on the bottom platform. Link let out a long, wheezing laugh, and finally rasped, "I'm done!"

Midna's high-pitched laugh echoed throughout the room. Based off of her nonchalant attitude, she was doing much better than Link. Link lay on his pressure plate, panting and listening to Midna's progress. She reached her pressure plate and let him know, but he figured once stairs and a platform folded out from where their paths had crossed. "Platform," Link weakly called out, shakily getting to his feet.

They made their way to the slowly unfolding platform and stairs. They waited for a moment, waiting until the platform was fully formed and a wooden chest appeared in a short burst of light. "You can take whatever that is," Midna offered. "You look like you fell down a couple flights of stairs."

Link scoffed and trudged up the stairs. "At least watch." He paused in front of the chest. It was unremarkable and looked fragile. He reached down and opened it, undoing the latch. Inside was what looked to be half of a large silver key. "Of course," he murmured. "I'll bet Ghirahim and Linebeck have another two-path thing they need to do."

Midna playfully rubbed his shoulder, making him sway. "Probably. They'll be fine, though. Anyways, let's get back. We need to see if you're damaged."

Ghirahim peered down his bridge. "Looks like there's some traps and a barrier of sorts." He glanced over at Linebeck, still as a statue over on his bridge. "We might need to work together on this." He drew his sword and shifted from foot to foot. He knew he'd be fine, but he found himself wishing he was the one with the bow. He could handle himself just fine, but Linebeck was alone if he got attacked.

"Do you at least know how to use a bow?" He asked, shouting across the chasm between them. "I don't trust your aim, but you know what to do, right?"

"I-I know how to use a bow, yeah. I have my knife, too!"

"Just be careful. If you need any help, I'll see what I can do."

"I won't need any help! I can defend myself!"

Ghirahim sighed, running a hand through his hair. Linebeck was loud when he was in trouble, he'd let Ghirahim know even if he didn't want to. The bridges looked long, with at least three different barriers. How they would be removed, he didn't know. Maybe he could run back and see if Link and Midna would be willing to help. No, there was no time.

He started along his bridge. There were pressure plates and spots for spikes, but as he walked, arrows shot out of the wall at him. Reacting just in time, Ghirahim threw up a number of barriers to stop them and duck out of the way. The arrows shattered the barriers, but a handful of those barriers stood and stopped the arrows entirely. So, he was capable of creating stronger barriers. A scream from Linebeck's side rang out, and it turned out that the engineer's solution to the arrows was to drop down on the ground. The arrows sailed across the chasm and dipped just under the other bridge.

A few moments later, the ground below them started to fall. They scrambled to their feet and sprinted ahead further, outrunning or otherwise dodging and blocking arrows. Every time, a few moments later, the ground beneath wherever the arrows were shot from would fall out. They soon discovered that the floor would not fall out until the part before it was gone, so running faster gave them more time. No monsters of any sort were in their way, but they reached the barriers with only about a minute of ground left.

Ghirahim stared at the barrier, a metal wall in his path. He frantically stared around and found, on the wall, what looked to be a lever of sorts. The problem in his way was that it was perhaps fifty feet above his head. Linebeck had the same lever- and he was aiming an arrow up at it. "Linebeck!" Ghirahim cried out, accidentally causing him to miss his shot. Thankfully, the arrow hit the wall near the lever and fell by Linebeck's feet.

"C-can you get my lever, too?!"

For a moment, after no response and watching Linebeck shoot his lever and bring down his barrier, Ghirahim was worried that Linebeck wasn't going to help him. Fear flooded Ghirahim's mind, until an arrow whizzed far above his head and flipped the lever. He made a mental note to praise Linebeck for his surprisingly good aim and sprinted further down the bridge. It was the same, arrow traps and falling platforms.

"Wonderful," Ghirahim hissed under his breath, forced to generate more and more barriers as he ran. Fortunately, he realized they were getting stronger, but he had more to worry about.

The next barrier had another high lever, and Linebeck shot them both after a few tries, but neither barrier let up. More panic flooded Ghirahim's chest. He'd never been tailed by falling platforms. Monsters, muggers, other swordsmen- he had the skills to win and walk away. This was something that he could only run from. This was Linebeck's specialty. Ghirahim wasn't cornered as much, and he often reacted with rage- Linebeck usually managed to go from panic to eerily calm problem-solving. It was like something snapped in his mind and his rarely utilized self-preservation skills came to surface.

Ghirahim ran his hands along the wall, desperately trying to find something to press or pull. Across the room, Linebeck began to mimic him. They felt along, far too aware of the time constraint, but Linebeck seemed to find something on his barrier and press it. Ghirahim copied what he did and found a subtle indention, pressing it in. Their barriers fell and they sprinted down to the last barrier.

It was easy enough to continue dodging the things thrown at them. Ghirahim managed to block with magic, and Linebeck proved fast and flexible enough to dodge out of the way. The last barrier had the same lever and slight indention, but of course, there was a third mechanism. Ghirahim kicked away Linebeck's missed arrows while he peered around. Nothing seemed immediately obvious, until a lizalfos jumped out at each of them. Ghirahim cursed under his breath and brought up his sword to block the monster's attack.

Ghirahim slid easily from his blocking to cutting the lizalfos from shoulder to hip, watching it turn into smoke like all the others. Wonderful, the third 'key' was something that he couldn't help Linebeck with. He was forced to watch as the engineer fumbled with his bow, stumbling away from the lizalfos he was faced with. He had little experience with the bow, and he seemed to realize it quickly, stowing the bow in his bag and whipping out his knife. It was a simple hunting knife, one that he'd picked up in a shop for cheap, but it had proved to be reliable against muggers. Against a lizalfos? Ghirahim was less sure.

For a moment, he felt confident- watching Linebeck ward off attacks despite being unable to fight back at least assured that he would eventually find an opening. A faint crumbling brought his attention back to the falling bridge and panic shoved any sort of calm in Ghirahim's mind out the window. "HURRY!" he hoarsely screamed across the chasm.

His shout forced Linebeck to flinch and shoot a quick glance at Ghirahim for a fragment of a moment, but it was enough time for the lizalfos to rip open a gash in his shoulder. He saw the blood fly from across the room, and a new, white-hot rage rushed through Ghirahim's veins. Blurry images and sequences rushed through his mind, and his arm seemed to move on his own- waving out horizontally, snapping his fingers. He barely registered the three quick flashes of light, but sure as hell saw the three daggers that shot across the gap.

Two of them hit their target, burying themselves hilt-deep into the lizalfos's skull, killing it instantly. The third missed but disappeared along with the other two once the monster was dead. Both barriers disappeared, and Ghirahim sprinted past it. The bridges were connected by a platform at the end of the hall, so he dashed across it.

Linebeck lay on his bridge, blood pouring from the gash in his right shoulder. His coat was ripped and getting stained, but he seemed to care little about it, slowly dragging himself closer to the end of the bridge using his prosthetic arm. As he got closer, Ghirahim could dimly sense frantic movement and muffled yelling- Bellum, most likely. "I'm going to need to grab you," Ghirahim quickly shouted, slowing as he reached Linebeck. The engineer only grunted when he was touched and pulled to his feet, then hoisted up into Ghirahim's arms.

The floor underneath them began to crumble as Ghirahim ran to the connecting platforms. The engineer wasn't too heavy, but he was trembling while Ghirahim carried him, keeping himself steady by wrapping his left arm around the demon's neck. "Th-thanks."

"No problem." Ghirahim made it to solid ground quickly enough but watched the rest of the bridges crumble before letting Linebeck stand on his own. "Are you alright?"

Linebeck let out a shuddering breath, shifting from foot to foot. He reached up and tugged at the rip in his coat, swaying. "D-damn... I'm more w-worried about my coat than anything else." He stumbled back a few steps.

Ghirahim nodded stiffly. He reached for Linebeck's shoulder to try and steady him, but got his hand slapped away. "Sit down- we need to take a look at that before we do anything else. We don't need blood getting everywhere- your coat is as ruined as it's going to get, but your shoulder might get worse."

They found bandages in the medical kit Linebeck had brought along, and Ghirahim lined up some potions they could use. Stitching was probably the best option, but they had nothing to stitch the gash closed with. They settled for tightly wrapping Linebeck's shoulder in bandages. Multiple times, Linebeck flinched at Ghirahim's touch and even almost shoved him away a few times. Once the cut was bandaged up, Linebeck crawled to the edge of the platform and retched a few times.

Ghirahim got to his feet, watching Linebeck at the edge. "Sorry for having to touch you so much."

"Sh-shut u-up. Wh-what now?" Linebeck wiped at his mouth and got to his feet, swaying again. "We've g-got two... pressure plates." He stepped onto one of them, pressing down on his shoulder wound. Ghirahim stepped on the other, and a shoddy wooden chest appeared between the plates.

Ghirahim let out a heavy sigh and practically kicked the lid off. His lip curled in distaste as he glared at what was inside. "This shit is not worth everything we just had to deal with." He reached in and pulled out half a key.

"Bullshit," Linebeck spat, peering into the now empty chest. "Goddammit. Link and Midna had better have the other half of this stupid thing." He pointed at a thin bridge that was slowly appearing between their platform and the beginning of the hall. "Let's meet back up with them."

Link waved at Ghirahim and Linebeck as they walked back into the original room. Ghirahim held up half the key. "Please tell me that you nerds have the other half of this."

"We do," Midna said, holding up her half. "How was your guys' little adventure?"

"Awful," Linebeck snapped. "Can I leave early? I don't like the experience of almost dying." He rubbed at his shoulder, glaring at the rip in his coat. "Plus, I need to fix this."

"What happened?" Midna asked, staring at the cut.

"Lizalfos," Ghirahim muttered. "Tell us what you guys went through first."

Midna quickly told them about the two paths, but Link was fixated on the gash in Linebeck's shoulder. Based off the twitching of his ears, Bellum was probably talking to him without materializing. Ghirahim sighed once she was done talking. "Oh, good for you, you got the easy shit."

"What'd you guys get stuck with?"

"Arrows, targets, two bridges crumbling under our feet. I did learn that Linebeck is actually pretty good with a bow."

Linebeck awkwardly cleared his throat. "U-uh, if I'll be honest, those were all lucky shots. The bow fires pretty straight shots, but that wouldn't affect my aim-"

"Then how were you hitting those levers?!" Ghirahim snapped.

"Luck, I think. I didn't have the time to properly judge my shots." Linebeck pressed at the bandaged wound in his shoulder again. "Can we just put the damn key together and figure out what's going on? I assume whatever's past that door is why these monsters kept reappearing at midnight. You guys go ahead without me, I'll be useless. Link can handle the bow." He started to withdraw the weapon from his bag.

"D-don't," Link said. "You should come with us, but just stay far away from whatever might be happening. We might need some of your skills."

Linebeck sighed. He vaguely gestured for Midna and Ghirahim to put the key together. The two halves clicked together effortlessly, and they took it over to the door.

"Nothing special," Link muttered. It was just a large wooden door, the golden keyhole looking to be the most interesting part of it. "Though some of what we had to deal with was most certainly created by some interesting magic and tech."

"Didn't look Sheikah," Linebeck mumbled. "Nothing like the ruins around the castle. More magical, definitely."

Midna left the key to Ghirahim, who thrust it into the keyhole and turned it, stepping back after it clicked and began to glow. Both the key and the keyhole disappeared, and the door swung inward. Linebeck muttered something about 'bullshit magic' under his breath but followed the group inside at a distance. It was a dark room, of course. Link frowned around, seeing that it was circular. In the dim light, he could see chains in the wall. Considering that they were in a prison of sorts, it was almost cliché. "Looks like this is it," Link announced, peering around for something that might shed some light on the room.

The only light came from the open doors, but, with an echoing creaking sound, the enormous doors slid closed. They were alone in the pitch-black room. They shuffled around, finding each other and huddling close. The only thing that Link could clearly see was Bellum floating around. He groped at his belt and activated his sword, shedding a dim blue light on the ground.

From above, bright light suddenly flickered on, causing the whole group to jump. The room was still empty, but they were trapped. Midna scowled, surveying the room. "Well, this is familiar, eh? Linebeck, stay near us..." The engineer did as she said, stumbling even closer to them while still avoiding contact. They stared around the room and collectively spotted a small, writhing shadow on the floor. It squirmed and rose up as black mist, slowly forming into something humanoid.

The mist squirmed and warped into a more solid shape, a low humming noise emanating from it as it moved. All weapons were pointed at it as it trembled and solidified, forming into what looked like an armored human, faint yellow and orange lines appearing on the armor. It stood at eight feet tall, wielding a thin sword in one hand. The armor was solid and shiny, covering nearly the entirety of the entity's body, aside from chinks in the armor where shadowy mist spilled out.

With blinding speed, the figure reared back and swung their sword at the group. Link reacted in time, bringing his shield up and blocking the strong attack. Link strained under the pressure of the sword until the warrior pulled back; the group scrambled back before another attack. "Any plans?" Link asked, not daring to tear his eyes away from the shadowy figure.

"You'll take the brunt of its attacks," Midna shouted. "You have the shield, and I'll bet you can counter it really well, too! Ghirahim and I can go around and look for weak spots. Linebeck... stay out of range of it and look for weak spots as well!" She shoved Link closer to the warrior, and he blocked another attack, tilting his shield to force the sword to slide off. "We've got this!"

Ghirahim and Midna quickly began circling the monster at a close range while Link drew most of the attacks, and Linebeck lingered at the perimeter of the room. Every swing of the sword was blocked by the sturdy wooden shield- Link's arms were beginning to burn from the strain of pushing back against the attacks, but he remained persistent, keeping an eye out for any kind of obvious weak spots. Shadows billowed out from the chinks in the armor, but that didn't seem to have any effect on it. The helmet had no openings, so that was out of the question.

Midna and Ghirahim jabbed at the chinks in the armor, sprinting out of range if the monster turned to them. If Link lost its attention, he jabbed his sword into the nearest unarmored part he could find. His sword easily sank into the darkness, but it didn't seem to hurt it in any way. He blocked and parried the sword attacks, staggering back as the warrior shifted its other hand onto the sword hilt and forced more strength into its attacks.

Across the room, with a good view of the monster's back at the edge of the room, Linebeck shouted, "T-there's some kind of red gem in the back of its neck! You can see it just under the helmet. I'll bet that that's a good place if we want to start to hurt it."

Link was subject to more and more vicious attacks as the other three focused on attacking the red gem. Midna probably had the best chance with her spear, and Ghirahim realized this early, joining Link in drawing the attacks. Despite being without a shield, Ghirahim proved fast and wary enough to avoid attacks. "It doesn't seem to have a... human mind," Link shouted. "It ignores its surroundings! If you're going to hit something, hit the gem! Hitting it under the armor catches its attention."

Midna curtly nodded, shifting her grip on her spear. "Get it to look down," she shouted. Ghirahim and Link immediately began to shift closer to the warrior, but it shifted back as well, keeping a good distance as it traded blows with them. It had stopped just banging its sword against Link's shield and had begun to attack in a way that made blocking more difficult. Link stowed his shield on his back and halted the incoming blade with his own sword. To his surprise, the glowing blade didn't cut into the monster's sword at all- as far as he had been told, it should cut through almost anything, including the darkness under the armor.

Ghirahim, at his side, backed up a few paces and waved his arm. Five daggers appeared out of thin air and shot at the monster. Out of breath, Link asked, "Wh-what was that?!"

"New magic that I accidentally discovered; ask about it later." Ghirahim leapt into the battle and easily batted away the monster's sword. "Makes all of this easier, even if it does make me tired." He summoned more daggers with a snap of his fingers, easily catching the warrior's attention. "Should've used this earlier, really."

Midna jabbed her spear at the gem, cursing under his breath as the warrior moved too much to get a good hit. At the walls, Linebeck did little other than nervously nock and un-nock arrows. She couldn't blame him- he didn't have too many relevant skills. At least he was staying out of danger. He was injured enough as it was. Midna sidled to the side in order to remain perfectly behind the warrior, the red gem occasionally glinting from under the helmet.

Her spear with sturdy and fairly light. The spearhead was thin and long enough so that she should be able to shatter the gem, but the warrior moved and shifted too often for her to get a clear shot. With a jolt, Midna recalled something from a few hours ago, and her hand went down to the pouch at her belt. Her fingers closed around a pair of small deku nuts, and she regarded them for a split second. They were tiny little nuts with a yellow-colored inside, glowing slightly. "Close your eyes!" she shouted before flinging them at the ground, covering her eyes with her other arm.

Even with her eyes closed and covered, Midna could see a bright flash along with a short bang. Following the bang was an expletive shouted by Linebeck, and then the sound of something heavy stumbling around. Midna re-opened her eyes, finding the warrior stumbling around, head tilted down and the open hand up at its hidden face. The gem was more visible than ever. Link and Ghirahim were looking shocked and stumbling back, and the quiet, indignant cursing of Linebeck reassured her that they were... mostly safe.

Throwing any hesitation out the window, Midna gripped her spear more tightly and rushed at the warrior again, and strongly thrust the spearhead into the gem, shattering it with little effort. Midna stumbled back, the shattered bits of the gem looking like blood spraying through the air.

Where the gem had been, more shadows rushed out and enveloped the warrior. Midna whipped around and rushed towards Linebeck. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Y-y-yeah," he stammered, relaxing a little. "My shoulder feels like hell, I'm useless, uh..." Linebeck smiled weakly. "Nice aim."

"Thanks." Midna let out a shaky breath, glancing over her should. "Oh, for the love of Hylia-" The shadows had completely overtaken the warrior but was now beginning to reform into something else. Midna whipped around, holding her spear out to be ready to attack or defend. Link and Ghirahim immediately snapped back into pointing their swords at the new monster, a shadowy, four-legged beast with a pair of tails whipping around behind it.

Ghirahim and Link immediately attacked it, shouting about another, larger gem on the beast's forehead. Midna sighed heavily and sprinted after the monster as well. Link brought his shield out again and took the brunt of the monster's attacks. It resembled a wolf, with a long snout and sharp fangs. The gem on its forehead was indeed larger, perhaps the size of Link's shield, and more darkness seemed to be swirling inside.

Ghirahim leapt up, summoning daggers and thrusting his sword at the gem. The wolf beast roared and whipped around, slamming it's two tails into Ghirahim and sending him flying into the wall. It turned and faced Linebeck, its tails lashing without pause. Link cursed under his breath and dodged out of the way of the tails. Midna stabbed at one of the tails, and shadows billowed out like blood when she ripped the spearhead out. The beast roared, but its attention did not shift over to those behind it, even when Link stabbed his sword deep into one of its hind legs.

Linebeck shakily nocked and shot an arrow at the gem. It stuck in a few inches, creating cracks, but didn't slow the advancing wolf. He shot another arrow, missing and hitting the beast in the eye. It screeched and lashed out with a dark paw, raking hooked claws across Linebeck's chest, throwing him to the ground. It pressed Linebeck to the ground with a heavy paw on his waist and clamped its jaws down on his already-injured shoulder. Linebeck screamed, kicking furiously at the wolf, desperately clawing at its face with his metal arm.

A ringing noise sounded in Link's ears, temporarily shutting out any shouting from Midna or Ghirahim. There seemed to be a strong burst of energy through his limbs, and Link sprinted across the room, ripping a long tear into the side of the wolf as he dashed towards Linebeck, struggling in a steadily growing pool of his own blood. Link jabbed his sword deep into the wolf's neck, angling the blade to try and get the wolf to open its mouth enough to allow Linebeck to escape.

The blade sank hilt-deep into the wolf's neck, and it let out a low groan as Link planted a foot on its jaw. Once its teeth were fully out of Linebeck's wounds, the engineer wriggled his way out with some help from Link. He scrambled away, leaving a trail of blood, and Ghirahim and Midna helped drag him further away from the beast. It turned, clearly intending to go after it's wounded prey once again, but ended up face-to-face with Link.

It huffed. More shadowy mist poured out from the new wounds, but the only damage that mattered were the cracks in the gem. Link let out a long breath and prepared himself to face off against the wolf once again. It's pair of tails whipped back and forth behind it, and it growled, clearly ignoring the others in favor of the robot standing before it.

Before Link could properly prepare himself, the monster charged at him, it's mouth open and ready to sink its teeth into his body. Moving without thinking, Link jumped up and landed on the top of its head and wasted no time in thrusting his sword into the center of the gem- the glowing blade cleanly slicing into the red stone. The wolf froze, going silent. Link could hear the fearful panting of his friends and hear his own synthetic heartbeat. Then, a low moan emitted from the wolf's mouth, and the gem suddenly shattered beneath Link.

The wolf threw its head back, knocking Link off it. He fell to the ground and scrambled back towards the others. Huddled with them, he watched the wolf stumble and thrash around as fragments of the gem fell from its forehead. As it writhed, the shadows it was made up of began to dissipate, its body growing more and more see-through until it fully disappeared, any remaining shadow floating up into whatever was shining light onto the room.

All that remained was the remnants of the gem. Link let out a weak breath. "Is... is it over? Is that it?"

"Looks like it," Ghirahim rasped. "But did that have any impact?" He smiled weakly. "I mean, I suppose that the Zora were being captured for that... thing to most likely eat, but now what that it's dead..?"

"Well, it seemed to have been made up of shadows," Midna said, "and that apparently indicates that it was created by someone. Shadow monsters, according to most books, are usually made by someone able to control and shape shadows. It's evil magic." She peered around the room, and the group collectively jumped as the large doors swung open. "Let's get out of here, though. Linebeck and those Zora need help."

Link turned and looked down at Linebeck. He was looking considerably more tired than he had been during the fight, laying mostly still aside from his breathing and occasionally twitching. The right shoulder of his coat was ripped and stained in blood. It wasn't pouring onto the ground like it had been before, but still slowly dripped from the deep cuts. Link moved to reach out to him but stopped himself. "Linebeck? Could you stand up?"

Linebeck sighed. He carefully sat up, grimacing. He glanced around, then at the others. "C-can we leave?" He coughed. "I'd rather not bleed out."

Ghirahim sighed heavily. "I don't understand how your mind works," he murmured, getting to his own feet. "Who would you be most comfortably leaning on? Just in case."

"...Probably you." Linebeck shakily got to his feet along with the others. He swayed for a moment, and Midna tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder to help him properly regain his balance. "I-I guess I'll put up with you, too," he mumbled, smiling meekly at Midna.

"What about me?" Link asked, stowing his shield on his back and his sword on his belt. He was dimly aware of rips in his skin and clothing, but everyone else was the higher priority. He offered a small smile to Linebeck.

Linebeck shrugged, then winced. "I'd prefer if you focused more on helping the other Zora with the others. I-I'll be fine." He stepped away from Midna and stumbled over to the open doors. "Let's go... We've got a quest to complete, right? I'll get better once we get back to Zora's Domain." He swayed again while walking, prompting the entire group to briskly follow him without examining the empty room any further.

Bellum floated closer to Link as they returned to the room that the Zora were huddled in, and the pair of them hung back as Midna and Ghirahim went around and let the Zora know that they would be returning to Zora's Domain soon. Link shifted from foot to foot, then glanced at Bellum. The AI hadn't said a word since nearing him. "How's Linebeck?" Link asked.

"Woozy. Faint. Honestly, I'm surprised he's still standing. Keep an eye on him on the way back. If you tell him that you'll want to keep an eye on him, he'll only make things harder for all of us. Tell Ghirahim to occasionally walk near him. He might pass out."

"Of course. I'll do that."

Midna led the march outside at the head of the crowd of Zora, Link and Ghirahim looking out for monsters. Once Linebeck was out of earshot, walking closer to Midna, Link sidled over and told Ghirahim to keep an eye on Linebeck in case he passed out. It was dark, so some Zora brought with them torches from the prison to light their way. Link stared up at the sky while they walked, waiting for midnight. Midnight came and went, and Link saw no sign of any lizalfos that they'd already killed.