Born a Weapon

A Twilight Princess Fan story

Chapter 21

The Darkness Hunts

Link tried to use the spring water to heal his wounds, but the water had no effect. Without the light spirit returned to full power, it would take great effort to restore its healing properties. Link decided he would manage and left the spring to reunite with Midna. She huffed and turned around, seeing Link place the light container on the ground. She could have made another fetching joke, but she wasn't in the mood. Midna picked up the container and attached it to his leg like last time, and reseated herself on his back.

"The hell?" Link thought out loud as he sniffed the air.

"What?"

"The bugs. Their pattern makes no sense. Their scent is everywhere. It's like they all suddenly started dashing around to get somewhere." Link sniffed more as he began moving, trying to find spots where the scent was more concentrated. A different scent caught his attention, and he turned his path to a building that seemed to be locked up aside from one window that had a man peeking out of it. The man had a mostly bald head, although he didn't seem old, with a mustache that covered the sides of his mouth and no more, and all his hair was red. Resting atop his head was a welding mask, and he wore round glasses.

"Cripes! I don't see those brutes anywhere!" the man exclaimed to others in the building. Link put his front paws on the windowsill to see inside and made a strange wolf gap in surprise. Inside the room were the children from Ordon! They were gathered around a tall man with long hair and a robe with a brown main section, white sleeves, and a blue undershirt. Another girl was nearby wearing similar clothing to the tall man. The only person missing from Ordon who wasn't there was Ilia. "They've gotta be hidin' somewhere, waitin' for their helpless prey to come out! Then they'll FEAST!"

"Seriously?" Midna said, floating next to Link, "Doesn't this guy realize there are kids in there?"

"Those are the kids from Ordon!" Link exclaimed. Midna looked surprised, but before either of them could speak again, the tall man did.

"We are safe as long as we remain in here, child. Be at ease," He said to Talo, who had huddled against the man in fear.

"Oh yeah?" the man at the window said, turning to face the tall man who shot him a glare, "I wonder if the monsters out there agree with you! They sure didn't seem impressed by my bombs!" the man shouted as he threw his left hand around in frustration. "How long do you think we can hold this sanctuary against beasts that strong, huh?" Link growled at the man's comments which were clearly scaring the children. He could tell the man was terrified, but he needed to watch what he said! "Once they attack, it's OVER!" Link wished he could tell them the Shadow Beasts were gone, but he was invisible to them in the twilight, and he could only speak telepathically in this form, which he still wasn't sure how he managed to do. "Remember the lady from the general store? Just one of those things attacked her, and a whole gang went to save her! And what happened? She was already gone, and there were TWO monsters waitin'!" Link's growl increased. Someone needed to shut this man up before he traumatized the children. From Midna's angry expression, he could tell she agreed but also knew there was nothing they could do. "You connectin' the dots? That means if we get attacked by them, then we'll be-"

"BARNES!" The tall man shouted, cutting off the man. He fell silent and noticed the state the children were in, and he slid his mask down to hide his face in shame and slid down the wall to sit on the floor. Beth began weeping into the tall man, and he shot another glare at the man at the window, now identified as Barnes.

"Look, Renado… All I mean to say is it's risky here too! Ain't you got someplace we can hide?"

"There is a cellar."

"WHAT?! You've got a cellar?! Where's the entrance, man?!"

"…I… would not do that," the unidentified girl said. "When father instructed me to secure the cellar, I noticed the exit had been destroyed. We would have no way out if we went in there."

"There's already no way out!" Barnes shouted.

Link dropped down from the window and walked away, determined to find the stolen light as fast as possible and save the people inside. He began sniffing again when Midna's voice reached his ears.

"How sad, to be right in front of someone and not be noticed at all. You are 'chosen by the gods' and only that keeps you from turning into a spirit, or worse, into a Shadow Beast." He could tell she was mocking him from her tone of voice, so he focused on tracking the bug's scent, doing his best to ignore her. "And no one knows what you've done… you may be doomed to toil in obscurity forever."

"I don't care. I just want to save those people."

"You're the type to worry over everything! You should be focused on the Fused Shadow! You're 'glorious' Princess Zelda chose this state of affairs, after all."

"I. Don't. Care. Why are you acting like this? Seriously? What the hell?" Midna merely giggled in response and watched the wolf move back and forth as he tried to track the scent. What the hell were those bugs doing? There are so many trails! Link finally found a spot where some trails seemed to converge behind a house, and when he approached, six of the bugs he was looking for jumped out at him. Link bolted back down the street to avoid a large wave of stingers but got caught by one and collapsed in a spark of electricity. The five other bugs used this opportunity to close in on Link and prepare to attack, but a large orange fist smashed three of them, and they burst into pieces of light. Midna retracted her hand quickly when the floating light pieces almost burned her and shouted a curse.

The bug that stung Link retracted its stinger and began crawling up his back, Link tried to bite it, but it was out of reach. Before it could sting him again, Link jumped onto his back, smashing the bug against the floor, killing it. Link dodged another attack and smashed the other nearby bug between his jaws, claiming another light piece. The bug Link dodged, pulled its stinger out of the ground, and flew away from him.

"It's getting away!"

Link ignored Midna's obvious comment, dashing after the bug. He nearly caught it, but it flew up onto a ledge above a building. Link spotted a smashed window in one of its walls and jumped through, emerging in what seemed to be a store and smelled of gunpowder. There were many signs on the wall with a picture of a fire crossed out, so Link assumed whatever was in here was volatile. Link dashed up the stairs and out of a door that led him to the roof, where Midna managed to catch up to him by simply flying to the roof. She quickly landed on his back, and he continued dashing after the bug, which slipped through a hole in the side of a storehouse. The building had pictures of bombs on its walls and a sign by the door that read:

DANGER!

Keep out!

-Barnes

Link hesitated for a moment before squeezing through the hole, Midna in his shadow. He was determined to get that bug, and once he was inside, he realized he let his sense of urgency blind him.

Inside the small shack were seven insects.

The insects wasted no time, pouncing on the hero who narrowly avoided the attack. Two bugs blocked the hole while the rest attacked their victim. Link tried to dodge as well as he could and attack, but the shed was too small, and there wasn't enough room to move.

"Shit! What did you get us into?!" Midna yelled from the safety of Link's shadow. Link's foot got caught by a stinger making him collapse. The vermin took advantage and mercilessly plunged their stingers into Link's body over and over again, pumping his body with constant electricity.

The hero tried to move, but the vicious needles did not relent, sending burning pain through every part of his body. His muscles contracted against his will. He began screaming, but he wasn't sure when. He wasn't aware of anything other than the stabbing pain all over his body and the burning of his insides.

Midna watched in shock from Link's shadow as he was rendered completely helpless, unable to gain control of his own body, let alone the situation. She had to do something, but what could she do against so many? If she tried anything, she would likely end up right next to Link, being viciously stung to death. But if she did nothing, her best chance at getting the Fused Shadows died before her eyes.

Midna emerged from Link's shadow and swiped at the bugs with her hair hand. The bugs scattered, avoiding the blow and leaving Link alone, if only for a moment. Midna shot magic bolts at the elusive bugs, panic beginning to envelop her and hindering her aim, before being stung by one of the bugs guarding the exit.

Link heaved deep breaths as he tried to get to his feet quickly. The insects were quick to return their attention to him once Midna could not fight and lunged. Link dove in a clumsy and desperate attempt to avoid more suffering. The insects struck a box right behind where Link was and pumped it with electricity. The box suddenly burst apart in an explosion, destroying several bugs. The blast ignited several other parts of the shack, and more explosions began to happen, throwing Link into Midna and knocking the bug off her.

Link and Midna made a mad dash for the exit and eliminated the remaining guard with a snap of Link's jaws. Midna flew through the hole as fast as she could, and Link crawled agonizingly slowly through the tiny opening. When he finally emerged, he ran away from the building as fast as possible before it was destroyed in a massive explosion, sending Link tumbling through the air.

"THAT'S WHAT YOU GET!" Midna screamed to the smoldering wreckage, furious at the insects for their actions. Link rose from his spot on the ground and limped over to the light pieces.

"Let's get this done," he sighed and retrieved the remaining light.

Link opened his eyes to see himself before the light spirit's spring, and the world around him looked normal again. He turned to see the house on his left where he knew the survivors resided and hoped there were more in other buildings. Just before he could begin walking towards it, he heard Midna's voice.

"Aww. I was just starting to get comfortable." Link turned to see Midna floating on his right in her shadowy form, her arms crossed in a slight pouting pose. "Oh, whatever. Just hurry up and get that Fused Shadow."

"Thanks for helping." Link said with a slight smile. Midna merely rolled her eyes and disappeared into his shadow. Link's journey to the house was interrupted again by the spring glowing. After the water began glowing, the light spirit's ball of light emerged from it. A large golden creature with massive wings emerged from within the ball and perched itself on the ball it came from. The spirit turned its eyes down on Link, and he saw its face slightly resembled an owl.

"My name is Eldin," It stated. Its massive wingspan made Eldin much bigger than the other light spirits, which fit with the much larger spring. "I am one of the light spirits of Hyrule. I am the spirit that guards these lands."

"Nice job," Midna remarked sarcastically.

"Hero," Eldin continued, ignoring Midna. Link wondered if they all were going to do that. "The dark power you seek lies in the sacred grounds of the proud mountain dwellers."

"The Gorons?" link asked, and Eldin nodded in response.

"But already those grounds have been defiled, draped in shadow, and seeded with evil. You must go to these sacred grounds and cleanse them."

"Wait a minute," Midna cut in, "how do you know what we're looking for?"

"Now that my power is restored, I can speak to Ordona and Lanayru. They informed me of your quest."

"That was quick…"

"Eldin," Link said, cutting off the conversation. "I have a question." Eldin gave a nod to show Link had its attention. "Do you know what these bugs we're hunting are?"

"No. They have never been seen before."

"They're too smart." That seemed to gain Eldin's interest. Even though Eldin's face showed no change, Link could tell it was surprised. "They ambushed me, lured me into a trap, and I almost died. I'd say they learned from last time, but they weren't there. And they're bugs. How can they be that smart?"

"I do not have an answer for you, hero, but I will see if I can find one." When Link and Midna both stayed silent, having no more questions, Eldin wrapped itself in its massive winds and disappeared into particles of light.

Link turned from the spring and made his way to the house he had peeked in before. When he got closer, he heard mumbling about a bright light and shouting for someone to get away from the window, which was now shut. Link walked up to the door and gently knocked, earning gasps from inside.

"Who was that?" he heard Talo's young voice squeak.

"Talo? Is that you?" Link asked, pretending he only realized he was in there from his voice.

"How do you know me?!"

"Talo! Be quiet!" Beth shouted.

"Children, calm yourselves," Renado's calm voice rang out. "Who are you?"

"My name is Link. I was in Ordon with Talo. I thought I heard Beth in there too. Do you have the Ordonian children?" The door opened slightly, and Link saw Renado peek out of it before opening it fully and glanced around behind him. "The monsters are gone," Link said, trying to appease the worried man, "I took care of them."

"You? You took out all them things?" Barnes remarked, peeking over Renado's shoulders.

"Yeah."

"Uh, my apologies, Link, please come in. I'm still a bit shaken up from the incident." Renado said, stepping away from the door to allow Link entry.

"Don't worry, I completely understand. Things are crazy right now."

"It is Link!" Talo beamed and rushed up to him. "Did you beat all those monsters! That's so cool!" he hopped excitedly.

"How did you manage that…?" Malo questioned, trying to sound uninterested.

"Yeah, there were a lot of them…" Colin said shyly.

"With a little help from your dad," Link said, tapping the sword hilt poking over his shoulder. Of course, he hadn't used it on the Shadow Beasts, but the kids didn't need to know that.

"Is that the sword my dad made? Is he ok?!" Colin panicked, remembering that his dad had tried to protect him. Luda moved to calm him down, but Link was faster.

"He's fine," Link said, kneeling to Colin's height and placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "He got a little roughed up, but your dad's tough. He's going to be fine." Colin gave a grateful smile at the news and a determined nod.

"Yeah! He's the best!" Colin exclaimed.

"Can we get out of this place now?" Malo muttered, "We've been stuck here for a while."

"Yeah, I took out all the monsters," Link responded and turned to Renado. "It's safe."

"Barnes, will you please take the children to the Eld Inn and get them something to eat?" Renado asked the strange man, and Link easily spotted the pun in the name.

"Huh?" Barnes said, distracted with peaking out of the doorway with more caution than necessary, even given the circumstances. "Yeah, sure." Barnes ushered the children out of the house. Malo was more than happy to oblige.

"Aren't you two coming?" Beth asked.

"Yeah! What's up with that?" Talo said, pointing an accusing finger at the two adults, "you're trying to get rid of us so you can talk about grown-up stuff! Aren't you?!"

"Talo, I think we should leave Mr. Renado and Link alone."

"Oh, come on, Colin! Don't you want to hear what they're gonna say?!" Talo's voice became distant as Barnes dragged him away, and the door closed.

"Link," Renado began giving a slight bow, "thank you for ridding this place of its plight."

"Oh! Uh, you're welcome?" Link said, not expecting the sudden, very formal thanks. "Renado," Link said with a more serious tone. "Did you see a girl named Ilia? She has blond hair and is from Ordon too." Renado thought for a minute but shook his head. Damn it. So she was still missing. "Are you the only ones who..." Link fumbled a bit, not wanting to say what he meant.

"I was hoping to ask you that," Renado said sadly, his calm mask faltering. "Was there… anyone? Anyone at all?"

"…I'm sorry…" Link said as Renado sat in a nearby chair and buried his face in his hands, taking a shaky breath. Link turned around and pinched the bridge of his nose, having a similar reaction. Midna silently watched from Link's shadow, trying not to allow herself to feel pity for the light dwellers. Link's next words didn't help. "Damn it!" he growled, "I wasn't fast enough! So many people…"

"Link, what happened is not your fault. You did better than anyone could have hoped in this dark situation. At least they are at peace now, after what those monsters turned them into."

"No, I couldn't even give them that!" Link growled. He felt terrible for unloading his problems on Renado, but he needed to talk to someone, and Midna wasn't going to help. "I wanted to! But I couldn't fight that many… Most of them left. I only managed to get two."

"Link," Renado said, his face again composed, "Are you injured? I am a healer. If you have wounds, you should let me tend to them." Link took a deep breath, turning to face Renado.

"…I did take some hits… a big one on my shoulder."

Renado gathered some medical equipment from a cabinet on the wall while Link began removing his armor.

"Midna, don't stare at me when I take off my shirt, ok?" Link said telepathically.

"I keep forgetting we can talk like this. Ok, wolf boy, I won't look."

"Don't call me wolf boy!" Link slipped off his shirt and showed Renado his shoulder, who widened his eyes in surprise.

"What happened?" he asked, trying to conceal his shock for his patient's sake.

"Acid," Link said, grimacing at the memory, "a weird purple acid from a giant plant."

"That sounds like Deku Baba acid, but I've never seen a burn like this from that." Deku Baba acid? Was that thing he fought a Deku Baba? Did the Fused Shadow change into the monster he faced? That's not good…

"Holy shit, Link… How have you been going all this time?"

"How bad is it?"

"It's bad!"

"You will be fine, Link. You just need a bit of treatment." Renado opened a container and Link turned to see it had cream in it. "This may sting, but it will help." Link nodded in response and faced straight again so Renado could do his work. Like he said, it stung, and Link hissed in response but stayed still.

"What is that stuff? Why is he putting it on you if it hurts?" Midna said, sounding like she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"It's medicine. Don't you have stuff like this in your realm?"

"No! We use magic! It doesn't hurt us more!"

"I'll be fine. It's just a cream, common medicine."

"…Geez. You light dwellers are tougher than I thought."

"What are these marks?" Renado asked as he finished putting cream on Link's burn and moved on to his other wounds. "They look like insect stings, but they are… burnt?"

"I pissed off some bugs."

"These don't look like stings from any bug I know."

"Wait, what?"

"…They were weird bugs?" Link offered. Renado knew Link was trying to hide the true nature of his injuries from him and didn't press him for more information.

"Link, how many types of bugs are there in this world?"

"…A lot."

"I hate you."

"What did I do?"

Link looked around the room he had just entered. He had eaten with the others he saved, then Renado had given everyone free rooms to stay in. Link's room only had one bed since he couldn't reasonably ask for one with two unless he revealed Midna. He'd figure something out. The imp girl was pestering him about spending so much time eating and not giving her anything the entire time. On his way to his room, Link managed to sneak by the kitchen and grab a second meal, and now that he was away from the others, Midna could emerge from his shadow to eat it.

Midna had taken the plate and sat on the edge of the bed to eat, and Link took in the room's details. It was an average-sized room, with one bed against the back wall, a window on the right wall, a table near the window, and a dresser for clothes on the left side of the bed. Unlike his room in Noidea, this one had no bathroom. That was in the hallway, and everyone had to share it, which would be a problem for Midna.

"Seriously?! Why doesn't this place have a bathroom in each room?!" She demanded once he told her about that.

"Piping is still pretty new. It would be expensive to put one in every room. I don't know how Justin managed to do that in his place."

"I can't believe you light dwellers. How is piping new to you?! We've had it for a long time!"

"Well, your world probably doesn't have constant invasions or apocalypses." That nearly made Midna choke on her food.

"What?!"

"Hyrule's history is long and bloody," Link said, leaning against the wall, looking tired. "My world is probably older than yours, but it keeps getting torn apart. What's going on right now… Similar things have happened throughout history."

"Are you saying this is just another bump in history for this place?" Midna asked, no longer eating.

"Sort of. Some people think Hyrule's cursed to suffer constant disaster. But it's also possible that since Hyrule is a very prosperous place, it's very appealing to invaders. I don't know off the top of my head, but I don't think it's ever been this bad before. The entire land has already been conquered." Midna looked at her food blankly, lost in thought. This place had seen a lot of pain, and she had brought hers here. Guilt began to well up inside her, but she beat it down, reminding herself she didn't care about this world. She was startled from her thoughts when Link collapsed onto the bed, sending her into the air with a yelp. "Damn, I'm sore. And tired."

"Hey! I'm eating here!" Midna snapped when she landed. Luckily none of her food fell off her plate. Her shout fell on deaf ears as Link fell asleep, and Midna only now noticed he had removed his weapons and chainmail, laying them next to the bed.

Link opened his eyes to see white all around him. He looked in the distance to see some distance buildings and saw fog on the ground by his feet. Link noticed he was back in his chainmail and tunic, and his sword and shield were strapped on his back. Link heard loud breathing behind him and turned to the skeletal warrior who had taught him before.

"We meet again," the skeleton spoke, "you have a little more of the look of a hero than you did before."

"Thanks, I guess? Are you here to teach me more fighting techniques?" The skeleton nodded in response, but Link had another question. "Am I… asleep?"

"Your body slumbers, but I have brought your spirit here, to this place between life and death."

"Who are you?"

"…That is something I do not wish to divulge just yet." The warrior said, his tone firm and letting Link know he meant what he said. "When we last met, I taught how to use your sword, but what lies in your other hand can also be a weapon."

"My shield?"

"That is correct."

'Sorry to interrupt," Link said, taking his shield off his back, "but… I've already done that."

"Good," said the shade, "then I will teach you to hone that skill. How have you used your shield?"

"I used it to smack some bokoblins and knock them off balance." The shade nodded and drew his sword, fitting his shield on his other hand, mirroring Link's combat stance.

"You have used your shield to give yourself an advantage, but there may be times when this skill is crucial. If an enemy is clad in armor and skilled with a shield, your sword will do no damage to them. You must use your shield to knock them off balance and expose them, then strike. Now show me what you can do!" Link approached the skeleton with his weapon ready and rammed his shield into the skeleton's. The shade staggered back, exposing himself to attack, and Link struck him with a slash. "Very good!" the shade spoke, "but you must be able to use this move consistently. Again!"

Link and the skeleton practiced shield bashing for a while, the shade varying the difficulty with firmer stances to keep Link on his toes and pointed out ways Link could improve. Eventually, the shade decided Link had learned how to use his new skill effectively enough when Link smacked his shield out of his grasp.

"Wow!" Link exclaimed as the shield clattered to the ground, "I wasn't expecting that!"

"Excellent!" the shade spoke, "you have learned remarkably well! And disarming your opponent will give you a major advantage. Be sure you do not allow this to happen to you."

"I can see why that would be bad."

"Before you leave, there is one more thing I must teach you about this skill." The skeleton stomped onto the side of his shield, sending it spinning into the air where he caught it. The move reminded Link of what he did when the large skulltula attacked him. "As the hero, there is no telling what you may face. You may encounter foes with magical attacks, but do not let them intimidate you. Your shield can stand strong against them as well." The skeleton pointed its blade upwards, and a golden ball the size of Link's torso appeared on its tip. "If you perform a shield bash on magic projectiles, you will send them back at your opponent. Do this now." The skeleton swung his sword at Link, sending the ball at him. Link prepared his shield and smacked it into the ball, sending it back into the shade, who staggered slightly from the hit. "Again!"

Link engaged in another cycle of performing the move until the shade decided he was doing good enough. Link didn't mind, though. He knew what he was doing was dangerous and wanted to make sure he was as prepared as possible.

"I hope I never fight someone with magic, but I will keep this lesson in mind if I do."

"Remember, this will only work on attacks that move slowly through the air. Some attacks take the form of a beam or other shapes that will not give you time to do this. Your shield will still protect you from these attacks, but you will not be able to turn your opponent's attack against them."

"I've seen Midna use a move like that. She also used a slower one to break a chain when I first met her, so I think I know what you're talking about."

"The path to becoming a hero is a long one," the shade said while putting away his sword and attaching his shield to his back. "We will meet again, and I will forge you into a better combatant once again." The skeleton turned from Link and walked away, quickly disappearing in the fog that wasn't that thick a second ago. Link's vision filled with white, and he returned to his body.

Link opened his eyes and saw the ceiling of his room. His body was still aching from the beating he took, so he decided to use some spring water from his pouch. He didn't want to undo the bandages, so he would just drink some. Link sat up from his bed and saw Midna on his left, sitting on the table by the window, looking out into the night sky with her right leg propped up and her arm resting on it. The moon illuminated her, and Link could see she was not wearing the Fused Shadow. She had likely placed it into her storage.

"What're you looking at?" Link inquired as he fished through his bottomless bag.

"The sky," Midna answered, turning to look at him, "when that bright thing isn't there, it's beautiful. What're you doing?" Midna floated over to Link to see into his bag, and he took out the bottle he was searching for.

"I'm feeling crappy, so I'm going to drink this," Link pulled the cork out of the bottle and downed its contents. He wasn't worried about drinking it all since there was a spring right outside to restock.

"Feel better?"

"A bit."

"Here," Midna said, taking the bottle from his hands, "I'll get you more."

"Really?" Link asked, surprised at her sudden kindness.

"The sky put me in a good mood," she said, rolling her eyes, "gimme the top part." Link handed over the cork, and Midna floated over to the window and opened it. "I'll do this for you now, but like I said, don't get used to me saving you." Midna floated out the window before Link could say anything else, shutting the window behind her.

Link laid back down, pulling his covers over him and closing his eyes. Midna would be back soon, but he was tired and wanted to rest even if he had to get up again soon. Within seconds he barely heard the window open. That was fast… and why was she being so quiet. Before Link could sit up to speak to Midna, he heard a footstep near the window. It was extremely quiet, like the window opening, and he barely heard it, but he was more focused on the fact that there was a footstep. Midna can float. She wouldn't make footsteps. Link listened to the footsteps quietly approaching, and another pair appeared by the window before it was silently closed. Link didn't move. He pretended to be asleep and listened for more sounds. The closer footsteps moved right up to his bed, and he heard another quiet sound of metal being drawn.

Link threw his blankets onto the figure next to his bed, sending his foot into its face right after. He brought the foot he just used to kick the person onto the ground and used his other foot to give another powerful kick, sending them staggering back. A second figure slashed at Link with a sword in the same movement to draw it from a sheath on their hip, and Link rolled over the bed to the other side and grabbed his sword and shield. The figure covered in blankets cut through them, making them fall to the ground and giving Link a clear view of his assailants.

The two people before him were wearing dark clothing, with light armor of the same color. Every part of their body was covered, including their face, which had a mask that only had two rectangles where the eyes were, but Link couldn't see inside them.

Nobody in the room moved. Link was trying to figure out who these people were and why they were there. He tried to check them with his eyes for weapons, but their outfit concealed everything about them. He wasn't even sure if they were male or female.

The figure who was covered in blankets made a careful step forward, and Link flicked his sword at them, sending the sheath that was still on it flying. The figure smacked it away with their sword, and the other rushed him, leaping over the bed to strike. Link blocked the strike with his shield and retaliated, but the figure pulled another sword out of nowhere and held it backwards to stop the attack. The figure sent his knee into Link, who quickly retaliated with a shield bash, staggering his opponent. Link made a quick slash and made a small cut as the figure hopped back, and Link ducked under his sheath, which was thrown at him by the other person.

During Link's duck, the person who hopped away from him ran across the wall and performed a flying kick, sending Link flying into the dresser with a loud bang that a certain imp just outside heard. The one who kicked Link grabbed his sword arm mid-swing and used a knife pulled from somewhere to slash Link across his chest, giving him a painful reminder he had no time to put his chainmail back on.

Using one of his arms on Link for support, the figure vaulted over Link to stand behind him, twisted his right arm in his and grabbed onto Link's neck, and held his left arm in place. Link tried to break out of the hold, but the figure was too strong. The other figure pulled out a rectangle made of stone with purple lines dancing across its surface. Just before the stone could touch Link, Midna's large hair hand shoved Link out of the way. Midna had thought her magic hair would be immune to anything the figures could do. After all, it was just hair.

She was wrong.

The purple lines spread from the stone onto her hair and traveled up it towards her. She only had time to realize what was happening before they reached her and spread across her body. She cried out, but more in surprise than pain, when suddenly her heart that was beating fast in fear and lungs pushing out air in a scream both stopped dead, and she collapsed onto the floor.

"Midna!"

Midna couldn't move. She couldn't breathe. What was happening to her? Her mind seemed to be the only thing that worked as it filled with panic. Was she dying? She couldn't die! Her heart slowly began beating again, and she began taking quick, shallow breaths. As Link struggled against his two attackers, her heart and lungs slowly returned to their normal, albeit panicked, rhythm. Midna tried to call out to Link, but she could only make a groaning sound as the air left her body but did not form words. Her body was slack, as if she was asleep, but her eyes were wide open, and the only part of her she could move.

She watched as Link slid under a swing, retaliating with his own that was easily avoided with a flip. She watched as Link barely avoided or blocked attacks, and the constant strikes were beginning to chip away the wood of his shield. She watched as his attacks were countered, leaving him with cuts on several parts of his body. She could do nothing but watch.

Link managed to charge his way through the enemies with his shield and stand next to Midna. He grasped the table next to the window and threw it at his opponents, making a loud storm of splinters as they attempted to smack it away since there wasn't enough time to move. Link quickly kneeled to check on Midna and was confused when he saw wide, panicked eyes. If she was awake, why wasn't she doing anything? Midna made a strange noise, almost like she was trying to say something? Link couldn't understand but could hear the desperation in her tone. Realizing she might be trying to warn him of something, he spun around. But he was too late.

Link managed to stop a stab with his shield but was helpless against the tackle his opponent performed, sending both through the window and smashing it to pieces. Glass flew everywhere, cutting Link and Midna but having no effect on the armored individual falling with Link. The figure held onto Link's shirt and raised his blade as they fell to finish him.

Link grabbed his opponent's shoulders and spun in the air, interrupting the attack and placing the figure under him. They crashed into the ground with a loud smack, Link's impact slightly cushioned by his opponent. The impact threw Link to the side and both he and the enemy laid on the ground in pain for a few seconds before Link quickly pounced on the figure and plunged his sword into its chest. Red blood flowed from the wound and mixed with Link's own on the ground as the figure finally cried out in a deep voice. Neither of his opponents had made a sound the entire fight, but he finally got something out of one of them.

Something slammed into Link, knocking him over and giving him a deep cut on his back, making him cry out. Link rolled to his feet to see the other figure standing before him, ready to finish the job. They dashed forward and continued to give a flurry of attacks against Link, one of which was a kick to his right arm, exposing his arm underneath his shield, which was promptly slashed, drawing blood and cutting the shield's straps. The slash was followed by a stab, which Link raised his shield to block. Link screamed as he felt the blade pierce his arm, going right through the weakened shield and his flesh. He saw the bloodied tip of the blade emerge from his arm and stop just before his face, coating it in blood. The figure drew its sword from Link's arm in a quick motion, jerking the shield from his grasp and sending it down the street.

Renado burst into Link's room to see it nearly destroyed. Furniture was in pieces, scattered all over the place. The bed had been cut apart, and blood decorated several parts of the room, but what caught his eye was the small shape of what looked like a child lying in front of the window.

"What's all that sound? Who's smashing things?!" Talo shouted as he darted down the hallway with the other kids in tow. "WOAH! WHAT HAPPENED TO LINK'S ROOM?!" he cried, noticing the mess but luckily not the blood.

"Stay back!" Renado said sternly before shutting the door to prevent the kids from seeing blood. He moved close to the kid on the floor and noticed it didn't look like a child. The strange girl was black and white, with strange markings on her body, her hair was fiery orange, her eyes were red, and where there should have been white, there was yellow. Her eyes widened in fear when she realized Renado noticed her. "Do not be afraid. I will not harm you." He saw that the girl was bleeding from a few cuts, but her blood looked much darker than it should be. He worried that meant the girl wasn't breathing correctly, but her heavy breaths put that fear to rest. "Are you alright? What happened here? Can you speak?"

Renado got no response, which worried him, but the girl seemed to be fine after a quick check. The only problems aside from minor cuts were she refused to speak, and when he tried to help her sit up, she collapsed back onto the floor, seemingly too weak to sit up. Renado picked her up to move her off the floor, and just before he could speak again, he heard a deafening cry of pain from outside. He leaned out the window to look at the source, accidentally giving Midna a view as well. They both stared in shock as they saw Link get stabbed through his shield. To Renado's horror, he saw the children leave the inn, running into the street to investigate the commotion. Renado placed Midna on what was left of the bed and bolted out the door.

No! Don't leave me here! Midna thought, take me with you!

Link clutched his arm and grunted in pain, trying not to stagger. He watched in horror as his shield flew through the air and landed at the feet of the children, but luckily Renado sprinted out of the inn and wrestled them back inside. His enemy rushed him while he was distracted, but Link managed to hop to the side. All of Link's attacks were blocked until he took a headbutt to the face, staggered, and got his sword kicked out of his hands.

Link grabbed his enemy's arm when they tried to remove his head, and before he knew it, he was wrestling for the sword. The figure wrenched the sword from Link's grasp and tried to stab him, but to both combatants' surprise, Link stepped to the left, grabbed his enemy's wrist with his right arm, and struck his enemy's shoulder with his left forearm. The move made a slight cracking noise, but the shoulder was not broken. The enemy made a grunt of pain, in a female voice, and lost her grip on the sword, which flew away from the momentum of the failed stab.

Link released his grasp to duck under a left hook, ended up behind the figure, and swept her leg before raising the same leg and performing a hammer kick on her face. The lady's mask protected her face, and she rose with a high kick that Link ducked under and followed up with several quick punches. Link blocked most of them, but suddenly she had a knife in her hand, and Link's arms began to be cut.

Link was backed into a wall but quickly hooped away so it was on his side and grabbed the woman's arm when she tried to stab him again. She grabbed his shirt and slammed him into the wall, then headbutted him, making him lose his grip on her arms. She quickly made a slash for Link's throat, but he raised his left arm to take the blow instead. It left a nasty cut, but at least he wasn't dead.

Link punched the lady's gut and kicked her back, but she dashed forward and got a slash on Link, making him double over. Link rolled to the side of another slash and elbowed her knee from a crouched position, forcing it to bend and knocking her over with an open-handed strike to her face. Link quickly stood and tried to kick her face, but she kicked his kick away and swept his leg. Link smacked into the ground and saw their positions were now reversed, and he might not be able to avoid being killed from that position.

Just when Link thought it was over, his wooden shield was smashed into the back of the lady's head by Renado, making her stager. Link sprang to his feet, rammed the lady with his right shoulder, snagged her knife, and made a wide slice that slashed her neck. The lady's body collapsed to the floor, blood spewing from her neck, and Link dropped to his knees, letting the knife clatter to the ground.

"Link!" Renado cried, tossing away the shield. "I must get you inside! Those wounds need tending!" He pulled a dazed Link to his feet and began to drag him away, and Link barely noticed the weapons and bodies of his opponents were gone. The only evidence they were there were the pools of blood and a barely conscious Link.