Born a Weapon
A Twilight Princess Fan story
Chapter 25
Goron Mines
Holy shit, it's hot in here!
That was the first thing Link thought when he entered the Goron Mines. Link could see lava flowing throughout the mines. Thinking back to how long he walked to get here, he realized he must be inside the volcano. He silently thanked whoever made his tunic, remembering his conversation with Eldin.
Trying to push the thought of heat away, Link took out the map given to him by God Coron. It was covered in some strange transparent material to survive the volcano. He familiarized himself with his planned search pattern before putting away the map. He knew where Darbus had been sealed and was given the key, but Gor Coron told him the other three elders were lost somewhere in the mines. The bulbins ambushed them when they tried to depart, and only Gor Coron managed to escape. He also had to look for any other Gorons who were sent in to try to remove the bulbins but never came back. Link stepped forward and placed thick gloves over his hands. The gloves were also given to him by Gor Coron to protect his hands. Several metal pieces and ladders were in the mines, and his fingerless gloves would not protect him from the hot metal. Not to mention his sword would undoubtedly heat up as well.
Link walked across a stone bridge, feeling the heat of the flowing magma beneath him. He vowed he would not test if his heat protection would work in lava, which gave him a thought.
"Hey, Midna."
"Huh? What is it?" Midna floated from the floor in her shadowy form, eyeing the surrounding area.
"Can Zant protect people from extreme heat? I'm wondering how the bulbins can take this," Link asked, gesturing to the area around him.
"I honestly don't know what he can and can't do," Midna said with her hand to her chin in thought. "Before he started his whole evil thing, no. He was powerful, but nobody from my realm could do that. But now," Midna shook her head and sighed, crossing her arms. "I have no idea. He suddenly got way more powerful, so I have no idea what his limits are."
"That's comforting."
"Besides, how hot can it be?" Midna said with a shrug.
"Trust me, it's hot," Link said as he came to a partially destroyed ladder big enough for a Goron and started climbing, "we're inside a volcano, Midna."
"I don't know what that means, genius!" Midna rolled her eyes as Link pulled himself onto the ledge.
"Ok," Link said with a sigh before pointing at the lava, "see that stuff? It's called lava. Lava is this," Link tapped the stone wall of the volcano, "but so hot it melted and turned into that. Fall in, and you're toast. Literally."
"Oh," Midna said as she widened her eyes. "Don't… don't fall in then."
"I don't plan to."
Link pushed open a Goron-sized metal door and was greeted with a wide hallway devoid of lava. Pickaxes and a few helmets were scattered around, clearly left by fleeing miners. Some parts of the wall sparkled with partially mined metal and gems. A few turns later, Link emerged into a massive lava-filled area. Metal platforms spanned the room, but many parts were destroyed, which would make crossing the area challenging. But his biggest problem was the bulbins.
Link dashed behind a piece of metal as arrows whizzed past. How did the arrows not burn? Whatever, it doesn't matter.
"Are you just going to sit here while they shoot at you?" Midna asked.
"What else should I do? Besides, they're giving me ammo." Link replied, and Midna yelped when an arrow passed through her body before retreating to Link's shadow.
Link took out his bow and set an arrow in it. He pulled the arrow back and waited for the barrage to stop before jumping out from his cover and letting his arrow fly… right into the lava.
"Nice shot," Midna remarked.
"Shut up. It's the first time I've used this."
After several unsuccessful shots, Link decided to run to a nearby doorway, using his shield to block the incoming arrows.
"You really need to work on your aim."
The next room had slightly less lava, but only slightly. There was a decent amount of stone and metal to walk on, but the way to the next door had fallen apart, leaving only a few stone platforms scattered throughout the lava. Link facepalmed at his luck while Midna floated away to look around.
"No other way around it. You're going to have to jump over that stuff," Midna reported, and Link groaned. "Also, I saw these weird long creatures. They look like they're covered in something hard." Link raised his eyebrows at that and followed Midna's point to see the creature.
Link saw a large lizard with a thick, scaly hide where she was pointing. It walked on four legs, and each hand had three fingers sticking out of them.
"That's a Dodongo. Its hide is really tough, and it can shoot fire from its mouth." Link stated as he drew his sword and shield.
"It shoots fire?! What the hell?! I hate this world!"
"Calm down. You're not the one who has to deal with it."
There were three Dodongos in the area, each at a different spot, but all of them were in Link's way. Their spacing would allow Link to deal with them one at a time, so he at least didn't have to worry about watching his back. He racked his amnesiac brain for anything he might know about this creature, and one thing came to mind. Its back might be covered in thick scales, but its underside wasn't.
Link carefully approached the Dodongo and waited for it to make a move. Once it spotted Link, it scurried forward and opened its mouth, preparing to release flames. Link dashed to the lizard's side, avoiding the stream of fire, and slid his right hand under it, flipping it onto its back. The creature cried out in surprise and flailed its limbs, but not for long before Link drove his sword into it.
Link turned his attention to how he would get across the lava. Some platforms didn't look stable, so he ignored those and focused on the sturdy ones. After taking a few deep breaths, Link jumped to the first platform. As he passed over the molten rock, he could feel its intense heat wash over him, but he made it to the platform without issue. After a few more jumps, he landed next to another Dodongo. The lizard was surprised when a human appeared next to it but didn't have the chance to do anything before it was flipped and killed. Link jumped off the platforms and finished the last Dodongo just like the others.
"That went well," Link's shadow commented.
Link made his way towards the door but stopped when he saw another Dodongo perched on the wall above it. Link hopped back to avoid a stream of fire, and the Dodongo dropped from the wall to pursue him.
The final Dodongo was unlike the others. It was twice the size and had remarkable speed. Instead of a scaly hide, Link saw metal armor on its back. Although the Dodongo was fast, Link was still faster and managed to flip it on its back, but his sword was stopped by an armored underside with no visible straps to cut. The Dodongo flipped itself over, swept Link off his feet with its tail, and would have burnt the hero to a crisp had he not rolled away. The lizard continued shooting fire much longer than it should have been able to and made a sweeping motion with the flames, preventing Link from moving to the side. All Link could do was back up as the Dodongo inched closer, forcing him towards the ledge. It wasn't long before Link ran out of room, trapped between a jet of fire and a pool of lava.
"Do something, you idiot!" Midna shrieked. "Do I have to save you again?!"
"You can't leave the shadow! You have no protection from the heat!"
Link grabbed his bow from his back, nocked an arrow, pulled back the string, and released it. The Dodongo stopped shooting fire to choke on the foreign object that just flew down its throat, and Link sprinted behind it. Link quickly put away his sword and shield, grabbed the lizard's tail, and threw it into the lava with a spin and a grunt of effort.
The Dodongo fell into the lava, and Link breathed a sigh of relief. He turned around to face the door before he heard a splashing noise and whipped around to see the Dodongo emerge from the lava.
"You gotta be kidding me," the hero muttered. Although the monster had survived the lava, whatever straps holding its armor on had melted away, and the armor sank uselessly to the bottom of the lava. When the lizard moved in on the hero, Link quickly jumped to its side, flipped it over, and finished it off with a well-placed stab. Link took a deep breath as he sheathed his sword and examined the Dodongo. Visibly it was no different from any other Dodongo aside from its size, but it could do more. A Dodongo can't walk on walls, swim in lava, or sustain its fire for that long.
"Why are you staring at it? Let's go!" Midna demanded.
"This is the second time."
"What?"
"This is the second time I found a stronger version of a monster, and it was covered in armor," Link said, pointing at the Dodongo. "Remember that big Skulltula that got me stuck in a web?"
"Ugh! Don't remind me of those things!" Midna shivered. "But why does that matter? They're both dead now."
"Monsters like Skulltulas and Dodongos can't put on armor. Someone had to put it on them. Everything about this is wrong," Link shook his head, "Bulbins shouldn't have been able to get in here or resist the heat, and there shouldn't be armored super monsters."
"Zant probably did this. He'll do anything to stop us."
"I guess," Link said as he moved towards the other door. "But how did he know where we'd be?" The conversation was cut short once Link opened the door and caused several Gorons inside to start panicking and scrambling for what looked like giant slabs of stone. Before they could attack, they realized that a human had opened their door and stared in confusion. "Uh… hi!" The gorons were covered in armor, and many were injured, so Link assumed they were survivors sent in to find the elders.
"Ah… I thought I heard a commotion, but what a surprise to find a young human." A goron moved out from the back of the room to greet Link. This Goron was slightly smaller than Link and had a cane in his left hand that shook intensely when he held it.
"Are you one of the elders?" Link asked, "Gor Coron sent me to help Darbus and told me you might be here." The Gorons around began muttering to each other when Link mentioned their patriarch.
"If Gor Coron has faith in you, then your heart must be true. And that tunic says a lot as well," The elder pointed at Link's outfit with his cane, shaking it up and down to point at his entire body before returning the cane to the ground. "I am one of the four Goron elders. Gor Amoto is my name. You are heroic, young human. Thank you for lending this tribe your power. I wish I could help you, but I do not know where the other elders are."
"Don't worry. I'll find them," Link said before placing his hand to his chin in thought. "I took out the Dodongos outside, but there are still some Bulbins between you and the exit. They're on an elevated platform over a sea of lava. The path is destroyed, so I can't get to them."
"I know the place," Gor Amoto said, "there is another way there. On the second floor of this room, there is a door leading to that platform. We barricaded it, but we can easily remove it from this side to allow you passage. Normally, we could roll past them. Their arrows cannot penetrate our hides, but many of us are injured and cannot roll."
"I can take out the bulbins now that I can get to them."
"We will wait until the bulbins are dead, then escape the mines and inform Gor Coron of your progress."
Link ascended a ladder to the second floor, where a Goron removed a pile of stacked objects from a doorway. Link quietly opened the door just enough to slip out and saw the same bulbins who shot at him before. Link quietly moved closer to the unaware bulbins and hid behind a pillar. Link drew a dagger instead of his sword, and when a bulbin wandered towards the pillar, he slashed its neck and covered its mouth in the same motion. He gently laid the body down so its thud wouldn't alert the others and snuck up behind another, eliminating it in the same way. The last two bulbins were close together, so Link drew his second dagger and impaled their necks simultaneously. This deadly efficiency scared Midna. She would never admit it, but the way he seemed to be able to move and kill without a sound made him intimidating.
With a shout to the nearby Gorons, the elder and survivors moved towards the exit, shouting their thanks as they left. Link proceeded up some stairs, avoiding holes and jumping across a few platforms until he made to another door and entered it. Inside this room was a pool of water with platforms to jump on and another door made of bars across the pool.
"Oh, this is nice. It's a lot cooler in here."
"So, it's not ridiculously hot in here?"
"No, it is. Just not as hot."
Link took the opportunity to take a small break but didn't want to linger for too long. He could take the volcano's heat thanks to his tunic, but Midna could not, and if he didn't get out of there, Midna would starve in his shadow. So, Link only took the time to drink a bit of water and scarf down a handful of food before proceeding to the barred door. Peeking through the bars, he saw the next room had tall rectangular objects flanking another doorway on an elevated platform.
Link grabbed the two pieces of the door and began pulling it open. It was heavy and took a long time, but Link managed. When he stepped into the room, the rectangles whirred to life, and a red circle lit up on the top middle. The rectangles turned to face Link, who instinctively dove behind a nearby piece of stone on his left. Link's instincts turned out to be correct because just after Link moved, two beams of orange flew to where he just was, melting small holes into the wall. A single world came to Link's mind. Laser.
"What are those?!" Midna shrieked.
"No idea," Link said with a deep breath before taking out his bow, "but I'm gonna blast them."
Link drew an arrow back, slipped from behind his cover, and let an arrow fly. He missed, but not by that much. Link ducked back behind the rock, and another orange beam barely missed him, and he felt heat emanate from it. Link jumped out again and shot another arrow. This time the arrow embedded itself right into the red orb of the right rectangle. The rectangle's mechanical noises slowed and stopped, and the rectangle stilled.
"Found their weak spot," Link said as he jumped out and blasted the other machine's eye.
"Wait a minute, why am I hiding behind this rock? I'm a shadow. Nothing can touch me."
"Instinct. You don't want to get blasted."
"Whatever," Midna rolled her eyes and returned to Link's shadow.
Link opened the next door and emerged into a vast opening. He could see the sky above, and many wooden platforms led to different pieces of the mine over a large pool of water. Many boxes and barrels scattered around, and Link had to run behind a pile of them when bulbins began sending arrows his way.
Link ran his options through his head. He could try to shoot back, but there were so many bulbins that dozens of arrows would fly at his face as soon as he poked his head out. There were several other stacks he could use as cover, so Link placed his shield on his arm and ran to the next one. Arrows bounced off the protective metal as he ran, and he made it to the stack unscathed. This repeated several times, which frustrated the bulbins, until one of the covers Link used turned out to be in range of another rectangle. The machine whirred to life, and Link dashed for a nearby door and threw it open. He ran in and slammed it shut, just avoiding being fried. The heat returned in the next room, but at least he wouldn't be blasted with lasers and arrows.
But now he had to deal with a shadow beast trying to rip his head off.
Link held his sword out before him, causing the beast to charge right into the blade and impale itself. Two more turned their attention from bashing a door to charging the hero, who ran up the wall and climbed out of reach. The shadow beats flailed their arms at the human, but he climbed higher and was out of range.
"Do you have any idea how stupid this looks?" The shadow snickered.
"I really don't care."
From his secure vantage point, Link examined the area. There was a door at the end of the wall he was hanging on, ordinarily accessible by a bridge that had broken, and another door with a metal bridge leading to it. He shimmied along the wall, but as expected, the shadow beasts followed him from the ground. Link drew his sword and jumped down onto the left shadow beast, simultaneously impaling it and stunning the other with a shield bash. The force of an entire human falling onto the shadow beast knocked it to the ground, and Link slashed the other's neck while shooting to his feet.
"Damn, you're getting pretty good at this."
"Good. Never underestimate the power of higher ground." The shadow beasts burst into particles, and Link looked around for a portal but did not see one. It must be somewhere else, and it was likely how the mines were invaded. Link walked across a metal bridge, and up to the door the shadow beasts were ponding on. He heard a few voices inside, which abruptly stopped when he gently knocked. "I killed the things out here. It's safe now. I'm looking for survivors. Gor Coron sent me." A few surprised voices were heard muttering until one louder one silenced them all.
"What is your name?" The voice asked.
"Link."
"…Open the door." Some shuffling was heard, and the door slid open, revealing another shorter Goron who looked like an elder. "Ah… a young human. I am pleased to see you made it this far. I am one of the elders of the Goron tribe. I am called Gor Ebizo." More Gorons were packed into the room, equipped just like the others. "We were trapped in here, and those beasts kept rising when we killed them, but I am relieved the path is safe."
"Not entirely. There are some bulbins with bows outside and a weird thing shooting dangerous orange lines."
"The bulbins do not concern us, and we have been able to escape the objects you speak of. We can simply roll past the threats. Their arrows will bounce off our hides."
"Is everyone able to? Gor Amoto's group was injured and couldn't roll."
"We are still healthy enough to make it past. I am eager to leave these mines and return to the city." Link stepped aside, and the Gorons funneled out of the room and began rolling out. Link could hear the shouts of bulbins and arrows flying. "Thank you, hero. Your actions will be long remembered among the Gorons, and you will surely become an honorary brudda for your courage." Link was stunned by the statement and took a second to respond.
"Thank you. I would be honored." The Goron elder was the last to go, and Link watched as he rolled across the wooden bridge. The rectangle whirred to life, but the elder was out of range in an instant. Arrows flew after him, and one bounced harmlessly off his back.
"Why were you gaping at that guy? You looked really dumb. All he did was call you 'brudda.' Whatever that is."
"Brother," Link corrected his companion, "Gorons all have a brotherly bond and consider each other family. It's extremely rare for an outsider to be considered a brother by the Gorons. It's a huge honor."
"So now you're a chosen hero and a brother? How many titles do you need?"
Link simply rolled his eyes and let out a slight chuckle before climbing across the wall to the other door. He opened it to see a metal bridge over a huge drop. At the bottom was a flowing river of lava, which led into a lava waterfall. Link made his way across the bridge without issue, though he kept expecting something to jump out at him. The next room made Link stop in his tracks.
It was a circular room with a single doorway blocked by another rectangle, along with six others evenly spaced out across the walls of the room.
Luckily, the rectangles were all facing the door and didn't notice Link. The hero slowly backed away, returning to the bridge and shutting the door. Only when the door was fully closed did Link allow himself to breathe.
"There are seven of them. Seven! How am I supposed to get past seven?!"
"Just shoot them in their big red eyes!" Midna said, hovering next to Link, "like before!"
"I need them to look at me for that, and when they look at me, they shoot at me. There's no way I can hit seven before they blast me!"
"Then just leave them and get the Fused Shadow!"
"No!" Link snapped, "I haven't found the last elder yet! They have to be back there somewhere! It's the only way forward!"
"I'm not going to wait for you to run around the entire mine!"
"I am not leaving him to die! The faster we can find a way to get past those things, the faster we can get your Fused Shadow!" Link took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. "Are we really going to argue about this again?
Midna raised an eyebrow in confusion before remembering something from Faron woods. While hunting bugs, Link ignored some to check on Coro, and Midna didn't want to waste time. Link had said almost word for word what he just snapped at her.
"Fine," Midna huffed and got to brainstorming ideas. "How about this? I fly in there, get their attention, and you shoot them."
"What if they blast you?"
"I'm a shadow, remember? They can't touch me."
Something about the plan bothered Link, but he couldn't figure out what, so he nodded in response. Link opened the door and took out his bow, placing an arrow on the string. As Midna flew towards the mechanized rectangles, the feeling of uncertainty grew. He tried to beat it down as he drew back his arrow and aimed, but it wouldn't stay silent. What did those things shoot again? Lasers? But what the hell was a laser? It was at the edge of his memory, just out of reach. A laser… Oh! Lasers! They're beams of-
Oh, shit.
The realization slapped Link, making him fire his arrow early. The rectangles whirred to life and turned to face the floating twili draped in shadow. Link cried out Midna's name and sprinted forward, reaching out to grab her arm. She looked at him with a stunned expression, wondering why Link would be stupid enough to charge right into the line of fire and why he thought he could touch her. As Link approached, the back of his hand began to glow golden, and his hand closed around Midna's wrist and began pulling her away. Before either of them could question what was happening, a laser fired at Midna.
A scream filled the air, accompanied by blood.
Link grasped the injured imp in his arms and ran out the door, slamming it shut and sprinting across the bridge before finally stopping to check on his companion. He held Midna out slightly so he could get a good look at her, and her helmet dropped off her head, though he barely noticed.
Midna was no longer covered in shadow. Instead, she was covered in blood.
A massive gash stretched across Midna's right shoulder, and dark twili blood flowed freely from it. The wound cut deep, but Link wasn't sure how deep, and the area around it was burned. The amount of blood spilling would be dangerous for Link, but Midna was an imp. She didn't have as much blood to lose.
"Wha-How did-" Midna managed through grunts of pain, staring in shock at her wound. "I was a shadow…"
"The laser, it was the laser! Lasers are made of light! Your shadow won't protect you. I should have remembered! I should have remembered but I couldn't! Not until you were already out there." Link's voice was frantic and fast as he tried to figure out what he could do. He gently placed Midna on the ground so he could reach his pouch, but every move caused Midna to scream in agony.
Once Midna was placed on the ground, Link tore open his pouch and took out the spring water. He wet a cloth and held it to Midna's wound, causing her immense pain. She screamed and gripped his hand but did not try to force him away, knowing he was trying to help.
"Talk to me, Midna. Tell me how you feel."
"How do you think I feel?!" Midna gasped.
"Be specific!"
"My shoulder feels like it's on fire! And I'm… really hot…" Link placed his free hand on Midna's neck to feel her skin and pulse. Her pulse was very fast. She was scared. How could she not be? Unfortunately, the faster pulse meant more blood was being pumped to the wound, where it would simply leak out. On top of that, her skin felt warm and dry, which meant she was beginning to overheat.
Dammit! He needed to move her somewhere cooler! Stopping the bleeding won't help if she dies from the heat. But stopping her from dying from the heat won't matter if she bleeds to death!
Link tried his best to stay calm as he stuffed the Fused Shadow in his pouch before sliding his hands under Midna's body and lifting her back into his arms. More pained screams echoed around him, but he did his best to ignore them and focus his attention on climbing back over the gap. The climb was agonizingly slow with his left arm holding Midna, but Link knew if he tried to go faster, he would fall.
After finally crossing, Link returned his free hand to holding the cloth on the wound as he stood before the door. The rooms beyond this one were cooler, but dozens of bulbins were also outside. There was no choice but to run through, but it would have to walk backwards so he could use his shield, which meant going slowly.
"Hang on, Midna."
Link put away the rag and slipped his shield onto his arm before opening the door, feeling the cool air rush over him. For the first few seconds, he was able to sprint down the path before the bulbins were able to react but soon had to turn around and use his shield to block arrows. Fortunately, the few seconds of sprinting got him out of range of the laser rectangle. Link walked backwards as fast as he could, praying this wouldn't slow him down too much. When he finally reached to door, he tore it open and slammed it closed, moving to the pool of cool water before setting Midna down on the ground.
Link moved faster than he thought possible, taking several clothes and bandages from his pouch along with a few medicines Renado had given him. He removed his gloves and pulled up his sleeves to give his hands as much movement as possible. Link plunged a few rags into the somewhat cool water before folding them and placing them on Midna.
"Huh?... Link, what're you doing?" Midna's voice was quiet, and she spoke very slowly. Her skin was starting to get paler, and her eyes were unfocused. She reached up to touch the rag lying on her forehead. "Why'd you put this here?"
"It'll cool you down. You still feel hot, right?" Link knew she was still overheating, but he wanted to hear her response.
"I feel… hot and… tired… why is it so hot?" Midna's unfocused eyes moved down to Link's face as he sorted through the medicines and lingered there for a while. "Why do you look so worried? What happened?" Although Link said nothing, he was cursing up a storm on the inside. Midna was becoming delirious. That was either because of her blood loss or the intense heat. Or both. It was probably both. Link placed his hand on Midna's neck again, and she weakly grabbed at it while making a slightly annoyed noise. Her pulse had become dangerously slow, and her skin was still hot and dry. Link took out a cream similar to the one Renado used on his acid burn. He wiped some blood away from the wound before applying the cream to the burned skin. "Stop! Stop it! You're hurting me!" Once Link placed his hand on the wound, Midna began to writhe under his grasp, clawing at his arms.
"I'm sorry, but I have to treat the wound!" Despite Midna trying to pry him away, Link did not relent until the cream was fully applied. Once he did, he quickly began preparing another cloth with spring water and some bandages. "Midna, you have to trust me. I'm trying to help you."
"Don't…" Midna breathed in a low weak voice. "I'm sorry… I'll be nicer…" Link ignored her pleading look, knowing it was just the result of her delirium. If she were still herself, she wouldn't be fighting him. Still, it hurt Link to cause her more pain when she begged him to stop. Steeling himself, Link applied the cloth and began wrapping the bandages.
Midna fought him with everything she had, punching and clawing at his arm, drawing blood. Link clenched his teeth and ignored the pain, wrapping the bandages tightly around the wound. The process took agonizingly long because of Midna's struggle, but eventually, Link managed to cover the wound and tie off the bandages.
Midna breathed heavily, eyes half-lidded, and occasionally let out a pained moan. Remarkably, Link's healing seemed to be working, and the bleeding was slowly stopping. It wasn't long before Midna's exhaustion took her, and she fell into a slumber.
Link sighed in relief before hissing in pain as he looked at the long cuts on his arms from the panicked scratching. They were bleeding quite a bit, but nothing he couldn't handle. His outfit was stained red with blood, and Midna was coated in it. They both needed a bath. Link removed his tunic and undershirt and gently wrapped his arms in bandages, not using any spring water since he wanted to conserve it. He tried to wipe the blood off Midna, but there was so much. After he decided he had done the best he could, he kneeled by the water and let out a deep breath as he ran his hand down his face. As he tried to clean his clothing, his thought wandered. This quest he was on was more perilous than he thought. He knew he would face constant danger, but he had assumed he would be the only one getting hurt.
But that had been proven wrong on several occasions already. The children were kidnapped, a deku baba almost ate Midna, Colin was kidnapped again, and now Midna was blasted with a laser. Link needed to accept that even though he was the hero, he couldn't stop everyone from getting hurt, though he would try his best to minimize the risk to others. This quest was his burden. Others shouldn't have to suffer in his place.
From his secure vantage point, Link examined the area. There was a door at the end of the wall he was hanging on, ordinarily accessible by a bridge that had broken, and another door with a metal bridge leading to it. He shimmied along the wall, but as expected, the shadow beasts followed him from the ground. Link looked down at his opponents and spoke.
"It's over, shadow beasts! I have the high ground!"
"You underestimate our power!" The left beast spoke.
"Try it!" The right beast said with a beckoning motion.
Link drew his sword and jumped down onto the left shadow beast, simultaneously impaling it and stunning the other with a shield bash. The force of an entire human falling onto the shadow beast knocked it to the ground, and Link slashed the other's neck while shooting to his feet.
I had to. I'm not sorry.