Are you prepared?
-Jooostan
A Terminian and the Twilight of Danger
Chapter 26: I Am Prepared
Link ran down the stairs in a hurried dash.
Entering the main room holding the massive Gerudo statue, he gasped at the sight of bomb flowers everywhere. A few buds were left to bloom, but a majority had already blossomed, scattered every few meters. All were close enough to set off the next.
"Ready to die, hero?!" The void carried Koume's voice. Link dashed over to the wall and picked up the staff he had thrown out of Dark Link's reach. A fitting weapon to face the sisters with.
A startling clunk was heard from above and the hero looked up. The platform leading right to the entrance to the chamber that used to hold the Iron Knuckle descended before Link. The chains rattled as it lowered, and it seemed to beckon the boy to climb on.
Link, without objection, hopped onto the platform. Slowly, it started to ascend up to the face of the statue. While everything on his body hurt, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Doesn't it excite you? The ascent into the heavens?" Kotake said with an eerie calmness to her statement. "Are you ready to face the danger, hero?"
To Link, he had faced danger dozens of times before. All the foes he'd seen shared a similar look. Gohma, King Dogongo, Barinade, Phantom Ganon, Volvagia, Morpha, Bongo Bongo, Ganon himself, Odolwa, Goht, Gyorg, Twinmold, Majora, Gomess, the Garo Master, the Thunderbird, Bellum, Armogohma, Dark Link, and now the witches. All his past enemies wanted to see him die, but he'd persevered through it all. Sometimes in better shape than others.
All of those times, he stared death in the eyes. He was ready to do it again. His reasoning, he thought, were all the ones that made a difference in his life. Anju, Kafei, Cremia, Jim, Skull Kid, Tatl, Tael, Navi, Zelda, Link the Goron, and most of all, Romani. They longed to see him succeed. To see him live his life happily.
It made him confident. More than anything, he was confident in himself. He took another deep breath as he was lost in his thoughts, all alone. He wasn't alone. Even if he'd face the witches without any help from his friends, he knew he wasn't alone.
"Well?!" The harrowing scream forced him out of his reflection. "Answer us!"
Link said nothing. He just smiled and waited for the lift to finish its journey. Once it did, he faced the statue's emotionless expression. He drew his bow and fired a light arrow at it, clearing the rock away. He leaped from the platform and into the statue, pressing on.
The room that once held the brainwashed Nabooru was empty. The shag, red carpet muffled Link's footsteps as he slowly crept through. A looming dread washed over him, and he gulped. The gold and silver haired boy drew his shield. A door just behind the Iron Knuckle's throne opened, and a scarily silent walk through the short hallway was all Link needed to think about his plan.
The next door slid open, and Link walked into the massive arena. It looked all too familiar, only that there were more platforms, it was in terrible condition, and there were hundreds of chipped stones scattered about. A lot of rage must have gone into making the destruction that surrounded him.
"How rude of us. Here, have some steps so we can meet..." Koume said childishly, still hidden. The rocks around Link vibrated before floating up and forming stairs, leading to the central platform.
Link gladly walked up the stairs, each step he took making his heart race more. This was it. He finally got to the top.
Koume and Kotake appeared from the above platforms, jumping down and landing in the middle of the arena together. Their eyes were bloodshot, violence and terror swirling around within them in a mad dance. They extended their hands and challenged the hero.
"Let's finish this!" Their slithering voices hissed simultaneously, smirking at Link. He took a defensive position and waited.
The sisters clapped their hands together and they spun into each other. There, they began to glow brilliantly, fusing together to join in an unholy union to defeat the Hero of Termina and Time once and for all. When the light dimmed, the boy looked up, gazing upon the fusion of chaos.
Twinrova.
Link's heart pounded. For everyone who had come to harm at the hands of the witches. He'd do his best to be their avenger and stop the sisters from laying waste to any other land. As he looked them in the eye, he recognized the danger. Smiling, he held his shield and blocked the first blast of elemental magic.
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"Romani! How many buds are left?!" Jim yelled to his friend from across the throne room. The group was in another Iron Knuckle chamber, on the left-hand side of the temple.
"Almost out! But everything's been laid down good!" Romani gave Jim a thumbs up as she placed the last bud she needed for the room by one of the pillars. The set up was perfect, and she stepped back to admire her work.
Jim ran out of the door and found himself back outside. He searched the sands for the squad of Gorons that Link had told to remain outside. Once he spotted them, he waved and shouted.
"Hey down there!" Jim hollered, catching the Goron's attention. "I got the things you need!"
"Throw 'em down!" One of the Goron's replied happily. Jim complied, grabbing the two Bombchus Link had gifted him and threw them down and into the sands.
The ground welted when the items landed, burying themselves in the arid desert. They were a hassle to dislodge, but the Gorons managed. There, they started to arm the weapons, ready to set them on the temple once everyone was out.
Jim walked back through the door and into the throne room. Romani was gone, so he rushed back to the meeting point where a few more Gorons kept waiting.
"Yeah, everything's set up." Jim had walked into a conversation between Romani, Ante, and a trio of Gorons. They seemed to be just explaining the status of the rest of the temple.
"Is it all ready to blow?" Jim asked, not wasting any time catching up with the others.
"Yep! Kabetta here just came to tell us that everything is good to go. The other Gorons are heading out." Link the Goron explained, pointing his thumb the opposite direction.
"Good. I just gave the Bombchus to the guys outside... When everyone's out, they'll let loose and make contact with the first flowers. Then everything should work, right?" Jim turned to Romani, knowing he had likely forgotten some details of the plan.
"The flowers will go off, making the rest go, and the whole place will collapse." Romani finished, beaming from ear to ear. It was obvious that she was quite proud of the plan.
"It'll be gone." Kabetta added.
Those words made everyone go silent. Everything would be sealed off forever. The Spirit Temple, regardless of the fact that it was a sacred place, had to be destroyed, along with everything in it that was of the witch's making. It was too dangerous to leave anything intact, even if it was minimal. The whole prospect made Ante a little depressed, but it was how things had to be.
"Hey, is Tatl awake?" Jim felt the need to ask.
"Yeah, she's awa-" Ante was about to talk, but a ringing in the distance finished her sentence for her. She chuckled lightly when she saw who it was. "Oh, there she is now."
"Hey!" Navi said, followed by Tatl and Tael. They had just returned from making the final checks on all of the buds.
"Alright, we're all here? Great, let's get outta here!" Jim said excitedly. He broke out into a sprint, the Gorons, Ante, and Romani right beside him. However, he noticed that only Tael was flying by him. He stopped and turned back to see Tatl next to Navi.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Jim asked, walking back to his fairy friends.
"W-Where's Link?" Tatl asked softly, hints of fear in her voice. Tael approached, flying up to his sister and wrapping his arm around her.
"He's... fighting the witches. I think... I'm sure he'll be fine!" Jim tried to keep his hopes up, but a part of him was also laden with fear. Link had told him that even if he didn't join them, once everything was set, blow it all to hell.
"We can't just leave him!" Tatl barked, trying to hide her fear with a false shield of anger.
"He said that by noon, no matter what, we blow it." Jim said, looking down at the floor with deep remorse. He wanted to join his friend in the fight that would rid the world of the evil, but a part of him said that it was Link's fight.
"Well... Then I'm joining him! I don't care what you all say!" Tatl's stubbornness was on full display. She was determined to be with her companion. He faced too much alone.
"Sis... are you completely sure?" Tael tried to talk some sense into his sister, but after getting a quick glance at her expression, he knew there'd be no reasoning with her.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine!" Tatl gave a wide smirk, but then noticed the saddened look on Navi's face. The white fairy flew over to her friend and held her hand.
"Hey..." Tatl started, almost in the exact same tone Navi would say her signature line. "I promise it'll be okay."
Tatl put her hand on Navi's cheek and smiled, looking into her navy-blue eyes. Before either could say a word, she leaned forward and kissed Navi on the lips. It was short, but it was the sweetest thing Navi ever experienced, and she was left with a noticeable blush on her cheeks. Everyone giggled at how speechless the fairy became at the display of affection, and Tatl darted away in search of her friend.
"Come on. Let's get outta here!" Jim's spunky tone helped lighten the mood, and Romani was the first to start sprinting off. What she was hiding, however, was that she too wanted to help.
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The ice magic sailed towards the Mirror Shield in a blinding flash. The pressure forced the hero backwards slightly, but the shield did it's job. Absorbing the magic, the sheen began to glow.
"RAAGH! DIE!" Twinrova's shrill voice echoed through infinity, even though she was in the same room as Link. She pointed her elemental staff at the hero and the fire side of her ignited.
The blazing magic flew through the air. Unfortunately, Link forgot about how exactly the Mirror Shield worked with deflecting such power. When the beam hit his defenses, the ice magic within dissipated, being replaced by the fire.
"Damn!" Link cursed himself. It'd been so long since he had battled the witches.
"Eheheheheee!" Twinrova's laughter sent a chill down Link's spine, but he readied the staff in his hands and waited for the witch to drew near. Once she did, he jumped, and was only able to graze her feet with the tip of the weapon.
"You'll have to try harder than that!" Twinrova mocked Link, twirling around playfully. The teen scoffed and kept focused.
Then, the fusion combined their staffs and casted a binding spell. It broke off into several streams of energy, floating down below the arena and surrounding the broken stone. When the tips of the tendrils were visible again, they held dozens, maybe hundreds of rocks, bricks, and rubble. There, they started throwing the ammunition, sending Link into a frenzy just to dodge it all.
Palm-sized stones flew straight into Link's torso, bruising his sides and making him groan. He fought through the pain and kept running about. Huge boulders attempted to squash him like a bug, and small pebbles rained down on him like hail.
When the stones finally let up, Link was hit point-blank in the chest by a surge of darkness. He flew back and sailed through the air for a moment before landing on the edge of the main platform roughly. He coughed and struggled to stand back up. Once he finally did, he got a good look at his chest. His tunic was singed, now a charcoal color and soaked in a bit of red. A terrible memory of his first battle with Gomess came back to him, and he shuddered.
"Link!" A voice came from the dark. The sound of an opening door was heard and then Tatl's light came into view.
"Tatl!" Link was relieved to see his friend. How she found them was a mystery, but knowing that the battle was likely loud, it couldn't have been too hard. "W-What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to help you, idiot!" Tatl barked, a little insulted by Link's cluelessness. Before she could continue, an ice spell finished charging and made its way towards Link. He had to absorb it with the Mirror Shield.
"A-Anyways, I thought it'd be best to join you for this! I was a part of your first adventure in Termina, after all!" Tatl's explanation was flimsy, but it was clear she simply wanted to be with him because she was worried. Link didn't share his thoughts, needing to focus on the battle.
"Your little friends just don't stop, do they?!" Twinrova roared, scowling at the addition. She powered up another ice blast, and this time, Link smiled.
The frigid magic was absorbed by the Mirror Shield again. It's glow grew in intensity, and it even started to vibrate in Link's arm. Another blast should let it reflect back, if he remembered correctly.
Twinrova, none the wiser, prepared to do the freezing power again. When it emerged from the staff and hit the Mirror Shield, Link started to close the distance between him and the fusion. The Mirror Shield couldn't hold the power any longer, and with an icy scream, it sent the magic back at the castor.
"Link! Now's your chance! Get her!" Tatl could tell Twinrova was stunned. She slumped down on one of the square platforms that circled the main arena, covered in frost.
Link wasted no time in jumping across the gap and swinging the staff in his hands. It beat Twinrova down in a furious passion, making her squeal in pain with every strike.
"Enough!" The fusion screamed, shoving Link aside and flying back up into the air. She struck a pose with her staffs and fired the blazing heat before even charging it. It was weak, but it was still absorbed by Link's shield.
Twinrova, knowing the magic would be deflected this time, decided to unfuse. Koume and Kotake, now separated, sailed around the arena in a dizzying motion, making Link's eyes go crossed.
"Heeya!" Koume yelled, pointing her wand towards Link. The searing beam reminded the boy of Majora's sun ray, and he decided to use the same strategy he had on the demon witch all those years ago.
Pointing the Mirror Shield towards Kotake, the heat pierced her skin and knocked her off her broom. She landed on the central platform, disgraced, and her sister became furious.
"Hey! How dare you?!" Koume shouted. She flew towards one of the boulders and used her wand to through it across straight at Link. He just barely got out of the way but was unable to stop Kotake from waking up and perching herself on her broom once more.
"Let's see how you like this!" Kotake shot an ice beam from her own wand, but purposefully kept it away from directly hitting Link. Instead, it struck the floor right next to the boy, and it sent an icy mass to grow across the floor. The magic froze Link's boots to the platform, and Koume was free to shoot her heat ray at him without problem.
Link's right arm was consumed by agony. Some of his skin burned and he fell over, his own weight making the ice around his boots to crack.
"Link! Are you alright?!" Tatl inspected her friend's wound with great worry, her voice unsteady.
Link grunted and forced his legs up, breaking the cracked ice with ease. He cared not about his wound, standing up and positioning the staff in front of himself as if nothing happened.
"I'm fine..." Link assured, smiling at Tatl. The fairy was a little shocked at how he brushed off the burn, but she didn't let it stop her from focusing back on the opponents.
"Will you please just GIVE UP?!" Kotake bellowed, shooting more ice magic at Link. Before he had a chance to react, he pointed the tip of the staff at the beam and the shiny, metallic surface of the weapon absorbed the blast, much to everyone's amazement.
"This works." Link commented, swinging the staff around and throwing at Koume. When it hit, she was encased in ice, the power draining from the weapon and into her.
"What the-" Kotake's wrath was unmatched. How could this stupid teenager be so clever? She groaned and flew down to her sister, tapping the ice with one finger. On command, it shattered, and Koume fell to the floor in a heap.
"Get up! Now!" Kotake's voice was hysterical, failing to even stay remotely calm.
"I'm up, I'm up!" Koume hissed, pushing her annoying sister away. She shook her head and reoriented herself. The two sisters flew high into the air and stared down at the hero in disgust.
Link and Tatl, just scowled, ready for whatever was coming next.
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"It's five past noon! What are you waiting for?" Bladon said to Jim. The boy in the red bandana kept motionless, gazing at the entrance. He didn't even realize he was stalling.
"Jim!" Romani waved her hand in front of Jim's face, and he finally snapped out of his trance.
"What?" Jim asked, confused.
Romani, the Gerudo, the Gorons, and the Hylian soldiers looked up to the sky. Jim's heart sank when he finally realized what time it was. He looked at the two Bombchus in front of him with dismay. Deep down, he wished Link was right there to ease his conscience and let the bombs loose.
"It's time! We have to do it!" Romani shook Jim's shoulder and her eyes pleaded with his. A mask of hesitance hid his face from the others, leaving him with shame. It had to be done.
"Uh..." Jim stuttered, his hands trembling. He knew he had no choice. He yearned for more time.
"...Fine." Jim finally said, covering his eyes with his short bangs. It didn't quite work as well as it did when Link did it, but the message was clear. He flipped the switches on the backs of the Bombchus and their behinds started to pulse red.
The Bombchus were off, scuttling directly towards the entrance of the Spirit Temple. When they disappeared behind the veil of darkness that obscured everyone's view of the inside, they waited.
The ground rumbled, and then it grew. The Bombchus collided with their targets and made the first bomb flower's go off. Then the next ones exploded. Then the next. All went off in a chain reaction and everything quaked.
The walls of the Spirit Temple were blown apart, the sounds of each blast flowing throughout the desert, carried by the wind. Everyone was a safe distance away, and they watched as it crumbled.
"Come on, Link. You've got this." Jim mumbled under his breath.
"I love you, Grasshopper." Romani said, holding her bow tightly. She used her thumb to caress the 'L + R' that was engraved in its side.
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Koume was about to fire another beam when she sensed the rumbling. She held her hand out and she and Kotake stopped fighting. Link, confused, looked up to Tatl, bewildered. Then, he knew why.
There were no bomb flowers planted in the arena in which they fought, but the eroded, mangled state the chamber was in only needed the slight vibrations of the distant explosions to start to crumble. Chunks of the ceiling fell, and the sunlight bled through the cracks and onto the fighters.
"We have to fuse! Quickly!" Kotake screamed desperately. She and Koume joined and were covered by a flash of light. Before they could be seen again, Link and Tatl's view of their opponents was obscured by more parts of the chamber being torn down.
"Get under me!" Link yelled to Tatl. She quickly flew underneath Link, and he raised his shield up to protect him and his friend from any falling debris. An enormous pressure forced him to his knees and blocked out the light.
Then everything went silent for a bit.
When the massive dust cloud settled, everyone got a great view of the ruins. Almost every inch of the Spirit Temple was either destroyed, on fire, or just a gargantuan pile of rubble. The statue of the Desert Colossus was no more, only a few structures still intact, like the arm and part of the face.
Romani, Jim, Navi, Tael, and Link the Goron all held their breath. They hoped that they'd see the familiar green of their friend.
"W-Where..." Romani refused to believe the worst. "Where is he?"
Her question was answered in the worst way. From the distant destruction, Twinrova plowed her way out of the pile of stone, an enraged scowl donning her face. She herself was looking around the debris, trying to find something.
"Ah ha!" Twinrova exclaimed, plunging her fist into a dislodged stone and pulling forth the bottle of Link's blood.
Meanwhile, Link slowly moved the boulder off of him. It was an agonizing effort, and it took nearly all of his strength to do so. Tatl was the first to fly out, going high up to try and spot both Twinrova and the others. The first one she saw was Twinrova.
"Ah!" Tatl yelped, avoiding one of the attempts to swat her out of the air.
"I'll squash you!" Twinrova yelled, trying to smash the fairy.
"U-Uhm... Link! I'll be right back! I promise!" Tatl flew off, hoping to find some friendly faces.
"Oh don't tell me..." Twinrova's voice was filled with annoyance. She searched around again, and finally spotted the hero trying to crawl away.
"YOU!" The fusion's voice was filled with unimaginable hatred. As Link grunted weakly, trying in vain to get away, he felt his legs being grabbed by two, sickeningly smooth hands.
Twinrova picked Link up and held him upside down. He dangled, helpless to fight back. His left leg was sprained, and the second degree burn on his arm was starting to catch up with him. He didn't try to take a swing at the witch, too exhausted to do anything.
"You could have had everything..." Twinrova whispered into Link's ear, before throwing him across the ruins with all her might. He was flung straight into a rock, cracking once he made impact.
Link groaned, unable to move. His whole body ached, and his muscles were tired. Still, that urge kept him going. The duty and responsibilities he adhered to. Slowly, and painfully, he sat up and stood from the rocks. Conveniently, the staff was just under a thin slate. Pulling it up and freeing it from the debris, he held it steady. Like many times before, he felt small when facing his enemy.
"They're over here!" Tatl's voice could he heard in the distance. Much of the dust had completely settled by now, letting the desert light shine on everything without hinderance.
"Grasshopper!" Romani cried, finally seeing her lover. Jim's heart was being torn, fighting the urge he had to go and help. However, he wasn't the first to start running towards the hero.
Romani was already a good way away, her goal being to help Link no matter what.
"Romani! Wait!" Jim called to the ranch woman. Reluctantly, she stopped and turned back to her friend. "He ordered us to let him finish it!"
"Stuff his orders!" Romani spat back, going back into her mad dash towards Link. Her words were all the motivation that Jim needed to start running too, prepared to help his best friend.
"Guys!" Link finally spotted his friends running towards him. He tried to wave them away, but he couldn't waste his energy. When they got to his side, he sighed deeply.
"Grasshopper, look at Romani." Romani's voice was as authoritative as ever. Link did as he was told, and for a second, he got lost in Romani's eyes.
"What did Romani tell you? Huh?" Romani held Link's hand tightly. "We face it all together. Whenever the sky begins to fall."
"We all do this. We're a little family, all of us." Jim said confidently, joining with his own hand. The smile he wore made Link want to just melt in his friend's arms, but he knew that it'd need to be saved for a better time.
"Hey! Don't forget us!" Navi and Tael shouted together, meeting up with the Terminians.
"You people disgust us!" Twinrova said, mocking the tender moment. All three teenagers just stared back at her. Seeing all their strong, confident eyes was startling. She floated backwards slightly, almost afraid.
"Isn't that what you've been missing, though?" Link shouted defiantly. "A family to call your own?"
Twinrova's widening eyes showed just how bloodshot they really were. They were deranged, insane, and lacked any morality. All that stormed on within the combined mind of the fusion was killing. They lusted for the moment where they could declare victory.
"It's what I was missing for a while." Link admitted tiredly. He smiled back at his friends and thought about his parents. "It does wonders for your mind."
"DIE!" Twinrova was sick of being read so easily by a foolish teenager and pointed one of her staffs at the group. As it fired, the team split up.
Tatl followed Link, Navi followed Romani, and Tael followed Jim. They remained coordinated, and when Link pulled out an ice arrow, he powered it up and broke the gem off and threw it to Jim.
"Remember last time?" Link was eager to recall when he fought Bellum alongside his friends.
"How could I forget?" Jim said casually, giving a cocky smirk. He stuck the gem right onto the hilt of his own sword and it became infused with the power of ice.
"Romani!" Link waved to his girlfriend. He retrieved a fire arrow and powered it up, throwing it over to her. She grabbed it off the ground and readied her bow. She had a feeling that Link wanted to get a hit in on the witch before she fired.
"GRAAAH!" Twinrova shot her ice magic at Link. He swung the staff at the spell connected right with the gleaming tip of the weapon, absorbing the magic. Before the fusion could do anything, she was struck with the ice.
Romani fired the flaming arrow right after Link hit Twinrova with the staff. The ice blew apart in an explosive manner and boiling heat surrounded the witch. She screamed, trying to put the flames in her hair out. Then, to add more to the attack, Jim slid under her legs and slashed them with his empowered sword, adding more crystalized water to the mix.
"That was great!" Link commended his friends for their synchronization. He truly thought there was nothing better by enacting a move together on an enemy with his friends.
"Watch out!" Tatl, Tael, and Navi chirped all at once, eyeing the boulder that came flying at them. The heroes got out of the way just in time, but Jim's boot got stuck.
"Waah! Link! Help!" Jim yelled.
"Hang on, I got you!" Link dropped his shield and raced over to Jim and held onto his hand, trying to pull him away from where he was trapped. Just as Jim's boot was freed, Link was struck with darkness, falling to the ground.
"Link!" Romani called him by his name, her voice breaking up. When the ranch woman saw the witch start charging the fire attack, one look at the Mirror Shield on the ground gave her an idea.
Romani scooped the shield up and fired an arrow at Twinrova to get her attention. She hid the shield behind her back and did her best to look helpless. With one loud cackle, the witch unleashed the fire. Romani defended with the shield, and it absorbed the magic. Them, she cocked her arm back and hurled the shield right into Twinrova's gut.
The fusion heaved, and the shield fell to the ground. Taking it, Romani ran back to Link and Jim.
"I believe this is yours, darling." Romani said lovingly as she handed him the shield, catching Link off guard. The little statement made him blush, and his heart swelled. He looked down at the item and was ready to absorb more magic as Twinrova came to her senses.
The fusion made sure Link never got the chance. Flying down low, she tackled the boy, dragging him across the ruins and slamming him into any debris that was big enough to truly hurt him.
"Will you ever just DIE?!" Twinrova's voice was difficult to understand. Rage and hatred welled up in her throat and it made her almost unrecognizable to the ears. She found a suitable, sturdy rock and started to smash Link down onto it repeatedly.
"Grasshopper!" Romani cried.
"Link! Hang on!" Jim yelled, as he and Romani raced to help.
Twinrova slammed Link down on the stone one final time and started to use her bare fists and clobber him. Then, without thinking, she pulled out the bottle of Link's blood she had hidden and smashed it over his head. The fusion didn't even care that the plan was ruined, and she grabbed his left leg and exerted so much force that the sprain evolved into a snap. Link yelled in agony as his limb was folded like paper.
Twinrova's face contorted into a gleeful grin. More punches and strikes were laid down on the hero and blood splattered everywhere. He groans became weak sputters as he started to lose the battle. Letting up her flurry, the witch watched as Link pathetically crumpled to the ground and tried to get up again. He whimpered, and seeing him so beaten was amusing to the fusion. Then, a blue light surrounded him, and everything started to change. His broken leg repaired itself, his body broadened, and shining, silver armor formed. A familiar war paint appeared on his face.
However, it was different. The color of the fabric wasn't a pale blue, but a brilliant green, just like his tunic. Link's hair remained gold and silver, and his pupils didn't vanish. The Gilded Sword didn't change, still strapped to his back. No double-helix blade, no moon insignia, nothing. In their places were hearts.
"What..." Twinrova muttered with fear, gazing upon Link in his new, bizarre form. "What are you?"
Link stood, feeling the energy course through his veins. He, by some, divine miracle, was granted absolute, unlimited power. A part of his mind knew it was far from permanent, but he inwardly thanked the Fierce Deity for watching over him, even after all he'd done. He stared at his own hands, astonished at this amazing gift. He promised himself he wouldn't waste it.
Link said nothing. Instead, he extended his hand, and the replica of Skull Kid's staff flew into his grip. His other hand reached back for the Gilded Sword, and together, he swung both weapons.
The power and force split the fusion, and Koume and Kotake went flying. They crashed into the ruins just in front of Romani, Jim, and the fairies, still alive.
"Guys!" Link jumped over to his friends. In just one leap, he landed before them and held the staff. "I'm going to need your help."
"H-Huh?" Romani gasped, still a little shocked at Link's form. A part of her swooned at the sight.
"Trust me, only you guys have the power to help, I know it." Link replied. Their undying love was something he considered powerful. His friends looked at the staff and hesitantly grasped it. They could feel the godly power.
More energy surged, and the three slammed the staff down onto the ground. Everything was covered with a blinding green light, and the energy emitted from the act finally defeated the witches.
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Minutes later, everything calmed down. The clouds parted, and the bodies of Koume and Kotake were nowhere to be seen. Link was back to normal, and the horrendous pain of his mortal form followed. He tried to take a step, but his leg wobbled.
"Link! Are you alright?!" Romani caught Link just before he could collapse. He huffed, trying to catch his breath.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine..." Link wheezed, voice weak. He tried not to put pressure on his broken limb.
"WE'RE NOT DONE YET!" A voice shrieked. Startled, the group looked up and saw the spirits of the witches try and lunge at them. They sailed right through.
"No! We can't be dead! We still have so much to do!" Kotake refused to believe what was right before her eyes. Her hands tried to scratch at Jim, but to no avail.
"We'll be back to haunt you!" Koume yelled. Her statement couldn't be more wrong.
Suddenly, the spirits of the damned plowed through the ground. Hands latched onto Koume and Kotake's spirits, dragging them down into the depths. Link, Romani, Jim, and the fairies watched, speechless, as the souls of the witches were brought down into the darkest pits of chaos. The hole in the ground closed just as the screams of the witches faded away into obscurity. The replica of Skull Kid's staff vanished, signaling the end of their magic.
The six friends shared looks. They didn't know what to think of what they just saw, but what they did know was that they were beyond tired.
"Hey! You're alright!" Link the Goron's voice came from the distance. He rolled through the rubble and uncurled when he got in front of the group.
"Y-Yeah... We made it." Link responded, putting his arms around his friends.
"There they are!" A voice called. It was Kyojin! Seconds after the voice was heard, the Gerudo trio ran up and embraced the heroes.
Soon enough, the rest of the Hylian soldiers and Goron's met up with them, and they all began to celebrate. The madness was finally over. They could rest.