Standing amongst the vile army, the great brute turned his head almost lazily upon hearing the echoing battle cry. A band of warriors, no more than ten, rushed towards him and his wall of expendable flesh. The sight made him smile. Although the band was small in number, they were organized and clearly skilled in magic and weapon of choice. He could see a flash of green among all the grays and blacks and blues. That made him smile wider. Perhaps today, a day of near night, would be more entertaining than he could ever have imagined. Perhaps he could have some fun.
"King, what should we do about them? There are more scattered about the fields. Do we attack?" a bulblin bowed before him and asked in the scratchy demented language of its kind.
"Yes, show them no mercy. Half of you begin advancing on the castle. The other half with me. But don't touch the green one if you value your life. He is mine. It is time for a rematch," the king howled in the same tongue, raising his head to the sorrowful sky and screaming in anticipation. Indeed, this would be more fun than he'd had in ages.
With a sweep of his icky green hand, his army rushed forward. The Twili resistance wouldn't last long. The king was certain of that. Neither would the hero, not after the king was done with him. Never would the green one be forgiven for the destruction of the king's beautiful horns. Once reaching sharp tipped points high above his head, now they were cut short in awkward stumps. His mother would have said that's what he gets for following the same path as his wretched father, but the king knew the truth. That is what he gets for underestimating the tiny Hylian. Never again.
King Bulblin laughed as he joined the chaos. He swung his giant sword and heavy axe with lazy precision. Anyone who got too close, even one of his own, met a bloody death. Screams followed him like a shadow. Death walked in his wake. His home was the battlefield and he wasn't about to welcome any of the Twili to it with open arms.
"They're coming from the castle, we've been cornered!" a monster screamed. So that's the game the Twili were playing? But with numbers spread so thin, did they not realize how easy it would be to end them? Whatever their plans, the king was done wasting time.
He changed the direction of his swing, catching a Twili on the shoulder instead of across the neck. Her screams were pitiful as she crumbled to the ground, blue blood soaking through the clothes she wore. Her sword was raised weakly to defend herself in case he tried to attack again, but he sheathed his sword. Her own sword was easily pushed aside as the king grabbed her by that injured shoulder, nails digging into her flesh. Her feet lifted off the ground, her cries increased in volume.
"Could you scream louder, shadow one?"
"Not if that's what you want, foul one!" she spat amid a stream of profanities. The king laughed. A small but sharp pain exploded from his arm. Her bloodied sword was held tightly in her hand and now a deep wound marred his once perfect skin. He tightened his grip and she gasped in pain, screaming once more.
"Foolish green one! I will pull the limbs from this shadowed one and make her watch as I eat her flesh. Unless you show yourself and battle," the king screamed, his voice rising above the mess of battle cries. It was a foolproof plan. The green one was a hero and heroes can't let others die in their stead. It is against their code. A code embedded in their very nature and woven into their beastly spirits.
Something was going on by the edge of the fields, something splashing water up into the air in artful fountains. Were the Twili warriors truly smart enough to think of backup?
"King Bulblin! Release her!" The green one drew the king back from his thoughts. This was the moment he'd been waiting for, the moment that made all this careful plotting worth it.
"I have waited long to see you again." He savored each and every word. The green one in front of him was already splattered with blood. His hair clumped with sweat. He stood gingerly, red soaked pant leg suggesting an injury. Sword and shield raised and ready for battle. Could this dayless day get any better?
"Let her go," the green one spoke through gritted teeth. "It's me you want, so let her go."
King Bulblin shrugged and tossed the Twili aside. He didn't need her anymore. Her scream stopped when she landed, maybe she'd gotten lucky and died. Not that he cared.
"That was uncalled for." The Hylian shook with rage and adjusted the grip on his sword. It didn't even seem like he'd know the Twili, yet now he was going to die avenging her. Heroes are so weird. Could it truly be this easy?
The king shrugged again, drew his sword and took a swing. Link blocked and attacked.
So the dance began. A blow here, a block there. A stab, maybe even a little jab. It was all fair in this battle. All fair till it wasn't. Since maybe, just maybe, the king had a few tricks up his sleeve this time.
Taping a rune etched onto the wooden handle of his axe with a stubby finger, the king took another swing. The green one blocked with his metal shield. It was normally a smart move, but normal is something forbidden under the light of the shadow eclipse. His shield shattered on impact, splintering with such a force that the green one stumbled back. Shining metal stuck from his soft bloody flesh and his shield was less than useless now. A small scream burst from the hero's lips as he came to comprehend what had happened. What it meant. The immense pain he was sure to feel and the crushing weight of dread. The knowledge that his end was drawing nearer.
"Are you still the strongest side?" the king taunted, a wicked smile tainting his face.
"What do you mean?" The hero's voice was shaky, but the hand that held his blade was steady and sure. So steady and sure that he didn't need to wait any longer to recover and went in for the kill. His blade sliced a jagged line across the king's chest. The attack wasn't deep enough to kill the king, only weaken and anger him.
The king threw his axe aside, hitting someone in the back of the head with a thud. He hardly noticed it as he swung his sword wide. Unblockable, at least without a shield. Yet the hero managed it. As the sword came slashing down towards him, he used his injured right hand to grab a dagger from a pouch on his belt. With that, he used both the sword and the dagger to stop the death blow.
"You've cheated," the king snarled, putting more pressure, more power, into his attack.
The hero did not reply. His brow was knitted in concentration. Sweat dripped down his face. The king's sword was gaining ground, weakening the green one's carefully constructed block. The hero was going to lose. He was tiring, he was failing. He was going to die. But he couldn't die, not yet.
Begrudgingly, King Bulblin changed the direction of his sword. It caught the hero off guard. His right arm, already having sacrificed so much in this battle, weakened and was pushed back. The tip of the dagger grazed the hero's shoulder, steadily pushing deeper in. The hero could do nothing, to move the dagger would mean allowing the king's sword to kill him. What a wonderful thing, to watch your enemy destroyed by his own hand. The king savored every second of it.
"Maybe you were never strong. Maybe it was always just luck." The king stalked closer to Link, keeping his sword locked in place. He was close enough to hear the green one's labored breaths and see the fury burning in his raging sea blue eyes. He was close enough that the hero could have stabbed him with a small movement. But the hero couldn't, he was pinned in place. His stance was swayed and weak, how long would he be able to keep this up? He was too determined to give up, that was clear. Yet his strength was quickly fading, he didn't stand a chance. He'd been stupidly lured into a trap, had he ever stood a chance?
King Bulblin quickly brought the hilt of his sword down on top of the hero's head. It took less than a second, yet in that time the hero had managed to stab his sword deep into the king's side. The green one fell, blood flowing from a wound on his head. It glowed bright in the light. Strange, right? Or was it normal for Hylian blood to glow during the shadow eclipse?
King Bulblin shrugged and removed the hero's sword from his side. It was painful, but the sword was wonderful. Stunning, with blue wings at the handle. A heroic design. Fitting. Maybe he'd keep it, or perhaps it would be of some use. He grabbed the hero by a limp arm. Three triangles shined with brilliance at the wrist, an odd tattoo he could have sworn he'd seen on someone else before. The mark stung when it came into contact with his scaly green skin. He avoided it as he dragged the hero behind him.
Maybe, if he was lucky, this shadowed day would stay good. Maybe he'd be allowed to witness the green one's demise. Once again, a wicked smile twisted his lips.