Dark Link and Master Kanto arrived back at the hideout. Kanto continued to limp on his left leg. While journeying back, he had ripped part of his red sleeve off and used it to tie his leg. Now he was in the process of tying the cut on his back.

Yet, despite all the pain he felt from his injuries, there was a different pain he felt. It felt like it came from inside... an internal pain... as if it came from his soul.

He followed Dark through the empty hideout as he thought about what this pain might mean. He searched his mind and tried to find the cause. Perhaps it was because their army was being overpowered as they walked. Or maybe it was the thought that they might, in fact, lose.

Or was it the boy?

The boy he had seen at the stable, the one who had become a Yiga without him even knowing it, the one who appeared to him today.

"I have found myself."

His words echoed in his mind. It was the very thing Kanto had set out to do. That boy didn't even know what he was talking about back then. Yet somehow, he had found who he was.

"Have you?"

The question lingered in his mind as they continued walking. He was the leader of the Yiga. He had led his people to battle and had inspired them.

And now they were getting destroyed.

Had he really inspired them? Or even lead them? He was "Master" Kanto, of course, but it was Dark who organized everything. Dark had spent days alone in the chamber figuring everything out... getting inspired by Ganon, he had said.

So who was Kanto? Did he know who he was?

"Have I really found myself?" he whispered to himself.

"You say something?" Dark said over his shoulder.

"Yeah," Kanto began to lie. "Where exactly are we going?"

"The chamber where you tried to kill Link the first time," he answered. "It's time to put the final piece into the puzzle."

—————

Link and the group quietly entered the hideout. Their steps were as silent as possible while walking through the dark hideout. Sheik held up his hands.

"Hold on."

He crouched and teleported away. They all waited a few moments before he came back.

"There's no one here," he announced.

"What?" Paya asked.

"What about the new Master?" Zelda asked. "Or Dark Link?"

"If they're here then they're somewhere I don't know about."

They pressed on, looking for the pair they needed to face. They wandered the abandoned hideout. Link kept his sword drawn in case they appeared anywhere. Zelda walked closely next to him.

Sheik and Paya trailed close behind. Paya still held the dagger that Sheik had given her, although she hadn't used it yet. In all honesty, she didn't really know how to use one. She was terrified.

They were all terrified.

They entered the main room of the hideout. Completely empty, no one to be seen. Link, Zelda and Paya walked in, but Sheik stayed standing at the doorway. Link walked back to him.

"You doing alright?"

Sheik shook his head. "The memories are coming back, Link. What I did, what they did to me, the lives I..." A pause. He quickly cleared his throat and shook it off.

"Actually, I'm fine, Link. Really."

Paya put her hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to do this."

Sheik shook his head. "No, I'm ok."

Link nodded. "Alright. Come on."

They all continued on. Everyone was alert for what could happen.

After a few moments Link grunted.

"They've got to be here," Link frustratedly said. "Are you sure there's nowhere else they could be?"

Sheik thought. "I'm not sure. I think we've been everywh—"

The sound of a metal door opening echoed off the walls. It creaked and groaned until it stopped, and all was silent again.

"Of course," Sheik whispered. He motioned the group to follow him.

They went down a long maze of hallways passing room after room. Link had no idea this part of the hideout even existed. It looked like it might've been where all the members lived. They continued to pass by every room going deeper and deeper into darkness. They turned the corner and found themselves at an even longer hallway. On one side of the hallway was an opening with two torches on each side.

"This is where they tried to kill you," Sheik said to Link. As they approached they could hear people talking.

"They're in there for sure," Sheik said.

The four sidled against the wall towards the door. The voices grew louder as they approached it.

"Why are we here?" asked Kanto.

Dark went around with a torch, and went around lighting all the others on the wall. They emitted a flickering dim light that was bright enough for them to see each other.

"Dark," Kanto said again. "Why are we here?"

Dark dropped the torch on the sandstone floor. He held his dark gray hand in front of him.

"It's time to make things right," he said.

He took a deep breath in and closed his eyes. Then, he simply clenched his fist.

—————-

The battle waged on out in the Gerudo Desert. The Champions and the Gerudo Army fought valiantly against the Yiga Clan. The battle hadn't slowed down at all since Link and the rest of them had left.

Sidon had caught a look at a blademaster that was huffing towards him. Sidon hastily took out his spear. The blademaster vanished in a cloud of smoke and reappeared in front of Sidon. He raised his windcleaver high and brought it down. Sidon caught it with his spear and tried to fling it away, but the blademaster pushed harder on his spear. It began to slip in his sweaty hands. Sidon gripped tighter, but that only made his hands burn as the metal continued to slip.

The blade was a foot away from Sidon's face. He clenched his sharp teeth and tried to grip harder again.

Then, the blademaster's grip loosened, and the sword dropped to the sand. His head shook violently and he, too, dropped to the floor. His arms and legs twitched before his body went completely still. Sidon stood shocked.

Teba flew above the battlefield and saw that every single Yiga on the desert were now laying on the desert floor, twitching, then going still. He flew down next to Sidon as Yunobo and Riju ran up behind him.

"What's happening?" Riju asked.

Teba approached the blademaster. He knelt down and slowly took off his mask. They all gasped.

The Yiga's face was covered in malice. It looked to be coming from behind his ear and it swirled around the face. The arm continued to occasionally twitch.

"What is that?" Sidon asked.

Teba looked up. "He's dead," he answered gravely.

He was dead.

They were all dead.

Every single member of the Yiga Clan was dead.

—————

Dark Link unclenched his fist and looked at Master Kanto in the eyes.

"What was that?" asked Kanto.

"I have just cleansed your people, Master." A bit of sarcasm hung at the end of his statement.

"What are you talking about?" Kanto stammered. He then felt an extremely sharp pain in the back of his ear. He screamed loudly and dropped to his knees. After a second, the pain subsided. He looked up at Dark Link.

"That's just a small amount of what I could do to you," he said coldly. Kanto then realized what Dark had done.

"You killed them all," he said in disbelief.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I never needed you. I never needed any of you. The Yiga Clan was merely a way to make things easier for me."

Kanto stood up. "Wh... what?"

"Have you not caught on?" Dark shook his head. "I planned to use the clan to help me come back and take over the kingdom, but seeing what it had become... weak, without purpose... I knew I had to end you all for me to succeed."

"What!" Kanto yelled. "You used us? You used innocent lives for your return?"

Dark laughed. "Why in Hyrule are you accusing me of killing innocent people? You have mindlessly slaughtered people, too. Don't you remember Ghrange, you fool?"

Kanto gripped his right arm—where Ghrange had left scars as he tried to not fall down.

"What about him, huh? Or the opposers you allowed me to slaughter? What about your own parents?"

Kanto could feel himself changing inside. He looked at Dark Link with furious eyes.

"That's not who I am!" He screamed.

Vallail huffed and began to feel tears come up into his eyes. "That's not who I am," he choked.

Dark sighed. "I can't stand this," he grumbled. His hand bolted to Kanto's neck and held him, dangling his body over the floor.

"What's going on?" Link whispered.

"I'll see." Sheik carefully poked his head around the doorway.

"You are a joke," Dark snarled. "I should've dragged you into that pit with everyone else."

Kanto simply cried through shortened breaths. He had finally found himself.

But it was too late.

"Pathetic."

Trails of dark smoke emanated from Dark's body. He tightened his hand around Vallail's neck, slowly feeling more and more cracks and pops. Dark began to growl as he squeezed tighter and tighter. Then, with all the rage he possessed, he screamed, and malice exploded everywhere from his body. It painted the walls, dripped from the ceiling, and paved the floor.

Sheik watched as the body that Dark Link held disappeared, he watched as the malice erupted from his body, and he watched as the exploding malice shot straight into his own face.