Soooo sorry I took so long, guys! Here's chapter 10, just for you! As usual, please read, review and enjoy!

P.S. I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Legend of Zelda.

Sora, Link and Sheik made their way up the mountain path until they reached the ledge they had passed before. Climbing to the top of the ledge, this time Sora could plainly see the tough-looking creature called a Goron.

And the Goron saw him too, apparently. "Ho! A strange human! What business have you with the Gorons?"

"Worry not, Brother," Sheik piped up, suddenly appearing behind the Keybearer. "He is with us."

The Goron's black eyes seemed to light up. "Ah, Brother Sheik! And Brother Link, as well. Good to see you both!"

"'Brother?'" Sora asked Sheik with a confused look.

"All Gorons are male and consider each other brothers, so they address each other as such. It simply means that like Link, I managed to earn the Gorons' respect," she explained before lowering her voice. "Also, there is really no use trying to correct them."

"I see," Sora muttered before facing the Goron once again. "I'm Sora, it's nice to meet you!"

"And you as well!" the Goron said, bowing his head before addressing Link and Sheik. "Gor Coron will be pleased to see you, Brothers. He is at the top of the mountain."

"Gor Coron?" Link asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Shouldn't that be Darbus? Unless…"

"The elder will explain," the Goron told him. "Be careful, strange creatures have been appearing around the mountain."

"Don't worry, we will," Sora said reassuringly before they began making their way up the mountain.

Link's expression became one of concern. "Darbus is the tribe's patriarch; something must have happened to him for Gor Coron to take his place."

"Perhaps he got stuck in the mines and cursed again?" Midna jokingly suggested.

"Let us hope that is not the case," Sheik replied.

Halfway down the path, a few fireballs were shot in the group's direction. Looking around, Sora spotted a few Heartless known as Red Nocturnes floating above them. "Heads up!"

Link quickly held up his shield to deflect the fire while Sheik ran ahead and leapt into the air. She then disappeared in a puff of smoke before reappearing behind one of the Heartless and stabbing it with her sword. "Link!" she shouted as she kicked a second Nocturne towards him.

The young hero timed the swing of his sword perfectly in order to hit the Heartless, cutting it cleanly in two.

Sora, on the other hand, used his Blizzard spell to create a chunk of ice and send it slicing right through the remaining Red Nocturne. "Boy, that Goron wasn't kidding," he commented to the others.

"We'd better keep an eye out for more," Link said with a nod as he returned the sword and shield to his back.

Luckily, they made it to the top of Death Mountain without any other interruptions. However, there seemed to be a slight rumbling and fiery rocks were falling toward the ground. "What the?! Is Death Mountain a volcano?"

"I suppose we did forget to mention tha- Incoming!" Sheik cut herself off as the three of them jumped away to avoid one of the rocks.

"That's odd, the last time this happened was one year ago," Link commented as he stood up.

Midna suddenly came out of Link's shadow. "Sounds like I may have been right, after all. I can feel some of my power close by… quite possibly in the mines."

"Oh no…" Link muttered as a couple of Gorons approached them.

"Are you all right, Brothers?" one of them asked.

"We are fine, thank you," Sheik replied. "How long has this been going on?"

"Since our patriarch went into the mines and did not come out," the other one told her, gesturing towards a metal-lined opening in the rock face. "Gor Coron can explain."

Sora then noticed that getting up to Gor Coron wasn't going to be easy; aside from falling rocks being an additional danger, the cliffs and metal platforms that led to the elder seemed inaccessible. "How do we get up there?"

"We will help you," the first Goron answered before leading them over to one of the cliffs. He then curled up into a ball, allowing Link to climb onto his back.

"Watch carefully, Sora," Link instructed before the Goron suddenly uncurled, flinging the young hero up to the next level. "You get it?" he called down.

"Got it!" the brunette replied before approaching the Goron. Within seconds, he too was shot up into the air and he landed right next to Link.

Sheik soon joined them, and they continued their way up. They ran into the occasional steam spout, but Sora and Sheik were able to jump over them while Link stomped right through them while wearing the Iron Boots. "Huh, I guess you can walk in those things," Sora commented.

"It's not easy, but yes," Link said as he hopped out of the boots and gave them back to Midna.

With the Gorons' help, the party soon made their way to the chamber, where a shorter Goron with purple markings awaited them. "Ah, Brothers Link and Sheik. It is good of you to come."

"It's good to see you too," Link said with a small smile.

"And who might this little human be?" the elder asked, noticing the Keybearer accompanying them.

Little? Sora thought irritably before quickly composing himself. "I'm Sora, a warrior from… very far away."

"I am called Gor Coron," the elder Goron said. "In place of our patriarch Darbus, I am leading the tribe."

"We heard about Darbus," Sheik told him. "What made him go into the mines? Was it Death Mountain's activity?"

Nodding, Gor Coron replied, "But not just that. The mountain was angered to be sure, but we also received word of a hooded figure near our mines. Under normal circumstances, outsiders are not permitted inside, as they are our sacred grounds. Darbus did not want harm to befall his brothers, so he entered the mines himself… but he never returned. Since then, the eruptions have become more frequent, much like the events of last year."

"A hooded figure?" Link muttered, recalling Sheik's story.

"We have to help him!" Sora piped up suddenly. "That hooded figure might be in there with him!"

"Sora!" Sheik said sternly, whipping around to face the boy. "Be respectful!"

"Stand down, Brother Sheik, it is fine," Gor Coron said, and Sheik backed off. Addressing the young Keybearer, he told him, "You have quite the fire within you, young one. It reminds me of Brother Link when he first approached me. Very well; since you are a friend of my Brothers, I will allow you to enter the mines with them. On behalf of my entire clan, I ask you three… go to the aid of Darbus!"

"It will be our honor, Gor Coron," Link replied.

"We will ensure the patriarch's safety," Sheik added with a bow of her head.

With a nod, Gor Coron turned to the two guards who were standing behind him. "You two! Allow them to pass." And just like that, the guards moved aside, and the small group took off for the mines.

If Sora thought it was warm outside, the heat inside the mines was sweltering due to the many pools of lava. Some of the molten rock occasionally shot up due to the mountain's eruptions, and there were several metal structures littering the area.

"Aw man, and I thought deserts were hot," the boy muttered, wiping his already-sweaty forehead.

"Well what did you expect? We're in a volcano, after all," Midna commented from within Link's shadow.

"Leave him alone, Midna," Link told her before he leapt onto a rock platform in the lava pool. Sheik and Sora quickly followed suit, leaping across using the rock platforms until they reached the other side.

As they began making their way through the metal structures, Sora was suddenly glad he was wearing gloves as the metal was hot to the touch. He wondered how Sheik was handling it, as the only coverings on her hands and feet were bandages on her fingers and thin padded shoes. She did pause when they reached a ladder, but only to wrap some additional bandages around the palms of her hands before she climbed up.

After a while, they reached a room with a magnetic ceiling. "I know how I'm getting across, but what about you two?" Link asked the others.

"Well I should be able to glide over there," Sora said after thinking for a minute.

"Glide? As in fly?" Midna asked skeptically, popping out of Link's shadow. "Surely even a Keybearer has his limits."

Determined to prove the Twilight Princess wrong, Sora ran forward and before either Link or Sheik could stop him, he launched himself off the platform. Spreading his arms out, the boy activated his Glide ability and effortlessly flew to the next platform.

"Wow…" Link muttered in amazement. He then shook his head and looked over at Sheik. "And you, Sheik?"

"Do not worry about me, I can teleport my way over," the woman replied before vanishing in a puff of smoke. She reappeared halfway before disappearing again and showing up next to a startled Sora.

Now it was Link's turn. Getting back into the Iron Boots, he then stomped down on a heavy switch before being yanked up to the ceiling by a strong magnetic force. He stomped his way across before finally slipping out of the boots landing next to the rest of the party.

"Okay, that was pretty cool," Sora said, clearly impressed by the Iron Boots.

"Same with your gliding," Link replied. "Why didn't you do that back in the Forest Temple?"

Shrugging, the brunette answered, "I dunno. Swinging on monkeys was so much fun, I guess it didn't occur to me."

Chuckling, the young hero said, "Ha ha, okay you've got a point there."

Letting out a soft sigh, Sheik got the boys' attention. "Let us move on, shall we?"

After some more wondering, Sora suddenly noticed that someone was missing. "Uh, Link? Where did Sheik go?"

"I thought she was behind you," Link answered as he opened a door.

"I noticed her slip away a while ago," Midna piped up. "I wonder where she could have gone."

"And you're just telling us now?" Sora asked, getting more and more annoyed with the snarky imp.

Before the conversation could go any further, they were attacked by Red Nocturnes and they had to hide behind a wall to avoid the fireballs. Sora fired off a couple of Blizzard spells which got rid of three of them, but there wasn't much else he could do without using up his mana. "We're pinned down! Now what?" the Keybearer shouted, looking at Link for any ideas.

Suddenly, an arrow flew through the air and hit one of the Heartless. Looking in the direction the arrow came from, Link spotted Sheik standing there with a bow in her hand. "I thought you might need this," she said, rushing over and handing the bow to Link along with a quiver of arrows.

You got the Hero's Bow!

"Thanks!" Link said as he slung the quiver onto his back, then quickly nocked an arrow. He and Sora then came out of hiding and he shot one of the Nocturnes right between the eyes. The hero then grabbed a second arrow and quickly pulled back and fired, hitting another enemy. Another quick shot later, and the remaining Heartless fell and disappeared.

"Nice shooting!" Sora complimented.

Handing the bow off to Midna, Link said with a smile, "Thanks. Feels good having the Hero's Bow back." The blonde then turned to Sheik. "That was a pretty good shot back there. Have you used a bow before?"

The Nobody's eyes glanced off to the side. "I do not know. But… it seemed very natural, so I suppose I have." Almost absentmindedly, she started rubbing her right temple as she spoke.

"Is something wrong?" Sora asked, a little concerned about his companion.

Shaking her head, Sheik replied, "I am fine, it is only a slight headache."

"Do you need to rest?" Link questioned, placing a hand on the young woman's shoulder.

"No," she answered almost immediately. "I appreciate your concern, you two, but the faster we find Darbus, the sooner we can get out of this heat." And with that, she walked on ahead.

The party managed to fight their way through several Soldier Heartless before finally reaching the large door where Darbus likely was. Thanks to the Keyblade, Sora was able to unlock the door easily, and they went in.

Once they walked into the dimly-lit room, the door slammed shut behind them. Before the party stood a large, black humanoid monster whose wrists and ankles were bound to the ceiling and floor with chains. "Oh gods…" Link whispered as he stared up at the creature. "Don't tell me…"

"Is that Darbus?" Sora asked, keeping his voice low so the monster wouldn't wake up. "What happened to him?"

"If I had to guess, the hooded figure infected him with my power over the Twilight," Midna said. "He's no longer Darbus, but Fyrus now."

"The only way to free him from the Twilight is to defeat him in battle," Link explained as he reached for his bow. But before anything else happened, Sheik let out a sharp gasp and started rubbing her forehead. "Sheik? What's wrong?"

"Head hurts…" she muttered, glancing past Fyrus. Barely visible in the shadows was a tall figure in a black hooded cloak, his face completely hidden. "It is him… the man I saw before…" Sheik whispered, her red eyes wide.

The man held up one hand before snapping his fingers, and a second later the crystal on Fyrus' forehead glowed. Now awake, the monster roared at the party while lighting his entire body on fire! "Uh guys? I suggest you come up with a strategy and fast!" Midna said before quickly ducking into Link's shadow.

As Fyrus began tugging at his chains, Link spoke quickly. "Okay, we need to stun him first. Sheik, think you can hit that crystal with your needles?"

"You doubt my skill?" Sheik replied with a spark of confidence in her eyes.

"I'll take that as a yes," Link said. "I'll don the Iron Boots and grab one of the chains on his feet to make him fall over. Once he's down, I'll need Sora to be ready to hit that crystal. Keyblade, magic, whatever works."

"Leave it to me!" Sora said just as Fyrus broke free of his chains. Letting out a terrifying roar, the creature stomped toward the party and the three promptly split up.

Sheik ducked to avoid one of the chains as it was whipped at her before conjuring up three needles in her hand. She then threw them with incredible precision, all three of them hitting the crystal and stunning Fyrus.

Link took that as his cue to dash for the magnetic floor. Donning the Iron Boots, the young hero grabbed a chain and tugged with all his strength, sending the surprised monster to the ground. "Sora, now!"

"I'm on it!" Keyblade in hand, Sora rushed up and landed a solid hit on Fyrus' crystal. The creature pulled away with a howl of pain and before long he was back on his feet, spewing fire at the Keybearer. "Shield!" Sora shouted, quickly using his Reflect spell to protect himself with a barrier of light. The minute the fire hit the barrier, a burst of light was sent right back at Fyrus, blinding him for a second and sending him stumbling into the wall.

Sheik took this opportunity to move in, her needles ready, and once again she scored a direct hit, but wasn't able to dodge the swinging chain.

"Sheik!" Sora cried as the Nobody slammed into the wall. After sending her a quick Cure spell, he looked over at the young hero. "Link, let's switch up!" Being stronger than he looked, the Keybearer was able to pull hard on Fyrus' chain even without the Iron Boots.

Nodding, Link drew his sword and ran in front of the monster just as he hit the ground. The blonde struck the crystal, and once again Fyrus reeled back. "Once more, and he'll be finished!"

Sheik rejoined the boys just in time for a wall of fire to appear between them and Fyrus. "Grrr, my needles will not make it through those flames!" the woman growled as they shielded their faces against the heat.

Sora's eyes suddenly lit up. "Sheik, think fast!"

Ice Ball Slam

Sheik's fast reflexes allowed her to catch the large ice ball created by Sora's Blizzard spell. Realizing what the boy had in mind, Sheik willed herself to teleport to the top of Fyrus' head, his metal face plate inadvertently protecting her from his flaming body. Then as she leapt off, the woman slammed the ice ball onto the crystal, and this time it was more than enough to send the creature reeling before it fell to the ground. "Now!"

Link and Sora prepared their respective blades and each landed a blow to the crystal, barely missing each other as their paths crossed.

Thrashing about in agony, the room brightened as Fyrus let out a final roar before the crystal exploded. The monster then burst into many Twilight shards, and Midna came out of Link's shadow as they shot toward her, becoming absorbed by the Twilight Princess and restoring more of her power.

The hooded figure grimaced before opening a Corridor of Darkness, leaving the mines for good. This was witnessed by Sheik, and she relaxed as the pain in her head went away. She silently cursed herself for letting him slip away, but right now there were more important things to take care of.

Link rushed over to Darbus, who had collapsed once the Twilight had left him. "Darbus! Darbus, are you alright?"

The large Goron leader cringed before opening his eyes to see the Hylian. "Wha… what happened? Brother Link… is that you? I can't remember a thing…"

"Don't worry, everything's okay," Link assured him with a small smile.

Sora breathed a sigh of relief, glad that everything went well and the Goron patriarch was safe. Glancing back at Sheik, he said, "Guess we better head back, huh?"

Nodding, the Nobody told him, "We can leave Darbus here for now. Once he recovers, he can find his way out with no problems."

"In that case, let's be on our way," Midna piped up before teleporting herself, Link, Sora and Sheik out of the Goron Mines. In the back of her mind, the imp wondered who that man in the black cloak was, and why his aura seemed so familiar.