The collab team is back again! And we've got a few reviewers to thank! That's ShadowNinja1011, CreCra, Neez, slamajama97, ButterflyBabyBlue, Hanyoualchemist1, awesomeGanondorg, and TheSunsetWolf!
Kudos to my amazing collab partners PrincesscharmingKnight and Franne!
This chapter is told from my OC, Callia's, POV!
Darkness is already beginning to cover the surface, and we're trying to figure out how to get back home. Night is falling over this strange wooded land, turning the lush paradise into a creepy nightmare. I can hear the loud shrieks of Bokoblins as they shout demands to each other. Bats click and squawk as they try to find a comfortable perch, and in the far distance, the howls of wild animals ring through the evening.
The land that once seemed so beautiful and entrancing to me is hurriedly turning into a shadowed wilderness. The more I look around me, the more I begin to panic. I miss the comfort and serenity of Skyloft… Sure, there were a couple of monsters around after dark, but it's nothing compared to what we've seen today. I want my own bed, I want my old school. Heck, I'm even begging to miss the likes of Groose and his cronies.
I feel like the whole world is turning against me as I hurriedly scan through the pages of the old texts that I brought with me here. There must be some kind of clue, some kind of hint as to how we can get home. We can't stay here all night… who knows what would happen to us? Link has already gone. I don't know where, but he'd vanished by the time we managed to break through Ghirahim's barrier. We scoured the entire dungeon in search of him and Zelda, but alas, no luck. And with that, we retreated back out of the temple in search of a path home. We were surprised when we stepped outside to find the sun already beginning to dip below the horizon. The sky was streaked a pinky-orange colour, casting elongated, haunting shadows across our pathway.
And now it's almost pitch black out here. Stars are prickling through the clouds, giving us the only source of illumination other than the large glowing moon. And eerie silver glow is cast over everything, though it's not much to work by. Fledge stands next to me, an oil lantern clutched in his grip that he brought from Skyloft. It's not much to read by, but it's better than nothing.
"Ah-ha!" I suddenly exclaim, making Bryarly jump out of her skin.
"What is it? What is it?" Karane asks, reeling around from where she stands guard.
"It's written right here," I say, pointing to the right spot on the page. "Those who seek a path back through the clouds, face the old statue and pray these words aloud: Oh Goddess, I hold in my hand your sailcloth. So summon the winds, and send us aloft."
"Old statue?" Leala asks, leaning closer. "What does that mean?"
"I don't know," Pipit mumbles "there was a statue of the Goddess in the spring at the back of temple. Could that be it?"
"No…" Karane says, slowly shaking her head "You couldn't summon winds in the middle of a spring! There'd be water going everywhere!"
"Unless…" Bryarly mumbles.
"Unless what?" I ask.
"Well… maybe it means the old bird statues. Gorko reckoned they were something important. And think about it, they are all over the place!"
"You may have a point." I say "It can't hurt to try anyway! Come on then!"
We take to our feet, walking slowly over towards the bird statue near the steps of the temple. We pull our sailcloths from our pockets, holding them ready in our hands as I close my eyes.
"Oh Goddess," I say, trying to sound confident "I hold in my hand your sailcloth. So summon the winds, and send us aloft."
Almost instantaneously, a loud ring sounds out through the air. We all jump a little in surprise as the orange bands of the statues immediately light up, casting their amber glow through the air in bright beams. The low, hollow whistle of the wind rings through the air as gusts begin to spiral and circulate around us. My hair is blowing in all directions, and Pipit is clinging to his hat with all his might.
Before I realise what's happening, a breath of wind is blown into my sailcloth. It balloons into spectacular proportions, and I'm ripped off my feet within a matter of seconds. I'm gripping onto my sailcloth for dear life as I'm propelled away from the ground, and up towards the cloud barrier. I feel a scream rip from my throat as my stomach aches within me. My feet long for solid ground beneath them, but that's an unmet need right now.
My friends and I are thrown right up into the sky, causing my stomach to churn as my body is tossed and twirled through the open air. It's only as I regain some form of balance that I realise something. It's night time here… the sky is almost pitch black. None of have the ability to fly our birds at night… even if we did, there's no way we can see more than a few feet in front of us. The cold air is stinging the very points of my ear as I begin hurtling downwards again.
In a fit of panic, I press my fingers to my lips and let out a loud whistle. There are a few moments of squawking and fluttering, but eventually, I feel the warmth of my bird beneath me. Her strong bones carry my weight as we reign up into the sky. She glides through the dark night like an effortless warrior, though I can feel the panic trembling through her feathers. Neither she, nor I, knows where we're going. And neither of us can see a thing.
From above me, I can hear Pipit's voice calling through the night. It's slightly muffled by the turbulence, but I can make out the words 'Lumpy Pumpkin.' My blind eyes scan through the dark night. The only island that I can make out right now is Skyloft. Torches light the pathways through the sleepy community, and the moon is reflecting in the glow of the lake. How homesick it makes me feel…
I force myself to turn away, searching for the pumpkin island. Far off in the distance, I can make out the outline of the round restaurant. Pinpricks of light can be seen through what I'm assuming are the windows, how warm and inviting they look. I glance upwards and to my left a little, making out the silhouettes of my friends and their birds. Each of them is struggling to control their Loftwing, just as I am. We've never been trained to fly at night.
Despite the unforgiving and relentless dark, the blindness of my bird and I, and the confused cries of my friends, I finally land just outside of the Lumpy Pumpkin. Admittedly, my landing was a bit rough, but I'm ok. Pipit, Leala, and Karane are already appreciatively petting their Loftwings and thanking them for flying in the night. I give my guardian bird a hug to thank her, and feed her some scraps from my pocket before she flaps off into the night. Fledge is just coming in to land as I turn to look at my friends.
"I'm glad we all made it safely," Pipit says.
"Hold on," I cut him off "where's Bryarly?"
Just then, as if on que, a loud cry rips through the sky. Bryarly comes hurtling towards the building, hanging from her Loftwing with one hand. There are a few muffled noises, and the loud flutter of feathers as the creature makes a big for freedom. Her bird lets out a shrill cry as it tries to swoop upwards and away from the building. The result is Bryarly losing her grip and plummeting towards the ground.
"BRYARLY!" I call out.
At that moment, she drops right down. Her body collides with me, Leala, and Karane and we all get knocked right down to the grass. The air is forced out of my chest as Karane is pushed back into me, and within moments I find myself on the ground, buried beneath my friends. We're all caught up in a tangle of limbs and hair, groaning and whining as we try to figure out how to stand up again. Pipit and Fledge aren't doing anything to hold back their laughter as they watch us struggle.
Eventually, I manage to pull myself up to my feet again. It takes me a few moments to dust off my clothes and check myself for any cuts or bruises, but within a few seconds, I'm ok.
"Sorry about that…" Bryarly mumbles "Is everyone alright?"
"What is all this noise?" someone exclaims from behind us.
We all whizz around, eager to know who's addressing us. There Kina stands in the doorway of the Lumpy Pumpkin. She's holding a towel in one hand, and wearing her usual apron. She watches us all with an open mouth a wide, unblinking eyes. I look around at my friends, who are all fumbling and stammering as they try and figure out what to say. They sound about as confused as Kina looks. I sigh to myself, stepping forward a little.
"We really should explain what's going on here…"
"So there is something below the clouds?" Kina asks, setting a bowl of warm pumpkin soup down in front of me. The earthy aroma fills my nostrils, and I can smell the delicious spices that are mixed in. No matter where I go or what happens, there will be nothing nicer than a piping hot bowl of pumpkin soup when I come home. And we all know that there's nowhere that makes pumpkin soup like the Lumpy Pumpkin does.
"Not just something," Leala says, wiping her mouth with a napkin "a lot! We've seen more today than there is in all of Skyloft! And that's probably not even the half of it!"
"Wow…" Kina breathes. "That's unbelievable! What's it like?"
"It's a forest," Pipit says "lush and green and beautiful. There are some friendly creatures down there, but also lots of monsters."
We're all sat around the large round table in the main restaurant area of the Lumpy Pumpkin. By this time of night, the place is deserted. Everyone has gone back to their homes in Skyloft, meaning we get some peace and quiet. Kina is wiping down all the tables with a damp cloth whilst she talks to us about our adventures, asking lots of questions. She's really intrigued by the surface, just as much as we were.
"Well you made the right call coming here," she says, dropping onto one of the stools. "If you'd have gone back to Skyloft, they wouldn't have let you leave again! The whole town has been looking for you."
"They have?" I ask, swallowing hard.
She nods "Oh yes! When your headmaster found that you weren't at the academy in the morning, he sent out search parties. The knights were scouring all of the islands in search of you. We all thought something horrible had happened to you. That is, until Patrice said that she saw you heading towards the column of light very early in the morning. After that, the headmaster figured out that you must have gone after Link and Zelda."
"Was he annoyed?" Fledge mumbles.
Kina nods slowly "Very. He kept going on about how he warned you not to go near the column of light. In all fairness, I think he was only annoyed because he was worried something would happen to you. He told everyone in Skyloft that if we saw you, we had to bring you back to the academy."
Bryarly's spoon clatters onto the table as she swallows hard. "Wait… you're not going to send us back, are you?"
Kina laughs a little, shaking her head "No, of course not! I know how worried you are about your friends; you're just trying to help them! That's why I'll let you stay here tonight. You can sleep in the guest rooms. Feel free to take a bath and clean yourselves up. If you leave your clothes in the bath tub, I'll wash them overnight so you're all clean in the morning! I presume you're going back tomorrow?"
Pipit nods vigorously "Of course! We're not giving up until we find Link and Zelda!"
Kina grins "That's the spirit!"
Night has truly falling over the little pumpkin restaurant. The only light comes from kitchen, spilling in through the slightly open doorway. I can hear Kina in the next room, quietly humming to herself as she scrubs away at our clothes. She's been so sweet and understanding about everything. If it wasn't for her co-operation, I don't know what would have happened to us. We would have had to have gone home…
I lie in a warm, comfortable bed within one of the lumpy pumpkins rooms. It's a simple room, fairly large but rather empty. The walls are a sullen green colour, and a singular wardrobe lies on the wall opposite the door. Either side of it are twin beds, with pumpkin print duvet covers. A tiny window gives me a view out to the vast, dark sky, but I can't make out a single thing through the inky blackness.
"Hey Callia," Leala whispers from across the room "are you awake?"
"Uh-hu…" I reply, keeping my eyes closed.
"I'm sorry I got so mad earlier…" she whispers "I was just a bit… hysterical. I didn't mean what I said. You're not a coward…"
"I'm sorry too." I whisper. There are a few more moments of silence between us, before I speak again. "Do you think we're doing the right thing?"
She rolls over in her bed, turning to look at me. She props her head up on one elbow. "What do you mean?"
"Following Link and Zelda," I elaborate "are we making a mistake? Maybe we should have listened to Headmaster Geapora…"
"No way!" she whispers "of course we're doing the right thing! It would be wrong to let Link and Zelda face this alone."
I sigh "I guess you're right."
"Of course I am," she smirks. "Night Callia."
"Night Leala."