「09」 A Dangerous Mission

A few rays of the late afternoon sun shone through some tiny holes in the rooftop of the Zora Hall, bathing Lulu's room in a soft light, and making the shells on the walls and the pearls on the floor glimmer in pastel colours. Even the translucent curtains reflected the iridescent light. A peaceful and beautiful atmosphere, but Lulu did not notice any of those things. She was standing outside the hall, staring at the sea and the setting sun. For days, she had been standing at the same spot, watching the unchanging waves, watching how the sun rose and set. Her apathy was driving her fellow band members to despair, as they were not able to get anything through to her. Occasionally, she would talk a few words, but mostly she stayed mute. It all started the day her eggs were stolen, only two days after she had laid them, and the Zoras blamed the pirates who lived at Great Bay Coast for the theft. The pirates were known for their aversion for the Zoras and their cunningness, and although no one had seen any pirates lurking around the Zora waters for some time, there was no one else to be blamed. They were credited with being responsible for the poisonous water and the dead fish as well, although there was no clear evidence.

Evan was growing tired of Lulu's behaviour, especially now with the upcoming show for the carnival in mind. Toto, their manager, had already sent a letter to the mayor of Clock Town to inform him of Lulu's illness although Evan had advised him not to, but now that the day of the carnival was drawing closer, and Lulu still did not leave her spot outside the hall, he was losing hope, and his patience. He pushed himself off the chair and walked down the large steps in his room, leaving it through the door. He shooed the Zora that was constantly guarding his room away, and stomped through the corridor, past the main entrance and was headed towards the back exit. As expected, he was greeted by the same scene of their singer standing on the shell- and seaweed-covered ground, her fins gently waving in the sea breeze.

"Lulu," he began.

She didn't move, nor gave any other sign that she had heard him.

"Lulu, we need to talk. You need to wake up, dammit. Standing here day and night, staring at that stupid sea, as if it was going to bring your eggs back. It isn't. I know it's hard, but face the situation and accept it, because you cannot change it. We need you. Me, Japas, Tijo and Selachii."

Lulu eventually turned her face away from the sea and looked at the bandleader. Her eyes were red and empty as if she had already spilled all the tears her body contained.

"And where does Selachii fit in?" she whispered.

Evan furrowed his brows. After Mikau had left the bands for reasons only he understood, Lulu had started to act depressed, and Evan could only guess that his departure had meant more to her than to the rest of the band. Mikau was an amazing guitarist, and his loss had left a deep impact on the band, but for Lulu it was like losing a dear friend. Maybe even a lover. Several months after Mikau's departure, the band, after deciding that they would continue their activities, had been looking for a new guitarist, and that's when they stumbled upon Selachii, a young Zora who lived at the upper river, close to the waterfall rapids. Selachii had proved to be a worthy successor, yet he didn't own the skills that Mikau had, and Lulu never seemed to fully accept him as Mikau's follower.

"Selachii saved us when Mikau left us without an explanation!" protested Evan, "you are the only one who is being reckless. Wallowing in your self-pity all day! How much longer will you stand here staring at the damn sea, crying your eyes out? It won't bring back your eggs, and it won't bring back Mikau. He ran away with some young Zora, Lulu, he never loved you."

"Why do you always blame the others for what happens? Why are you always acting like that damn band of yours is the most important thing in the whole world? Why would I care about a show if I had my children taken from me?"

Tears filled her eyes and she began to sob miserably, hating Evan more than ever. The keyboard player realised his mistake when it was too late, yet he couldn't bring himself to apologise.

"Just pull yourself together for your own sake," he murmured, then went back inside.

"Evan!" Japas came up jogging as he saw Evan inside the hall, but the bandleader shot him an angry glare and told him to leave him alone. To the guard in front of his door he said that he did not want to be disturbed for the rest of the day, and slammed the door shut after disappearing inside his room. Japas gave the guard a puzzled look and received a shrug as an answer. Shaking his head, he went back to his room, where Tijo and Selachii were waiting for his return. It was Tijo's idea to run a meeting between the band members, including Evan, but seeing the bad mood he was in, Japas thought it was better to leave him out. And because he wouldn't take any decisions being made against his will.

Their manager Toto joined a few minutes later, scolding Japas because of the mess he had created in his room. Music sheets covered his desk and half of the sandy floor, and all his other belongings were strewn across the ground. The sturdy manager picked up a few sheets and let go a whistle.

"Been writing songs behind Evan's back again, huh?" He smirked.

Japas nodded. "Doesn't matter now though. What are we going to do about the show?"

Toto sat down on a stool and adjusted his hat. "My dear boys, I wish I had an answer to that. I already sent a letter to mayor Dotour, but haven't received a reply yet. I was planning to travel to Clock Town to settle the matters, but I wanted to speak to you about it beforehand. I was wondering, does anyone of you have singing skills? I would really hate to cancel the show."

Japas laughed out loud. "You want one of us to take over the vocal part? I think cancelling the show would be wiser than replacing Lulu."

"I agree, it is not the best solution. What about you, Selachii? Come on, let's hear your voice."

Selachii shook his head, smiling sadly. "We can't risk the reputation of our band. Calling off the show would be the wisest decision."

"Yet it doesn't solve Lulu's problem. I fear that if she doesn't get back her eggs, her state will aggravate."

Japas nodded. "If Mikau was still here, he could probably make her feel better."

"Mikau has gone and won't come back, there is no need to dwell on his departure any longer," cut Tijo in, "nor is it any use to bear a grudge against him for leaving us."

"Other than that, we still don't know what is going on at Great Bay Coast. What caused the massive dying and poisoning of fish," said Selachii.

"Probably those damn pirates," murmured Japas.

"Why would they do that though? They depend on the fish as much as we do. And what would they do with Zora eggs? Eat them? I highly doubt that," answered Tijo.

"I agree that it would not make much sense," said Toto, "as for me, I will travel to Clock Town tomorrow. You all agree then that we should cancel the show?"

Everyone nodded slowly. It was a hard decision but everyone knew that it was for the better. The manager lifted himself up from the stool with a funny squeaking sound, and toddled towards the door. A moment later, they were alone in the room.

"By the way," said Selachii, leaning against the desk behind him, "does anyone know who made Lulu pregnant?"

Japas nodded. "It was Mikau."

Tijo lifted one eyebrow. "How do you know?"

Japas shrugged. "Isn't that obvious? Who else? They were close, and we all know that Lulu has a weakness for Mikau."

"As far as I know, Mikau had never any love interest in Lulu."

"Maybe it was Evan," he replied sarcastically. It was well known that Lulu and Evan had always been a little at war with each other, and that for Lulu, Evan would be the last person to have an affair with.

"It is not our business."

Japas did no longer object, but he was still holding a grudge against Mikau for many reasons. They had been best buddies for many years, even before they decided to found the Indigo-Go's, and Mikau's sudden disappearance felt like treason to him. Apart from that, Mikau was also a rival in love, as Japas had fallen for the pretty Lulu long ago, yet had never had the courage to admit his feelings for her.

Tijo and Selachii both got up from their seats as the meeting had come to an end, and the drummer squeezed Japas' shoulder before he left. He had known the bassist for a long time and they were good friends. Not as close as Japas and Mikau had been, but he knew his fellow bandmember good enough to know what was going on inside his mind. Mikau's departure had left an irreparable wound.

Selachii was already outside when Tijo turned around one last time.

"You should take care of Lulu, Japas. She needs you."

For the first time after weeks, the sea suddenly changed. Lulu saw it in the sky long before it happened. Dark grey clouds had gathered on top of Pinnacle Rock and the seagulls had turned away from those murky waters long ago, but that day, something new was coming. Lulu swam over to the small island to have a better look, trusting the bad feeling in her stomach. At first, the waves looked all the same, but then a black spot suddenly appeared at the horizon and slowly grew into the shape of a black ship.

"Pirates," she murmured, making a fist. Unlike most of the Zoras living at Great Bay Coast, she did not believe that the pirates were responsible for the loss of her eggs, yet she wasn't exactly on good terms with those reckless thieves.

The ship drew closer to Pinnacle Rock, circling the rock formation cautiously before coming to a halt. Lulu narrowed her eyes to slits in order to focus her vision on the ship. She saw one pirate waving her arms up and down to a comrade at the back of the ship who threw something into the water. All of them leaned over the railing, obviously waiting for anything to happen. Minutes passed by and Lulu already began to doubt her feelings of uneasiness when suddenly the water surface began to bubble and something shot up from the deep, hitting the ship with a brutal force. The pirates yelled as they were thrown around and fell into the sea. The wood of the ship splintered as if something monstrous was taking a good bite. She stiffened and swallowed down the urge to jump into the water and swim to their aid. She saw the women struggle in the water, some of them trying to get away in panic.

"What in..."

She hadn't even noticed Japas' presence who was now standing beside her, watching the same cruel scene with round eyes.

And then it was all over. The water seemed to calm down, painted red with the blood of those humans that had become the victims of whatever was lurking in the depths of Pinnacle Rock.

Lulu shivered although it was warm.

"What on earth was that," asked Japas, taking her hand in his.

"Something smashed that ship into pieces as if it was made of cardboard," she whispered, still not able to take her eyes off the drifting figures in the water.

Then suddenly, without a word, she jumped into the water and dashed off towards Pinnacle Rock, followed by a startled and panicking Japas. The closer they came to the rock formation, the colder the water and the more resistant the waves became. The smell of blood was overwhelming for the delicate noses of the Zoras and Lulu had to fight off the sudden nausea. When she came up to the surface again, she was amidst the wounded Gerudo women who helplessly floated in the water, holding on to pieces of wood to prevent themselves from drowning.

"We have to help them," said Lulu, directly looking at her bandmate.

"They are Gerudo!" he protested, "pirates and thieves!"

"And they know what happened here," she replied coolly, "this is not their doing, Japas. Help me now, we have to get them away from here before this place is infested by hungry sharks."

Japas nodded then, unable to contradict her, and grabbed two unconscious Gerudo women, quickly dragging them away from Pinnacle Rock. Not more than ten were still alive, and with the help of another Zora, they managed to bring the wounded to their territory.

Evan was furious when he learned about Lulu's initiative. He had the Gerudo women chained up against a wall until they regained consciousness for interrogation, allowing them only the most crucial medical help to stop the bleeding. He had wanted to exclude Lulu from the interrogation as well, but she had insisted on staying. One of the Zora guards poked the Gerudo that woke up first with a spear. Her golden eyes flashed angrily as she glared at the Zora and she coughed some blood.

"What have I done to you fishmen to deserve being chained to a wall?" she asked sarcastically, wiping her mouth on her shoulder.

"You stole Lulu's eggs," answered Evan, hands on his hips.

The Gerudo laughed but grimaced at the pain that followed.

"Why on earth would I waste my time stealing useless Zora eggs? Not even the fishermen pay more than five rupees for that. And with all the poisoned fish out there, people prefer to rely on terrestrial animals."

"She got a point," said Tijo, but Evan shushed him.

Lulu stepped forward, her eyes fixated on the Gerudo women's golden orbs.

"What is your name?" she asked in a less hostile tone than Evan.

"Aveil," answered the Gerudo, raising an eyebrow.

Lulu knelt down in front of her until their faces were at the same level.

"What happened at Pinnacle Rock? You need to tell me. Everything."

"It would be nicer to chat if my arms weren't chained to that fucking wall," she spat, and received a poke with the spear.

"Alright, alright then." She rolled her eyes and began to talk.

"We were wondering what was happening to the sea with all the dead fish and the sudden change of the water quality. Some of us suffered from food poisoning and some of us were drowned when they came too close to that cursed shithole. We knew that something was wrong with Pinnacle Rock so I took some of my best warriors to investigate the place."

"I saw you throw something in the water. What was that?"

"A bait."

"A bait for what?"

"For the monsters that live in the depths of those murky waters."

The Zoras all exchanged confused glances, but Lulu and Japas had seen the force that could shatter a ship like a house of cards.

"Can you describe the monsters?" asked Lulu further.

"Sea snakes. Deep pythons. The nasty sort of sea snakes. They are huge."

"How many are there?"
"I have no friggin' idea. Maybe five. Perhaps even more."

There was a silence that followed the interrogation, and Aveil eyed them curiously to see if they believed her or not. They were discussing something in their native tongue that no Gerudo was able to understand, but it was clear that their conversation was agitated.

"Besides," she threw in after some time, "sea snakes eat Zora eggs."

"No!" Evan shook his head. "We can't cooperate with the thieves, nor are we strong enough to fight against the snakes. Let them do the dirty job."

Lulu snorted. "You haven't seen what happened to their ship."

Evan eyed her warily. "For weeks you barely spoke a word and all of a sudden you want to act like a heroine?"

"Those monsters ate my children."

"Evan is right, Lulu," said Japas, "as much as I understand your position, we are no warriors. We would die trying to get there."

Lulu took a deep breath. "We need to pray to Gyorg. He will protect us."

Evan laughed. "Where is Gyorg when his waters are being poisoned? Where is he when his children are dying? He doesn't give a shit about what is happening."

"Why don't we just go see for ourselves? Swim to Pinnacle Rock without waking the monsters, and see if the whole story is real?" interjected Selachii all of a sudden.

Evan gave him an angry look, but Tijo and Lulu already agreed that it was a good idea. Japas didn't voice his opinion, but regardless of the dangers, he knew that he would follow wherever Lulu decided to go.

"I know that none of you will like this idea," began Lulu, "but what if we do team up with the pirates? They know how to fight. They also want our sea to return to normal. We might not have the best history but we should put aside our differences for the sake of Great Bay Coast."

Now the clamour began and Lulu sighed, patiently waiting for the arguments to end without interfering again. When the chatter died down, Evan eventually cleared his throat and announced that the circumstances gave them no other choices than act, but he also made clear that this was an affair of the Zora, not the pirates, and Lulu was to be excluded from the mission. The Zora woman opened her mouth to protest but he silenced her by holding up his hand.

"I said no, and that is my last word. I will not risk your life."

Lulu swallowed down the words that lay on her tongue as she watched him leave the room. Her shoulders were slumped in defeat. After Selachii and Tijo were gone as well, Japas approached her and put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"Come, Lulu," he said and helped her up, leading her out and back to her own room.

The Zora woman's fins on her underarms flapped in the wind as she watched the men gather on the small island close to their home. Some were equipped with spears, yet they weren't skilled fighters. Evan wasn't with them, nor was Tijo. Japas nervously shuffled his feet as he waited for Evan to give the sign for their departure. One minute later, they dove into the water like dolphins, their blue silhouettes under the water surface shimmering in the sunlight. Before long, they were out of sight. Lulu gritted her teeth. She was frustrated to be left behind, but for the time being, under Evan's watch, she could do nothing but feign obedience.

Once back inside, she walked down the corridor to her residence, but left her door ajar, waiting for Evan to disappear behind the door of his own room. As soon as she was sure that no one would see her, she stole out and tiptoed to the cellar where they kept the Gerudo women. It was dark inside, and cold, and water dripped from the ceiling. Lulu recognized the Gerudo named Aveil with whom she had talked the day before. Aveil sat on the cold ground, her back against the wall, her head and shoulders slumped. Upon hearing footsteps, she lifted her head.

"What on earth are you doing here?" she asked with a dry, raspy voice.

"I need your help," she answered, biting her lip.

Aveil gave her a strange look but didn't reply. She wondered what a fishgirl would want from her after chaining them up.

"Do you still wanna get rid of the sea snakes?"

Aveil snorted. "I thought your noble men are taking care of those matters now?"

Lulu clenched a fist behind her back, trying not to feel offended by the pirate leader, and continued speaking in a calm tone.

"You know as much as I do that Zoras are no warriors. We live peacefully by the coast, play our music and thus have no fighting skills. But those monsters have taken my children from me, and there is no loss for a mother that is more horrible than losing her children. I beg of you, please help me."

Aveil's face softened a little, yet, as she had never given birth to a child, wasn't about to fully sympathize with the Zora woman.

"If you want my -our- help, you need to cut loose those chains. And uhm...do you even have a boat?"

"There is one not far from here. It belongs to the fishermen. I will get it for you," promised Lulu, determination now written on her face.

"Fine. We got a deal. Now free us."

Foam was building at the water surface above Pinnacle Rock as the pirate boat approached, and waves splashed against the part of the rock formation that towered over the water level. Aveil could see movement deep below the surface, and she motioned her comrades to stop the boat. Lulu's heart was hammering in her chest as she dove closer to the hole in the sea, peering down. What she saw forced the air out of her lungs and she wanted to scream. The shadows that moved about with ease were huge sea snakes, with long, green bodies and heads that seemed to be covered by a thicker skin, similar to hard armour. Their eyes glowed eerily in the dark.

There were two of them but even though the Zora men were numerous, they could do no harm. Their spears bounced off the thick skin, but they were too afraid to aim for their heads. It was Japas who gathered all of his courage as he remained still when the snake swam directly towards him, its beak-like mouth wide open, sharp, white teeth flashing in the dark. His hand holding the spear was shaking as the creature closed in on him, and as he threw the spear at its eyes, the snake shook its head with a swift move and the spear sunk to the bottom. Japas covered his eyes with both hands, too afraid to move as, suddenly, something landed on the python's back and distracted it from the Zora. Selachii quickly swam over to Japas and dragged him out of the danger zone. When Japas opened his eyes anew, he gasped. On top of the snake was a woman with fiery red hair, stabbing at the monster's neck with a blade. A grey fluid leaked from the wound and blurred the water as it tried to shake off the Gerudo. More and more red-haired women appeared in the water, their noses covered with Zora scales that allowed them to breathe.

"There is Lulu!" screamed Selachii as he pointed to the top of the hole.

"What on earth is she doing here!" murmured Japas, not amused about what he saw.

"Rescuing us," answered Selachii, furrowing his brows as he grabbed his spear tighter.

The pirates were skilled warriors, and even despite being under water, they fought well. Disturbed by more intruders, three snakes suddenly emerged from holes in the rock, visibly angered. The water was blurred by grey and red blood from both Zora, Gerudo and the snakes, making it harder to see. A muffled scream echoed in the water as a Gerudo women was bitten in half by one of the pythons, and her broken body then smashed against the rock. Her eyes were still wide-open in horror as her severed, upper body sunk to the bottom. With more snakes in the water, their numbers were quickly shrinking and Lulu realised how foolish they had been to think they could do anything against the threat from the deep sea. They would all be dead if they did not fall back. She closed her eyes and folded her hands as she began to pray to Gyorg anew. She repeated her rhythmic prayers again and again and her voice suddenly swelled up and engaged in a song she never even knew existed. It was a sad but powerful melody and it soon resounded through the waters, loud and strong. For a moment, all movement stopped and everyone stared at Lulu as she floated right beneath the surface, singing her heart out. Then the song ended as abruptly as it had started. For another second, everything seemed to stay still. But then the ground shook and waves built as something massive made its way through a bottom hole of Pinnacle Rock. Chunks of rock broke off and vortexes appeared. Japas and Selachii quickly hurried to get to the surface, grabbing two Gerudos that were trying to get away from the new threat. A loud growl then resounded through the hole and the head of a fish, decorated with spikes and huge, sharp teeth emerged from a hole in the rock, squeezing its body through it until it filled Pinnacle Rock. Its scales shimmered pink and golden and two strong fins swirled up the water with such a force, that all the Zora and Gerudo, who were still down there in the water, were pushed against the rock.

Lulu's eyes widened as she recognized the beast. "Gyorg," she whispered in awe and fear.

Gyorg then began to move through the water like an arrow being shot from a bow, and where he bit or stroke with his fluke, he ripped out pieces of the snake's bodies or smashed them against the stone.

"We have to get out of here!" screamed Selachii, but before he had a chance to swim away, a wave hit him and pushed him all the way out of the Pinnacle Rock area and back into the still waters.

More bodies were adrift and the Zoras hurried to help the Gerudo back on the boat. There were only five of them alive, and they were all injured. Aveil was among them and she pressed a hand to her bleeding side, moaning in pain. Lulu was still staring at Pinnacle Rock when Gyorg left the hole, his body now appearing at the surface. In the sun, his scales shimmered and glittered like a rainbow and his green eye searched for Lulu. No one dared to move, but only Lulu knew that Gyorg was no threat to them. He was their saviour, their protector, the guardian of the sea, and he had finally awoken to cleanse the waters from the poisonous monsters that had claimed Pinnacle Rock. A few moments later, he dove back into the sea, only to ascend to the heavens in a flash.

"It is time," said Japas as he walked closer to Lulu who was standing outside the hall, looking out to the sea which had returned to normal after several days. The pirates had been taken care of, and by now were back in their fortress, apart from Aveil who had decided to join the Zora on their way to Clock Town.

Lulu turned around to him, nodded and smiled. He took her hand, and together they walked back inside, joining the rest of the band, and their manager who had his suitcase jammed under his short arms. Aveil shouldered her bag and her scimitars, her long red haired held back in a ponytail. There was an air of adventure when the small group walked out of the hall and towards the setting sun.

This chapter is all about Great Bay Coast, and for once I thought it better to NOT make Link a part of this quest. He might be a hero, but I like the idea of other Terminians to take the initiative and trying to solve their problems themselves, rather than waiting for someone to rescue them. Lulu is a strong character, but not in terms of physical strengths (nor ar any of the Zora in Termina). Her ending up singing the Oath to Order was probably the influence from above (heaven). Same as Goht, Gyorg is no villain. In fact all of the end bosses in Majora's Mask (except Majora himself) function as protectors of the realms in my story.

This chapter also explains Mikau's backstory a little, for I introduced him already in Wheels of Fortune, of which this story is a sequel. The name of the guitarist that replaced him is Selachii, and if you google Selachii it gives you sharks, as it is the scientific term for sharks. Therefore I imagine his character design being based off a shark, just less terrifying.

I always wondered why sharks are not more prominent in Zelda games...

So much for the babbling, please read&review! :)