Chapter twenty nine why is this thing so long

Hey everyone! Welcome back, (insert humorous anecdote here) and read on!

The journey to Skyloft wouldn't be an easy one, especially if Link was trying to evade notice from Gangstadorf or his allies. A ferry ride was required to reach the floating island, and as Link soon realized it took more than money to get a seat on board. Identification papers, metal detectors and screenings were all required before you could even pay to get a ticket in the first place. Unless Link could somehow get Epona to fly, which would never happen in a million years, he was going to be stuck on the ground without a way to information about the trials of spirit.

The island was shackled to the ground with an enormous chain, each interlocking section thicker than Link himself and sculpted from stiff, heavy steel. The ferry attached vertically to the chain, with seats positioned perpendicularly to the ground, and steadily climbed up the chain to a docking station above in Skyloft. Unfortunately the ride lasted an entire day to slowly acclimate its passengers to the higher altitude, which would be another day Gangstadorf could discover his whereabouts and alert his monster gangs of Link's position.

The main problem Link faced, though, was identification papers and the other hurdles he faced before he could even buy a ticket. There was no way the Master Sword would get through that metal detector, ancient goddess-magic or not.

He would have resorted to some other means of transportation, but there really was no other way to Skyloft. Even if he could somehow rent a plane or some other private airship, it would be too costly and dangerous.

After he parked his motorcycle in a nearby lot Link sat pondering his situation, watching the crowds of people slowly work their way through security and wait for the ferry to descend. A man came and sat next to him, crossing his legs and smiling with apparent ease.

"Mind if I pull up some grass here? Nice to meet you, kid. What are you waiting for, trying to get to Skyloft?"

"Something like that." Link responded tritely. He noticed the man next to him had a sword as well, although it was shoddy and ill-made compared to the Master Sword. The man was Hylian, dressed in standard working clothes, and Link knew that he probably posed no threat, but it was better safe than sorry.

"Are you a racer? There's a Loftwing race coming up in a day or so. People from all over the realm are coming, it's a huge deal. That's why I'm going up myself. I know what you're thinking, I don't look like a pilot, but I'm the best there is around these parts. Name's Varden."

They shook hands and Varden tilted his head back, gazing up at the clouds where the thick iron chain faded into the shifting sky. "Yeah, I'm rearing to take home the trophy this year, but there's a country hick who keeps beating me by inches. Inches!" Varden growled, curling his fingers into a fist.

Link raised an eyebrow and turned to the man, fighting to keep a smile from his face. "Let me guess – red hair, tenacious personality, who'll do anything it takes to win?"

"You know Malon?" Varden observed Link with increased curiosity.

"Know her? I beat her in a race once, truck on motorcycle. It was no easy feat." Link watched as Varden's features shifted from amazement to cunning.

"I've never heard of Malon getting beat, never ever. You might have something, kid." The man smirked, and Link could almost see the wheels turning in his head. "Are you looking for a job?"

"A job?" The question startled him, since it was the least thing he was expecting the man to say.

"Sure! You're a strong young man, and if you've already beaten the infamous Malon in a race, well, I'd say you've got more experience than some of my best aides. What do you say? There's good money in it for you."

As much as Link appreciated the offer, he was in no position to be taking job offers, especially when he needed to find the trial of spirit as soon as possible.

"I appreciate you offer, but I'm already on a journey of sorts." He began, and Varden nodded approvingly.

"A journey, eh? Well, I guess it's nice for you young folks to have a hobby. But seeing as you've beaten Malon, I'd really implore you to take up my offer." Link began to protest and the man held up a hand. "Fine, I'll make a deal with you. Just come up for the one race, and I'll keep you on my aide team. You'll be my eyes in the sky, telling me how Malon thinks. And there's a ticket to Skyloft in it for you if you accept."

Link was wary at first – he didn't even know this man, although his gut told him that Varden was trustworthy. Besides, how else would he get to his destination? If Varden could really sneak him into the city, the time he would lose plotting strategy for the race would be made up by any foolish plan he would be forced to make if he refused the offer. The benefits outweighed the costs, and by Varden's confident expression Link could tell he knew it.

"I'll accept your offer, but how are you going to get me up to Skyloft? I don't have any papers." He admitted, but Varden simply dismissed this new fact with a wave of his hand.

"Doesn't matter." He replied airily. "Do you know how to speak Gerudo?"

"Excuse me?"

"Maybe we could pass you off for some foreign traveler. Then again, they may just want to look into you more." Varden rubbed his jaw, thinking. "Tell you what – I'll just tell them you're my son. Gangstadorf's minions are as stupid as they are ugly, which is saying a lot, considering their, er, genetic ungiftedness. Well, sonny boy, ready to go to Skyloft?"

Link rolled his eyes and stood, brushing the grass off of his trousers. "Sure, dad. Whatever you say."

Varden grinned, then sauntered over towards the dwindling line of passengers waiting to board the ferry. "That's what I like to hear. Ready to go?"

After about ten minutes of waiting in line Link realized that just about every person in Hyrule wanted to board the ferry. Because of the rigorous screening process it took almost five minutes to get past security, and even longer when a Goron got stuck in the metal detector and had to be painfully extracted with a tow truck and copious amounts of butter. His attention wandered from the interminable wait to the conversations of the people in line, hoping he could pick up on some information he had missed while exploring the swamp for the last sacred flame.

Thankfully, since they had nothing else to do, the people and creatures in line were very talkative, and Link picked up some interesting snippets of conversation.

"Rumors that Gangstadorf got the lost princess back, she's in the Castle Skyscraper now..."

"Kasuto Town is completely shut down, and I heard they had search parties ransacking houses, terrifying the citizens. My cousin lives there and her husband got dragged down to the police station by one of those Bokoblin mob goons and was interrogated for hours... He came back with a broken arm and a black eye. So much for a police force."

"Have you heard the news about the new Hero? I usually don't pay attention to the stuff, but this news came straight from the Koroks themselves."

"The who now?"

"I dunno, but the name sounds pretty official."

Link was glad the Korok scouts were able to spread the news of the Hero's return, but the other conversations he overheard troubled him. The news of Kasuto Town made him fear for the librarian's safely, and the news of Zelda... Well, he would never stop worrying about Zelda. The very thought of her stuck in Gangstadorf's clutches made him bristle with anger, and the pent-up frustration inside of him reached a boiling heat and he was half tempted to yell at security to get a move on.

Finally, when the sun was beginning to set and the sky around the horizon faded to a brilliant amber, Link and Varden arrived at the security checkpoint. A bored-looking Hylian woman accepted Varden's papers and barely glanced at them before handing them back. "How many tickets?" She intoned, sounding as if she were about to collapse from exhaustion.

"Two, one for me and Varden Junior here." Varden smiled and Link disguised his grimace as a forced smile.

"Enjoy your stay." The woman droned, then gestured for them to take their seats on the ferry. Link felt all of his nerves slowly drain away, replaced with relief.

"That was... Surprisingly easy." He told Varden after they were out of earshot of the security woman. "She didn't even make us go through the metal detector or anything."

"One of the things I learned as a pilot, my young apprentice – never undervalue the power of sleep." Varden smiled, then glanced at Link again. "And, Varden Junior, I never did get your real name."

"It's Link." He replied, finding a seat near the middle of the ferry, and Varden nodded approvingly.

"All right, Link it is. Parents were history buffs or something?"

The sharp reminder of the screams in the swamp temple echoed in Link's mind and he shoved the memory away with a shrug. "Yeah, that's right."

As they waited for the others in line to get on board Varden lectured Link in the basics of piloting a Lotwing. Thankfully the man was an engaging storyteller and Link found himself clinging to every word as Varden described a certain race when one of his Loftwing's wings had been strafed by an opposing racer and he had to climb to the top of an office building and dive down, managing to scrape across the finish line and win first place. He also gave Link a basic lesson on how Loftwings raced, from basic steering to more advanced aerial maneuvers.

"You can either ride bareback of use reins – I think the latter gives you more control." Varden explained, holding out his hands to demonstrate. "To go faster, simply lean forward and kick your heels. If you want to turn, pull on one side of the reins and not the other, then you'll steer in the direction of the hand you didn't pull the hardest, if that makes any sense."

By the time the ferry lurched to a rumbling start Varden had explained how to how to perform full turns and short stops in seconds. The concept of Loftwing racing sounded exhilarating, and Link found himself hoping he could participate in one some day. Varden noticed his enthusiasm and was sure to answer all of Link's questions to the best of his ability.

"You'll make a right fine Loftwing racer, you will." He told Link as the security lady closed the line and started to board the ferry. "You'll put Malon in all manner of worry if you get up there against her."

As the ferry slowly ascended to the heights of Skyloft he noticed a definite change in the air as they slowly rose. It slowly thinned as the ferry trundled onward, and he found himself having to take deeper breaths and noticed that even small tasks such as moving from one side of the ferry to the other left him winded. Varden seemed unaffected by the change as they rose and passed Link a bottle of water every once and a while, which he drank great swallows from.

"You don't want to get dehydrated up here, you'll end up with a killer headache. We're going slow to prevent altitude sickness as well, but you'll still want a day to rest when we first reach the shop, to get acclimated."

Despite his conversations with Varden an entire day on a cramped ferry became just as boring as waiting in line to board it. Varden suggested getting some sleep, but the hard plastic seats were obviously not made for comfort, so Link studied Zelda's map of Hyrule while his newfound partner dozed. Skyloft was marked separately on the side of the map, a motley of light blue and emerald brushstrokes, but from what Link had heard Skyloft was a buzzing metropolis, not unlike Castle Town. He kept his eye out for Loftwings, hoping to maybe catch sight of a racer, but the ferry was taking a terribly slow time reaching higher and he knew that traffic from Skyloft probably wouldn't be visible until much later.

Link folded the map neatly and placed it back in Zelda's pouch, letting out a long sigh. If the ferry ride was truly going to last a day, he would need to rest. Leaning his head back on the sloped top of his seat, he let the low rumbling of the ferry lull him to sleep.

Varden shook him roughly awake and Link automatically reached for his sword, but in moments he realized they weren't in any danger and lowered his hand. The man's face was bright and giddy with excitement as he pointed to the land mass slowly emerging from the clouds.

"Ready for your first view of Skyloft, kid?"

The ferry passed through a cloud bank and suddenly the city in the sky burst into view, sunbeams angling off of the buildings that thrust from the hanging earth like so many pillars. The sight of it took Link's breath away, like a small Castle Town thrust into the sky. What awed him more than the city, though, were the small aircraft that shuttled their way around the island, speeding past and flying loops around each other. Heavy freighters suspended from large balloons drifted past almost lazily, and brightly colored Loftwings darted through the air, buffeting Link and the passengers with wind as they flew. Varden pointed out an orange-colored Loftwing, which stood out from the other Loftwings due to its brilliant feathers.

"That's what my Loftwing is like. Bet you can't guess her name." Varden challenged, and Link crossed his arms, grinning.

"How about Varden Junior?"

Varden laughed and shook his head. "No, but that would be a good one. Naw, her name's Scarlet, goes by Scar for short. Yeah, she's a her, and she's twice as fast as that orange thing is ugly, probably faster if Gondo soups up the pedal switch.."

"Gondo?" The name was unfamiliar to Link. He turned away fro Varden and observed the city as the ferry steadily plodded nearer, the buildings thrown into sharp relief by the striking beams of sunlight.

"He's my head mechanic. He rigged up this fancy pedal shift that automatically changes the airflow under Scar's wings and gives you a huge burst of speed. Yep, Gondo's pretty much the guy for everything. He's obsessed with upgrading things as well, always has his head stuck engines and such, trying to make them work just a little bit better. He's a right fine mechanic and a good guy, you'll like him. In fact, he's the one who fixed up my sword."

Link had noticed Varden's sword before, but hadn't paid it any more attention until now. "Speaking of it, why do you carry one around? I know a lot of the Hylians in Castle Town did, but I thought it was more of a self-defense thing. If you're on a Loftwing all the time what do you have to defend yourself from, pirates?"

Varden laughed again and drew his blade. Link couldn't help but see the blade as inferior to the Master Sword, but he knew relatively little about swords and their different makes. If the mechanic Gondo had worked on it he bet the sword was stronger than it looked.

"Yep, I carry Beater with me wherever I go. You never know when other racers will try to put you out of the competition. Muggings, raids, I heard one chap went so far as to try poison. None of 'em will get through Beater, though." Varden hefted the sword with one hand and examined it with pride. "I'll bet Gondo will want to have a look at that blade of yours, too. It's fine workmanship, that's for sure. Where'd you get it?"

Link was thrown by the question and fumbled for a reply. "It was my father's." He reached back and felt the hilt, a small comfort in the alien world of Skyloft. "He told me to take it with me wherever I go, and it's been pretty useful."

"Your father must have deep pockets, my friend." Varden sheathed his blade and turned to face Skyloft, elbows on the guardrail of the ferry. "When we dock I'll take you down to the loft. We have our mechanic's area in the ground floor, and there are living quarters upstairs. Scar stays on the roof, she likes to be able to fly off whenever she wants to. It's not incredibly fancy, but it'll do."

"I can't thank you enough." Link lowered his head, suddenly ashamed. Varden was doing so much for him, and what did he have to offer in return? "Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

"Well, maybe one thing." Varden smiled conspiratorially. "Win us the race and I'll consider all of this even, okay?"

"You've got a deal." Link agreed, but he felt the same sense of inferiority come over him again. Everywhere he went people thought he was better than he actually was – Zelda, the Koroks, and now Varden. How could he ever live up to those standards?

Get a grip, loser. When are you going to come to Skyloft again?

Casting his worries aside, Link let the view of the city calm him, the endless traffic of Loftwings and hovering crafts dodging each other, weaving between buildings in an intricate patters, silhouettes against the sun. If Varden believed he could help win the race, then maybe he could.

And if he could win the race, then maybe he could save the realm.

So, Loftwing races. Sound familiar? :)

Today's reviews and et cetera go to the national Loftwing League, where kids of all ages can learn how to race and ride everyone's favorite mobile bird-creature. Ah, these fluid descriptions! Odd hyphen-words aside, your feedback and critiques are much appreciated.

I've written like two chapters for Remnants this week, I'm on a roll!

That's all for now, folks. Until next time!