Alaia Skyhawk: We're getting back into some more plotty stuff now. On a random note I now have a pretty good idea of the number of people reading this fic. Chapters 44-47 all have exactly the same number of hits on them... 78.
78 readers is the highest on any of my fics and I guess it just shows how popular Zelda games are. Thanks to all you guys reading and remember I have anonymous reviewing allowed on my fics, so even if you're not a site member feel free to leave a comment. Every one I get makes my day so do something nice for Xmas and let's see how many of the 78 will leave a message in the reviews. I'll be watching my inbox with anticipation, and every person who leaves one will go in my Xmas list on the next chapter and in my profile.
Happy Christmas everyone, and happy reading.
I don't own the Zelda series or anything associated with it. I do however own this story and any OCs, so please don't steal them.
Chapter 50: Call of the Pearls
The wind blew past the high peak, the strands of air weaving between the many rocks and ridges that surrounded the perch of the great dragon. They drifted over the feathers of his wings, gliding over his red scales, and stirred the auburn hair of the sage sat on a rock next to him.
Medli looked out across the sea, out to the immense bulk of Death Mountain where it dominated the skyline. Her thoughts focused on her duties as a sage, she had come here to speak with Valoo in the hope that together they might be able to make sense of her and Makar's lack of success in their search.
"It's like every time we reached out we hit a wall in the dark. No matter what we tried, no matter how we varied the method, we always got the same result. Utter silence from the Master Sword, leaving us with no way to locate where it is right now." She sighed, her red eyes shadowed. "I know it's not needed right now, but I don't like not knowing where it is. It makes me feel as though somehow I'm... failing the people. Right now the Mainlanders don't know the sword is missing, and the Islanders haven't really thought about it, but sooner or later someone is going to ask where it is and... I can't tell them because I don't know."
Valoo followed the direction of her gaze with his own. For him the profile of Death Mountain was a familiar one he hadn't seen for the past thousand years since his home peak, Dragon's Mountain, had been left as a much smaller monolith upon the Great Sea. His days prior to the Sealing had been ones of solitude, with only a handful of Mountain Eagles inhabiting the slopes of the peak that had once towered over Death Mountain in terms of sheer height. This past millennia, a time of days filled with the daily lives of the tribe now under his protection, it had changed him. Never again would he be content with solitude. He now understood why his two fellow Great Guardians had chosen to live in harmony alongside the people, rather than take up the meditative association solely with the Aspect they presided over like he had. Land, Sea, and Sky, the three Aspects of the Mortal Realm, each with races unique to the challenges that living in each Aspect required of them.
He looked down at her, at this young woman of a Tribe he had effectively created, that he had given his blessing to allowing them to soar through the skies he loved so much. Thinking of what she had faced and overcome, he was filled with pride at what she had already accomplished in her life.
"Do not lose hope, Young One, the sword will be found when the time is right. Maybe at this time you are not meant to find it. Maybe that is why you're having so little success. Trust that it will appear with time, and keep your faith in yourself. If you lose faith, the people will as well. You worry that not knowing where the sword is will trouble them, but if you do not allow it to trouble you, they will have no fear of it either."
Medli sighed, his words reassuring her.
"Thank you. Though if you're right about the reason, I still can't help but wonder why the sword would hide itself."
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Watching through their window of the Mortal Realm, the goddesses mulled over what they had heard. Farore, her expression puzzled, sighed with something akin to slight annoyance.
"I can't help but wonder that myself. Why would the sword hide? This isn't exactly going to help them when the Balance makes its move."
Nayru looked at the image again, at the Sage and the Guardian who continued to discuss those they were bound by duty to watch over.
"The Master Sword is Kaiayn's creation. I was there when he made it, there when he literally gave it a full sixth of his divine essence... That's more than enough to give an object that small something of a consciousness of its own. It needed it, so that only those with the strength to use its Power to Repel Evil could wield it. If the sword knows they can't it makes it impossible for them to even pick it up. As for us, it having all that power blanks it out to our awareness. We can't find it any more than they can. We might as well be staring at a wall for all the good it does us when we try."
The Goddess of Courage folded her arms, resigned to the situation.
"Well the Sages of the Sacred Realm are stuck until they find it. Though at least we can do something to let them know that finding it will be important to them. They can't open the Door into the Sacred Realm without it... Din'ira, do you want to do the honours?"
The Goddess of Power smiled, her red eyes moving back to the image as well.
"Gladly."
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It was like the faintest of shivers through the air, but it was enough to make Medli leap to her feet. Valoo was equally surprised, searching the skies with his gaze as he sought the source of that strange flare of magic. His search stopped as suddenly as it had started, as he turned instead to look at a pedestal nearby that held the treasure entrusted to him.
Din's Pearl was literally rocking in its place within the bowl of the stand, and as soon as Medli picked it up it began tugging towards the east. Realising what was going on, the sage broke out into a grin.
"It wants to go back to its statue. That means the Tower of the Gods is to be brought to the surface again!"
Valoo was just as pleased. If they ever needed such a good omen it was now.
"Then take it where it wants to go. I will contact Makar to move Farore's Pearl, and I think it would be fitting if Ruto got Nayru's Pearl from Jabun at Outset. I'll let her know to meet the two of you near the outer entrance of the South Passage."
Medli didn't have to be told twice. Seconds later a reddish-brown orb of light was streaking across the sky towards the coastline west of the North Passage. There, south of Windfall, the statue where this pearl belonged stood on a hill, lifted up by the new land that had rose beneath it.
It took her less than an hour to get there, and when she arrived and returned to her normal form Din's Pearl near pulled her off her feet as it strained towards the statue. Setting the pearl in place, Medli turned to face the south and in a flare of light flew off towards the South Passage.
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A huge grin on his face, Makar set Farore's Pearl in the hands of the statue that stood on what remained of Eastern Triangle Island. The hill upon the new land was still triangle in shape, and from the air it was impossible to miss even without the glowing sphere pulling him towards it.
Turning to face a little north of true south-west, he took flight once more. Anticipation beating down on him as he pictured the look that would be on Ruto's face when the last pearl was put in place.
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What has them so excited? I've never seen Lord Jabun so wound up before. What does this pearl even do?
Ruto raced north-east from Outset, having sprinted south from Zora's Domain to go see Jabun at Valoo's request. Now as she had been asked she was carrying a glowing blue sphere, with no idea what the thing was for.
She continued to grumble to herself, a shining orb of sapphire light that was closing rapidly on the entrance of the South Passage. A flare of light to her left caught her attention, and there stood in mid air were two very smug Sages of the Master Sword. Seeing her turn and make a direct line for them, they became light once more and dashed ahead of her towards the distinct peninsula that jutted from the mainland's southern coast.
They descended to land on a suspiciously geometric shaped hill, on the top of which stood an earthen statue with arms folded to its chest, hands cupped ready to hold something. It didn't take a genius to realise what it was made to hold, and as soon as she landed next to the two grinning sages she strode towards the thing with the pearl held out before her. Stepping back after putting it in place, she turned and stared at the two of them when nothing seemed to happen except the pearl glowing and the statue making a faint resonating sound.
"Um... is that it? It doesn't look like it's doing anything."
Medli and Makar glanced at each other, their grins not fading so much as an iota. The Rito girl chuckled.
"Oh I wouldn't be so sure of that... Oh and if I were you I'd step a bit further away from that."
The Sage of Water continued to stare at her, confused, only to be flung face down in the grass as the statue behind her exploded.
Flipping over onto her back, she propped herself up with eyes wide as an azure coloured maiden was revealed, and watched as it lifted the pearl up to face the north-east.
Makar laughed as a beam of bright blue light shot out towards the location of Farore's Pearl, beginning to count.
"One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six... Seven... Eight... Nine... Here it comes."
From the north a ray of red light raced towards them and struck Nayru's Pearl where it lay in the grasp of the statue, forming the second side of a point that centred on the figure. Golden light flared in a wash like a horizontal layer at the same height above the land as the statue. The light vanished as fast as it had come, fading before a great golden flare lit up the sky beyond the horizon.
Medli pulled the stunned and confused Ruto to her feet and pointed towards the glow.
"Behold the Tower of the Gods. The place of trials where the Hero of Winds proved himself worthy and able to wield the Master Sword..." She put an arm around the Zoran woman's shoulders, giving her a small shake. "It's a good thing. It means things are getting better. The Tower is a symbol of hope for the people of the Islands, and I was forced to send it back beneath the waves when the land moving about beneath the sea threatened its stability. It's a focus of the Gods' Will, a place where the Gods look down on the people they preside over. A place where a hero holding the fate of a world in his hands was tempered by battle with the Tower's Guardian, Gohdan. The Gods are smiling on us, cousin."
Staring in awe at the white tip of what must be a truly phenomenally tall tower, Ruto's violet eyes lit up as a smile came to her face.
"So it would seem, cousin. Are you going to give me a tour?"
Makar ran happily across the top of the grassy hill, his feet skipping lightly through the last remnants of the winter's snow. Stopping to look back at them he continued to grin.
"We'll give you all a tour. Call up your fellow sages, Ruto. This is something I know they won't want to miss."
Laughing, the Sage of Water obliged. The infectious elation of the two sages with her brightening her mood to the same joy. Something good at last, a definite sign of better times to come.
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Alaia Skyhawk: Yep the Tower of the Gods is back, any bets on what I'm going to do with it? Hee hee. Merry Christmas everyone, and remember everyone who leaves me a Christmas comment in the reviews will be added to the list on the chapter I'm going to post on Xmas day.
