Chapter 54: Sky Canopy
Then after Link helped Professor Nautilus move the bodies of Crow and Stitch into the laboratory, he hopped onto the last Skyloft Rail heading out of Sunrise Bay and into the Kokiri District. Once there, he asked for a place to sleep but none of the Kokiri in the village were offering any shelter. So he went to the Deku Tree but found that his leaves had all fallen, his trunk had turned black, and his mouth was open.
"He's dead."
Link turned and saw a familiar green-haired Kokiri standing behind him. "Sylvan? Is that you?"
"I'm her twin sister Sylvia," the green-haired Kokiri explained. "Were you the one who rescued me from the Owlan Temple seven years ago?"
When Link nodded, Sylvia smiled and hugged him.
"So, um, where is your sister?"
"She went to the Fairy Grove, right before a pair of Watchmen showed up," answered Sylvia.
"Why would she go there?"
"I don't know, something about a Medley Fragment and an instrument."
Link's eyes widened. "Where's the Fairy Grove located?"
"It's through the Sky Canopy. I can take you there."
"Please do. Your sister might be in danger."
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Southward from the Kokiri village there was a hollow full of tropical trees that were colossal in height with vines and large branches that blocked out the moonlight completely. A series of wooden bridges ran between each tree, though some had rotted away, while the forest floor was covered in a thick mist.
"What's down there?" Link asked, looking down from a cliff he and Sylvia stood on that overlooked the hollow.
"The Haunted Grounds," Sylvia said nervously. "Monsters lurk down there."
A lone howl came from below.
"How do I get to the Fairy Grove from here?"
"Look for the Fairies and you should be there in no time."
"Okay, thanks."
While Sylvia stood nearby, Link crossed a wooden bridge that connected the cliff to a nearby tree. On the other side there was a walkway that ran around the circumference of the tree which then connected to two more bridges. One was to the left of the tree while the other was to the right. There was a gaping hole in the bridge to the right, so Link chose the left one. The moment he did, a non-flaming Bubble came flying toward him. After fighting it off, Link came onto another walkway that had a boulder blocking the only bridge he could access. But when Link lifted it up, a part of the tree trunk's wood slid away revealing a hidden room. Curious, Link went inside and found a small chest. He took a small key out of it and continued along the bridge. However, the bridge wobbled tremendously as a windmill suddenly started blowing air in Link's direction.
Waiting for the windmill to turn away from him, Link made it to the other side and found three bridges along the walkway. Unsure of which one to take, Link noticed a door with a silver lock at the end of the bridge to the right of the tree so he took that and unlocked the door with the small key. There was another chest, only this one was larger than the first, which Link opened to find a pink flower growing at the bottom with pink petals and green leaves.
"What is it?" Link asked out loud.
"It's a Fairy Flower," said a voice from behind the chest. "Parts of it can grow bigger depending on the user's wishes."
"Who's there?" Link unsheathed the Master Sword and pointed it at the chest.
"Who I am is not important," replied the voice as a dark figure emerged. "Because you'll be dead in a moment."
"A Watchman!"
Quickly, Link grabbed the Fairy Flower while dodging something that came out of the darkness. He then left the room inside the tree trunk and was confronted by another dark figure who appeared behind him. Realizing he was also a Watchman, Link attempted to run for the nearest bridge but was blocked by the Watchman from the room. This one was a head shorter than Link with a slender body and red eyes glowing from under the bird helmet. Meanwhile, the other Watchman approached Link who was a little taller with white eyes that glowed.
"So you're the one who's taking out our comrades one by one," said the white-eyed Watchman. "Did you kill them all?"
"No, I returned them back to normal," Link responded firmly. "Now who are you guys supposed to be?"
"I'm Perregrinn, the Master of Time," said the white-eyed Watchman and then he gestured toward the red-eyed one. "The other is Kyte, and she's the Death Watcher."
"Were you the ones responsible for killing the Deku Tree?"
"He was an old tree," Kyte said shrugging. "And a fool for thinking he could hide the Medley Fragment from our sight."
"Or the Sage of the South Wind for that matter," added Perregrinn. "She's heading to the Fairy Grove, and we must stop her from getting the Medley Fragment before we do."
"Are you trying to save Skyloft or let it be destroyed?"
"That's none of your concern, boy," said Kyte impatiently. "Now die already!"
But just as Kyte was about to rush Link, Perregrinn held her back. "Hold it, Kyte. We must stay focused on the mission."
"Right," Kyte nodded. Then she pointed at Link. "But don't think about getting in our way."
Then while Perregrinn vanished into thin air, Kyte levitated off into the night sky.
Once they were gone, Link went to the bridge he was originally going to cross but found that it was practically destroyed.
"Shoot!" Link said irritably. "If only there was some way to get across."
Then without warning, the Fairy Flower planted itself into the walkway. Then it grew so big that the stem took up the entire length of the bridge and was wide enough for Link to walk on.
"So that's what the Watchman meant," Link mused and climbed onto the Fairy Flower's stem.
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Later, Link came across a Fairy Fountain hidden inside the biggest tree in the Sky Canopy and was greeted by a gigantic woman who looked exactly like the Great Fairy of Wisdom only her hair was green instead of blue.
"I bid you welcome, Hero of Infinite Possibilities," the woman said. "As the Great Fairy of Courage, I'm willing to teach you something that my sisters probably haven't taught you yet."
"Which is?"
"This," the Great Fairy replied showering Link with sparkling lights. "I call it the Spin Attack."
"What does it do?"
"Create a wave of magic when you spin the Master Sword, but the technique uses a lot of magic. So will this, but I think you're going to need it."
The Great Fairy then handed Link a glass crystal that contained a glowing green orb.
"Is this another spell?"
"Farore's Wind, to be exact," replied the Great Fairy. "With it, you can create warp points to move back and forth between without having to constantly travel."
"I see. Well, thanks a lot, Great Fairy."
"Anytime, and may the Goddesses protect you."
To be continued…
