Chapter 44

Ancient Discoveries

Zelda's PoV

By early the next afternoon we're approaching Akkala Citadel once again. I enjoyed riding past Akkala Falls this morning, the lower part of which you can see from Tarrey Town. The whole area was just so beautiful, the autumn colors in the trees and fallen leaves on the ground accenting everything. Looking up at the top I murmured aloud that I wished aloud that I could stand up there for the view. Then Link told me that we've been up on that mountain already; when we went swimming in the zora suits with Mipha and Sidon above the domain. Knowing that, I felt sad that we missed out on the opportunity, especially when we must have been super close to said waterfalls. Dang it. Oh well, maybe another time.

We pass by the citadel and make our way pastthe stable at the bottom of the hill before taking the road to the right of it this time instead of the left. We end up in a wide open area next to the lake below Tarrey Town and my eyes pop out of my head at what I see next. Down here there are so many dead guardians piled up that I can't accurately begin to count them all. Most of them sit in piles but others are spread out over the area. I stare at them as we pass by until I notice one with a bunch of legs coming off of it. I just have to get off my horse and investigate. I touch one of the stalker guardian's long mechanical legs and get the awful image of what they were like back in the days of the Calamity. If the idea of the stationary one being alive is scary, the idea of being chased around by one of these ones is terrifying. I feel a chill down my spine just imagining being pursued by one. Once again, I'm so glad I only get to meet them dead as the stories written in books are the stuff of nightmares.

We continue on until we reach East Akkala Stable and decide to stop for a rest and make something to eat before embarking off to our next new adventure. I follow Link as we ride behind the stable onto a grassy plain, letting him lead the way. A few minutes later we descend downhill into a canyon that is completely cast in shade, which Link informs me is called Ordorac Quarry. Down here the grass grows knee high with small trees and tall plateau rock formations scattering the area. It feels like a giant maze as we walk our horses around. I begin to wonder what's down here just as we walk up to a vine covered wall and Link dismounts Epona. I follow suit and watch as he parts the thick vines to reveal a pathway I'm not expecting.

"After you." He says and step through the opening with a grin into a tunnel of moss covered stones. At the end of said tunnel, the first thing I see are several stone pillars and a small staircase. I excitedly jog up the steps and onto a rounded platform.

I instantly know where we are without a doubt in my mind. The feel of the air, the identical statue in front of us, it's so obvious that this is the Spring of Power. The huge goddess statue greets us inits ancient ethereal beauty. The sun shines down onto the statue's face in the perfect way, highlighting all the details that still exist after hundreds of years. Behind it several small waterfalls line the curved, rocky walls and fill into the crystal clear spring. Two trees grow out the water on each side of the statue, blooming with apple blossoms, completing the gorgeous atmosphere.

"Welcome to the Spring of Power." Link says, stepping up beside me.

"Thanks for the surprise. I wasn't expecting the quarry to lead here."

"No problem. We could have looked down here from up there." He points above the goddess statue where the top of the waterfalls are. "But I thought you'd enjoy experiencing it from the hidden main entrance instead."

"Absolutely." I answer still admiring everything. I gasp as Link runs past me a minute later and leaps into the spring. I squeak as I'm sprayed by the water droplets of his splash and I gape at him as he turns around and looks up at me.

"What are you doing? We can't swim here!" I exclaim.

"Why not?"

"Because this is spiritual place."

"I'm sure Hylia doesn't mind. People probably take a dip here all the time anyway." Link says before he leans back to float on his back. I watch him as the hot sun of the particularly nice day beats down on me and bite my lip.

"Come on, Zel. It feels great." He says with his eyes closed.

I stand there contemplating for a few more seconds before I take my backpack and boots off, count to three in my head and jump into the spring. The freezing cold water makes me shriekbut he's right, it does feel great after a few seconds.

I wade over below the statue of the goddess. I gaze up at the ancient face and smile, enjoying the same spiritual energy in the air that I felt when we were at the other famous spring. I close my eyes and whisper a few words, not a prayer really, but more of a thank you for all the good things I've gained in my life. Like my newfound confidence, bravery, friendship and love.

A few birds come and land on Hylia's head then fly off behind the statue. When I don't see them come up and fly off again, I move to the side of the statue and find another surprise. There's a hidden room between the waterfalls with a glowing shrine inside. I call Link over as I make my way over to the entrance. Inside, a garden of shade plants line the perimeter of the room and bird nests sit in all the top corners and nooks in the rock walls. On my right is a gorgeous mural of not only Hylia, but also the goddesses Din, Farore and Nayru. The three of them are portrayed standing on a staircase below the golden triforce, which shines light down upon them. In the background behind them, Hylia stands with her hands together, eyes closed, golden hair painted to look as if the wind is blowing through it. All of this is lit up brilliantly from a light attached to the ceiling, powered by a wire that is somehow connected to the shrine itself.

The opposite wall has a mural of Hyrule Castle on it, but the art style clearly depicts it was done by a different artist. It's also fantastically well done. The wall behind the shrine is also a mass of color, but the art has been clearly done by travelers from around the world. Many of the places and objects are locations and things I've only ever seen in books.

Several small pots sit in the middle of this third wall with a paint brush in a small wooden box with a glass lid. I kneel down and open each to find red, blue and yellow paint. I'm not much of an artist myself, but I decide to write "Sheik" as elegantly as can in blue and paint a yellow arrow by the K and a red heart next to the S. I hand the paintbrush to Link next and he paints a large golden bow with an arrow going through it and puts his name at the tip of the arrow head.

Back outside, Link walks over to one the waterfalls and stands in it leaning against the wall. I lean over and kiss him and he pulls me into the falling water as well. It feels weird to kiss with water pouring down my face, but I enjoy it till I have to lean back to breathe.

We spend some more time enjoying the cool spring water and I remember a bogus rumor about the spring water power having the power to heal your body. I'd like to still believe that's crazy, but somehow after taking a dip in that water, I do feel refreshed and muscles are no longer as sore.

x.x.x

Link's PoV

We ride north through the open fields that Akkala is well known for. The only better place to experience the countryside like this is down in Central Hyrule. But unlike there where the fields are full of farm land, there's nothing but lush green grass for us to gallop our horses through. Zelda points toward the tall white rock pillar that cuts into the sky in the distance. I tell her to lead the way just as she begins to ask if we can head that way next. She grins before sprinting Starlett away and I chase after her, the wind feeling fantastic under the hot sun.

The landscape changes drastically at the bottom of the hill, the lush green grass turning brown and lifeless. On both sides of the grass road, white rock mountain walls surround us with crater shaped indents in them. The walls curve over almost blocking out the blue sky above us in places. When we take the first turn in our new environment, the sun shines so brightly on the walls it's blinding. Zelda gazes around with a smile on her face as we continue on and when we get to the end of the road she gasps at what we see.

"Oh wow. I was not expecting this." She says.

We stop our horses and dismount in front of a giant enclosed lake with water so clear and still you can see right down to the bottom. Zelda points out the giant, black spotted purple flowers growing from the deep depths below. She wonders aloud how they grew so beautifully underwater and I tell her that I wish I knew the answer myself. It is quite amazing, you can see the stems and leaves as clearly as if they grew above ground. I didn't know until the first time I came here plants such as flowers could grow underwater. Two giant stalagmite-like rocks jut out of the center of the lake reaching toward the sky and a flat circular island sits ahead to our left. Between that little island and where we stand, an old raft sits just off shore with a big korok leaf tied to the mast. Everything put together: the water, crater walls, the sunlight shining inside, gives the whole area a strange kind of otherworldly beauty. Even if I have been here a few times, I'm still blown away myself.

Zelda asks if we can use the raft to float around and I say sure. After relieving our horses of our belongings, we hop onto the raft and I untie the rope from the post on land. Even if I've seen a few people use korok leaves to blow sails before, it still takes me a minute to get it right. Neither of us are expecting the sudden rush of wind that jerks our boat when the air hits our sail. Zelda almost falls in the water and I'm just hardly quick enough grab her arm to keep her upright.

"Thank you. And thank Hylia once again for your quick reflexes."

I laugh. "Agreed. Who knows where either of us would be without them."

"What is this place?" Zelda asks as I try the korok leaf again and our boat glides through the water smoothly.

"This is Skull Lake. One of Akkala's most amazing phenonemons."

"Why is it called that?"

"Because of its shape from above and the white rock walls surrounding it. The taller rock pillar there and that huge round island rock in front of us are the "eyes", and that pointed pillar of rock is the "nose". I explain, pointing as I talk.

"That's super cool. Can you actually see the shape from up there?" Zelda asks pointing high above us.

"You can, though it would be better with an aerial view. Too bad we can't fly like the Rito."

"I wish we could... At least there is paragliding." She says, ending the sentence with a grin.

"Definitely. At least there is."

We make a full circle on the lake as Zelda rambles on and on about how cool this place is. She asks me if I have ever climbed the rock pillars in the middle and I tell her yes, a few times. I leave out the fact last time I was here I jumped from the top of the shorter one into the lake. A drop of about fifty feet, unlike the taller one that stands about a hundred.

After getting off the raft, we walk around a bit before deciding to take a rest in the shade next to a few boulders along the wall. Zelda lays on her back looking up at the sky as she listens to me tell her about the lynels who used to roam Akkala. She tells me that Mipha told her a story about one above Zora's Domain during the Great Calamity. When I tell her about how they breathed fire and wielded giant weapons as large as we are she says she's glad we'll never meet one.

I stretch my arms over my head as Zelda reaches toward the boulder I'm leaning against.

"What's this?" She asks. I scoot over and look down where she's pointing. I move the dead weeds away from the crack between the boulders to find something sticking out of the ground. Zelda asks if we can get it out and I tell her we can try. I get up and search through my saddlebags for something to dig with and the best I come up with is the heavy duty metal spatula I have. It's nowhere close to a shovel, but I'm sure it will do the job if I try hard enough. I go to work breaking the hard ground between the boulders, pulling dead grass and weeds out of my way. Zelda watches excitedly as I do so and my odd choice of digging material actually does wonders. It takes quite a while but I'm finally able to pull the treasure we found from the ground.

I hold it up between us and we both stare at it in half wonder - half to be some sort of weapon judging by the hilt like handle, my best guess it's likely a sword. It has no cross guard but instead an elongated body made of two odd shaped pieces, one orange and the other brown. The larger ofthe two has two gear like circles on it. It isn't the design that throws me off so much as that it has no blade. I look closer to see if it might have broken off and find no shards of metal anywhere. In fact it appears that it never had one. I'm half shocked that nobody has found it already, but then I'm not really surprised since it's been buried half underground and hidden well by thick dead grass and weeds. Honestly, I'm quite impressed by the fact that Zelda even noticed it.

"What is it?" Zelda asks.

"I'm not sure. But I know who will."

x.x.x

Zelda's PoV

Link says that if anyone will know more about our ancient treasure, it'll be Rob. Ittakes me a few seconds to remember that he's Paya and Purah's uncle. I faintly remember Paya telling me something about how their dad works on advancing ancient technology with him. I'm excited to see what they've been working on, but even more psyched to show him what we found. Considering it is something cool after all, of course.

It takes us a while to travel over there as we are quite far away, but eventually we pass by the stable again and follow the road up the hill. As we approach the house, the first thing I notice is the seriously ginormous telescope rested on top of it. There are several added on rooms built off the roof and the blades of a windmill can be seen spinning on the rear side of the house. I'm surprised to see a wooden crane holding one of the dead guardians in mid-air off the right. It actually looks so little as it hangs there and I wonder if it is smaller than the rest of them.

We dismount our horses and walk up to the front door. Just before Link knocks we hear a booming sound from inside and the door swings open with a cloud of gray smoke. We both back down the porch steps so quickly I almost trip as the man we're here to see stumbles out the door coughing and hacking his lungs up.

"Hey Rob! Just the greeting I was expecting." Link says sarcastically.

"Link!-" He wheezes. "Miss Zelda. What-" He coughs loudly again. "What are you two doing here?"

"Is that to mean we're not allowed to visit you old man?" Link asks.

"Well, y'all in Kakariko never do." Rob grumbles before he adds "And who are you callin old?!"

"What are you working on in there?" I interrupt.

"This blasted ancient parts machine I've been trying to get in working order again for the past few years. I might have fried it for good this time, though I sincerely hope not. I need it to melt down the ancient parts I have."

I ask him what he means by "melting ancient parts," genuinely curious. Rob explains that the ancient machine inside, nicknamed "Cherry" by a distant ancestor, has the ability to do just that. Link pulls the treasure we found out of his saddlebag and presents it to Rob. The man's eyes bulge so wide in his head I think they might pop.

"Where did you get that?" Rob exclaims, nearly snatching it from Link's hand.

"We found it buried down at Skull Lake."

"Do you know what it is?" I ask.

"Of course! I've been studying ancient technology and history my whole life. I never thought I'd actually see one of these. What we have here is an ancient short sword, and it looks to be in nearly perfect condition! It just needs some minor repairing."

I stare at him dumbfounded. "How can it be in "nearly perfect condition" if it doesn't even have a blade?" I ask, unable to keep the disbelief and skepticism out of my voice.

"I'll be happy to show you once I can get back in my house. Shouldn't be long." Rob says, grinning a mangle of missing teeth.

A short while later once most of the smoke has cleared out, we go inside. The first thing I notice is the giant, thick pole jutting up and through the ceiling with wooden beams around it lit up with different sized light bulbs like a wonky chandelier. In front of the pole sits a strange looking machine that is still leaking smoke from every direction, obviously the source of the explosion we heard when we got here. A staircase follows up the curved wall up behind it. Much of the walls in the circular room are covered in shelves, most of which are all completely full and jammed with books and random objects. Two desks built into the wall across from us hold Sheikah lamps and several open books. The walls above them are plastered with notes and drawing boards. It looks every single bit like a research lab, not that I would know as I have ever been inside one.

Rob leads us over to one of the tables and we watch over his shoulder as he tinkers with the sword with a strange looking instrument. A few minutes later the details of the "sword" handle light up bright orange and the man tells us to back up a few feet. We do so as Rob asks a three worded question with tons of enthusiasm.

"Ready for this?"

We both nod.

Rob laughs shortly before picking it and spinning around in place, dramatically waving the hilt through the air. We watch in disbelief as a bright blue light shoots out the weird shaped end of it and turns into a blade. Both of us gawk at the now glowing sword in front of us and Rob holds it point up toward the ceiling, his eyes just as glossed over it as ours.

"Wow!" I exclaim.

"Can I see it?" Link asks, stepping over quickly, holding his hand out. Rob reluctantly hands it over. It's so clear he doesn't want to.

With a closer look we can see all of the details, which certainly make it unlike any other weapon the world. The shape of the blade alone is super unique, with curved edges as well as straight ones. I can see now that the reason the crossguard looked so weird before is because it was folded up on itself. Now it's open and attached in two places: near the handle and along one side of the blade. The weapon glows so brightly that it makes Link's arms and hand glow as he holds across his left palm.

Rob asks Link to holster it on his weapons belt so he does and I gasp as the blade disappears once again the moment his hand leaves the hilt. After being instructed to do so, Link draws it again and blade reappears. It is simply the most incredible thing I have ever seen.

"Fact confirmed. Ancient blades only appear when the user is physically holding the weapon itself." Rob says, before stepping to his desk and furiously writing in a notebook as he mutters the word "fascinating". I ask Link for the sword next and he hands it to me. I go back outside with Rob and Link on my heels and swing it, watching glow of the blade leave a streak of color behind as it slices through the air. I'm grinning uncontrollably as I continue to wield it as if I'm duelling an invisible opponent. It's very lightweight in my hand, yet it feels so powerful.

I can't get enough of it.

The three of us spend quite a while playing with and studying the ancient weapon with glee. Rob also shows us his machine named Cherry and explains how it works. He says if he can once again get it in working order, he could potentially make more weapons just like this. But his real plan for using it is to create ancient armor described in a few the old books he has collected. I look forward to seeing anything he creates from it.

We share dinner around a cooking pot on the top of the house, sitting in chairs on a wooden platform atop the giant telescope. I enjoy the meal of deer steaks and sauteed vegetables that Rob cooked up as we chat and learn more about the ancient short sword works. He says there were also many other types of ancient weapons back in the day, but this is the first one he's seen with his own eyes. He's honored that we brought the sword to him and thanks us at least three times as we eat for fulfilling his dream of getting to study one himself. The man insists we tell him where and what we have been up to lately. I tell him all about our latest adventures before I bring up what happened last night. Rob listens quietly with a curious expression on his face, which throws me off because I assumed he would be skeptical of the whole ghost ship idea. After I finish my tale, he sits there quietly stroking his beard for a while before he finally speaks.

"I've never met anyone else who lives off those islands to actually admit they saw it. I'll never forget the way the air felt that night...That was several years ago, but I'm still chilled to my bones recalling the experience."

I sit there staring at jim with clear surprise and shock on my face. I definitely didn't expect this. I feel a wave of relief in having another person accept this story with the same dreadful feelings I haven't been able to fully rid myself of since last night.

"Wow...I thought you were going to call me crazy. So it appears often over off the coast?"

"According to my friend who's lived over there for over ten years, it's rarely seen. You two just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time. I'd say you were also lucky, almost nobody can see they've seen a ghost ship."

"I don't know if I'd call that lucky...confirmation that all the ghost ship stories I grew up hearing are actually true definitely freaks me out."

"Agreed. I could have lived without seeing that ghost ship." Link mutters.

xxx

Back inside the house, Rob says he has something even cooler than the ancient sword to show us, insisting it's a thank you in return for bringing him an ancient weapon. I watch as he pulls a small metal box from one of his many bookshelves and brings it over to us. When he opens it a rectangular device with a flat sheet of glass in the middle sits inside. Looking closely, it seems to be made of some of the same material as the sword and even looks just as old. And the shape of it...

No way. It can't be. I think, putting my hand over my mouth as I gasp.

"This here is one of the most prized possessions of history; the Sheikah Slate." Rob says, confirming my revelation as I continue to gawk at it. I glance over at Link and he looks just as shocked as I know I do.

"You've had it all this time?" Link asks.

"Not exactly. I've had it for about five years. I finally got Impa to give it up so I could study it. She was left in possession of it when our mother passed and she became the Sheikah matriarch and everything. Not that I wanted that responsibility."

Rob hands it to me and I hold it delicately in my hands, knowing it's one of Hyrule's most precious artifacts. I'm surprised he's letting us see it at all. Rob reaches over and presses a button on the left hand side of it and the glass lights up blue. Link and I look at it just as much wonder as the sword.

"Some of the functions once installed into it seem to no longer work, or there is a lock of some sort I haven't been able figure out to release. But it does have one fascinating active ability; the power to capture true to life images."

Link and I must both have uncomprehending expressions as Rob laughs and goes on explaining, taking the device from my hand. He holds it between the three of us so we can all see and we crowd close. "If you switch the screen to this mode-" He pauses and presses his finger to the screen and I stare as everything on it changes "-you can press this little square button and whatever is in front of the slate will be permanently recorded. Oh, I know! Both of you step back and give me a grin."

Link and I look at each other and I'm glad I'm not the only who seems not to get it. But we do as Rob says and he tells Link to put his arm around me and both of us to smile again. I feel totally ridiculous as we do what we're told and Rob holds the back of the Sheikah Slate up in front of him before we hear a snapping noise. He turns the device around and we're both shocked to see our faces recorded there.

"Whoa!" Link says stepping over and taking it from his hands. We both look down at ourselves before looking at each other. "This is unbelievable. Think of all the cool sights you could record with this!"

"Right? We could show other people what we see without them being there!" I exclaim.

I ask Rob to show me how to use it and we sit down on the bench by his work desk as he explains in detail how to take images and look at the gallery. I'm excited to find that I recognize many of the locations as we've actually been there. I can't wait to see the rest of the places in person. Rob also shows me that there is also a built in map of Hyrule that somehow shows us exactly where we are on the screen, terrain mapped out and everything. I find that almost as fascinating as the "camera" function. I take many pictures before deleting the ones I don't like as Rob shows me. I can't get enough of the ancient device, there are just no words for it.

When we leave later in the evening, Rob shocks us both by asking us to take the Sheikah Slate with us. I ask if that's really okay, it could get broken somehow and then we'd be responsible for destroying one of Hyrule's oldest treasures. Rob laughs and says the possibility of it breaking is outrageous. He points at the watch on Link's wrist that he says is made of ancient parts. He tells me that the Sheikah Slate was made several times sturdier than that. He insists it's also fireproof, waterproof, fall proof, and scratch resistant. He even goes as far as how we could probably drop it off a cliff and the thing would probably survive with no damage. Even the screen on it would be fine.

"Bet you had no idea your watch was that special, did ya?" He says smirking as Link looks at his wrist.

"Impa never said. I thought you said you had to get her to give the slate to you, so wouldn't she kill you for giving this to us?" He asks.

"Technically you're just borrowing it. And as long as you two keep your mouths shut about having it and where you got it, nobody will ever know I lended it to you."

I like Rob even more after he says that.

"If anyone asks you what it is, please just say it's a new prototype invention you're testing. And definitely don't tell anyone where you got it. Keep me updated on how the map function works. I haven't really explored much with it."

"Of course. And our lips are sealed." I say with a grin, holding the slate to my chest. I'm beyond excited to play with it as we continue on with our adventures.