Hello y'all. I meant to get this chapter out faster but I got caught up with so much. My life is much busier than it was back when I was regularly updating, but I'm still around and fully intend to eventually get this fic to it's finish. (Which will not be any time soon, BTW. I have so much more for them to experience in Hyrule.) I've been looking forward to sharing the content in this chapter for so long!
x.x.x
Chapter 52
Death Mountain Thrills
Zelda's PoV
I kiss Link on the cheek as he snores away before getting out of bed in the morning. I make my way down to the bathroom and take in the equally beautiful and luxurious features inside. The mirror above the sink is decorated with jewels of all types, which shine in the light of the small chandelier hanging in the center of the ceiling. I walk across a plush rug and stand before a huge white stone tub with a shiny sapphire knob on the silver faucet. I turn it and set the water temperature to my liking and let it fill up before stripping and climbing inside with a smile on my face. I let out a happy sigh as sink in. It's been a long time since I've gotten to enjoy a hot bath and I relax as I look around at all the other little decorations in here. It's like the gorons just let some gerudo designer come in here and do whatever she wanted, as the entire room looks exactly what I've always imagined one might in Gerudo Town. The rock walls are painted a rich gold color, adorned with red framed paintings of desert scenes that make me wonder if the places depicted are real or created by the artist's imagination. Either way, they get me wondering if Gerudo Town is going to be as gorgeous as this inn.
A while later, I hear a yawn from down the hall and Link walks in. His hair is down and sticking out from his head on one side. He walks to the sink and splashes some water on his face before taking his tooth brush from our little utility bag on the counter. I wait till he's done brushing before I speak.
"Good morning."
Link jumps out of his skin letting out a startled noise as he looks around quickly, his eyes looking groggy in the mirror, before he turns around and sees me here, sitting in the tub. He blinks slowly before rubbing his eyes and I can't help it; I laugh. He really didn't see me when he walked in here.
"Morning beautiful." He says, the sleepiness he had a moment ago apparently dissolved.
"Sleep well?"
"Yep." Link says stepping over and leaning forward over me with his hands on the edge of the tub. "But my dreams were nowhere as good as this sight."
I stifle a laugh. "Is that so?
He nods slowly before dropping his shorts to his feet and getting in without bothering to ask me if I mind, which I don't. I smile and scoot over so he can sit down, then I drain the tub before turning the faucet back on so we don't have to sit in lukewarm water. We soak there talking about the dreams we had and massage each other's feet. The latter of which is a struggle for Link, as I can't hold still as I'm ticklish - but it still feels nice even if I'm laughing.
xxx
An hour later we suit up in our protective gear, drink elixirs and apply our fireproof lotion. We pull the lever on the wall and quickly exit the temperature-controlled room, closing the glass wall behind us. The long dark hallway is just as creepy as it was last night. They really should add some luminous stones or more lanterns to this area. That way it wouldn't feel like you're being lead into a trap or something; Especially since I don't believe the Gorons would do that to anyone.
When we reach the lobby of the inn, Tray greets us warmly.
"Good mornin'. How was your rest?"
"Wonderful. Your guest beds are incredibly comfy. And that bathroom...Amazing." I say with a grin.
"Glad to hear it! We've got some of the best guest accommodations from around the world. Let me know if you need anything while you're here."
"Will do. Thank you."
We walk outside and wander around Goron City a little before heading to the shop to get something to eat. Today Tanko says he has some fresh fish he just got in an hour ago and more of last night's juicy steaks if we're up for a super protein breakfast. Link says we'll take both, handing over some rupees and Tanko responds. "Good choice, brother." We get three fish, two steaks and a few mushrooms in return.
As Link fries up our breakfast on the circular grill outside, which is already piping hot, I take the Sheikah slate from my backpack and bring up the map of Death Mountain again. Usually I like to be surprised by what we will come across next as we explore, but I figure since we are in such a strange environment that the more information we have about the terrain the better. After we've eaten, I fill up our water canteens and put them in my backpack, knowing we will certainly need them.
We hike up the hill leading out of Goron City and the view we find at the top is spectacular. Before us is the biggest lava lake we've come across yet. In the center of it sit several rock islands with many wind funnels shooting up around them. It reminds me of our time at Ulria Grotto, but I have no urge to go flying around here. Honestly, being around so much lava makes me nervous, we have to be so much more careful here than anywhere else. One misstep could be our end, a painful but likely instant death. I can't think of a worse way to die.
"You alright there, Zel?" Link asks me.
"Yeah. Why?"
"You have this worried look that makes me wonder if you're thinking about our impending doom."
Hylia...sometimes I wonder if he's a freakin mind reader.
"Yeah, well it's a risk just being here."
Someone shouts our names and I look around until I see Daruk waving his hand back and forth down the hill from us. We call out good morning as we walk down a path that zig-zags and becomes precariously steep near the bottom. Just as we make it down to where Daruk's standing, a sudden rush of wind and flying glowing specks whoosh over us as a series of conjoined railcarts zoom past us at high speed, leaving screaming and laughter left behind in the air. Link and I stare as they zip by, coming to a slight slow before picking up speed on the next straight rush of rail. I hear Daruk's hearty laughter a few seconds later and I quit gaping and look back to him.
"That's what we call The Lava Rider." He says.
"I've never seen anything like it." I say looking back out into the lava lake and see it rushing along the rail tracks on the other side of the lake, disappearing behind the islands before coming back into view on the other side. Even from all the way over here I can hear laughing and cheering from the people riding it.
"Of course you haven't. It's a one of a kind."
"How are those carts moving on their own like that?" I ask as the ride rushes past us again.
"The Lava Rider is powered by electric sheikah energy. It took us years to figure it out, even with the geniuses from Kakariko Village helping us out. The whole thing is powered by this control unit here." Daruk answers, turning towards a giant metal rectangle with two levers and several large red buttons on it. I step over for a better look and see that everything is clearly labeled for use. I read the words 'go' and 'stop' next to the the big black levers and 'slow down', 'emergency stop', 'speed boost', and 'intercom' written underneath large red buttons. Daruk presses the slow down button as the carts down the rail make the last turn of the loop far to our left before slowly crawling up to the wide platform before us. He then pulls the stop lever and Link and I watch as two gerudo women get out of the carts, stumbling a bit as they walk across the platform, as if the ride has thrown off their sense of balance. They both have giddy smiles on their faces as they thank Daruk for the ride and sit down on a metal bench to our right.
"You two up for a ride?" Daruk asks us.
"Yes." Link answers, sounding eager. I expect nothing less as he is a daredevil. Or was, till I came around, I guess.
I hesitate before I respond, looking at the lava below the rails. "Umm..."
"Definitely take a ride! It's unlike anything else." One of the gerudo women calls out to me.
"You won't regret it." Her friend adds on.
"The carts are securely attached to the rail, Sheik. There is no way for them to fall off even if I make the ride go at top speed. I swear on my life that it's safe." Daruk assures me.
I look at the bottom of the carts and notice that unlike a regular mining cart, these ones don't appear to actually have wheels beneath them. Instead, the carts are attached right to rail itself with a flat, metal piece wrapped around it, thus making the possibility of them falling off impossible. I assume there must be some sort of wheel hidden by the metal somehow, though. How else would they move along the tracks?
"Alright. I'm in." I answer.
Link and I cross the platform between the carts and the ground and climb into the front cart, which is big enough for the both of us. Actually, each of the carts are plenty big enough to fit even a large goron of Daruk's size. There are two sets of harness looking straps connected to the seat, which Daruk says we need to put our arms and legs through, buckle across our chests and tighten them up. Once we have done that, he tells us to enjoy the ride before walking back over to the control unit. I grab Link's hand, feeling nervous again now that we are in a seat and about to get going. I feel him give my fingers a squeeze and when I meet his assuring gaze I feel a little better. Daruk asks if we're ready and we both say yes and give him a thumbs up. A moment later, we hear and feel an electrical hum followed by a jolt as the Lava Rider begins to move.
The ride almost immediately picks up speed, the momentum sinking us back against the seat within seconds. My heart hammers in my chest as we zoom around a wide turn then down a straight stretch before our cart speeds up the mountainside. We zip around in a tight, U-shaped loop that throws me to the side against Link, regardless of the safety restraints holding me to the seat. I scream and my heart pounds as we fly down another straight stretch. The sound of wind is loud in our ears as the track swoops up and down dramatically. Somehow it feels as if my stomach has dropped out my belly before I feel my middle again as my heart skips a beat. However, my fear is quickly flushed away by adrenaline when I hear Link let out a loud whoop followed by a "Yeah!" I look over and see him with his arms up in the air and I do the same, laughing and hollering.
"This is amazing!" I shout over the blast of wind shooting against us.
"Hell yeah!" Link responds.
We pass right through a big hole in a massive boulder in the lava ahead and over a goddess shrine on a small island in the middle of it. The track then makes a wide loop around all the rock islands I mentioned earlier and to my surprise we even pass just feet away from one of the many wind funnels as we come back around the other side of the lava lake. Over here, we zoom by several ginormous skulls just like the one we spent the night inside below Gut Check Rock. But these ones of course rest in the lava lake like giant creepy but awesome decorations.
I feel the ride slowing as we come over one last up and down swell of tracks and about ten seconds later we come to a stop back at the beginning of the ride. Daruk leaves his position at the control unit and joins us at the rail cart.
"So...how was it?" He asks with an expression that tells me he knows exactly how we're going to answer.
"Absolutely incredible!" I exclaim. I was so afraid when got on, but any fear or worry I had has completely disintegrated.
"Definitely one of the coolest things the I've done yet." Link says.
"Great! Up for another round?"
Link and I share a look before we simultaneously turn back to Daruk and shout "Yes!"
The Lava Rider begins to move again and this time it feels like a completely different ride. Perhaps it's because my nerves aren't so jumbled up and I know what to expect, but we don't seem to be moving as fast as before. This time around, I notice things I didn't see before as we pass them by. There are so many skeletons in this lake that once again, make me thank Hylia that whatever terrifying monsters they belonged to are long dead. I make a mental note to take a few pictures with the sheikah slate later. I'm sure our friends and family would love to see everything up here.
Once we have passed the U-shaped loop that scared the life out of me on first round, the Lava Rider dramatically picks up speed. So much so that we are pressed back into our seats with more pressure than ever and I have to lower my arms because I can't hold them up against the power of the wind. I'm positive that Daruk has pressed that "speed boost" button on the control unit, as I can't think of any other reasonable explanation for the sudden, unexpected change in speed. My eyes water against the wind pressure and I'm glad that the seat back behind us is tall enough to support my head. I feel a whole new level of excitement rushing through me and I let out a happy scream and laugh. The Lava Rider is going so fast now that as we pass over the goddess shrine this time around, all I register of it is a blur of blue light.
Before I know it we're nearing the beginning of the ride but instead of slowing down, we zip right by the boarding platform. All I see is a blur of Daruk as he holds one hand up in the air and hollers as we go by, giving us another round of excitement. We make so much noise this time that once we get back and stop, my throat hurts a bit from screaming, laughing and hollering. I thank Hylia for the railings on each side of the ramp leading up to the ride, because without them I guarantee I would fall in the lava. My center of balance has been erased as I stumble down on to solid ground, my vision also spinning for some reason. I feel Link holding onto my shoulder behind me, likely trying to help keep me upright. It feels like gravity is playing a trick on me somehow as we make our way over to the metal bench to the right of the control unit.
As soon as I sit down I feel sick. I groan clutching my stomach and a second later I hear a similar sound to my left. I look over at Link and see he doesn't look too well either.
"Oh crap." I hear Daruk say and glance up at him to see a guilty look on his face. "I forgot to warn ya guys about motion sickness. I usually do with all travelers. I'm sorry."
"That's what's happening to us?" I say, my voice coming out high pitched and weak.
"Yeah. Most first time riders get sick."
I look at him and am about to speak when my stomach turns and overwhelmed by nausea. I lean forward and rest my head in my hands, elbows on my knees with my eyes closed.
"I'll go get you guys some water. Be right back." Daruk tells us and I hear his thudding footsteps fading behind him as he jogs away. I try to call out that I have some water in my backpack but my stomach protests angrily with me once again and I only get out a miserable moan.
Link doesn't make it before Daruk gets back. I hear him heave and gag beside me and the smell of vomit sets me off as well. Once we're both done ejecting our breakfast, Daruk has returned with two large metal canteens.
"Sorry. Slipped my mind to warn you..." He says and when I look at him his expression tells me he sincerely feels awful as he hands one to each of us.
"It's ok." I tell him with a weak smile before taking a small sip.
"Yeah, don't worry about it. That thrill was definitely worth it." Link adds on. Daruk nods and his guilty demeanor melts away.
"Okay. Well, just let me know if you wanna go again."
Link and I share a look before we laugh and I tell him "maybe later."
x.x.x
Link's PoV
"Come on, Mr. Link! If we don't find more ores and end up losing this contest, Stergo will never stop bragging about it!" Offrack calls from up the hill.
When we got over our motion sickness, we headed back into town and the goron kids we met yesterday begged us take part in what they call: "The Rare Ore Excavation Contest." I didn't have the chance to say I wasn't up for participating before Zelda told them we would play their game. The four of us left Goron City through the front entrance and made our way down the road leading up to the city. From there, we went down a steep hill with wide metal steps added, which I was grateful for since one slip or fall would have sent us tumbling straight down into the lava river below. After crossing the two bridges at the bottom and hiking up to the top of the mountainside, we split into two teams, and I haven't seen Zelda or Stergo since. I wonder where she is as I keep following Offrack up and down steep ridges, only half looking around for ore deposits as I'm more distracted by the views around us.
"Up here! I just found a ruby deposit!" Offrack shouts excitedly up the hill. The kid has basically already freed the large chunk of gemstone by the time I make it over to where he's standing. A minute later he holds it up over his head with a grin of huge, blocky teeth. It's the third ruby we've found within the past half hour. Well, I should say Offrack has, as my detective skills have been lacking. I feel exhausted from all our hiking around but I muster up some enthusiasm as I smack my hand to his for a high five.
"Great job." I tell him holding out the metal chain-link bag we brought open so he can add it to our collection. So far we have two opals, a sapphire, and five chunks of amber along with the three rubies. All the credit goes to Offrack though, I've been almost no help in spotting anything besides boulders and scattered rocks among the terrain. I'm almost sure he knows exactly where to look to find said gems as we've gathered all of them basically minutes from each other.
We score another two amber before we enter a cave that leads unexpectedly deep into the mountainside. There are several luminous stone deposits in here, creating more than enough light to see as we make our way along. We take a left and come up to the end of the cave tunnel where I see Zelda and Stergo sitting next to each other against the wall. Their findings are spread out across the ground in front of them, shining in the light of a ground lantern a few feet away.
"You have the eyes of a hawk, Stergo. I never would have spotted all of this." Zelda says before looking up and noticing us.
"Geez, thought you two would never get here. There's no way you guys got more than us." Stergo boasts loudly.
Just by looking I can tell that we lost the contest, even though we have more gemstones than they do. While Offrack I were searching, he explained that they have a points system where each type of gem we find is worth more or less depending on what it is. Considering the fact that Stergo and Zelda have found not one, but two diamonds, the worth of our rubies is blown away in comparison.
I walk over next to Zelda and sit down on the ground with my back against the wall, happy to be able to rest. Offrack upends our bag of gems and then the two kids go at it counting what they both have. My ore hunting buddy is bummed about his loss but he gets over it quickly and the two of them run outside yelling about something a minute later.
"Rare to see you this tired." Zelda says.
"I blame the heat." I say lamely, closing my eyes. I open them a few seconds later when I hear a loud grumbling noise and see Zelda staring down at her stomach with wide eyes - as if she's surprised at the ruckus her stomach just made. We both break out in a laugh.
"Maybe we should find some dinner."
"Yeah...just give me a few."
"No. You stay here. I'm more than capable of getting us something." She says, standing up and brushing off her fireproof pants.
"There isn't much out there." I say referring to the lack of plant or animal life on Death Mountain.
"Don't you doubt my skills, Linky. I saw a few pigeons out there. I'll get something." Zelda states, putting her hands on her hips and staring me down. She sounds and looks so cute that I disregard that she called me that stupid nickname.
"Zel. If there is anything I don't do, it's doubt you."
"I'll be back." She says, picking her bow and quiver from the floor and marching out of the cave. When I can't see her anymore I close my eyes again, honestly glad that she took it upon herself to find us some dinner.
x.x.x
When I open my eyes again, Zelda is sitting at the cooking pot in here chatting with the goron kids. The now familiar scent of goron spice is wafting through the air. At some point it seems I shifted position when I passed out, because I'm now lying down and I have a painful cramp in my side from the hard rocky ground. When I get up and walk over the three of them stop talking and look at me.
"Nice of you to rejoin us, sleepyhead." Zelda greets me with a smirk.
"It was a much needed nap." I respond, stretching my arms over my head. "What's on the menu?"
"Ostrich. I didn't think I'd actually spot one but we'll have quite the feast here. Plenty enough for everyone plus some leftovers. It smells so good. I'm going crazy here waiting for it to cook. Probably because I'm ravenous."
I notice Offrack looking at me and when I meet his gaze he says: "Mr. Link. You really shouldn't say things in your sleep."
"Yeah. We heard some things I'm not sure you wanted anyone to know." Stergo adds on.
I give them both a confused look. I'm sure I didn't dream. Really, it was like I closed my eyes then opened them a minute later.
"They're right. Just what did you dream about, huh?" Zelda says.
"I didn't dream." I say, matching the strange looks the three of them are now giving me.
"But you must have. Why else would you have said that?" Zelda asks me, her eyebrows lowered and voice cold as if what I "said" really pissed her off.
"Said what?" I say, a feeling of dread creeping up my spine.
The three of give each other a serious look before they burst out laughing. I stand there watching and it dawns on me they were pranking me.
"You should have seen your face!" Stergo exclaims, holding his belly.
"Gotcha!" Offrack says with a grin.
I meet Zelda's eyes and shake my head. "Good one. I was starting to think I had some real apologizing to do."
"Who says you don't?" Zelda says, wiggling her eyebrows.
"Well, I'm quite sure I haven't done anything stupid lately."
"That you know of." She says, giving our delectable smelling meal a flip over in the cooking pot and cutting a section open with her knife. "Finally. Let's eat."
xxx
When we get back to Goron City, we take turns in the temperature-controlled bathroom built here in town. Just like in the tunnel leading into the fancy underground inn, we have to walk through two small rooms that have the same kind of glass doorways, which also have curtains, and the air gets considerably more pleasant. Once we're done, Zelda talks once more about how grateful she is that Goron City has such top notch guest accommodations. I obviously agree and joke about how awful it would be to burn up doing your business.
After taking it easy it for a while, sitting at the outdoor grill and chatting with fellow travelers, we head out the back way of town again. As we pass by the path leading down to the Lava Rider, I recall how fun it was. I've done a lot of things in my travels throughout Hyrule, but nothing has ever given me as much of a rush than flying down a rail track at who knows how fast. The pressure of the wind pushing against us paired with the speed of the ride, I can't imagine anything else that could come up to par. The 'motion sickness' that came after taking three loops around the track was worth it. I can't believe I've never heard anyone talking about something so awesome up here on Death Mountain. My family in Kakariko will be so jealous when I tell them about our trip up here. Aryll will be especially envious as she's always talked about making a journey up here herself. For once, I actually look forward to writing a letter or two. Just before we left Foothill Stable, I received a letter postmarked from Rito Village. I'm glad that Aryll and Paya made it there safely. My sister went on and on for three pages telling me all about it, so I suppose it's only fair that I send her back a detailed letter as well. I look forward to throwing Zelda off guard by voluntarily getting my writing supplies out and doing so. She always basically orders me to do so when she writes her own family.
I stare in fascination at the many lava falls pouring down over the road we're slowly making our way along. Seems that no matter how much lava I see up here I'll never be able to wrap my head around it. Zelda has a grin on her face as she looks around, pointing to things and chattering away. I'm so glad we changed our minds about coming up here, I needed to see something brand new. We come up to a sign that welcomes us to the Abandoned North Mine and my attention is taken over by the giant cannon to our right. We both walk over to it and get a good look, as it looks nothing like the ones we've seen before. I can't figure out how one would even fire it, as the barrel is in two pieces and there is no place to light to make the thing blast off. I have to assume the giant lever beside might do the trick so I take hold of it before Zelda stops me.
"Wait! We have no idea what will happen if you pull that. Look where the cannon is pointing! For all we know it could launch that giant rock inside at one of the islands and there are other people walking around out there."
I take a look where she is pointing with her left hand and faintly see a few figures out there in the distance. She's right; we could hurt someone if the cannon does go off. If this lever is even how you activate it, which I assume it must be.
"I guess I'll have to forget about firing it then." I say.
"Maybe there is another one and someone around who knows how to launch it. Come on, let's go out there." Zelda says taking my hand.
The tracks of the Lava Rider are built just under the bridge we cross, and just as we make it to the first of the islands, the railcarts zoom by at high speed, blasting us with a whoosh of wind and lava sparks. The wind funnels out here draw my attention and I take my paraglider from my weapons belt, unfold and hold it over my head and shout "Let's fly!" before taking a running leap off the edge before us. I hear Zelda yell after me but it's too late, I'm already being propelled up into the air by the nearest gust of upward wind. Fear fills me as I look down to see nothing but lava below me but I force myself to swallow it down and focus. I swing my body forward and my momentum gets me gliding forward towards the next wind funnel and I breathe a sigh of relief as I gracefully glide over and land on solid ground. I hear Zelda's footsteps as she runs across the bridge behind me and I turn around.
"Are you crazy?!" She shouts as she stomps her way over to me.
"Yeah..." I say folding up my glider and replacing it on back.
Zelda steps up to me so close that there are inches between us. Her face is twisted up in an angry scowl as she glares up into my eyes. Goddess Hylia...I'm definitely in trouble.
"What's wrong with you? You promised me you wouldn't do things like that! That wind could have sent you out into the lava lake! Then I would have had to watch you fall and burn to your death!" she shouts. I stare at her gaping, lost for words, and she lets out a loud frustrated huff, almost like a growl before throwing her arms around me. A moment later I hear her sniffling, and it feels like I've been kicked in the gut as my chest goes tight. I've made her cry. Great job, moron. I think as I wrap my arms around her and stare out at the lava around us not having a clue what I can do to make this better.
"You scared me." She says, face pressed against my chest as she squeezes me tighter. Her voice is high pitched and weak as she speaks, sniffling between words. "I thought you were over doing dangerous things like that."
I personally don't know if I'll ever fully lose that daredevil side of me that lives deep down. But I know what she means; I thought I was smarter than that by now too. I lean back in our embrace and gently coerce her to look up at me, my fingers on her chin. Her cheeks have tear trails down them. "I wasn't thinking...I was running and jumping before I had the chance to think about how suicidal it could be. I knew it was a bad idea the moment I got up into the air. I scared the shit out of myself. I'm sorry."
She sniffs before nodding. "I don't want to lose you. We both still have our whole lives ahead of us…and I want you there for every day of mine."
I give her a warm smile before kissing her forehead. "As long as you want me around, I'll be here." I say, before silently adding, 'And even long after.' I know deep down there is no-one else out there for me.
"You'd better be."
x.x.x
Zelda's PoV
I swear, heart attacks are not what you're supposed to give to the one you love. My heart was pounding in my chest the entire time he was in the air, nothing but gusts of wind and steaming, boiling, terrifying molten lava below him. I'm still a bit mad at him for doing that so carelessly, but I know I have to let it go. If he didn't learn his lesson by doing that then I don't know what will.
I stand there hugging him tightly until I've calmed down. As Link whispers to me all the ways he loves me and promises again not to be so stupid, I can't keep being mad at him for long. I kiss him fiercely and tell him I'll write Impa all about it if he ever pulls a stunt like that again. The way he goes pale and the look on his face tells me that if he fears anyone's wrath, maybe more than mine, it's his adoptive mom's.
Since I've cried a bit of mine off, I suggest we apply more fireproof lotion to our faces (the only place we have we have exposed skin due to our suits) and drink another elixir since its been about six hours since we had our last one. Once we've done that, I take the sheikah slate out of my backpack and take some pictures of our surroundings. I bring up the gallery and flip though my shots and come across the photo that Rob took of us. I ask Link to come over and smile with me, thinking where we are right now is a great place to take another. We both look dopey with our fireproof head gear on, having no hair or ears, but I adore the photo anyways.
"I think that's the Lava Rider right there in the background." Link says, pointing to a blur behind us in the distance.
"Yeah, looks like it." I say with a surprised laugh. "Maybe I can get one when it comes past us."
"Might be hard to capture a moving subject."
"True. But here it comes!" I state, holding the slate up as the Lava Rider comes zipping down the straight section of tracks that will pass below us to the right. I snap a picture just before the ride reaches that point and gasp at the screen before patting Link's shoulder excitedly and holding the slate between us.
"I got it! Look!"
"Sweet! That's even a pretty clear shot. Nice job."
x.x.x
Link's PoV
When we make it to the last island out here on the lava lake, we have to hike up a hill. At the top there is a hut made of boulders like the many in town. A goron walks out and his eyes go wide, a grin taking over his features before he jogs over to us, his footsteps thundering along the ground.
"Hi! I'm Yunobo. I was hoping to see you two again. Didn't get to meet you properly yesterday with everyone crowdin ya, goro."
"I'm Z-Sheik." Zelda says, the name coming out more 'Zheik' before her cheeks go red. I look at her surprised that she almost messed up her own alias, with how much she reminds me. "But you obviously already know that." She adds on quickly.
Yunobo lets out a light hearted laugh. If he noticed her mess up he doesn't let on. "Of course. I'm a huge fan of yours. I'm glad that you both came up here. Not everyone is so brave."
"Do you know how to shoot the cannons around here?" I ask.
"I know how, but we sadly cannot."
"Why is that?"
"Nobody has has blasted off one of the ancient cannons since the days of the Great Calamity. We would need the ancient sheikah slate in order to do that."
Zelda and I glance at each other.
"Why would we need that?" I ask.
"From what I've heard, somehow it had the ability to create remote bombs that fit down the weird funnels on the cannons. If only we had that device we could fire a cannonball from one."
Zelda and I share a look before she looks back at Yunobo with an expression that I'm sure matches my own. This is the first I've heard of remote bombs. Rob didn't mention what the non-working runes on the slate were, but this is clearly one of them. Zelda opens and closes her mouth slowly, clearly wanting to say something but keeping quiet. I know what I want to say: that we have it! But Rob specifically told us not to tell anyone we had it, or more what it is. There is no doubt that Yunobo would likely recognize the slate if he saw it...and I'm not sure even Zelda would know how to explain why or how we have it.
"What?" Yunobo asks, giving us both a strange look.
"That's curious. I didn't know that the ancient device had such a function. Do you know how it made such bombs appear?" Zelda answers a lot smoother than I could right now.
"No. That's a mystery to me too. The sheikah historian I met, who told me about them, couldn't answer the specifics on how the slate could make them appear out of thin air." Yunobo says, looking disappointed.
"Whoa. Just appear?" I ask.
"Yeah! According to the historian it had other functions too, like creating ice-pillars and freezing objects in motion! Just think of the things you could do with those powers!" Yunobo says enthusiastically.
"I have got to learn more about those!" Zelda exclaims. "I had no idea any of those runes existed! No book I've ever read talked about them!"
We all discuss this new information Yunobo has given us on the slate, bringing up theories and ideas involving the three runes we just learned about. The fact that we could summon remote bombs and stop objects from moving and freeze water blows my mind. I can hardly wrap my mind around it. I never imagined that the runes I faintly remember Rob briefly mentioning would be so cool.
"Have you two experienced the Lava Rider?" Yunobo asks once we've exhausted the topic.
"Yes! It was amazing. Do you guys keep it a secret up here? I'd never even heard of it before we got here." Zelda says.
"It's actually sort of new to us gorons as well. We've only had it up and running for half a year. But ever since then we've had more visitors than ever."
"That's not surprising."
x.x.x
Zelda's PoV
While we hang out with Yunobo, I learn so much more about Death Mountain and the Sheikah Slate I have in my backpack. I feel so bad not telling him we have it. I so badly want to take it out and show it to him excitedly as we walk past all the cannons again on our way back to the mainland, but of course we can't.
My thoughts keep going back to the new information we've attained on the Sheikah Slate. I wish I lived back in the old days before the calamity so I could have seen this sort of technology that the ancient Sheikah so clearly had! I need to meet this historian man Yunobo talks about! I have so many things I would ask him. Could this man have been Rob, I wonder? I'll definitely need to write to him later and ask. I know he'll have some answers for me as I remember he did say something about 'locked runes' while we were in his house. I can't believe I didn't ask him about those while we were there!
As we continue walking with Yunobo, I also wonder if there would be any harm in actually showing him the slate. I mean, how would Rob ever know? It's not like Yunobo here would know him, right?
No no no! I can't do that. I made a promise and I always vow to keep those. No matter what, I absolutely cannot tell Yunobo I have that slate. What if it really was Rob like I said before?
I sigh internally, bite the inside of my cheek and instead just keep picturing these magical sheikah tech bombs used way back when. Maybe one day I'll find a book that explains more about it, perhaps even a drawing or a painting of what they looked like. Ugh, learning about them and knowing we can't use the slate to make one appear is driving me crazy, especially with the fact that nobody alive today has ever seen one. I wish more than ever that those ancient runes were active on the slate. I wonder how they became locked or deactivated in the first place.
When the sun goes down, the three of us decide to make our way over to the Lava Rider for another thrill since Yunobo says it's much better at night. He's absolutely right, due to the darkness, the ride feels so much different. The lava is bright and glowing, the steam coming up from it fogging up sections of the track. The bones of the prehistoric monsters sticking out of the lava are cast in creepy shadows, the giant skulls menacing as we rush past them. I enjoy all of it tenfold and the ride is over before I know it. Luckily, neither Link or I feel ill when we get off the ride this time and we're both relieved. I think about going again but think better of it; I'm really not up for spilling my guts a second time today.
When a group of gorons come down the hill, Yunobo introduces them as some of his friends. Link gets back on the Lava Rider with them and I tell him to have fun before I make way back to Goron City. Inside the inn, a gerudo girl is standing on the small rock slab "stage" next to the table. She sings her heart out into a rock microphone while her friends sit watching her. At the end of her song - a popular one that plays frequently on sheikah radio, they notice me and ask if l'll join them. I say sure and happily take the stage next, singing one of my favorite songs and getting lot of kind praise afterwards. I chill with them until they turn in for the night, following Tray through the doorway behind the desk to amazing rooms deep in the mountainside.
Since Link hasn't returned yet, I go back outside. I venture around aimlessly before walking out the front entrance of town. I admire all the lava falls and luminous stone deposits all around me until I hear my name being called. I look all over before I turn around and what I see makes me gasp. I stare with my mouth open as Link glides down the hill under his paraglider, Stergo and Offrack hanging from his legs cheering and laughing loudly. The three of them land about ten feet from where I stand.
"I know what I said earlier about dangerous stunts, but these two wouldn't stop begging me to give them a flying ride." Link says before I can say anything. "Plus, there's no wind right now and I knew I would land perfectly safe."
"I guess that's fair..." I answer, still giving him a sharp look but agreeing it was pretty harmless to do so. Offrack tells his buddy that they should give Link something as a thank you and Stergo says he has just the thing. So they tell us to stay put as they run into town, stating they'll be back in a minute.
Link steps closer to me and rests his hands on my hips before kissing me briefly and saying "I'm sorry for taking you by surprise again after what I did earlier. I still feel bad for scaring you."
"I forgive you." I say, resting my fingertips on his face before I kiss him again.
A minute or so later we hear:
"So mushy."
"Yeah, break it up. We're back."
We let go of each other and see the goron kids smirking at us. Stergo steps up with his hands behind his back before presenting the object he has before him dramatically.
"A small 'thank you' for taking us flying, goro." Stergo says, handing Link a chunk of diamond. "It was great hanging out with you two today!"
Link looks down at the rock in his hand. "Whoa...This is too much!" He says with a laugh before meeting the goron kids' eyes. "It was no problem. We had an amazing day!"
