They had landed upon a strange spot. It seemed perfectly placed for them. From above, Tya couldn't exactly tell what it was, but it was a flat, elevated structure which a ladder had been put up against so they could get down easily.
She looked around as a gentle gust of warmth brushed over them. It seemed that the structure sat outside of a cave. Steps had been carved down to the entrance of the cave, and a path had been set to lead to it. The place, just like the previous two, seemed ancient. Which caused some confusion, given the fact that there was a relatively stable wooden ladder still standing, but Tya didn't ask questions. A lot of things didn't make sense down there, if she was going to start questioning things, the ladder would be relatively low on her list.
Link took a lap around the top of the structure they were on before returning to Tya and motioning toward the cave. She assumed that meant that was definitely their destination.
"Th-there's one of those cube th-things o-over here, but th-that's the right way." Link then started to the ladder and both of them dropped down onto the land. He went and used the skyward strike to send the cube off to the sky, and then they both went to the cave.
As they walked, she realized what she thought to be a path wasn't actually a path, but a rail of some sort. It was broken down in places, suggesting that it was likely not of any use to them. Even if it was, whatever was supposed to run along them wasn't there.
Inside the cave was relatively uninteresting. A few keese here and a mining cart there, but other than that it was a short, dark walk through an old cave. Perhaps if Link was in a better mood, it would have been more fascinating, but he wasn't. He was tired, impatient, and obviously unhappy...
Coming out on the other side, they stepped into a circular area. In the center of the area was the only thing that actually seemed to have color to it there- everything else was either sand or the color of sand. It was a bright purple stone with a strange eye-like symbol on it. It seemed to be of importance, given the way it was set up on a bit of a stage and cradled in a stand.
Further inspection led Tya to believe that this circle was also carved out somehow, with the near perfect formation of it. It seemed to be the hub for something important. There were things that looked like machines with pipes extending off and burrowing into the ground, and tracks that led to odd looking doors.
Link's attention seemed to immediately go to the doors, and after a brief look around the area they both approached the one on to the right of them. Link tried to pull it open, but it wouldn't seem to budge even after trying it from every angle he could reach. He even hit it, though that was more out of anger than anything. They moved to the second one on the other side, but got the same response.
It was then that Link whipped around and set that gorgeous blue gaze of his on the purple stone in the middle.
Link seemed to be pretty set on moving forward and nothing more, but even if time was of the essence, Tya was curious. He'd started examining the stone carefully, but Tya walked around the stage on which it sat.
In the dust and sand, almost completely engulfed and covered, she spotted some odd scraps of metal. They were mostly strange to her because the place seemed relatively clean- the machines which any metal belonged to were still relatively intact. She knelt, digging in a bit and dusting it all off so she could examine it. She immediately set it back down when she noticed it had a face.
"Link," she called quickly, causing him to turn quick and reach back for his sword. The way she called for him led him to believe there was danger, but really she was just a bit panicked to be holding a "body" she'd just dug out of the sand.
"I-I found something." She kind of quieted and calmed then, seeming relatively guilty for worrying him to begin with. She shouldn't have spoke at all, he was too annoyed. She should have kept her mouth shut and stayed out of the way. Lose feeling and obey, that was all she needed to do. Anything else would be wasting time. No pride, no curiosity, no exhaustion, no fear, just obey. But… That wasn't healthy, why would Link want this. Why would Zelda?
Her thoughts had managed to lose her for a second, but Link pulled her back when he knelt and began to examine the metal as well. He picked up another small part, one that looked to be a hand.
He studied it all for a second before shrugging a bit and shaking his head. "I don't kn-know, but it isn't g-gonna help us now." He lightly tossed it back in the sand and returned to the stone in the middle. And after a second or two of hesitation, Tya stood and did the same. She was already invading, she didn't need to bother him even more...
The stone looked important, so naturally that meant to it needed to be hit. Honestly though, Tya didn't understand why Link's first instinct was to strike the stone, and the look of absolute confusion she gave him seemed to make that known to him.
"That's w-what we had to do to th-the st-stones in the first place." He explained simply like he figured such a thing would be obvious. The two stones didn't look at all alike, so Tya probably never would have come to the same conclusion, but it seemed to work anyway. A second or two after his explanation, it began to shine and then it made a strange sound, almost like it had started to power up and then was shut down quick and without warning. The shine died out and the stone had changed to a nice blue color.
They looked around to see what they had triggered, but much to their dismay, neither of the two doors opened.
Link was becoming increasingly annoyed, and seemed like he was about to get very angry, but it was only out of impatience. A bit of crackling came from the stone and it began to lift out of the stand it was held on. From it, a burst of energy coursed over the ground, leaving a trail of color behind it. The area just came to life with the stones power. Grass, flowers, vibrant colors, even the railing and a heavy metal cart regained exuberance and power. That thing Tya had found earlier, buried in the sand lifted as well, forming limbs of electricity which the hands attached to. All lit up and alive, it wasn't quite as disconcerting to look at it. It appeared to be a robot.
That one wasn't the only one either. A few of them dug away at the walls, mining for something, and a few paced the area as if keeping watch.
Both of them froze then, both because they were shocked and because they had no idea if these were hostile 'creatures'. But they quickly proved to be friendly when one approached them.
"Where did you come from?" It asked, following with a bit of a buzzing sound.
Tya and Link both just stood there for a second, unsure of what to say. Finally Link just kind of pointed back toward the cave and when that answer seemed to be mostly sufficient, he let out a sigh of relief.
"We are travelers..." Tya spoke with uncertainty at first, but cleared her throat and smiled. "What are you all digging for?"
"We're here collecting Timeshift Stones and transporting them to Lanayru Mining Facility. Stay away from the blue stones. They're too dangerous for humans!" And with that the thing disengaged and returned to overseeing. Tya tilted her head a bit, unsure of how to respond. Everything they'd met until that point didn't quite know what they were, but this thing so simply referred to them as humans like it was nothing.
Her confusion wasn't long lasted though, because Fi soon emerged from the blade and looked back toward the robot before speaking to the pair.
"I am able to confirm that a time shift has occurred within this space. Any impact to the blue stones creates a sustained temporal disruption field in the surrounding area. Readings show that this area is in a past time state." And as usual, before they could respond, she was gone again.
"This is the past then?" Tya muttered, looking around at the creatures and the machines. "I wonder what happened to them."
"Time, probably." Link replied quickly and simply, moving toward one of the doors again. Before they could reach it though, they watched as one of the mine carts made its way down the railing and up to the door. Only then did the door open, and after the car was allowed through it closed back again.
So then they figured it was time to backtrack. Or more like Link angrily moved back and started to pull at a cart just outside of the ring that separated past from present. When he pulled it into the past, it immediately lit up and regained life like everything else had. It automatically went on its way, and the two started to follow. Though with how slow it was going, that became tedious, so they just crawled in and waited it out.
They came in to a new section where past and present was once against separated right down the middle of the room. More of those metal scraps and a good bit of rubble lay scattered just passed the line, and on the other side was a worn statue with a front that resembled a basket.
The pair climbed back out of the stopped mine cart and began to look around.
The room didn't have much to offer, even on the more vibrant side of it.
Of course, Link went to the right side of the room. Tya however took to the left, where the strange statue was.
She had raised a hand to touch the statue, but didn't get much of a chance to do so before the sound of rocks hitting the ground startled her. She would have been worried the cavern was beginning to collapse if it weren't for the fact that the sounds were small. She barely even needed to look for the source of the sounds as well, all she had to do was turn and see Link attempting to uncover something.
"Did you find something?" She asked, stepping away from the statue and closer to him.
"I th-think it's another one of those time shift th-things." He said absently, pulling away another piece of rubble that seemed to be holding up quite a bit of the pile. He shuffled backwards as the pile began to fall apart, and soon it uncovered another blue rock. This one looked different than the last- untouched and uncut, like it hadn't really been 'mined' yet.
Just like the last one, Link struck it, and vibrancy poured over the cave.
Something about the statue kept her attention though. For some reason she felt like it didn't belong, which really was an accurate assumption given the fact that it was in a cave, pressed into a wall for seemingly no reason at all. A decorative piece may have been better placed outside where visitors would see it.
This however, did not seem to be the place for such things.
She tilted her head to the side, examining it fully and completely, and as she did a hand extended out to lightly touch the edges which barely stuck out from the stone wall of the cave. She lightly ran her hand down them, at first in an idle action, but soon the scraped edges caught her attention.
It seemed her attention wasn't the only one the statue had gotten a hold of, as Link soon approached as well. Before Tya could inform him of her thoughts on it, he said "I-It looks like it moves out."
She simply nodded in response to show she agreed, and then without a word they both grabbed a hold of it the best they could. It took quite a bit of tugging, but they did manage to get it to budge. It was very heavy, so when they got it to move, they chose to stop. It moved forward, and they didn't want to risk it falling on either of them.
So they stepped back again to gather their thoughts.
If it was this much trouble to move, maybe they shouldn't have been trying. Perhaps this was the wrong direction for them to be going in.
"Maybe it isn't supposed to move." Tya finally said, biting the inside of her lip and looking to Link after.
"Where e-else are we su-supposed to go?"
"There was the other door. Maybe there's something in there."
"But w-why would th-there b-be a time shift stone I-in here if th-there wasn't something in here?"
"It is uncut. Maybe it isn't supposed to be here, it just hasn't been moved to where it needs to be yet." They both went quiet then, thinking over what they should do.
"It budged a little." Link said quietly, shaking his head. "I-If there's not a-anything useful b-behind it, we wi-will find that out a-after we move it. I j-just want to make s-sure th-though."
Tya nodded once more to show she understood, then they both moved back to it, this time to the sides. That way if it fell, it would simply fall forward onto the ground.
Again, the heavy statue gave them trouble, but they did manage to move it out more. This time they moved it enough to see that there was something behind it. Or there was nothing, meaning not even a wall. Meaning that a new path was blocked by this statue. So they kept going and managed to pull it out just enough for them to get behind it.
Behind it, the time separated once more, and there was a walkway that slowly turned to sand. Lining the walls was more of those statues, though these seemed different. They were worn in a different way than the last one was. The fronts were black and terribly cracked and chipped, but only near the baskets. They were set a little odd, like they could easily fall forward with a little bit of budging.
But they didn't need to be touched, not right now. There was a path that seemed perfectly fine before them, so they started down it. It wasn't until Link stepped into the sand that he realized something was wrong with it. It gave way easily, allowing one of his boots to sink in unexpectedly. He tried to move back quickly out of shock, but the sand that closed him in wouldn't allow it. He very nearly fell on his back but Tya grabbed him and helped him keep balance.
He tugged harder trying to get it out again, but really it only shifted the position in which he was stuck. The smallest movements would very briefly open a way, but the thick sand quickly fell back into place around him.
He wiggled a bit and tugged once again, allowing the sand to fill in under his foot so it would put him higher, closer to the surface.
While he was attempting to get himself free, Tya stood there just before the sand, holding tight onto him so he wouldn't fall.
When a moment came that she saw she could help get him free, she yanked him back, and the sand finally released him. He stumbled, of course, having had his foot set all wrong and his boot nearly pulled off him. So Tya didn't let go, she continue to keep him up while he readjusted.
"I believe that's going to be a problem." She said quietly, nodding toward the sand. Link shook his head before letting out an aggravated sigh.
"You s-sink in and i-its t-too heavy to pull all th-the way out." Link spoke angrily and slowly slid his arm from Tya's grasp. Before she moved to release him, he stopped pulling away. It was strange to her, given the way he'd been acting all day. Strange that he'd stop just as a hand was set to rest in one of hers.
He'd been so angry and annoyed, her mind was convincing her it was best to keep quiet and obey so she wouldn't be in his way and make things worse. But even a gesture so small, something that could easily have been idle, was helpful in reminding her that he wasn't turning into some raging, emotionless soldier, bent on doing what needed to be done no matter who or what stood in his way.
To have such a drastic change in attitude practically over night meant something more. Meant he was hurting or stressed or both. She didn't know, but it just took that small touch to remind her that he'd been insulted for trying so hard. He was tired and he was trying, of course he was going to be angry, and it was in no way her fault. Why her mind kept having to tell her that, she didn't know...
In response to these thoughts, the mage gave a light squeeze to the hand in hers. Link looked back at her, then to their hands and he paused. His shoulders dropped just a bit and he closed his mouth.
He didn't say anything, he just allowed his own grasp to tighten around her hand as well. He held onto her for a moment, closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath… Like he was trying to calm himself- no, like Tya was calming to him.
She hesitated a little upon thinking this. She felt as if she should push such thoughts aside- that feeling like she's needed would only end up in disappointment. But didn't everything end up that way anyway? To avoid disappointment was to avoid life in general.
"...You know..." She said absently, not actually realizing she'd spoken at first. She inhaled a bit, then held her breath as she thought over what to say next. "We are going to do great."
Said with such confidence.
Such confidence that she'd never felt before.
And she felt she was right too. Despite what the Guardian of the Goddess said to them, despite any of the difficult challenges they'd face, despite Ghirahim. She felt right. So they were slow the last time, Zelda was still alright. Everyone still survived. They were only going to get better from there, weren't they? That showed when Tya fought in the Earth Temple- she'd been doubting herself so damn much the entire time and she still won. So what could she do with herself if she was confident?
"...Y-You think so?" Link asked quietly, opening his eyes only to watch her.
"Yes, I think so."
"I d-don't want to di-disappoint Hylia..." It was a gentle admission, like he felt stupid for saying it. Honestly, it was a surprise to Tya. Of course, everyone in Skyloft believed heavily in their goddess and revered her greatly, however it was something that was just… common. To Tya it never really held much importance. To her Hylia was a concept not a person. A concept of what, she didn't know, but she never really thought of the goddess as someone with thoughts and feelings- as someone who could be disappointed. Regardless, this was what Link believed and worried about...
"I don't see how you could disappoint anyone." She furrowed her brow, gaze shifting downward as she thought over her own words once again. "Even Hylia."
Link opened his mouth again like he was going to speak, but he didn't. After a second all that escaped him was a little sigh and he nodded a bit. "W-We should keep moving." He slowly released the hand of hers he still held, and turned back to the sand he'd just been pulled from.
Tya moved to his side to look at the sand, then up to the statues that lined the walls.
If the last one had been set to hide a pathway, perhaps these ones were set up for a similar reason. Something was obviously up with them, or else the fronts wouldn't have been so scorched. She bit the inside of her lip for a brief second before looking down to the bomb bag Link still had strapped up to his belt.
"The fronts are blackened." She said. Link looked at the statues and nodded.
"What do you th-think th-that means?"
"They are set strange. You see." Tya pointed out, motioning to the strange angle they were sitting at. Leaning forward just a bit, and held up by being wedged into the rock.
"...Bombs?" Link looked at the statues angle, then down at her and moved a hand to set over the bag. Tya responded by nodding her head and stepping back.
Link pulled one out and aimed as it ignited. He aimed right for the worn basket on the front as that seemed to be where most of the charring was. He managed to get it just right the first time, and the little explosion was more than enough to budge the statue. It fell forward into the sand and began to sink in just a bit, but as it wasn't something that actually struggled, it didn't sink much. Instead it just sat on top.
"We should try to do the others before getting on that one. We don't know how well it will hold with our weight." Link hadn't actually made a move to get on it yet, but Tya felt the need to say it just in case he tried. He simply nodded in return before pulling out another bomb.
The statues made a zigzag like pattern across the sand, and though it was a bit difficult the farther away they got, using Link's bombs and a bit of Tya's charged fire balls- they didn't want to waste all the bombs- they managed to get them all down. They were also a lot more stable than Tya assumed they'd be, holding them both up quite well so they wouldn't sink in.
They crossed and continued on through a particularly bleak cave. The only thing of interest they found was toward the end- just another time shift stone that they had to activate. With it activated, they were allowed to use another mine cart to get out of the cave and step foot into a vast, open area filled with sand. They both thought it safe to assume that what they set their gaze upon was the Lanayru Desert.