Chapter 14: Zora District

At the other end of the secret passage, Zelda and Link found themselves on a stone bridge that led from the rear end of the palace to another building suspended by a floating rock. From there, it was a maze of similar buildings and bridges which eventually led them to an abandoned Skyloft Rail. Below it lay a pile of discarded Talon Clasps. Recognizing them, Link bounded ahead of Zelda and sniffed the Talon Claps. As he did, five familiar faces suddenly appeared.

"Hey!" Grody shouted. "Get away from those, you stupid mutt!"

Grody made the motion to kick Link, but his foot went right through Link. Nevertheless, Link looked up and started wagging his tail.

"It's hopeless, Grody," Karoline said. "No matter how many times we've tried, we still can't touch anything physical."

"That's because you're spirits right now," Zelda answered, causing all the Rail Riders to look at her quizzically.

"Who's that?" Crow asked.

"Did she just call us 'spirits'?" Fletch said with a perplexed look.

"Well, not the dead ones, anyway, but you've lost your physical form," Zelda said. "That's what usually happens to people who enter the Twili District."

"Oh, yeah, how do we know you're not a spirit too?" Stitch said sarcastically. He tried to touch Zelda's breast, but his hand went right through.

"If you really had touched me, I would've called you a pervert," Zelda said folding her arms.

"Wait a minute," Karoline realized. "If we really are spirits then how come you're still physically present?"

"I've been trying to figure that out all day, and I can't think of an explanation," Zelda answered. "But the strangest thing is that Link—

"Link? You know him?" Karoline said sounding surprised.

"Yeah, he's the wolf," Zelda said and pointed at Link.

"No way," Karoline said and looked at Link. "Is that really you, Link?"

Link barked in response.

"Thank goodness you're all right," Karoline responded as she pretended to pet Link. "I was so worried when you didn't show up at the Knight Academy. What happened to you?"

"I don't know," Zelda said. "It happened just as soon as we entered the Twili District."

"And who are you supposed to be?" Grody asked.

In response, Zelda folded her arms and said, "If you must know, it's Zelda."

Upon hearing that, Grody's cheeks flushed red and then he looked away.

"Pay no attention to him," Karoline said smirking. "Grody may act tough, but he's a total softie underneath. I'm his older sister, Karoline."

Zelda pretended to shake Karoline's outstretched hand, and the other boys followed while introducing themselves as well. Grody was the last one to do this, and he still blushed as he shook Zelda's hand despite the lack of physical touch.

"So how do you know Link?" Zelda asked.

"I ran into him near the Bazaar yesterday and then brought him to our secret hideout at the Knight Academy to persuade him to join us," Karoline explained. "We're the Rail Riders, you see, and so we had him demonstrate what he could do with the Talon Clasp and then we were chased by Clockwork Policemen. We had planned to rendezvous back at the Knight Academy, but along the way Link went missing. Then some time last night, the Clockwork Policemen raided the Knight Academy looking for some 'secret passage' and they thought we were members of the Twilight Wolves. So we escaped to this place and we were told to wait here by a Twili woman who called herself Midna."

"Hold on," Zelda interrupted. "Rail Riders? Talon Clasps? What are those?"

A small gasp escaped Karoline's mouth. "You've never heard of us?"

Zelda shook her head.

"Boy, I've got a lot to explain to you," Karoline said and tried to pick up a Talon Clasp but nothing happened. "Ah, could you pick this up for me?"

"Sure," Zelda said and picked up the Talon Clasp. "How does it work?"

"First, you strap it to your forearm," Karoline instructed. Then after Zelda did as she said, Karoline continued, "Then, you unfold the talons with the switch, aim, press the button, close the talons, adjust the line with the nob, and hold on. Got all that?"

"I think so."

Once Zelda had secured the talons onto the Skyloft Rail above, they started to move. Zelda then adjusted the length of the line till she was hanging above the ground moving toward a dip in the rail that went sideways. She tried to make it stop but was too scared to release the talons.

"I don't think I'll be able to carry you, Link," Zelda cried. "I'll come back with the Fused Shadow pieces. Just keep an eye on Midna and make sure she doesn't get hurt."

Link barked again and leaped up toward Zelda, but was too late to prevent her from heading down the dip in the rail off to the right. Zelda briefly closed her eyes, and then opened them once she saw that the rail was passing over a small ocean that was floating in the sky with rocky shores and a vast beach that stretched for miles beneath her. Compared to the Twili District, this place was brightly lit with a mid-morning sun rising over the ocean.

"This must be the Zora District," Zelda realized. "I've heard their beaches are amazing and sunny all year round."

But to Zelda's surprise, gray clouds were rolling in from the sea with flashes of lightning in them. Worried, Zelda extended her line as the rail dipped lower toward the beach. Once she touched the beach sand with her feet, Zelda stopped and recalled the talons. Fortunately, no one on the beach was around to see her land. Seeing the storm clouds drawing closer, Zelda ran along the beach until she found a cable-car that was preparing to leave.

"Wait, hold on!" Zelda cried, trying to get the driver's attention. "Don't leave without me!"

The doors started to close as Zelda ran up the stairs and onto the platform. Then a young man in his mid-thirties suddenly held the doors open allowing Zelda to get in. While the driver gave the young man a stern glare, Zelda was catching her breath as the cable-car started to move upwards.

"You're really lucky you made it, Miss," the young man said. He had short brown hair that was stylized with deep blue eyes. His ears were slightly pointy and he wore a red vest over a white dress-shirt, tan slacks, and shiny brown shoes. "Otherwise, you would've been caught in the middle of that storm."

"Yeah, thanks," Zelda responded.

"Is that a Talon Clasp you have on your arm?" the young man asked.

"What about it?"

"You know that those are illegal for uses other than construction work, right?"

"Oh, I knew that," Zelda said as she put her blouse-sleeve over it. "I just…found it on the beach, and decided to keep it."

"Quite the interesting find," replied the young man who held his hand out to shake after an awkward pause. "Well, I should probably introduce myself. My name is Professor Phosile, and I study archaeology."

"Professor Phosile?" Zelda's eyes widened. "The Professor Phosile? You're the one who discovered the Cave Mural, right?"

"Ah, I take it your familiar with my work," Professor Phosile replied heartily. "Though to be honest, I have yet to get the proper respect for it."

"What happened? It seemed as if you vanished off the face of Skyloft or something."

"In a way, though it's a little more complicated than that. Now what's your name, young lady?"

"Zelda, and I'm an inventor."

"An inventor?"

"Yes, though I haven't patented anything yet. I've just been tinkering with things in my spare-time and trying them out."

"Then you must be very smart, which is a rare quality you find in girls these days."

"Is that not preferred?"

"I wouldn't say that, but—

"Girls are expected to be obedient and well-mannered, dear," said a young woman who was seated behind the man. She had brunette hair tied into a bun, hazel-green eyes, and wore a white short-sleeved shirt with a red scarf tied around her neck and a matching red skirt to compliment her brown laced shoes. "Not necessarily smart or interested in adventure, though I would consider myself an exception."

"Right," Professor Phosile said and waved his hand from Zelda to the woman. "This is my wife Tera. She helps me with my work."

"Hello," the young woman said shaking Zelda's hand. "I heard your name is Zelda."

"Correct," Zelda replied.

"You have the same name as the former mayor's daughter," Tera said and sighed. "I'd hate to be in her shoes right now. Rumor has it that the False Hero managed to sneak into the Goddess Statue and steal her away."

"Quiet, Tera," Professor Phosile said harshly. "You can gossip at home, but not here."

"Oh, come on, it's not often that I have another girl to talk to," Tera complained. Then as Zelda sat next her she whispered, "He's just nervous, dear. After he discovered the Cave Mural, Mayor Ganon sealed it off from public viewing and forced my husband to no longer publish any works on archaeology at the risk of incarceration."

"That's awful," Zelda replied. "What has he been doing since?"

Tera smiled mischievously and whispered, "Conducting secret research. He's currently looking for pieces of the Fused Shadow, which is said to be a powerful relic from the Twili people that was used by their current ruler Midna to take back the throne from Zant who had usurped her father and banished her. Fortunately, she had allies and together they formed the Twilight Wolves to overthrow Zant and eliminate him for good. Then when that was done, she ordered the Twilight Wolves to scatter the Fused Shadow fragments to different districts in Skyloft and bury them for good."

"Then why does your husband want to dig them up?"

"Because he wants to study their corrosive effects on living things that aren't from the Twilight Realm and utilize that power to benefit Skyloft."

"How? That doesn't seem very promising."

"That's what I told him, but once he sets his mind to something it's hard to convince him otherwise. So that's why I'm here, accompanying him to the Owlan Temple in the Kokiri District which is said to contain a fragment of the Fused Shadow inside it."

"Can I come along? I'm a big fan of Professor Phosile's work and I think I could help him."

"What kind of skills do you have?" Professor Phosile asked, turning to face Zelda.

"I'm very…agile, I can learn quickly, my knowledge of Skyloft's history is solid, and I can defend myself if need be," Zelda answered firmly.

"Let's see how you fare at Owlan Temple," Professor Phosile said doubtfully. "Then I'll decide whether to take you with us on future expeditions or not."

To be continued…