The air, thick and musty with the smell of ages, puffed out of the doors as Cana pushed them open. The strange architecture and carvings, framed with the unthinkably vibrant growth of the forest, spoke of a different time; a time undisturbed by the passing of humanity. Light pierced in spikes through the great gaps in the stone ceiling, particles of dust hanging visibly in the illuminated spaces they created. Even his steps on the flagstone beneath where hushed by the lichen carpet, greenery having nearly overgrown the place. For a moment, he pondered how long it had been since anybody had been here, silence and stillness almost as much a part of it as the pillars and steps. There were no buildings like this in Skyloft, and as he walked down the path flanked by the pillars, he drank the room in, almost inspired by the simplicity. Yet, even as it filled him, there was a strange sensation, the itch in the brain that only came when somebody was watching.
"It's…" his mind struggled for the proper word as he spoke to Fi, the spirit hugging close to him, her body langue showing no more about her thoughts than usual. In the shadowy light of the building, she took on an almost reflective quality, pools of white forming and breaking across her body as she floated by him. After brushing away a few insignificant terms, his mind grasped on one. "Magical." That was what he needed to say, the place filling him with a sort of energy he couldn't describe any other way. Indeed, if it wasn't for that nagging presence, he would have stayed and basked in it for a while. Feet clicking on the stairs, he finally caught sight of it, that peak of red towering above a stooped figure that showed he was not alone.
"Excuse me," he politely stated as he worked his way up the steps, a great ring of light coming down around the person. They were a small creature, body mostly hidden beneath worn vestments and a volumes coat, which worked its way up to a point far taller than the person it covered. What little skin he could see was ruddy and wrinkled, eyes shrouded by a twine-colored braid around her head, the end swinging back and forth before her face. It was almost as though she was meditating, and Cana juggled with the point of interrupting her. "I didn't mean to intrude." Again, there was no reply, her body still and at peace. Yes, she was a woman; that much he could tell.
"Can you hear me?" He asked worriedly after several moments, bending to his knee so he could look straight into her face. She did not appear to be dead, yet her dared not touch her to find out, hand hovering a foot from her wizened hands. "I said can you hear me?" This time, he was clearly fearful, and perhaps a little angry, his hand finally resting down on her own, not holding or even pressing, in fear of breaking the already frail bones.
Her face showed the first signs of movement, right lip twitching up slightly at his touch, hands cold and worn. Chin lifting up, she looked him straight in the eye, if she would have uncovered her own eyes, and gave out a little groan, taking a deep breath before responding softly, her voice deep and parental.
"Child," there was a bit of a laugh under her breath, as if happy to see him. "Descended from the clouds. I welcome you. Tell me, what is your name?" This close, you could hear her lungs fight for every breath, chest moving softly as she did, but her face showed the sign of the strain, curling up into a light smile.
"I'm Cana," he squinted as her looked down on her, feeling uncomfortable as he searched for an eye to focus on. She seemed so, tired.
"I have waited," she sat still, not even moving her face as he came down. "For many years. Many, many years," her voice trailed off, trapped in days gone by, the sounds of the wilderness surrounding them. Then, with a light nod, she continued. "Regardless, you are here now. My purpose may be fulfilled." Overhead, the sunlight grew brighter, a shrouding cloud having passed by. He wanted to speak, but she always looked as though she was on the verge of saying something, and so he kept quiet. The breeze, the sounds, even the smell made it seem for all the world like they were outdoors. "Are you surprised?" She asked, as if reading his mind. "Your arrival here was predestined. Many, many years ago. You are here seeking the maiden, correct?" Finally their faces met, her lips tightening expectantly.
Cana tilted his head to the side, a bit of confusion setting in. "Spirit Maiden?" He questioned himself softly, probing for the term in his mind. The women's lips slowly untensed , face sagging into a look of slight shock. "Fi," he finally asked, turning around as he did so. "Do you have any idea what she's talking about?"
He caught Fi floating back, although she was still abnormally close. Her head hung down, body shuddering slightly. "My deepest apologies Master," her voice stuttered a bit, sounding as if it had very slight static. "Though I was interrupted before, I should have taken the time to inform you of the reason for you decent here. I have detected another aura which closely matches that of your race in the vicinity. By applying logical principle, I deduced it to belong to the Spirit Maiden of which the elderly female speaks. As she is currently the only female absent in your community, I calculate you have a 96% chance of knowing her identity."
"Zelda?" He half-guessed, sizing Fi up with a concerned look. It was almost as if, he shock off the silly thought; their where more important things to worry about. "Is it Zelda?"
"So that is what she is called." The woman thought aloud, shifting herself slightly. "Perhaps not the name I would have chosen. Yet, beautiful none the less, no?" The last part was a straight up question, hanging in the silent air long after it should have faded away.
"I suppose," he shrugged, letting the tension just bounce off him. "That isn't important right now, though, just tell me where she is." Exhaling a deep breath, he watched the women shake her head, slightly ill at ease.
"She was not meant to get here this way," she started to ramble worriedly, legs shaking as she pushed herself onto her feet, hands wringing between each other. "She was supposed to arrive peacefully, shrouded in light rather than the dark cloud that gripped her. I fear something, "she paused, looking into the distance. "Or, perhaps, someone, has interfered. Yet, that is not your concern." She stopped, returning her face to his. "You have your own role to play in this destiny. "
"Actually," Cana interjected, only to catch himself before the words came out. She was right… in some ways. Yet, he wasn't even supposed to be here. Link had been the knight, the destined hero, and that realization scratched across his heart, causing him to grit his teeth.
"It is Cana, correct?" She moved closer to him, her steps jerky and weak. "This girl set out for Faron Woods to seek out her destiny. You must follow." Sweeping out one hand, she motioned to the side wall, a dirty and cracked stone door resting peacefully. "Many monsters have settled there, but with the sword you bear, you should manage." He felt her rest her weight on his hip, braid swinging back and forth. "I tire. Go now, Cana, and be brave." With that, she sank back down to her seat, breathing labored. He felt a bit sad for her, just a bit, before simply nodding. No need to tire her out more.
"Come on Fi," he beckoned to spirit, who hovered silent a still a few meters away. "We've got work to do."
"Master," Fi spoke as Cana worked his way up the stone stairway outside. The air was much fresher here, the light shining down through the cloud layer above and a few birds fluttering out of the tall grass, all much smaller than the Loftwings he was used to. "I apologize again for my error. It was not beneficial to your task to withhold such information."
He turned his head towards her, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly as he continued his movements, a relaxed look filling his face. "Don't worry about it," he took in a deep breath, a slight breeze blowing over him. "Everything worked out, right?" Fi responded with a bow, the literally electric tension about her slowly start to unwind. They just kept on, enjoying the peace of a pleasant day, when Cana's ear pricked up, a high, gluteal sound punctuating the serenity.
His hand went for the sword almost immediately, fear once again coming back. Slight movements started to catch his attention, fingers locked around the hilt. Things shifted from magical to strange, his passive curiosity skepticism. Then, he caught sight of the source of the sound. Five creatures… no, six, although one of them was clearly not like the others. The first five stood in a ring, dressed in brown furs, crude bars of sharpened steel raised into the air, brows low and skin a pale red. The other was large a thick, carrying a great bundle, arms raised in feeble defense. "Out of the way," the large one shouted forcefully, swatting his hand towards them. "Scram." Yet, they did not move, and indeed once of them drew closer, sword raised to strike.
It seemed as though his body attacked without him, leaning over slightly as he ran, the Goddess sword coming down across the creature's back, taking a good deal of meat with it. It gave out a loud hiss, arm reaching back to press down on the wound, blood quickly starting to flow. The others of its kind quickly turned around, revealing their wide and pudgy faces, needle teeth bared with their swords. It was a dance, really, the clang of metal on metal, the heart beating, and the sounds of pain the music. His own sword work was crude, each strike preceded by a moment of hesitation, but thankfully theirs was little better. First one feel, then another, his arm pulling itself away reflexively as another sword swished past. His back was to the large one, his body starting to feel thick and unreal. This was truly a first sword fight, adrenaline and enthusiasm making up for lack of skill, another body thumping to the ground.
Then, stinging pain shot through his left arm as a blow from that side tore through cloth, revealing the damaged skin beneath. It was little more than a glancing blow, to be honest, but the rusted surface had hurt him like hell. Another hit the same location, making a cross their, the blood seeping out. The yelp he gave out was almost pitiful, the sensation of this kind of pain completely new to him. It took all the willpower he had not the drop the sword and put pressure their, his vision bluring slightly as the remaining two creatures approached, grinning wickedly. However, they never got the chance, as from behind her saw two brown mitts appear, smacking the two heads into one another, the sounds of breaking bone grinding his ear
"Wow," the large creature looked down over him "That was, interesting."
"Thanks," Cana got out, his body trying to recover a normal breathing rate, sword hanging in a now limp arm. "I'm just glad I could help," his sentence dropped off, mind searching for a name.
"Gorko, the goron" he'd caught onto his dilemma, offering him a hand. "I'm an archeologist of sorts, studying ancient history. Yourself?
"Cana," his voice starting to sound better, he felt the tingle of Fi sinking into the sword, the warmth of her presence there flowing back up to his hand. "The Skyloftian." The last word seemed to light up a spark in the goron's eye, great hands tingling in excitement.
"You're not serious?" He asked, Cana feeling the pressure of a powerful grip on his shoulder. "You're actually from the Sky? The Isle of the Goddess?" He spoke hurriedly, face alight with wonder and hope, drowning out the sounds of the forest.
"Uh," Cana felt taken aback, raising up the sword slightly without thinking. "Yes, actually. I'm actually looking for somebody right now, so if this could wait."
"There are two of you?" Gorko laughed, although it sounded more like an rockslide then any human laughter. "The things I could learn! I'd thought she was just a native to the region!"
Cana's mind caught the idea, even though he though he felt a bone crack. "Wait, you've seen her?"
"I did!" the grip was finally broken, much to the appreciation of his sore shoulder. "She went right that way, all flustered up." A thick finger pointed towards a great stone arch, outlining a path beyond. "She's probably met up with the locals by now, why don't you ask them?"
Taking a deep breath, Cana sheathed the sword and nodded in honest gratitude, starting to walk over to the arch. "Thank you," he said simply, eyes closed. "I owe you one."
"Don't mention it," Gorko waved as Cana passed beneath the arch, the deeper woods calling to him. "Just remember to come back here once you've found her. I've got a few questions I need to ask."
His back strained with the effort of pushing the great log, the chestnut wood nearly as tall as he was, the torn bit of his coat binding his arm wound. With any luck, he'd find a heart flower to apply to it, but the extra pain it caused to his already straining muscle. He'd already stopped for breath several times, the sweat on his body drying out into an itchy, Finally, air coming out his throat roughly, he felt the stone pressing back against him, a light ringing sound signaling Fi's return from the sword, floating out before him.
"Master," she kept her hands folded, though there was obviously some wringing. "Previously you ordered me not to worry. I must inform you that I found your order impossible to comply with. Your success, survival, and moral are my only purposes, and hence are related to core programs that I am powerless to change. "She looked away, almost as though admiring the trees that rose up on either side. "I hope that this information does not negatively affect your opinion in my functionality."
Cana squinted one eye, looking up as the sunlight silhouetted her form. "It's ok," he gave her a nod of approval, her merely being their giving him another distraction from the pain "You just do what you need to do. I'll be happy with it."
And, as he took the first step into the shade, he heard Fi's voice coming from above him. "Your happiness is what I require, Master."