The Legend of Zelda: Sky Lines

by Light Onthemayo

One hundred and fifty years after the disaster with the Spirit Tracks, Hyrule has risen to the skies. The people have made a living through the use of airships and the "Sky Lines", trails of intense wind used to aid these airships in their travels. On the eve of a fantastic adventure, a young man named Link has just been given command of his own airship...

62. Chrysobari, Liquid Counter-Paradigm

Chapter 62: Chrysobari, Liquid Counter-Paradigm

…

~~We found Rosaline, and she's willing to come with us to the Forest Realm to help out the other… Architects. I guess that's the only thing to call them; I just can't think of anything else. Anyway, I guess Rosaline's been looking forward to this for some time. She just hasn't had an excuse. We're on our way back to Kakucha Island, where we're hoping to find a place to stay the night and a ride back to the Forest Realm in the morning.

…

Thunk. That was the sound Link's and Cale's heads made as they let their heads fall at the same time against the desk. Irleen also fell against the desk, but her tiny body hardly made a sound.

The dock secretary jumped in surprise, catching his glasses just as they slid off the end of his nose. "I'm sohry, boys, I really am. But most of the vessels in yestehday weh pohting people back to the Forest Realm. The rest went to the otheh islands eahlieh this mohning with mail and the daily groceries. Pehhaps the only vessel available is the S.S. Rosaline, but I heah the owneh is ratheh stingy and dull-witted."

"Well dot be unfaih," Rosaline said. "Have yeh met the owneh?"

The secretary looked worried. "W—… well, no…"

Rosaline crossed her arms. "Typical."

"Which one: him, oh Linebeck?" Dholit asked.

Rosaline nodded. "Right."

"Look, let's just get right to it," Irleen said as she lifted off the desk. "When can we expect another ship?"

"W-well… not foh days, I'm afraid," the secretary said.

"Days?" Link asked after raising his head.

Cale raised his head, too. "Why so long?"

"The lahgeh ships all went to the Forest Realm," the secretary said. "None of them ah scheduled to retahn foh fouh days; that's how long it will take including passage and at least one ovehnight stay. I suppose you could talk to the otheh vessel mastehs when they retahn from theih regulah routes, but I'm afraid they won't be in until this evening. And… even then, I don't think any of them will be willing to poht you to the Forest Realm. They do have regulah schedules to keep heah; they would have to find a replacement vessel befoah giving you passage."

"What happened to all the ships taking people back and forth between the islands?" Link asked. "The Friendly Sailor has a whole chart of them."

"Those weh some of the ships that set out foh the Forest Realm last night." He paused and glanced around at the group. "I wish I could do moah, but theah ah no otheh vessels left."

Cale, Link, and Irleen found themselves at a loss for words. So Dholit put a hand on Cale's and Link's shoulders. They took the hint and followed her and Rosaline. "Come on, Irleen," Link said over his shoulder.

Irleen started after them. Then she paused to think and decided to return to the secretary. She jumped in his face, causing him to start as she told him, "Hálpò katlinùlat tanì!"

Outside, Link glanced across the empty port. Even when no ships were docked, Link had been used to seeing airmen on shore duty wandering around Skyrider Port. He found it hard to believe that a port could be as empty as Kakucha Island, especially when it had appeared so busy the day before. He had not counted on the possibility of all the vessels leaving at once; no one would ever conceive it. In the sky, it was impractical. Actually, it was illegal; one law of the kingdom stated that at least one airship must be present at a major port at all times in case of emergency. Not that an airship of any size could evacuate an island's entire population, but this was done so that there was a vessel to carry messages, and some islands hired a pair of cutters so that at least one could be used to carry urgent messages between islands. With the islands of the Ocean Realm isolated from the rest of the populated surface, it felt like the whole realm was tempting fate. Then Link spotted Linebeck's steamboat on the far side.

"So what do we do now?" Cale asked. "Without a ship—"

"Just give us some time to think," Dholit told him in a soft tone, one hand raised to calm him.

"What's there to think about?" Irleen asked. "We're stuck until another ship arrives."

"In de Ocean Realm, dey say dot deah don't be a way witout a will," Rosaline said. "We need a will."

"What about Linebeck?" Cale suggested.

"We're looking for a will, Cale," Irleen told him.

"Hey," Rosaline griped.

"We're not taking Linebeck's boat," Link spoke up, turning his attention back to the group. He caught the confusion coloring their faces and explained, "Until the other ships return, he's the only ship available to get word out in case something happens to this island. We can't take his boat."

They silently contemplated Link for a moment. Then Dholit said, "Okay. We won't take Linebeck's boat. So what do we do?"

Link glanced down at his toes and grabbed at the back of his neck. "I—…I-I don't know."

"Yeh know…" Rosaline began. But her thoughts seemed to occupy her more as she neglected the rest of her statement.

"Uh… no we don't," Irleen said.

"Huh? Oh, sohry. I just be tinkin'. We know deah don't be boats heah. But did anyone tink about de odeh side of de island?"

"Should we have?" Cale asked. "Even if we could find a suitable vessel, the Spirit Tracks between heah and the Forest Realm will make it impossible to travel beyond a cehtain point."

"Ah," Rosaline said, holding a finger up. "Not if de boat is light enough."

"You're talking about a cutter," Link said.

She smiled. "How do yeh feel about tryin' a sea vessel, Captain?"

…

~~Day 28.

~~There's luck. And then there's Rosaline. I think the goddesses were having a laugh when they first considered her existence.

…

Not that Link was ungrateful. In fact, he was surprised to find out that Rosaline had connections on an island she had never set foot on before. Their first step was to find out if there was anyone living on the other side of the mountains of Kakucha Island. It did not take long for them to find out about Anapua Village, accessible via a pass through the mountains that only the locals knew. Using Cale's money, they hired a man to take them to the village. For twenty rupees, they were standing on the outskirts of the village just before noon. Sixty more rupees bought them a local meal of fish and cabbage for lunch.

Rosaline's connection came in when the group visited the single pier which the village called a "port". They found out that some of the shipbuilders that Rosaline had helped before now lived in the village, servicing the village's small fishing fleet. One man in particular, who rented vessels out, greeting her by telling her that her boat was still untouched and waiting for her. He had set aside a cutter for her, which she accepted and tipped for using a blue rupee from Cale's wallet. The cutter, dubbed the Realm's Treasure, was quite sound and almost looked brand new. Its hull was closed at the front, and Link remarked that, with the proper conversions, it could conceivably be used on a larger vessel as a launch or a captain's gig. As it was, though, it was perfect for sailing, especially since it used a sail plan that Link was used to. After familiarizing himself with the cutter's rigging (which only took a few minutes), they used sixty more rupees from Cale to purchase supplies and spare lines. By about mid-afternoon, they shoved off from the village with a map and a telescope… which were also bought with Cale's money. Cale spent the first few minutes staring at the two green rupees he had left.

Link sat at the back with his compass dangling outside of his tunic, one hand on the tiller with the other hand free to check the compass. Dholit sat nearby, enjoying the journey with the occasional glance in Link's direction. Irleen rested in Link's hair just inside his hat so that she could see what he was doing. Rosaline sat on the port side near the block that was keeping the sail from moving too far starboard. Cale was resting in the small entryway to the forward compartment, nursing his seasick stomach with a ration pack. Link had to sail the cutter close hauled due to the wind coming from the northwest while they needed to travel west. The extra heeling was what had triggered Cale's seasickness just a few minutes out, when he was finished concerning himself with his lack of funds. Due to sailing towards the wind, the boat only moved at a modest amount of speed. Link was beginning to wonder if they would have to spend the night on the sea.

"About how fah would you say we ah from Kakucha Island?" Dholit asked him.

Link glanced over his shoulder. He could vaguely make out the mountains on the island in the distance. Since he was bad at guessing distances, he replied, "Probably about halfway between there and the first Spirit Track crossing our path. And I still don't know how we're going to cross it."

"We don't seem to be moving very fast," she observed.

"We're sailing into the wind," Link said. "It's hard to gain speed like this. Most cutters do their best sailing perpendicular to the wind."

Dholit hummed as she appeared to consider something. "You know, this is quite the situation we'h in." She met Link's confused frown with a soft smile. "Afteh all, we ah alone on the ocean."

"Rosaline and Cale are here, too," Link pointed out.

"So is Ihleen," Dholit added, pointing at the light under Link's hat. "Three gihls, two boys… don't you think that's ideal?"

"For what?"

Dholit slid closer to him, her knee almost touching his. "Sometimes I can't tell whetheh you'h playing oh just happen to be that naïve. Not that I have a problem with eitheh."

"Why don't you just go back to where you weren't eying him?" Irleen spoke up.

Dholit shrugged. "I can't help that; I've been eying him evah since I met him."

"What is wrong with you? It's like you flirt impulsively. Besides, a guy like Link isn't interested in a weirdo like you."

"Oh?" Dholit asked, her interest rising. "You have some insight that I don't?"

"Link's a nice guy who, yeah, may just be a little naïve," Irleen said.

Link sighed to himself. "Here we go again."

"He believes that there will only ever be one, one, girl for him," Irleen continued. "And until he finds her (and probably trips over her a few times), he'll be so devoted to her that you will have to hypnotize him just to get him to say 'hi' to you."

"Does she really need that kind of idea?" Link asked.

"Is that so?" Dholit replied, her voice oozing of challenge. "Then I suppose you've nevah read his diary, have you?"

"I don't have to in order to know about Link," Irleen said. "His head's always in the clouds. And that's just where his bride will be. Someone… mature. Not so love-crazed like you."

"Oh, deah, it does seem she has me at an advantage," Dholit told the sky. But her smile persisted as she continued, "But you can only evah judge Link by his actions, not his thoughts."

"Link wears his heart on his sleeve," Irleen said. "He doesn't have any thoughts."

"Excuse me?" Link asked, looking up at his brow.

"Oh, Ihleen, if only you knew how many gihls he's thought about evah since falling from the sky," Dholit said.

"Ah—… what?" Irleen replied. "What girls?"

"Theah ah at least three on his mind at all times," Dholit said.

Irleen jumped out of Link's hat and hovered in front of his face, the dust from her wings causing Link to look away in surprise. "What girls is she talking about, Link?" she demanded. "You're supposed to be more transparent than that!"

"Wha—?" Link started. Then he said, "Why are you always talking about girls in front of me like this!? Both of you!" Link then realized how loud his voice was and glanced over to find Rosaline and Cale staring at him in surprise. His face turned red, and he bowed his head to try to hide it.

"Link?" Irleen asked with a concerned voice.

"Just… just drop it, will you?" he asked with a shaky voice.

"Okay…"

A moment of silence passed. Link was trying not to be angry, but the banter between Dholit and Irleen was beginning to drive him crazy. Both of them seemed to just spontaneously start talking about him being with a girl as if he was not around, Irleen especially since they had first reunited in Whittleton. Was this just a female compulsion? He could not quite say; he had never spent time alone with any woman except Leeta, the owner of the Sail Tavern on Skyrider Port. Although affectionate, Leeta had never shown any interest in girls around Link or expressed her thoughts about him to another woman. At least, not in front of him. But now that he was away from his home, he was beginning to realize just how far out of his element he actually was. He was not naïve about love, he understood the concept. But the way Irleen talked made him sound stupid whenever the subject came up. And Dholit's advances just made him feel uncomfortable. In the middle of trying to get home, why would these two keep doing this to him?

Dholit asked, "What's that?"

"What?" Irleen asked. Link raised his head in response, his focus and anger broken by the sudden change in topic.

"I be seein' it, too," Rosaline said as she rose. "Smoke?"

"Cale," Link called. "Where's that telescope you bought?"

"Heah," Cale said as he held it up. Rosaline, standing closer, picked it up. "What is it?"

"Smoke on the horizon," Dholit replied. Link could see it, too, when he leaned aside to see past Dholit. It was a small plume of white smoke on the horizon, almost indistinguishable from the white clouds above if it had been anywhere else.

Rosaline crossed the boat and glanced out with the telescope to her face. "It be comin' from a single point. But I tink it be too fah away to see."

"Can you bring us closeh?" Dholit asked.

Link frowned at the sail. "I could try beating, but I don't know if we have enough speed to avoid being in irons."

"'In iahns'?" Dholit asked.

"Stopped," Link explained. "No boat can sail directly into the wind, but it is possible to move a boat in that direction. When the boat doesn't move, it's 'in irons', and that's a hazard when trying to move upwind. By changing tack, we can sail towards that smoke." Then he shrugged. "The problem is we'll be out here longer."

"Well, I be findin' meself curious now," Rosaline said. "Deah be a numbeh of islands out heah, but dey should all be undeh de wateh. So it has to be a boat."

"If the way Anapua Village builds boats is any indication," Link said, "smoke from a boat out here is a bad sign."

"I don't believe it's a boat," Dholit said. "A fiah would be black smoke. That looks like steam; I've seen it numbehs of times when trains stop at the camp's station."

"Steam? From a train?" Irleen asked. "How would a train be out here?"

Cale stood up, supporting himself on the top of the doorway. "Didn't Luggahd say something about trains missing when the Ocean Realm was deemed off-limits?"

Link nodded. "That's right, three of them didn't return to the Forest Realm."

"Since the watehs rose heah again," Cale continued, "it's conceivable that this is wheah those trains disappeahed."

"We should go take a look," Rosaline said. "We might be able to help dem."

"Do what you have to, Link," Dholit said. "Let's have a look."

Link glanced between them for a moment. "Okay, but I'll need some help."

…

Just as Link said, they were out at sea for longer than expected. The wind shifted from northwest to north and back, which caused the boat to slow and even forced Link to steer to the northeast in order to keep the cutter moving north. The constant shifting triggered Cale's seasickness again, but he was doing better as the day went on. Rosaline helped Link by adjusting the sail at Link's request while he tried to maintain their indirect course. Dholit stood by on the bow with the telescope. About halfway through the trip, she hollered astern that they had found a train.

The sun was painting the western sky gold by the time they reached it. It was a maroon train bearing a silver "15" on the tender. Behind the locomotive were three passenger cars, two freight cars, and a single flatcar which appeared to be longer than the other cars. The water level rose over the wheels, which probably explained why the train was not moving. The rails underneath the train were almost invisible through the clear water. The windows of the passenger cars and the doors of the freight cars were all open, and the group could see a few fishing poles improvised with metal bars and what appeared to be thick strands of thread. They were being watched from these open doors and windows. After hearing from Dholit that the water at the bow was safe, Link and Cale took out oars to row the boat while Rosaline stowed the mainsail.

"Ahoy deah," Rosaline called to the engineer.

"A'oy yarself," the engineer called back. "I's beginnin' t' wonder if anyone'd seen us ou' 'ere."

"We just happen to be passin'," she said. "We weh goin' to de Forest Realm."

The engineer nodded and straightened the collar of his shirt. "We's goin' t' the Fire Realm, bu' the water 'ad other ideas."

Another man in the locomotive's cab stood up and stepped closer to the boat. "We've been eatin' the rations mean' for the miners," the older, well-built man said. "We ran ou' this mornin'."

"Where's we a'?" the engineer asked.

"From here, probably a few hours' boat ride back to Kakucha Island," Link answered as he stood up. "Is anyone hurt?"

"Jus' a few bumps when the train stopped," the older man said. "An' we stopped hard."

"Why?" Rosaline asked.

"There's somethin' wrong with the water 'ere," the engineer said as he opened the door to his cab. Then he said to the other man, "Will, ya wanna 'and me tha'…"

"Oh, sure," the other man, Will, replied.

The engineer accepted a thick glove from Will. Then he settled on the floor and leaned out the door of the cab. The way he was positioned placed his head fairly close to the water.

Which he knocked on with his gloved hand. Khop, khop. Rosaline, Dholit (who had moved to the port side to get a good look), and Link were amazed how the water maintained its steady, flowing motion despite being struck, as if it was solid.

"Ya see tha'?" the engineer asked. "Tha's why we stopped. The water 'ere locked up the wheels 'n nearly tore the whole train apar'."

"Well, that cehtainly seems counteh-intuitive," Dholit remarked. Link settled against the edge of the boat and reached a hand out.

"No, don'!" the engineer shouted, startling Link.

He quickly retracted his hand. "What?"

"Ya don' wanna touch it with bare 'ands," the engineer explained. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Will 'ere did it, and it nearly cooked him." Link looked up as Will showed them his right hand, palm wrapped with a white bandage but still showing red and black splotches on his fingers. Link and Dholit grimaced at the sight.

Rosaline attempted to lean closer, one foot wrapped around the rigging to hold her to the boat. "Electrical buhns," she said.

"From wateh?" Dholit asked.

"I got some o' dem meself," Rosaline said as she set both feet back on the boat. She lifted the left sleeve of her shirt to expose her shoulder, revealing a red line across the outside muscle. "Touched a live wiah while fixin' me generatoh."

"Fascinating," Dholit told her, "but I think he has beaten you foh aesthetics."

"What should we do, Link?" Cale asked as he stepped out of the cabin. "Should we go back?"

"We'll have to," Dholit said. "We can't take on otheh passengahs, but we can see if the otheh boat ownehs back at Anapua would be willing to remove these men to shoah."

"Works for me," Will said. "We can wai' it ou'; fishin's no' too bad ou' 'ere."

"Hold on a moment," Link said. He pulled himself up and slid a hand around his belt. He found Sello's hammer tucked into the belt against his left hip and yanked it out. He could feel eyes on him and looked up at Dholit. "It works on unbreakable glass," he told her. "It might work on unbreakable water."

"What kind of logic is that?" Irleen, still waiting by the tiller, called out.

Link smiled, Irleen's words making him realize that his reasoning did sound a little strange. Still, he reached for the water again with the hammer raised. When he struck, metal met water with a dull crack, and Link had to tug the hammer out of the water. He paused a second when he thought he saw the water pulse darker, but he dismissed it as just the water still moving. When he removed the hammer, he saw numerous white cracks on the surface, looking like broken glass. The water still continued to move, unperturbed by the new pit formed in its flowing surface. Link probed the pit with the blunt head of the hammer to make sure he was seeing it right.

"Oh," the engineer said with an impressed tone. "We been 'ittin' it with sledge'ammers 'n such."

Link pulled himself back into the boat and stared at the hammer for a moment. "Let's wait before we evacuate the train," he told them. "I wanna see if this might get us anywhere."

"By yerself?" Will asked. "Ya gonna clear the 'ole track?"

Link glanced at the front of the engine. "What about that thing at the front of the locomotive?"

"The pilot?" the engineer asked. "Wha' 'bou' it?"

"What if we knock off all this… stuff and release the wheels?" Link asked. "If you can get up enough speed, do you think you could plow through it?"

The engineer exchanged looks with Will. "Don' sound like a bad idea," the engineer said.

"We only go' stuck 'cuz it snuck up on us," Will said. "Now tha' we know it's solid, it could 'appen."

"Train's heavy 'nough."

Link nodded. "Let me see what I can do." He turned around. "Can someone hand me that oar?"

Link used the oar to push the boat towards the front of the train. Then, while Rosaline used the oar to keep the cutter close to the tracks, he stepped off the boat. He found the surface solid as rock, although he could feel it flowing under the soles of his boots. He was not sure if he should touch the surface even if his clothes would protect him, so he squat down and started chipping away at the water near the arrow-shaped pilot. He found that, as he struck the water, it weakened and started forming cracks along its surface. He hoped that this would indicate that the train would be able to simply smash through, just as they hoped.

"H-hey," Cale spoke up. "D… did anyone else see that?" Link glanced up to see him standing near the tiller, facing south.

Dholit looked in the same direction. "What?"

"The… the ocean, it…" He held up a level hand and gestured. "It rose."

Dholit exchanged a look with Rosaline. "Maybe a sea creatuah," Rosaline told him. "Some of dese tings can get pretty big."

"No, I don't think it was anything like that," Cale said.

"Why?" Irleen asked.

Cale glanced around at them. Then he told Dholit, "Because I think it moved through the Spirit Tracks."

Link looked back down at the water he stood on, pondering the idea.

That was when he saw the water pulse again. And it moved, moved enough that Link had to balance himself with his arms to keep from falling against the solid water. He stood still for a moment, wondering if anything else would happen.

"Uh… uh… L-Link!?" Irleen called out. Link turned his head at the same time Rosaline, Cale, and Dholit turned to him.

And he saw their gazes rise into the air. So he decided to look.

Towering above him was a column of water as high as an apartment building. Link stared up in horror, realizing that not only was it wobbling, but wobbling in his direction.

"Link!" Dholit snapped. "Run!"

Link did just that when he saw it moving closer. The column angled to try to catch him as he moved, but it just slammed against the water on the track. It missed the prow of the cutter, but the resulting wave shoved the boat hard, pushing it away as the three passengers fell against the deck (Irleen following it was a confused afterthought).

Link had run the length of two trains before the column hit. When he stopped and turned back, he was amazed at the distance that he had traveled. When did he become so fast?

He watched the column of water slide back under the surface. And he realized that there was a difference in the water as waves slid across the tracks. While the water around the tracks was solid, the water disturbed by the column was choppy and sloshed against the solid water. He could see a solid strip of water traveling from the train all the way to where he stood and even spread outwards. The water beneath him turned out to be a large, dark circle, probably an island that had been overrun.

He spun, looking for any sign of more water striking for him, but the water had gone calm again. When he realized that he still had Sello's hammer in his hand, he squat down again and started chipping into the water's surface. The water pulsed twice this time, and he stood straight up and spun just in time to see another column rising. Link dashed back towards the train as it fell across the island.

This time, he realized that his feet were moving faster than ever before, and not from fear. He did not know how, but the boots he wore were clean and polished. They were rich leather all the way to the top. And at the ankles were pastel-blue, leather wings stitched to the sides. He could not understand when the boots had become so clean; he thought he would have seen the wing patches on the boots earlier.

He watched the new column of water as it rose some more. The section making contact with the island flattened itself, but the rest hung in the air and continued to lengthen towards the northeast. Then Link saw the end of the column, and what it was attached to. It was a large, dome-shaped creature sporting a cloudy, white, semi-translucent body. The fact that Link could see it from a distance told him that it was enormous. He could see a pair of slits forming a chevron in its body. These slits opened to reveal eyes that were completely red. Its whole body gave a regular pulse, and it seemed to be its means of keeping above the surface of the water while more tentacles wound about under its body.

The tentacle on the island stretched until it was taut. Then Link could see it was sliding across the island and into the water on the opposite side of the island from the creature's body. Link realized that the creature was coming closer. And if it came closer, it might put both the boat and the train in danger. He figured that, if the creature's tentacles were solid, its body might be as well.

So with Sello's hammer in hand, he dashed back at the tentacle. He felt chipping away at the tentacle might not be effective, so he jumped onto the tentacle and ran along its length towards the body. The creature froze in place, and Link glanced left and right to see it raising more tentacles from the surrounding water. But they were not rising fast enough, and the creature could not get them into Link's path before he passed by. It never occurred to him that the creature might simply submerged the tentacle, nor did he really think about the disastrous consequences of slipping off the tentacle into the waters this mass of contradictive madness called "home". All he saw was a creature threatening people, most definitely a first for Link who had only had to defend himself or his friends until now.

The creature's pulsing made it impossible to strike at its face. Not that he could stop in time anyway. He ducked under the large mass of body about to crush him and found himself underneath the body. The creature's mass was just above his head, and he could feel water falling from it as it pulsed. He had to swing at a different angle for power, so he held the hammer at arm's length with the pointed head aimed upward. Then he swung up and into the creature's stone-like flesh. And again. And again, chipping off a chunk the size of Link's fist. Link could see the creature's flesh change from the calm ripple he had seen the whole time to a quiver, causing the light reflecting through its body to obstruct his vision for a moment. But he continued until the creature contracted away from him. This caused the creature to jerk and expand itself again to keep itself up. Link glanced down through the tentacle he stood on to see the cavity formed by the rest of the creature's tentacles flooding.

The moment he realized that the creature was sinking, he bolted back outside. The sun was low enough that he was not blinded by it as he ran along the creature's tentacle. The creature's other tentacles had gone beneath the ocean again and never surfaced, probably because the creature was sinking. Link had the sensation of dropping as he ran, and the creature's tentacle was pulsing under his feet. He could see the tentacle ahead of him rise and fall, becoming more violent as he ran.

He reached the island and almost tripped stepping off the tentacle. Keeping his footing after stepping onto the now rougher terrain of the creature's tentacle on the island, he turned to watch the rest of the tentacle slide off the island and land in the water with a large splash. He saw the creature's body still floating in the distance, although it was only the dome-shaped head and eyes which were immediately visible. They stared at each other, wondering what the other was going to do next.

Link decided to act first. He got low and started chipping into the tentacle beneath him. He could see it pulsing in anger and felt the tentacle shiver. A splash nearby indicated another tentacle rising from the ocean. But it was nowhere near Link. He looked around until he noticed the tentacle to the north. But instead of trying to fall on him, the tentacle was rolling along the Spirit Track towards him!

Link ran towards the west, the ripples in the ocean water indicating a perpendicular Spirit Track covered with another tentacle. Another tentacle rose from the water, and he ran underneath it just as it was falling to the track. After ducking under another tentacle, Link pulled to a stop where the Spirit Track curved north. Safe from tentacles for the moment, he looked out at the creature's head again. And, in the fading daylight, Link could see a shadow on part of the creature's face, just above its left eye. Then he started running again when another tentacle rose from nearby. If he could get close enough, he might be able to see what that shadow was. A weakness would be useful at this point; he could feel the running beginning to wear out his leg muscles even faster than they had before he found the boots.

Link ran back toward the island he started at. When he reached it, he paused to taunt the creature by bashing into its tentacle again. But as he bent over to do so, he realized that the tentacle was pristine with absolutely no sign that he had been striking it before. He looked up at the creature. Its body was pulsing again, allowing it to rise from the ocean. The shadow on its head looked bigger, and Link saw that, with the setting sun on the creature's face, it created a dull spot on an otherwise shiny, smooth exterior. It occurred to Link that the creature was somehow healing itself while opening more wounds in a safe area that Link could not reach.

So he had to hurt it until it was done playing safe. Link started striking into the tentacle at his feet harder. The tentacle pulsed and shivered. Link put both hands on the handle and used it to wrench loose a large piece. He kicked the rock-like piece to the side and dug out another piece. A tentacle rose out of the ocean again, and Link dashed aside as it fell over the wound he was making. He watched the tentacle flatten and tighten and ran back to it, believing that the creature was dragging itself closer again. Instead of jumping on the tentacle, he started smashing it on the edge, which broke off fist-sized pieces with each strike. The tentacle under his feet jerked as if trying to throw him, but its movement was restricted by the tentacle on top of it. Link maintained his balance and continued striking. The creature could pull itself only so fast, and as Link continued to bash the tentacle as it slid past him, large cracks started forming in its skin. The size of the cracks nearly transected the tentacle. When one finally did, Link was startled by a metallic snap and jumped backwards. The tentacle had broken. The end pulling the creature forward flew into the water, while the other end sailed through the air and collapsed near the body. The creature wobbled, probably due to the weight of the tentacle and the sudden loss of tension.

And Link could see the dull spot on its head grow before his eyes. He glanced down at the ground to see a thick line of yellowish-white ooze where the severed tentacle had been. The creature's body must have been under serious pressure for that to occur.

A pair of tentacles rose at either Spirit Track to the north and west of Link's platform and latched onto the Spirit Tracks. The creature was moving again, probably using two tentacles to pull itself because another, singular tentacle would just be snapped again. Link's suspicion was confirmed when the tentacles tensed against the tracks and the body started moving forward again. Link dropped the hammer and reached around his back for the quiver. He yanked the bow out, spilling arrows onto the ground. One of the arrows which had not fallen, he pulled and nocked. Then he took aim and fired. Two things worked against Link's first arrow: wind and distance. But it was fine; he took note of where the arrow splashed and nocked a second arrow. He aimed a little into the wind and waited until the creature was closer. When he released, the arrow had the distance, but Link's aim was still off. The arrow bounced against the creature's hard shell and fell off its body into the water. Link already had a third arrow nocked and aimed, not even waiting to watch the second fail. But he panicked this time and let it loose without aiming properly. This fell short of the creature, which was beginning to remind him of just how large it was with its proximity.

Link scooped up an arrow from the ground and nocked it. This could very well be his last one; if he did not make this shot, he could not be sure he had the time to pick up another one and aim it. The creature was so close that he found it uncomfortable to aim so high. He loosed.

And as it arched back down, it was intercepted by the creature's movements and disappeared.

In spite of the fear he felt, his sense of loyalty was stronger. If he retreated, it would bring the creature's wrath down on the train and the cutter.

Then the creature stopped. Link saw its grabbing tentacles widen and roll to move to a better position. He snapped up one more arrow, nocked it, and aimed straight for the wound in its head. The creature's tentacles began to tighten.

Link loosed.

And the arrow struck its target.

Without changing the malice in its eyes, the creature suddenly bucked and fell against the Spirit Track to Link's right. White spray flew into the air at an incredible height. Its head collapsed, and its eyes seemed to simply burst and dye its whole body a disturbing shade of pink which joined the white spray. All of this occurred before the creature finally fell below the water's surface.

Then the tentacles under Link's feet shook violently. He glanced down to see his feet sinking into the clear flesh for the first time. He attempted to run, but the viscous nature of the skin made moving his feet hard. He fell from the struggling and caught himself before landing face-first into the tentacle. However, the skin did not electrocute Link as he expected, as it had done to Will's hand. Instead, his hands sank, leaving him unable to push himself upright. Up to his elbows, he tried his best to pull at least one arm free. He had to get loose, but even with his fist balled, the tentacle refused to release his left arm.

Up to the middle of his bicep, he started screaming. "Help! Somebody! Somebody help! HEEEEELP!" He tried to pull back using his legs, but it only made his body sink waist-deep into the tentacle. "HEEEEEELP!"

Then, up to his chest, his hands and feet found a solid mass under the tentacle. Getting his feet under him, he straightened up and ripped himself out up to his stomach. He saw the tentacle flowing in all directions off the island and grabbed the bow before it slipped out of his reach. He stood still as the tentacle ripped apart around him and disappeared over the edges of the island. In seconds, the only things on the islands were the intersection of the Spirit Tracks, Link, and Sello's hammer on the ground next to him. He picked up the hammer, whipped the snot-like remnants from the handle, and tucked it back into his belt. After giving the bow a quick brush, he slid it into the quiver. He looked back out at the red blotch marring the choppy orange-and-blue ocean and, feeling a greater sense of relief than ever before, pumped his fist in triumph, a proud look on his face.

A train whistle blew in the distance, and Link looked over his shoulder to see hands and hats waving to him from the train he had left behind. Rosaline's cutter was next to it, although not nearly as close as it had been before he left it. He could see Rosaline, Dholit, and Cale calling out to him from the bow, although he could hardly hear what they were saying over the sound of his own heartbeat in his ears. After a quick glance down at his slimy clothes, he waved his arms back to them to indicate he was okay.