Chapter 98: Getting Acquainted Again

…

"Ever since we returned to the kingdom," Airman Flower said as he sat on the crate across from Link, "we've been trying to look for a way to expose the creature that's been posing as the princess. It hasn't been easy; once she ditched us at Autumn Island, she had a head-start on whatever plan that scaly commander cooked up."

Link nodded and glanced around the room again. He, Line, Flower, and Irleen were in an abandoned house not far from the tavern Link had met Line in. The windows had been boarded up; their only source of light was a thin beam from a skylight in the next room. Most of the house that Link had seen was full of crates of any size capable of fitting through the front door, and the back room they were meeting in appeared to be where they stashed some of the more important things. Among these were spare ship parts, pieces of muskets and pistols, and ammunition for both handheld weapons and ship guns. Not far from Link was an open box full of fuses. Dust covered most surfaces in the room, making Link dread having to dust himself off once he left; he would probably be lucky to not leave himself a larger mess brushing off his bottom.

"How'd she get away?" Link asked.

Line, sitting on the only chair in the room on Link's right, crossed his arms and let himself sit back so he could slouch. "After she got the names of all the large islands, she had those Stalarmor things shove us in a box and nailed us in," he said, his tone a little sulky. He gave his tangled, red hair a furious scratch. "It's not fun being boxed like that."

"What about the crates she was shipping Cunimincus' crew in?" Link asked. "If you were in a box, who put all the labels on?"

"All three of us did it," Flower said. He tugged at the tight collar of his blue docker jumpsuit. "Since they were the only crates we could find, we intended to make their lives hell."

"We told the fake princess that the largest islands were West Iron, Thicket, and Quiet Islands," Line continued. "We made the first set of shipping orders, and then she stole them and crated us."

"Dockers found us the next morning," Flower said. "She'd managed to overnight the monsters and disappeared herself. We didn't know where she'd gone until the Skyriders left Center Island; that's how far we'd managed to get, considering we didn't have the money to buy some decent passage."

"You were trying to get back to the Port?" Link asked.

Flower shrugged. "It was the best plan we had. We thought."

"When we ran out of the money to get a ride back to the Port," Line said, "we tried writing a few letters. Captain Alfonzo, a couple of ships Flower and Leonard knew about, we even tried… sending a couple to the home office. It was about two weeks before someone even replied, and that was completely useless."

Flower sighed. "By the time the home office replied, it was from one of the secretaries. She explained that all Skyrider vessels had just been drafted into service to the Crown. Well, right then and there, we knew we were in trouble. Not only did we have no way of getting off Center Island, we might've even told the fake princess where we were. Leonard stayed behind and got himself a job. He gave us the last of what he had, and both of us high-tailed it off Center Island aboard an independent vessel."

"Where is Leonard now?" Link asked.

"Still on Center Island. But…" Flower sighed. "He's had it. The last letter we got from him, he told us not to contact him anymore. He found himself a woman on the island, and he planned to settle down. Just as well, I suppose; that wasn't long before we got the port here closed off."

"Wait, you guys put up the blockade?" Link asked.

Flower chuckled. "I wouldn't go that far," he said. "But a whispered voice here, a little rumor there… The people here were already distressed from the disappearance of the Sky Lines. The fake princess's trying to change shipping and port policies pissed them off, so we managed to convince enough people that the Skyriders needed to be given the boot. It bought us some time to figure out how to storm the castle and toss the fake over a cliff."

Link could sense there was more, so he asked, "But?"

"Well, that's when the island started dying. People started taking smaller vessels out of here, and supplies started running low. With the Sky Lines gone, we weren't getting much in the way of trade ships, and no one really wants to conduct business if the port's closed. Add the fact that everyone is so paranoid that the Skyriders are gonna force their way in, and we've sorta just doomed ourselves. The food's managed to hold out, but we're running out of fuel for ships and machines."

Link waved a finger around to indicate the crates around them. "What about all this stuff?"

"This?" Flower asked, patting a hand on the crate he was sitting on. "This is a storehouse those ships out there use to keep supplies. They didn't want to use the powder magazine at the port in case someone accidentally blew it to pieces."

Link glanced over at Line, who suddenly sat up and snapped, "One time! Just one time, and that was years ago!"

"Why?" Flower asked, looking confused. "What happened?"

"He blew up a powder magazine on Castle Island," Link said.

"That wasn't my fault!" Line argued.

"We know," Link replied. "But you still blew it up."

"What about you, sir?" Flower asked.

Line shifted uncomfortably and added, "Yeah. Last we saw, you'd gotten shot down."

Link nodded. "Yeah, I lost the ballast."

"You-you lost the ballast!?" Line snapped. "Link, the ship caught fire! And it was flying apart!"

Link grimaced. "Wow, I didn't realize it was that bad…"

"You were right there!"

"Easy, Line, easy," Flower said. Then he turned to Link and asked, "So how'd you survive?"

"Well, we ran back to my cabin and got into my hammock. I thought it might help."

"'We'?" Line asked. "Who was with you?"

"Oh, right," Link mumbled. "You wouldn't know." Link removed his hat and said in a normal voice, "Irleen."

Irleen rose from Link's head, casting a bit more light into the room. Flower and Line gave a small start, and Flower stared wide-eyed at her. "You have a fairy with you?" Flower asked.

"No, I'm not a fairy," Irleen sighed.

"Irleen was with me when the Island Sonata was shot down," Link said. "She had an accident with her magic, and she turned into a fairy."

"I don't get it," Line said. "Who is she?"

"Wait, you forgot who I am!?" Irleen snapped.

"Wh—How should I know!?" Line shouted back.

"Guys, take it easy," Link told them. "Line, this is that Sorian that was with me in the library. Remember? The one who…" He put on an annoyed look. "The one who hit me with the hammer."

"That was you?" Line asked, pointing at Irleen.

"Yep," Irleen replied.

"Oh." Then, without warning, Line broke into hysterical laughter. "I-I can't believe it!" he hollered in between fits. "Wha… what kind of weirdo makes a spell that changes them into a-a fairy!? Was being—Was being a bird too hard for you!?"

Irleen snapped, "I'm gonna kick your ass!"

"With what!?" Line replied, doubling over and holding his stomach. "With your dust!?" He held up his hands and opened and closed his fingers while saying "Pyew pyew". Then he made a choking sound and grabbed his neck. "Ack! I died."

Link, Irleen, and Flower stared at him with annoyance in their narrowed eyes. After a moment while Line leaned back in his chair in an attempt to play dead, Link asked, "You done yet?"

Line chuckled for a moment while he still played dead. "Yeah. I'm done."

Link sighed. "Look, there's a little more to the story than that," he told Flower. "But, for now, we have work to do. Cunimincus' men are under this island right now, and we need to find out where they went."

"Wait, they're under the island?" Line asked, raising his head.

"How?" Flower asked, also appearing a little surprised.

"It's called the technoworks," Irleen explained. "Inside each island is a living machine which controls the nearby Sky Lines, provides the surface with resources, and keeps the island floating. Cunimincus' men have been taking over the technoworks of the other islands and stopping the Sky Lines."

"They had Sagacity and Might Islands," Link said, "but we got them back. If we can find the entrance here, we should be able to restore the rest."

"Waaaait a minute, wait a minute," Line said, holding a hand up to stop him. He glanced over at Flower. "Are you believing any of this?"

Flower smirked at Link before telling Line, "With all we seen?"

Line blinked at him. Then he stood up. "Okay, sounds legitimate. What do you need?"

"That was pretty quick to accept…" Irleen commented.

"Have there been any sort of disappearances or thefts around the island?" Link asked.

"Are you kidding?" Line asked, raising an eyebrow.

"In case you haven't noticed, sir," Flower said, "things here haven't been very friendly. Theft is all over the place. Disappearances, though… well, can't say I've heard anything."

"Not that this place was ever that friendly even when it wasn't dying," Line remarked, dropping back into the chair. "Can you imagine what would happen to us if they ever found out that we're Skyriders?"

Irleen sighed. "Well, that's useless. Maybe we should just throw a Rupee over one shoulder and start where it lands."

"I don't have a Rupee on me," Link replied with a half-grin. Then he sighed. "I don't get it. Back on Might Island, the signs were everywhere. I thought you said that these Geozards are supposed to be stupid."

"They are stupid," Irleen argued. "I don't know; maybe they brought someone smart with them!"

"Geozards," Line repeated. "Big, ugly-looking things, right? Smell like fish?"

"Yeah," Irleen answered.

"Well, why not check the rivers around here?" Line asked. "If they're fish, wouldn't they need a source of water?"

"Just because they're fish doesn't mean they're going to go for the first source of water they see," Irleen argued.

Flower cupped a hand around his chin. "Maybe not, but if they're fish, then using a source of water would be to their advantage," he said. "Think about it. No one would look for anything traveling down a river or living in a reservoir around here. At night, you couldn't see anything like that moving around."

"Are there any rivers that have a waterfall near them?" Irleen asked.

"I told you there weren't," Link said.

"Well, what about a cave?" Flower asked.

"Huh?" Link asked at the same time Irleen inquired, "What cave?"

"There's a cave northwest of here," Flower explained. "The river goes through an area with a bunch of homes and then right over the edge."

"Yeah yeah," Line chimed. "I remember that cave; we were looking at stashing stuff there."

"The streets are built all around it," Flower continued. "The town put up a steel grate with a locked door over the entrance so kids don't wander in."

Link glanced up at Irleen. "What do you think?"

"I'm thinking it might fit," she answered. "You said this whole island is nearly flat; that'd be plenty of landing room for Sorians. But there aren't any other caves?"

Flower shrugged. "May be a couple more, but I'd bank on this one."

"Why?"

"Because someone bashed the lock open a while ago."

Link exchanged looks with Irleen and Line. "Really?" he asked.

"Yeah," Line said with a nod.

"The town officials had the lock permanently sealed," Flower explained. "Fixed the bolt and then pumped molten iron straight through the keyhole, from what I heard."

"How far in does the cave go?" Link asked.

Flower shrugged. "Don't know; we never got in. We figured, if we were gonna use it to stash things, we'd have to pry the door off with a crowbar; a couple guys behind it could probably bust the bolt."

"I like it," Irleen said. "Let's go."

"One moment," Flower said as he stood up. "The boys outside are waiting to see if the kid in green's gonna be trouble. Let me go talk to them."

"Okay," Link replied, watching Flower step out of the room.

Line stood up. "So," he told Link.

Link pushed himself off the crate he sat on, dropping onto his feet. "So," he told Line. Line to a step toward him. Then, without warning, Line raised a fist and punched Link's right arm. "Agh!" Link cried out, backing away while clasping his bicep. "What was that for!?"

"You made me think you were dead, Link!" Line shouted at him. He took another step toward Link, causing Link to step away out of fear he was about to get punched again.

Then Line lunged at Link and wrapped his arms around his friend. "You're my best friend, you idiot," Line told him before pressing his face into Link's shoulder. "What—… What…"

Line had pinned Link's left arm, leaving Link to return Line's hug with one, awkward hand. "Okay, Line, okay," Link told him. "C'mon, Line, this is weird."

"I think it's sweet," Irleen commented.

Link found her hovering overhead and glared at her for a moment. "Do you mind?" he asked.

"What?" Irleen asked in a defensive tone. "I've always known you were a softie."

"Get out," both boys told her.

Irleen blew a raspberry. "Whatever you say, tough guys," she said as she left the room.

They continued to hug for a moment. Then Line said, "Yeah, you're right. This is weird."

"I might've done the same thing if you hadn't been pointing a gun at me," Link told Line after Line pulled away. "I was hoping I'd find you eventually, but I had no idea where you went."

"That's more than what I could do," Line told him. He paused to sniff and brushed his nose with a hand. "You've been on the surface this whole time?"

Link gave an awkward shrug. "It-it takes a long time to build an airship," he said. "I had to find—I had to find the Architects all over the surface."

"You found Architects? Wouldn't they be dead by now?"

Link almost burst out laughing, but managed to keep it in check. "One of them was, actually. But the rest were descendents. I even have…" He paused to think. "I have three of them with me."

Line grinned and shook his head. "And to think airmen on the Grand Sails called you 'Luckless Link'…"

Link gave him a confused look. "Who called me that?"

"Anyone who saw us getting into trouble."

Link shook his head. "That figures…" He sighed. "Look, Line. I know things have happened up here, and I'm running from almost everyone I meet. I need your help. You and Flower. My crew doesn't know what's going on up here."

Line raised an eyebrow. "Really, Link? That's the best excuse you can come up with to get us back with you?"

"Well… I-I just thought—"

"Link," Line interrupted. He held out a hand. "I'm still your airman."

"Same here, sir." Link and Line glanced to the doorway to find Flower standing there with Irleen hovering nearby. "I'm still on loan to you; I can't leave without Captain Alfonzo's word."

Link glanced between Line and Flower for a moment. Then he grasped Line's waiting hand. "Okay. Let's get to work then."

…

Link, Irleen, Line, and Flower exchanged stories as they walked across town. Link found out that there had been quite an uproar when the fake princess had called the Skyriders to become her personal navy, especially since other companies had believed that the Skyriders had been keeping business opportunities for themselves. Then business all over the kingdom had become hostile with the introduction of the fake princess's new taxes on shipping. But that had been the last they had heard before the blockade had gone up. Link followed up with his travels across the surface while Irleen added in commentary when it came to talking about the creatures he encountered. Line accused him of making things up until Link pulled back the shoulder of his tunic and bodysuit to show him the scar left over from the fight on Might Island. Line refused to believe him, so Irleen dared him to ask "Airman Dholit" once they returned to the Island Symphony. Link wondered to himself if that was a good idea.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at the cave. The cave was not what Link had been expecting, but he quickly realized that a hole in the side of a cliff was impossible on an island known for its hills. Instead, the cave was in a mound about a story and a half high. One side of the mound had been sheered and leveled so that it looked more like the side of a building. Gravel had been set on either side of the river flowing down the street and wound in between the nearby houses. The cave rose to the top of the mound, which was probably why nothing had been built on top; even as something as small as a shed would probably cause the ground above to fall in. Just as Flower had said, a crisscross of steel slats covered the entrance just enough that no one could squeeze a hand through. The door on one side was a solid piece of metal with a lock built into it. The keyhole had been filled in.

Which was probably why Flower was carrying a crowbar with him. Flower waved Link and Line out of the way before fitting the crowbar between the door and the frame. He pulled, causing the door to bend a bit. Then he forced the crowbar in more and stepped in front of the door so he could push. For a moment, Link and Line thought it would not work.

Kank! The door suddenly gave, causing Flower to stumble forward and nearly fall into the water. He found the door swinging free and pulled it open. "How about that?" he commented before holding out an inviting hand to Link. "Lieutenant?"

"Nice work, Flower," Link said with a nod.

"Dibs on the crowbar," Line said, reaching out to take the tool from Flower.

"No," Link told them. "I need you guys stay up here."

"Yeah, that's not happening, Link," Line said as he reached further to grab the crowbar. Flower shifted so that he could not grab it. "Come on, I called dibs!"

"No," Link repeated.

"Lieutenant, with all—" Flower started.

"No, listen," Link interrupted him in a stern voice. He paused so he could put his thoughts together. "While we've been restoring the Sky Lines, we've also been tracking down the King and Queen of Hyrule. We know they were coming this way so the queen could get some medicine."

"Medicine?" Line asked, pausing mid-step as he went to grab the crowbar from Flower. He appeared to be thinking about the word. Then he said, "So the queen does have a sickness."

Irleen emerged from Link's hat and asked, "You knew?"

"Yeah," Line replied, sounding a little offended. "I read, too, you know."

Link raised an eyebrow. "Really? You read a book?"

"Stop looking at me like that," Line told him. "Yes. I read a book. It was a biography of the current king and queen. It didn't say anything obvious, but it mentioned that she was ill quite a bit."

"This you remember," Flower said, "but you have to be told when the Princess of Hyrule is standing right in front of you?"

"The book didn't have pictures, Flower," Line replied.

"Guys, guys," Link quickly spoke up. "Listen. Two of my crew are wandering around the island right now. They're trying to find out if they came by here or not. They could use some help."

"You're gonna send us after kids while you deal with scale-face's crew?" Flower asked, his voice sounding heated.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Irleen called out, flying circles above Flower's head. "Just cool down."

Flower gave her a strange look. "Look, I'm just a little annoyed that my commanding officer is about to start trouble without me," he told her.

"And I understand that," Link told him. "But there are two strangers wandering around an island with people who like to pull guns."

"I don't live here," Line commented to himself.

"My point is I'm worried they might get hurt," Link said.

"Yeah," Irleen agreed. "One of them… well, no one likes his accent."

Link glanced up at her. "I-I thought that was Leynne's accent no one liked."

"Cale has the same accent," Irleen told him.

"First time I heard people not liking someone because of their accent," Line commented.

"J-just—" Link started before interrupting himself. "See if you can find them and give them a hand, okay? I don't know where they are, but it shouldn't be hard to find them. They're probably going to be in a library or someplace with records. Maybe even looking around at the port. If you can't find them, maybe one of you can wait with our launch. The Conductor. You'll find it because it'll be the only thing rigged with a lateen sail."

"A lateen sail?" Flower asked.

Link held up a hand to stop Flower's next question. "I know, it's weird," he said. "Trust me; the engine makes up for it."

"Lieutenant," Flower said, "I really don't like you going down there alone."

"Yeah, Link," Line said. "We just found you again."

"Guys, I'm not going alone," Link said.

"You're not?" Line asked.

"Watch," Link told him. Then he said to Irleen, "Watch my back. Let me know when she gets here."

"Okay."

"When who gets here?" Flower asked.

Link looked around at the nearby houses. Then he called out, "Layna? Come on out." He waited a moment. Then he looked over his shoulder.

He spun around a split-second later when he realized that no one stood behind him. He glanced around, wondering if she would be popping up from around one of the nearby corners.

"Hmm," Irleen spoke up. "She didn't appear."

"She's gotta be—" Link started.

"YIKES!"

"WHOA!"

Link spun back around to find that both Line and Flower had jumped away from each other. It was likely because Layna had been standing behind them. She had her usual, reaction-less face on as she stared at Link, seemingly oblivious to the fact that she had just frightened a pair of people with her appearance. But, as Link thought about it, he realized that she had probably appeared behind them because she did not know who they were.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Layna…" he groaned.

"A'ya, 'Imayn Kyabtin," she answered.

He indicated the cave. "Let's go." Layna nodded and stepped over to the doorway.

Both Line and Flower moved to stop Link, and Flower put a hand around Link's wrist. "Uuuh…" Flower droned.

"What?" Link asked. "What is it?"

"Link…" Line started. Then he fell silent as he appeared to be looking for words. He seemed ready to make a comment about Layna, but he only indicated her with a hand while his mouth flopped open and shut.

"I, uh… I think what my colleague is trying to say is…" Flower said. But he trailed off as he, too, lost the words he was trying to convey. Layna had turned back to see why Link was delaying, and her emotionless face fell to a bout of curiosity.

Line latched both hands on Link's left arm. "Oh, boy, if only I knew how to whistle…" he told Link.

"If she knew why, she's probably take your tongue off," Irleen commented, a subtle giggle in her voice.

"And… you-you found her on the surface?" Flower asked.

"What's wrong with you two?" Link asked.

"Link, are you the only one that hasn't hit puberty?" Irleen asked.

"What?" Link asked. "Look, I get it that she's pretty—"

"Pretty!?" Line snapped. "She's gorgeous!"

"It's the same thing!" Link shouted at him, partially in irritation and partially because Line's grip on his forearm had tightened. "Would you let me go? Look, guys. Yes, she's gorgeous and she's a great kisser, but I d—"

"What!?"

"You kissed her!"

"Link!"

"Na—why are you shouting at me!?" Link yelled at Irleen.

Line's hands left Link's arm. Link became more alarmed when Line suddenly grabbed the front of his tunic. "You mean you k—"

Line suddenly disappeared in a flash of black, and Link and Irleen immediately screamed, "LAYNA! NO!"

Layna looked over her shoulder while she pressed Line's face into the ground with one hand. Link could see the glint of steel in her other hand as she held it raised as if she was prepared to punch Line in the face. Flower, in a show of utter shock, had released Link's other arm. Link held up both of his hands. "Layna, get off of him," he told her in a gentle voice. "Just-just get off him."

"Nn ah no mmin lub," Line spoke through his flattened face.

"Line, don't move," Irleen said. "The one thing we know about Layna is that she'd kill for Link. Literally."

"She what?" Flower asked.

"She's an assassin, you guys," Link told them. "And the worst part is she doesn't speak Hylian." He saw Layna slowly lowering the blade and flipped his hand over to gesture for her to put it away. "Line, just stay still."

"She can't see you if you don't move," Irleen said.

"Not funny, Irleen," Link growled through his teeth.

"And… and she's a member of your crew?" Flower asked, pointing over Link's shoulder.

Link smiled as she stood up and relaxed. "A group of volunteers," he explained. "Most of them helped put the ship together. She's one of six Gelto who came up here with me. And…"

"And… well…" Irleen continued. "Of the six, she's both the cutest and the most dangerous."

"She's…w-what?" Link asked, glancing at her twice before her words set in.

"Link, stop listening to every other word," she told him.

Link shook his head. "Layna, go wait over there," he ordered, pointing at the cave. Layna, back to her emotionless state, gave a sharp nod and stepped away from Line. Link then crossed his arms. "Line, I know you like grabbing me like that, but you probably shouldn't do it anymore."

"If it gets her to come near me, it'll be worth it," Line said. He slowly returned to his feet, his eyes on Layna the whole time.

"Look, both of you, just go find my crew and give them a hand, okay?" Link said. "Cale and Lilly. One has a Southern accent, and the other one sounds like he doesn't like pronouncing 'R's. Mention my name if you need to."

"What if neither one of them talks when we ask?" Flower asked as his eyes tracked Layna.

"Then you've probably found them," Irleen said.

"Get going, okay?" Link said, jerking his hand in the direction of the port. "I should be done this evening; I'll meet you back at the launch."

"C'mon, Line," Flower said as he stepped around Link. "If we can't find them, we'll take the launch and find some more on the surface."

"Wait, wait," Line said when Flower tried to lead him away. He turned back to Link and asked, "Are you sure you don't need me to come with you?"

"Go," Link and Irleen snapped simultaneously.

"Okay, okay!" Line said as Flower tugged on his shirt. "Geez!"

Link watched them walk away for a moment. Then he turned and walked over to the cave entrance. "Things are only gonna get worse once we get back to the Symphony," he said to Irleen.

"I don't get it," Irleen told him. "You've had girls surrounding you since this whole story started. How come I've never seen you act like that?"

"Because I've had a lot of things on my mind," Link told her. He pointed past Layna. "Let's get going, Layna." Layna nodded and started walking into the cave on a strip of bare ground between the cave wall and the river. "Besides, girls make me awkward. I can't help it; I've been working with grown men most of my life."

Irleen sighed. "I can't tell whether you're mature or just dumb."

"Just drop it, will you?"

The cave sloped downward into the island. Irleen eventually had to lead due to having lost all light to the distance. Link expected a glow to eventually appear somewhere in front of them, but after a few minutes of walking, he began to wonder if this cave was really viable as an entrance to the technoworks.

"STOP!"

Irleen's scream caused both Link and Layna to freeze in place mostly from surprise. Link stepped around Layna (placing one foot in the water beside him in the process) to see what was going on. "Something wrong, Irleen?"

"I think we're here," Irleen said, motioning to a small alcove her light just barely exposed.

Link glanced down to find the rails of a ladder protruding from a hole in the floor. He placed a hand on the cave wall and leaned over the hole, but he did not see any sign of the familiar glow of technoworks below. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"It's gotta be," she replied.

Link sighed and shrugged. "Okay, but it looks dark down there."

"The technoworks down there are probably starting necrosis," she said as Link made to go down the ladder.

"Kyabtin," Layna spoke up.

Link looked up at her, and Irleen moved to illuminate the worried look on her face. He smiled and said, "It'll be all right."

"'Inu nadmimathosak," she answered.

"It's okay," Link said in a louder voice, holding a thumb up.

"I don't think she's gotten the hang of loud Hylian, either, Link," Irleen commented.

"Funny," he told her. "She'll get the idea."

He started down the ladder, and Layna followed a moment later. Irleen hovered along with Link as they continued to descend into what felt to Link like an infinite darkness. The only indication Link had that there was even a cave still around him was Irleen's light shimmering on the nearby walls. Even that seemed to wane the further down he went until only small specks were reflecting off the stone.

Link realized that there was something wrong with that a moment later and stopped. "Hold up, Layna," he called up despite the fact that he could not see her too well.

"What's wrong?" Irleen asked.

"Look at the walls," Link said. "It looks like they're moving."

Both he and Irleen looked around to find that it appeared as if there was movement in the surrounding rock face. Now that Link was paying attention, he saw that the blackness around them was shared by purple clouds swirling about. He had to blink for a moment to be sure, but he could make out the familiar edges of technoworks walls and the debossed designs on the tiles, although the lack of light made it hard to tell what shape they were. The reflections that he thought was Irleen's glow reflecting off rough surfaces were actually moving in the same way that the particles in the other technoworks had always moved, although the small number of them made this hard to tell.

"What is this?" Link asked. "Is this necrosis?"

"This can't be necrosis," Irleen replied as Link continued downward. "I mean… I can't see the life in the technoworks, but… I can still feel it. I-I can't explain it."

"So the technoworks are still alive?"

"If they aren't, they're doing a good job faking."

As they continued downward, the purple in the walls became more apparent, and the particles increased their number. The ambient light increased until Link could see that the rungs of the ladder were supposed to be white. It was a little disorienting to watch the walls as he descended, but the floor proved just as hard to watch. He finally set foot on the floor, thankful that he was finished climbing.

"Whoa!" Then movement caused him to jump away from the ladder and put a hand on the hilt of the Lokomo Sword. But instead of an enemy, he found a line of blue light suddenly climbing the walls around him, giving him a vague picture of the surroundings.

Layna dropped past the last few rungs, her body landing almost flat against the ground as she tried to find the source of Link's surprise. This gave Link the opportunity to see what had triggered the light. The line started as a ring which emerged from the part of the floor Layna had first set foot on. It spread across the floor and then up the walls in the same manner as what Link had seen.

He quickly pointed up at the wall and called out, "What's that?"

Irleen watched the ring disappear into the ceiling. "I-I don't know," she said. "Where'd that come from?"

Link glanced at Layna. "It came from us," he told Irleen. "It happened just as we stepped on the floor."

"That—… That's impossible, Link," Irleen replied. "The technoworks don't interact with anything inside them."

Link looked around and realized that the particles had slowed. Then he watched them suddenly shift and start flowing in the opposite directions from their original motion. "How sure are you about that?" he asked.

Irleen took a moment to respond. When she spoke, she sounded as spooked as Link felt.

"Not so much anymore, Link."