Gaepora hesitantly walked to his daughter's room to make sure she was up and to remind her to gather some supplies before she embarked on her journey to the surface. As much as he absolutely despised the thought of Zelda going on such a difficult and dangerous journey, he knew he had to let her go and fulfill her destiny as well as help Link get back to Skyloft.
Upon entering her room, he was greeted by the sight of Zelda who was swinging her new sword trying to get a feel for it. She had a scabbard attached to her hip and she wore the same outfit she wore yesterday, minus the wrap she had spent days making. "Good morning father" Zelda said. "Zelda? What are you doing up so early? I figured after the events of last night, you would have still been asleep." He asked. "I was having trouble sleeping so I figured I might as well get use to my new sword. But don't worry father, I managed to get a couple hours of sleep" she said. Gaepora nodded. "Alright. Just make sure you take some armor and a shield from the sparring hall. Also don't forget to stop by Luv's shop and buy some potions." "I know father. I was just about to go to the sparring hall and I already have a few bottles with me" she said putting away her sword.
As she was about to leave her room Gaepora quickly stopped her by saying "one last thing. How are you gonna get to the surface once you're past the cloud barrier? You know loftwings won't fly through the barrier. And you don't have a sailcloth." "You don't need to worry. I already thought of a solution." Zelda reached behind her back pulling out some white fabric. She gave it to her father and he examined it. Much to his surprise, it was the wrap she had wore yesterday except, it had been modified. The sleeves and the knot in the back were gone and it was longer. It was obvious she had made it to act more like a sailcloth than an article of clothing. "I see… Just please be careful" he said handing the custom sailcloth back to her. "I will" she said leaving her room and headed to the sparring hall.
As she walked through the academy, she heard someone call her name and saw Fledge walking towards her. "The headmaster said you're heading out to look for Link right?" Zelda nodded. "I hope he's ok. You know, you're really something else. I could never imagine myself doing what you're about to do. I put a of work into making this! You should take it with you." He gave her an adventure pouch. "Thank you Fledge! This will really help me on my journey!" Zelda said with gratitude. Fledge scratched the back of his head blushing. "It's no big deal. I just thought that you it might be of help to you. Zelda! I just know you'll find Link for us." Zelda nodded with a determined expression. As she was walking away she heard Fledge shout 'good luck.'
After she finished talking to Fledge, she could hear Cawlin talking to himself. "To think, Link is the only person out of all of us to became a senior knight, only to go missing moments later and now Zelda's the one who has to find him. Geez talk about embarrassing, some knight that loser is." Zelda balled her hands into fists. She did it with so much force that her nails threatened to break the skin on the palm of her hand. Out of all the people in Skyloft, Cawlin is one of the few people she could not stand besides Groose. Even before he became friends with Groose, Cawlin was such a jerk to everyone. He always had to show that he was the bigger person by being obnoxious and it certainly doesn't help that he came from a rich family.
The only one of her friends that he's decent to is Karane because he has a crush on her. It wasn't hard to see since he always gives her looks when he thinks no one is looking. The one time he made his crush known to everyone was during last year's wing festival. Karane was chosen to play the role of the goddess and once he heard Karane's role in the race, he wouldn't stop talking about how he was going to win the race and be the one to perform the ritual with Karane, making it painfully obvious that he was in love with her. You would have to be dumber than a rock or oblivious as hell not to have noticed. For the whole race it looked like Cawlin was going to win but once he got close to grabbing the statuette, Pipit came out of nowhere and grabbed it, winning the race. To say that Cawlin was pissed would be an understatement. He locked himself in his room for a little over a week, refusing to come out. Eventually the headmaster and professors dragged him out of his room by threatening to expel him since he was skipping class. When he did come out, they saw that his room was a mess. Everything was either damaged or broken, he got into a lot of trouble. They even made him fix his entire room by himself.
Upon entering the sparring hall, she was greeted by Eagus. "Good morning Zelda. Is there something I could do for you?" "Good morning to you too Eagus. I just need a shield and some armor. And before you ask I've already get permission from my father." "Ah I see. The headmaster told me that you were going to be stopping by. You're going to search for Link correct?" Zelda nodded. "Well then, I better not waste your time." Eagus gestured for Zelda to follow him.
After ten minutes, Eagus managed to find a chainmail chest piece for Zelda. It was a bit difficult for him at first because they don't really have much armor suited for women of her physique. "Here. This is the best shield I have that's in good condition. I just got it fixed yesterday" he said handing her a wooden shield. As Zelda was about to take it, she stopped when she recognized it. "Isn't this the same shield Link used?" Eagus nodded. Zelda looked at the shield for a bit before taking it and handling it with care. "Do you remember how to use it?" Zelda nodded. "Alright then, I better not keep you any longer than I've already have." "Thank you Eagus" Zelda said before leaving.
As Zelda was walking through the plaza she encountered both Karane and Pipit. "Karane, Pipit is there something you two need?" Zelda asked. Karane shook her head. "We heard that you were going to go look for Link so we wanted to see you before you left." "Zelda, I wanted to ask you something" Pipit said. "What is it?" She asked. "When you find Link can you tell me if he's ok? The moment I heard what happened to Link, I felt as if I was stuck by a sword. I know I haven't known him as long as you have but he's still my friend. So can you please tell me if he's ok when you find him?" Pipit asked with Karane nodding in agreement. Zelda could tell that they were worried. Although they might have not know Link as long as she has, they still cared about him very much. They're his best friends after all. "Of course I will." Zelda said. Karane and Pipit smiled. "Thank you!" Pipit said with gratitude. Karane held Zelda's hands in hers. "Please be safe Zelda." "I will" she said then left.
She entered the Bazaar and quickly made her way to Luv's potion stand. Upon noticing her, Luv offered Zelda a warm smile. "Good morning Zelda! Is there anything I can get you?" "Yes, I just need a couple of heart potions" Zelda said handing Luv a couple of empty bottles. Luv took the bottles and filled them both up. "You know, you can put other things besides potions in an empty bottle, so it's a useful thing to carry around" she said. "I'll keep that in mind" Zelda said. After paying for them Luv said "thank you, sweetie! If you want a potion powered up then go see my husband at the end of the counter. He can mix something up for you." "Ok. Thanks for the potions!" Zelda said then left the Bazaar.
"Zelda!" She heard the moment she stepped outside. She already knew who it was since she heard his annoying voice almost everyday. He wrapped his arms around so tightly that she wasn't able to breathe. "Groose! Let go! I can't breathe!" She said. Hearing this he quickly let her go. "Sorry! Sorry! I just had to see you! I wanted to see you when you were first brought back, but the Headmaster wouldn't let anyone in. Then I heard about the storm and that you were caught up in it. I was so scared that you wouldn't be alright and then-" He wasn't able to continue his sentence because he ran out of breath. "I'm just glad that you're alright…" he said when he managed to catch his breath.
"I'm fine. You don't need to worry about me. That's very sweet of you, but I need to go now" Zelda said walking away. "What do you mean? Where are you going?" He asked following her. "I'm going to find Link" she said trying not to sound irritated. "Zelda listen, I know he means a lot to you but you don't have to waste your time looking for him, after all that fool can take care of himself. I'm sure he'll eventually find his way back here. But seriously if he was dumb enough to go flying around right before a storm and couldn't even stay on his bird then-" "The what Groose?!" Zelda demanded, cutting him off. "Cause if you were going to say that he had it coming, then I won't be held responsible for what I'm about to do to you!" She said gritting her teeth in anger.
Groose jumped in shock. He had never heard Zelda use that tone before. Quickly realizing his mistake, Grosse held his hands up and backed away. "I-I wasn't gonna say that! What I mean is that-" He tried to defend himself but he was once again cut off by Zelda. "No! I know exactly what you mean… we both do! You know, it was my fault he fell! I was the one who suggested that we go for a fly right before the storm! The wind knocked me off my loftwing and Link dashed in to save me but once he caught me, he fell instead! So, you're right Groose. Link fell because he couldn't stay on his Loftwing. But the reason why he couldn't stay on his Loftwing was because he lost his balance protecting me!" Once Zelda was done yelling, she was breathing hard, trying to catch her breath. She then turned around and left, no longer wanting to wast her time on him. She already felt guilty enough for not being able to save Link and talking to Groose just made her feel worse.
After collecting some more supplies, Zelda was a couple of feet away from the edge of Skyloft. "You can do this" she murmured to herself. Taking a deep breath, Zelda ran towards the edge and jumped off. She whistled for her loftwing and was instantly scooped up by it. "Here goes nothing!" she said as she flew towards the opening. Once she was right above the opening she jumped off her loftwing, falling through the clouds and plummeting down to the world below. As she got closer to the ground, she quickly grabbed her wrap and used it to slow down her decent. Just like she hoped, it worked just like a sailcloth and she landed safely on the ground.
Zelda jumped for joy. "Yes it worked!" Fi appear before her and said "I must commend your creativity and quick thinking mistress. We are now in the fabled surface that has long been part of Skyloft legend. By my calculations, you are currently positioned in a location known as the Sealed Grounds. Please proceed with caution mistress." Fi the went back into the sword. Zelda, on the other hand, was surveying her surroundings. The old texts said the surface was a vast wasteland but now that she's seeing it for herself, it wasn't even close, in fact it was even better than she ever hoped. "It's so beautiful!" She said excitedly. The entire place was so green, a big pit with a spiritual path down, an ancient looking temple, the biggest trees she's ever seen, and a few birds flew by but they were not just any birds, very tiny birds. Zelda was very excited, she had wanted to see the surface for a very long time but she couldn't due to the cloud barrier. Now that she's here, she wanted to look at every nook and cranny of this place. She was about to run off and explore but stopped when an image of Link flashed through her mind. Upon remembering why she's down here in the first place, she slapped her cheeks and told herself "remember Zelda, you're not here to explore. You're here to find Link." 'I'm coming Link' she thought to herself.
After she took several steps towards the temple, two big plants sprung out of the ground and tried to bite her. "What are those things?!" She shouted. "My analysis shows that is a Deku Baba, a rare violent form of plant life that will aggressively try to attack any potential threats. It has a hard outer shell and the inside of its mouth is soft. You'll have a 100% chance of taking it out if you slash inside its mouth" Fi said. Zelda nodded. As much as she hated the thought of killing anything, she knew she had to, she wouldn't be able to get past it if she didn't. She quickly lunged towards them, slicing through the first one's mouth, blocked the second one when it tried biting her, and sliced through the second one, killing them both. They both turned into a puff of purple smoke and disappeared.
Zelda went down the path that led to the temple and saw a door with a strange eye symbol on it. She tried to open it but it was locked so she looked around to try and find a way to unlock it. After a couple minutes of trying, Zelda walked over, looked at the pit and saw at the bottom was some kind of stone pillar with some black mist around it. She was suddenly in a black and red place, with the same monster emerging from the ground. The monster jumped and lended over Zelda with its mouth wide open. As it came close to her, it dissipated and Zelda was still standing at the edge of the cliff. 'What just happened?' She didn't know if she wanted to go in there after that hallucination but seeing as there was nothing up there, she figured that there was something down there.
As Zelda got closer to the stone pillar, she felt a dark and dangerous aura surrounding it. "…young one…" She heard. She looked around frantically to see if anyone was there but saw no one. "Who's there?!" She shouted. The voice didn't answer her question, it simply said "child of destiny descended from the sky… Raise the sword of the god skyward… Take aim at the evil aura and unleash its power…" She did what the voice told her causing the pillar to glow, the evil aura vanished, and small gusts of wind emerging in several holes in the ground. Fi came out of the sword and said "mistress Zelda, I'm sensing a change in the area that was triggered by your skyward strike. I have also detected an aura that correlates closely to your shield. I surmise this aura belongs to Link." Zelda's eyes widened. "So does that mean you can tell where he went?" Fi nodded. "I can lead you in the direction of this aura through a process known as dowsing." "What's dowsing?" Zelda asked. "Dowsing is when I detect the presence of an aura that you may wish to search for using the tip of your sword. The nearer you are to an object emitting the aura in question, the stronger the response will be. When you take out your sword and wish to dowse, your sword will glow brighter the closer you are to the target." After explaining, Fi went back into the sword and Zelda used her new ability to look for Link.
Zelda quickly left the pit and with the help of the dowsing abilities, she went where her sword was leading her. It lead her to the door which no longer had the eye symbol and found that she could now go through it, entering the temple.
Upon entering, Zelda saw an old woman standing in front of a big door on the opposite side of the temple. Zelda cautiously approached the old woman, not knowing if she's a threat or not. "Ah… the traveler descended from the clouds above. I welcome you, child of fate. Tell me, what is your name?" The old woman asked. "It's Zelda." "…Zelda? Ah, Zelda. Good. Very good. You may refer to me as the old one. I sense you have already gained control over the sacred power that fills your sword when pointed skyward. The skyward strike is yours to command. It is proof that you are fit to bear the blade you carry, the god sword" the old one said. "How do you know that?" Zelda asked. "I know such things because I have sat here for many years wating for you to arrive, all so that I could fulfil my purpose as your guide. You stand under the roof of the Sealed Temple, a place built by the God an eternity ago. Your arrival was predestined many, many years ago."
"Umm… alright. Anyways I'm looking for someone. Have you, by chance, seen him? He-" Before Zelda could finish what she was saying, the old one raised her hand. "The spirit warrior you seek arrived here shortly before you, descending to this world in a shower of light. There's no doubting it. The gears of fate have begun to turn. Yet all is not as it should be. The spirit warrior was not meant to reach this land in the manner he did." "What do you mean?" Zelda asked. "I feel an evil power working in the shadows. It moves to warp the destiny of which you two are a part of. Zelda… You are concerned for the spirit warrior and wish to know about his whereabouts, yes?" Zelda nodded. "That is understandable, but for now you must focus on moving forward. That boy has his own purpose he must pursue, as do you. He set out for Faron Woods to discover that destiny for himself, and you must follow. Show me your map."
Zelda handed the old one her map. She drew an x on it before giving back to Zelda. "The x on your map marks the path the will lead you to Faron Woods. You will be travelling in unfamiliar land, and many monsters have settled here, and a map may not prove guidance enough for your journey." The old one then gave her the power to create something called beacons to mark where she is going more efficiently. She had Zelda make a beacon over the x she had drew. "Though you cannot see it from where you are, a beacon stands outside to guide you. Leave the temple through the front doors, and see for yourself" the old one said. "Alright, thank you" Zelda said then left the temple.