The seal in the ground had dark magic seeping from it. I watched as it came curling from the ground and into the air. Link and I approached it tentatively, his sword pulled from its sheath. "We need to seal it, now." He said. "Come on Skylar." The name hung heavy in my mind. That's not my name. I thought following behind in silence. When I'm ready, I'll tell him. I decided, and watched as Link approached the seal. He seemed to break a barrier and the smoke retreated into the ground with a flash.
Link rose his swords to the sky, the light catching it. The sword burned bright, power surging through it. I stepped back in awe, realizing the power the sword held. Link swung it down, and the light from the sword hit the seal. It rose and slammed into the ground. I crumpled to my knees, my hands going straight to my head as a flash of pain surged through my body. "Sky! Are you ok?" Link asked looking behind him. The world around me began to spin. "I don't know." I managed to blurt out.
Link sheathed his sword and came to my side, worriedly looking me over. "Maybe there's some water or something in that temple up there." He said and slowly helped me up. I nodded and grabbed ahold of him as the pain slowly ebbed away. The dizziness remained as we walked back up the spiraled slope. By the time we reached the doors to the temple everything was right again. We worked together to open the large stone doors, working equally as hard to push it back shut out of courtesy.
Dappled light shone through the roof onto the floor. In the middle of a patch of sunlight was an old woman. She sat calmly, her hair acting as a pendulum swinging back and forth. She looked up at me and Link as we approached. Her eyes narrowed as she looked me over, making me nervous.
"Young hero and companion," The woman spoke, her eyes burning into me. "Come closer." Link and I obeyed, we stood before her. "You have been chosen to protect this realm from a dark evil, now haven't you?" She said pointedly, looking over at me. Hatred was in her eyes, as if I had spit in her breakfast. I fidgeted with my hair, trying my best not to look too uncomfortable. Link noticed I wasn't coming closer and pulled me forward. I stumbled but managed to keep upright.
The old women took a deep breath, before calmly speaking towards Link. "All will be explained in time, the door shall unlock and I advise you take what's in the chest." She said softly. "You, stay." She ordered, pointing a shaky finger towards me. Link looked at me, wondering if I would be alright. I gave him a nod, gesturing to my blades attached to my thighs. He retrieved whatever resided in the chest and left the temple out of the other door.
"Welcome, (Y/n). It's been a long time. I see you're hiding yourself from him." I opened my mouth and closed it again. "Ma'am." I said nodding my head. "With all due respect, it's been quite some time since I've last seen you. You knew my mother and I, and aided us in blessings."
"Yes, that was before I knew what you were."
"Hylian." I said simply, clenching my teeth. "I am a descendant of our goddess Hylia, an entity in her likeness." The old woman laughed bitterly. "You know who you are, but you also know one day you'll succumb." I shrugged my shoulders, crossing my arms in front of my chest. "I am who I choose to be. No one can control me."
"Instinct is much harder to dictate than you realize young lady. Your family history is one painted in blood." She whispered dangerously. "That's the past." I reminded her. "I am different. I'll be able to tell my children about the wonderful adventure I went on to rescue someone. I am a child of Hylia, and that's who I will be loyal to until I pass." I softened for a moment before looking at the old woman. "Besides, you're holding something over me that I cannot control. Can't you just trust me to know what I'm doing and take my hand as a friend?" I asked holding it out. She scowled at me. "You've already passed." She whispered and looked me in the eye, which scared me a bit. "Keep the boy safe, and I will consider taking your side as well."
A smile spread across my face, and I bowed my head respectfully. "Yes ma'am." I said and turned, walking to the same door Link had exited. "And ma'am? Please remember, I have a shadow to overcome. Don't judge me for the actions people before me have done that I had no part in."
With that, I stepped out into the sunlight. My eyes took a moment to readjust to it. Faron Woods, the place I had escaped from so many moons ago. I followed the trail to Link who stood with a Goron. I felt a wave of relief seeing the familiar bird statue as the Goron spoke to Link. I approached them as the rock being finished his lecture. "So in theory, this one statue activates all of them." I looked at Link, who seemed to stare at the statue in disbelief. "We have these on Skyloft." He said to me quietly. Link approached the statue, and murmured something. The stone lit up immediately, causing all of us to jump in surprise. It bloomed with vibrant reds, blues and oranges. The Goron stood beside us, his mouth gaping open.
I shuffled over to Link. "What did you do?" I hissed in his ear. "Prayed? I don't know Sky, but it's working." He whispered back, equally as concerned. The Goron however was blown away. "WOAH!" Goron said shocked, he snatched a few journals from his bag and flipped through them. It looked like he was trying to find and explanation. "HOW DID YOU DO THAT?! TELL ME YOUR SECRET!! IT JUST LIT UP WHEN YOU WALKED BY IT!!" He raved grabbing Link and shaking him. I shrugged and pried his stone hands off of Link's shoulders. "Well, I think it's because he's special. I mean, the first human to come down here in a long time."
"First human?" The Goron said looking confused. "There was another not too long ago. Long hair, kinda looked like you except different." He said looking at me. Link's eyes lit up. "Hey! Thanks for all the really cool information. If you see us again and find out what I did, that would be really cool! Otherwise, we have to go after said weird human!" I said as Link took off in the direction the Goron pointed to. "See you!" I bolted and managed to catch up with Link. As I jogged alongside Link I couldn't help but wonder why I had such a weird reaction to the seal being put back in its place.
The whispers, though, they seemed to be keen on hiding that from me.