Life in Zora's Domain - Part Two

Chapter 42 - Ancient Energy Miracle

Summary: A striking turn of events leads to an unexpected reunion and implications for Lapha's research on cures.

It was a calm, moonlit night over the gently rolling waves of the Akkala Sea to the northeast of Hyrule. But, of course, you couldn't tell from deep below the surface where all was blackness, save for the occasional flashes of light from luminescent sea creatures.

On the seafloor, a young female Zora stirred and opened her eyes, her gills pumping life-giving water through her body. It was utterly dark, and she felt disoriented, struggling to understand where she was. She quickly realized she was lying flat on her back inside an oblong container that was not much bigger than she was. What was going on?

Then she felt a sharp pang of hunger that drove away other thoughts, and she began feeling for a way out of whatever it was she was confined in. She couldn't find a way out at first, but as she pushed on whatever was overhead, she felt it give slightly. Perhaps being in the sea had loosened whatever adhesive held it in place. She pushed harder, and then what must be the lid fell away and floated to the sea floor beside her. But, of course, it was still pitch black, and she sensed she was in deep water.

Her sight was of little use at the moment, but her other senses were returning now. She could hear the sounds of the sea, the scraping of sand pushed by the waves, and the occasional noises of fish, crabs, and other sea creatures. A fish would taste delicious, but she felt too weak to chase one. However, she could hear some crabs nearby scouring the seafloor for food. A few clicks of her echolocation found them, and she eagerly consumed two of them, her sharp teeth making short work of their shells. Then she began to rise toward the surface, but slowly. Somehow, she instinctively knew it was wise not to surface too quickly from such deep water.

As she did so, the Zora tried to remember things but found her mind was mostly blank. What little she did remember was sitting in the back of a ferry at night and then feeling herself thrown overboard against her will. She had been thrown into the ferry's Ancient Energy propulsion system. And as she hit the water, everything went blue as she was immersed in a strange fluid. She sucked some of it in through her gills, then felt a blow to her head, and everything went dark.

She continued rising into shallower, slightly warmer water but still had a ways to go before reaching the surface. She kept trying to remember anything else. Who was she, for instance? She instinctively understood she was a Zora but couldn't even recall her name. And why was she in a container at the bottom of the sea? Then, suddenly, a chilling realization hit her. She knew what the container she had just emerged from must be - a coffin. Her people must have thought she had died and given her body back to the sea. But how could anyone make such a mistake? Then she felt a momentary sickness in the pit of her stomach, but not from the crabs she had just eaten. Had she really died? She did not feel at all like a spirit. It all made no sense!

Her head finally broke the surface to the sight of a crescent moon shining overhead. Then she turned about to orient herself and saw an outline of land in the distance as cliffs obstructed the horizon. The crab nourishment had given her more energy, and she began swimming toward land. Hopefully, someone there would know who she was and what had happened. She took her time, not over-exerting herself and letting the current help her along as it pulled her diagonally toward what must be the southwest.

After some time, she sensed another humming noise that sounded artificial. And soon afterward, lights were visible not far away. A boat of some sort was approaching, and with some effort, she could get closer to it before it passed her by. She pushed herself to swim faster, then stopped and tried to shout when she was as close as she could get. At first, her voice failed her, and no sound came out. She swallowed and tried again, this time managing to cry out for help as she frantically waved her hands overhead. Then she tried to swim closer, pushing herself to her limit.