A Couple of Trials (ZeLink)

Chapter 48: Cotera's Blessing

The river of blue lights soared through the sky, passing through the dark clouds and winding past snowflakes that were slowly floating down to the surface below. The strings of light flowed quickly away from the higher mountains of Necluda, passing over the now white valleys until they soon reached a smaller range of mountains. The lights dived, spiraling down from the clouds, falling faster than any snow that filled the air. Soon, the lights came to a halt on one of the mountainsides. Floating over a glowing piece of stone flooring, the lights began to merge, glowing a bright blue before finally, those they had been transporting had formed. With a shiver, the two took a breath as the cold covered their injured bodies. Regardless, the dark-haired one of the two looked around excitedly.

"That felt incredibly strange. Are we here?" Celessa asked. "Is that all there was to it? How long were we gone for?"

"Only a few minutes at most," Zelda said, subconsciously placing a hand on her stomach.

Taking a deep breath in an attempt to ignore the dull pain coursing through her lower half, she turned and looked at the large, stone-crafted shrine that stood behind them. Its otherworldly blue light shone on the cliffside it stood next to, while also allowing the snow that stuck to its sides to sparkle against the dark stone. This was definitely the right shrine. Stepping off the teleport pad, Zelda walked through the snow- followed by Celessa- toward the edge of the path that zigzagged down to the small valley that sat in its depths. Both smiled at the sight below.

Hidden in the valley, protected by the range of mountains, was a small little village. While usually the town was covered in green, it now was decorated in white thanks to the snowfall that was still falling from above, though it was nowhere near as deep as the snow back in Hateno. It was compact, with small houses that sat so close to each other some of the dome-shaped straw roofs almost-if not slightly- touched. Paths winded through the buildings, leading to small bridges that crossed over thin and shallow rivers that quietly flowed through the village, passing little farms that had been placed in any available spaces its residents could find.

The village was naturally beautiful on its own, but even its architecture was a sight to behold. Poles had been erected alongside the paths, allowing for lanterns to hang and give light. Ropes were hung up above, connecting all the poles in the village, allowing for painted wooden shingles to dangle from above, with some even hanging from the few trees that had grown near the paths, and even on those that grew against the natural walls that surrounded the town.

Finally, to top the entire view off, in the distance at the very end of the village was a house larger than any other, with its elegant roof crafted from wood just like its base. It stood on stilts, with its back facing a large cliffside that had multiple small waterfalls flowing down its sides and a tall staircase that led from the ground to its front door. It was the landmark of the village, the building that stood out the most, and the one that both Zelda and Celessa were now eyeing from their vantage point above.

"Alright," Zelda said, glancing at Celessa. "Let's be on our way. We have some fairies to collect."

Alone in the large, open floored room, the elder sat in silence. She was perfectly still, balancing perfectly on top of her stack of pillows that sat between two staircases, leading to a hidden second floor. She was a small lady, who was so old her skin had long started to sag. Regardless of her age, she was still well in health, strong enough to continue wearing the large, pointed straw hat that sat on top of her head, decorated with metal chains and emblems that hung from its brim. It was so big it covered her large bun of white hair, along with the blue eye emblem that had been painted on her forehead, and had to be held in place by a piece of red thread that was tied under her squarish jaw. With her eyes closed, the old elder took in a deep long deep breath. Her chest expanded, holding the air in before finally, she slowly exhaled, allowing her breath to calmly flow out of her body.