Hero's Wings (A Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword AU)

Chapter 3: Changes

"Link...?"

He could hear a voice calling out to him, but he couldn't tell who it was. He opened his eyes to find himself surrounded by the familiar curtain of darkness from his nightmares. His eyes trailed upward and he was caught by surprise when he made eye contact with the same violet figure from his dream the night before.

"I am waiting for you. The time has come for you to awaken. You are vital to a mission of great importance. Link..." She spoke again.

That was when the feeling of falling suddenly settled in and Zelda suddenly appeared before him. She had the look of utter terror in her eyes as she fell. He reached for her, her hand only inches from his. A loud roar that was all too familiar to him pierced the air and he looked down. Below them, was the same enormous abomination from his dream the night before. Its jaws were splayed wide open, waiting for Zelda to fall into them. He reached for her once more but it was too late. Just as she was about to fall into its gaping jaws, his eyes snapped open and he jack-knifed upright in his bed. He looked around frantically, but there was no sign of Zelda or the abomination, nor the mysterious woman.

"Link, I'm relieved to see you're awake!" Geapora's voice had him whipping his head in the direction of his door.

"You gave us quite the scare when we found you unconscious in the courtyard," Geapora explained.

"What happened...?" Link asked hesitantly.

"Link... I will give you fair warning that while you were out, a very unfortunate incident took place..." Geapora's voice became heavy and sorrowful.

Link's eyes widened at his next words. "Zelda and her loftwing were caught in a black tornado and disappeared below the clouds," He informed, his tone heavy.

For a moment, Link's heartbeat was all he could hear; the sound pounding in his ears and echoing around him. Time seemed to slow as the news settled in. Link's gaze fell into his lap as his breathing became heavier and quicker. A hand on his shoulder quelled the oncoming panic attack. He looked up to see the Geapora expressing empathy toward him.

"She had gone in search of me and that's when it happened..." Geapora continued.

"Even so... I believe that Zelda is still alive out there," Geapora reassured.

"But... she was with me when we finished the ceremony... I had just landed in the courtyard circle with the sailcloth and-" Link cut himself off, his mind becoming flooded with the memory of the intense pain he had experienced.

"Link, I take it you remember what happened?" Geapora asked, his tone suggesting he knew something.

"Yes sir... I remember collapsing to the ground with this awful pain in my shoulders that was unlike any pain I've ever felt... My skin felt like it had ripped apart... I remember hearing Zelda screaming..." Link's voiced shuddered, as did his body.

Link looked back up at Geapora with fear swirling in his chest, settling heavily there. Geapora's eyes had widened a fraction at the recollection, surely being bombarded with his own visions of what Link went through.

Link pursed his lips before asking hesitantly, "Are they searching for her?"

Geapora looked at him and nodded, "They are. But they haven't had any luck for some time now..." He sighed.

"I'm going to help then. The more eyes searching the skies the better," Link stated, determined to help find his friend.

"Link, I do need to mention one more rather impor-" Geapora tried to get Link's attention but the teen was already standing up.

That was when he felt it. A new weight was pulling at his shoulders and causing him to lose his balance. He fell backward onto his bed, suddenly realizing just how sore he really was. However, his attention soon focused on the odd weight that had occupied his shoulders. He could hear the faint rustling of what sounded like feathers; a sound he was all too familiar with. But his loftwing surely wasn't in the room so what was making the noise?

"Link, I am going to warn you that your body went through some... changes. Try not to be too alarmed..." Geapora warned cautiously.

Changes? What kind of changes? Link wondered.

Gaepora helped Link up and guided him over to a full-body mirror that was in the corner of his room. What he saw in his reflection caused him to audibly gasp. There, protruding from his back, were a large pair of red and white wings. His upper half was wrapped tightly in bandages which were more than likely meant to keep what was left of the skin around his wings from getting infected. Link reached up and laid a hand on his shoulder hesitantly, almost wondering if he was still dreaming.

"But how...?" Link's voice was nearly a whisper, almost too soft to hear.

"I'm not entirely sure why something like this has happened either, Link. But I am sure I know where we might be able to get some answers," Geapora said reassuringly, laying a hand on Link's other shoulder.

Geapora began to make his way out of the room and Link followed hesitantly. They didn't stop at any of the rooms; instead, they went outside the second floor academy doors and walked up the path that led to the goddess statue. Link was curious as to why they were going to the goddess statue but opted not to asked questions as he was sure they would soon be answered. They entered the courtyard and made their way to the base of the statue. Link looked up and stared at the inky black sky that hung over them. The full moon rose three quarters of the way above the statue's head making it look like something out of a fairy tale. Geapora stopped right in front of the Hylian crest that was carved into a stone slab and placed the palm of his hand on it. The crest glowed an eerie white for a moment before the whole slab vanished into thin air.

"This way," Geapora didn't turn, he just walked into the dark tunnel.

Link followed hesitantly, observing the  intricately carved walls as they walked. It seemed that the history of Skyloft was carved into the walls as many of the scenes depicted were ones he recognized from their history class. Link didn't get much time to admire the carvings as the tunnel they were following suddenly opened up into a large chamber. As he looked around, he noted that there were several pillars in the room, each depicted what he could only guess was the goddess and something that looked like a winged person with their sword raised skyward. Then his eyes finally fell on the centerpiece of the chamber; a sword in a pedestal. The blade was emitting a faint, otherworldly glow that was quite mesmerizing.

"This is the secret Chamber of the Sword. Its existence was wiped from public records ages ago. Only a few have been trusted to know of its existence," Geapora explained before continuing, "A few days ago, the blade began to glow. I thought I was seeing things," Geapora chuckled. "But now I see that it is time for the prophecy to take place."

Geapora turned to Link and laid a hand on his shoulder, which was still somewhat sore from the previous day, and sighed before opening his mouth to speak. He was suddenly interrupted by a crystalline sound from behind him. Geapora turned his body to reveal a blue and violet woman. Her eyes were completely blank as was her expression. Her arms resembled curtains and flowed as if being manipulated by the wind, despite there being none in the chamber. There was a large blue diamond embedded in her chest that shone in the torchlight. And her voice was rather monotone compared to her appearance.

"The one chosen by my creator... I have been waiting for you."