Chapter V (PG)
I was now face to face with Princess Zelda for the first time. She was absolutely beautiful. She looked about my age, she seemed to be about five-foot-nine, and she had brilliant long, flowing blonde hair and gorgeous baby blue eyes. She had the looks of a Goddess and a body to match. She wore a pink dress adorned with symbols representing the royal family, white gloves that extended up to her elbows, and a golden beaded necklace dangled from her neck. She wore silver earings that symbolized the long ears of the hylians; two on each ear.
Our eyes met for what seemed like an eternity as she stood before me. She smiled at me sweetly as I looked up at her in infatuation. Suddenly, from our left, I heard Chancellor Cole's screechy voice shriek, "HEY!!! How dare you raise your head without permission, you ill-mannered wretch!!!"
Zelda shot him a look that said, "Keep quiet and don't be so rude." The Chancellor let out a disgruntled sound of frustration as he reluctantly quieted down.
"I'm sorry about that.", Zelda said in an angel-like voice. "You'll have to forgive the Chancellor. He's been on edge ever since the Spirit Tracks started vanishing."
I just nodded silently in understanding. She beckoned me sto stand up, and as I did, an older man with thick glasses, gray hair tied back in a ponytail, and a moustache that almost completely masked his mouth walked over. He was wearing a white suit and a black bow-tie, white pants, and black boots. He was holding a piece of paper in his outstreched hands.
"Thank you, Teacher.", Zelda said kindly as the man handed her the paper. It was then that I noticed that this paper was my engineer's certificate. Teacher then backed away respectfully. Zelda turned to me and asked, "Now then, what is your name?"
"It's Link.", I answered, still infatuated with her.
"Link... What a nice name!", she said happily. It made me blush a little.
"All right, Link.", she began. "As Princess of Hyrule, I now award you the Engineer's Certificate! Officially, you are now an engineer for the country. Work hard, Link, for we all depend upon you." And with that she handed me the certificate.
I accepted it gratefully, and said, "Thank you."
Before anyone else could even blink, Chancellor Cole practically shouted, "Finally!! Now we can get back to important business... Like finding out what's happening to the Spirit Tracks!!!"
The soldiers each opened the doors they were guarding and held them open. As I lowered my hand that held the certificate, I noticed that there was something else with it. A letter. Written on the envelope was, "Don't say a word now. Read this later. And beware of the Chancellor!"
Zelda said, "Thank you for coming, Link. Good luck.", and with that she followed Teacher throught the door to the right, the same one they entered through. The guard closed the door behind them. Chancellor Cole headed for the door to the left. But he stopped upon reaching it, and turned to me.
"The ceremony's over now, so you best move along. Why don't you go... polish your train or something.", he said rudely. But what he said next made me very uneasy.
Then he turned and exited the room, laughing wickedly. The door closed behind him. Aside from the two guards, I was alone. I looked down at the letter and read the words, "Beware of the Chancellor" again. Now it was all starting to make sense. I turned and walked out of the throne room. The guard who had been stationed outside was gone. No one was around. I decided that now was a good time to have a look at the letter. Standing at the foot of the steps, I folded up the certificate and put it in my left pocket. Now that my hands were free, I tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter. It read,
"I need your help. On the back of this letter is a map of the castle marked with a route that will lead you to my chambers. I cannot explain everything in this letter. So please hurry to my quarters. And make sure no one sees you!
- Zelda"
She needed my help? I couldn't help but wonder what she could need. I thought that maybe it had something to do with the Spirit Tracks. I turned the letter over and, sure enough, there was a map of the castle on the back. There was a line that showed a specific route that led up to the room in the east tower. That must be Zelda's room. The line started in the throne room and led out to the main hall. The it made a sharp right and trailed through a doorway to another hall. It snaked it's way around a few corners and led up a flight of stairs that led to the roof on the right-hand side of the castle. The line made it's way acroos the roof a few yards to a lower part of the roof that had another doorway. The line led through this door and then around a few more corners and ended up behind the door in the back right corner of the throne room, where Zelda had gone. The line followed the hallway behind this door and up another flight of steps to another door. Behind that next door was Zelda's room.
I folded up the letter and put it back in the envelope. I then tucked it away in the same pocket I placed my certificate in. Then I followed the route. I went right and slipped through the doors and came out in another large hall. Although, this one was smaller that then main hall and the throne room. It still looked about the same as the rest though. I traveled south through this hall, following the route around a couple of corners, ducking past a few guards as I made my way to the stairs. I ascended the steps and came out on the roof. I looked up at the blue, cloudless sky. It seemed to be almost noon. I returned my gaze to the path ahead of me and followed the route along the edge of the roof. I reached the other side where the small lower part of the roof was. I dropped down and passed through the threshold. I was back inside again. I carefully sneaked my way around the corners through a deserted hallway and reached the other side of the door in the back right of the throne room. I then followed the hallway ahead and ascended the steps. I reached the top and delicately eased the door open. I closed it carefully behind me and took in the sight of Zelda's room.
The floor was completely covered with a crimson red carpet, and on the far side of the room was a large, wooden desk in front of a fireplace that was currently inactive. On top of the desk were a stack of papers and next to that, what looked like a guard's uniform sat neatly folded. On the left-hand side of the room was a bed certainly fit for a princess. Beside that, a bookself stood tall, it's shelves crammed with books about who knows what. The bed was dressed with comfortable-looking pink sheets and a few large, fluffy pillows. There was a window that overlooked the western area of the land beyond the bed. On the right-hand side was another window and another bookshelf next to it. In front of the window was a small, circular wooden table with a small, round, velvet cushion on it. And standing before the table was Zelda.
Her back was to me, and she was playing what I assumed was an ocarina. Each note that was emitted from the instrument was heavenly. She was very talented. I approached her and made my presence known.
"Umm... Zelda?", I said nervously.
She stopped playing the ocarina and turned to me. "Oh, Link! I'm so glad you could make it!!", she exclaimed. She seemed very happy to see me. She placed the ocarina, which was painted with a vibrant azure blue, on the cushion on the table next to her, and walked over to me. "Did anyone see you?", she asked.
"Nope.", I answered. This made her even happier.
"That's great!! Listen, this is very important. I need your help.", she said seriously.
"All right, what do you need?", I asked. I was willing to do anything for her.
"I have a theory about why the Spirit Tracks have begun disappearing, and it involves the Chancellor.", she explained. "I believe if I can get to the Tower of Spirits, the sage who's said to be living there can give me the answers I need. But, I can't let anyone know I'm leaving the castle. If the Chancellor found out, it would be very bad. He forbids me from leaving the castle, saying things like, "It's for you own safety", but I just have to get to the Tower! And that's where you come in, Link."
"Huh? Me?", I asked.
"Yes. You're an engineer, so you can take me to the tower! Won't you do it? Please?", she begged. She seemed very desperate. I had no intention of declining in the first place, but then again, how could I?
"It'd be my honor to help you, Princess.", I said.
"Oh, thank you!! And you can just call me Zelda.", she said cheerfully.
"All right. But if you don't want anyone to know you're leaving, then how are we gonna get out of here?", I asked.
"We sneak out. Although, with the security system, it'be be impossible to sneak out completely undetected. That's why we need these.", she said, pointing to the unifrom folded up on the desk. "That's a recruit's uniform. If you wear that, the guards won't think twice about you being here. You'll blend right in!"
"Oh, I see! Good idea.", I said.
"Now go ahead and change.", she told me.
I walked over to the desk and grabbed the uniform. I held it up before me and examined it. It was a collared, short-sleeved, forest green tunic with a black belt with a golden buckle, black, fingerless gloves with brown guantlets, and a forest green hat. The hat was quite long, and very strangely shaped. I shrugged and set the clothes down on the desk. As I began to remove my flame jackket, I stopped and turned around to face Zelda.
"Umm... aren't you gonna...?", I asked her.
"Hm? OH!! My gosh, I'm sorry!!", she fussed. Her face was red. "Sorry, Link. I'll turn around now..."
Zelda turned and faced the opposite direction. I then continued to lift my jacket over my head. I removed my arms from the sleeves and took it completely off. I placed my flame jacket on the desk next to the tunic. I now had nothing on but my black cargo pants with the silver chain on the left side attached to my belt, and my black-and-gray sneakers. I lifted the tunic up and put my head through, then put my arms through their respective sleeves. The waist of the tunic reached about four inches past my waistline. My silver chain was almost completely concealed. The sleeves of the tunic reached slightly past my elbows. I took the black belt with the golden buckle and wrapped it around my waist. I buckled it, securing my tunic in place. Then I fit my hands and forearms through the black, fingerless gloves with brown gauntlets attatched to them. I adjusted them a bit before procceding to put on my hat. I tucked my dark brown hair at the back of my head into the hat as I put it on. It sat on my head, covering from above my forehead behind my front bangs, to behind my ears. My side bangs were still free as well. The hat took up the rest of the back of my head and the length of the hat reached halfway down my back, coming to a point.
I adjusted the collar so it was folded down properly, fixed the belt so it was on more evenly, and and finally gave my hair and hat a quick fix. Then I turned to Zelda, who was still facing the other way.
"All right, I'm ready.", I said.
She turned around, looked at me, and said, "Ooh, they fit you perfectly! And they look good on you, too! Now there's no way you won't blend in!!"
"That's great! Now then, let's get going.", I said.
"Yes, we should hurry. The guards should be starting to make their rounds by now."
"Wait, what should I do with my jacket?", I asked.
"Oh, you can just leave it here, on my desk. We can come back for it later.", she told me.
"Oh, all right then.", I said understandingly.
With that, Zelda and I headed for the door. We were ready to sneak out of the castle.
I was now face to face with Princess Zelda for the first time. She was absolutely beautiful. She looked about my age, she seemed to be about five-foot-nine, and she had brilliant long, flowing blonde hair and gorgeous baby blue eyes. She had the looks of a Goddess and a body to match. She wore a pink dress adorned with symbols representing the royal family, white gloves that extended up to her elbows, and a golden beaded necklace dangled from her neck. She wore silver earings that symbolized the long ears of the hylians; two on each ear.
Our eyes met for what seemed like an eternity as she stood before me. She smiled at me sweetly as I looked up at her in infatuation. Suddenly, from our left, I heard Chancellor Cole's screechy voice shriek, "HEY!!! How dare you raise your head without permission, you ill-mannered wretch!!!"
Zelda shot him a look that said, "Keep quiet and don't be so rude." The Chancellor let out a disgruntled sound of frustration as he reluctantly quieted down.
"I'm sorry about that.", Zelda said in an angel-like voice. "You'll have to forgive the Chancellor. He's been on edge ever since the Spirit Tracks started vanishing."
I just nodded silently in understanding. She beckoned me sto stand up, and as I did, an older man with thick glasses, gray hair tied back in a ponytail, and a moustache that almost completely masked his mouth walked over. He was wearing a white suit and a black bow-tie, white pants, and black boots. He was holding a piece of paper in his outstreched hands.
"Thank you, Teacher.", Zelda said kindly as the man handed her the paper. It was then that I noticed that this paper was my engineer's certificate. Teacher then backed away respectfully. Zelda turned to me and asked, "Now then, what is your name?"
"It's Link.", I answered, still infatuated with her.
"Link... What a nice name!", she said happily. It made me blush a little.
"All right, Link.", she began. "As Princess of Hyrule, I now award you the Engineer's Certificate! Officially, you are now an engineer for the country. Work hard, Link, for we all depend upon you." And with that she handed me the certificate.
I accepted it gratefully, and said, "Thank you."
Before anyone else could even blink, Chancellor Cole practically shouted, "Finally!! Now we can get back to important business... Like finding out what's happening to the Spirit Tracks!!!"
The soldiers each opened the doors they were guarding and held them open. As I lowered my hand that held the certificate, I noticed that there was something else with it. A letter. Written on the envelope was, "Don't say a word now. Read this later. And beware of the Chancellor!"
Zelda said, "Thank you for coming, Link. Good luck.", and with that she followed Teacher throught the door to the right, the same one they entered through. The guard closed the door behind them. Chancellor Cole headed for the door to the left. But he stopped upon reaching it, and turned to me.
"The ceremony's over now, so you best move along. Why don't you go... polish your train or something.", he said rudely. But what he said next made me very uneasy.
"Not that it matters, anyway. It'll be useless soon enough..."
Then he turned and exited the room, laughing wickedly. The door closed behind him. Aside from the two guards, I was alone. I looked down at the letter and read the words, "Beware of the Chancellor" again. Now it was all starting to make sense. I turned and walked out of the throne room. The guard who had been stationed outside was gone. No one was around. I decided that now was a good time to have a look at the letter. Standing at the foot of the steps, I folded up the certificate and put it in my left pocket. Now that my hands were free, I tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter. It read,
"I need your help. On the back of this letter is a map of the castle marked with a route that will lead you to my chambers. I cannot explain everything in this letter. So please hurry to my quarters. And make sure no one sees you!
- Zelda"
She needed my help? I couldn't help but wonder what she could need. I thought that maybe it had something to do with the Spirit Tracks. I turned the letter over and, sure enough, there was a map of the castle on the back. There was a line that showed a specific route that led up to the room in the east tower. That must be Zelda's room. The line started in the throne room and led out to the main hall. The it made a sharp right and trailed through a doorway to another hall. It snaked it's way around a few corners and led up a flight of stairs that led to the roof on the right-hand side of the castle. The line made it's way acroos the roof a few yards to a lower part of the roof that had another doorway. The line led through this door and then around a few more corners and ended up behind the door in the back right corner of the throne room, where Zelda had gone. The line followed the hallway behind this door and up another flight of steps to another door. Behind that next door was Zelda's room.
I folded up the letter and put it back in the envelope. I then tucked it away in the same pocket I placed my certificate in. Then I followed the route. I went right and slipped through the doors and came out in another large hall. Although, this one was smaller that then main hall and the throne room. It still looked about the same as the rest though. I traveled south through this hall, following the route around a couple of corners, ducking past a few guards as I made my way to the stairs. I ascended the steps and came out on the roof. I looked up at the blue, cloudless sky. It seemed to be almost noon. I returned my gaze to the path ahead of me and followed the route along the edge of the roof. I reached the other side where the small lower part of the roof was. I dropped down and passed through the threshold. I was back inside again. I carefully sneaked my way around the corners through a deserted hallway and reached the other side of the door in the back right of the throne room. I then followed the hallway ahead and ascended the steps. I reached the top and delicately eased the door open. I closed it carefully behind me and took in the sight of Zelda's room.
The floor was completely covered with a crimson red carpet, and on the far side of the room was a large, wooden desk in front of a fireplace that was currently inactive. On top of the desk were a stack of papers and next to that, what looked like a guard's uniform sat neatly folded. On the left-hand side of the room was a bed certainly fit for a princess. Beside that, a bookself stood tall, it's shelves crammed with books about who knows what. The bed was dressed with comfortable-looking pink sheets and a few large, fluffy pillows. There was a window that overlooked the western area of the land beyond the bed. On the right-hand side was another window and another bookshelf next to it. In front of the window was a small, circular wooden table with a small, round, velvet cushion on it. And standing before the table was Zelda.
Her back was to me, and she was playing what I assumed was an ocarina. Each note that was emitted from the instrument was heavenly. She was very talented. I approached her and made my presence known.
"Umm... Zelda?", I said nervously.
She stopped playing the ocarina and turned to me. "Oh, Link! I'm so glad you could make it!!", she exclaimed. She seemed very happy to see me. She placed the ocarina, which was painted with a vibrant azure blue, on the cushion on the table next to her, and walked over to me. "Did anyone see you?", she asked.
"Nope.", I answered. This made her even happier.
"That's great!! Listen, this is very important. I need your help.", she said seriously.
"All right, what do you need?", I asked. I was willing to do anything for her.
"I have a theory about why the Spirit Tracks have begun disappearing, and it involves the Chancellor.", she explained. "I believe if I can get to the Tower of Spirits, the sage who's said to be living there can give me the answers I need. But, I can't let anyone know I'm leaving the castle. If the Chancellor found out, it would be very bad. He forbids me from leaving the castle, saying things like, "It's for you own safety", but I just have to get to the Tower! And that's where you come in, Link."
"Huh? Me?", I asked.
"Yes. You're an engineer, so you can take me to the tower! Won't you do it? Please?", she begged. She seemed very desperate. I had no intention of declining in the first place, but then again, how could I?
"It'd be my honor to help you, Princess.", I said.
"Oh, thank you!! And you can just call me Zelda.", she said cheerfully.
"All right. But if you don't want anyone to know you're leaving, then how are we gonna get out of here?", I asked.
"We sneak out. Although, with the security system, it'be be impossible to sneak out completely undetected. That's why we need these.", she said, pointing to the unifrom folded up on the desk. "That's a recruit's uniform. If you wear that, the guards won't think twice about you being here. You'll blend right in!"
"Oh, I see! Good idea.", I said.
"Now go ahead and change.", she told me.
I walked over to the desk and grabbed the uniform. I held it up before me and examined it. It was a collared, short-sleeved, forest green tunic with a black belt with a golden buckle, black, fingerless gloves with brown guantlets, and a forest green hat. The hat was quite long, and very strangely shaped. I shrugged and set the clothes down on the desk. As I began to remove my flame jackket, I stopped and turned around to face Zelda.
"Umm... aren't you gonna...?", I asked her.
"Hm? OH!! My gosh, I'm sorry!!", she fussed. Her face was red. "Sorry, Link. I'll turn around now..."
Zelda turned and faced the opposite direction. I then continued to lift my jacket over my head. I removed my arms from the sleeves and took it completely off. I placed my flame jacket on the desk next to the tunic. I now had nothing on but my black cargo pants with the silver chain on the left side attached to my belt, and my black-and-gray sneakers. I lifted the tunic up and put my head through, then put my arms through their respective sleeves. The waist of the tunic reached about four inches past my waistline. My silver chain was almost completely concealed. The sleeves of the tunic reached slightly past my elbows. I took the black belt with the golden buckle and wrapped it around my waist. I buckled it, securing my tunic in place. Then I fit my hands and forearms through the black, fingerless gloves with brown gauntlets attatched to them. I adjusted them a bit before procceding to put on my hat. I tucked my dark brown hair at the back of my head into the hat as I put it on. It sat on my head, covering from above my forehead behind my front bangs, to behind my ears. My side bangs were still free as well. The hat took up the rest of the back of my head and the length of the hat reached halfway down my back, coming to a point.
I adjusted the collar so it was folded down properly, fixed the belt so it was on more evenly, and and finally gave my hair and hat a quick fix. Then I turned to Zelda, who was still facing the other way.
"All right, I'm ready.", I said.
She turned around, looked at me, and said, "Ooh, they fit you perfectly! And they look good on you, too! Now there's no way you won't blend in!!"
"That's great! Now then, let's get going.", I said.
"Yes, we should hurry. The guards should be starting to make their rounds by now."
"Wait, what should I do with my jacket?", I asked.
"Oh, you can just leave it here, on my desk. We can come back for it later.", she told me.
"Oh, all right then.", I said understandingly.
With that, Zelda and I headed for the door. We were ready to sneak out of the castle.
