After finishing the trial, the gate pulled Vexalia out into her real body, leaving her really confused, "B-but... I didn't get all the..." She stuttered, looking at the trinket awarded to her, "By facing the guardian, you have shown more courage than the trial could have set up, so it was considered complete." Fi explained simply.
"Are you okay? You seemed... Paralized." Bucha the Elder Kikwi questioned, having noticed the until now frozen Vexalia, "Huh!? Oh it's you! Uhh... Yeah, I was doing a thing." Vexalia replied reassuringly before going back to inspectingthe trinket.
Bucha noticed the trinket and recognized it, "That is one of the Water Dragon's scales, only important people are allowed to even come in contact with one." He said in surprise making Vexalia turn to him, "If you have it... It must mean you have to meet the Water Dragon." He added in realization.
That tidbit made Vexalia fully interested in what he had to say, "So... Where do I find this dragon?" She asked curiously, "As far as I'm aware it's located in a lake, but I don't know where it is." Bucha explained as he turned to the tree that was behind him, "This tree is the highest one in the whole woods, if you got up there you should be able to see the lake." He suggested.
"That's an idea I can get behind." Vexalia said in agreement, "How do I get up?" She asked, "The inside is hollow and can be accessed through the roots, although it's flodded, you can breathe underwater with the scale in your possession." Bucha explained, and Vexalia took off not waiting a further second.
Walking around the tree led Vexalia to familiar locations, until she stumbled upon a large pool of water near the tree, "Fi?" The heroine called out to her assistant, "Yes mistress, this is the access that the Elder Kikwi was referring to." The sword spirit confirmed, prompting Vexalia to jump in the water and begin swimming.
It took a while, but eventually Vexalia was able to find the right way to swim, and much to her surprise, she was actually breathing somehow[1], and with that she entered the tree, which looked a lot bigger from the inside, "Monsters... Should have figured." Vexalia muttered, noting how it should be dark enough for monsters to just appear.
Making her way up a carved ascent brought her all the way to the top, where at the end... She could still not see the lake, "Well this was a waste of time..." She said outloud, disappointed it couldn't just work and considered sending out a swarm like she did back in the desert, but before she could, she heard some very loud snoring.
"What is that horrible noise!?" She lamented, covering her ears at how loud it was, "Mistress, on top of that branch." Fi pointed out to a specific branch, where a Kikwi that looked even older than Bucha was sleeping, "Wow... WAKE UP!!!" Vexalia yelled, waking the old man? Up and getting his attention.
The elder mumbled a bit before it focused on Vexalia, "Oh the Aberration is awake! I thought I wouldn't live to see the day!" He exclaimed, "You know what I am?" Vexalia asked in surprise, "Why everyone from before the sealing of Demise knows what you are." The elder explained sounding a little jovial.
There was a moment of silence that was broken by the elder, "Anyhow, I am Yerbal, you might call me a Kikwi hermit." He introduced himself, "People call me Vexalia and... I'm looking for the Water Dragon." Vexalia said, thinking this guy might now something, "Oh? So you're already after the Sacred Flames? Well, you can find Farore in Lake Floria in that direction." Yerbal explained, pointing in the general direction of the lake.
Vexalia nodded in understanding and jumped off the tree, "Ahh younglings, don't have an ounce of manners." Yerbal lamented before going back to sleep.
Now at the bottom of the tree, Vexalia went where the hermit pointed, and found a gate, "Huh... How did I not notice before?" She wondered outloud, noticing that there didn't seem to be a way to practically open the gate, "Mistress, I detect this gate will only open if a certain shape is drawn on it using celestial power." Fi explained.
Looking carefully at the gate, it was clearly a design Vexalia had seen before, but couldn't really remember, "Hmm..." She hummed in thought before sending out a swarm, letting it go around the woods a while until she managed to spot a very similar design carved in the ground near the tree, "Perfect." She said, bringing the sword up and charging it, before drawing the missing part into the gate.
With the symbol now complete, the gate dissolved into nothingness, allowing Vexalia to go through and finally reach the lake, so she ran down the path, "About ti-Woah!" She let out as she reached the end of the path, which was a drop straight into the lake, and she fell straight in.
"Great..." Vexalia lamented, unhappy to be all wet again now that she just dried up, "Who goes there!?" She heard in the water and turned to see some kind of jellyfish, "WAAAHHH!!" It let out at the clearer sight of Vexalia, and began swimming away, "...Fi I'm not that scary am I?" Vexalia questioned, but received no answer, "At least say yes instead of being silent..." She said breathlessly.
Swimming after the jellyfish led through a networks of underwater caves that had such sights that made Vexalia feel like she did when she first arrived in the woods, "Man... I thought I'd never experience this again." She thought outloud, but then also remembered what she first saw when she got there.
The memory of seeing the Imprisoned pounce at her and the world covered in darkness made her shiver a bit, "Just one more reason as to why I need to win." She said to convice herself to keep going, and as she did go further, she caught up to the jellyfish again, "Still after me!?" It said, now sounding annoyed instead of scared, and it squeezed through a boarded up passage where Vexalia could not fit through.
"Now let's see how you-" The jellyfish was boasting before Vexalia made her veins burst out of her body against the planks, anchoring them and then retracted them, breaking the planks apart, "You were saying?" Vexalia questioned smugly, but noticed that the jellyfish seemed speechless, "T-the mighty aberration." It finally said.
Later.
After as bit of an explanation and the introduction of the Jellyfish as Jellyf the Parella, the two went on to where the Water Dragon, Farore, was currently resting after a fight with none other than Ghirahim, and so Vexalia stood in front of the injured dragon.[2]
"Ahh... I was waiting for you." Farore said with a coy tone, "Although I was hoping it wouldn't be like this." It admitted, looking at the basin it currently resided in, "I was just about to ask, Ghirahim?" Vexalia guessed, recognizing what Jellyf told her as the demon's title, "Is that what he goes by?" Farore sarcastically asked, sounding unamused at his mention.
The Dragon shifted a bit in it's basin, "Alas, I can't do anything about it right now, the basin was almost completely dried up of it's healing properties by the demon's persence." It explained sounding upset, "I could help if I can." Vexalia offered, "That would do nicely, you need to get sacred water from the Skyview Temple in order to restore the Basin." The dragon instructed.
Vexalia nodded and prepared to head off, but was stopped by the dragon, "Hold on, I have something to give you that should make such trips a lot simpler." It said, focusing it's power and creating an aura much like the ones Vexalia found within the temples before, and made the heroine absorb it.
"That was the essence of control, you should be able to use your abilities in a much more precise way." The dragon explain, controlling a bit of water to make the shape of tentacles, implying that Vexalia should attempt it, and by doing so, Vexallia now had complete mobility in the whole chamber housing Farore.
Leaping from the ceiling, floor, walls and through the water as if she did it her whole life, "Familiar with this?" Farore asked, "It feels as if I got a piece that I was missing for a long time back!" Vexalia exclaimed in pure elation, "Probably because that essence comes from the creature that was used to create you." Farore brought up criptically.
"W-what?" Vexalia questioned in confusion, causing the dragon to laugh a bit, "Well, I guess if you're going to help me, the least I could do is tell you the tale of Vexus." It said as it started narrating.
[1] She grew gills
[2] I'm not describing the dragons, oh my God they look complex, just look it up.