Pirates of the Seas: I
The smell of salt hung heavy in the air, still and calm during the hot summer afternoon. Sweat and seawater beaded on the necks of every man who stood above deck on the ship that gently rocked to and fro. The only sound was the occasional grunt or sigh and the crash of foamy waves against the sturdy wood of the ship's hull.
The world was, at that current point in time, entirely satisfying for a group of supposed ragtag pirates.
And that in itself was the strangest thing of all. Tetra, leader of the pirates and a girl with a sharp sense of wit to every breath she drew, leaned against the railing of the deck, peering out into the endless sea. She squinted in the waves as she tried to understand what exactly was going on around her.
Each and every man in her crew was, for once, doing what was required of them. Such organization brought more stress to Tetra's mind than anything, and she quickly turned herself around and scanned the deck.
The wooden boards were spotless, and nothing seemed out of order. She clenched and unclenched her fists, trying to figure out what it was. Sure, many of her crewmates might criticize her for her underestimation of them, but this was entirely different. It was too perfect, and it made her suspicious.
And she knew exactly who was the one in charge of keeping the deck orderly, and exactly who the one that was the fault of most of her unease.
"Nudge!" she called out, her patience finally wearing thin.
"What is it, Miss?" Nudge made his wave over from where he tended to the catapult. Large and intimidating, he stood almost an entire foot taller than Tetra and thrice her breadth. His long black hair was growing unruly, and it hung around his face in a tangled nest. Tetra wished to criticize him for it, but what was the point? She was busy with other things at the moment.
With a tap of her foot she asked, "What's going on?"
Obvious discomfort twisted at the sharp features of the man's face. "What do you mean?" he asked slowly, as if he were testing his captain's temperament before he said anything that could get the entire crew into trouble.
"You know what I mean." She folded her arms across her chest, and immediately Nudge straightened and began to speak.
"Well, from what I've heard so far everything is in order. Or will be. Now, you know I don't like to associate myself with-"
"Nudge!"
"Link and Niko made a mess of the fish in the storage and have been trying to make sure you don't find out. They've been working to clean it up before you could catch them at it, and I told them you'd know. They just didn't listen and-"
Tetra didn't wait to hear what the rest of Nudge's words. No, instead she fingered at the sword at her waist and stalked below deck. She passed off her own room and near-sprinted down the stairs to the hold of the ship.
She tried the door, but it was locked. So she pressed her ear to the wood to see what exactly was going on inside. And, just like above deck, it was far too quite. So she took a step back and studying the door for a moment. She reached into her pockets and withdrew her lock picks before setting to work.
The lockeclicked open with ease, and Tetra quietly crept in, closing the door behind her. The smell of fish hit her without warning, and it took a moment for her to recover. Two backs faced her, and with ease she knew exactly who they were.
"We're officially dead men," Niko was saying. "Dead, dead, dead..."
"We're not dead," answered Link. "We can clean this up in no time. We'll just work in the night so it doesn't reek, and so Tetra doesn't see us. Then its just a whole ton of fish to throw back into the ocean."
Tetra crossed her arms. She knew by the way Niko wrought his hands in his red and white striped shirt and the way Link's bare shoulders stiffened as he spoke.
"The Miss'll have our heads."
"No, she won't. I hardly think she'd kill the man who's saved her ass from danger all those times past. Which is, I'll admit, very-"
"Very what, Link?" Tetra asked finally. Her voice dripped with false adoration as she spoke.
The supposed Hero near jumped out of his skin. Both he and Niko whipped around to be face-to-face with their captain, who stood in a dreadful silence.
"Oh! Tetra, we were just- just, y'know..." he trailed off. His face was red, either from the sun or from embarrassment, Tetra did not know-nor did she care.
Niko slowly backed away and moved behind Link. In his opinion, and quite possibly that of the crew, an angered Tetra brought about no content minds for what could be weeks on end. An angered Tetra typically brought about knots of muscles and deep-set aches and pains where one might think they could never even get such.
With a heavy sigh Tetra buried her face into her palms. She rubbed at her temples, telling herself it would all be over soon and ignoring the fact that she knew it to be a lie. The trio stood in silence, Tetra too stressed to even speak, and Link and Niko having no words due to the fear that held them back.
But the silence went on too long, and eventually Niko spoke up saying, "Miss, I realize that-" But he was silenced by a sharp look on Tetra's part.
Link took a step forward, ignoring the angry scowl on her face. "Listen, we'll fix this up, don't-"
"No!" she said finally. "You listen! You both listen! Do you hear me? Clean this up now before the entire ship reeks. It's only supposed to get hotter, and do you even realize- do you even know how damned immature this is! Why can I not even see the fish! No, don't answer that! Just clean this up now."
Link and Niko exchanged an uneasy look, and Tetra pushed at Link's chest in annoyance. "I said NOW."
She turned on her heels and left the room, slamming the door shut behind her. She near sprinted up the stairs and into her own chamber. She shut the newly-added door with just as much force as that of the hold's.
Tetra wanted to scream, but settled instead for burying her face into her pillow and rolling onto her back. Just once she desired everything to actually work out and that no one would make a mess of it. Day after day someone was doing something that they weren't supposed to be doing, and it pissed her off. It had gotten to the point where no one would even listen to her at times, and more often than not she was forced to assert her authority in ways she'd rather not be reminded of.
In ways that happened to be part of her very essence, which the thought of simply drove her mad. She took in a deep breath as she tried to calm herself. Now, whenever something needed to be done, she would have to curse each and every one of her crewmembers, and remind them who she was.
They could not deny her, for she was a princess. She near snarled at the word, and each time she spoke it a sour taste was left in her mouth. There was a severe difference between the title of princess and that of pirate captain, and she very much did not enjoy it. If it were up to her she would only be a captain, renowned among all pirates, but no, such was not the case. She was just a princess playing pirate.
Sometimes she wished that everything would go back to normal and that she had never been tossed up on the mountain back on Outset all those years ago. Well, it wasn't that long of a time, she thought. Five years only, but five years out of all seventeen of her life was rather significant especially when it involved having her life completely thrown around.
Tetra sat up, sitting cross-legged on her bed. She did miss the old times, when it was only her, the sea, and her crew. And, once upon a time, even her mother. But thoughts of old family never lasted very long, for she could not remember them much. The only reminder she had was the portrait of her mother that stood upon her dresser for as long as she could remember.
Occasionally she would ask her crew about her parents, taking them to the side when they were feeling particularly amiable towards each other and asking them about who exactly her esteemed pirate captain or a mother, or even father were. But whether it be in sorrow or in secrecy, each of the men kept their lips tightly guarded.
She would give up her title of princess to know, or even that of pirate captain. She shuddered at such a thought. What would she have done with her life then? Live on an sun-stricken island in the ocean of a flooded kingdom? Such an idea was hardly appealing.
But would it have been better than her current position? Now she was stuck among the waves, searching endlessly for a new land that she could call 'home.'
Yelling snapped her out of her stupor. Coming from above deck, the noise carried all the way down till it pounded in Tetra's own ears. Or perhaps that was her own blood that boiled in her veins.
She hurried outside, only what she expected to find was bliss compared to what it was she saw. Gonzo-Gonzo of all her crew!-was chasing Mako around with one of the fish that Link and Niko had brought up. His brows were knitted in anger, and he uttered curses loud and clear as he raced around deck.
The others were standing to the side, giving shouts of encouragement to both parties.
Tetra felt her stomach flip and her lips curl once again. She would give them a minute to stop with their ridiculous behavior, and if they did not, well, she would have each and every one of them walk the plank while she hacked at them with her sword.
Their time ran out quickly, but now it was Mako who chased Tetra's own second in command about deck.
She took a few steps forward and cleared her throat. "Oi!" she yelled at the top of her lungs and into the air.
Mako and Gonzo froze in their tracks and turned to their captain in what easily could be distinguished as fear. Link and the other's had stopped their shouts. They stood in silence as they awaited Tetra's next words. Only Nudge seemed wholly unamused with what had just presided.
"How pathetic," Tetra near whispered. "Niko! Get rid of these fish, now! Gonzo, aren't you supposed to be-oh, I don't know-steering the damned ship? If you aren't supposed to be actually doing something then get rid of the fish. I swear, if I see so much as a scale I'll-" Tetra paused, catching herself before she screamed out anything else in her fury.
She closed her eyes and inhaled. "Get to it then!" she shouted out. She watched the crew hurry along deck, their eyes cast down as silence hung over them. Even Link had fallen quiet, and right as he was about to help Niko with the fish a thought, similar to the broodings of those that Tetra experiences only minutes before, came to Tetra's mind.
"Link," she called out.
She watched as his body stiffened and the way his eyes flashed to Niko. Slowly he made his way over till he stood before Tetra. She looked up at him, wondering when it was he had grown.
He let out a cough. "Yes, Miss?" he asked.
Tetra blinked, surprised at his use of her title, rather than her name. At least he had the sense to know when it was that he should hold some proper decency. "Come with me," she said finally.
The pair made their way to her bedchamber, and, closing the door behind them, Tetra pointed to the bed. "Sit," she ordered. The hero looked at her in confusion, but obeyed nonetheless.
Slowly Tetra began to pace before him. Her arms were wound around her body, and she looked at the wooden boards beneath her feet with far too much interest. She was trying to figure out what to say to Link, who continued to look at her expectantly. Well, she knew what she wanted to say, but how? That was an entirely different story, and it filled her with an odd sort of dread.
"I've let you come with us for a reason," she said finally. "That reason solely being the fact that we were told to find this new land. This new Hyrule that is not to be hidden far beneath waves. And, since this 'mission' has begun five years ago, have we made any progress?"
Link opened his mouth to respond, but Tetra cut him off. "No, of course not. We've been sailing in circles and in seas I've never even heard of but we have found nothing. Of course we've found land, but how can we be expected to find something that is completely unoccupied and meant for our taking? Oh, that's right, we don't."
Tetra stopped speaking and continued to pace around the room. "And..." Link started, urging her own and being completely uncertain of what it was she was trying to tell him.
"And I think we should give it up. Finding this new land I mean." She turned her back to the Hero of Winds and sighed. "Is there even a point?" she asked, more to the portrait of her mother than to Link.
He was silent for a moment. "Tetra," he began, "I don't know. I know just as much as you and... that isn't much. The King of Red Lions wanted us to-"
"So now what you're saying is that you take orders from a however thousand year old king and believe all that he says? Not all those who are old are wise."
"Then what? Do you think everything that has happened, from Ganon to Hyrule, was all a lie? So you weren't actually almost killed because of it? Tetra, it has to be real." Link stood from the bed and walked over to her. "We've come so far already, do you really want to give everything up now?" he asked softly. He was about to put a hand on her shoulder, but quickly Tetra moved away.
"You may leave now," she said stiffly. "I will skin you all alive if I hear any more noise on deck, am I understood?"
Link studied her for a moment, and she felt herself shrink down under her gaze. "Of course," he said. No more words were said between them, and silence fell once more as the door shut behind him.
A/N: *waves* Welcome old and new readers alike. First and foremost, I feel like I should apologize to any old readers for suddenly just stopping mid-way through. (It wasn't just this story, I just had an entirely too long dry spell) So, in honor of the release of WW HD (guess who spent all of her money on the Zelda Wii U), I've decided to rewrite and finish this story. Wow, if you've read the other version's notes you probably think I'm an entirely different person... The next chapter should be up tomorrow afternoon.
Some important things to note:
- There are things that are changing when compared to the other version of this, as in the fixation of plot-holes, the alteration of Zale's character so she isn't so... mary-sueish, the one-year age change to Link and Tetra, obvious dialogue, and some plot.
- Disregard Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks for this story. Why? Because when I first started writing this, I hadn't yet played PH and ST was not yet out, SO, bear with me?
Thanks!