A/N: Yeah, you could say this is my first Zelda fic. My apologies if some of the dialogue doesn't turn out exactly the same as in the game. I also beg forgiveness if I happen to mix up names or mess up concepts…blah blah blah…right, now let's get on with the actual story already, shall we?
Disclaimer: I own it…in my dreams, perhaps…and in my heart…
He raised the large, cruel gold blade high in the air…it was a red-tasseled thing, beautiful in its own way, and yet a deadly evil permeated its surroundings and its very contours, an evil spawned only after the taking of many lives, the spilling of innocent blood. And now it reared in his dark, weathered hand, eager to take yet another, to snuff the spark of the small, green-clad individual crumpled before it…
Fear for Link rushed in like a cold twilight tide in her heart, clenching her chest in an iron fist. She leapt forward from her perch with a strangled cry, desperate to save him, even as the blade sang through the air…
Tetra awoke with a small cry, struggling frantically against strangling hands that had taken hold of her neck…but the browned fingers suddenly disappeared, and she found herself instead being wrapped by the thick blanket of her bed. With a sigh she forced herself to ease, falling limp into the caress of the thick mattress, slowing her pounding heart to match the gentle rock of the ship. She closed her eyes, listening to the murmuring creak of timbers, the muffled shouts and commands of that idiot Gonzo somewhere up above her head, and the hissing tap tap tap of rain, rain pounding the deck.
Tetra opened her eyes again, feeling surprised. She let her gaze roam the small room…fortunately, the thick violet curtain was still pulled down over the entrance, away from prying pirate eyes. The tulip-bulb lamp on the desk to her right was still lit, however, and charts and maps were sprawled across in a pell-mell messiness that was unusual for her usually meticulous habits of organization. She blinked, letting her sight drift instead to the wooden ceiling over her head, mostly dark and dancing with the pearly flame of the lamp. The back of her neck prickled as she was suddenly greeted with the memory of the horrifyingly powerful hands around her neck, of the cruel gold blade rising in the air, seconds away from cutting Link in half…
Tetra winced, feeling irritated. She flung away the covers of her bed in annoyance, feet touching the floorboards as she stretched, chastising herself. Inexcusable, falling asleep in the middle of some important charting. If she'd have caught one of her men at it she would have docked his pay in three seconds flat. Grumbling to herself and adjusting the red kerchief around her throat, she smoothed down her wrinkled blue garb and felt for the tiny saber at her belt, which was still there. So what if she had slept in her clothes? It was a usual habit of pirates, something to be expected. And she was captain of this ship, besides. She had every right to sleep in…
Scowling, Tetra took a seat at the desk and surveyed the mass of browned parchment before her. She had been in the midst of reconstructing the now shattered shorelines of Greatfish Isle the night before…and again she winced and rose to her feet once more. It was no use. She couldn't stop thinking about it now…
Irritation returning in full force, Tetra turned away from the table and instead paced towards the entrance of her room, turning around as she approached the violet curtain and pacing back to the other end. Several things were chasing through her mind in incessant circles…the devastation of Greatfish Isle…the words of that postman, Quill…
"Well, the kid's alive," she muttered to herself, stopping in the middle of the room. She swept a hand across her forehead in agitation, brushing the strands of her bright yellow hair from her eyes. "You've got enough to worry about as it is…he's perfectly all right…he can defend himself…"
And yet…
"It was only a dream!" Tetra bit her lip, feeling angry at herself. "That's all…a dream!"
"This isle was destroyed by a great power, greater than you could ever imagine…"
"And why? What kind of treasure could this island have possessed to be taken out like this?"
"…I don't know if I should say…but the power…that power is after a great fish spirit, one named Jabun. He guards a sacred pearl, something that this isle's destroyer seeks…"
"All this…for a pearl? Sounds pretty valuable…pity it's already taken…"
"That is not so, actually. I - oh dear…"
"Oh, so it's still around, is it? Come on, bird-boy, spill the beans. Where's this pearl?"
"I - well -"
"Yes?"
"It's…the great spirit now resides where Link was born…"
"What, Outset Island?"
"…Yes…"
"…Hmph. Well, alright then! Boys, charter a path for Outset and make it quick!"
"What?! No - wait - you cannot do that! The pearl -"
"Eh, ruffle down your feathers, why don't you? We're going for that treasure. No way some great power's gonna beat us to it and destroy Outset too. You just wait and see!"
"No - no, wait! …Oh…"
A great power…the memory of the remains of Greatfish Isle still made her blood run cold. What could possibly be so strong as to do that to an island? Tetra shivered - she almost didn't want to find out. And then her irritation returned. How could she have been so stupid?
She groaned inwardly to herself. It already felt as though the very fate of Outset and its inhabitants now rested on her shoulders. So much precious time, lost because of her own foolishness…of course a fish spirit would barricade himself behind a slab of rock in a seaside cave, with that kind of power chasing after him! And they had tried to break in, with no proper ammunition whatsoever…it had been fated for them to fail miserably.
But no…she wouldn't give up so easily. Not her, Tetra, captain of her pirate crew! Not when so much was at stake…so much more than the treasure…
She could still remember that kid's horrified face when his sister had been snatched away by that giant bird, how he had nearly killed himself trying to save her. Such bold-faced abandon for his own safety still made her uneasy. She wouldn't have thrown herself off a cliff for the greatest wealth in all the world…but then there had always been something weird about that Link, something simply different…and he had almost no family either…no one but his sister and that tiny grandma…
"How does he do it?" Tetra found herself speaking to a portrait above a set of drawers, one of the few in the room, and she stopped, gazing at the woman that looked back at her with solemn eyes. Her mother…
Tetra blinked as the ship suddenly rocked violently, perhaps under a mighty swell of the ocean beneath her feet, and her position came back to her as easily as her ability to steady herself. What was she doing? Going sentimental in the middle of an impending disaster…the worst thing to happen to a pirate was to lose treasure when you knew exactly where it was and how to get to it. It was time to pull herself back together.
"No more deep thoughts, you hear?" Tetra spoke half to herself and half to the portrait. Her mother gazed back, eternally solemn and silent. Tetra swallowed, then shook her head, clearing it of all the hazy thoughts. Never again would she involuntarily sleep like that, in the middle of a vital charting. All this thinking was giving her a headache, besides.
Customary scowl now gracing her sun-browned features, Tetra raised herself upright, assuming the commanding air of a grumpy ship captain whose crew slacked off far too much for her liking. She stepped out of the room, flinging the curtain that blocked entry aside.
A word of salty greeting was already halfway out of her mouth before Tetra looked around and realized that Nudge, the fool usually guarding her room, was nowhere to be seen. The intersection connecting the deck above to the belly of the ship holding supplies below was quite empty, apart from the torches in their brackets, flickering flames lighting the stairway.
A grumble of thunder met her ears, muffled but just loud enough to be heard, and Tetra's frown deepened. Suddenly the pattering of rain seemed much heavier than before. A real storm was brewing…how convenient. And the man guarding her room had probably been summoned up to help tack the sail while she had been asleep…wonderful. How much worse were things going to get? It were as though the very goddesses were trying to stop her…or something else, something more sinister…the memory of that tall, dark man flashed back through her mind, and Tetra involuntarily shuddered, even as she began climbing the set of stairs to the door leading to the deck above. Surely no one could gain such power as to bend the very weather to his will…?
…Or destroy an island…
She pulled open the door, and a great gust of wind, followed almost instantly by a nail-like spray of rain in her face, harshly returned Tetra to reality, and the present. With a gasp she flung up an arm to shield her face as another briny blast of spray nearly blinded her, soaking her completely and thoroughly. The wind wailed, a plaintive cry that chilled her to the very bone, taking hold of her mind even as she yanked the door shut behind her and struggled to see beyond the flying droplets of water that pelted from the pitch-black heavens roiling with cloud above, stark against the water-darkened mast of the ship. The wind lamented on, a song that seemed beyond the mere whistle and flap of the massive sail that fluttered over her head, a cry that spoke of a deep-rooted fear, a warning that strummed every one of Tetra's nerves. The tormented air-currents seemed to carry a warped note in its song, a reek, a familiar intone that Tetra could not rightfully place, though she knew she had heard its like before, not long ago -
"Cap'n!"
Tetra blinked, half to clear her eyes of water, half to clear her mind of all the tumultuous thoughts, and squinted, scowl deepening at the tall figure that staggered to her.
"…Senza? Is that you? I can't see a thing in this blasted storm…"
"Aye, 'tis me, Cap'n." The bearded, heavily built man emerged from the thick curtain of rain seconds later, his violet garb dripping profusely. Any other day he would have been busy making sure the ship was running in tip-top shape, or perhaps tending to the catapult situated on the back deck of the ship. The weapon was his pride and joy, having built it himself, and the thing had proven useful enough over the years. He also had a good sense of lore about him, though none of those qualities appeared now, on the rain-drenched deck of the rocking ship. Tetra took advantage of his immediate presence.
"How long has it been since I fell asl - I mean, since I went down below to finish up my charting?" she snapped, wiping a water-drenched strand of yellow hair away from her eyes.
"Well…can' be rightly sure in this storm, Cap'n, but I'd say you were down from dawn 'til round twilight."
"What?"
"Eh, I don't know the reason meself, Cap'n!" Senza seemed to flinch at her very reprimand. "We was making fine leeway for Win'fall, jus' as ye asked, and this here storm right sprung up fro' nowheres! Been gettin' worse since. Can' rightly tell nothin' 'bout time, see…the hours tell the tales, s'far as I know, and 'tis been many an hour indeed since this tide o' thunder an' lightnin' fell."
Tetra's scowl deepened even further. She knew she couldn't have slept for any more than a few hours at the least…there was no way it could have been that long…yet, if night had really fallen…
"Well, how is the route now?" she inquired at length, wincing as another blast of rain slapped her face. "Are we still on the right course? How has the wind fared?"
"I's say we still have it straight, Cap'n." Senza, if anything, seemed relieved to be able to distribute some good news for a change. "Zuko up there a' the crow's nest, he still sees the passin' isles, even in this 'ere storm. Sharp eyes, 'e does have. From what I can rightly decipher, since he don' talk much as you know, we be goin' the right way, as of a few minutes afore hand."
"…Good. How long until we reach shore?"
"Naught more than a good half hour, methinks. We already within the bound'ries, 'nless Zuko's eyes should prove wrong."
"Excellent." A brief smile flickered across Tetra's stern features, a smile so fleeting it wasn't caught by Senza himself. "Tell that Gonzo to keep his arms straight and steady, then, or he'll be finding himself dangling a few lines away from overboard." The ship itself lurched over what felt like a thick swell, as though to emphasize her point. "And when you can, inform Zuko that I'm pleased with his work. When this is done, I might give him a raise in shares, when we get a hold of…the treasure." Tetra paused, then cast the pirate a sharp glare to be seen even through the heavy curtains of rain. "I hope you can remember that, Senza?"
"Oh! Aye - yes Cap'n, 'course! Right away, Cap'n!"
"Good." Tetra watched, arms folded, as the great man turned and quickly lumbered away, into the thick wall of water than pounded from the sky. She blinked again, water droplets cascading from her lashes, and shook her head, sending more water flying. Then she began plodding to the helm of the ship, bent slightly against the pelting rain. She stayed near the rail despite the rocking of her vassal, avoiding Gonzo, and instead rested a foot on the prow when she managed to finally reach the hull, squinting through the rain and gazing out over the vast expanse of gray that stretched out beyond. Sure enough, she could see the form of an island looming ahead - Windfall Island.
She'd get a hold of those bombs, no matter what it took. And then they'd travel back, back to Outset…hopefully before the force after that fish spirit arrived.
"What?"
The glare Tetra set on the man at the counter could have made the average sailor flinch, but unfortunately for 'Bomb-Master' Cannon, he did not seem to understand the meaning of it, nor the warning it contained.
Tetra, one might say, was in a relatively bad mood already. She was soaked to the skin, water still dripping from her yellow hair, though the rain had eased up when they had laid anchor behind Windfall's peninsula a few minutes before. In addition to that she knew that time, precious time, was trickling through her fingers with the inexorability of a handful of sand at a beach. She was horribly aware that every second they lingered and dallied here brought that terrible power closer and closer to Outset, and its ultimate destruction. And yet, here before her, this arrogant, sallow-faced man with his ridiculous hair and his pinched expression did not seem to understand her urgency.
"…Let me get this straight." Her words about as deadly and inwardly seething as the most lethal poison, Tetra leaned a little closer to the counter, despite the fact that her head just barely reached the edge. Behind her, near the door through which they had entered, Gonzo and the rest of the rather soggy pirate crew exchanged terrified glances. When their Captain was this angry at someone, the usual thing to do was run for cover. And this man was about to get the full blast.
Tetra never broke her intense gaze, her dark eyes boring into the crinkled ones of Cannon. "You're telling me…that for thirty bombs alone, I have to pay…three hundred Rupees?" She leaned even closer than before, her fury edging into her voice as well as her eyes. "Do you really think I'm that stupid? That's ludicrous. No one, not the richest man on this island, could afford prices like that."
Cannon merely snorted. "Well, that's too bad, I'm afraid!" he snapped pleasantly, his voice about as high and wheezy as his nose, which was severely crooked. Abruptly, however, the pleasant cheerfulness on his face evaporated, and his eyes popped slightly as he continued, "But if you can't pay the price, than you're going to have to get out of here this instant!" His voice spluttered slightly, and he brandished a finger at her, the pudgy digit resembling a roll of salami despite Cannon's short stature. "I'm the one who invented these bombs, I and only myself! For I am the one and only Bomb-Master Cannon! I'd say they're well worth every Rupee. Now begone, you sea-rats!" he added harshly. "You're not wanted here!"
There was a moment of thick silence. The heavy ticking of machinery behind the counter was, for a moment, the only real sound. Then Tetra spoke, her voice easy, casual. She stepped back, hands on her hips.
"Well then…if you're going to be that way, I suppose we have no choice…" She sighed in mock regret, then turned to Gonzo. "Well, you louts, you know what to do. Get to it already."
"Aye aye, Cap'n!"
Tetra turned back to Cannon, folding her arms and looking on nonchalantly as her crew rushed forward in a synchronized chorus of acknowledgement. Cannon could only splutter and shriek in outrage as Gonzo and Nudge grabbed the little man by the shoulders and yanked him off of the barrel he had been standing on, while the others rushed behind the counter, grabbing hold of crates chock-full of bombs and perhaps even money. Feeling bored, Tetra let her simmering anger ease by drifting to a consecutive corner where the counter met the wall to her right. There she leaned, shoulders slumped, supervising her crew as the robbery ensued. With additional help from Senza, Gonzo and Nudge soon had Cannon wrapped from chin to toe in layer upon layer of rope, a piece of tape slapped onto his mouth, to be hauled to the front of the room, where they positioned the little man standing and wiggling like some sort of deformed moth cocoon, a piece of his odd puffy hair sliced off in the confusion of the pilfering. At length Tetra succumbed once again to her tides of thought as her crew reorganized, Gonzo and Mako gloating over their victory to a grunting Cannon while the others aligned at the opposite wall, awaiting further orders, Senza and Nudge each with a huge crate of bombs apiece.
Tetra looked up at length as Gonzo began laughing heavily at something Mako had said, looking to her for obvious advice, though for some reason his cheeks had turned slightly pink.
"Hey, Cap'n, are you listening to this dimwit here? Can't you dock his pay or something?"
Tetra frowned at him, then looked down again. "Quit fooling around, you two. There isn't time for that. If we've got all the bombs we need, we'd best set out for Outset this instant."
Gonzo blinked, looking obviously dismayed. Tetra turned her glare to him.
"What? Do you have a problem with that, Gonzo?"
"Oh! Uh, no, of course not! B-But miss…I mean, all I'm wanting to say's that we've been sailing for a long time, yeah? So the men were kind of looking forward to spending some time on shore and getting some grub maybe, yeah? Isn't that right, guys?" The large man turned to the others for support…and received an almost fearful silence.
Tetra regarded him with coldly, her anger bubbling up and mixing with equal quantities of anxiety and irritation. She raised her head higher. "Didn't you see Greatfish? That mindless destruction? We've got to hurry, before the same thing happens to Outset, too! We've wasted enough time fooling around here already."
Mako came forward then, the little fellow stopping cautiously a few feet away from Tetra. His red book clasped in one sallow hand, he tapped the rim of his large glasses with the other, peering at her closely.
"Uh…pardon me if I'm being rude, Captain, but it sounds like you're more concerned about the island than the treasure."
Tetra looked at him sharply. "What…what are you talking about? Don't be ridiculous. Of course I want…the treasure…" Her voice lowered to almost a mutter, and she lowered her head again, nearly biting her lip. Were her emotions really so obvious to her crew? Even if such a fact had been mentioned by the brains of the ship…still…
She felt it then, a prickling on the back of her neck. Almost instinctively she looked up - in time to see a pair of wide dark eyes gaze back at her briefly. However, they disappeared as the blond head with its green hat quickly inched backwards, attempting to duck out of view.
The first thing that crossed Tetra's mind was pure irritation…which immediately melted into an intense relief that slightly startled her. Well, that Quill had said that Link was alive, but even so…heh. Then again, she found that she wasn't too astonished at his presence here. The guy had always been full of surprises.
Tetra swung her head down again, though a slight grin now tugged at her features. It persisted even as she strode forward, shaking her head, arms spread outwards.
"Oh, well, if you crybabies insist, I suppose a night at the bar is all that will be able to silence you dolts." She strode to the door, then paused, being sure to raise her voice a little louder. "Just remember, we set off for Outset at the moment of dawn, you louts! Not a minute later, you hear? Now get those bombs to the ship, and then we'll book some rooms for the night, I suppose…"
She exited, in time to hear a small, half-hearted cheer from her crew, as well as the musings of Gonzo and Mako as the two went on to conversing about the ship's password…Tetra's grin widened even more, even as she stepped into the torrent of rain that greeted her outside. All the better for Link…
The peals of rowdy laughter drifted from the tables behind Tetra as she came forward, pulling herself up on a bench beside the counter of the café they would be staying in for the night. Digging in her pockets for a few rupees, she eyed the woman on the other side, the awiter's eyes lifted above Tetra's head. The blonde was gazing in obvious irritation at the partying pirates further back, rubbing a plate vigorously with a wad of white cloth.
Tetra decided to break the bartender's concentration on her crew - it wouldn't help if they ended up with a bounty on their heads or a jail sentence. "Excuse me, but I'll take a coffee if you don't mind, thanks."
Gillian, momentarily distracted as Tetra had hoped, now eyed the young captain instead, eyebrow arched, even as she grabbed a mug from a nearby shelf. "…Little young to be wandering around at night, aren't you? Shouldn't you be at home in bed, young woman?"
Tetra gave her a frowning look as she dug up a yellow Rupee and slapped it down on the counter. "Probably, but I happen to be the captain of those fools back there." She tilted her head in the general direction of the voices that were steadily rising. "We're a pirate crew, see."
"Ah." Though her expression remained sternly skeptical, Gillian scooped up the Rupee all the same and set the steaming mug on the counter as a replacement. "If you say so. Awful young to be a pirate, if you ask me."
"In-born thing," Tetra replied bluntly, taking up the mug in her hands and fingering the curved handle. Her thoughts drifted back to Link, and an idea came to mind, one that was almost interrupted by the woman's voice once again.
"If you're really pirates, then what are you searching for on the high seas nowadays?"
Tetra raised her eyes, meeting those of Gillian. Gaze never wavering, she replied in a low voice, her tones absolutely serious.
"…A great treasure, situated on the very floor of this vast ocean. A treasure of untold value, spoken in the most ancient of legends." She paused. "And it's also none of your business. So if you excuse me, I think I'll be drinking this in peace." Without another word she slipped off of the bench, not spilling a drop of the coffee, and strode away to the far corner of the café, leaving Gillian to gaze after her critically. With a shrug, the bartender returned to the plate she had been polishing and the pirates she had been eyeing, while Tetra took a seat at a table in the farthest, darkest corner of the room. Turning away momentarily from the ruckus ensuing behind her, she dug a hand into her pocket once again…and pulled out her Speaking Stone. The hunk of rock glinted eerily in the torchlight, eliciting the illusion of green flames flickering endlessly within.
Flames that could show her whatever she willed.
Tetra bent her concentration on the stone, thinking about the one thing she most wanted to see. All too soon the flames within grew brighter, stronger - until they finally melted into an image. The image of Niko.
Tetra frowned as she listened to the lower pirate's voice, spoken in a furtive mutter. Even so, it was heard only in her head.
"…Eh, okay, here's what I'll do, swabbie! Because you passed the test, I'll let you open that there chest, and you're free to take whatever's inside it! But uh…please don't tell anyone about this, all right? You got that?"
Tetra watched as a series of images flickered, green-tinted, across the stone's surface. A treasure chest, situated at the end of the storage rooms, being opened by a pair of hands, to reveal a stock of blue bombs that gleamed in the torchlight. Her frown turned into a grimace, and Tetra spoke abruptly, entering her thoughts into the stone. Thoughts that melted into words.
Heh, well, I see you've gotten a hold of our bombs, kid. Tetra watched as the images in the stone flickered and jostled briefly - Link had jumped. Then the scene swirled, and Tetra soon found herself gazing at Link's face, framed by his untidy gold bangs, wide dark eyes surprised. A faint smile touched her features once more as she continued. Consider yourself lucky that I left a little traitor like Niko to guard our ship's stocks…no other real pirate would give up our bombs that easy! I can guess why you want them, too…you're out after that treasure as well, aren't you? Link's expression told her enough. Well then, here's the deal. I let you go to Outset and try to get through to that fish-spirit or whatever, while me and my crew relax here and enjoy what this town has to offer. You've got until the break of dawn, though, and then we're off. And don't expect me to go so easy on you next time we meet!
Tetra severed the connection then and there, abruptly, though the image of Link's face remained in her mind even as the flames in the Speaking Stone died back down to their subtle radiance once more. Link…that klutzy fool…but she still respected him despite everything. He had the looks of an unreliable individual, but stature could be deceiving - Tetra only had to look in a mirror to know that much. And who knew…Link might actually pull it off. He'd probably put that treasure to good use, too…he didn't seem the type who thirsted for wealth…
Tetra sighed, forcing her tense shoulders to relax. She gingerly took a sip of the coffee, savoring the warmth that flowed through her, banishing the last of the downpour's chill from her skin. Might as well relax and enjoy the break…and then…
"We'll be off again," Tetra murmured softly, the image of her mother's portrait briefly flashing across her eyes. "And we'll find that treasure…the greatest treasure of all the sea…the one that you always talked about…"
The lost land of Hyrule, buried by the waves, its bygone tale spared only by the breath of the winds…
A/N: Well, there you go. Hope you enjoyed that. I'm vaguely considering expanding on this from a one-shot to an actual story from Tetra's perspective…if I ever get over this nasal curse that mankind has dubbed the flu…but reviews are appreciated! If you think this is something I can continue, please let me know! :)