Chapter 68: One Week of Revelation

…

"Līnca, Līnca!"

Whamph! Irleen slammed the door to Link's cabin open and charged inside. However, she did not see him on the bed or at his desk. She moved to check behind the partition to his toilet as Janni stepped into the open doorway, dressed in a button-up shirt with the sleeves cut off and an oversized pair of slacks held up with a rope for a belt. After a quick look (fully expecting Link to holler at her), she turned to Janni. "Hōn hūta?" she asked.

Janni glanced around the room as she stepped inside. Then she noticed that the door had not opened all the way when Irleen barged in and pulled it aside as she peered past it.

"Do you MIND?!" Link snapped at her just as she realized that Link was standing between the door and his wardrobe. He had his head resting on the wardrobe with his bodysuit around his ankles. Upon seeing Janni, he shifted so that he was hiding his bare lower half around the side of the wardrobe.

"Nūc, hōn ħal watū?" Irleen asked when Janni turned to show her a large grin.

"Ħul," Janni replied. "Ħòħatàl kacī? Pòdā cīl tanì ħaħál."

"Pòtā?" Irleen asked. Then, as it occurred to her that she had seen Link standing in front of the wardrobe to change before, her face started turning red. "Ħarùkūku?!"

"Āā, kaágitpa ō tuda ħarùgūgut kùn kaħòtàlat ō," Janni told her in a teasing tone.

Thunk. "Ow!" Link, having accidentally struck his elbow against the door as he pulled his bodysuit up, followed up his utterance with an annoyed grunt. Janni backed away a step as he shoved the door aside, revealing that he had pulled the bodysuit back on. "What the hell, you two!" he snapped. Then he saw the draft from the deck push the door back at him, so he kicked it shut with the bottom of his foot.

"Līnca, kàtīhkán ħahū nàctū kátàh!" Irleen immediately told him.

Link heaved a sigh and glanced at Janni. "Don't tell me…" he groaned.

Janni shrugged and said, "Okay, I won't."

This caused Link to blink at her in surprise. "Wait… she's speaking Sorian, but you speak Hylian?" he asked.

"I've been speaking Hylian ever since we met in the dream," Janni replied. "I've been around Sorians and Hylians for over a hundred years; you get to learn both languages when you're bored."

Irleen reached into her pocket and pulled out her translator gem. Once she gave it to Link, she immediately told him, "I know how to find my people."

Link gave her a confused scowl. "You do?" he asked. "I thought you didn't have any clues."

"That's just it," Irleen said. "I didn't need any. And it explains everything!"

Link heaved a sigh and rubbed his forehead. "Doesn't explain why you hit me with the door…"

"Well, as soon as it hit me, I had to come say something."

"What hit you?"

"Guidance."

Link waited for an explanation. However, Irleen simply gave him a mad grin as if the single word explained everything. So, he sighed and said, "I'm gonna need more than that."

"It's almost pure instinct," Irleen told him. "One I haven't felt before now."

"Instinct?" Link repeated. "You mean you just suddenly know how to find your people?"

"We can stand here and point straight to them," Irleen told him.

"Really? Where are they?" In response, both Irleen and Janni pointed at the bottom half of his door. Link was taken aback by their synchronization. "On the surface?"

"Yep," Irleen replied.

"Once we were close enough, it just came to us," Janni explained. "Like someone hit us with a rock, and we know specifically who did it and where they hid."

"I don't get it," Link said. "How?"

"It must be something they did," Irleen said. "Remember two years ago? When Lutock disappeared and the crew of the Horizon's Eye jumped off Cunimincus' ship?"

Lutock, the only member of Captain Koroul's captured crew to survive being used by Cunimincus to disrupt the Sky Lines, had been tending to the queen of Hyrule when he had disappeared. No one had found a trace of him, and, although Link had filed a report with both the guards of Skyrider Port and his own company, no one had ever found him again. Only Irleen had been around when he had just wandered away and never returned. Days later, when Link had freed Captain Koroul and the crew of the Horizon's Eye that were being held on Cunimincus' ship, he had witnessed the last of them disappear toward the surface, having simply jumped over the side of Cunimincus' ship. Both had been completely without reason and had left Link and his crew to debate what had caused them to do that for two years.

Link shrugged and replied, "Yeah?"

"We thought they were fleeing Cunimincus," Irleen continued. "But I don't think that was it. I think this is what happened to them. This instinct that my people triggered called to them back then, and they decided to simply go toward it."

"Sooo…" Link had to think for a moment; something about what Irleen had described was not making sense. "This whole time, they could've been right beneath us, and you never noticed?"

"That's the part I can't explain without some more research," Irleen said. "But, if I had to guess, I probably never noticed it before because I was still a fairy. It's just one of those things, like how I never had to eat or drink."

"I have seen magic like this before," Janni spoke up. "When the Sorians started figuring out that the Drea—…" She paused and glanced down at the deck for a moment. "When my dad started attacking Sorians in the technoworks, one of them enchanted the technoworks so that any Sorian approaching it would feel irrational fear and want to leave them alone."

Link felt a thunk of guilt against his chest at the mention of the Dreamweaver, but he tried to ignore it as he replied, "Despite the fact that fear is exactly the kind of thing he was going for."

Janni shrugged. "It wasn't a good solution. Not that she was in the mind to come up with something better anyway."

"Is that why the Obeetans always screamed whenever they were near the library?" Link asked.

"No," Janni said with a shake of her head. "Those were Hylians. I doubt you ever noticed that the Sorians never even came close to the technoworks or the tower. The Hylians simply developed their own fear reaction."

"Ugh, great…" Link groaned as he put a hand over his eyes. "We let Cale fall into the technoworks when we could've just looked for a place where the Sorian Obeetans wouldn't go…"

Janni gave him a toothy grin. "Yeah, I thought that was pretty funny."

Link sighed and let his hand drop. "So, what happens now? Do we just let you two dive over the side?"

"It's just a feeling, not an impulse," Irleen said. "I think the only reason Captain Koroul and his crew went straight for it was because it was like a beacon of safety. They probably didn't realize we didn't know about it. It also probably explains why Captain Koroul had one of his airmen punch the traitor Sorian before they left."

"It does?" Link asked.

Irleen nodded, but Janni explained, "You can't follow mental suggestion with a concussion. That was… That was the trick to getting Obeetans to go into the technoworks. A solid whack on the head makes it hard for mental magic to work."

"They probably didn't realize you were gonna set the ship on fire," Irleen said. "They didn't want the traitor to follow them."

"But, if the beacon is still going…" Link started.

Irleen and Janni traded confused looks. "Why would they still leave the magic in place?" Janni asked. "If they knew there was a traitor nearby, they should've stopped it, right?"

"I would think so," Irleen replied. "But then… if they haven't stopped it, it must mean they aren't worried about him."

"Maybe they know there are other Sorians out there," Janni suggested. "You found Obeeta, after all."

"Maybe you should ask them when we get there."

Both Sorians gave Link a confused look. "'We'?" Janni asked.

Link nodded. "I promised two years ago I'd take Irleen home," he said. "With what this crew's seen in the last month, I think we can let the toil of everyday shipping wait until we return from the surface. I'd already made arrangements before we left; the company would only miss us a little bit. That was part of the plan, after all."

Irleen's face carefully molded into one of relief. "Yeah," she said. "I suppose we could wait it out a bit longer."

"It would be too far of a flight anyway," Janni added. "I'm pretty sure there's a bunch of ocean beneath us."

"Okay," Irleen replied. Then she snapped her fingers. "I've gotta go tell Lilly." Link quickly stepped to one side, although he was in no danger of being hit by the door as Irleen swung it open and slammed it shut in her rush to leave. Link looked down at his hand, then he held up a finger just as Janni opened her mouth. Four seconds later, Irleen barged back into the cabin. "Gem," she simply told him as she hung on the door, her free hand held out toward Link. Link gave Janni a smart grin before giving Irleen her translator gem. Irleen immediately left, slamming the door again.

"I bet you can't wait, either, huh?" Link asked with a grin.

Janni's face remained emotionless as she pointed out, "I don't know those people."

Link's grin fell.

…

~~10/19, Expedition Day 63

~~Irleen knows where her people are. They came to me this morning and revealed that they might be using some type of "mental magic" to signal other Sorians where they went. And, according to both Irleen and Janni, they're somewhere on the surface. I've been thinking that maybe that compass we tried making of the technoworks two years ago was accurate, it just didn't last long enough for us to get a decent reading. So, in all likelihood, the Sorians set up somewhere on the continent north of where the old kingdom is.

~~This seems like it should be good news, but I'm a little bummed out because of Janni's reaction. The thing is she's right. She doesn't know the Sorians from Forelight Island, and, with all the stuff she's seen in the past one hundred years, I really don't see her being so enthusiastic about being on another populated island. I would have to guess that she's gonna stay on the ship for as long as she can. I'm okay with that, but I don't know what she thinks about it.

~~There's a bit of a buzz in the air. I guess Irleen spread the word that we weren't going straight back to work once we reach Might Island. The reactions have been a little mixed. While no one seems to be eager to get back to work, the new crew seem to not like the idea of leaving the kingdom again. I suppose I can't blame them; Beech mentioned before that his wife was pregnant, and I'm sure some of the other guys have families they want to get back to. I can't say I'd be surprised if any of them decided to transfer off the moment we land on Might Island.

…

Kon kon. "Captain?"

Link had to take a moment to pull his bodysuit back on before leaving the toilet. He was cinching the belt on his work trousers as he called from the map table, "C'mon in!"

The door opened, and Link gave it a confused look until Flower hobbled in on a pair of handmade crutches. "Got a moment, Captain?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," Link quickly answered. "Uh… which would be easier, the footlocker or the bed?"

"Footlocker'll do," Flower said.

"I'll get it, I'll get it," Link told him as Flower reached a hand back to shut the door. Flower hopped out of the way so that Link could grab the doorknob. "Have a seat."

Flower moved into position and fell heavily on the footlocker, causing its frame to creak. The sound was made in unison with Flower's relieved sigh, so Link did not hear the footlocker. "Hope you weren't busy," Flower told him.

"Hasn't been very much to do," Link admitted. He moved to the front of his desk and rested his bottom against the front edge. "Is everything all right?"

Flower sighed and looked down at his bandaged leg. "I'd… I'd like you to put my papers in," he said. "Once we get to Might Island."

Link put on a worried look and stood up straight so that he was not leaning on the desk. "You—… are you sure?" he asked.

Flower gave a grim nod. "I'm ready to let this job go," he said. "I've… Quite frankly, I've seen too much. I've been held captive by monsters, gotten shot at with cannons, probably spent much longer worrying about getting blown out of the skies than any other airman alive…" He paused and chuckled to himself. "Don't get me wrong; I like getting to brag about being on the ship that took down the Undying Storm. But… this is something I've been thinking about since we evacuated Center Island. For a while there, past two years, it seemed like things were getting back to normal. Then, well… you've been here for all of this, too." Link nodded. "I'm not holding it against you; you've been a pretty good captain as far as I'm concerned. And I'd like to think that, if it were any other captain out here, our luck might've been up by this point. But that island just ruined it all. This…" He indicated his leg with one hand. "… I can get over. But all of the nightmares, the… I had dreams where I was just flying over the side and falling to my doom over and over again. Dreams where I watch as my crewmates get choked to death in the rigging while I die with my guts spilled out on the deck. Just… a bunch of dreams where you can't even tell whether you're awake or not. It's left me with thoughts I can't help going back to." He paused to wipe his forehead although Link did not see him sweating. "After that tree hit me… I was fine until that night. Then the Dreamweaver started pushing that button. Couple nights, I dreamed you left me on that island because I couldn't do my job anymore. Couple nights, we get back to the kingdom, and the company fires me and leaves me on the streets to fend for myself. Each one ended with me being so depressed I stab a knife into my heart." He paused to heave a sigh. "Then I wake up screaming like everyone else."

Link nodded and asked, "Have the dreams stopped?"

"Of course," Flower said. "But… about two nights before we chased the Dreamweaver down, I was sitting on the poop deck just watching the island, looking for trouble or anything else. I got to thinking about the last one I had. I don't really remember what it was… but it got me so down… I don't remember when it happened, but I blinked… and the pocketknife I kept with me was pressed to my chest." Link cringed. "That scared me. I kicked and screamed at Nester and Leynne to get that lookout post, and that's where I almost lost it."

"Have you done it again since?"

Flower shook his head. "No. But… I'm losing my love for the job. I can't live with these things nagging at the back of my head. I don't know if they'll ever go away, but I'd like to not be on a ship if they ever convince me to go through with it when I'm not looking."

Link heaved a sigh. To an extent, he could sympathize with Flower. His own life had been a nagging torment of survival on the ship. However, whereas Link's worry had been over what his bullying crewmates would do to him next, Flower was quite clearly more concerned with what he was going to do to himself. "Mister Flower…" he started.

Flower gave Link a moment to realize he could not say anything. "It's okay, Captain," he said. "I'm really dropping the cargo on myself, too."

"That isn't it," Link told him. "It's just that… you've been a good airman. And a pretty fair deck chief. It doesn't feel right to just let you go. Could… could I at least talk you into a temporary absence? If you change your mind, the company can fast track you to a new assignment."

Flower shook his head. "Sorry, Captain, but I've made up my mind."

"Well, would you at least consider a shore posting? Or maybe a training post? You shouldn't have to leave the company."

Flower gave the deck a contemplative look. It let Link pause to realize that he could not quite guarantee any post other than a job on his own ship. He would have to at least hope he could pull a string or two back home. He hated the thought of offering the positions without being able to back it up. "Thanks, Captain," Flower said. "But I think you and I both know that isn't how the company works. They'd just stick me with shore duty until I heal, and then back to the Symphony. Don't get me wrong; she's a fine ship. But I don't see myself being an airman for much longer afterwards, no matter what ship I'm on."

Link's last line of reasoning having failed, he consigned himself to a nod of agreement.

…

~~10/20, Expedition Day 64

~~Flower's quitting. I suppose I should be glad that I don't have more crewmen coming in to ask for their resignation. I have to admit, I wasn't expecting Flower to be the first. He's been with me for almost as long as Line. I guess it's better to have him leave the job like Leonard than die like Albert. My only hope is that whatever that impulse he described to me is, he never has to deal with it again. I'm afraid that, as long as he thinks he still has it, he'll never go near another airship.

~~We're still on-course for home. If I recall the map after we changed the Sky Line, Might Island should be appearing on the horizon any day now. Leynne checked the course twice, and he's mentioned that he can't get an accurate idea of how long we should be sailing. Some of the measurements he had been taking on the trip out here had been messed up by Line not caring. The best he could give me was at least another week. I'm inclined to think this is a good thing. It gives my crew another week to get back into everyday life.

…

~~10/21, Expedition Day 65

~~I guess there are times when I forget how sensitive the Gelto are. Lwamm was crying this morning in the galley. Dholit told me it was homesickness, and that Lwamm had been having nightmares of what was happening to her family. Evidently, she has three sisters, and the dreams were about her being forced to kill them for one reason or another. But she was crying today because she had a dream about her sisters that was actually good. I guess, to her, it was a sign that things were all right in spite of her fear. Then Dholit explained that Layna wasn't the only one holding knives to people's throats. I am seriously beginning to realize how close the Dreamweaver was to killing someone. It has me worried about other things that my crew was not reporting the whole time.

~~I took a walk through the ship this afternoon to sort of check up on everyone. Nothing much to mention, but I told Leynne that Stan was a little bored with not having to prepare meals for the time being. And I guess Janni got herself a decent set of clothing from the Gelto, although it looks like Dholit may have raided Leynne's clothes again.

…

~~10/22, Expedition Day 66

~~Sello raided the galley last night. I forgot that we had tapped his supply of alcohol to help the crew sleep. The problem is, now, we can't find any of the pots or utensils he stole. And, well, being Sello, we really couldn't get a straight answer out of him. I suppose we can let him have them for now since the cooks aren't really using them. Whether we get them back is going to be something to see. Leynne suggested he might be making a distillery, although he admitted that he wasn't sure what Sello would be using.

~~Botu and Gillam approached me today about transferring ships once we get back to the kingdom. I can't say I'm surprised. Neither really gave me a reason other than their nightmares have been making them think about things on my ship. Though Gillam did admit to having some anxieties from dreams about his brother. I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise; I was there when the fake princess stabbed Gilliam in the chest. It wasn't a pretty sight.

~~If we're gonna have people transferring off, I might have to delay our descent to the surface until we can get Helo and Lidago back. They should still be on shore duty, so it should be easy to head to Skyrider Port and pick them up.

…

~~10/23, Expedition Day 67

~~My ship stinks. It seems to be mainly coming from the engine room, but the smell's permeated the orlop and is leaking into my cabin from the hole we drilled for Irleen. I might have to plug the hole. It's so bad I spent most of the time on deck today. I don't know if I can sleep with this smell. Leynne and I tried looking around the engine room, but the smell is so strong that we can't tell where it's coming from. The engine crew mentioned it was making them a little lightheaded, so they left all the doors open to let some of the air circulate; that's why the whole ship smells. Sello didn't seem to mind. Leynne suspects that whatever he had stolen the kitchenware for, it might be related.

~~I'm glad to report that things seem a little better today. Although I know I'm losing a few crewmembers once we dock, everyone else seems to simply be getting back into their roles from before we reached Obeeta. I've tried to at least explain to them that, if anyone is still having trouble after Obeeta, I'd like to know. I have the impression that some of them may still be hiding a few things.

~~Nester threw Geordie out of the sick bay. I didn't realize he was taking advantage of the beds until Nester finally snapped that he's well enough to sleep in his own berth. Beech also seems to be coming back onto regular duty. Whatever there may be between them, they seem to have at least patched it up. I just dread the first one of them that tries to prank someone again.

…

~~10/24, Expedition Day 68

~~Well, the stench is gone. We still don't know what it was, and questioning Sello is pointless. Besides, my ship hasn't fallen out of the sky, and Sello seems to be mellowing out. And, I really don't know if it's relevant to his situation, but Randy mentioned that he has recently taking to sleeping with his hat in his arms like a teddy bear. He said it used to be an empty bottle.

~~Other than that, there wasn't really much going on today. Line thought he saw an island ahead of us, but the Sky Line makes it hard to see anything.

…

~~10/25, Expedition Day 69

~~Sighted a light on the horizon this evening. We must be getting close to Might Island.

…

When Link stirred, he became aware that he was sleeping in an open space. Even stranger, the surface he had been sleeping on was slanted. He pushed himself up to see that he was lying on a roof. He even recognized the roof from the uneven roofing slats he knew had been placed there from a few years back. The Sail Tavern, his mother's establishment on Skyrider Port.

He pushed himself into a sitting position to confirm. He was surrounded by rooftops he had seen for years. The sky above was a dull blue, and he looked to the eastern sky. He knew that sky.

And the person sitting on the edge in front of him. He heaved a sigh and said, "Good morning, Princess."

Princess Zelda whipped around in surprise. As opposed to the previous outfit he had seen her wearing in a dream, she was wearing a pink airman's tunic and white slacks, her outfit when she had stowed away on his ship two years ago. Then she released a relieved sigh and smiled. "Hello, Link," she replied. "I'm glad I finally found you again. I was concerned something had happened on that island."

"Something did," Link replied. "It's a bit of an explanation, though."

Zelda put on a disappointed look that she aimed at the roof next to her. "So there was a danger. I hope nobody was hurt."

"Well… my crew isn't in the best condition," he admitted. "There was… something on the island that fed on good dreams and kept giving us nightmares. It almost drove us crazy."

"It affected your dreams? Perhaps that was why it took so long to reach you…"

Link shrugged. "Maybe. But, if hadn't been for your warning, we probably wouldn't have survived."

"I had wondered if you had understood," she said as she raised her eyes to meet his again. "I only had a brief moment."

"We handled it," Link said with a dismissive wave. "At least you knew where to find the shield."

Zelda gave him a confused look. "Shield?" she asked.

Link blinked at her until he realized that she probably did not know what the actual object was. So, he replied, "Yeah. That's what we found in the tower. Just like you told me; it was in the tower."

Zelda's expression became worried. "Link…

"I never got past telling you to leave the island. I woke up before I could say anything else."

Link's face slowly fell to shock.