It's been a while, hasn't been? I went through a moment of stress during the end of my second semester of collage, which is why it took me so long...

But now that I'm done with it, it's time to get back to this story at last!

Enjoy! ;)

Chapter 7: The Great Sea is Cursed

The dark night atmosphere around the heroes as they crossed the seas seemed perfectly normal at first, all of them hoping that getting the next pearl and star piece would be a little less complicated than the two previous ones they had gotten.

That is, until, as they were nearing their destination, the sounds of thunder filled the air, soon followed along with lightning strikes. The heroes sighed, knowing that a storm was coming. In an instant, the downpour eventually came, soaking them in this thunderous weather.

"Look, everyone! Do you see it?" the King of Red Lions exclaimed. "…What has happened to this place?" he went silent.

What the King meant by that is that the next island they stumbled upon appears to be… wrecked. Nearly everything about the island, called Greatfish Isle, was literally turned into pieces composed of nothing but small elevations and there was an ominous dark swirling cloud very similar to the one seen back on Dragon Roost Island looming over. Not to mention there's barely any ground to stand on, except for a small piece of shore that Link decked the boat on before he and the others got out.

"Oh dear…" Peach whispered as they all looked around.

"Wh-What is the meaning of this?" the King of Red Lions stuttered. "The island… It is…"

"…Destroyed…" Link finished his sentence.

"No…" Luigi frowned. "Are we too late?"

"I am afraid so." the King of Red Lions lamented. "I knew we had precious little time, but I never suspected how little…"

"So, what was supposed to be on this island?" Yoshi asked.

"A great water spirit named Jabun once lived here, but no sign of him remains…"

Jabun? Didn't that sound pretty similar to Lord Jabu-Jabu, the deity of the Zoras? That's what the Mario cast thought about.

"HO, THERE! LINK!" a voice shouted. The heroes looked behind to see Quill at the distance flying towards the island. He came down in hot and in a hurry as he landed quickly beside the group.

"Quill?" Mario awed.

"So, you're here! I've been looking for you! Are you by chance seeking the great spirit, Jabun?"

"Yes! How did you-?" Link was cut short when Quill interfered:

"I'm sorry to report to you that Jabun can no longer be found here."

"Well, that's unfortunate…" Toad muttered.

"Just look at how this place has been torn to pieces… I suppose this, too, is the work of the shadow in the Forsaken Fortress. But fear not! Jabun was able to flee this island before it was attacked. He is in a safer abode now."

"Oh, what a relief!" Peach smiled, clasping her hands together. "That means we can still get the pearl and the star piece!"

"But where is he right now?" Link asked.

"Would you like to guess where that abode may be?" Quill asked, and the group immediately nodded. Gesturing to Link, he answered, "…On the island where you were born. On Outset."

"Wait… REALLY?!" Link's eyes widened in shock while the Mario cast looked at him in surprise

"Surprise, surprise!" Luka winked.

"How is MY island any safer?! Come on, guys, we have to go NOW!" Link hollered.

"Hold up." Quill stopped. "Yet even if you were to go to Outset now, you would not be able to see Jabun. The cave where he hides is sealed with a mighty stone slab that repels all who try to pass it. Why, not even the pirates with their mighty ship could get in…"

"The pirates?" Link and the Mario cast spoke in unison.

"…I must apologize, guys. I thought if anyone would know of your whereabouts, it would be the pirates. I told them this tale without so much as a thought for the consequences. I don't know what they hoped to get, but they immediately set sail for Outset Island and tried to break into the cave… It is lucky they could not gain entrance."

"That's good for us." Yoshi stated. "Where are they now?"

"I have heard that they were last spotted on Windfall Island, but doing what, I do not know. If you wish to see Jabun, I think you'd better search for the pirates on Windfall Island."

"Well, looks like we have a new destination!" Luka exclaimed.

"Guess we have no other choice…" Mario shrugged.

"What an eerie island this is… Everywhere else boasts clear skies and calm seas, but this place suffers under dark clouds and rain." Quill mused. "Valoo must have been right when he asked me to bring word of Jabun to you… He called this island cursed…"

"C-Cursed?!" Luigi stuttered shakily.

"Easy, bro. I'm sure it's nothing too severe… I hope." Mario said.

"I would counsel against staying here longer than you have to." Quill said. "…But that is your decision. I have told you of Jabun, so my task is complete!" and with that, he took off flying away.

"So, Jabun has survived!" the King of Red Lions exclaimed as the heroes turned to face him. "The sea spirit has lived through the trials of many long years. He must have caught wind of Ganondorf's attack beforehand… If we are to believe the words of the Rito postman, then the pirates know something about the cave where Jabun hides. Why don't we go first to Windfall and search for them there?"

"Right." Link nodded as they all hopped on the boat and began to sail north after conducting the Wind's Requiem.

As they were sailing the seas towards their destination, they soon began to notice that the rain wasn't stopping no matter how far they were from where it started, and that night never seemed to end as the hours passed.

"I'm getting worried about the climate…" Peach trailed. "There's no way it can rain anywhere or having night last longer than usual."

"You're right." Mario nodded. "It's as if… the entire Great Sea is cursed."

"This is the work of Ganondorf, right? That dastardly man…" Luigi murmured.

"Even if I don't know how you guys know so much about Ganondorf, this is a really worrying situation…" Link mused. "Speaking of worry, I better check on my grandma once we get back to Outset…" he thought.

"Hopefully we can find any clues at Windfall in order for us to get to Jabun." Yoshi said.

"And also, once we get there, there's something that I want to do over there." Luka added.

"And what is it?" Toad asked.

"I'll tell you when we get there."

Eventually, they finally reached Windfall Island. Of course, the dark skies have also reached this place, and it was still raining; leaving Link and the others soaked. They just couldn't wait to get out of the rain.

"It is just as the postman told us. The pirate ship has stopped here to avoid drawing the attention of the townsfolk…" the King of Red Lions mused, as they had decked at the island's back beach where the pirate ship was. "I know not what they are researching, but if they are hoping to get their hands on Jabun's sacred gem and star piece…"

"Oh yeah… That would be bad…" Yoshi mused.

"I doubt they would tell you all anything directly if you were to ask them. I think you should try to find out what the pirates are up to… without them finding out about you."

They nodded back and took off. Once they were far away from the King of Red Lions, Luka spoke to everyone else:

"Okay, I know exactly where the pirates are right now." she pointed to the building on the island's eastern side. "They're at the Bomb Shop… however, I highly suggest entering it from the highest portion that can be reached from the building's backside." she then turned to Link, "Link, you go there on your own, because I and the others here are going to do some other things here."

"Well, alright." Link shrugged and then he made his way to the Bomb Shop.

"As for all of us… Come with me." Luka said and gestured everyone to follow her.

"Oh boy… What is she up to this time?" Toad wondered before he and the rest followed her to the town's entrance.

With Link, he had sidled to the shop's backside and climbed up some vines in order to reach the higher level of the shop, where there was a small vent he could enter. He crawled through, and found himself looking down at a high ledge from the shop's interior to see that down below, Tetra and her pirate crew had just tied up a man who was probably the shop's owner.

"Look, don't be mad at us! It's not our fault that we absolutely gotta have bombs to get the treasure we're after!" Mako said, trying to reason with the owner. "How about you just think of it as payback for the nasty little monopoly you've been running here, yeah?"

The owner tried to speak, but his mouth was taped, leading to Mako to laugh at him as he mocked:

"So I bet you're thinking it was foolhardy to ask pirates to pay such an outrageous price, huh? Yup. I bet you are." he turns to Gonzo, "…You know, Gonzo, I still can't get over that bit of fast-talking you pulled to get that information out of the postman!"

"Huh? …Oh! Oh, yeah! That was smooth!" Gonzo exclaimed with pride. "I tell you, the minute I set my eyes on that Link, I just knew he was hiding something back at Outset, yeah? So when I saw that postman, I just pretended like I was all worried about the kid and stuff… And presto! He spills the beans!"

"Good work, Gonzo! Really! Just top notch! It's funny, though… I'm thinking this is maybe the first time you've shown such wit… Such cunning… You know, with your cunning and Miss Tetra's smarts… If you two got married and had a kid… That kid would be the greatest pirate to ever sail the seas! Yup! The greatest!"

It was then that Gonzo blushed at this. "You idiot! Keep your mouth shut, yeah? Don't be so stupid!" he chuckled. "Miss Tetra! Are you listening to this nitwit? Can't you dock him some pay or something?"

"Quit goofing off, both of you!" Tetra retorted with a hint of annoyance, as she was leaning against a wall. "Keep your childish jokes to yourselves, and get those bombs back to the ship! The second you're done loading them up, we're setting sail for Outset Island!"

"Whaaat?!" Gonzo looked at her in disbelief. "Miss! We have to leave immediately? But it's been so long since we were onshore! We need to fill our bellies with some good eating, yeah? How about we grub tonight and shove off tomorrow morning instead?"

Tetra rose an eyebrow, still with a serious expression, leading Gonzo to say, "I mean… Uh, I-I'm fine either way, of course! Whatever you say is fine, Miss, is what I mean to say! …It's just that the boys were so excited to come to town, yeah? And I can't help but think it would be awful hard on them to leave so soon without a proper layover. So, what say we set sail tomorrow, yeah? What do you say, Miss? Those treasures aren't going anywhere!" he then turned to the rest of the crew, who were carrying barrels holding the bombs. "You're with me, right, boys?! Who's for a night of fun?"

Unfortunately, no one said anything in response, much to Gonzo's dismay. Tetra let out a sigh, tired of Gonzo's yapping and spoke up:

"You're all fools, do you know that? You saw that demolished island! You saw the senseless destruction. We have to hurry on to Outset, or the same thing could happen there!"

"Huh?" Mako slowly walked up to Tetra. "Not to be disrespectful, but by the sound of things, you're worried more about that island than the treasures, Miss…"

"Don't be ridiculous! I want, you know… the treasures…"

Tetra then looked up, seeing a portion of Link's head up on the ledge above. Not expecting Tetra to actually do that, Link quickly crawled backwards to hide himself from Tetra, even though it was already too late. Flashing a wink and a smile where Link was, she walked to her crew and declared:

"All right! Fine! Have it your way! We can leave town tomorrow, you big babies. But we're setting sail at first light, so no sleeping in! Understood?"

"Aye, aye!" Tetra's crew exclaimed before they all left the shop with her, but Gonzo and Mako stayed behind for a little bit.

"Say there, brother, what was today's password, again?" Mako asked.

"Mako! Are you serious? You forgot already? You're so useless." Gonzo scoffed. "Today's password is Plankton, yeah? Remember?"

"Hmm… If I'm going to head into the pirate ship to get the bombs, then I should remember this password." Link thought.

"You know that Niko won't let you in if you don't say it exactly right!" Gonzo exclaimed. "And he's real picky about it… So I'll say it once more…" he murmured and then said it again, "Today's password is Plankton, yeah?" he then began to leave.

"Plankton, eh?" Mako follows Gonzo, leaving the poor shopowner tied up and with his mouth taped.

Meanwhile, with Luka and the Mario cast…

"And THAT'S how you instantly win an auction!" Luka exclaimed as she and the Mario cast had just left the Auction House while carrying a different kind of boat sail. "All of those Rupees we got throughout the two dungeons really payed off, didn't they?"

"Well, yeah, but why did we need to spend all this money for a sail of all things?" Toad questioned.

"Because this is no ordinary sail, you see. This is the Swift Sail, which will not only allow us to travel the seas much faster, but the wind direction will automatically change alongside the direction we're heading to, so we'll no longer need the Wind's Requiem to change the wind direction!"

"Hey, that's actually pretty useful!" Yoshi chimed. "We would never find something like that if you weren't here with us, Luka!"

"Consider yourselves lucky!" Luka winked.

"Now, where to next?" Luigi asked.

"For now, we'll wait for Link to come back. He's probably heading to the pirate ship right now to get the bombs."

"Alright, but let's at least find some shelter for us." Mario said.

"Oh yes, please." Peach nodded. "After all, my parasol is used to shield me from the sun, not from rain."

"Then how about the place where we docked the King of Red Lions? I believe there's enough cover for us there." Luka stated and then they all went down to the island's back beach to wait for Link. In the meantime, Luka decided to install the Swift Sail on the King instantly, replacing his old sail with a brand new one.

Later, back with Link…

"What?! You've gotta be… You did it already?!" Niko exclaimed surprised once Link had cleared his newest obstacle course. "You're… You're incredible!" he then began to murmur, "This isn't good… I've never even passed this test… How could he do it so quickly…? And make it look so easy?! And if I give this to him, everyone will know for sure… Oh, I'll be so busted…"

"So, are you giving me the bombs or what?" Link asked rather impatiently.

"Uh…OK! You're the best swabbie of all time! So…I guess I'll just give you the bombs! Go on! Take 'em!" Niko stepped aside to reveal a treasure chest that was behind him. "Just don't tell anyone, OK? I'm serious! Really serious! OK? OK!?"

"Um, okay…" Link replied and then walked up to the chest to open it, taking out a bag of Bombs. "Perfect." he smirked… and then Tetra's voice suddenly echoed around them:

"That's mighty courageous of you…trying to steal treasure from pirates."

Remembering about the Pirate's Charm, Link quickly pulled it out of his pocket and heard Tetra speaking again, much to Niko's surprise.

"I suppose I should be shocked…but I'm more amazed that you managed to survive after being tossed out of that tower…"

"Oh… so you saw it?" Link asked.

"Obviously! Hmm… From the look on your face, I have to guess you haven't saved your sister yet, huh?"

"No, but…"

"You don't give things much thought, do you? You just rush in, never thinking how badly things could go for you."

"Yeah… I guess I was a bit reckless…"

"Like just now… The only reason you got what you did was because we left a simpleminded little rat like Niko behind to look after things. No one else would have parted with our treasure so easily, I assure you! And just how do you intend to use those bombs, anyway? Don't tell me you're going after Jabun's treasures, too…"

"Yup."

"I should've known… Right now, Jabun is hiding in a cave at the back of the island you were born on. But the entrance is blocked by a giant stone doorway. You can't get in without breaking down the door."

"I knew that already…" Link thought, rolling his eyes.

"We're going to relax in town and eat our fill of whatever this town has to offer, but we'll be leaving for Outset first thing in the morning. If you manage to find Jabun tonight, then I guess you win. But if you take too long, we'll come sailing right by you tomorrow morning! And believe me, you didn't get ALL of our bombs. You'd better be quick, kid!"

The call then ends, so Link immediately leaves the pirate ship, leaving behind a thoughtful Niko inside. Once outside in the rain, Link made his way back to the King, where he also found the others.

"Ah, you're here too." Link said. "So, what were you doing?"

"Nothing much, we just won an auction to get a new upgraded sail." Toad simply responded.

"…Okay, then?" Link tilted his head, but decided to focus on the task. "Then I guess we're all set to go." everyone boarded the King of Red Lions. "By the way, Tetra told me that she and her pirate crew won't be leaving until morning."

"So that means we must meet with Jabun and get the pearl and the star piece from him before they arrive." the King of Red Lions stated. "Let us delay no longer, everyone!"

"Right!" everyone else nodded as Link then set up the sail.

Because the Swift Sail was installed in place of the old sail, Link was surprised to see that their boat was now moving faster than usual.

"Is it just me, or are we sailing a lot faster now?" he wondered.

"Yep, we are sailing faster." Luka nodded. "The new sail we got was a Swift Sail." she then explained to Link what it does.

"Oh, I see! This really does come in handy!" Link exclaimed. "We'll reach my home island in no time!"

Soon…

The heroes finally arrived at Outset Island. Due to the curse, it was still nighttime and raining, which wasn't too surprising for them.

"Your suspicions were right all along, it seems." the King of Red Lions told them. "Morning has not broken since we arrived at Greatfish Isle – the land that was so ravaged by monsters. It is as if time itself is frozen. Perhaps this is the curse that Valoo spoke of."

"It has to be." Luigi nodded.

"Whatever the reason, if this night does not end, then we need not worry about the pirates overtaking us." he then turned to Link, "In fact, it might not be a bad idea for you to visit your hometown and family again after such a long time away."

"I was going to do that, anyways." Link thought.

"We can speak with Jabun after you do."

They nodded back, and began to walk around the island.

"So this is where you live, Link?" Peach asked.

"Yes." Link nodded with a small smile. "Though I wish it was daytime so you could see how nice and peaceful this island is."

"It doesn't matter that much." Yoshi shook his head. "What matters is that we finally got to see your home!"

"Yeah, true…" Link then led them to his house. "This is my house." he said, but then felt a bit hesitant about opening the door. "Somehow… I'm a little nervous about going in…"

"Hey, don't be afraid." Mario spoke up. "You're brave. You can do it."

Link took a deep breath. "Alright, here goes…" he opens the door.

"Ohhh… Uhnnn…" suddenly, he and the others heard moans as soon as they got inside. "Link… Aryll… Don't go… Don't leave… Uhhnnn… Don't leave your poor old grandma… all alone… Uhnnn… Uhhhnnn…" they belonged to Link's grandma, who unfortunately wasn't feeling so well.

"Grandma… Oh no…" Link gasped silently as he walked over to his grandma while having a look that's a mixture of sadness and shame; he never imagined that he would leave his grandma all by herself for so long than he had thought. "I'm so sorry…" he lamented, softly gripping one of her hands.

The Mario cast and Luka stopped next to him, all having pitiful looks on their faces as Peach placed a comforting hand on Link's shoulder.

"We're really sorry to see all this…" she whispered.

"How are we going to cure her…?" Link asked.

"Well, good thing I filled that bottle with some Red Potion!" Luka takes out the bottle filled with Red Potion and hands it to Link. "Have her drink this, Link. I'm sure she'll be instantly cured."

Link accepted the potion and opened its cork. "Here, grandma. Drink this." he brought the bottle close to his grandma's mouth as she slowly drank the liquid.

In an instant, Link's grandma felt her strength returning as she began to move and open her eyes, which were closed before she drank the potion, as Link and the others stepped back a bit with surprised looks.

"Ohh, Link? Is that you, Link?" Link's grandma awed.

A bright smile formed up on Link's face. "Grandma!" he ran over to her and hugged her as she returned it while Luka and the Mario cast watched this heartwarming reunion with soft smiles. "I'm so happy you're feeling well!"

"And Grandma is always happy to see your bright, shining face." Link's grandma smiled. "Link… My dear, sweet Link. You're safe… That's wonderful… Just wonderful." she then noticed the new people behind her grandson. "Oh! I see you made yourself some new friends, too!"

"Yes, I did. In fact, one of them was the one who cured you." Link directed to Luka.

"Did you do this? Did you heal me?" Link's grandma asked as Luka nodded. "Oh, you're such a sweet child… And same to all of you who definitely watched over my dear grandson!"

"It was nothing." Luka replied.

It was then that something hit Link's grandma, "Ohh… That's right…" she turned to her grandson. "You and your sister, Aryll, are trying so hard to be strong, and I've just been sitting here, moaning and worrying… I'm your grandmother… As much as I appreciate your new friends taking care of you, I'm actually the one who should be doing this…" she hung her head in shame. "I'm so sorry, Link. I haven't even considered what you must be going through. I'm a terrible grandma…"

"No, you aren't." Link shook his head with a smile. "You are the greatest grandma I've ever had."

"Oh, thank you, Link…" Link's grandma smiled again. "Hey… Could you hand me your empty bottle?" Link did so and watched his grandma scoop up something from a hanging pot in the fireplace next to her. "Link, this is all I have to give you right now." she hands him the bottle back containing special Elixir Soup!

"Wow! Thanks a lot, grandma!" Link chimed.

"You and your sister love this soup, don't you? If you run out, I can make it for you anytime you like. Grandma's going to try to be strong, so you try to be strong, too!"

"You bet I will!" Link had a wide smile on his face.

"But don't do anything reckless!" Link's grandma warned, and then faced Luka and the Mario cast. "Would you kindly watch over my grandson as always for me?"

"You can leave it to us!" Peach nodded. "It was nice meeting you."

They all waved goodbye to Link's grandma before they left the house.

"Your grandmother is such a sweet person, Link." Peach smiled as they made their way back to the King of Red Lions.

"Heheh, thanks…" Link chuckled in embarrassment. "Well, I guess we're all done here."

"Then are you ready to see Jabun now?" Toad asked.

"Yup. Let's do this."

Once they made it back to the King and let him know they were ready, he then spoke:

"If that is the case, then we must search for the cave around the back side of Outset where Jabun is said to hide."

They hopped on and began to sail to the island's backside, where they immediately found a wall made out of stone blocking the entrance to a cave, so they figured that this was it.

However, this task wasn't going to be made easy for our heroes because as soon as they approached the stone wall, they suddenly found themselves riding a whirlpool.

"Ack! What's this?!" Luigi yelped. "Are we on a whirlpool?!"

"It look like Jabun has created a source of defense!" the King of Red Lions reported. "Link! Try to aim the bombs well!"

"Got it!" Link then proceeded to blast the wall with the bombs he got throughout the boat's cannon.

*POW!* *BOOM!* *POW!* *BOOM!* *POW!* *BOOM!*

Eventually, the whole wall was brought down, and the secret cave was revealed.

"YES!" Link cheered.

"You did it, Link!" Yoshi praised.

"Nothing can stand in our way!" Luka exclaimed. "Now, how about we go see Jabun?"

Everyone else immediately nodded and then sailed the boat into the cave.

The interior of the cave was much wider than it was on the outside, as the walls were flickering with lights that were reflected from the clear blue waters.

"Whoa…" Link breathed as he and the others looked around in awe.

"This place is way bigger on the inside!" Toad exclaimed. "But… Where's Jabun?"

The King of Red Lions looked down into the water, seeing a faint light bulb below. "He's coming right now. Brace yourselves."

The water in front of them suddenly shot up into the air, and then a giant fish carrying a lantern on its antenna came out. The heroes looked up at it in surprise, even if they assumed that this was Jabun. The Mario cast, however, noticed that Jabun did bear a strong resemblance to Lord Jabu-Jabu they had met in their previous adventure.

"(Well met, King of Red Lions.)" Jabun spoke in the same strange language that Valoo and the Deku Tree spoke, so of course, Link and the others didn't understand what he just said.

"Well met indeed, Jabun." the King of Red Lions, however, was able to understand that strange language to the others' surprise. "I am pleased to see that you are safe…"

"(The events we all feared seem to have been set in motion.)"

"Yes. It seems Ganondorf has returned. There can be no other explanation."

"(If you have sought me out, it must mean you have found the Legendary Hero and the Six Sages, does it not?)"

"Unfortunately, that is not so."

"(Then for what purpose have you come to see me?)"

"The ones I have brought with me has no connection to the legendary ones. And yet I sense great promise in the courage and willingness that these ones possess."

"(Promise? You suggest that I leave the fate of the world up to mere chance?!)"

"I do. It is the only way."

"(I see… then I suppose it is up to the gods to deem whether their courage and willingness are true. I give you the guideposts to the gods!)"

With that, Jabun shakes his antenna as the lantern rocketed back and forth before a blue pearl and a blue star piece came out, both falling into the heroes' hands. Nayru's Pearl and the Blue Star Piece are now in their possession.

"Thank you, Jabun." the King of Red Lions nodded while Link and the others gave a bow.

"(This jewel and star piece should dispel the curse Ganondorf has cast upon this land.)"

"So…that foul rain and endless night were indeed elements of a curse brought on us by Ganondorf! He must intend to cast this land into pure darkness for all time…"

"(Tell me, King of Red Lions… have you learned the whereabouts of the one who carries on the bloodline, the princess, Zelda?)"

"…I believe I have."

"(That is well… you must protect Zelda! She cannot be permitted to fall into the hands of Ganondorf! I am counting on you!)" Having said those words, Jabun dove back down into the water as the boat left the cave.

To be continued…

Since I was considering on bringing elements from the game's HD version as well, it wouldn't hurt to add in the Swift Sail, right?

Next up, the Tower of the Gods! See you next time!