They arrived at Windfall four days later. The island, second only to the Rito's homeland in size, was a thriving merchant city. Boats of every kind docked in the nearby waters, and there was a constant buzzing as merchants unloaded their wares and sailors stocked up on supplies. There were two levels to Windfall: the first was the bay, where visitors could rest their vessels for a price, and the second, connected to the bay by a spiraling path dotted by venders, their stalls and a handful of permanent stores, was the residential area, where the few people who actually inhabited Windfall lived. In the upper level, there was also a school for the live-in merchants' children, the home of the "mayor" of Windfall (the richest man on the island), and of course, the windmill that was the town's namesake.
On the northwest corner of the island, there was a cliff-like strip of land upon which a single gravestone sat. Legend had it that the tombstone belonged to the founder of Windfall, though the writing on the grave was in a language that had long since died out. It is by this strip of land that Tetra docked her ship—illegally, of course.
The docking officials fumed at the sight, but knowing better than to mess with pirates, they pretended not to notice. That and the pirates were notorious for being loose with their rupees… when they were in a good mood, at least.
As soon as the ship was tied down, Tetra was at the helm issuing out commands to her troops.
"Let's go, let's go, let's GO!" she screamed as Gonzo, Senza, Zuko and Mako tripped over each other to get off the ship. "Come now! Last couple of weeks all you've done is sit on your rumps and play cards. Stretch those legs, people! We've still got a long way until Dragon Roost! If it's not pickled, smoked, or jerked, we don't want any! And remember: water, not ale—we need WATER!"
At this, Gonzo stopped dead in his tracks and turned around. "But Miss Tetra! A little ale never hurt nobody, yeah? Just one barrel—please?!"
"No! A barrel would be harmless IF you could hold your liquor Gonzo! I'm afraid you all have failed that test one too many times before…"
"Then how about some fresh meat, Miss Tetra? Two pigs and I can make a nice stew tomorrow. Do we have to start our journey with jerked pork?"
"Alright, alright, alright, just two pigs, but everything else better look like the bottom of my boot and keep like it, too!"
"Aye-aye!" said Gonzo happily as he scurried to catch up with the others.
Nudge could not help laughing at the sight. "You always tell them no ale, Miss Tetra, and somehow they always manage to sneak some aboard. Why bother?"
Tetra turned to her towering confident and scoffed. "Well, how else would you get yours, Nudge, my boy? You should be thanking me… How are we on rupees?"
"Well," said Nudge, running his hand across his face, "Mako's assured me quite a few times already that merely stocking up for this journey would take nearly every last rupee in our treasury."
"Which, of course, is why we're only half supplying here and hoping the rest comes from the goodness of the Ritos' collective heart, right?" returned Tetra absent-mindedly.
"Aye, aye, but even with the money we save doing that, we still don't have enough to hire on new hands like you plan on doing. Nobody worth his salt would work for what you're going to be asking."
Nudge waited for Tetra's reply, but the captain merely stood looking at a flock of children leaving class for the day. Soon a game of tag was up and running—or was it hide-and-seek?
Finally, she said, "Ah, I'll figure something out before tonight. I think I'm gonna go hit the hay…" She started for the living quarters.
Nudge sighed. "Alright, Captain. I guess I'll go help the boys sneak their ale…"
"Good idea," she had stopped short of the door, "one last thing before you go. Have you seen Link around anywhere?"
"Last I saw him, he'd sailed on ahead of us while you were still in bed. Said something about getting supplies of his own and that he'd be back before sunrise tomorrow."
"Well, he'd better," said Tetra as she shut the door behind her, "for his sake, not mine…"