Chapter Fourteen—Crime and Punishment

Although she was staring straight ahead at the bench before her, where the men who would decide her fate would sit, Tetra barely knew where she was. There was a ringing in her ears, as if her conscience was trying to make itself heard when she had been steadfastly ignoring if for so long. She gritted her teeth and balled her fists, which were bound before her. She couldn't move much more; she was flanked by guards, on display in the middle of the large room which was empty except for a few other soldiers, about to face her fate.

Sitting next to her in an identical stiff wooden chair, with identical manacles at the wrists and ankles which the guards had made clear they were ready to use at a moment's notice, Jack said in a calming tone, "Remember to breathe, love."

Tetra fully intended to snap back until she realized that she was, in fact, holding her breath. She merely exhaled. It was bewildering to her, however, how he could remain so calm.

'Announcing His Imperial Majesty,' boomed the voice of an attendant at the main door to the courtroom, making Tetra jump where she sat, 'Emperor Yentiko. His Honour, Judge Drilevor. His Grace…'

The attendant went on announcing a procession of important men, all of whom filed in dressed in flowing, formal black robed. Jack looked them all over, probably trying to identify them by their appearances since he couldn't do so by their titles, but Tetra determinedly ignored their grand entrance, until—

'His Excellency, General Reyga…'

Her eyes widened against her will, and she gave the slightest possible sidelong glance to see Link among the ranks. He was staring at the floor, which she had to admit was unexpected. How could he, of all people, not have the courage to look her in the eye?

On the other hand, maybe it wasn't a surprise; after all, he had only this morning had the "courage" to let her give herself up to protect himself, somehow thinking such a decision wouldn't affect the minutes-old resolution of her earlier hatred against him.

But nevertheless, a small, hopeful voice in her mind pointed out that it was probably in her favour for him to be a member of the group that would decide whether she would live or die.

Yentiko sat in the high central seat of the bench, and began formally, 'Let us begin the trial of one Captain Jack Sparrow, on charges of piracy, and one Captain Tetra—' He paused, then glanced along the rows of men to either side to ask, 'I'm sorry, what is her last name?'

As a few of them muttered to themselves, Tetra and Link exchanged the briefest of glimpses, which contained a full understanding, and she spoke up.

'Hyrule.'

The courtroom fell silent. All eyes were upon Tetra, and the only two who didn't look amazed were Jack and Link.

'Excuse me?' the emperor blurted.

'Hyrule,' she repeated calmly. 'My name is Captain Tetra Hyrule…although I am, for the moment, not a captain but first mate under this man.' She nodded towards Jack, who gave a friendly smile to the court; Tetra thought he had probably picked out the terms "captain" and "first mate," which she had taught him. One or two of the court's members returned his pleasant expression. Link, Tetra noticed, seemed genuinely pleased by this; he tented his fingers before his face in a gesture she knew was intended to look more serious and thoughtful than he normally could while fighting down a grin.

'Very well,' the emperor said slowly, keeping his eyes trained on her. 'Captain Tetra…Hyrule…is charged with crimes including piracy, heresy and witchcraft.'

He nodded to Link, who straightened in his chair to speak in a clear voice. Tetra was curious as to what he would say, until he began to recite the same charges that Yentiko had given, in English; it occurred to her why he was an important part of this trial.

"Witchcraft?" Jack muttered, when Link had concluded. "Your friend failed to mention that…"

'Now, then,' Yentiko was saying, clearing his throat uncomfortably. 'Normally, foreigners are not allowed to give open statements in court, only to be interrogated. However, in this case, since one of the accused is a foreigner himself, we have decided to make an exception. Therefore,' he nodded to a bench along the wall to his left, the defendants' right, 'we will now hear a statement from Mr and Mrs William and Elizabeth Turner, as translated by General Lincoln Reyga.'

Tetra, who had been craning to see past Jack to the two who were about to speak, snapped her head back to the front. Lincoln?

She shook her head to refocus; there were more important revelations at hand. Link invited the Turners to speak in English, and they rose to their feet. Will began their speech, pausing every few sentences to let Link translate.

"Several years have passed since we last saw Jack, and even at those times when we were closest to him, he was not the sort to allow anyone to truly see him for what he was."

"I hope they're going somewhere with this," Jack muttered, voicing Tetra's own thoughts.

"Nevertheless, he is not a man who leave a fleeting impression. In the short time we spent together, we saw his brilliance and ingenuity at work every day."

Tetra raised her eyebrows at Jack, who commented, "Well, I can't deny that."

"But more important that this, we saw him save both of our own lives, making it possible for us to be together."

Even after Link translated this, Will paused. When he spoke again, it was in a more personal, less formal tone.

"Before I met Jack, I thought it was a contradiction in terms to call someone a pirate and a good man. But one of the many things which he brought me to realize was that my ways of looking at the world were wrong. Captain Jack Sparrow is more than just a pirate—he is a good man."

Husband and wife took their seats, leaving a hush over the courtroom.

'I…Well, then,' Yentiko broke it uncomfortably. 'That is what they desired to say.' He shuffled some of his papers as Link repeated his words briefly.

'Now,' the emperor recommenced, 'procedure would normally call for testimony from the arresting officer, who in this case would be General Reyga. But given…extenuating circumstances…there will be a change of plans. We will hear a statement instead from the next highest ranking officer involved in the case—Commodore Inan Faudry.'

As Link repeated these words, unable to keep a hint of bitterness from his tone, Tetra bit back a violent curse. "Somebody up there hates me."

"Yes, those goddesses of yours don't seem to be overly fond of me, either," Jack agreed. "Well, I supposed since I never worshipped or believed in them. But if you're—"

'The accused will remain silent,' snapped Yentiko; all eyes were on Jack, who looked back in confusion.

"Quis?" he asked. Making an attempt at being understood, he said, 'I don't speak Hylian.'

Tetra flinched and moaned, "No!" as a gasp passed through the crowd.

"The accused—" Link began hurriedly, clearly trying to gloss over the incident, but Yentiko was speaking over him.

'We do not speak Hylian!' he growled, waving for a translation of this rather than his previous statement. 'We speak the common tongue!'

"They don't call their language Hylian!" Link told Jack sharply. "They call it the common tongue! For the love of all things holy, don't mention that place, unless you want to get killed!"

Tetra saw Will and Elizabeth exchange looks, because of course they were the only other people who knew what Link had said.

'And tell him to be quiet unless we ask him to answer a question,' the emperor added impatiently.

"Jack, for your own good, don't talk unless they talk to you," Link warned him.

Jack nodded. "Right."

'And now, a statement from Commodore Faudry,' Yentiko concluded, apparently looking to regain his train of thought.

When the Commodore rose, he looked so smug that Tetra actually twitched in her seat with the urge to punch the smirk off of his face. 'Thank you,' he said silkily, with a bow. He cleared his throat and began.

'According to official documentation on the accused, Miss…Hyrule,' he explained in a tone of disgust, his eyes flicking from his notes to the woman in question, 'she first encountered our own General Reyga when she voluntarily boarded the Red Lion that he was captaining at the time, approximately a week ago. Thereupon she was taken into custody. However, no man on the crew can testify to having seen her until the following morning, when, after Reyga invited the other accused, Mr Sparrow, to board, she emerged from the captain's cabin, having apparently spent the night there.' Lowering his notes, Faudry said to Link, 'General, sir, with all due respect, do you expect this court to believe that your first encounter with this woman was entirely chaste?'

'Commodore, you are—' Yentiko began warningly, as several others opened their mouths to protest as well.

'He's right,' Tetra spoke up.

Stunned silence blanketed the room. Even Tetra didn't know how she had dared to speak. No one, however, looked more flabbergasted than Faudry himself, who choked, 'I—'

'Commodore Faudry confronted me on this issue previously, and I confessed to him fully,' she spoke over him.

Clearly flustered, Faudry began to riffle through his notes, stammering, 'Ah. Yes. Well, I was getting to—'

'I knew I was wanted,' Tetra went on, wondering as she did so why no one was ordering her silence yet, 'and I knew Reyga would arrest me. So I seduced him.'

Yentiko stared at her, then slowly turned himself towards Link and asked stiltedly, 'General…is this true?'

Link, who had been staring at his hands folded before him, raised his head to look at Tetra. 'Yes. It is.'

To Tetra's amazement, she found that she was disappointed. She had no idea why; this was the lie she had told him to tell. But he had more to say.

'She seduced me with intelligent conversation, brilliant humour, open friendliness, and a generally warm personality. She is one of the most beautiful people I have ever met, not only because of the physical charms which I am sure I am not alone in noticing, but because she is truly a more delightful and captivating individual than any I have ever known. I must truthfully say that there is not a single person in this world whom I would be more honoured to call a friend.'

Tetra had been too stunned throughout this speech to do more than stare at Link with her mouth slightly agape. It was the last word, however, that finally made her react. Friend—Not the love of his life, not his soul mate, not even his girlfriend. Had he really meant it?

"He's my friend," she whispered excitedly to Jack.

"Oh, that's where you stand at the moment?" he muttered without looking at her.

'Friend?' spat Yentiko, ignoring the prisoners; his feelings about the sentiments Link had expressed were obviously very different from Tetra's. 'You consider this…this woman, this pirate, this criminal…a friend?'

Link nodded, his eyes wandering slightly in the direction of hers, to see her reaction. 'Absolutely. One of my best friends, if I may say so.'

The amazement that filled the room shattered when Faudry pointed a dramatically accusatory finger at Link and proclaimed, 'Befriending criminals is an offence punishable by law!'

'No, it is not,' Link said coolly. 'Sheltering them is. Preventing them from facing justice is. And you will all notice that I am the one who brought Tetra here—excuse me, I mean Miss Hyrule—to have her account for her actions and receive a fair trial. You will also notice, Commodore, that neither of the accused have yet been convicted of anything, and so they are not criminals.'

Tetra wanted to burst out laughing at the look on Faudry's face, and was worried she would soon draw blood from her lips in her effort not to do so. She found it hard to believe that Link had been so concerned about this; he clearly knew his way around the rhetoric of the law. At this rate, he would be able to turn everything in on itself, and she and Jack would walk free.

"Did he just get us off?" Jack asked, probably spotting the excitement on her face.

"No," she admitted, "but he's going to, I can just feel it."

Jack didn't answer. Then he reminded her quietly, gesturing towards his own bound hands, "Don't celebrate until they take these chains off, love."

'Now,' Link went on, 'I believe we have sufficiently seen that the events on Miss Hyrule's first encounter with my ship did not constitute any crimes, and nor did mine, so shall we move on?'

Faudry's eyes frantically scoured his report. 'No!' he exclaimed triumphantly. 'Miss Hyrule's abduction. Mr Sparrow took her from the Red Lion without her consent or yours. That is a crime on his part.'

'Oh, yes,' Link nodded. 'That was rather short-sighted of me. You see, I had invited Mr Sparrow over to discuss the terms of Miss Hyrule's imprisonment or release, as she was under his service at the time and I had no evidence and thus no legal recourse to keep her against her will. Of course, by extending Mr Sparrow a formal invitation, I accidentally also granted him immunity from being arrested while abroad the Red Lion. We are all familiar with the laws of engagement, of course?' he inquired, looking around the room; there was a general mutter in the affirmative. 'Then of course we are all aware that it constitutes a war crime to arrest an invited guest unless said guest commits a crime during the visit. Jack did not do so. He refused to allow Miss Hyrule to stay aboard my ship, as he was within his rights to do as her commanding officer, and he therefore took her away. It would have been illegal for me to detain either one of them.'

He smiled pleasantly around the room, and Tetra had a feeling that his confidence had been building with each word he spoke. Link now firmly controlled the situation.

'So,' he said cheerfully, 'the second encounter, I believe?'

Faudry closed his open mouth, eyes flaming, and cleared his throat. 'Yes…' he growled, consulting his notes. 'While at port, not long after these first events, I personally found both the general and the accused in the general's lodgings, having clearly just engaged in—'

'An act between two consenting adults,' Link finished for him sharply.

Faudry's grip tightened around his papers in fury. 'She consented to buy her freedom! She said earlier, she seduced you!'

Link glanced unconcernedly at Tetra. 'Miss Hyrule, your response?'

'I—'

'Excuse me, Reyga,' Yentiko interrupted, 'but interrogation is my role in this courtroom.'

Link nodded courteously. 'I am very sorry, Majesty. Please, proceed as you see fit.'

There was a pause as Yentiko looked from his general to the commodore to the prisoners, and then the emperor said grudgingly, 'Miss Hyrule, how do you respond to these allegations?'

'I thought I was seducing Reyga,' she said carefully, 'but not because I thought I could earn my freedom in exchange. I simply cared about him, and still do care about him, as much as he had just testified to care about me…and I never thought he would share my feelings. But nor did I ever, even for a second, think that I would be exempted from obeying the law through any of my actions with him.'

Turning back to Faudry, Link pointed out with an innocent smile, 'We may not have understood each other's motives, but we certainly knew our own to be genuine. And if we are to call intimacy between two people who care about each other a crime, then I believe we shall have to arrest, at the very least, every married couple in our empire. And—perhaps I'm wrong—but I believe our people would die out as well.'

As a quiet laugh rippled along the bench, all the officials trying and failing to stifle it, Link grinned more widely and Faudry scowled still more deeply.

'All right,' said Yentiko sternly, 'silence, everyone! General Reyga, I would request that you keep you contributions relevant!'

'Apologies once again, Your Imperial Majesty,' Link replied, 'but I do believe my statements were relevant.'

'Faudry,' Yentiko went on, not answering his general, 'go on.'

The commodore tore his eyes from Link to focus once more on his report, which was shaking slightly in his grip, which he relaxed. 'Yes,' he said, his voice as unsteady as his hands had been. 'Shortly thereafter, Reyga requested that Miss Tetra discuss her current situation with him on his ship. She agreed on the condition that she would first be allowed to speak with her captain, Mr Sparrow. Reyga consented. The two of them boarded the Red Lion, as invited guests, and Reyga arrested them. This, I might point out, conflicts with Reyga's earlier testimony,' he concluded in bittersweet satisfaction.

But Link didn't miss a step. 'Not at all,' he assured the court. 'First of all, Mr Sparrow was not my invited guest, he came at Miss Hyrule's behest. Secondly, I stated that I could not arrest them unless they committed a crime. Which they did. You, Commodore, simply weren't present to witness it.'

'What crime was that?' Yentiko asked suspiciously.

'They both threatened me,' Link said. 'When I began to speak, Mr Sparrow told me that he would be controlling the negotiations. Given that I was the commanding officer of the vessel and that he was not a guest, as I had not given Miss Hyrule permission to bring him aboard, his actions constituted mutiny.

'Miss Hyrule, when I asked her to ally herself with Felicitovente, refused completely. And, of course, even an implied threat to commit future crimes is a minor form of treason.'

Yentiko had been listening to this and watching Link very closely through narrowed eyes. 'So,' he summarized slowly, 'what you're saying, is that the only crimes these two committed were mutiny against you, and treason against you.'

'Precisely.'

Continuing to glare, the emperor added, 'Both of which are crimes whose sentences, under Felicitovente law, are to be determined by the victimized authority.'

'Precisely.'

'Which is, in both cases…you.'

'Yes,' Link said pleasantly, looking quite satisfied that Yentiko understood the situation.

Tetra wouldn't have been surprised to see fire spout from Faudry's nostrils, the way he was glaring at his general and breathing hard. Yentiko, however, remained icily calm.

'Very well,' he said in a dangerously even tone. 'What is your sentence?'

'They each have a choice,' he said, smiling down at the two pirates, 'between apologizing to me here, or serving one day in prison. Miss Hyrule?'

Tetra found herself grinning. 'Sorry I was so grumpy,' she told him. 'Won't happen again.'

'Thank you,' Link nodded. He then briefly explained the situation in English to Jack. "So, what will it be?" he finished.

"There's no man I hate more than a mutineer," the pirate captain answered truthfully, "so if I was one in any way, I am sincerely sorry."

"Apology accepted." To the emperor, Link said, 'There. They have been tried, convicted, and they have served their sentences. I believe they can go free?'

Tetra sat bolt upright in anticipation, every nerve in her body tense as she waited for the emperor to grudgingly concede the undeniable truth of his general's statement.

But—

'No,' Yentiko said sharply. 'They still have many years of piracy charges amassed between them, not to mention the allegations against Miss Hyrule of heresy and witchcraft.'

Tetra was unnerved to hear panic in Link's voice as he objected, 'But…there's no proof that any of those past—'

Nodding to Will and Elizabeth, the emperor interrupted, 'The statement of our esteemed guests here is, in my opinion, sufficient to convict Mr Sparrow. They are supposedly his friends and defenders, yet they freely admit that he is a pirate and has been for many years.'

Link looked winded, his eyes shooting to the Turners, then back to Yentiko. 'But Tetra—I mean, miss Hyrule—'

'As for her…Our nation's official records about her crimes go back to the very formation of our empire, and in my opinion, these stories all but eliminate any doubt that she is not only a pirate but a practicer of the heretical ancient Hylian beliefs…that is, if they can be proven true,' he added.

Somehow, Tetra felt certain that this last qualification would not help her case, however promising it may have appeared. Sure enough, the emperor nodded to the guard who stood at Tetra's left. The man stepped behind her, and she was seized with panic.

'Emperor…You Majesty…what exactly—?' Link stammered, shifting in his seat as though to jump to his feet.

'There is a crucial element often mentioned with regards to the woman in question,' Yentiko answered casually, 'and I would like to see…'

The courtroom fell utterly silent as the guard slid his hands beneath Tetra's hair, his hands cold against the skin of her neck, and to her horror, she felt him find the clasp of her gold chain. Her entire body felt cold as the man lifted the necklace from her and held it up before the court; she was suffocating in fear.

Yentiko gave a hiss of satisfaction through his smile as a murmur rose amidst the men at his sides; Tetra felt her stomach melt away and her heart drop into its place, and closed her eyes in horror.

'That confirms it,' the emperor stated. 'Gentlemen…this is none other than the woman who calls herself the Princess of Hyrule, Zelda.'

When he spoke the name, for the first time, for some reason that she couldn't place, Tetra thought it really sounded like her own…

'NO!'

She started in shock. Link was on his feet, towering over the emperor seated next to him, his fists balled and shaking with rage.

'General Reyga, sit down!' Yentiko barked loudly.

'No!' Link roared back. 'I know what you're about to say, and I won't let you! Heresy, witchcraft…it's all fake! All this condemnation of the goddesses is just your attempt to make people loyal to you, to make them deify you instead of the true gods! No one will blindly obey an emperor, no one will let him establish a new dynasty, not if they have divinities to worship, right? And they certainly won't do it if the rightful ruler turns up, will they? You don't want to kill the Queen of Pirates, you wanted to kill the Queen of Hyrule, because Felicitovente is Hyrule!'

'General Reyga, you are—' Yentiko began with hot aggression.

'No!' Link bellowed again, slamming his fist down on the bench. 'No, I'm going to say this! The first time I met this woman, we were both just kids, and we hated each other. But if it weren't for her, my baby sister would have died! If it weren't for her, the entire world would have come crashing down because some despot who just refused to die would have taken it over! So if you blame her for anything, blame her for the fact that you're alive today to flaunt all your stupid authority, because she was a good enough person to risk her life for us all! Blame her for not trying to use her ancient royal bloodline to take over all the lands you go on boasting as your own! You want to have her killed? You should be begging her not to kill you, because I would do it for her in a heartbeat! You thought I was too good to be true, and I am. My name is Link II Reyga, Hero of Winds of Ancient Hyrule, and I am a loyal subject of my queen, Zelda!'

Tetra knew that Link had as good as signed his death warrant; threatening his emperor was bound to be a capital crime. Even Jack could tell, by the fact that Link had mentioned Zelda and Hyrule by name, and by the openly stunned expressions on every face, that something profound was about to happen, and that it would definitely be bad.

Yentiko stood up sharply, and though he couldn't match Link for sheer volume, he nevertheless shouted, 'Reyga, I was prepared to let your treasonous actions with this woman slide for the time being so long as you kept your nose clean from here on, but this…this…to denounce my authority, to proclaim her your queen,' he pointed furiously at Tetra, 'to openly threaten my life…' He paused, appearing unable to find words, then snapped, 'If you would kill for her, then you'll die for her! I'll see you hanged at her side!'

Tetra was about to scream in outrage, but Link was already yelling again.

'Hang me? Yeah, go ahead and hang me, and then watch your people rebel because they love me better than you, and watch your armed forces fall apart without me to direct them, and watch your whole empire fall right out of your control! I'm the only reason anyone follows you! I'm carrying you on my shoulders!'

At these words, Tetra wouldn't have been surprised to see Yentiko order Link's execution on the spot, if the expression on his face was any indication of what he was thinking. But he didn't; it seemed Link had spoken the truth.

'Fine,' the emperor growled dangerously. 'You will retain your rank and titles until the execution of these criminals—tomorrow, noon. After that point, you will be stripped of them for treason, subjected to a dishonourable discharge, and you will return to Outset Island permanently. But,' he added, his voice dropping to even more threatening depths in his throat, 'if you commit the slightest infraction—if you kill a man or simply make an infant cry—ever—you will be considered a threat to the empire and summarily executed. Understood?'

Link was breathing as if he had just run several laps around Windfall. 'Yes,' he said shortly.

'Tomorrow at noon,' the emperor said again. 'The prisoners will be subjected to death by hanging. This court is adjourned. Take them to their cells.'

The instant these words had left his lips, Yentiko gathered with a swoop of his arm the papers which lay on the bench before him, and stalked from the room; the rest of the court was caught in too much disbelief to move, with the exception of Link, who was paralysed with apparently unspeakable rage, and watched Yentiko though narrowed eyes. Tetra looked around the room wildly—How had everything gone so wrong so quickly?

She saw Will and Elizabeth whispering urgently to each other, and at the same time, Jack muttered to her, "What just happened, love? I thought we were winning."

"So did I," she answered shakily in a voice that sounded distant. "But—they're executing us. And Link's been kicked out. I—I can't believe—"

"Kicked out?" Jack interrupted. "You mean dismissed from the army?"

"And banished from Windfall," she added faintly. Though she was aware of the guard next to her asking her to stand up, she couldn't move; the man took hold of her under the arm and hauled her to her feet, nearly making her trip over her own feet as he dragged her away.

"I can't believe they're doing that to him," Jack said, shaking his head. Unlike Tetra, he was capable of walking unaided.

"You—Jack, what about us?" Tetra asked shrilly.

"Oh, aye, it's horrible, to be sure," he agreed. "But let's be honest, we all knew that was coming."

'Come on, get moving,' her guard told her impatiently, shoving her forward. She was still gaping at her captain, and trying to say something in response, but was unable to coordinate her mind and mouth.

Link, meanwhile, watched them leave the room from where he stood at the bench. The other members of the court were leaving on their own time, talking quietly amongst themselves, but only when they had passed through the double doors and out of sight did he drop his head with a sigh and move from his own place.

"Link! Link!"

Elizabeth's voice brought him to his senses. Looking around, he spotted her and her husband hurrying towards him.

"What happened?" she asked in a panicky voice, swiping her hair behind her ears. "We couldn't tell—"

"They've been sentenced to hanging," Link said flatly.

Blank-faced, Elizabeth turned to her husband, who said, "But—But it sounded like you were doing well—"

"Well, I was at first," Link sighed, raking his fingers through his slicked-back hair. "Until the screaming match, and… It's a long story… But the emperor is a self-centred, ignorant cretin."

There was a pause.

"You told him so, didn't you?" Will asked.

"I suppose, essentially, yes," Link muttered. "Really, I told him that Zelda is the rightful ruler and I should kill him right now…Goddesses, this is a mess. I'm so sorry." He didn't know what he was apologizing to Will and Elizabeth, since nothing unpleasant had happened to them, but he felt he needed to apologize to everyone.

Elizabeth laced her fingers through those of Will and asked, "So—what are we going to do?"

Link stared. "We?"

"Yes, we," she confirmed. "What are we going to do to save them?"

"Save them?"

"Yes, Link, you heard me!"

"You're not just going to let them die," Will added.

Looking from husband to wife, then furtively around the rest of the room, Link answered in a low voice, "At the moment…I don't exactly know. But I'm thinking…"


Link returned to his chambers much less calmly than he had the night before. The scene that greeted him when he threw himself through the door like an invading army, however, was almost the same.

Seated by the fire was the stranger, who started slightly when the general arrived with such force. "What is it?" he asked, alarmed.

"No good," Link said simply, shaking his head. He leaned against the door, equally holding it closed in case anyone tried to enter and allowing it to support his tired weight; he had run from the courtroom itself, through the twisting passages of the fortress, all the way to his chambers. In a quieter, more secretive tone, he added, "I told Will and Elizabeth. They're in."

"So, then, you mean…we have to…"

Link nodded. The stranger didn't bother to finish his sentence for several seconds, during which the fire he had apparently lit during Link's absence crackled quietly.

"I don't know about this," he spoke up finally. "Are you sure it's going to work?"

Furrowing his brow, Link said, "You're not?"

"Well…"

"Tell me something. Do you believe in magic?"

The other man cleared his throat. "In a conventional sense, with flashes and bright colours and explosions and all that—"

"No."

"Exactly."

Link smiled ironically. "Well, you had better start."