Hello…Vegas! Just kidding… Here's another update, I hope you enjoy it so quickly; the chapters are coming nonstop to me. I jot them down, and then come to the library to copy them and stuff. I will still hold off on reader replies, although I thank you all for your encouragement…Enjoy!

Chapter 9

(The Storm Within)

Links was surprisingly very tired and weary that morning. Zelda was right up and awake before Link. This was strange, but she went about her duties as usual. Just after Link woke up, Sheik burst into his cabin. Link jerked his head upwards. "What's wrong?" he slurred.

"Did you know where we're going? Excuse me captain, but are you completely insane?" he blurted out.

"Sheik, I know where we are going, and no, I am not insane." He raised an eyebrow. "Time to put the crew on full alert." He walked out of his cabin, leaving Sheik alone. He sniffed the air deeply, and frowned. He approached the crow's nest and began to climb, grabbing one wooden handle after another. When he reached the top, he swept up the nearby spyglass and peered out over the horizon.

Zelda looked up and watched the captain high above. Something about him…was strange. She pursed her lips, and continued to stare.

"Something interesting?" Sheik asked, leaning against the side of the ship, smiling warmly. He raised an eyebrow at her knowingly.

"No, No…" She quickly blushed a very visible shade of crimson." Nothing…"

Sheik looked up where she was looking, eyeing the captain's muscular figure looking out over the ocean. "Ahhh…I see." He playfully jabbed her in the stomach.

"The…gulls!" Zelda pointed out a small flock of seagulls circling the crow's nest. "I've never seen any." she trailed off.

Sheik looked at her suspiciously. "Yes..The gulls…" He smiled, shook his head, and began to walk away. "Females…always trying to hide things."

Zelda opened her mouth in a funny way, and out of playfulness, quickly threw a wet sponge at Sheik's back, hearing it make contact with the back of his neck with a watery splat.

Sheik felt the back of his neck, which was now soaked, and charged towards Zelda, pinning her in a playful manner. "Take it back…" He held the sponge above her. "Say you never meant to hit me!" He shook it threateningly.

"No!" she squealed, laughing heartily.

"Take it back…" he chuckled, squeezing a few drops of soapy water on her face.

"No!" she sputtered, short of breath.

"Fine." Sheik burst in a huge smile, and wrung out the sponge, drenching Zelda. She uttered a few spitting noises, until she heard a loud voice interrupt.

"Excuse me." Link was watching them about two feet away. Sheik quickly rolled away from Zelda and saluted, Zelda doing the same. "Sheik, come with me." He stated. "And you…get back to your chores." He began to walk away, not looking at Zelda.

"What is it, captain?" Sheik asked.

Link, to tell the absolute truth, was…confused and angry. About a lot of things…he shook his head. "Tell me what you see." He pursed his lips, gesturing to the wide span of the ocean with a jerk of his head.

Sheik closed his eyes, and a powerful gust of wind nearly swept him off his feet. He inhaled deeply, and then turned to Link. "A storm…a big one," he shakily replied, a look of nervousness clearly showing on his face.

Link nodded, satisfied. "And just how far away would you guess?"

At that moment, before Sheik could reply, a sudden change in the waves caused the ship to lurch forward. The first mate turned to Link, breathing heavily. "Not far."

Link sprinted to the center of the ship and leaped upon the top of a large box. "There's a storm brewing! Everyone, to your posts! Tie the lifelines!"

Zelda was shocked and disoriented. One moment, she was scrubbing the deck and everyone was calm. The next, every soul was shouting and scrambling. She noticed they were all tying ropes around themselves and a post in the center of the ship. By the time she got to the middle, all of the ropes were gone. She started to panic, and then she heard a voice.

"Here…take this one." Garian held a rope out to her.

"Thanks…" She uncertainly accepted it. She didn't hesitate to use the special knot Kinru had taught her. She leaned over the side of the ship, and a group of dark ominous clouds began to surge closer. She watched them, and heard a slight rumble in the distance. Flashes of green light began to show in the clouds, the wind began to lash at Zelda's hair and blouse.

Everyone now had their life lines secure, and it was a good thing because at that moment…it hit. The worse storm the pirates had ever seen. Crewmen were tossed like leaves in the wind. The rain was falling hard, and the thunder grew louder every time it struck.

Sheik quickly found Zelda, and pressed himself over her, keeping both of them steady and locked in place.

Link was active constantly, battling with the storm, yelling almost at the top of his lungs to be heard about the pouring rain and the roaring thunder. "Sheik! Tie down those sails! Secure the cannons!"

Sheik gave Zelda an apologetic look and began to climb up to the mast. The rain was falling so fast and so hard that it was now becoming painful. It was getting hard to distinguish who was who. A quick flash of lightning lit up the dark sky, followed closely by an ear-splitting clap of thunder.

Zelda's heart was racing. She was crying, although no one would have ever been able to tell through the rain. The waves threw the ship over and around. She was slammed against a railing, wincing as the wood ground into her shoulder and back.

Dondollo and Kinru were busy tying the sails down, along with Garian and Siekken, a pirate Zelda had just recently befriended.

The rain stung Zelda's face; she tried in vain to shelter her eyes with her hand. Everything was blurry; the rain was so loud that is was a struggle to hear Link's voice.

Suddenly, before she could figure out what was going on, a full force gale collided her with the railing of the ship. The wood, moist and old, let go with a loud crack, and Zelda felt herself falling. She screamed, just before the rope lifeline tightened, forcing the air out of her lungs. She was saved! She began to thank heaven and herself that she had tied it, until a sickening crackling sound made her blood turn cold.

She shot her head upwards, and her face paled. The rope was unraveling itself! It was rotten! She frantically tried to pull herself upwards, every instinct urging her to hurry and get back up on the ship.

With a final loud snapping noise, Zelda watched as if in slow motion as the ship seemed to get farther away and she fell. Terror filled her heart. Zelda had never really believed that before you died, your life flashed before your eyes. Now she had to believe, because every memory was instantaneously appearing in her mind. She felt her body hit the ocean with a loud smack, and began to sink. She knew it…she was going to die. She forced her eyes open; the faint light of the storm was getting dimmer as she sank further and further.

Her lungs began to collapse, and she found her body screaming at her for air. She could not move, and began to lose all hope. All she could do was stare into the dark abyss of the never-ending ocean…all she could do was wait for death to take her.

Suddenly, as if by some strange cue, she felt herself being grabbed under the waist and heaved upwards. Just before she lost consciousness, she caught sight of a large blurry figure…

Sheik panted with exhaustion, croaking to his crewmates to pull at regular intervals. The pirates soon had both Zelda and Sheik out of the water. Sheik's clothes were almost falling apart, and he was shaking, but he was fine. He quickly leaned over, putting an ear on her chest. All the pirates formed a circle, Link in the middle of it with Sheik and Zelda. Unnoticed, the storm was becoming calmer, still raining, but not hard.

"She's not breathing!" Sheik cried, in shock. Before anyone could stop him, he had leaned over and begun to administer what little he knew about reviving someone. After almost a minute of stunned silence, Link stepped forward.

"Move!" he barked. "You push, I'll breathe!" The two began to work together over Zelda's still body, with the other pirates watching in suspense. After what seemed like an eternity, the merchant's daughter jerked up, coughing and sputtering. "So you decided to join the living?" Link growled, although his heart was beating so loud and so fast he was afraid that everyone would hear it.

"Thank you…" she panted and gagged, coughing up the sea water she had swallowed. "What happened?"

"You were being stupid, and tied yourself to a rotten rope." Link stated, staring at her. "Sheik jumped in and saved you." He wrinkled his nose.

"Sheik?" Zelda turned to him, and woozily propped herself up on one elbow. "But how…" she muttered, as another fit of gagging seized her.

"He's a regular hero, he is! He braved the ocean's mighty waves just to save you!" Dondollo exclaimed, slapping Sheik heartily on the back. "He might have been swallowed by the sea himself, if we hadn't seen him dive in after you!"

Zelda blinked a few times, and then turned to Sheik, who's face remained hidden behind his clothes, except his piercing red eyes. She leaned over on her knees, softly grasping his hands and putting them gently on her chest. She was silent, yet her eyes showed immeasurable thanks. As she gazed into his eyes, she leaned over, and lightly brushed his cheek with a kiss.

Sheik flushed a deep crimson, and blinked several times. He drew away, and seemed to study the battered sail above them with deep interest…clearing his throat, he yelled hoarsely. "Alright, mates! What are you gawking at? We've got to get this ship back together and on course!"

In the general noise and bustle that followed, no one noticed that two of the pirates had already left. Strangely enough, they were both whispering the same two words. "Next time…" However, they were each spoken with completely different meanings.

Garian ground it out between clenched teeth as a threat, while Link breathed it silently, with misty eyes reflecting hopeful longing.

So all the pirates returned to work with thoughts of the storm they had gone through and the beautiful merchant's daughter on their mind…

Okies, that's that! One update a day after the other! That must be a new record! Phew! Keep encouraging me, and the next one might come this fast too! (wink) Thanks for all your reviews! They really keep me going!