NOTICE: This is canon.

…

Tale #21: My Greatest Failure

~~Day 161 (Command, Day 124)

~~Today, I do something I should've done months ago.

…

Three days later.

Very seldom could a person see uniforms of at least two airship companies gather, especially outside a bar. Today, on the plain that was Castle Island's western reaches, uniforms of all the major companies could be seen from above as great, colored bricks standing side by side. The yellow of the Airliners. The purple of the Fair Travelers. The pale green of the Zephyr Sails. Even the red of the Dusky Clouds, the smallest of the major companies. At the front of the formation, perhaps the biggest turnout of all, was the blue of the Skyriders. Even in front of that was a line of green that was the captains and fleet captains of the Skyriders mixed with the Knights of Hyrule. Link stood in the exact center of the captains' formation in between Alfonzo and one of the Airliners' fleet captains, who was the only one in the captains' formation not wearing green.

And before them stood King Lauris and Princess Zelda, both facing the sailors and knights with rather grim expressions on their faces. Link was not sure why things had not begun yet; he did not dare turn around to see if others were arriving. He could not quite tell if Zelda was watching him, his eyes partially glazed over as he stared at the sheet-covered hulk towering behind the king. Every minute felt like an eternity, ever so slightly adding weight to the rock in the pit of Link's stomach.

Finally, King Lauris stepped forward. There was hardly any need to call for silence; even as the procession had built, the whispers of confusion died barely a minute after people had arrived. "My dear subjects," Lauris began, his voice audible at least to the Skyriders. "I begin this service by stating that you, in no shorter terms, are the very life blood of this kingdom. Whether in service to your own needs or those of your fellow beings, our kingdom has come to rely upon you and your kind to function in its daily life. Even those captains who choose not to pledge their service to the royal family…" He indicated the Airliner captain with a hand. "… have a place of dedicated duty and honor worthy of knights of this realm. I see you no less than I do my personal servants, and I am grateful that you would attend this occasion today with each other, who have rivaled for the longest time.

"For three months of this year under the Goddesses, our kingdom was plagued by a monster from generations ago, one which preyed on the people of this realm. I dare not belittle the loss of life faced by the common men, women, and children of this kingdom. However, I feel that our biggest loss was to you, our very blood, those of a naturally dangerous occupation further compounded by events beyond your control, perhaps even your understanding. Companions, brothers, sons, and fathers. The Goddesses asked for sailors, and you answered that call. And the follies of human kind have left that call open once more.

"While our kingdom was in peril, I could not reach the throne in time to avert disaster. In my absence, an imposter plundered the kingdom and ruined lives beyond imagination. I cannot express my sorrow deeply enough; my greatest failure is that I could not save my kingdom when it needed me during its darkest hour. Even the assurance that the loss of life was so little brings only the vaguest comfort. I ask that, in your hearts, you might forgive me the death of your companions.

"I also ask that, in your actions, you forgive those that have pledged their loyalty to me." Link noticed a murmur begin from behind, but it quickly silenced as the king's next words came out. "I know that I ask the impossible of you. I know that, if given the centuries, you would see them ruined and scorned for the heinous actions which further tore apart this kingdom. I have no words to sway you, no brilliant speech to turn your hearts, not even the gall to pay you to forget their mistakes. I offer neither you nor them favors. I asked them for their loyalty, and that loyalty itself was turned against the people of this kingdom. However, I know that you will not let me bear their mistake. What you see before you was not meant just to honor those lost to dark days, but also an apology, for it was one of their own who asked for this arrangement."

"Aboooooout… face!" someone at the end of the green line to Link's left called out. Link, knowing full well what was happening, dug one toe into the grass and spun on his heel. Once he faced the back of the gathering, he reset his feet so that he stood at attention. The rest of the Skyriders, including his own crew, had turned at the same time. "Left knee… down!" Link stepped his right foot forward so that he could drop to one knee, a motion repeated en masse by the other Skyriders. "Eeeeeyes… down!" Link's gaze fell to the ground.

King Lauris allowed them to contemplate the ground in silence, which caused another murmur from the other companies' airmen. Then he began speaking again. "These men know that they cannot excuse their actions, for their words least of all cannot bring back the lost. They make this plea to you, their peers if nothing else, that they might be treated as equal among you once again. This is all that they can do. And I ask that you, Captain Steel, answer with your own thoughts."

Captain Steel, the Airliner fleet captain standing next to Link, had been conflicted as to whether he should have joined the Skyrider captains. At the mention of his name, he turned back to the king with shock prevalent in his chiseled features. He silently stammered as he contemplated Link to his right and Captain North to his left. He took in a breath to help him gather his thoughts. Then he told the king, "Your Majesty… it isn't my place to speak for everyone here. I just…" He paused to gather his thoughts again. "When our home office received Captain Link's letter… well, we-we didn't know that this—" He held a hand over Link with a finger pointed down. "—was Captain Link. Just the fact that Your Majesty was asking us to attend with the Skyriders present, I'll admit, we weren't very thrilled. I was even less impressed when I heard that Captain Link was a Skyrider himself." He paused again. "Sorry, I'm-I'm trying to figure this out. A part of me—a big part of me—just doesn't want to forgive these people. And… maybe, someday, I won't mind telling that part of me to just shu—uh… to silence itself, Your Majesty. Someday." He glanced at the Skyriders again. "But, today, I-I think I can be content with their apology. I don't know if any of the others agree with me, but… I think it's a fair start, Your Majesty."

King Lauris gave a slow nod. "Thank you, Captain. I can only hope that the others share that sentiment."

"Atteeeeeention!" Link quickly rose with the other Skyriders. "Aboooooout… face!"

Link then watched as a pair of knights in full armor take up position on either side of the covered object behind the king. With an audible flap, they removed the sheet to reveal a large monument of black, white-veined marble decorated with the symbol of the royal family at its peak and three columns of lettering spanning its height. Link felt his heart thump hard against his chest as he recognized one line of text just behind Zelda's head.

—Cloud Moon (Airliners Airship Company)

"Today, we commit to the memories of our kingdom the diligent spirits of those airmen lost to our darkest days," Lauris continued, his voice echoing off the monument much louder than before. "This memorial, inscribed with the names of fifteen airships and their lost crewmen on the finest marble the kingdom can offer, stands to the sky that these men once graced with their lives. Let it continue to stand, should even this kingdom fall, as testament to the dedication of all airmen past, present, and future to serve the people of this realm, through peril of harsh winds and harsher gravity. Let our memories of them be interred here to be shared with all who look upon this stone. And, in our grief, let it remind us that that spirit need to never end with death. As your ruler, I ask for the first honor."

Link then watched in amazement as the king turned toward the monument and raised one hand in an undeniable salute. Zelda, somewhat taken aback by the display, shared a glance with Link. Then she turned as well and offered a Skyrider subordinate's salute to the monument. Link did not wait for prompting, snapping a salute to the monument as well. He could hear from the rustle next to him that not only did Alfonzo salute, but Captain Steel as well. What he could not see was the ripple across the airmen as each successive row of individuals raised a hand in salute as well. Not that it mattered to him; he felt like he should stand where he was and salute it for the rest of his life.

King Lauris slowly lowered his hand, which signaled the captains and airmen behind him to do the same with a ripple-like motion across the crowd, just as before. Then he signaled to the armor-clad knights. Link watched as they strode forward and removed sheets from a pair of items Link had not realized were sitting in front of the monument, blocked as they were by where Zelda and Lauris stood. Both Zelda and Lauris backed away so that he could read a pair of gravestones, each crowned by a compass rose, set next to small ossuaries already buried in the ground.

On the right.

—In memory of Airman Albert

—of the airship Island Sonata of the Skyriders

—killed in defense of his future queen, Princess Zelda

—May the winds guide you to the Final Rest.

On the left.

—In memory of Airman Jared

—of the airship Cloud Moon of the Airliners

—killed in defiance of the uncrowned tyrant of Hyrule

—May the winds guide you to the Final Rest.

King Lauris then approached Link, causing Link to lean back slightly as he began to feel overwhelmed. "As per your request, Captain," he said, his voice still loud enough that it was reverberating off the monument, "you may honor these men personally. May their memorials be proof of the life before our darkest days, and may you find peace within yourself."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Link said in a voice barely above a whisper, the rest choked back as he resisted the urge to cry.

The king moved to stand in front of Captain North while Zelda simply moved beside Albert's open grave. Link then stepped forward with Alfonzo and Steel flanking him. He remained standing between the two graves as Alfonzo and Steel turned outward from him and marched along the line of captains. Link glanced to his left to see past Steel. He could feel his resistance slowly breaking down at the sight of a black-clad woman and two children standing at the front of a small group at the end of the line. To his right was a smaller group also dressed in black, headed by an elderly couple sitting in wheelchairs. He returned his eyes to the space between the graves again, his mind overwhelmed by the sight of the men's families. Every beat of his heart struck harder against his chest. He was sure it would burst out if this continued for much longer.

Both captains returned to his side a couple minutes later. Link had to take in a breath to keep himself composed. He already felt throughout his very being that this would be the hardest part of the ceremony. For a moment, he prayed that someone might do it for him.

Then he turned to Captain Steel. And he found that Steel had brought back a folded jacket in the Airliners' color, upon which was a framed pictograph of Airman Jared with whom Link assumed was his wife and two daughters. Link took in a shivering breath, struggling to keep what little composure was slipping away. He offered a crisp salute to Captain Steel before accepting the items into his own arms. Steel then answered the salute with his palm facing inward, the Airliners' tradition. Link turned to the grave on the left.

However, he froze when Captain Steel clapped a hand to his shoulder. "Jared's family wanted me to tell you…" Steel said in a hushed tone, his own voice cracking. "That they're grateful to you for being beside him in his last moments. And I wanted to thank you… for bringing us the log book. And his jacket. I've got nothing but respect for what you're going through, son."

Link felt his nose stuff up, forcing him to breathe through his mouth, trying harder still to keep composure. At the mention of the log book and jacket, he thought back to two months ago. Captain Albel had not been at the dock to share a friendly word. During the course of an overhaul, his crew had discovered the few effects that had been left behind after Airman Jared had passed away onboard the Goddess's Tides. He had transferred them to Link with the expectation that they might find their way back to his family. The log book had been stored in his desk ever since the Island Symphony had taken off. Link swallowed back a lump in his throat and forced out through a cracking voice, "Yes, sir."

Link carefully dropped to his knees and placed the jacket and picture in the ossuary, taking his time aligning the neatly-folded jacket so that it sat square inside the ossuary. At the same time, the armored knights had approached the gravestone while Steel stepped back into the line. Link stood and snapped one last salute to the picture, his last sight of Airman Jared's face, as the knights slid the gravestone over the ossuary.

Link then turned to Alfonzo. Alfonzo offered him a blue airman's tunic, on top of which sat a stack of blank paper and a piece of charcoal. Link glanced up at Alfonzo in confusion. "I know you didn't know him very long," Alfonzo said. "The man was a good artist. He's gonna need something to keep him occupied on that last journey."

Link coughed out a sob and quickly clapped his mouth shut trying to keep the rest inside. He could not believe that Alfonzo, a man whom he knew was capable of more emotion than this, was still so stoic with the death of a man he clearly knew much more personally than Link, yet Link was the one visibly struggling not to break down. He glanced down at the tunic again. It was the same one that Link had found next to the wreckage of the Horizon's Eye. He had taken the opportunity to retrieve it when the Island Symphony had returned to it in search of the Horizon's Eye's technoworks. Albert's family had cleaned it since Link had sent it to them three days ago. Even then, he could still see the darker area around the neckline that had been stained with blood.

Link snapped Alfonzo a salute before accepting the items. Alfonzo saluted back and remained standing there as Link set the items in the ossuary with the same care as he had shown for Jared's. Alfonzo backed away as the armored knights picked up the gravestone. Just as the first, Link saluted the items as the gravestone was slid into place. Link then stepped back into the line, shivering as his composure threatened to buckle at any minute. Alfonzo put a hand on his shoulder as he whispered, "It doesn't get easier, but you're doing the right thing, boy. I'm proud of you."

Link's eyes blurred. He could feel the tears about to break through.

"Paraaaaade!" one of the knights shouted. "Diiiiis-missed!"

The Skyrider airmen were the first to break ranks as airmen began to mingle. The airmen from the other companies took this as a signal that the ceremony was over and followed suit. Some began the walk back into the city as they chatted. Others, having been moved by the words spoken by the king (particularly those made once the monument had been uncovered, as they were the clearest), remained in silent reverence of the dead as they trudged back to their ships. The captains drifted away as they started conversations with each other. Link barely heard one conversation that began almost literally over his head.

"That's… quite a boy you have, Alfonzo," Captain Steel said. "If I couldn't believe anything else about him, I'd believe he's everything a captain has to be."

"He's had a long time to work on it," Alfonzo replied, giving Link a pat on the shoulder before they started walking away.

Even as Link felt the people around him moving away, he stood in place with his eyes over both graves. He stared on as the families of both men approached and began adorning the gravestones with flowers and small trinkets. Link's eyes fell to his feet as family members, having placed their items, tried to look at him as they stepped away from the graves. He could hear a couple of them murmur prayers to the Goddesses. He gnashed his teeth as he felt his self-control slipping away.

"Mommy?" he heard from his left. Jared's family. It must have been one of his daughters. She was talking in that loud whisper children use when they try to be subtle. "What's that boy doing?"

Link sniffed hard through a nose nearly flooded with snot, and his eyes finally released tears down his cheeks. He remained rigid, not daring to wipe his face. The girl's question was met with a hiss for silence, although Link wanted to tell her himself he did not know what he was doing.

Because the family had moved to attend to the graves, the rest of the present airmen had taken it as a sign to leave. King Lauris was waiting for his entourage to form their own parade to take him and Zelda back to the castle. When he discovered that Zelda was not at his side, he turned to find her standing behind Link as if waiting for him.

As Link's own crew departed, they were busy discussing things with each other. None of them had realized that Link was not among the captains until Flower had approached Leynne and asked, "Hey, Lieutenant? Have you seen the captain?"

"The captain?" Leynne asked as they came to a stop. "Well, he's…" However, just as Leynne was about to point out the small throng of Skyrider captains trailing their crews, he realized that Link was not with them. "Oh. I, uh… I can't be suh."

"That's what I thought," Flower told him. "He didn't go ahead of us or anything, did he?"

"I suspect not," Leynne replied as he glanced around. Then he spied Link still at the monument and pointed. "Theh he is. What's he doing?"

"Beats me," Flower replied as Line, having caught part of the conversation, approached them.

"That isn't some kind of tradition oh anything?" Leynne asked.

"What?" Line asked. "What is?"

Leynne nodded at Link. "Him saluting that thing."

Both airmen looked back at the monument. Once the families had decided to leave, they moved out of the way so that Line and Flower could see Link holding a subordinate salute to the monument.

Flower grunted. "I, uh… I don't know," he admitted.

"Maybe… that's a Link thing?" Line suggested.

What his crewmen did not see was that Link was aiming the salute at the space in between the graves. Tears continued to stream down his cheeks, and his sniffling had picked up. Standing behind him, Zelda opened her mouth to offer some comforting words. However, she thought better of it. Instead, she gave Link a sympathetic pat on the back and silently returned to her father as he climbed into the carriage.

Link stood alone with the monuments. He held his salute for as long as he could. Then, when his arm became too tired, he stood at attention. His eyes, blurry from the tears, eventually dried out until they were stinging. However, even as he felt himself begin to calm down, another glance at the trinkets decorating each grave brought on a fresh bout of tears and sniffles. Link still refused to give into the want to break down screaming, and this continued long after everybody else had left.

Link eventually left the site once sunset had arrived. And he returned to his ship feeling that at least this one duty to those men was finished.

It did not stop him from breaking down in his cabin that night.

…

Tale #21 of the Island Symphony – END

NOTICE: I apologize; I was trying to do an emotional piece.