Chapter 23: A New World

AN: Hey everybody! I finished the night before Thanksgiving! I've also gotten a great jump on the next chapter, so I can guarantee that
this will be the last chapter of November. But I'll be sure to work hard and continue writing throughout December. Thanks for reading
and I hope you have a great Thanksgiving!

***I don't own anything in this story, so please don't sue me.***

When Samantha came to, she recognized the golden pillars she had seen before, but something was different than last time. This time there were hundreds or thousands of people walking towards the pillars. Not just people either. Upon first glance, there were obviously other human beings, but also laguz, foxes, birds, maybe from the Lylat System? So many different kinds of people and all of them with the same confused look Samantha felt was upon her face. Maybe it was fear or maybe she just didn't want to, but Samantha decided to look around before entering the unknown chamber.

'Where am I?' Samantha thought while she walked around. As she walked, she noticed there were boats and a dock not too far from where she woke up. 'Boats…those are man-made things…so I'm…still alive?' Samantha questioned herself as she walked towards the boats. They all looked massive as she got closer, but to be sure, she had to try and touch them; maybe they were a mirage or something. As she approached the boats, she wasn't able to touch it, but it looked pretty real to her.

"Can I help ya?" An older man asked.

"No, I'm just…looking. Sorry." She waved and continued walking away.

'The boats are real…so where the fuck am I?' Samantha had a quizzical expression on her face while she tried to piece her location. She felt around for her phone or anything she was carrying, but she realized she had nothing on her. 'Genny's in the hospital. Maybe I should go get her and…' Her thought trailed off as she noticed a couple burly looking men by the dock. She had seen these guys before, but she couldn't quite place where she had seen them.

"Alright, we're good." One of them laughed. "Boy, am I hungry." One of the men placed a hand on his stomach.

"They better not have eaten all the grub." The other one grumbled and the two started walking away from the boat. Samantha quietly snuck on the boat and looked around. The first thing she noted was the flag these men had flying high above the crow's nest.

'A pirate's flag…how cliché.' She smirked and then walked the deck. She examined the boat and, to be honest, it was a pretty cool looking boat. She climbed up the crow's nest to see if she could recognize anyone or anything from afar. When she got to the top, nothing looked familiar.

'Where am I?' Samantha questioned. Despite being to almost every kingdom and visiting almost every land, this place looked foreign; and yet, this place was obviously buzzing with life. She climbed back down and was on her way to leave the boat, when she noticed the cabin door just in front of the steering wheel. She opened the door and noted the stairs leading further down into the ship and a room directly across from her.

'I'll explore the room later.' Samantha decided and walked down the stairs to the floor underneath the main deck. It was a vast space with a small room across the wide floor on the bottom. Though Samantha had entered the lower deck, there was a ladder from where she entered that led to the bottom of the ship. It wasn't terribly deep as she could see the floor, but the room was massive; like it would take two whole weeks for one person to mop the entire floor. Curiosity got the best of her and she descended the ladder and walked to the other side to find out what was over there. She walked across the floor and climbed the ladder to find there was a giant chest and closets of things around. She opened the chest to discover pirate hats, eye patches, and bandanas; perhaps they were extras for the others or something? She walked over to one of the closets and discovered there were weapons in each one; swords to be specific. She took one of the curved, jagged blades and snatched a pirate hat and eye patch. She fitted herself with her new attire and examined herself in a nearby mirror.

'You look stupid.' Samantha thought before she started laughing. "Avast ye' mateys. For I be Samantha of Hyrule! Terror o' the seas and I be here to steal ye gold. Yar har har har." She swung the blade like she were fighting enemies and after a few swings, she started laughing again. "I sound like a fucking moron…" She took off the hate and eye patch and put everything away. She walked back towards the exit, but before she made it up the stairs, she could hear movement and she heard the door open.

'Shit, shit, shit shit!' She started panicking. The last time she faced a pirate, it ended with her killing the captain and with her luck, she wasn't sure she'd be so lucky that Uncle Vyse could save her again. She hid along the side of the wall, hoping maybe could sneak out when whoever it was entered the room. The man who entered was kind of a small looking man. He had on a white and red striped shirt, blue pants, and one of those curved swords Samantha was playing around with tucked on the side of his pants. His sideburns were brown and he donned a blue bandana on his head. He was about to descend the ladder when the two made eye contact. Before he could exclaim, she rushed him and placed a hand over his mouth.

"Please don't scream." Samantha whispered. "I'm sorry I was trespassing. I'll leave quickly, but please. I don't mean any trouble." He pushed her arm out of the way.

"You're on my ship and we just set sail. Who are you?" He glared at the woman.

"I'm…" She paused mid-sentence. "Wait, this is your ship?"

"That's right." He folded his arms and his eyes narrowed.

"And you say we just set sail?"

"Uh huh."

"Shouldn't you be…I don't know…steering the ship?" There was a brief paused between the two of them.

"…alright you got me. It's not my ship. But who are you? I'll tell the boss if you don't answer me."

"I'm…" Samantha tried thinking of a good excuse that might convince him to leave her alone.

"Niko, leave the poor girl alone." A stranger entered the room behind him. She was about her height with gorgeous brown hair, her hairstyle was a beautiful rope braid and her eyes were the most wonderful shade of green she had ever seen. But what drew her attention was her outfit. She had on a pair of silk pants with a white shirt that exposed her midriff and her body; from what Samantha could tell, was covered in tattoos. Her hands, up both arms, her midriff, up to her neck were covered with tattoos. Yes she was beautiful, but there was a part of her that was quite intimidated by the woman.

"She's a stranger!" Niko protested.

"Niko, leave us. Now!" She ordered and with that, he scampered down the ladder and away from her. The woman began walking around the princess of Hyrule and smirked. "I'm surprised you're here." Her voice sound ever so sweet, but Samantha was too scared to question the woman. "I'm sure you have a lot of questions."

"Who are you?" Samantha's voice cracked due to her nervousness.

"Ah ah ah! You must earn the right to ask for my name." The stranger winked at her.

"You know me? Alright, I'll bite. What do you know about me?" Samantha replied with doubt in her voice. The stranger walked right up to her.

"Your name is Samantha Grace McCloud. Formerly Samantha Grace Aran. You married an ace pilot named Marcus McCloud who lives on Corneria. You're the firstborn to the Hyrule Kingdom and the oldest of three siblings. On the outside, you're confident and appear to be strong, but on the inside, all you want is to hang out with some friends and spend more time with your best friend and younger sister Virginia."

"Actually, my best friend-"

"Your second best friend is your mother." The stranger cut her off and corrected her. Samantha was astounded that this unknown woman knew so much about her. "I tell you what, if you accept my duel and you are able to touch me, I'll answer any three questions you want. Anything I know, I'll gladly answer. There's a lot I know and a lot I can answer."

"I…um…o-ok." Samantha nervously stammered as the stranger climbed down the ladder and walked to the middle of the ship. "So…I just need to touch you?"

"If you think about it, there are other ways to win, Samantha." The woman informed the princess.

"Yeah, yeah." Samantha dismissed her advice and took a stance.

"Whenever you're ready." Samantha took a swing, but the stranger quickly dodged her attack at a speed that most people couldn't move.

'Woah.' Samantha thought as she continued attacking the stranger, however each of her attacks failed to connect with her.

"How…How are you doing this?" Samantha gritted her teeth and became more and more enraged with each missed attack.

"You're fighting with emotions. If you use your head, you'll find this is all pointless." She chimed in while she fell into the splits and quickly rolled away from her.

"Stand still for one second!" Samantha ordered, but she chose not to comply. "God damn it, this is bullshit!"

"Watch your fucking mouth!" She smirked at the now enraged princess. She took a swing, but again, it was dodged. The woman kicked Samantha in the chest and she began breathing heavy.

"Come on…fuck, man." She sniffled and rubbed her eyes. "I-I'm not crying. I-I just…fuck…there's some dust in my eye or whatever."

"Samantha, you're too narrow minded. Open your mind for a moment." She knelt down next to her. "All you need to do is touch me. It's not difficult."

"B-But you're so strong…" Samantha sat up and rubbed her eyes again. "And fast, and you're pretty much the toughest person I've battled and all I want is a little information." She sniffled and the stranger took a seat across from her.

"You win." She smiled.

"…huh?" Samantha looked at her. "But, I-I didn't do anything."

"Yes you did. You touched me."

"W-With words?"

"I said you had to touch me, I never said it had to be physical. You chose to fight me. I didn't make you. I merely walked over here, but you took your stance and charged at me." The woman explained and Samantha now felt foolish. "All of life's problems can be solved by observing from a different perspective. Well, now that you've won, I'll answer any three questions that you wish."

"Who are you?" Samantha immediately asked.

"Nope."

"What?!" Samantha blurted out. "But, you said-"

"I'll give that to you later, it's not a question I want you to waste. Ask something else."

"But I want to know now!" Samantha whined like a child.

"Your mother taught you patience. You will learn this in time." She cracked her knuckles and stretched for the sky. Realizing she wasn't going to get anywhere by complaining, she decided to go in a different direction.

"Fine…" Samantha grumbled before thinking of a new question. "What's with the tattoos?"

"They are important moments in my life. Achievements I've accomplished, historic moments…some are for fun, some I don't remember, and some are just because." She responded casually.

"Ok…question two…" Samantha thought long and hard about what she wanted to ask. "W-What's…what's your favorite song?"

"Seriously?" She raised an eyebrow and lightly laughed. "Well, if you must know, my favorite song is 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight' by the Tones."

'That was a dumb question…' Samantha thought as she closed her eyes.

"Last question." She stated. Samantha thought long and hard about what her final question should be. There were so many questions she had and she had to make this one count. Though her instinct was to ask who her father was; a question she has wanted answered for a long time, she decided to ask for her current location.

"Where am I?" She asked.

"You're on a pirate ship." She woman contained her laughter.

"Fuck you. Come on, you know what I mean."

"You weren't specific." Her answer infuriated the princess.

"…asshole." Samantha muttered as she began to ascend the ladder and head up the stairs.

"Samantha, hold on-"

"No. Fuck you. I'm done. I'll find some way to get out of your hair and off this damn ship."

"We're almost there, just wait a minute." She called out, but Samantha kept walking. She reached the top of the stairs, she walked around and she opened the door a crack before it was slammed shut.

"Leave me alone." Samantha glared at the stranger.

"We're almost there. Just slow the fuck down, ok?" The woman demanded.

"We're almost where?" Samantha questioned the unknown woman. "Are you kidnapping me?"

"Don't be stupid. We're almost to our destination. You've brushed up on history, I hope." The boat began to slow down and then eventually stopped. "Alright, we're here. Niko! Land ho!" The young man quickly ran up the stairs and exited before the other two. "Shall we?" The stranger held the door open for the princess. Samantha walked out and saw a simple island in the distance. Two massive stones with what looked like a small bridge connecting them. There were a couple houses as well and a giant tower that looked like a lookout. Samantha walked off the boat and then noticed amidst all the nasty looking pirates was a young girl hugging a young man; both couldn't be older than sixteen. She had blue eyes, caramel colored skin and golden blonde hair. Her outfit had a red bandana around her neck, a blue jacket with the sleeves cut off, a purple undershirt, a matching red belt, cream colored pants, and leather sandals. He was wearing charcoal colored shoes, orange pants, and a blue shirt with a white lobster design on the front and the back. His hair was a messy blonde and his eyes were black in color. Though his smile was genuine and Samantha could easily tell that he and the unusual pirate girl were in love.

"Hoy!" Another voice called out and ran towards the ship. She was much younger than the other two and it was no secret that she was obviously the younger sister to the young man. Her hair was also blonde and she was sporting two twin pigtails. Like her brother, her irises were also black and her dress was a light blue with orange flowers all around. She was carrying a telescope in her hand as she ran towards the group.

"Hey Aryll." The man waved at her young sister and she leapt into his arms.

"I've missed you!" She cried out before breaking into a giggling fit.

"We were just here yesterday." The pirate girl scoffed and shook her head before turning and seeing Samantha. Her smile faded and her expression was now anger. "Wait a minute, who the hell is this?" She gestured to Samantha and all eyes turned to her. "Did you bring her on?" She pointed at the stranger. "You know the rules, no stowaways!"

"Who is she, brother?" The girl named Aryll hid behind him and his fists clenched like he was going to fight her.

"Everyone calm down. She means no harm." The stranger held up her hands to try and diffuse the situation.

"Our family doesn't fuck around with-" The man lightly tapped her shoulder and slightly tilted his head back to subtly hint that she should watch her words around his sister. Samantha recognized the outfit and quickly realized who the two of these people were.

"You…You're King William. The legendary wind waker."

"Ye-Yes…" He sighed with frustration and as he glanced up, he saw the worry in Samantha's face. "Alright. I'll give you a pass since you didn't know, but I hate being called that. Everyone just calls me Will."

Samantha quickly nodded with understanding before turning her attention to the pirate girl. "Which means…you're…Lady Tetra of the seven seas."

"Yeah, and who are you?" Tetra questioned the princess.

"Why don't you tell her your name?" The stranger smiled at Samantha. The princess nodded and slowly inhaled; now she was nervous. She stood in the presence of her ancestors and with all the strength that she had, she felt weak and helpless.

"M-My name…my name is Samantha Grace McCloud. Firstborn to the Hyrule kingdom." Everyone fell silent upon hearing her words.

"You…you're…" Will looked at the stranger. "She's your daughter?" He questioned.

"She's my granddaughter." She corrected him. Samantha's head quickly whipped around while her eyes grew big and her jaw dropped.

"Your…g-g-grand…d-d-daugh…daughter?" She stared with big eyes at the woman. "Th-Tha…That means…y-you…you a-a-are…"

"That's right, my dear." She folded her arms and smiled. "I am Grace Elizabeth Hyrule. Former queen of Hyrule."