A/N: Hello again. *flourishing bow* First of all, many thanks to all of my reviewers: my good friend TheFinalCountdown, as well as LinkiePooh and tikitikirevenge. I would like to say ahead of time that I do not tend to be....consistent with my updates. I apologize in advance for any frustration my readers(few as they are at this point) may experience with me over this matter; despite what you may think, I actually do have a life. Anyway, this chapter will cover all of what happens on Outset Isle at the start of the game; modernized and edited to fit that particular detail, of course, but it will still follow the basic plot. Please enjoy.

Chapter One: Russian Roulette

Routine.

For the next week, that was the word that Mido Kokeire followed. He got up early every morning and woke up his family. He got dressed, helped make breakfast and pack lunches, and left for school, making sure Skullkid didn't try to run off and skip. Once he got to school he got into one or two arguments and got scolded three or so times, slept through math class, played baseball at recess and talked with Link, Saria and Aryll. After school he went to the library until five, left and denied Link's offer of a ride home, met Skullkid halfway to the house. Apologized to his mother for being late, ate dinner, did homework, read comics for an hour or played computer and went to bed. (Wake up. Repeat.)

Finally a full eight days had passed since Mido had spoken to Link about the plans for their joint birthday party and Age Ceremony. It was a Saturday, and Mido found himself rudely awoken at ten o' clock in the morning by the front door nearly slamming off of its hinges. He sat up with a jolt, quite naturally startled by the loud noise. He was out of bed in an instant and down the stairs even faster, wondering what had happened, only to find a very flustered looking Skullkid sifting through the refrigerator before coming out with a bottle of mineral water and hurriedly beginning to drink it. Mido stared at him in confusion.

"Skully?"

No response, save for the sound of mineral water flowing down the sixteen year old's throat.

"Hey, big bro, what happened? Hey, come on!"

Skullkid finally looked at him, his eerily yellow eyes alight with anxiousness, before slamming the half empty bottle of mineral water down on the table to throw off his straw hat and run a shaking hand over his inch-long black hair.

"Nothing, nothing, squirt. Hey, did you just wake up?"

Mido, confused at his brother's surprise, nodded. "Yep, why? It's Saturday, so..."

Skullkid polished off his mineral water and wiped his mouth with a pale hand and gave his junior a look. "Kid, I can't stress enough the fact that I am seriously disappointed; you, the family coordinator and planner, our alarm clock and our all around errand boy, completely let yourself forget that not only your Age Ceremony, but your party with the Kenton shrimp is today. Really, little brother, I am very disappointed." Skully drawled, throwing the bottle from his drink in the recycling bin. He smiled to himself as he reached the stairs and began his assent, then turned back halfway up to address his redheaded sibling.

"Oh. By the way. The Kenton's are waiting to pick you up outside, have been for some time. You should be up and dressed in your Ceremony Garb by now."

With those words out of his mouth, Skullkid ran up the stairs. Three, two...one...zero.

"Darn it, Skullkid!!!"

Today was a special day, Grandma had told him, but Link still couldn't quell the feeling of dread slowly growing inside of him when he thought of the 'tunic' that Kafei and Simon had told him to expect. Link was only ten; he wasn't mature, and he certainly did not see the difference between an archaic male garment worn normally over leggings, referred to commonly as a tunic, and an everyday woman's dress. No, Link did not see the difference at all, and he wasn't any fonder of his Ceremony Garb.

Neither had he enjoyed the explanation for the clothes he was wearing now: a low necked shirt with loose, long sleeves, its color baby blue and covered all over with a depiction of his patron god. It was magnificent, he admitted to that; an embroidery of the god of storms, Kythe. The depiction showed a man with a manic grin face, arms outstretched and rain falling around him, with lightning and the outlines of mighty thunderheads and gale force winds, all in gold and silver thread. His pants were simple burnt orange and made from soft satin like his shirt, and he was to remain barefoot until he received his Hero's Garb at fifteen minutes to noon. The explanation for the flashy apparel that the boy had been given was this; before a boy comes of age, he is bound to the will that his patron god or goddess has set before him, and by default will not stray from that, but when he goes through the rites of the Aging Ceremony, his patron deity cuts loose his Bound Fate and allows him to make his own destiny, while simultaneously watching over him from afar. Link didn't quite understand it; he thought it was just another excuse to make him dress up, as any boy his age would.

Link sighed for the third time since they had pulled up twenty minutes ago, and Aryll echoed the noise from her place right next to him in the back seat. "Grandma," he said boredly, "I think Mido is still asleep."

Grandma sighed, and reluctantly waved Link out of the car. A happy nod and two slammed doors later, Link was inside the two bedroom Kokeire home. He quickly dodged around furniture and toys, running up the stairs and unceremoniously(rather inappropriate, considering the occasion) throwing open the door of the bedroom that both Simon and Mido shared with each other, only to find the older boy combing the last few knots out of his junior's normally unruly hair, while Mido was finishing yanking on the pants of his Ceremony Garb.

Link whistled lowly. Mido looked almost mythical, even more sprite-like than he imagined the forest race of the Old Legends would have been. All that was missing was a colorful guardian spirit. His shirt, like Link's displayed his patron deity in bright silver and gold thread, against a pure white satin background. Mido's was an image of the goddess of forest, Arenita, a young girl no more than twelve, with long flowing hair, kneeled on the ground and surrounded by plant life and woods, with a bird perched on her shoulder. His pants were a rich golden brown, and he, like Link, was barefoot.

"Wow, Mido, I didn't think you'd be able to pull Ceremony Garb off so well."

Mido stuck his tongue out. "Right back atcha, Link. Hey, can Skully get a ride with us?"

Link looked at Simon curiously, not having thought the older boy would be attending. He was even more surprised to find the delinquent was wearing a violet polo shirt and khaki slacks. He nodded. "I don't see why not, but he'll have to hold the cake on his lap; it's in the front seat."

Simon shrugged, and without a word, he led the way downstairs and to the small station wagon where Aryll and Grandma were waiting. Simon opened the front door and lifted the large red velvet cake out, bringing it back in with him and setting it on top of his legs, not bothering with a seat belt until Grandma scolded him. Link went around to the far side and climbed in the back, Mido getting in on the other side. Aryll smiled brightly at him, and they were off.

After a forty minute drive, Link and Mido hopped out of the car to find that most of the guests had already arrived at the place of the party, the Lookout. The Ferry twins, Tatl and Tael waved from their spot near the water, chasing crabs in their simple overalls. Eight year old Joel and his four year old brother Zill rushed over to crow over how cool they thought the Ceremony Garb was, and Colin Garcia, twelve years old, smiled softly from where he was helping Ilia organize gifts.

Mido could see his mother talking to Aroma Dotour, and Kafei was walking around with his girlfriend Anju Stockton. Link exclaimed loudly and grinned when he caught sight of them, running straight over to talk, with Mido on his tail.

"Kafei!"

The blue haired boy looked away from Anju and grinned amiably when he caught sight of the two for whom the party was being thrown. "Well, well, if it isn't the guests of honor! Hey, Link; Mido, too."

Anju smiled as well. "My, don't you two look nice? Excited for the Ceremony?"

Link heard Mido groan behind him. "Ugh, no way, Anju! I mean, what kind of self respecting guy would want to wear a dress?!"

At his friend's exclamation, he found himself nodding vigorously in agreement and grimacing. Anju just laughed, but Kafei's eyes were alight with deep sympathy for his younger friends' plight. Mido started up another topic of conversation, but Link found himself bored with the gushy looks Kafei and Anju insisted on giving each other and went to play with Tatl and Tael. The seven year old twins were as different as night in day; Tatl, the girl, was blond and naughty, while Tael was black haired and timid. Link loved them to pieces and joined their crab chasing until everyone was called for cake and gifts.

Before too long, chairs were set up with a makeshift aisle through the middle on the beach, and a brightly colored mat was put at the front. Everyone sat down, save for Grandma and Mido's mother, Link noted from his spot at the edge of the boardwalk beside Mido. He realized then what time it was, watching his grandmother and Mido's mother walk to the front with bundles wrapped in brown paper and stand there expectantly. Mido took his hand and helped him up, and they stood for a moment at the back of the gathering and took a deep breath.

"Hey, Link."

"Huh?"

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah. Let's go, Mido. Happy birthday to you and Saria, by the way."

"Happy birthday to you too. Let's grow up."

With that, both boys walked side by side, forward to stand in front of their respective guardians. Both women smiled, and Ms. Kokeire was the first to speak.

"Mido Kokeire, child of Arenita, today you will be given free reign to make your own destiny. What is your response?"

Link's eyes flickered over to his redheaded friend as he took a shuddering breath(nervous, he supposed) and spoke in an almost practiced voice. "I, Mido Kokeire, child of Arenita, gladly accept this gift."

"And what, Mido, will you do with it?"

"I, Mido, with my own power, will become a great man, better than the one who refused to be my father."

Mido's mother nodded, her eyes misted over with pride and a light hint of sorrow. Link looked forward again as his grandmother prepared to speak. He was nervous; Mido had spoken as if the occasion was as serious and wonderful as a wedding. Link wasn't eloquent or unnaturally intelligent like his peppy best friend, and wasn't sure what to say; he hadn't practiced like Mido had, but there was no time to worry about it anymore. Grandma was starting.

"Link Kenton, child of Kythe, today you will be given free reign to make your own destiny. What is your response?"

Link paused for several long moments, breathing heavily, nearly breaking out in a cold sweat. He could feel the waiting eyes of everybody on him, everybody's eyes. He was sure he could have fainted from the pressure, until he felt Mido's arm nudging his own, a subtle form of encouragement. Finally, a shaky smile graced his youthful features and he answered. "I, Link Kenton, child of Kythe, am happy to get this gift."

Grandma smiled and continued. "And what, Link, will you do with it?"

The words were out of his mouth before he even realized it. "I, Link, with my own skills, will explore the entire Great Sea and beyond!"

Silence covered the small crowd of people for a long minute. A minute that, to Link, seemed like ten eternities to outmatch his ten years. Finally, when he thought he would collapse from the awkward atmosphere, he heard a shout of "All right, Link!" from Kafei in the back, and several other praises from local children like Colin(who had made his 'destiny' that of a boat-builder), Tatl, Tael, and Beth. Grandma looked a bit startled, but she was smiling now, and Ms. Kokeire winked at him roguishly. He sighed, relieved, and straightened again as both his grandmother and Mido's mother said the next piece in unison.

"Then we call you men, and give you the Hero's Garb. Wear it well, and be proud." and with those words said, the women unwrapped the packages to reveal the green clothing that lay newly made and pristine within. A short silence ensued before Kafei yelled indignantly. The clothing inside the packages was not a pair of tunics and leggings.

Mido's clothes consisted all of forest green: a pair of high-top sneakers, jeans, and a rustic styled top. Link's were a variation of army and bottle green; bottle green vest and cargo shorts, army green visor cap and tee, with a pair of traditional hiking boots. Both women smiled at the astonished looks on their charges' faces.

"Well?" said Ms. Kokeire, "What are you squirts waitin' for? Go get changed!"

Two o' clock in the afternoon saw Link at the top of the Lookout Tower(called Aryll's lookout by most local kids) with none other than Aryll. She had been babbling on about how 'cool' Link had been at the Age Ceremony, and that she wanted to be an explorer just like him someday. He only listened for a little while, being more interested in the sight of the sun magically shimmering off the ocean like a million water nymphs dancing in the warmth of the summer day. He stayed so for several minutes, tuning out his sister's energetic speech, until she shook him bodily out of his thoughtless state and back to reality.

"Eh? Eh? What is it?"

Aryll giggled brightly, holding her hands behind her back. "Big brother, I have a present for you! Close your eyes, and hold out your hand!"

Link looked at her, suspicion thick on his voice. "Aryll, this isn't a frog that'll pee in my hand or something, is it?"

"Just do it!!"

He did it.

A short, choppy moment passed, and then Link felt something long, made of wood and metal, pass from Aryll's chubby six year old hands to his own, slightly leaner ten year old hands. Opening his eyes, he found a simple, homemade telescope with a hand-painted flock of seagulls on it. He gasped, pleasantly surprised; this was Aryll's most treasured belonging, an heirloom left to her when their parents passed away three years ago.

Aryll giggled again. "Heehee! This is my favoritepossession! I'm letting you borrow it because you're my big brother! Aren't you lucky? Heehee!"

Link couldn't help but let out a childish giggle himself at his sister's sweetness. "Hee! Sure am! Say, why don't you show me how to use this?"

Aryll complied easily, taking the telescope from Link's hands again and demonstrating by putting it up to her left eye and closing her right one, extending and retracting the shaft to show him how to zoom in or out. "Just like that!" she said, and gave it right back. Link grinned broadly and put the toy to his right eye to look through, zooming in on their house about a mile away, then shifting down to where the shoreline postbox was stationed. He smiled again when he saw Outset's assigned postman Quill Fier placing a small package inside, but mumbled in confusion when the rito suddenly squawked(of course, Link and Aryll couldn't hear it from their spot so far away) and began shakily taking off, as if afraid of something.

This proved to be true when Link was startled out of his watching by Aryll's piercing shriek.

"BIG BROTHER! IN THE SKY!!!"

So shaken was Link by his sister's sudden scream, he didn't even bother to take the telescope away from his face, instead using it to zoom in on what Aryll had been screaming about.
He nearly fell over backwards when he saw what had startled her. Up in the sky, far above the town and even the Lookout Tower that was ninety feet tall, there was what appeared to be a giant bird. The first thought to run through his mind was he hoped it wasn't hungry, but he panicked even further when he saw the young girl grasped in the helm sporting predator's talons. In an instant, he had dropped the telescope and gathered the now crying Aryll into his arms, covering her eyes, lest she see what would soon be an appetizer for the roc.

He jerked toward the sea when he heard an explosion, and ducked when he saw the cannonball. What on earth?! Cannons in this day and age? Well...maybe it's the only thing suitable for hitting Big Bird up there, but who...?He looked around and found a boat on the water, speeding around the island to get a better view of the roc. Link gasped when he saw the flag flying from a pole near the boat's back.

Kythe save me...pirates!

"Aryll, stay down, okay? Huddle against the support beam!" Naturally, the shaken child obeyed, and then Link huddled with her, watching the conflict between beast and buccaneers from afar. Several balls of hot steel were launched at it, and it maneuvered out of the way every time...save for one. Link struggled not to retch when he saw a ball smack into the side of the roc's head with such force that he heard the monster's jaw break even from his place on the guard tower. What looked like some sort of violet-tinted oil spewed from the beast's mouth and came raining down, and he could hear the drops hitting the roof and deck. Again, he struggled not to vomit, and cried out in horror when he saw the girl fall from her taloned prison and plummet into the forest just outside the Mountain District. Aryll gasped beside him.

"Big brother! That girl fell into the forest! What should we do?"

Link looked at his sibling blankly. "E-eh?"

"She could be hurt! You have to help her!"

"EH?! No- no I don't! She's probably dead anyway, falling from way up there-"

"But you can't go into the forest without something to protect yourself!"

"Aryll, are you even listening to me?!"

"Oh, what should we do...?"

A sigh escaped Link's mouth. No, Aryll was completely disregarding everything he said...in favor of going on a wild hunt for some pirate girl who by this time was probably drowning in her own blood. Deciding the only way to appease her was to go and find the body, he rested a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "Listen, Aryll. I'll find her, but you stay here. I mean it, don't move from this spot!"

A slight nod, and Link was on his way, taking the lift down from the Lookout and heading for the bus stop. The first thought to run through his head was what to do about self defense. To go home and grab his baseball bat and then go to the woods would waste quite a bit of time, so that was out, but he couldn't think of anything else...until he remembered old man Orca who live three quarters of the way to the Mountain District. Maybe he'll lend me an air gun or something. As he boarded the bus and dropped a blue rupee in for fare, Link decided he'd visit the retired peace officer.

A good twenty minutes later, Link hopped off the bus at the corner of Whale Avenue, the street where Orca lived with his older brother Sturgeon and his grand-niece Sue Belle. He started the run down the street, stepping to the side to allow a cyclist to pass, and keeping an eye on the houses until he spotted number 21 across the road. He scampered across and knocked on the door frantically. Not a moment later, Sue Belle answered, and, seeing his frantic expression, ushered him indoors while she got Orca. It was only another moment before the elderly man shuffled into the room and looked at Link with surprise.

"Well! Link Kenton, I expected you to be spending time with that little Kokeire hellion, not sitting in my living room...you have serious look about you..."

Link nodded vigorously. "Yeah, something really serious happened, Mr. Orca! Can I-"

"Ah, I see. Come with me to the back yard, then." Orca cut in, and Link found himself being half dragged out the rear door into what seemed like a miniature firing range. He gaped at the fence to his right. In front of it was a set of shelves with several types of knives, semi-automatic revolvers and rifles set out on them. He gasped loudly when Orca walked purposefully over to them and picked up a pair of Smith and Wesson semi-automatics; if Link remembered right from his last visit, they were both model CS45. He flinched even further away when he remembered that both were very, very real. Orca strode back, still intent, and thrust one of the handguns into Link's surprised palms.

"Let's see how you are with a semi-auto, boy."

Fifteen minutes later, Link was reluctantly leaving Orca's home with a CS45 stowed in a holster at his left side. He'd argued hotly with Orca, insisting that a child his age shouldn't be wearing a side arm at all, but Orca had insisted strongly. Link knew he couldn't argue the point of illegality; the Great Sea was a dangerous place, so there were no weapon laws. If you needed a weapon for protection, by all means, it was perfectly fine to have one in your possession. Still, Link didn't see why he needed such a strong gun. Despite his unrest with having a deadly piece of machinery in his reach, Link still remembered his purpose of finding the pirate girl's body and ran off after taking one last, uneasy glance at his new gun.

He managed to just catch the next bus, dropping another blue rupee for fare and riding all the way to the Mountain District, the smallest neighborhood in town, on top of the larger of two summits on the island. The other, across a long footbridge just across the road from his current location, was covered in a dense forest, rumored to be home to dangerous animals, but Link didn't believe it a bit. He and Mido, sometimes with Saria, had explored the forest when they were much smaller, and found nothing more than small animals like rabbits and martens.

Link waited for the bus to be out of sight, into the skyscraper filled area up ahead. Once it was only a speck in the distance, he dashed across the two lane road to the footbridge.
He was nearly half way across when he finally noticed the gaping hole in the timber where several planks had rotted away. He balked and stared at it stupidly for a good moment before sighing and taking a good few steps back again, preparing to sprint and leap over the hole, and hoping he wouldn't plummet into the water below. Taking a deep breath, he launched himself forward and leaped, squeezing his eyes shut and instinctively grabbing at the bouncing holster, lest it allow his handgun to slip out and fly away. He kept his eyes shut for what seemed an eternity...

And then he felt a jarring pain as he tripped on the landing and rolled head over heels for several yards.

When the momentum finally wore off and Link had stopped, he opened his eyes to look dizzily up at the clear sky above him. He had made it across, but not without the reception of several bumps that would become nasty bruises, and a nicely skinned elbow. Link groaned loudly as he sat up, gingerly feeling the scrape and wincing when it stung. There was a small spot of blood on his hand when he pulled it away, and he grunted. No use worrying about a skinned elbow when there was a dead pirate to be found.

Link pulled himself slowly to his feet, retrieving his visor cap that had fallen off during his spectacular wipe-out, and entered the forest.

It was dimly lit under the trees. Whatever light managed to penetrate through all the branches and foliage was dyed green by the plant life, hitting the ground in splotches. Bushes of all sorts and small varieties of trees were everywhere, impeding Link's movement greatly, and more often than not he found himself stumbling rather than walking, because of the thick vines and protruding roots on the ground; the forest was more difficult than Link remembered. He struggled through the thick woods for a good twenty-five minutes before he finally found himself clambering up a small ledge to peer into the clearing on the other side. The clearing with a monster.

The clearing with a monster.

Link did his best to muffle his startled cry as he fell off the ledge from shock, and scrambled into a hollow log as quickly as he could to elude the now alert bokoblin's probing gaze. He crouched and began hyperventilating, silently panicking. Monster! What was a monster doing in the forest?! On Outset?! The short, quick breathing was beginning to make Link dizzy, and he struggled to regain some measure of composure.

So, he thought, there's a monster in the woods. I recognize this one, we read about it in school...

Mentally, Link recited everything he knew about the beast now searching high and low for him. Okay, it's called a bokoblin, and it's part of the goblin family. They generally aren't very intelligent, but they're versatile and fairly strong, about as much as a grown human. They've been known to use any weapon they can get their hands on. Maybe, since it's not smart, I can sneak past.

Link took in a shuddering breath and steeled himself. He waited for the bokoblin to lose interest and return to its seat on a stump on the west side of the clearing, and then he started to crawl forward through the log, aiming for the other end. He stopped a moment when he found a red rupee(how'd it get there?) and then continued on. After a good minute of crawling, he emerged on the other end and got up into a crouch, loping along the meadow's edge toward a fallen tree that acted like a bridge up onto a higher ledge. He halted suddenly when a twig cracked loudly under his feet, casting a nervous gaze over to where the bokoblin...was already barreling towards him. He screamed.

"Crap!!"

The bokoblin had tackled him to the ground before he knew it, and Link only saw its malevolent little eyes for a moment before it sank its teeth into his right shoulder. Another scream tore from his throat, this one of pain, and he threw a fist into the monster's temple, jarring it to the side and forcing it to let go. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to knock his assailant off, just enough to make it angrier, and it pounded a bony fist onto the wound it had just inflicted repeatedly, shoving its pig-like snout into his face and snarling. Link panicked, screaming every time the fist connected.

Then he remembered the CS45.

Frantically, Link yanked the gun out of its holster and struggled it into the proper position in his hand. Squeeze, don't pull. With that single thought, Link shut his eyes and fired.

A loud bang rocked the clearing when the bokoblin's head blew off its shoulders. Link nearly retched when he felt the foul smelling, oily blood spatter all over his face and chest, sending a tingling sensation all over him that compelled him to open his eyes. He gasped at what he saw: the blood...no not just that, the monster and its blood were going up in what seemed to be a bluish sort of smoke, sparking with green fire every now and again until there was nothing left but a foul stench on the air.

When the shock of the disappearance finally wore off, Link vomited. I killed something! I killed something! It was a monster, but still! I killed it! Oh, gods above...wait. The girl! That monster tried to kill me...what about the girl?!

As Link ran up the log bridge onto the next level of forest, he found himself thinking for the first time; hoping, that is, that the girl who had fallen might still be alive, if injured. His shoulder was throbbing and bleeding, but pure adrenaline pushed him forward and allowed him to ignore it. He kept the gun in his left hand at all times, gripping it so tightly his knuckles turned white. He was so absorbed in his progress he didn't even notice how thin the vegetation had become.

He ran full out for ten minutes before he came to yet another ledge, this one also with a log bridge. His adrenaline pumped him up and onto the huge tree trunk with no trouble, and he ran up, stopping at the top where the ledge dropped off into nothing for ten feet until the ground below. The adrenaline wore off enough that Link could stop to think rather than act on pure instinct, and he took a few moments to look around.
Below him was another clearing, this one larger than the last, surrounded by ledges, the ones on the south side being low enough to climb, and there were some large trees as well. From what he could see, the forest didn't go any further after this point, but the girl was nowhere on the ground....

Which, of course, drove Link to look in the trees. Lo and behold, there was the girl, hanging from a thin branch by the collar of a waist length royal blue vest and the knot of a red bandana. He didn't take any more time to observe her though, because the thought that the branch could snap any minute and send her falling caused his adrenaline to start pumping again, and he bounded off the cliff without another thought, rolling at the end and crying out when his injured shoulder struck a rock. He panted for a moment and stood back up, intending to go and see what he could do for her.

But that would make his job far too easy, so of course two kargorocs flew overhead and dropped two more bokoblins into the clearing. Link whirled around and nearly swallowed his tongue as they began to advance. He was panicking again, but this time, the presence of the CS45 in his hand kept him smart enough to start moving and aim. He circled around slowly, lifting the gun up and pointing it at the leading goblin's chest. He squeezed the trigger, and the bullet went flying, piercing through the enemy's heart without a hitch, and Link used his right hand to cover his nose from the awful stench. The next one was smarter though, now that it had seen its friend go down, and moved quickly, maneuvering around Link and keeping him on his toes. The child shot blindly once or twice, missing and hearing the bullets bury themselves in tree or stone, and then he was on the ground. The goblin had thrown a rock at his face.

Through his now foggy mind, Link could feel blood gushing from his nostrils and dribbling down his cheeks, and he heard something jump. Weakly, he lifted the gun again, pointing it upward, waiting....

The bokoblin came into view over his head. He fired.

Blood rained down on him and he felt the disintegrating body slam into his stomach. Adrenaline still pumping, he kicked it off and rolled away, ignoring the warm sensation as its blood disappeared from his skin. Once he was sure there were no more monsters in the clearing, Link scrambled to his feet and climbed the low ledge leading to where the girl was stuck in the tree. Just as Link came directly under her, she groaned, her eyes fluttering open.

Seeing as she was stuck in a tree....

She panicked.

Link was tempted to cover his ears from some of the colorful language spewing from her mouth, but he leaned in favor of diving to catch her when her struggling broke the branch. With a soft whump, she landed safely in his arms and he dropped to his knees, setting her down without a word. She looked at him for a long moment, her violet eyes giving him a twice over, then spoke.

"What's with that get up?"

Link resisted the urge to fall flat on his face.

"Well, whatever." she continued, "So...where am I?"

Link rubbed his eyes, suddenly feeling dizzy, before responding. "You're--you're in the woods just outside the Mountain District on Outset Island. Some giant bird monster dropped you here."

The look on the girl's face was enough ot tell Link she was shocked. "It's true, I saw it!" he insisted, "Really, it's amazing you aren't dead. I thought..."

"MISS! MISS TETRA!"

Link and the girl(who was apparently called Tetra) whirled around to look over the ledge to find a burly man in his early twenties running toward them, obviously worried for Tetra's well being. "Oh! Oh, thank goodness! When that giant bird dropped you on this summit I thought..."

Tetra pinched the bridge of her nose and waved the pirate away lightly. "Yeah, yeah, Gonzo, I get it. You were worried. Come on, I'm fine, so let's just get out of here!"

Gonzo looked at Link, who was steadily growing dizzier and feeling the pain in his shoulder more as the adrenaline rush wore off. "But miss, what about this boy?"

"Just leave-" THWUMP.

Tetra whirled around, startled by the noise, only to find Link collapsed on the ground and gripping weakly at his shoulder. "Shoot! Why didn't I notice that before?! Gonzo, grab the kid, seems like some monster's been chewing on him. It isn't really too bad, but he should get it treated. And goddesses, look at his nose!" she finished, squatting down next to Link and sitting him up to help him onto Gonzo's shoulders. The burly man gave a soft hearted grin.

"Don't you worry, kid, I'll get you out of here just...fine...Miss Tetra, this kid has a gun."

Tetra shrugged. "It's probably the reason he isn't dead yet, if those teeth marks aren't lying. Leave it alone, let's go."

Link's senses came back to him thirty minutes later when they exited the forest and the sun shone into his eyes again. He blinked it away and wrapped his arms around Gonzo's broad forehead from his spot perched on the older man's shoulders. His carrier protested gruffly, but he didn't seem too angry about it, so Link ignored it.

"Big brother, you found her!"

Link was very much awake now. "Aryll?!" he cried, lifting a hand to point wildly at his sister making her way to him on the bridge, "What are you doing here? I told you to stay at the lookout!!"

Aryll had the decency to look ashamed of herself for a moment, but then she smiled. "Well, I thought that since you didn't come back yet, you might be lost so I came to look for you..."

Link groaned angrily when he heard Tetra start to giggle beside him. Aryll was laughing sheepishly, and even Gonzo was chuckling. Link stopped being angry, however, when he felt the wind suddenly shift, blowing in from the north for just a moment, then returning to its east-blowing constant. Then it shifted again.

Something screeched.

Link felt the cold sense of dread from earlier in the day return suddenly, and a dry heave rocked his body when he looked up and saw the roc swooping in toward the bridge...toward the bridge! "ARYLL!!!" he screamed, falling off of Gonzo's shoulders and sprinting forward, his third adrenaline rush of the day taking over as he ran for his sister, who was frozen in fear.

Link was nearly there when he heard a crash and was blown to the side by the railing splintering and barreling into him from the right. He screamed again, his eyes only just registering Aryll being carried away by the roc when he felt empty air beneath him and began to fall--

And then he felt two small, delicate hands close in around one of his own, and he jerked to an abrupt stop. He could hear Aryll's screams, and he could see her and her captor growing steadily more distant. A loud sob tore its way out of his throat and he began to thrash about, but the hands holding onto him thrashed back, and he heard Tetra's voice yelling at him.

"Argh! Stupid kid! Quit thrashing around! She's gone, there's nothing you can do!"

Link obeyed. She was right, after all. Guns couldn't span the length of the Great Sea, and he couldn't fly to his sister's rescue without wings.

She was gone.

Tetra looked at the despondent boy sitting on top of Gonzo's shoulders worriedly. Gods, I can see why he's upset, but I wonder if I should take that gun before he does something dangerous.

Once they had crossed the bridge(only the railing had been taken out by the roc's accurate swoop), the boy(Link, she believed his name was) had pointed to a bench across the street where a bus would be by at the turn of the hour, and true to his word, not ten minutes later at three o'clock, a yellow and gray bus rolled to a brief stop to allow them on. Tetra fed a fifteen rupee note into the slot for fare and had Gonzo lead her to the back.

She spent the ride down from the mountain quietly, but she could hear Link trying to quiet his crying and felt a pang of guilt hit her chest. Gah, don't think like that! He's not your problem! she thought to herself, but her mind shot right back, asking her why she was taking him to a doctor if he had nothing to do with her. She pushed the thought roughly away for the next half hour until she realized the beach was right out her window and noticed Link getting up to deboard. Naturally, he collapsed, still not able to walk, and Gonzo scooped him up when he saw Tetra getting off.

Tetra indulged herself with a roguish grin when she saw the docks not too far away, with her ship and crew waiting for her there. Niko the 'swabbie' was standing on the beach and waved eagerly to her, his black eyes lighting up.

"Ahoy, there! Glad to see you're okay, Cap'n!" he shouted, receiving a whack on the head in response.

"Of course I'm okay, stupid! Gods, you're supposed to be fourteen, but you don't act like it at all!"

Niko was about to retort smartly when all heads turned at a yell. Running up the beach was a redheaded boy wearing all green, just like Link. He looked green around the gills, Tetra noted, but it wasn't the clothes. He was upset about something. She allowed him to speak as he caught up to them.

"Dear Obsidius! Link, are you okay?! What happened to your shoulder? Why do you have a gun?!?"

Link, from his place sitting on the sand when Gonzo set him down, looked up and smiled sadly. "Don't worry about my shoulder, Mido..."

"Eh?"

"Aryll..." Link choked. Tetra felt another pang of guilt hit her full-force. "Aryll's been--"

Recognition lit up the other boy's eyes. "Oh, dear goddesses, Link, this is terrible! Come on, let's get you home; it's not far. I think we served some Red Punch at the party...you'll feel just fine if you drink some of that, come on..."

Tetra watched uneasily as the boy called Mido led Link to a house that really wasn't very far away at all. They opened the door and disappeared inside, and Tetra began composing herself, trying to forget what she had caused. No! It wasn't her fault!

...Right?

The look on the pirates' faces was almost enough to make Link lose his composure. The girl, Tetra(who for some reason seemed to be the leader) seemed as if she would faint on the spot. He had been taken home for some Red Knit(a potion-like medicine used for pain relief and acceleration of the healing process) by Mido and Skully as soon as they'd seen him, and explained things sadly to Grandma, then gone right back to the beach. Being the reckless boy he was, he said something very bold...

"WHAT?!" Tetra exclaimed, "You want to come with us?!"

Link nodded vigorously, feeling much more sprightly now that he'd had some treatment. "Yeah, that's right! If that bird...Mido called it a Helmed Tyranroc...was after you, you probably know where it's going?"

Tetra blanched. "Well, yeah, sure, but--"

"So you can take me there! Come on, Miss Pirate!"

An angry growl ensued. "Listen, brat, it isn't Miss Pirate, It's Tetra! Tetra Coates! And there's no way we're taking some little kid with us! This has nothing to do with us!"

A scoffing baritone voice was heard, and Link looked gratefully at Quill, who seemed to have come from nowhere. "Oh really? Is that so, Miss Coates? Because it seems to me like that bird mistook the younger Kenton sibling for you."

Link saw Tetra flinch. "L-like I don't know that! I feel bad about that, okay?! But it isn't as if some inexperienced kid with a gun he can't use will be able to save her! That bird is probably already at the Forsaken Fortress by now!"

"Hah!" spat Quill, but he himself flinched when a dangerous sounding voice cut in; Skullkid.

"Yeah, so? I for one respect skinny's valiant little proposal!"

Tetra returned the danger full force. "...And?"

Skullkid shrugged. "I just admire it. Nothing else to it."

Tetra rolled her eyes. "Oh, and some freaky eyed teenager is going to convince me with that. Try again."

This time, Mido joined in. "Well, do it as payback!"

Tetra stared at him. "...What?"

"Well? It's Link who killed those monsters in the forest! They'd have gotten to you and killed you if it weren't for him, right?"

Tetra looked at Link, astonishment evident on her young face. "What? Seriously, you did that?"

Quill cut in again before Link could answer. "The wound on his shoulder should be hint enough, Miss Fearsome Pirate. Come now, it isn't as if it costs you anything to have a passenger on board, and I'm sure you have no real destination in mind, so why not?"

A chorus of agreement echoed from Skully and Mido, and Kafei, who had just come. Tetra threw her hands above her head in resignation. "Oh, fine! On one condition!"

Link looked at her eagerly. "Sure, anything!"

"Don't get all homesick on me! And learn to use that gun properly, or else!"

"Aye-aye, cap'n!"

Link looked at the wheel as Gonzo started the cruiser up and the ship began to move. His grandmother had packed him a change of warmer clothes, since Forsaken was far north, and Kafei Dotour had handed him a one hundred rupee note. Orca had come by with extra clips for the gun, Sturgeon had given him a sea chart, and the Kokeire's had called everyone up to wish him luck. He turned back and saw them on the now quickly receding shore.

Grandma, Mido and Saria were in the front. Right behind were Colin, Beth, Ilia, Simon, Kafei, Joel and Zill, Tatl and Tael, and all their parents. He lifted both arms and waved to them.

"Goodbye, everybody!" he called.

"See ya, Link!" Mido shouted back.

"Take care of yourself!" the adults.

"Find Aryll soon!" Tatl, Joel and Zill.

"We'll be waiting for you!!!" Tael, Saria, and the rest.

"Yeah!" Link responded, "I promise I'll come back with her!!"

He could hear Tetra snickerign about crying and homesickness, and wondering how long it would last. He turned back and glared at her before sending one last look back to the island, now only a blotch on the horizon. His routine was shattered.

He'd lost at russian roulette.

Chapter End.

Adventure Update:

1) You got your Hero's Garb! These clothes signify that your fate is yours to determine. Take them seriously!
2) You got a telescope! This is Arll's favorite toy. Treat it with respect!
3) You received a CS45! This is a gun made by Smith and Wesson. It's a tool, not a toy, so use it like one.
4) You got a Travel Bag and Funds! These gifts contain the well wishes of everyone dear to you. Hold them close, and don't forget that everone is supporting you!

Night: Well, there we are! Hahaha...I laughed at the Adventure Update. I just love doing little things like that. I think perhaps I've been watching too much Naruto Abridged.

Well, regardless of any of that, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. (laughs) I actually can't wait wto write Windfall and Dragon Roost, but first Link has to trek through the Forsaken Fortress. Well, if you enjoyed the chapter, please let me know! I'd love any and all feedback you have to give, so press that button.

Unless, of course, you'd like to wake up undead tomorrow.