Never gonna give you up, REVIEW ANSWERIN' time!
lilgreenfox: Thankyou-thankyou-thankyou-thankyou-thankyou-thankyou! You don't know how much this means to me. I was so worried for these past chapters (9, specifically) but you really made my day there.
shadows-of-brilliance: Well... that's a tough thing to explain, but here goes my fixer: 1) I needed something to INVALIDATE the Roc's Feather, otherwise, Link could just escape. 2) The curse INVITED the monsters inside the caverns, and breaking it would just run them outta town, not destroy them on the spot, which gave the Wall/Floormasters time to act before leaving. Well, I tried. [sigh] I guess nothing short of a remake would fix this timeline... er, plothole.
Inspiration of Imagination: You won't read this until you get here, but I'll answer anyway. Yes, I have a problem with it. English is NOT my main language. I've been trying to stay in past tense ever since, so if you read something in present tense, make sure it's not dialogue or someone's thought before coming to me again.
Legend Of Zelda
Overlord of the Land
Chapter 10:
Tetra's Lament
I have lived a great and exciting life. I've had many adventures, I've made a made for myself as a bona-fide sea dog, I've made a home out of the sea and I have left many stories to be told. I have been so blessed to count with comrades that I can trust and trust me back. Gonzo... Mako... Nudge... Senza... Zuko... and Niko. Thanks to them, I have been able to live these fifteen years to the fullest. Yes, they can act silly, or sometimes bring up some totally worthless thing, but you know what? That's just part of their charm. Besides, they've been there for me, through the good times and the bad, never faltering nor letting me down when it really counted. And Link... Link... He's helped me so much in these short two years, and he's even saved me from certain doom at least three times... and I couldn't even return the favor. I should have seen this, I know how I am. I tried to stop it. I told myself that he wasn't going to come to any harm, and I thought myself capable to protect him.
But that's not what happened. In the end, I couldn't do anything. Yet, I'm here, alive and well. What do you think you are, you stupid girl, thinking any of it made a difference? He probably even felt like dirt by the end of the day. Not a moment goes by without me wishing I could have him right here and say I'm sorry. Every time I think about him, however, my heart hurts so bad, it's unbearable. If there was some way I could rip my heart away, if there was some way I could stop feeling and throw everything away, I would take it without looking back. Even then, if there could be only one chance, even if it was for one fleeting moment, I'd want to see him again.
I want to see you!
Link...
"Yes, I will get to cleaning the laundry soon! Yes, I know you're down to your last pair of undies. You don't have to paint me the picture, I see it all too clear every day. Just let me get something I forgot first."
Niko left the gaze of his superior and emerged on the top deck, making a beeline for the top mast. He climbed up the ladder with swift agility and almost tripped when reaching the crow's nets. "Where are you, my telesc... oh." His usually loud voice was suddenly muted when he noticed he was not alone atop the crow's nest. A yellow and blue figure sat there, slouching forward on raised knees, the arms and a mess of blond hair completely covering a face. And clutched firmly in a hand was a torn green cloth. "Captain?" Niko braved to speak. Despite waiting a while for a response, Tetra did not move an inch. "I... I'll just grab my telescope and be out." He then inched over to where a lonely telescope sat and picked it up."Ok, I'll leave you to your... your thoughts." Niko said, struggling to find a proper set of words. He then started climbing down, keeping his sights on Tetra, who did not even make a sound.
After Niko went inside, the entire top deck was deserted, without a single pirate doing rounds, cleaning or even hanging around. None, that is, except Tetra. These past three days, whenever she was not locked up in her room, she either climbed on the crow's nest, or laid eagle-spread around the bridge, or sat at the very tip of the bowspirit staring straight down at her own reflection in the water, oftentimes doing these things for hours at a time. Furthermore, she had not uttered a word to anyone, not even her own second-in command Gonzo, ever since their retreat from Garo Caverns. She kept to herself, not even bothering to handle things around the ship or looking at people in the face, and if nothing else, she found a tiny sliver of peace there.
And then, Niko came right back up.
"You'll have to excuse me for being so blunt, Ma'am." Niko began. Though trying to pull off his softest, most tactful voice, he still spoke rather matter-of-factly. "But all this ain't so good for you. All this moping and slumping is a killer to your self-esteem, and... and... Look, even your hair's losing color. Why, it looks greenish already. This isn't like you... Well, at least the 'you' I'm used to. The 'you' I'm used to would not let go much farther than a sidestep. The 'you' I'm used to would get angry, yes, but would use that same anger to fuel up her drive further and make things happen. The 'you' I'm used to knows what the rules and the risks of the pirate life are. This is just one of those risks."
Tetra remained still. The only semblance of movement came from the wind playing with her rumpled, unkempt hair. Niko took a moment to see if he would get some reaction, but after noticing none, he sighed and merely turned his gaze to the sea.
"I remember when I told my papa that I wanted to become a pirate." Niko spoke again. "He yelled at me, a lot. He told me, between yells, that pirates are no more than filthy thieves and murderers, and deserve no place in our world. He told me that if I were to become a pirate, I would have to learn to harden my heart, and I would have to live my life knowing that I was taking something from someone who probably worked hard from it, and that I would live my life watching my comrades dying in front of me and risking dying at every corner. He then asked me..." Niko then pulled his best gruff voice as he tried imitating his father. "'Are you sure you want that sort of thing for your life, Niko? Will you be able to live having that massive weight on your conscience?'" Niko then turned to Tetra, only to see the same unmoving figure. "I thought about it a lot. Was being a pirate worth all that? Would I be able to handle the rough life of a pirate, with death following right behind me? Well... I'm here, aren't I?" He said while pointing at himself.
Niko sighed when he still found himself without any sort of reaction. " Miss Tetra." He spoke again, managing a lower, warmer voice than last. "I know you miss Link. I miss him, too. He was the only one who would treat me as an equal, you know. You know how he was, always cheerful, with a smile on his face and a joke every day. Say what you will about him, he always wanted to bring everybody's spirits up. He surely didn't want you to sit around torturing yourself, letting yourself go and doing absolutely nothing. He probably wanted you to pick yourself back up and go on, to find the strength within yourself to keep smiling and finish whatever you were doing for him. I got that pretty soon, which is why I'm back up and about, finishing that 5,000-piece jigsaw puzzle we were working on." He suddenly stopped when he caught himself and what he was saying. "Oh, wait, you weren't supposed to know that. Er... anyway. What's important is that Link wanted you to be happy, and even though he's not with us anymore, I'm sure his wishes remain the same. So please... allow yourself to be happy."
Niko looked intently at Tetra and wondered if she would understand what he wanted to tell her. While she indeed shifted her legs around (making Niko gasp audibly), she only repositioned herself a bit closer to the mast and stayed there, inert. Niko sighed yet again, but then...
"OH!" Niko exclaimed and began searching his pockets. He then pulled out a long object wrapped in gray cloths, and after looking at it in a rather nostalgic manner for a few brief moments, he set it down at Tetra's feet. "Link gave me this when we were at the desert. He meant it for you, though. I can only imagine how he originally thought of giving it to you, but I guess he thought you were just not... easygoing at the time. He left you a note as well. I'm... sorry to say I couldn't help it, and I read it... but I couldn't understand any of it. Perhaps he thought you'd get it?"
Then, slowly but steadily, Tetra's head started tilting backwards. Her face had transformed totally from the last time she had let anyone see her: her tan was washing away, leaving a sickly pale skin in its stead; Her bloodshot eyes squinted to the light (they were probably closed most of the time), exposing large bags under them; her lips were cracked and began losing their color, apparently trying to match her skin's paling tone; her overall frame was elongated and skinny, an obvious victim of self-imposed undernourishment.
"Whoa!" Niko let out involuntarily. He knew Tetra was skipping meals, but he didn't think it was that bad. "How long have you gone without eating? I mean you look..." He suddenly stopped himself when he noticed he was entering dangerous waters with that topic. "Eh... what I mean to say is... why don't I get you something to eat? In the mean time, you try and figure out what that note of his means." And with a series of gestures which supposedly were meant to make her feel okay, he climbed down the stairs and entered the lower decks.
For what seemed like forever, Tetra sat still, staring at the gray cloths in front of her. Inside those cloths lay Link's final message, a supposedly cryptic note that Niko could not decipher, accompanied by an object, a gift meant for her. He most likely was waiting for the perfect moment to give it to her, and she was scaring him off every time. She tried a couple of times to reach for the object in front of her, but she felt as though something inside her stopped her. The guilt inside her was wrenching her so that she felt unworthy to even touch Link's final gift. Her heartache was getting so painful she heavily considered just leaving the object there and return to her room where she wouldn't be bothered. However, she remembered Niko's words: Link wanted her to be happy, and he wanted her to move on. Even if it pained her, even if it made her arm twitch and tense up, she decided to open the cloth and see what Link had left her.
Inside, there were two things: First, the note Niko was talking about, a crumpled, worn piece of paper with words and drawings hastily written in. Second, Link's Wind Waker conductor's baton, the mystical musical instrument that allowed Link to control the winds and warp to certain places, among other things. As she looked to the baton longingly, she began to remember the times she's seen Link using it, from one time he changed the direction of the wind to their advantage against another pirate gang to the latest when he figured out a bird's thoughts and feelings by waving it around. Tetra's fingers ran gently through the white baton's grooves, as if thinking she were indirectly caressing Link's own hands. Before grasping it, though, Tetra decided to go for the piece of paper first, in a sudden desire to know what it said. While it was indeed addressed to Tetra, Link's message read more like a miniature instruction booklet than an actual message. Some ramblings about thinking up as north and down as south and 3/4 time and 4/4 time and drawings with arrows pointing everywhere provided the bulk of the writings. One particular set of drawings, arrows pointing down, right, left and up in that order, was circled and 'important' was written by it. Among the instructions, however, was a small message Tetra discovered at the bottom of the paper:
Never say never. There's always a way.
I know you can do it.
Tetra's eyes welled up as she reread the small message on the paper. It was almost as if from the beyond, Link was still trying to cheer her up and give her a reason to live. Tetra grasped that piece of paper tightly with both hands and pressed it against her chest while her mouth transformed into a sort of sad smile and she closed her eyes in a vain attempt to suppress newly formed tears from rolling down her cheeks.
Just then, a warm, bright glow resonated from Tetra's body, brightening up everything around her.
"So how are we?" Niko called as he climbed back up the ladder to the crow's nest, balancing the promised meal in his head. "I hope you like the classic ham and cheese sandwich. It was all I could smuggle from the mess hall. Senza can be such a dictator sometimes when it comes to food." When he reached the crow's nest and went for Tetra, he started noticing something strange in her, but he couldn't put his finger where. After all, she was still looking rather pale, she still had bags under her bloodshot eyes, her hair was still a mess, and she still had that malnourished look about her. But there was something else definitely there, something mere mortal eyes couldn't see. Maybe it was her posture, now sitting with her back straightened up, maybe it was the fact that she was looking at him more attentive than before, or maybe it was the small smile forming in her face. Either way, she was already looking changed. "So, did you figure it out?"
Tetra looked back at the crumpled piece of paper in her hands. Going through the instructions once over gave her an improved sense of understanding. North, south, east, west... it was not a mention to cardinal points, but actually movements of the baton. If she followed the movements on the sheet of paper in the proper timing, she may create the same effects Link did. But wait, she thought, if Link could do it because he was the chosen 'Waker of the Winds', how could she do it, having no real connection to the baton?
"Looks like you're mulling over it a lot." Niko said, keeping a watchful eye over Tetra. "Why don't you eat over it?" He then re-offered the simple sandwich to her.
The sky was clear. The wind gave a soft breeze. The ocean was calm and its wakes were small. There was nobody on deck except her. If anything, Tetra figured, this would be the perfect time to give this a try.
Tetra balanced herself expertly on the tip of the ship's bowspirit, and looking straight at the sea, pointed the Wind Waker baton as if there was a row of people waiting for her to begin conducting. She took a quick glance at the paper and decided to practice a simple one: the Wind's Requiem. She swung the baton according to how she interpreted the instructions: she imagined a map in front of her and she was pointing the directions in it. She managed to conduct the baton correctly... but nothing happened. She looked at the baton curiously, wondering where did she go wrong. She tried conducting at a slower pace... nothing. She tried conducting faster than before... nothing. She tried making sure her timing was pitch perfect... nothing. Not a sound, not an effect... absolutely nothing. She tried conducting again and again and again... but nothing was resulting, increasing her frustration levels. It reached the point where she couldn't handle it anymore, and she threw the white baton towards the mast.
She regretted that immediately. As soon as she let go of the baton, Tetra saw how a piece of green cloth got tangled in it, threatening to fly away in the wind. Tetra's eyes widened in terror, and she ran towards where the baton (which was just barely hanging on to the torn piece of cloth) fell. She skidded in the floor and clutched the cloth tightly, carrying by extension the baton. Tetra was wearily getting on her feet when she stumbled and tripped, resorting to crashing onto the mast to avoid falling back down. 'What do you want from me?' she thought as she looked into the green cloth, her face drawing into desperate frustration. 'What am I supposed to do now, Link? I can't do this. Whatever you did to make this thing work, I don't have it. But this is all you left me, so...' Her thoughts began to race as she searched in her mind all the times that she shared with Link.
She remembered when Link offered her a piece of brownie cake.
"You must have known..."
She remembered when Link and her were paired up by none other than the Goddesses themselves.
"There was something..."
She remembered the smiling face of Link as he grabbed hold of her arm to save her from falling down a pit.
"You knew I had..."
She remembered Link giving her a yellowed piece of paper which belonged to the Ancient Hyrulian Book.
"Even if I didn't..." Tetra's eyes opened up really wide. Realization hit her like a ton of bricks when she remembered what that piece of paper said: It explained the basics behind the Light Force, a mystical energy innate to the women in the royal family. "Could I use the Light Force to make the baton work? How?" She looked again at the baton wrapped around the torn green cloth, and sighed dejectedly imagining the futility of it all. Then, words from Link's message popped into her mind like a beacon in the night: I know you can do it.
Tetra raised her gaze to the skies, letting her eyes lose themselves in the infinite expansions of white and blue, letting her mind wander a bit. Even as he was not among them, Link was not giving up on her. Why, then, should she be so easily frustrated and give up. "All right." She whispered. "I'll do it. For you."
Tetra returned to the bowspirit and positioned herself in a conducting stance, focusing more on her inner self and on her heart than on the more technical things like timing or speed. She began pointing the Wind Waker baton upwards, and in one smooth motion swung it towards her left, then her right. At the end, though, a soft white light began glowing from Tetra's hand, which extended and covered the baton. A soft, ethereal melody began to play apparently from nowhere, followed by the winds changing direction and becoming stronger... more uplifting, if you will. The wind played gracefully with Tetra's hair, lifting it sideways and forming smooth waves with it, and ruffled with her clothes energetically and cheerfully. For the first time in three days, Tetra was genuinely smiling and laughing.
"The convoy was burning and their occupants were screaming for help. Jack sought to put out the flames, but bandits were keeping him at bay, hollering and whooping as the flames continued to rise."
Gonzo was sitting quietly in his bunk, doing some much-needed catching on on a book he had bought sometime before. Things were going relatively calm today, so he thought he could leave things run their course without him. Of course, when one is aboard this particular pirate ship, one should know that things are never quiet for long, something that Gonzo should have known better.
[THUMP!]
[REEEEEN! REEEEEEEN!]
[CRASH!]
"What does a man need to do to get some quiet time in here?" Gonzo grumbled as he set the book down and set to investigate the source of the noise. After checking the cargo hold, the mess hall and the cannons, he walked up to the top deck, only to find a mess of bags and a tipped-over boat at starboard. Gonzo gave a loud groan and began walking towards the mess. "Whoever is responsible for this better come forward. You'll punishment will be less severe if you..." He suddenly stopped cold when he saw something within the spilled items, a distinguishing feature that was not part of any pirate ranked below him. It was an arm covered in wraps. "Eh... Miss Tetra?"
"Less criticizing... and more helping..." Tetra managed to utter underneath the wreckage. "... Please."
The preparations were ready: the boat was set, the cargo was loaded, and the lines were ready lo be lowered. The only thing that was missing was the occupant.
"Are you sure you don't want any company, Miss Tetra?" Gonzo insisted, worried about his captain's decision to go on this trip alone. Tetra answered by stopping by him and shaking her head quietly. Tetra began walking towards the boat, sent off by her crew in the utmost respect. At the end stood Niko, sporting that silly, buck-toothed smile of his, fiddling with his collar neck occasionally. Tetra stopped by him and looked at him meaningfully, to which Niko nodded courteously. Suddenly, Tetra went for her buck-toothed subordinate and grabbed him on a tightening embrace, surprising everyone, especially Niko, who was not sure if he should return the hug.
"Thanks, Niko." Tetra whispered in Niko's ear before letting go of him. Niko looked thoroughly embarrassed with his flushed expression, his darting eyes and his awkward smile.
"Eh... it was nothing, captain." Niko managed to say while trying to hide his red face.
And with some final goodbyes, Tetra boarded the boat and rowed some distance away into open sea. Once she did, she pulled out the Wind Waker baton, which was now adorned with the ragged green cloth, and following the instructions in the message, she tried the directions that were circled: the Ballad of Gales. She conducted in one smooth, fluid motion which invoked another soft melody to play from the winds, after which a large, red, froggish figure riding a cloud screamed through the air until it stopped suddenly within feet of Tetra's face.
"So where to now, green kid?" Cyclos asked, not really looking at who was holding the baton. Tetra cleared her throat to get the large frog's attention. "What? Hey, you're not the green kid." Cyclos noticed.
"Yeah, well... I'm a friend of his." Tetra said, still spooked by the gargantuan red frog staring at her with weird jumpy eyes, uncomfortably close to her. "Can you take me somewhere? Please?"
"Well... I don't know..." Cyclos mused for a while and drifted back a ways, giving Tetra some much-needed breather space. "I am supposed only to ferry the Wind Waker..." Tetra presented him the baton she was holding in response. "I meant the person who uses that... The chosen one... Green kid!" Cyclos sighed heavily after losing energy getting exasperated for no particular reason. "Where is he?"
"He..." Tetra began turning her head away from Cyclos, wondering how she would tell him. "He's indisposed. He needs me to go somewhere, somewhere only you can take me..."
"Well, I don't mean to brag, but..."
"I don't wanna say more here." Tetra stated. Cyclos eyes her cautiously over that last statement. He was definitely suspicious of her, but he saw through those firm, determined blue eyes of Tetra's and determined she was not pulling his leg. "But I really need you now."
"Well, If the Wind Waker wills it, then I will oblige." Cyclos shrugged. "Where to, O loopy-haired one?"
"I can't believe I'm saying this..." Tetra said, remembering the last times she rode the winds to arrive someplace remote. "... but take me to where the Queen of the Fairies dwells." she declared firmly.
"Talk about stuck-up..." Cyclos muttered under his breath before beginning to swirl around Tetra's boat faster and faster, forming a humongous tornado that lifted the boat off the water, disappearing into the skies above.
"I'll never get used to this..." Tetra said forcibly as she clutched the sides of the boat almost desperately. The tornado had long since dissipated, and the boat had stayed still for a good time, but still she lay, her back to the skies, willing herself not to puke what little food was in her stomach. After the dizziness wore off (well, enough to let her stand up, at least), she saw that she had made it. She was in the Fairy Queen's fountain. It had changed little since the last time she was there with Link a few weeks ago. Perhaps here she could find the answers to what was troubling her.
Then, a small jingling sound was emitted from behind her. When Tetra turned around, she saw a small brown thing hide quickly among the trees. Tetra was curious as to what kind of creature would be hiding in this otherwise desolate place. Disregarding the current urgent matter for a moment, she hopped off the boat and headed to where the small brown thing was. As she drew closer, the jingling got more jittery and irregular, seemingly simulating fear. When she got close enough to appreciate what was behind the trees, a small, round, wooden creature with stumpy appendages and a leaf that acted as a mask stared back at her. She only had time to open her mouth to try and talk to it when the creature yelped in an oddly cute tone that could be best described as a high-pitched gurgling voice, and ran off as fast as his stumpy little legs allowed it, jingling at every step.
"Wait!" Tetra called, trying to get the wooden creature's attention. "I just want to ask you something... and there he goes." She finished, half-annoyed.
"Yeah, he's a bit timid. Give him some time. He'll warm up to you."
"Wha... AAAAH!" Tetra yelped startled to find Venus floating JUST behind her. She took a few steps back as she tried to calm her nerves. "What is it with mystical creatures ignoring personal space today?"
Venus took a quick glance at Tetra before floating off to where the stumpy creature had fled. "Makar." She called. "Don't worry, you can come out. There's nothing to fear." Tetra was feeling awkwardly left out of the conversation as Venus kept her back turned. It was not for long, though, as Venus turned back carrying the wooden creature in her hands. "See? She's not scary."
"Eh... hi." Tetra said stiffly. "What's your name?"
"I'm... I'm Makar." the small wooden creature said, still a bit timid, but showing signs of gathering courage. "I'm just a simple wood spirit that loves the forest."
"He's so modest." Venus said. "He's sage of the earth. He works with the Deku Tree to expand the forest to all reaches possible. Also, he plays a mean violin."
"That loopy hair..." Makar said as he pointed over to Tetra's hair. Tetra was getting increasingly annoyed by this. "I know you! You're that pirate girl that was with Link. Link and I are buds, you know. So? So? You heard anything about him?"
"That's a good question, Makar." Venus validated the creature's inquiry. She then looked straight at Tetra with a real quizzical stare. "So where is Linky? Is he hiding from me, the tease?"
Tetra was getting an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Here she was, in front of the one she wanted to meet, talking about what she wanted to talk about... but her nerves were betraying her. There was a nagging feeling in her mind, something that she might have forgotten, but couldn't quite spot it.
"Link's..." Tetra struggled to even cope with the thought, uttering it was a whole different matter. "Link was... He got..."
Venus' face was slowly transforming from her inquiring state to a more worried look as she saw Tetra struggle with such a simple question. The mere fact that the pirate leader was stuttering nervously gave Venus the answer she sought, though it was not she wished to know. "Link's gone, isn't he? From among us?"
Tetra did not dare look forward. "Yes." She managed to say in almost a whisper.
Venus sighed deeply as she set Makar down to the ground. She floated lazily about as she pondered the situation. "I have to wonder..." She said as she looked over to Tetra. "Do you even remember what I told you?"
"What?" Tetra asked in response.
"Just as well... I feared this would happen." Venus turned sideways dramatically. "Link was gonna get swamped by everything, trying to get you to act your role, which you haven't. And when the inevitable happened, there would be no one else to blame but you."
"WHAT?!" Tetra snapped, her fury blaring like it hasn't in a while. "If you think you can resolve this by putting the blame on me, then you got another thing coming. I don't care if you're a deity or not! You oughta show some more respect!"
"Well..."Venus said, turning her back fully at Tetra, and began floating away. "If that is your way of thinking, then I'm afraid this conversation is over."
"No-- No! Wait!" Tetra pleaded, her rage suddenly drained and replaced with a sense of urgency and desperation. "I... I'm sorry. I just need your help really bad. I'm desperate. I don't know what to do. I haven't eaten much of anything in three days, I've barely slept, I'm growing pale as a scrap of paper... I can't even think properly, because every time I try to stop and think about anything, he pops right in. My mind keeps repeating that fateful moment and everything that happened before. I know I was a jerk to him, and still he sacrificed himself for me. I tried so hard to rescue him, but it was all for naught. I saw his horror-stricken eyes as he was dragged into the sand by these two beastly severed hands. I cannot even begin to describe the grief that torments me. It's so bad that it took until now for me to get over my whiny, moping self long enough to come here, in search for something, anything, because in this broken, barely beating blood bridge of mine sill resides that minuscule sliver of hope that he's still alive, that Link somehow survived the onslaught against the two hands and tons of pounds and pressure of sand, that he is waiting for me somewhere, and I will be able to see him once more. So please." Tetra's voice was breaking severely at this moment while she fought back newly formed tears. "Don't go. I have nowhere else to turn."
While her back was still turned, Venus' feeling could easily be interpreted. Her arms flopped down, only climbing up vaguely, in a vain attempt to look cheery. She also did not float about, but merely stood still, rapt with attention. Her eyes were closed in deep meditation, procuring the wisdom to answer properly to this. "You should know..." she began, "That you will not like that I have to tell you. Will you hear it?"
Tetra did not need to think much of it. As harsh as the Fairy Queen's words were to be, she could not risk simply missing out on them. "Yes." She said firmly.
"Very well..." Venus began. "Do you truly not remember what I told you last time?"
Tetra remained quiet for a few moments. She tried hard to remember what the Fairy Queen had told her last time, but she couldn't think up much. It wasn't a long time ago, but so much has happened in that time, it was hard to concentrate on one specific thought. "You said... That I should follow the book." Venus nodded as Tetra began remembering correctly. "And you told me to... to take care of Link..."
"Yes." Venus said. "And remember when I call you on not being honest with yourself? I told you to be more honest with yourself, 'cause that would save you a lot of headaches. Were you being honest with yourself?"
"Yes." Tetra immediately responded. "I've... I've tried to do as was told, and tried to progress through the challenges and find the missing pages as quickly as I could, and... what?"
Venus shaking her head and holding her hand up was what made Tetra stop mid-sentence. "Nope, nope. You and I both know that's not what I meant." She then began floating around Tetra more closely, examining her closely. "It's just like this bun in your head. You have beautiful hair, don't you? Yet you choose to roll it up in a way that makes you look like some sort of creature that'd be fit to live in a snowflake. You have great potential, but you choose to decide to shoo that potential away, since you can't really hide it, and leave it in the corner like it was the last thing you'll use."
"Ok... I think I get it." Tetra said, still trying to make sense of everything. "I have potential, but I've been neglecting it, right?" Venus nodded in approval at this. "But, and this is the clincher, I don't know of this potential I'm supposed to have, so then there must be something wrong somewhere. Am I wrong?"
"Nope. You're getting there." Venus said with a grin on her face, seemingly enjoying seeing Tetra fill in the blanks. "I also saw something wrong last time. Back then, there was no doubt the missing pages were the problem. After all, how would you know how to become a proper ruler if the instruction manual didn't have the crucial information?" Venus' complexion then turned into a more serious one. "Now, however, you should have enough information to at least pull a decent show as princess, but here you are, still the same ragtag pirate that asked me whether my doll was creepy and hesitated to produce the Goddesses' Compass, an essential item to finishing your quest. You have been tepid at best in your quest to reclaim your new kingdom, doing only the bare minimum, thinking only of finishing as quickly as possible, like this were just another one of your adventures. And this, all this that's happened to Link and all of your anguish, they're a direct result of it."
Tetra started looking down to her feet with a pained expression on her face. The pangs on her chest were burning anew, strengthened by Venus' words. "So... that's it." Tetra said, almost whispering. "I'm through. I messed up royally, and I can't even find a way to justify it. And worse, it seems like there's not even a way to rectify it." Tetra's hands began to tremble involuntarily as she slowly ran headlong into the brick wall she had wanted to avoid. "It's my fault. Because of me, Link's..."
"No." Venus interrupted Tetra's self-branding tirade. "I never said it could not be rectified." At this statement, Tetra's eyes opened wide and stared straight at Venus in a stated of subdued shock. "Again, what I'll ask of you, you may not like, but I want you to explain exactly what happened that day."
"That day?" Tetra did not understand the Fairy Queen's request. "Why?"
"Well, sometimes you can find that one detail that can make a difference." Venus explained. "It's worked for the Phoenix, you know."
"Well, he... I... I fell, and he..."
"Ok, tell you what." Venus interrupted, opting to sit at the edge of the boat while prompting her guests to sit as well (Makar found a seat right by Tetra's legs). "Start from the beginning of that day, try to not leave anything of importance out."
Tetra closed her eyes in deep concentration, breathed in deeply, and then, to the best of her ability, recounted the events of that day. She spoke of how she was in a foul mood in the morning, of how she was afraid of going to the desert, but Link convinced her otherwise. She spoke of the Garo and their curse, of the different traps and dangers found inside the caverns, of the gigantic prisoner inside. She spoke of her less-than-helpful manner, of her scorning comments and of her senseless lack of trust, which she expressed deep regret as she considered it a factor in Link's despondent attitude. She then spoke, laboriously so, of Link's final moments, how he still worked alongside her, how he saved her and tried to save himself as well, and how two ghastly overgrown purple detached hands wrangled him and sank him into the sand.
"The only thing I managed to save from him... was a lone piece of cloth from his sleeve. I still keep it close to me at all times."
Venus' eyes remained closed the whole way through in deep meditation over the things Tetra had told her. She remained like this for a while, while Tetra breathed deeply as to avoid another breakdown. Finally, the Fairy Queen spoke, with the most serious of tones despite her smiling face, the words that were buzzing through her mind ever since Tetra's plea.
"You love him, don't you?"
Tetra was taken aback by this. What color she had regained in the last few hours was gone, as was her ability to speak. Her eyes resembled two dinner plates, her mouth remained stupidly half-opened and her hands were frozen in place. Her breathing became shallow, beads of sweat inexplicably started rolling from her forehead and her heart drummed up to a faster beat. Never before in her life had a simple sentence brought upon her such an extraordinarily shocking and confusing array of sensations, clashing thoughts and feelings. For the briefest of moments, she thought to answer 'does it matter', but somehow she just couldn't. She searched inside herself for the reason behind her reaction, to make some sense of it all. As hard as she tried, though, there was no real rationale behind this, and trying to use logic did not help. Perhaps, she thought, this goes beyond reason, beyond sense, and no logic could try and resolve it. Perhaps, it just... existed. Its answer, however, may have been given to her already... by the creepy silverish vacant-eyed fairy that chose to look like a child.
Tetra looked at Venus' general direction... but she did not say a word, nor did she nod. She merely looked everywhere but the fairy's face while rubbing the back of her neck, her face flushing red and her heart beating so hard she thought everyone could hear it.
And to add salt to the wound, Venus found herself having a good laugh at the situation. "If anything, I say that you're starting to become honest with yourself." Venus said. "Last time I even suggested something like that, you went wiiiild, girl. You would've hit me in the face if you had the chance." The fairy queen began floating around airily until she positioned herself where she usually appeared. "Now, perhaps that you're moving on the right path, I'll tell you what you came to hear, but only if you listen to everything I say. All right?"
"The right... I... you..." Tetra tried, but something kept her from retorting. Instead, she limited herself nodding in understanding.
"Very well... Link... may still be alive." Venus said, leading to an audible gasp by Tetra. "I can't give you 100% certainty for this, but by the way he was taken, there was a possibility he could survive. One thing's for sure, though: He is definitely no longer in this realm. If you do seek to claim him, you need to go to a place that connects with the spirit realm. Luckily for you, such a place exists within the New land of Hyrule, north-to-northwest of the main country called Waarheid. There will be doorways that seem to open to nowhere to signal where it is. However, it is currently invisible as a method of protection, and you will not be able to enter unless you present your royal credentials in full. You are here as Captain Tetra the pirate, but when you get there, you must be Princess Zelda, heir to the throne. A simple wardrobe change will not be enough, either." Venus said while eying Tetra's get-up. "I say you can even stay in those if you're comfortable in them. The point is what's inside you. You need to embrace your heritage. You need to truly understand the mystical blood that runs in your veins. You need to -and I hate to sound like I'm repeating myself, so listen closely- become more honest with yourself."
"Well... I tried something today." Tetra said, her eyebrows furrowed in a reflective look. "It's what brought me here. The page Link gave me called it the 'Light Force'."
"Yes!" Venus shrieked, stretching her arms forward in excitement. "By Farore, she's getting it. You're starting to learn what your mystical powers can do, and I applaud you for it. So tell me..." Venus lowered herself to see Tetra at face level. "How did it work?"
"Well..." Tetra began, hesitating in explaining things like they were. "Link left me a message, saying he believed in me, so I just couldn't give up..." She fiddled in her bag and inched out the Wind Waker baton dressed in Link's ragged green cloth. "So I searched deep inside myself, letting my heart dictate my flow, and... And I did it."
"You know what you did, right?" Venus said, grinning like an idiot the whole way through. "Take off every excuse, every thought that holds you back, every vain ambition of your old pirate life, 'cause yes, it's old news, and the only reason you're still there is because it's a tool in recovering what's rightfully yours. You have changed, and it's time you reflect that change. Let your heart reign, let your true self shine above your facade, let..."
"Wait!" Tetra interrupted Venus' speech. "That's just it. That's where I'm bound to fail. I have checked myself a few times, and I can assure you there is no hidden 'me'. This is me. I am what I am now. I may yell a lot, I may bellow orders left and right, I may get annoyed easily, I may like to wear my hair up in a bun, I may change my mood in a flash, but guess what? I love me. I'm rough, I'm tough... heck, I've walked through places infested with rats and snakes like they were nothing, and I don't think I'll change. I just don't see myself if I'm not like that."
"Well, then, it's a good thing I never talked about personality." Venus said casually, shutting Tetra up immediately. "You need to be Princess Zelda. You don't need to abandon yourself entirely, though. If you wanna be a rough-n-tough princess, go right ahead. In fact, I think I've heard of at least two other Princesses that were just like that, though my memory of it is very faint."
"All right." Tetra said, nodding in understanding. "So all I have to do is follow my heart?"
"No." Venus exclaimed, still smiling widely. "You gotta get your nose in that book, polish yourself, and pay extra attention to the pages you recovered. They have essential information on how to live your heritage."
Tetra hissed inwardly at the mention of the term heritage. "I'll admit, it's still scary for me. I don't know if I can do it."
Then, a jingling sound made Tetra's attention turn to the stumpy creature right by her. "Don't worry. It'll all be okay." Makar reassured the blond pirate. "I remember when I was deep in the Forbidden Woods, about to be swallowed by a ginormous plant. I kept saying to myself: it'll all be okay, it'll all be okay. And you know what happened?" Makar stopped just long enough to see Tetra's small smile, though her eyes were looking a bit lost. "Link saved me. He went in there, not knowing what he was going to find and... Whack! Slice! Pow! He killed that stupid plant and took me home. That's when Link and I became friends."
"Well that's nice." Tetra said.
"Link trusts you. I know, otherwise you wouldn't have his conductor's baton. And now, he's me. He's at the maw of the killer plant, and he can't do much, but he knows he can confidently repeat the mantra: everything will be okay. What happens next..." He then pointed at Tetra with his stumpy arm, "is up to you."
"There's one more thing, though." Venus said, her smiling face sliding away. "Link may not have much time. I'm not sure how much, but the sooner you go there, the better your chances of rescuing him. If you truly love him, you will do the impossible to review all there is within the Ancient Book and go to the place that connects with the spirits. If you are too late, then I'm afraid that Link may truly die."
Tetra had a sudden surge of dread creep up her body. She looked up to Venus for a sign that she may be joking on that last statement... but there was nothing even suggesting it. Venus was, for lack of a better term, dead serious about this. Tetra sighed deeply, realization hitting her hard in the face. This was no longer her last great adventure, as she first declared. This was no longer one of her pirate things. This was very serious. She could barely believe it, but it came down to this: Link's life depended on her ability to co-opt her Zelda persona.
This time, however, she was ready to take the plunge. "All right." Tetra said softly. "I will do it. I will leave my pirate past behind, and I will do my best to become the heir I need to be." At that moment, Tetra bit her lips to avoid saying the two words her heart was screaming to say.
"Remember, the Light Force will benefit you greatly if you can master it." Venus reminded Tetra as she started to pull out the Wind Waker baton. "You can even sway the Goddesses' Compass to guide you to the place that connects with the Spirit Realm with the Light Force's influence."
"Thanks." Tetra answered.
"Also..." Venus said teasingly." What have I been saying constantly?"
"Eh... I should be more honest with myself?" Tetra said, unsure where that came from.
"Right." Venus said. "So you can begin by saying those two words your heart is screaming to say."
Tetra tried to hide her shock, but the fact that the Fairy Queen knew that was surprising, to say something. At the end, though, she smiled at Venus and uttered in what could be her calmest way today: "For him."
"Great." Venus beamed at Tetra. "Oh, and do come back, darling. I enjoy your visits."
And with that final exchange of words, Tetra began conducting the Ballad of Gales. The first time she tried, though, she was very shaky (her fear of that mighty powerful tornado overtook her), but after concentrating harder, her second time was far more smooth, and the tornado was successfully summoned, sending her on her way back home.
Still at the fairy's fountain, though, Makar began approaching Venus, who seemed to be staring at the pond in a trance. He than asked what nobody thought he was to ask.
"Venus... how do you know so much? About all that you told her?"
"Oh?" Venus snapped out of her trance and looked over at where Makar stood, recognizing his presence. "Oh! Well, I get around, you know. I don't just stay here for eternity. I visit the spirits, the deities, the Goddesses. There are parties often as well. In fact, as sage, you can go there if you want. We could even bring that bird girl, Medli, with us."
"Oh, no. Not her." Makar said in an annoyed tone that was quite unlike him. "Whenever I have to meet with her, my hearing hurts. I mean, it almost always devolves to Komali this, and Komali that. You'd think after 50 reunions she'd get tired of it or run out of stuff to say, but noooo. I don't even know why she's sage. I've seen her predecessor, and they look nothing alike. I think they're not even blood related."
"Well... I'll fill you in on a secret." Venus said in a hushed voice, inching closer to Makar's side. "They're not. Truly. But the Goddesses needed one to fill the role, and she had the harp, so..."
Makar nodded slowly as he took in that revelation. Then, with his question answered, he wobbled with his signature jingling towards the trees to tend for them.
Venus then resumed her trance-like state of looking down at the pond and sighed deeply, downhearted. "Oh, Linky... I guess it really was her, after all..."
**To Be Continued**