Chapter Nine
One Won't Hurt...
Linebeck kicks a rock into the bushes, swearing.
He was returning to the ship after checking out an a bit of gossip about a woman fitting Linette's age and looks, seemingly hanging around a house near the graveyard, a good distance from the island's town. Linebeck had immediately headed out, keeping his heart from hoping that it was a clue to his sister's whereabouts.
However, the house was more or less considered a shack and a beaten down one at that. Linebeck thought that one good kick from him could tumble the whole structure. He tried the door, and to look in the windows. However, the door is bolted shut from the inside and the window looked like they haven't been cleaned in hundred of years, preventing Linebeck from looking inside. There was a moment when he swore he almost saw a bit of movement inside but a moth flew by him, and Linebeck brushed it off as the shadow of the bug.
Linebeck left the area, disgusted and beginning to become creeped out by the graveyard, with the feeling of eyes watching him in the lowering darkness.
As he walked along, Linebeck slowly was becoming more and more bitter.
"That old woman was probably senile," he gripes in an undertone. Pitching his voice to sound like a bad rendition of an old woman, he cruelly mocks her, "oh yes! I remember a girl about that description hanging around the house past the graveyard!" Voice dropping back to his normal tone, "yeah fucking right," he scoffs, kicking another rock, "batty old woman."
Linebeck heaves a sigh, stuffing his hands in his pockets, staring up at the stars appearing in the night sky.
"Am I ever gonna find you, Net?" He mutters.
His heart clenches as the memory of seeing Linette last moves up into his mind. She was running to the house, a blue tala in her hair and one held in her hand, a flower for her art class project. Her sky blue coat, identical to his, fluttering in the wind. Linette looked carefree and happy in his memory, no thought of the horror that was going to strike her in the night.
The memory was becoming hazy as well the others of Linette. Three years had passed, meaning the twins were nineteen and adults. Linebeck barely recognized himself when compared to the pictures of his younger self. He didn't even dare think what Linette may look like after three years under Jolon or even trying to survive on her own. The nightmares on their own were enough to ruin Linette's memory with images of her bloodstain face.
Linebeck shakes his head, trying to dispel the images. He continues on, wanting to simply return to the ship and lose himself in the waves lapping against the steamboat's sides. Still he couldn't rid of that feeling he's being watched, nay, followed. He jerks around when the road from town split into two, one leading to the graveyard and the other to the shipyard, knowing he just heard footfalls behind him. But there had been no one else in the graveyard when Linebeck was there and no other path to the place.
For a moment, he swore that he just saw a dark figure duck into the bushes, his face obscured in the growing darkness.
Linebeck frowns, and begins walking back where he came, intending to investigate.
However, he begins hearing the voices of two sailors singing loudly in the dark, signaling them coming down the path from the shipyard.
"And we pull down the line, ho! Swinging the boon. Ho! We pray to the Ladies, ho! We'll be home soon. Ho!"
They were two veteran sailors on one of the commercial trading ships, grizzly looking with tattoos all down their arms, rich brown and black beards, and rippling muscles from working lines. Cutlasses hung from their waist, protection against pirates, smacking against their legs in tune with their gait.
At mentioning of pirates, a certain brown-skinned piratess flashed through Linebeck's mind, causing him to stop in the path with a troubled expression.
Linebeck squashes the image and the disgust at himself still within him, even with months having passed since the separation, deep into the recesses of his mind, where the lingering nightmares of Linette's fate rested during his time in the waking world.
"What's this?" One of the sailors say, ending the badly sung song between the two sailors. Linebeck nearly groans aloud, not wanting to deal with the sailors. The captain grits his teeth and continues on, hoping the sailors would leave him alone. However, that prayer was in vain as the two walk up along each side of Linebeck, preventing him from going to the shipyard and instead towards town.
"So what's got you looking like you just got a black spot?" One sailor says, nudging Linebeck roughly, nearly tumbling the young man. This causes the two men to roar in laughter.
Linebeck sends a glare towards the offending sailor, before continuing on, not saying anything. The sailors still flanked the captain, not letting him go anywhere and when Linebeck would sped up to try to escape them, they easily matched his pace.
"I don't think he's gonna say anything, Aster," one of the sailors states, slapping Linebeck on the back, again nearly tumbling him to the road.
"Hey, now don't be so rough with the lad," Aster says, placing a hand on his friend's arm, "the bloke looks like a real number's been done on him."
Linebeck sends a hostile glare towards Aster, before trying to lose the sailors but to no luck as the sailors match his pace again, "like hell if you think I'm going to tell you my story."
The more rowdy sailor speeds up and gives Linebeck a quick once-over, "reminds me of myself when a girl first broke my heart."
Linebeck winces, the sailor's assessment hitting a little too close to home, "try it the other way around."
The sailor lets out a crow of triumph, "I knew it. Nothing brings down a male more than troubles caused by a woman."
The trio, (unwanted on Linebeck's part) began reaching the outskirts of the town on the island. Houses and businesses occur more as they continue on, the streets becoming more lighted with streetlights.
"And there is only one solution to women troubles," Aster says, beginning to loosen up, "and that is a pint or two down at the pub."
"Hell yeah. The night is young, and so are we- er well this bloke looks young. Ourselves one the other hand..." he trails off, chuckling, Aster joining him.
Linebeck grimaces. "These idiots are like this without alcohol?"
"Hey, how old are you anyway?" Aster inquires, looking down at Linebeck with a quirk eyebrow. He makes Linebeck stop in front of a building, his friend standing on the other side of Linebeck.
Linebeck matches Aster's expression before slowly answering with, "nineteen."
"You're old enough for a pint or two then! Name's Phynise, by the way," the second sailor says, holding out his hand for Linebeck to shake, "and you are?"
Linebeck doesn't take Phynise's offered hand, instead holding them up, "I don't drink," he states, going on the defensive.
"Ah, come on," Aster carols, bringing Linebeck closer to the bar's door, "a pint never hurt anybody."
Phynise nods his agreement, "in fact, after long months at sea, being able to sit down with a drink for a few hours, forgetting all the shit in the world? Sounds like the Sacred Realm to me."
At those words, Linebeck pauses. He stands there, pondering the sailors' words that were drowning out the cautionary tales of his mother. The bar's music filters out into the night, a siren call for the lonely lovers and world-weary sailors.
"Well, like you said... one can't hurt..." Linebeck says, giving in.
Phynise lets out a crow, opening up the bar door with a flourish. Aster pushes Linebeck in. "First round's on us!"
As soon as Linebeck stepped into the building, the smell of the bar assaults his senses. A mixture of sweat, smoke and stale vomit chokes the captain, causing Linebeck to pause before Aster again gives him a shove towards the bar.
As they walk through, Linebeck notes the differences in this bar, and Mr. Rybak's back on Farqay island. First off was the smell, Linebeck still not getting used to the scent. Second was how dimly lit the place was, causing hulking figures to become more menacing and dangerous looking. An air of danger pervaded the place, making Linebeck nervous. His insides were quailing, and if not for Aster and Phynise's firm grip on his shoulders, he would have turned right around and jack-rabbit out of there.
The three seat themselves at the bar, Aster ordering up the drinks. Soon, three drinks sat before the sailors. Aster and Phynise don't reach for their drinks as soon as the bartender walks away. Instead, they turn and look expectantly at Linebeck, nodding to his drink.
Linebeck's eyes dart between the two before settling on his drink, reaching for the drink. Internally grunting at the unexpected weight, he brings the drink to his lips and takes a hefty swig, trying to prove himself to the two sailors.
It sends him sputtering back out the drink, the liquid searing his throat and taste buds protesting at the bitter taste. Linebeck's nose and throat burns as he coughs. "Stronger than I thought," he rasps out.
Phynise and Aster roar in return. Linebeck glares at them with hurt pride.
"Go on and try again. With a smaller sip, might I add," Aster prods, "don't feel bad however, we did the same damn thing." He chuckles and finally takes his own ale to drink.
Linebeck eyes the drink, then Aster, before relenting and picking back up the mug. He takes a much smaller, more cautionary sip this time around. Prepared for the bitterness, Linebeck was able to taste the underlying flavor of the ale. Another sip and Linebeck nods his liking of the drink.
Aster and Phynise nod back to the captain, before falling into easy conversation with each other. Linebeck simply listens to the tales of the sailors, working his way through the drink.
Halfway through his second mug of ale, Linebeck notices a warm feeling in the belly of his stomach and slight buzz in his head. Bit fuzzy headed as well, but Linebeck simply ignores it, continuing to listen to the sailors' tales around him, starting to throw in a few himself, albeit with a few embellishments but what they didn't know won't hurt them, right? Not like they weren't doing the same.
By Linebeck's third drink, the atmosphere of the bar changed into a friendly aura. Tales and racy jokes are traded easily.
Linebeck forgot the hell of the past three years, hooking him to that warm, numb feeling given by the drink.
...
"And that's how I scared off fifty moblins with nothing but a few sparkles, and a cucco. " Linebeck slurs, throwing one arm widely around.
The barkeeper on windfall's bar nods absent-mindlessly, letting the 20-year-old sailor ramble on with his drunken story. It was outrageous and the barkeeper knew that Linebeck was having too much to drink. The barkeeper had half a mind just to throw the pathetic soul out, but the captain was paying for his drinks (so far) and nobody was really getting harmed by the sailor. Thusly, the barkeeper let the captain stay.
He glances over at Linebeck, then looks back down at the glass he was cleaning, heaving a heavy sigh. "Poor guy." He mummers, moving over to another customer.
Four years after the death of Marlene and Linette's kidnapping, Captain Linebeck Brante was a drunken mess.
The insomnia that plagued Linebeck ever since he left raged in full swing. Linebeck got sleep after drinking himself into a stupor, trying to prevent any nightmare that still attacked him. The bags under his eyes that are bruised, and his gaunt face made the captain look older than he really was. His clothes were often in a state of disarray, calling out to his method of simply passing out in them and rolling out of bed the next morning. And then of course, was the addiction.
That addiction was the main cause of the captain's downfall. If not for those two sailors offering him that first drink, Linebeck wouldn't be scrounging for cheap treasures to pay for the drinks he downed. Money that their original focus would have been to fuel Linette's finding.
"If Maxi, Catty or any of the other residents of Farqay saw me now..." Linebeck lets out a bitter snort, tracing the rim of the mug, "they wouldn't even recognized the drunkard for the boy who left."
He internally swears and takes a swig from his drink, finishing it off. The intake was immensely different from that first sip, showing how used Linebeck was to the drink.
The captain started to motion to the barkeeper when a boy situated himself next to Linebeck. Linebeck starts at seeing the eleven or ten-year old calmly sitting on the stool, surveying the room.
Linebeck does a quick once over of the boy, barely a glance, nothing catching his eyes. The boy was wearing a homemade green tunic, floppy hat and a light green undershirt, all looking well-worn. Underneath the hat was a mop of fluffy, straw blond colored hair.
Linebeck turned to his empty mug, wondering if the boy was looking for his father. Though with the boy's get-up... Linebeck simply passes it off that it is the boy's eleventh birthday. This brought up bitter memories of his and Linette's own eleventh birthday. Linette seemed to hate the princess outfit more than Linebeck hated the tunic.
"Hey, boy, what are you doing in here? Looking for your papa?" Linebeck asks, after drawn out moments of silence.
In his peripheral vision, Linebeck saw the boy shake his head in the negative. "I'm just waiting for someone," he further explains. He does another scan of the room before focusing his gaze on Linebeck. "You look lonely."
"Sod off, boy, I'm not lonely," Linebeck growls, refusing to look at the boy.
"I know what it's like to be lonely." The boy continues, as if Linebeck didn't say anything. "Sure, I got the King of Red Lions and all, but he's not always there. And when he is, he just tells me where to go next. Extent of our conversations. So when it's late at night, I get lonely. I'm used to having my sister a bunk away and we could talk all night."
Linebeck desperately tried to drone out the boy's words, but found himself focusing on them more than he would like to. He swore the kid said something about a queen of orange tigers but what really made him shape up was the words on the boy's sister. The kid had to be playing some elaborate game, but why crush his innocence? Why not play along?
"So this sister of yours? Where is she now?" Linebeck asks, picking up his glass to stare at the melting ice. He expects the boy to say that she was at home or back at some shop. So, Linebeck was completely caught off guard at the boy's next words.
"She was taken. By an evil man." The boy says quietly.
Linebeck locks up, the words striking a sensitive cord in his heart.
"I'm so close to getting her back, I just know it. I have one more thing that needs to get done. Then I can go to where my sister is being held captive." A determined air strikes into the boy's voice. "I'm going to get my sister back even if it means that I have to meet all the evil in the world!"
Linebeck couldn't help it anymore. He turns and gives the boy a closer inspection, making sure he wasn't actually talking with some middle-aged midget. But no, it was a boy saying words that should only come out of a seasoned warrior's mouth. However, Linebeck noted the self-done stitches in the boy's tunic, and the extent of how well-worn the tunic was. A real goddesses damn sword and shield rested on the boy's hip and back, respectfully. (How the hell Linebeck didn't notice them before, well, he blamed the alcohol.) The pale scars that crisscrossed and calluses, marked battles that no child should have fought. But what really kept Linebeck's gaze was the boy's eyes. His sky blue eyes held the gaze of a man, yet with a sparkle of boyish determination.
"How old are you, boy?" Linebeck inquires, his voice low and raspy from not letting any emotions escape to be examined in the boy's gaze.
"Turned eleven around four months ago," the boy states, looking down at his hands, "the same day of my sister's abduction."
"Hell of a birthday present," Linebeck inwardly thinks. Then another thought tugs at his thought process. "Where are you're parents. boy? Shouldn't they be taking care of this?"
The boy shrugs. "They died in an engine failure when I was four and Aryll was a baby. Our Grandma took us in after they died."
Linebeck winces at how off-handily the boy spoke of his parents' deaths. "That's rough..." Linebeck mumbles, trying not to think of his own mother.
The boy shrugs again. "I don't really remember them. And Grandma always said it's best to let the dead rest in the Sacred Realm and for the living to live in the bountiful life that the Goddesses give to us."
Linebeck lets out a derisive snort. "Doesn't sound like that great of life to me, boy."
"I have to save my sister and I can't leave the rest of the world to Ganondorf's evil ways." The boy replies.
Again, the words make Linebeck pause and look at the boy. The older-beyond-his-years look was back in the boy's eyes.
"Shouldn't you let the adults take care of this?" Linebeck says, staring down at the boy. Though... this kid had to be doing things that some adults would never even think about doing in their entire lifetime.
"He has my sister," a dark look suddenly crosses on the previously kindly face. "I'm not trusting her safety to anyone else."
Linebeck decides to never get on this kid's bad side, or at least harm his sister, whoever the hell she was.
"When our parents died, I swore to Aryll that I would protect her, always keep her safe. This is me keeping that promise." The boy states.
A silence falls between the man and boy. In the pause, the barkeeper finally comes over and re-fills Linebeck's drink. He raises an eyebrow at the boy until the boy shakes his head with a smile. The barkeeper lets out a sigh of thankfulness and moves on to his other customers.
"I'm... on a quest myself." Linebeck starts to say. He's not sure whether if he's talking because of the alcohol or because the boy's story resonated so much with his own. However, he wasn't drunk enough to give out the dirty details of his story. No matter how many drinks got into him, that dark past of his was always kept under lock and key.
"Though, this quest isn't nearly as heroic as yours, boy." Linebeck takes a sip of his drink. "you're trying to save your sister and the entire sea. Me? Well, I'm sitting in a fucking bar, drinking away."
"You see there was this really special treasure I had. Nothing like it, and nothing that anybody could find could replace it."
"Then... this man came around and stole away my treasure... Four years ago now... I have been out here all that time, sailing around, trying to find the treasure." Another swig. "But as you can see, I'm not doing so good."
The boy opened his mouth to say something, but suddenly sees the man, Gossack, if he remember d the man's name correctly, he was waiting for. Casting a glance to Linebeck, knowing that the man was talking about something more personal than a treasure. However, Gossack would only be there for some time.
"I need to get going." the boy says, sliding off the stool, "my name is Link. When I get my sister back, I'll help you with your quest."
"Don't worry 'bout it, boy." Linebeck states, staring in the amber liquid. "You're up against this Ganondorf person, but you haven't been exposed to this particular evil in the world. No need to destroy what's left of your innocence with my family history."
Link simply remains silent, then trots off to Gossack he needed to meet up with.
Linebeck remained sitting in the dimly lit corner of the bar, all alone. The feelings that he kept under a tight grip with alcohol and self-control hit with a fury after that talk with Link. Grief and anger remained in Linebeck. Though, these feelings are becoming overwhelmed with disappointment and guilt. Disappointment and guilt at himself.
Knowing that he didn't want to stay here, Linebeck rode from his seat, throwing a few rupees to the counter to pay for his drinks. He quickly stumbles out of the bar and into the warm night air, heading for the S.S. Linebeck, head hanging low and hands stuffed in his pockets.
Once reaching the ship, Linebeck locks the door and heads down the steps, beginning to tremble with the emotions. He collapses into bed in his cabin, holding his head with one head and the other holding a bottle of cheap wine. Uncorking the bottle, Linebeck takes a swig straight from the bottle.
Truth was, Linebeck is close to giving up. Giving up on ever seeing or hearing a single whisper of Linette again. He's twenty years old, an alcoholic and has been over four years since Jolon ripped apart his family. For all that Linebeck knew, Jolon already killed his sister, kicked her body into the sea and was laughing at what Linebeck had become.
A strangled sob escapes from Linebeck before he takes another drink of the bottle, trying to choke the lump in his throat. It fails and soon Linebeck is holding his head, more sobs racking his body, swallowed in his inner hatred, self blame and disgust at his failure at being a brother.
The rest of the night consists of Linebeck drinking the entire bottle of wine, vomiting most of it back up, and then passing out. When the pathetic captain awoke from his drunken stupor, he barely remembered conversing with the boy. In fact, the only thing that his mind picked up was a young voice promising to find some valuable treasure. With nothing else to go on, Linebeck simply dismisses the words, not wanting to think about anymore with his monster hangover.
Some miles away, Link awoke to a bright and sunny morning. He sits up, seeing a seagull sitting on the side of the boat. He smiles, reaching out a cautionary hand and getting the bird a quick pat on the head. Checking his bag, Link grins at the final stone in his pack.
Bringing out the sail, Link sets off towards the first island, heart filled with hope that within the night, Aryll would be back in his care.
...
Good God, FINALLY. It was, what? August when I posted the last chapter? Welcome to December ninth folks, Or whenever this chapter is posted. *grumble, grumble*
Have I ever mentioned that I really hate school?
Anyway, I finally got this chapter typed up, and on a side of good news, I'm mostly through the rough draft of Chapter ten. Hallelujah.
And on this chapter, Linebeck's start of his addiction. It was a difficult chapter to type cuz, again, I have no clue on these thoughts and feelings, how it would be like to have an addiction like this. I can only grasp at my knowledge of others. Health class unit on addictions was thought about a lot.
However, on a different note, Icearrows, the next flashback chapter will make you squeal. Three words. First Cielabeck Fight. But of course, Chapter Ten must be posted before Chapter eleven. I hope to have it done before the end of the year, though. *FINGERS CROSSED*
~Roses.