Chapter 6: Royal Cargo

…

Not a word passed between Link and Captain Alfonzo as they crossed the courtyard of the castle. Through the gate, the captain gave his friend Gilliam a look that said that they were in a hurry and that he should keep his mouth shut for now, which Gilliam acknowledged with a nod and lips pursed as if to prevent himself from speaking a word. With haste, he threw open the door for Link and Captain Alfonzo and then slammed it shut after they had stepped back into the city. Captain Alfonzo hailed a carriage and, after dropping a few more blue rupees into the driver's hand and telling him to take them back to the port, shoved Link into the back as fast as possible. Link sat in the forward-facing seat, and Captain Alfonzo had taken the rear-facing seat close to the door. He held the door unlatched for a moment as the carriage traveled down the main road through Castle Town again, his eyes focused on the street outside.

Then the captain latched the door and relaxed against the seat with a sigh. Then he indicated to Link, "You've got mail."

Up until now, Link had avoided looking down at the item Governor Lore had shoved into his belt. His hand wandered to it, and his fingers met a paper envelope. He pulled it out and found a woman's scrawl on the exterior, a fancy hand which he could not read. When he flipped it over, he found the familiar three-turret-castle wax stamp that he knew as the emblem of Castle Town's gubernatorial office.

Captain Alfonzo used a hand to raise the face of the letter so that he could read the scrawl. "It's made out to you, Lieutenant," he remarked.

"Should I open it, sir?" Link asked as he ran a finger along the opening on the back.

The captain shrugged. "It has your name on it," he pointed out.

Link nodded in agreement and used his thumb to pop the wax loose from the body of the envelope. Inside, he found two sheets of folded paper. He set the smaller of the two and the envelope on the seat next to him and unfolded a sheet of parchment dyed pastel green. The content was a cleaner scrawl of blue ink mixed with iron filings which made the script gleam in the meager light of the dirty window behind him. He had never seen such a beautiful letter before, and he had to take a moment to admire it prior to reading it.

—Dear Skipper,

—Congratulations on your promotion and commission of officer of the Skyrider Company. I am sure that your performance in the company up to this point has been exemplary and fitting of your promotion.

—I know that this might come as a surprise, but I find myself in need of your assistance. Two cargo crates of royal origin need to be shipped along the northeast Sky Line to Forelight Island. Although the island is uninhabited and currently has no known population, it is of great importance that this cargo reaches the island and be left there unopened and in perfect condition. I am aware that Forelight Island is forbidden by law of the kingdom for any airship to embark for this particular destination. Please note that this letter has been marked with the Seal of the Office of the Governor of Castle Town and, as such, provides a mark of exception to this law (Sky Traffic and Transport Section 14, Sub-section 27, Paragraph 6) for whoever bears this letter.

—Included in this letter is a receipt of shipping which you must provide to the shipping clerk at the port. The details concerning the location of the cargo can be found on the receipt. I ask that you wait about an hour after reading this letter to find and load the cargo onto your vessel. I also ask that you do not volunteer your destination to others outside your command. Your service is greatly appreciated. Upon your return to Castle Town, you are to report to my office as confirmation of your success. You shall receive payment then, a sum which I hope is appropriate for your troubles.

—Sincerely,

Following the line was a wild scrawl which looked like the same handwriting as on the envelope. After that was:

—Lore, Governor of Castle Town

Link found the seal embossed in the bottom corner, decorated in bright red. He reread it, and then he looked up at Captain Alfonzo. "It's a job," he said.

"Really?" the captain replied, offering out one hand. Link passed him the letter, and he took a minute to read it. "Well how about that. Looks like you're already booked for the next couple days."

"But is this okay, Captain?" Link asked as he unfolded the receipt. "There's a reason that Forelight Island is forbidden."

"I'm aware of the Undying Storm, Lieutenant," the captain replied, giving Link half of an amused grin. "But you should be aware of the gravity which falls on someone who has royalty ask him to lay down his life for this kind of opportunity. This isn't a very light request, Link."

"It doesn't sound like a good idea, sir," Link pointed out.

Captain Alfonzo raised an eyebrow. "Would you prefer that I take the job for you?"

Link opened his mouth to answer in the affirmative, but the glare that Captain Alfonzo had switched to made him rethink his words. He glanced down at the receipt in his hand and considered the opportunity. One thing Link was not known for was ambition, and he did not want to participate in a task which could easily end in disaster. But then, for the past couple of hours, he had gained a new understanding of the kind of trust that Captain Alfonzo had shown just by promoting him to skipper of the Island Sonata. How would refusing a job reflect on the man who put him in the position? And what about the company?

Link's respect for the captain took him over, and he shot to his feet and nearly clobbered himself again with a salute. "No, sir," he answered. "The Island Sonata will sail in order to accomplish this task."

Alfonzo grinned at him. "That's the kind of thing I like to hear, Lieutenant."

From there, the issue of taking or leaving the job was no longer discussed. Captain Alfonzo pointed out that when Link sailed through the Undying Storm, he would need some airmen to help maintain the rigging in case they met some serious problems along the way. These would be assigned to him from the Grand Sails (mostly because the ship could spare the men), along with a few more emergency supplies in case repairs were necessary. The captain surmised that the additional supplies, along with the cargo, would put weight on the hull and help them hold a steadier course, albeit at the cost of the Island Sonata's regular cruise speed. He suggested that Link go to the port archives and pull whatever charts he could on the northwest area of Hyrule, a necessity since the northwest area of the kingdom was desolate of inhabitable islands and Skyrider vessels did not regularly venture towards that area.

Link did this and returned to the Island Sonata with a few map rolls under one arm.

When he stepped onto the deck of the airship, he found the earlier airmen huddled in front of the main mast.

"What's going on, guys?"

One of them looked up. In the next second, Link swore that they went from huddled to standing as straight and solid as mooring spurs when he blinked. He gave the gangplank a confounded glance, wondering if someone else had followed him up.

After a few minutes, Line, standing in front of the mast with two taller men next to him, reached around one and smacked the first guy to stand on the back of the head. "Thanks a ton, Blake," he said to the short, plump man. "Next time, you'd better see a fire and jump ship."

One of the taller men elbowed Line while the other asked Link, "What can we do for you, Skipper?"

Link paused for a deep breath. "We need to make ready for sail in about half an hour," he told them. "We've been given a job."

"Taking on anything, skipper?" Line asked.

Link nodded. "Two crates and a few more emergency supplies, so the cargo holds need to be opened. Line, I need you to take a look at the course charts with me."

"Got it, skipper," Line replied. He jabbed a thumb at the rigging over his shoulder, signaling the other airmen to start working on the sails, and followed Link into his cabin. He closed the door as Link was replacing all of the tools that had been scattered across the main map table. "So, where're we going, Link?" he asked, approaching the table.

"You're not going to believe this," Link answered over his shoulder as he flattened one of the rolled charts across the table and used the tool basket to hold down one corner. "We're going to Forelight Island."

Line's initial silence prompted Link to turn to look at his airman. Upon seeing Link's face, Line's shocked stare melted into a forced smile. "Yeah, good one," he replied with a nervous laugh. "You—you almost had me there."

But Link frowned, calling Line's shock back to the surface. "I really wish I was, Line," he confessed. "But I'm serious; we're delivering cargo to Forelight Island."

Line immediately cried out in a high pitch, "Whose stupid idea was that?"

"Easy, Line," Link replied, taking a step back against the table.

"No, seriously, whose stupid idea is this?" Line told him. He smacked his right fist into his other hand. "Because I wanna kill them!"

Link managed a half-grin when he said, "That would require getting past the royal guards."

"Huh?" Line asked, forgetting his anger for a moment.

"The job came from Princess Zelda."

Line's jaw hung open for a moment, a line of drool falling from his lower lip. "Are—are—are… are you serious?" Link nodded. Line immediately shouldered him out of the way in order to flatten out the rolled-up map again. "Well, why didn't you say so?"

"I was waiting for you to kill me first," Link replied, placing a hand on the upper corner of the map. "Do you know how to get there?"

"Well, following this…" Line started, looking across the open map. He flipped to the table map a couple of times while he thought. Finally, he started running a finger across the map of the northwest territory. "We can take the Northwest Line to Turtle Island, and then shift to the Dawn Line for the rest of the trip. If I'm reading this right, the Dawn Line goes right into the Undying Storm."

"You sure seem more comfortable with this than when I first found out," Link commented as he peered through one rolled map at the windows in an attempt to identify the contents. Then he slipped off the metal binding ring and unrolled it in front of Line. "What about getting out? Can we follow another Sky Line?"

Line scanned the new map and pointed at the area south of the grey cloud representing the storm. "It doesn't run parallel like other returns, but this Sky Line looks like it leads towards Autumn Island. From there, we should be able to take the Central Line back here."

"How long?" Link asked.

"Well, we can get to Turtle Island in an hour, figure about fifteen minutes to switch Sky Lines, and probably get to Forelight Island in about an hour and a half. Are we convoying there?"

Link shook his head. "This is a solo flight. I was going to put us under full sail all the way."

Line nodded. "That should take off a few minutes of flight time. Any idea how we're getting through the storm?"

Link shrugged. "Just brave it, I guess. Captain Alfonzo's sending us a few more airmen to perform repairs as they're needed. We'll also be receiving a few more supplies than we need, so we might be weighted down a bit."

"That'll cancel out our speed bonus." Line shrugged. "Oh well."

A knock sounded from the cabin door. "Lieutenant Link, some of Captain Alfonzo's men are here with supplies."

Link exchanged looks with Line. "Thank you, airman. I'll be out there in a moment."

"So, how lucky do you feel?" Line asked him.

Link took in a large breath and sighed it out. "Not very lucky," he admitted. Tugging down the front of his new tunic, he stepped towards the door.

"Hey, Link," Line spoke up as he followed, his voice holding Link at the door. "When all else fails, just flow with it."

Link grinned at him. "One day, those words just might get me into trouble."

Line shrugged. "We're sailing into the Undying Storm," he pointed out. "We couldn't possibly get into worse trouble into that."

Link nodded and opened the door. Stepping out onto the deck, they found that some more of Captain Alfonzo's airmen were hauling supplies onto the Island Sonata. Among the bundles of rope and spare halyard fixtures, Link saw that there were two crates branded on the sides with the wings-and-triangle emblem he had noticed in the audience chamber of the castle.

One airman, a thickly built man who looked as if he could bench press Link and Line at the same time, stepped up and saluted Link. "Airman Flower from the Grand Sails, skipper," he introduced himself, causing Line to snort at the sound of his name. Link returned his salute, and he dropped his hand and continued speaking, "Captain Alfonzo has assigned three of us to the Island Sonata for repair work as needed while en-route." Link leaned over to look past the large man and found two other men still hauling supplies up the gangplank, both about as large as Flower. Flower glanced over his shoulder and introduced them, "The shorter one is Airman Leonard, and the tan one is Airman Albert."

Link swallowed and said, "Thank you, Airman Flower."

"You're welcome, Skipper," Flower replied, holding out a thick hand with Governor Lore's letter gingerly clenched between two fingers.

Link took and looked at the envelope for a moment. "Did Captain Alfonzo inform you of our job?" Link asked, attempting to keep a formal tone.

"Aye, sir."

Link nodded. "Good," he commented. "We should be leaving shortly. Please stow the cargo in the hold."

"Aye, sir," Flower saluted. Link returned the salute.

As Flower returned to work, Line stepped up behind Link and commented, "I think Captain Alfonzo gave us a little more weight than we thought."

Link nodded. "How about you take a good look at the deck supports?" he suggested. "Make sure they don't lump everything onto a weak spot; the last thing we need is to suddenly have a hole in the hull."

Line grinned. "Are you that unsure about the refit?"

"Just trying to cover potential problems. Something Captain Alfonzo told me to think about."

Line saluted. "Aye, Skipper."

A heavy grunt and some stumbling attracted Link's attention to Flower and Albert as their boots pounded against the deck, both men attempting to maintain their balance. He immediately asked, "You guys okay?"

"We're fine, Skipper," Flower replied with a grumble. "Just lost our legs for a moment. Whatever's inside this crate isn't very secure."

"Be careful with it," Link cautioned them. "This is cargo we're transporting for the royal family."

"Got it, Skipper," Albert groaned as he readjusted his hold on the crate.

Link watched them carry the crate to the open hatch between the fore and main masts, looking particularly unbalanced because of how much the crate wobbled in their hands. He decided to follow them down into the hold to make sure they did not need any help.

They had to take two flights of stairs into the hold, Flower walking backwards the whole time. The hold was a long room which stretched the length of the ship. Without any other cargo, it looked quite desolate, the whole deck only broken up by the stairs just forward of its center. Link could see the slight curve upwards towards the stern.

He glanced over one shoulder as Line came up from the deck below. "Well, the hold is sound, but I'd set everything center so we don't list," he said. He sniffed and added, "By the way, the galley looks like it's taken a heavy beating with a battleaxe. If we want to eat, I would suggest the cabins."

"Do we have anyone onboard who cooks?" Link asked him.

"Got you covered, Skipper," Albert said as they put the crate down in the middle of the deck. They hustled past Link and Line and up the stairs.

"Do we have supplies in case we're gone for a few days?" Link asked.

"Yep," Line replied. "In fact, we've got supplies to spare."

"Good," Link nodded. "It'll come in handy if we get lost."

Line smacked Link's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. We can do this."

"Tools in case we need to replace a mast?" Link asked.

"Would you relax?" Line responded in an exhausted tone. "We've got this covered."

"I'm making sure, Line. Are those guys upstairs finished preparing us for departure."

Line glanced up at the deckhead while Albert and Flower brought down the second crate. "They should be by now."

"Let them know they can depart after they've finished."

"Aye, sir," Line saluted. Then he took the stairs back up to the weather deck.

After the second crate dropped on the deck (the sound causing Link to jump), Flower and Albert saluted Link. "Sir, where should we store the spare supplies?"

Link's brow furrowed as he tried to think. He could not be sure where the emergency supplies were stored. Then he had an idea and told them, "Find your berths first, then store the rest of the supplies in the empty berths."

"Aye, sir," they both chimed before stepping past him and walking up the stairs.

But Link lingered for a moment, looking at the crates. For a moment, he found himself doubting the reality before him and looked down at the envelope still in his hands. He ran a finger across the wax stamp, feeling the edges of the castle shape in the middle of the round lump. Then he turned to approach the stairs.

And he froze in place. Sound hit his ears, something mixed in with the general creaking of the ship's timbers around him. He first thought he heard rats, but then movement sounded from inside the crates over his shoulder.

Then the first crate's top burst open, and a tall creature covered in feathers stretched out and gave a sigh of relief. "Bwah!" it called out in a feminine voice. "I can't breathe in this thing!"

The second crate's lid squeaked open, and this second occupant stunned Link into a statue-like silence. "Please keep quiet, Rireen," the girl cautioned the feathered creature. "You could attract…"

The girl trailed off when she realized that her taller friend was staring past her and turned around.

Then Princess Zelda started slowly closing the lid on herself.