Chapter 73: In Charge

…

"You not command me! You not command my siste's! Zat, my duty!"

"I'm supposed to be second in command! That means my commands ah just as relevant as Link's!"

"Ze kyabtin commands us! We not take o'de's flom oze's! You' o'de', stubid!"

"My ohdeh wasn't stupid! It was logical! What kind of idiot fohces a jam when it's cleahly a mechanical problem!? You couldn't stop and think about that!?"

"I knew what I doing! You not listen! Stubid man!"

"I'm stupid!? You can't even speak right! It's like listening to a—"

"Okay, I think that's going a little fah," Dholit interrupted, hands raised as she stepped between Dubbl and Leynne. She pointed behind Leynne. "You just go ovah theah foh a moment and sit."

Leynne turned to Link, who was leaning against the front of his desk with Irleen hovering over his head. "Is this serious?" he asked.

"Please, Leynne," Link replied. Leynne grumbled and took a seat on Link's footlocker. Link stepped between them and glanced at both. He found that Captain Alfonzo's methods of dealing with a kink in the chain of command were not as applicable as he would have liked. For one thing, Link was not tall enough to reach behind Leynne's and Dubbl's heads and knock them together. Second, Link was particularly lacking in the body mass to be intimidating to either of them. Not that he thought Dubbl could be intimidated in the first place, not by him at least. It was part of the reason Dholit was in the room. She managed to talk Dubbl out of tying Leynne's body into a knot, and Link knew the effect Dholit had had on her back on the surface when Dubbl had nearly shaken him to death.

Leynne would not be subdued the same way, though. Fortunately for Link, he was capable of showing physical restraint in spite of his mouth. For now, that was all Link had to work with. He was a little paranoid that, if it came to Leynne attacking Dubbl, Layna might burst through the door to Link's cabin and kill Leynne. That was an issue Link would have to address later; the last thing he wanted to believe was that he had a trained killer onboard.

Link gave a sigh and said, "Look, you two. We have some bigger problems than worrying about who's in charge. Things like my fellow captains trying to blow us out of the clouds and having most of the regular trade routes no longer exist. We can't afford to be at each others' throats."

"The chain of command should be cleah," Leynne said. "You appointed me second-in-command, Link."

"And you had the right to order crewmen as you saw fit," Link replied, one finger raised to silence him. "I'm not denying that."

"Kyabtin, we not taking commands flom him!" Dubbl shouted, pointing her middle finger at Leynne.

"Dubbl!" Dholit snapped. "Coyniygothotak!"

"Dubbl," Link said in a calmer tone than Dholit. "If something bad happened, if I'm not around to give orders, who will?"

"He'," Dubbl replied, pointing to Dholit as if it was an obvious answer. "She close to you."

Irleen snorted. "Wow," she giggled. "That was one answer I didn't see coming."

"Right, because we can expect Dholit to make an infohmed decision," Leynne remarked.

"I could," Dholit protested. "I make them all the time!"

"Fine," Leynne said. "Then what would you have done?"

Dholit shrugged. "I might have hit youh head with a boahd, too." Irleen burst out laughing.

"Stop!" Link immediately demanded just as Leynne was opening his mouth. Irleen also choked off her laughter as if he had been talking to her. Link looked between Leynne and Dubbl for a moment and said, "Clearly, we need to know how command works. This is how it's supposed to work. When I'm not nearby to give an order, Leynne is next in line. Dubbl, if Leynne isn't available, you're in command. Fair?"

"No," Dubbl said. "I not want command. Please give to Dholit."

"Dholit needs to work with the other shift so she can translate for the Gelto on that shift," Link explained. "Unless you want me to trade your shifts and have you work directly with Leynne."

Dubbl shot a glare at a grinning Leynne before replying, "No. I will stay."

Link nodded. "Today was an emergency; I needed everyone on the deck. Hopefully, it won't happen again, but I want it clear who's in charge when it happens. Dubbl, if this happens again, I want Leynne to handle the ship."

"You not tlust me?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Wha—no, no, it's not that. It's just that I've already shown Leynne his duties and would prefer that he remain in that position. We've already agreed that he'll step down as soon as we have someone else that can perform the task."

"I ask that soon," Dubbl said as she shot Leynne another glare.

Leynne held up his hands in surrender. "Look, foh youh infohmation, I don't think that highly of the job. Pehsonally, I wouldn't mind if it was given to eitheh you oh Dholit."

"Show of hands for those of you who thinks Dholit wouldn't take the job as seriously," Irleen said. Dubbl, Link, and Leynne raised a hand.

Dholit raised both of her hands. When Link gave her a questioning look, she grinned and said, "I know I probably wouldn't take it as seriously as to the satisfaction of my captain, My Captain."

Link dropped his arm, allowing it to slap against his thigh. "Okay, so are we in agreement?" he asked, glancing at Leynne and Dubbl.

"What if zis happen again?" Dubbl asked.

"Then the first person to attack gets to walk home," Link told her in a harsh tone, trying to take advantage of how calm the two were. "From whatever port of my choosing."

Dholit shivered. "Oooh, the thought of the captain punishing someone gets me excited."

"I still don't want to know where Link found you," Irleen commented.

"Leynne?" Link asked.

Leynne did not appear intimidated by Link's remark, but he was still hesitant about replying. He sighed and stood up. "Agreed," he told Link.

"Dubbl?"

"Yes, Kyabtin," she answered.

Leynne held out a hand. "Will you shake on that?" he asked Dubbl.

Dubbl stepped forward and glanced down at Leynne's hand as if it somehow offended her.

Then she grabbed the neck of Leynne's waistcoat, pulled him closer with a burst of strength, and locked her lips to his. Leynne was taken off-guard, flailing his arms to avoid falling while sporting a wide-eyed look. His brief moment of surprise faded into an even briefer moment of relaxation. Then Dubbl pushed him backwards, causing him to sit back down on Link's footlocker.

She turned to Link and said, "Kyabtin, I ti'ed. Can I go wiz you' pe'mission?"

"You're dismissed," Link told her. "Go get some sleep."

"Zank you, Kyabtin," she said with a quick bow. Then she turned and left, closing the door carefully behind her.

The cabin was silent until Irleen asked, "Wha… what just happened?"

"What prompted that?" Leynne asked after his daze wore off.

"Oh, I wouldn't take that too pehsonally, Leynne," Dholit said.

"You would if it was Link," Irleen commented.

"Yes, I know," Dholit said with a sigh. Then she told Leynne, "You have to undehstand that we Gilto can be quite passionate. When Gilto ahgue, it rises to such levels that… well, ouh emotions get a little confusing. So, in ohdah to end the tension and confusion, we conclude the conflict by finding a reasonable resolution and kissing to seal the agreement."

Link and Leynne shared a confused look as well as a blush. "Um… despite the fact that the extreme majority of the Gelto ah… women," Leynne said.

Dholit grinned at his embarrassment. "As I said, we ah quite a passionate people." Leynne shifted uncomfortably.

"I-I think my head's going to explode," Irleen said as she carefully floated onto the desk.

"Dholit," Link said. "Would you… ugh… would you tell Gold we'll need him to stay on the helm a little longer?"

"Oh, yes, My Captain," Dholit replied, a mad grin on her face as she saluted. Link dismissed the salute, and she skipped across the cabin and exited.

"You don't want me to relieve him?" Leynne asked.

Link shook his head. "Not yet. While we're on the run, we need to find a safe harbor to get supplies. I need you to help me plot a course; I'm a little poor with my navigation skills."

"Maps," Leynne reasoned as he stood up. He retrieved a pair of scrolls from between Link's footlocker and wardrobe. "The cartographeh infohmed me that it happened about two weeks ago. Evidently, theh was no wahning oh otheh indication that the event was going to take place." He stepped up to the table and unrolled the first map on its surface. He continued to speak as he pulled open a drawer and used tacks to pin down the map's corners. "He said that stories regahding theih disappearance vary, but the most he had heahd was that the event stahted on the eastehn bohdehs, continued south, and ended in the west." To emphasize the last part of his statement, he pointed at the western side of the map.

Link stepped forward to look at the map. "No, that would have been where it started."

"It would?" Leynne asked.

"If that was how it happened, we wouldn't be inside a Sky Line right now," Link said. "You have to realize that, up here, north and south are switched." Link traced his finger from the west side of the map and dragged it over the northern islands. "So the further north we go, the further we get away from the Sky Lines and Castle Island. We'll have to skip from island to island, probably looking at up to three days between ports. The question is where we go first."

"How eageh ah we to avoid captuh?" Leynne asked.

"Very," Link replied. He traced their current Sky Line with a finger. "Right now, we're on our way back to Autumn Island. We can't afford to dock, though, because those ships are probably following us. We'll have to pass that island and get on the other Sky Line to put more distance between us. Those ships have been ordered to sink us."

"How do you know?" Leynne asked.

"They were flying attack flags," Link said. "Spontaneous attack is one thing, but if they have time to put up signal flags, they're under orders from someone not on the ship."

"Is this… something else you leahned as an aihman?"

Link nodded. "Signaling is one of the required courses you have to revise on shore duty, especially when you're working on the deck. Which reminds me; if we survive all this, we're going to need a set of signal flags."

"But not now?"

"I'm sure any ship looking at us can tell we're running for our lives."

"Ah. Noted. What about Skyrideh Poht? You indicated a need to go theh."

Link shook his head. "We can't go there anymore. The princess knows I'm a Skyrider captain; she probably already has ships moving in that direction. In the time it takes us to hop onto the other Sky Line and take it close enough to get to the port, there could be a ship or two already ahead of us. Which means we should avoid the eastern regions as best as possible."

"So much for a safe port, right?" Irleen asked as she moved to hover over the map.

"Done with youh sensory ovehload, ah you?" Leynne asked.

"Shut up."

Link glanced up at her. "I'm sorry, Irleen, but until this is all cleared up, I can't take you back home."

"That's okay, Link," she said. "I'd rather get home safely than have you try and get sunk again. The first time wasn't a whole lot of fun."

"Just hang in theh," Leynne told her. "We'll figuh something out."

"Thanks, Leynne."

"So, ah we to assume that the nohth is ouh safest haven?" Leynne asked Link.

"Until they follow us out there," Link said.

"I don't suppose we should be signing the dockmastehs' books at each stop."

Link shook his head. "If they know where we've been, they might figure out where we're going. And, without the branch offices to help us, I'm afraid that I'll need to ask for a loan."

Leynne gave him a dismissive wave. "Don't wohry about it. Strangely enough, I find my own suhvival in jeopahdy. I just hope I have enough of a bank to get us wheh we need to go."

Link nodded, finding it the best time to explain to Leynne what was happening. "We need to find our way north. Right now, we have the princess working against us, which means the rest of the kingdom will only be helpful providing they don't know we're wanted."

"Is theh any resolution on the way?"

"We'll have to provide it."

Leynne's eyebrows rose. "Oh? Plotting an ovehthrow of the ruling tyrant?"

"Replacement," Link said. "The King and Queen of Hyrule were last known to be in the northern areas; that was the reason the princess was left in charge. A… an associate of Captain Alfonzo told me that, if we can find them and bring them back to Castle Island, they can remove her from power, and we'd be able to clear up the mess she's made."

"Sounds like a plan," Irleen said.

"So wheh ah they?" Leynne asked.

"I, uh… I don't know," Link admitted. "I don't think anyone knows where they went."

"So we'll have to go from island to island looking foh them," Leynne reasoned.

Link nodded. "It's gonna be a long search, especially since we don't have the Sky Lines." He looked up at Irleen. "Any idea why they disappeared?"

"I've been thinking about it since Leynne first mentioned it," she said. "When the Sorian mainland separated, some of the technoworks under the islands were converted to produce the Sky Lines."

"To… help hold Cunimincus back, right?" Link said.

"Uh, I think you have the Sky Lines' purpose confused, Link. The Storm of Purgatory is Cunimincus' prison; it has nothing to do with the Sky Lines."

Link blinked, stunned to find that what he had thought about the Sky Lines had been wrong. "Oh."

"So, why weh the Sky Lines made?" Leynne asked.

"You have to realize that Sorians can only fly so far," Irleen said. "The Sky Lines serve two purposes. The first one was to let Sorians travel from island to island. That's part of the reason we have airships. The second was to keep the islands together."

"What do you mean?" Leynne asked.

"Think about it, Leynne. The islands are little more than rocks floating in the air; they've got about as much stability as an airship. Haven't you ever wondered what's been keeping the islands still enough that you can draw maps of them?"

"I-I just assumed that was… that was how they worked," Link said.

"I suppose the stability of these islands would eventually come into question," Leynne commented.

"When the mainland split, the islands drifted apart," Irleen said. "The technoworks beneath some of the islands were designed to manipulate the air and produce winds that stabilized the islands' locations. While the individual islands created airflows to stabilize themselves, the Sky Lines act like a large net, holding everything in place."

"Wait a moment, wait a moment," Leynne said, holding a hand up. "So, you'h saying that, without the Sky Lines, at this very moment, the islands ah drifting apaht?"

"It's possible, actually," Irleen said.

Leynne sighed and shook his head. "How do you know so much about the Sky Lines?"

"I was a librarian on my home island before all this happened," Irleen said. "I spent a lot of time reading."

"Is there any way to turn the Sky Lines back on?" Link asked.

"We'd have to search the islands for the technoworks that control the Sky Lines," Irleen said. "I have no way to find them."

"Okay, theh's that wohd again," Leynne said. "What ah the 'technowohks'?"

"They're the centers of technology on each island. They keep the islands in the air and supply the islands with water from the surface. Kind of like a large machine."

"Sounds like something I'd like to examine," Leynne commented.

"I imagine you would."

"First things first," Link said. "We'll have to find a place to resupply."

Leynne nodded. "Well, we have a few days' wohth of rations; we can probably stretch those. You said it will take about a couple of days to sail between islands?"

"Something like that."

"Sooo…" Leynne turned his head as he looked down at the map. Then he pointed to an island not too far north of Autumn Island. "What about heh, this… Thicket Island? Is it populated?"

Link glanced at the map before nodding. "Yeah, that looks like the place to start. Go ahead and plot it out as best as you can."

"Where are you going?" Irleen asked as Link rounded the table.

"I'm informing the crew of our new situation."

…

Link had never had to give a crew grim news. Having to tell his newest crew that they were now all outlaws felt like something he should not have ever had to do in the first place. But he could not simply leave them unaware of the situation, especially when it meant risking their lives. So he paced on the forecastle near the bow while his crew stood gathered around the helm. The only one who stood apart from them was Dholit, who volunteered to translate his words for the Gelto crew. Irleen was absent due to not being able to step out on deck. Leynne was still plotting their course in his cabin, but Link was not concerned since he had already explained the situation to him.

He took in a deep breath and stepped to the middle of the forecastle. "I know that this afternoon, we had a situation which required some explanation," he told them. Dholit began a running translation as he continued. "I would like to inform you that, as my crew, you are no longer safe.

"This afternoon, I attempted to make contact with a person of the Royal Family in order to clarify events since my former vessel, the Island Sonata, was destroyed. However, my actions were directed at an imposter operating under the guise of Princess Zelda of the Royal Family. This has resulted in my status as a wanted person in the realm of Hyrule. My company, the Skyriders, have been conscripted by the princess in order to form a navy dedicated to her and her alone. Knowing what I know, I cannot, on good conscience, allow myself to become involved with such an organization. Therefore, every Skyrider vessel we encounter will be neglecting us at best… and hostile at worst. Vessels that can identify the Island Symphony have standing orders to destroy her, which will result in the death of every member of this crew.

"I appreciate that you all have been willing to accompany me this far, and I thank you all for your support. But now, I'm afraid that I cannot let you continue your service out of ignorance of our current situation. Again, I'm giving you a choice, and, unfortunately, it is much more limited due to our present situation. Again, I will be asking you individually whether you will be willing to continue sailing on this ship or not. If you do not feel it necessary to risk your life on this ship, then I will allow you to disembark at our next stop, Thicket Island, and not hold it against you to disavow knowledge of this vessel for the sake of your own lives. I'm… I'm sorry that I can't return you to the surface as before, but that would require us to enter hostile territory again, and we would not likely survive.

"I won't make it sound like we're serving a noble cause or anything by continuing our voyage. Our goal is to locate the King and Queen of Hyrule and return them to their seat so that the fake Princess Zelda can be exposed. This will eventually require us to risk our lives delivering them back to Castle Island. I can't give you a choice like this again; if you choose to stay, you stay until we succeed or until I die." He paused and gulped at that last statement. His voice came out cracked with his next first words. "I don't want to see any one of you killed, but it's what you risk if you choose to stay." He stepped to the starboard side and waited until Dholit finished her translation. Then he asked, "Dholit? Do you want to leave?"

"Noooo," she told him. "I'd miss you too much."

Link gave her a disappointed look. "That's… kind of a flimsy excuse."

She smiled at him. "My Captain, you killed a Malgyohg the size of the wohld just to save youh companions. I don't see a bunch of men on piddly little boats being much of a threat."

Link paused as he considered his words. Then he shook his head. "I've got to find out how your head works one of these days."

"I run on optimism and sex."

Link started blushing madly. He looked away and uncomfortably cleared his throat. "Right." Then he moved toward the gathered crew. "Dubbl?"

"I feel ze way zat Dholit feel," she replied. "I will stay."

"You run on sex, too?" Gold asked with a chuckle.

"Lohakwan!" Dubbl snapped at him.

The short quarrel gave Link enough pause to remember the name of the Gelto standing next to her. "Lwamm?" he asked.

"'Inu nayx kwaylotak wammu ga'na," she responded, her chest held out with pride.

Link turned to Dholit. "It was a poetic way of saying 'yes'," she assured him.

"You… did explain what was going on, right?" Link asked.

"That speech wasn't as easy to convey as the last one," Dholit said with a shrug.

Link nodded, although he was not entirely certain what she had meant, and moved to the next one. "Twali?"

"'Al waba thibuz manak, 'inu nayx 'otaxak wabnik talwban adi'," Twali replied with a small bow.

Again, Link glanced at Dholit. "Same thing," she told him.

"Really?" Link asked. "That sounded a lot longer."

"She was moah poetic."

Link shook his head; he was beginning to suspect that Dholit was taking liberties with her translation. He stepped to the next Gelto and asked, "Layna?"

"'Inu nayx naygodhak nwik 'ilthan'afi'il taf 'imayn kyabtin 'imayn silwabun 'ithab," Layna replied, giving Link a deep bow.

"I think I heard my name in there somewhere," Link commented.

"Yeah, she's not going anywheah, eitheh," Dholit replied in a casual tone.

Link moved to the last Gelto. "Biluf?"

"Waba socikwotak max, Kyabtin?" Biluf replied as she cracked her knuckles. "'Inu xaylokwak zayxwiyk sunway!"

"'Aydhom," Dubbl spoke up.

"'Aydhom?" Biluf replied.

"'Aydhom."

Biluf turned back to Link and said, "'Inu xaylokwak za'dhiym sunway!"

Link glanced at Dholit. "Should I even bother asking?"

"Actually, she sounds as if she has heh own agenda," Dholit replied. "But she agrees to stay."

"Really?" Link asked. "She's the only one with an agenda?" Dholit just shrugged in response, so Link shook his head and moved on. "Cale?"

Cale seemed hesitant at first. Then he said, "I… I can't see myself anywheah else foh the moment. I'll stay."

Link nodded, grateful for finally getting a straight answer. "Gold?"

"Aye, Cap'n," he said. "I'm stayin'."

"Lidago?"

"Goron," Lidago replied with a sharp nod. Then he added, "Lidago stay."

"Helo?"

"I will stay, too," Helo answered.

"Lawrence?"

Lawrence shrugged, a difficult movement considering both he and Harley were supporting a barely-conscious Sello between them. "I ain' scared," he said. "If the Gelto's gonna 'ang 'round, so is I."

"Nwaki 'addic 'acikwthin," Dubbl muttered to herself, just barely audible to Link over the sound of the Sky Line.

Link leaned forward to glance at his chief engineer's face. "Sello?"

Sello looked up and gave Link a goofy grin. "Ya godz da zpiritz," he said in his drunken slur. "I don' wanna go."

Link could only take Sello at his drunken word, knowing that any sober response was not very likely to happen. "Harley?"

"I kinda like the sound o' overthrowin' a tyrant," Harley replied with a grin. "Wouldn' mind bein' par' o' it."

Link nodded and returned to the middle of the deck. "I feel a little stupid for asking all of you again, but I wanted to make sure," he told them. "We'll be pushing supplies getting to our destination, but I hope we can all bear it. The established shifts still stand. Gold, I'll need you to stay at the helm a little longer until Leynne's done plotting our course. The rest of you, please return to your stations."

…

~~I'm afraid. I'm afraid that my ship is doomed to be destroyed again. I'm afraid that my actions are going to get my crew killed. I'm afraid that they're just blindly following me. I can't sleep. It's been five hours since the Island Symphony left the Sky Line on its course toward Thicket Island for supplies. I keep worrying that one of those navy ships will spontaneously be on the horizon behind us and shoot us down before we can get anywhere. I don't think I can stand losing another ship, another crew.

~~This is all my fault. If I had just said no at one point, there wouldn't be a fake princess on the throne. The Island Sonata would still be under my command. And those thirteen lives buried next to the remains of the Horizon's Eye wouldn't have been lost.

~~What the hell was I thinking.

…

"I understood that much. But I can't help wondering why you chose my ship?"

"As I said before, it was rather arbitrary."

Link blinked. It was almost as if it was blinking himself out of a daze. He looked around at the room and began to recognize his personal cabin on the Island Sonata. Furniture which he had only used once, a bag of laundry slung on a hammock with dirty clothes left neglected underneath. He stood up and looked back at the chair he had only sat in a handful of times. The log book was still sitting on his desk; he had forgotten to put it away.

And standing before him, Princess Zelda, wearing her variation of an airman's outfit that Link had last seen her in. She looked just as stunned as him. They stepped closer to each other and stared in each other's eyes.

Then the princess threw her arms around him. "Link!" she hollered. He felt her squeeze him. "It's working! I can't believe it's working!"

"Huh?" Link uttered.

She started and pulled away. "I-I'm sorry, Link," she told him. Her face began to redden. "That was… a little inappropriate, wasn't it?"

"Uh… a little… weird," Link admitted as his own face heated up. He glanced around. "What is this? Why are we on the Island Sonata? It was sunk over a month ago."

Zelda nodded. "I know. Airman Line saw it happen. Link… this is a dream."

Again, Link just blinked. "Uuuh… yeah, I… kinda had that feeling."

"Yes, well… I'm controlling it."

And Link just blinked again. Thrown as he was by what was appearing to happen, it was really the only means he had to convey his confusion, which had not ended since his brain first established the lack of reality around him.

Zelda grew concerned and asked, "Link, are you okay?"

He shook his head. "I-I just don't know what's going on. I… I think I'm getting used to it."

Zelda nodded. "I'm sorry, Link. This must be overwhelming. I'll do my best to explain."

Before she continued, she walked over to his hammock and sat on it. Then she gave it a curious glance and bounced on it a couple times. "Oh, this is fun," she remarked.

"Your Highness?" Link asked.

"Huh?" She gave him a confused look. Then, her face molded into a shy smile. "Sorry."

She cleared her throat and said, "First, I assume you know about the airship inside the Undying Storm."

"The Smiling Gunner," Link said.

Her eyebrows rose. "You know its name?"

"I learned about it on Forelight Island. It's the ship Cunimincus used when he was fighting the Sorians. It's locked in the storm with him."

"I see… I had not known as much, not even its name." She sighed and continued, "So I also assume you know that I am on that airship."

"It was… hard to tell," Link admitted. "My dreams lately… I was under the impression that they were coming from you."

She gave a sad nod, eyes cast to the floor. "They were. I'm sorry, Link, but they were." She took in a deep breath, and Link thought he could hear her shiver with that breath. "It started… maybe a few days after our capture. It-it's hard to tell; time does not seem to exist here. At first, I thought that I was somehow… somehow focused on what it must have looked like when you lost your vessel, when you… fell out of the sky. As if I longed to have fallen with you if only to avoid my own circumstances. Then I started seeing other things." Then, to Link's surprise, her sad tone broke with a healthy laugh. The sight made the skin on his back crawl. "I-I'm sorry, but I must ask," she said as she wiped away a tear. "Did-did you and Airman Line really wear dresses at one point in time?"

Link felt embarrassed and placed a hand over his face. "Oh, man…" he groaned at the memory. He knew exactly what she was referring to. She must have taken it out of context, as there had been a perfectly reasonable explanation for him and Line to have been wearing dresses at the time. Well, as reasonable as could be expected from two eleven-year-olds working on an airship. "You saw that?"

She giggled at his embarrassment. "Yes. But it wasn't until later when I realized that there was a reason I was embarrassed to be in a dress. But I digress, as I can see this is uncomfortable to you. I soon realized that I was seeing people I had never met before but knew so well. Places almost out of a novel. Creatures of fear I could never imagine. I find of particular fright the creature you fought under the earth."

"I've been trying to forget that one…" Link commented.

She nodded. "They were fearsome creatures, but I found my fears quelled as I watched you defeat them. It was as if you were rescuing me from them. Contrary to what you may believe, it was actually quite comforting to watch. I was dreaming your dreams while you dreamt mine. And this is why." She reached into her pocket and then held out her hand.

In her hand was a red, oval-shaped gem. It took Link a moment, but he recognized the gem that Irleen had given to Captain Koroul. He nodded and said, "I thought that might've been the reason. Captain Koroul, is he…?"

She shook her head. "He is alive. Along with the rest of the crew of the Horizon's Eye. But… I-I'm sorry, Link, but… Airman Albert…"

Link swallowed hard at the memory of finding Albert's gravestone and fought to hold back a flood of regret. "I already know."

"You do?"

He gave a sober nod. "We found the Horizon's Eye. He and Captain Koroul's airmen had already been buried when we found them."

She sighed. "I'm sorry for all of this," she told the floor. "If-if I'd just…"

Link could see that she was blaming herself. It frustrated Link because he had just finished blaming himself before he went to sleep. "No," he told her quietly. "No, it's not your fault."

"Link…"

Link took a deep breath. He could see that the conversation was leading to another sad subject and wanted desperately to avoid it. So he steeled himself and said, "Your Highness. Right now, someone impersonating you is sitting on the throne."

She looked stunned for a moment, thrown off by the sudden shift. She nodded her understanding. "Yes. Yes, I know. It's one of Cunimincus' crew. I watched her take my form right before my eyes."

"So they took the Horizon's Eye back and put her in your place," Link said with a nod. "I know at least Line was with them. Are there any of my crew still there?"

"No, they all returned on the Horizon's Eye. And Captain Koroul and his men have refused to speak for a great deal of time."

"To you?" Link asked, not believing that the intimidating but approachable Sorian captain would intentionally disregard her.

"To anyone. There is another Sorian on this ship, one which was not part of their crew. They have refused to speak before him, which has made conversation considerably difficult since he is imprisoned with us. From the little that Captain Koroul has said, the other Sorian is a traitor who revealed secrets to Cunimincus. It would appear that, for his betrayal, he was imprisoned by Cunimincus."

Link frowned. "Wait, he betrayed the Sorians to Cunimincus, and then Cunimincus imprisoned him?"

"I don't believe it is without logic. Why would they trust a Sorian who betrayed his own people? What kind of trust has he built that should mean he would not betray Cunimincus?"

He nodded. "But you are all right? They haven't mistreated you, have they?"

She sighed. "It is difficult to tell. They have left us neglected ever since they allowed their crewmate to imitate me. However, I find that I have not been hungry or experienced a great amount of fatigue. We merely… exist."

He took in a breath and let out a sigh. Relief filled him, and he said, "I suppose that means you're safe for now. Your Highness, I need to know where your parents went. The fake princess has caused problems, and the only way to remove her from her position is to find the king and queen."

"They are missing?" She paused for a moment, a worried look visible to Link before she looked down and let her blond bangs hide her face. She brought a hand up and covered her mouth. Link began to fear that news of her missing parents had upset her, but she seemed to find composure again and looked up to address him with a frown that was difficult for him to read. "I'm sorry, Link, I don't know where they went. They should have only been a few days from returning; I can't believe they haven't come back." She stood from the hammock. "Link, I'm waking up. I have to end this."

Link blinked as he replied, "Okay."

But he found himself sitting in a chair, the last sound only vaguely falling out of his mouth when he realized that he was in a completely different location. He felt tired, as if he had not slept at all. Leaning forward, he found that he was back in his cabin on the Island Symphony. Irleen was lying on his pillow on the bed to his left. He looked down at the desk and realized that he must have fallen asleep writing in his journal. Someone had turned out the single overhead bulb, leaving only faint moonlight to filter through the windows behind him. He sighed as he looked down at his journal. Then, using the moonlight to see, he reread his last few sentences. Then he took up his dropped pen and added one more sentence.

~~I know where Zelda is.