Chapter 124: A Family Reunited

…

~~We made it to the Port a little later than expected. I found a full-day clinic and had my arm examined. A lot of bruising, and the surgeon said that I might have lost a lot of blood. I've lost blood before; I don't feel that bad. The surgeon tried to have me rest in the clinic for a day, but I told him that I can rest on my ship just fine. And he gave me a note for my captain to excuse me from work. I can't blame him, but I wanted to punch him in the nose.

…

~~Day 100 (Command, Day 63)

~~We departed from the Port late this morning, mostly because my crew didn't want to wake me. I'm beginning to think I should get an alarm clock.

…

When the doors to the throne room were pulled open, Link's eyes witnessed a scene that completely defied the calm dignity he had come to expect from the Royal Family of Hyrule. Namely, that he was left behind at the door with North and Sir Gilliam while Zelda broke into a run.

The king and queen looked to have been caught off-guard, rising from their thrones. Zelda leapt up over the stairs and tackled her father into his throne, nearly causing it to fall backwards. The queen took two brisk steps toward them and pressed herself on top of Zelda in what Link perceived to be a very awkward hug. The sobbing coming from the royal family only touched Link's ears once they were just a few paces away from the dais, at which point they stopped so as not to interrupt the family's wordless reunion.

Queen Arla, being on top of Zelda and King Lauris, was the first to rise again. She spied the knight and two captains out of the corner of her eye and turned to them. Link was amazed to see how tall she was, her slender form somehow made taller by the simple, pale blue gown draped from her shoulders. Her blond hair was straightened and held from in front of her face by a golden hairpin shaped as a falling feather. She stepped toward them with a soft smile on her face, hands clasped together at her waist.

Her voice came out smooth and calm as she told them, "I feel that I need not tell you how much it means to us that you have returned our daughter." The first words caused Zelda to stand and turn around, allowing King Lauris to sit up on the edge of his throne. "We owe you captains a great debt. Captain Link, we perhaps owe you much more in light of all that you have done for us. You have helped to alleviate my sickness. You stood with my husband to remove the false princess from the throne. And you have fulfilled your promise to bring our Zelda home." She cast her eyes to North. "Captain North. You have brought us news of our daughter to relieve us of our anxiety. And, without a doubt, you have fulfilled your promise to rid our kingdom of a great threat."

Link saw Captain North's posture shift in the corner of his eye. He glanced over to see that North was standing at his full height. "I thank you for your praise, Your Royal Majesty," North told her. "However, as much as I desire to have been more involved with the actual destruction of the demons' airship, I must credit Captain Link and his brave crew for the vessel's destruction." The revelation caused King Lauris to rise from the throne. Zelda cast a bright grin at her father before turning back to North to listen. "Through the intelligence of his second-in-command, the mastery of his helmsmen, the lethal skill of his bodyguard, the audacity of his engineers, and the raw courage of the captain himself, Hyrule will never have to live in fear of the monster captain known as 'Cunimincus'."

Link gawked at North. Gilliam started chuckling and pressed his lips together in an attempt to keep silent. Zelda stepped forward and said, "Please speak your mind, Sir Gilliam."

"I am sorry, Your Highness," Gilliam said with a wide grin. "It's rare to hear praise from Captain North." North's response was a glare that only made Gilliam's smile larger. "It's even rarer to hear him compliment someone else's crew."

Zelda glanced over at North. "Captain, I've the feeling that you wish to respond to Sir Gilliam's remark," she said, her voice suddenly so casual that it caught Link by surprise.

"Your Highness, I feel that what I have to say should not be spoken in the presence of the Royal Family of Hyrule," North said, still sounding quite dignified.

"Please, Captain," Zelda insisted. "I doubt what you have to say shall surprise us."

North appeared to hesitate. Then he gave a solemn nod. "Very well, Your Highness." When he turned to Gilliam, Link stepped backwards just to make sure he was not in the line of fire. North took in a deep breath and held his chest out.

"Drop dead."

Link snorted, realized what he had done with horror, and slapped a hand over his mouth within the span of a second. Gilliam gave a loud caw of a laugh and shook his head. Zelda used a hand to hide her smile from her parents, both turning as if to ask their daughter why she would allow such language in front of them.

Lauris then stepped forward. "As you were," he said with a terse voice. Link, as well as Gilliam and North, immediately snapped to attention. Gilliam, still wearing his grin, reached backward and pulled Link forward by the front of his tunic. Lauris eyed Gilliam until Gilliam was able to suppress the grin. Then he looked at Link. "Captain, it is quite clear that we owe you quite a bit more gratitude than we believed. You and your crew should be commended with the highest honor of our kingdom."

Link was frozen with fear, mostly because Lauris' tone sounded more to him like Lauris was about to order him to a chopping block. Gilliam nudged him, causing him to start. "Tha-thank you, Your Majesty," Link said. Movement behind the king caught his eye, and he saw Zelda pawing at her shoulder. He remembered that he had slung the Bow of Light to his shoulder and removed it. "I-I gue—I should return this bow to you now. It helped a lot." Lauris gestured to a servant standing on one side of the dais. Link glanced at Zelda while the servant took the bow from him, and it inspired him to add to his words. "Zelda helped a lot, too. Sh—"

Whack! "Ow!" Link quickly ducked and looked between Gilliam and North, wondering which one of them had just slapped the back of his head. It could have been either, as both of them were glaring at him. He then realized that he had forgotten to use a title instead of Zelda's name and sheepishly looked up at the king. And he was certain that the look in the king's eyes was the look he would wear before he sent an offender to be executed: a wide-eyed scowl that was made scarier by the impression that his irises were on fire.

Then the king's face softened when Zelda touched a hand to his arm. "It is okay, Father," she said. "He has permission."

The king resigned himself to a permissive nod and said, "Continue, Captain."

Link had to take a moment to remember his words. "She, uh, that is, Her-Her Highness," he stammered, "she was the one who used the Bow of Light against Cunimincus. Uh, without her wielding it, I-I might've been eaten alive."

King Lauris' glare carefully shifted between Zelda and Link. Then he asked Link, "You allowed my daughter to participate in a combat situation?" Link could feel even more anger radiating from the king and wondered if it would have been rude to step back just to make sure he was well out of the way of any flying fists. Preferably at a distance beyond the castle walls.

"Father," Zelda said in a calm voice, touching his arm again. "In my venture from Castle Island, I comported myself as a member of Captain Link's crew. As a member of that crew, I submitted myself to Captain Link's command. He ordered me to use the Bow of Light to fire upon Cunimincus as the only airman capable of using said weapon." She gave Link a warm smile. "It was a privilege to defend my ship, even if it nearly cost the captain's life. And, perhaps, his pride." He watched as her grin became apologetic and winced as he tried to control the annoyance surfacing to his expression.

The king took in a breath. "As I see that you have been seriously injured in your venture," he said, "I will set aside a public ceremony until you have had time to recover. I expect that my daughter's saviors and the defenders of my realm will appear in proper clothing and well-rested. How many men shall I recognize?"

Link just blinked for a moment. "I, uh…" he uttered.

"Your Majesty, a total of four vessels assisted in the defense of the realm. I crew the Moon's Shadow with one hundred and seventy-two men. The Grand Sails should have about one hundred and fifty men, and the Summer Breeze has… perhaps seventy since it is a corvette."

"And your vessel, Captain Link?" the king asked.

"Uuuuuh…" Link droned as he added the Island Symphony's crew together in his head. "Nine… teen, Your Majesty." North nodded to himself, having guessed such a number based on his discussions with his own crew.

King Lauris, however, was visibly stunned. "Did… you say nineteen?"

Link nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty." He used his fingers to count as he recited to the ceiling above Lauris. "Six Gelto, two Gorons, one Sorian, two of my first crew, two scholars, five other men from the surface…" He paused to double-check his addition. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty. The Island Symphony is crewed by eighteen men and women. Uh, not including myself. So-so I guess that does make it nineteen."

Gilliam let out a low whistle before leaning closer to Link. "Ballsy," he commented under his breath.

North had also leaned over and told Link, "You're an idiot."

"As you were, both of you," Lauris snapped. North and Gilliam returned to an attentive stance, as did Link out of reflex. "How long do you captains need to insure that your crews are presentable?"

"Your Majesty," North spoke up, "due to an unfortunate encounter with Captain Link and the investigation of Autumn Island following said encounter, over half of my crew are still caring for broken arms and legs. They need at least another two months to heal. Unless any of the other captains have more grave injuries to report, I would submit that the Moon's Shadow requires two months to prepare itself."

"Captain Link?" the king asked. "Have you or your crew received any such serious injury?"

Link shook his head. "No, Your Majesty."

Lauris gave a single nod. "Very well. I will see all four vessels report back to Castle Island in two months so that the appreciation of the royal family may be shared with the rest of the realm. In the meantime, I expect the other vessels to have their crews rested and presentable as I should expect of any other servant of the realm. Captain Link, before you depart, I will have a replacement tunic sent to your vessel. You are excused, gentlemen."

Both North and Gilliam bowed, prompting Link to do the same a moment later. He was also behind as both men spun on their heels and began walking to the doors. He jogged up so that he could fall into stride with them, wondering how they could coordinate their steps so well. Once they were outside the throne room, the nearby servants closed the doors behind them.

Gilliam turned to the captains with a grin still on his face. "So, I gotta ask," he told Link. "What did she do that cost you your pride, Link?"

Link groaned as he smothered his face with a hand. Then he took in a breath and spoke while his hand covered his eyes. "She shot me with an arrow."

Gilliam's face turned to absolute glee as he asked, "What!?"

"I… don't wanna talk about it," Link told him.

"Almost seems to explain itself," Gilliam said. "Right, North?"

North's face was a rock solid glare before he walked away. "You both are idiots," he said just before leaving them behind.

"Whatever you say, one-eye," Gilliam called after him. Then he turned back to Link and asked, "You ever find Al?"

"Dad—… uh, Captain Alfonzo is back in command of the Grand Sails," Link answered.

"'Dad'?" Gilliam asked. "So that's what you're callin' him now, huh? About time."

Link's face blanked. "You knew?"

"I wasn't sure when Al first brought you here. I knew he had a kid, and that was it. Buuuuut I suspected it was you the next day. I didn't wanna say anything until I had a chance to ask Al, though." He crossed his arms and gave the entrance hall a glance. "So what's your plan now? Just slack off while North goes and licks his wounds?"

Link shook his head. "My crew hasn't been paid for two months. We're still a Skyrider ship even if the company was temporarily shut down. And… while my crew gets some rest, I still have work to do."

Gilliam raised an eyebrow. "You saved the people of the realm, you rescued the princess, you gave a phony the boot, and you killed a storm. What else do you have to do?"