The Legend of Zelda: Dreamer of Dragons Chapter 5

Chapter 5

    The sun rose brilliantly over the clouds, casting golden lights across the heavens. Sea gulls dipped in and out from the marshmallow puffs of water vapor, cawing at the daybreak. They were scrambling away from some large object, which was cutting through the clouds like a sword through a tuft of grass. Suddenly, the airship came bursting through the veil, its crimson banners flapping in the wind like giant streamers, and on each of them was the Shiekah symbol of the Lens of Truth: an eye, browed by three triangles, and crying a single tear.

    The whirling propellers of the airship carved a steady path through the sky, and the ship came rising higher and higher towards the sun on the two powerful turbines which flanked either side of the boat-shaped vessel. Smoke trailed from one of the turbines, and holes dotted the ship like patchwork, but she still churned on mightily through the air. A trio of crimson sails, likewise bearing the Shiekah symbol, brought to full mast, catching the high winds above the cloud cover. The whole ship leveled out, and swam through the clouds beneath it like they were its ocean to sail upon.

    On board, in a lush room dominated by an extravagant canopy bed, the Princess Zelda paced back and forth in anxious frustration. It had been several hours since the pirates locked her away in that room. She listened in vain to the exciting sounds of shouting and gunfire from outside. Then things had grown silent. Sometime later she could see the light of breaking day filtering in through the shades on the windows, but still no one had come to fetch her. She pried at the lock, but the door was sturdy and would not budge.

    "Why do they not let me help them?" cried Zelda, tearing at her hair, "I am grateful for my rescue. Truly, I am! But now shall I be locked away in another, more luxurious prison? Prison it remains! How am I to save Hyrule if I cannot leave this room? Why does no one answer me!"

    She pounded her fist on the locked door, but no response came. Finally, she slumped down in an armchair, and her posture did not look at all like a princess.

    "I hope Link is alright."

    A moment later, her heart skipped a beat as she heard the door click open, and in came the First Mate, Gwen. Gwen had traded her Shiekah wrapping for the more traditional garb of a ship's officer, a blue button-down coat with silver piping and silver epaulettes on the shoulders. A dangerous looking sword with a curved blade dangled at her side, its handle made of silver and set with diamonds and emeralds.

    "Princess, we are clear of Hylian pursuit. Captain Scarlett wishes to meet you. Please follow me."

    This was all Gwen said, and then she turned on her heel and marched straight out of the room. Zelda's jaw dropped slack. She was completely unaccustomed to being spoken to so matter-of-factly, especially by a pirate. Gwen gave her no opportunity to argue though, and Zelda soon found herself dashing after the First Mate with her dress bunched up in her hands so she wouldn't trip on it.

    "Excuse me, Gwen!"

    "That's gonna be First Officer to you so long as you're on this ship Princess," retorted Gwen, striding along without so much as a glance back at Zelda. They were moving along the lower deck of the ship now, and the wind was blowing a fresh, saltwater breeze all around them. Pirates were all about, cleaning, tying off ropes, and repairing the damage caused by the night's conflict. When Gwen would pass close by any of them they would stop to salute her before going about whatever business.

    "First Officer, then," said Zelda, carefully, trying not to allow her temper to get the better of her, "Please, can you tell me more about what is going on? Who are you pirates, and why have you saved me? Where is Link, and is he going to be okay?"

    "Save your questions for the captain, Your Highness," there was a mocking quality in the way Gwen said this, "I'm not at liberty to discuss the operations of this vessel without express consent from my superior."

    "Express consent!" cried Zelda, rushing around to the front of Gwen and stopping her in her tracks, "Excuse me, I don't mean to sound ungrateful, you did save me from certain death, but the fact remains: I am a Princess of Hyrule. You have brought me aboard your vessel, locked me away in a room without any explanation, and now you won't even tell me why I'm here or where you're taking me. I think I have a right to ask some questions!"

    "Oh, do you now?" said Gwen, her brown eyes narrowing ever so slightly, "You listen to me, Princess, and listen good, because I won't be saying this nicely twice: You have no rights on this vessel unless the captain gives them to you. You're right, we have saved you from certain death, and we can deliver your right back into its arms just as easily. You might be used to living in a castle where everyone licks the crap off your boots and smiles about it, but up here you're just a sniveling little girl in a place she doesn't belong and doesn't understand. My men and I nearly died getting you out of that castle! So you're gonna refer to me as First Officer, you're gonna do exactly what I say when I say it, and you're gonna wait to ask your stupid questions until the Captain is ready to answer them. If you don't like that, I have no problem ordering my men to toss you right over the side of this boat, and trust me there will be nothing pleasant about the splash you make when you land."

    Zelda was stunned. Gwen couldn't help but smirk a little as she shouldered past the girl.

    "Why did you save me at all if you are so prepared to just throw me away?"

    "Because, it doesn't matter nearly so much whether you live or die as much as it does who kills you."

    Zelda remained silent for the rest of their walk, feeling somewhat vulnerable from the harshness of the First Officer's words. Was she bluffing? Would they really just throw her overboard, just like that? Zelda decided it was best to wait and see what this mysterious Captain might have to say about the whole ordeal. Clearly, the First Officer had no intention of talking to the likes of her.

    They went up a flight of stairs, where the deck above contained a wheelhouse. Zelda could see through the windows of the little room, and inside there stood a woman who seemed the living personification of the color red. Her hair was like a swath of crimson paint, wavy and wild beneath her black tri-corner hat. Her jacket, red with golden piping and a cord of golden rope wrapped around her right arm. Her epaulettes were gold with long, wispy tassels, and she wore a red eye-patch with the Shiekah mark upon it in glowing white.

    Gwen led her right to the wheelhouse where the woman was standing with one palm wrapped firmly around one of the handles of a giant steering wheel. Zelda felt she needed no introduction; it was obvious that this was Captain Scarlett.

    "Captain!" Gwen clicked her heels, and saluted dutifully to the red woman. Captain Scarlett turned to regard the pair of them, grinning devilishly, a gleam in her single eye, which Zelda could see now had a bright red iris.

    "At ease!"

    Gwen's hand dropped from salute, and she relaxed her posture only slightly.

    "So, this is the Princess Zelda? It's a pleasure to finally meet you in the flesh, Princess. Please, come here, I'd like to show you my ship, The Crimson Stalfos!" said Scarlett, beckoning Zelda over, "That will do, Ms. Gwendolin. You're dismissed."

    "Ma'am!" said Gwen, saluting once more. Then, she spun on her heel and marched away at a clip, leaving Zelda all alone with Captain Scarlett.

    "You'll have to excuse my First Mate, Your Highness," said the Captain, "She's hard as nails, but she means well. No better lass to have on your side when someone's pissing in your potion though. A fine officer, all around, if a bit unrefined diplomatically speaking."

    "Thank you, Captain," said Zelda, glad to see that Scarlett's mode of communication was a little more like what she was used to, "I assure you it is quite alright. There were some matters I was hoping to discuss with you though."

    "I'm sure there are," said Scarlett, "I'm sure you'd like to know how we knew you were in danger, and why we decided to save you in such a bold and reckless manner from such dire odds. No doubt you've wondered why pirates would care what happened to a princess, yeah?"

    "Um," Zelda felt at a disadvantage once again, as Scarlett had taken the words right out of her mouth. Had she been being impatient and ungrateful? Perhaps she simply hadn't given the pirates enough time to clue her in on what was happening. After all, they had only just escaped a fight with the entire Hylian army. "Yes, I suppose those were the things I was wondering about."

    "Well, I'd like to tell you, but the truth of the matter is that I'm not completely sure," said Scarlett with a laugh, "See, this here vessel is a Shiekah ship, and as I'm sure you are aware, the Shiekah have been on the Royal Family's blacklist for some time now."

    "Shiekah!" cried Zelda, "But the Shiekah were all exiled for trying to assassinate the King more than a hundred years ago! Why would you help me? I didn't try and kill my father, you know! That was all a lie made up by Nyarlath."

    "This is a pirate ship, Your Highness, everyone is innocent here," said Scarlett, still just as mirthful in her speech, "Anyway, my stealing you away from the clutches of that wretched wizard had nothing to do with your alleged assassination attempt. No, not at all. See, we Shiekah are a very spiritual sort of folk. We put a lot of stock in the analyzing of dreams and their relation to the world of the waking. A month or two back I had a dream of what I suspected a prophetic nature and in the dream a great winged beast led me to a little island way out in the ocean where a magnificent treasure lay in wait for me. See, this was no ordinary treasure. It was a special treasure, which only I know the real significance of, and I absolutely had to have it. When I came to, I found that I had scratched the coordinates of the island on the wall with my sword while I slept."

    At this the pirate fingered the handle of a marvelous golden sword which hung low at her side.

    "That was what clenched it. It was sure as warts on a Moblin's backside, that weren't no regular dream. It was a prophecy. So, I rallied up my crew and told 'em we were setting sail. For three days we pushed on full tilt until we came to the open ocean, and over that we soared until we came to the place that the charts said the island would be. There it was, just like in my dream! A tiny, Goddess-forsaken island out in the middle of nowhere, nothin' on it but a palm tree and a single stone hut. Would have been nigh impossible to find if we hadn'ta already known where it was goin' ta be.

    "So, we weighed anchor and myself and Ms. Gwendolin and a couple of trustworthy sailors went ashore. In the dream the treasure had sat right there in the stone hut plain as day, but seldom are things as simple in life as they are in the land of dreams. The treasure was not there, but in its place we found a single iron box, which we took aboard and proceeded to break the lock of. Inside there was no treasure, but a map and a set of very specific instructions on how that map might be used.

    "This map told of a great treasure. Not the treasure I was seeking, but one older than Hyrule itself, which contained a power so awesome that any evil could be destroyed by it. Long ago, wise old wizards and witches had recognized the power of the treasure, and so that it would not fall into the wrong hands they split it asunder, and divided the pieces of it among them, scattered to the Seven Seas.

    "The map, as you might have guessed, could reveal the location of the seven pieces of the treasure, but there was a catch. 'Only the blood of the chosen can open the way to the sacred treasure.' Well, that was right frustrating, as you can well imagine. What was this blood of the chosen? Who's blood? And how?

    "Well, it took me quite a bit o' searchin' through the annals of our Shiekah history to find a definite reference, but my searchin' eventually paid off. It was written long ago that once per Cycle of the Goddess, that is every thousand years, there is a Princess born to the Royal Family on a certain day with a certain name, and she shall be the Godess' Chosen One, and from her shall shine the light of destiny. Do you know what the name of that Princess is, Your Highness?"

    Zelda felt the color draining from her face, and her heart sinking into her chest. She stared in horror into the Captain's single, blood-red eye.

    "You… want my blood?" said Zelda, grimly.

    "Well," said Scarlett, appraising her own fingernails carelessly, "That has yet to be determined. Sometimes these ancient writings aren't quite literal. Could be we just need you to have the right blood and we can get by just fine, could be we only need a couple drops, or could be we have to stick you like a pig. It doesn't honestly matter to me, Princess. You see, the treasure I seek is very dear to me, and only with the power of the ancients, the power to dispel all evil, can I win it back."

    "Then you are no rescuers! I have merely traded one jailor for another. I am a prisoner here!"

    "You can look at it that way if you like, and we could lock you up in the brig in a set of shiny shackles and you can eat bread crusts for the duration of your stay upon the Stalfos," said Scarlett, with the air of a bargaining salesman, "Or, you could agree to play nice, and we can make sure that the events of the future unfold as painlessly as is reasonably possible, with proper meals, your own quarters, and the freedom to walk the decks under only minor supervision. The choice is yours. It's of no real concern to me. My people's duty to your kindred ended long ago."

    "You are despicable!"

    "Darling Princess, I'm a pirate," said Scarlett, showing her teeth, "We invented the word."

    "I…" Zelda felt faint, claustrophobic, like the walls of the wheelhouse were narrowing down around her and cutting off the flow of air to her lungs. What sort of peril was she in now? How much better ripped apart by pirates than beheaded in front of her own castle? Then, there was Link to think about. What would become of him if she refused to cooperate? Would they toss him overboard just as Gwen had threatened to do to her? It seemed as though she had no choice, and reluctantly she said, "Ok. Ok, I will play along with you for now. I have but one request: There was a boy brought on board with me. Is he well? I shall never help you if any harm should come to him!"

    "Oh, aye, your little green peasant friend," said the Captain, a grim look crossing her face, "I thought it best we let you see him before we did anything about it, but there's not much hope for him. The curse he's under is a mighty one. I've seen it's like before only once, and to my knowledge there is no certain way to dispel it. He won't ever wake up again."

    "That cannot be!"

    "I'm sorry, Princess, and I don't often use those words, but about this I truly am."

    "You are a liar! There has to be a way to save him!"

    "I'm afraid not," said Scarlett, solemnly.

    "Take me to him!"

    "As you wish," said Scarlett, then she went to the door and leaned out to call to one of her crew, "Mr. Zig! Take the helm. I'm going to accompany Her Majesty below decks to deal with our little green man."

    A moment later they were in the cramped crew quarters below the lower deck, and the crowd of Shiekah pirates were scrambling to make way for their Captain, saluting dumbly, some stripped down to their overalls and undershorts, clearly unaccustomed to having a superior in their living space. Gwen had joined them on the way down, and Scarlett led her and Zelda to the little cot where Link lay, fitfully dreaming. His face still caked with dirt, and the bruises on his head were swollen and purple.

    "Link!"

    Zelda fell to her knees at his side, clasping his hand tenderly in hers. The mere sight of the boy was enough to drive her to tears. What dumb luck had brought him to her? A wiser man would have left her there to die, but he wanted to help her! It was her fault that he lay there, cursed and unable to awaken.

    "You see, Captain, it's just like…"

    "Tsst!" Gwen swatted the sailor automatically with the back of her leather gloved hand, "There are matters private to this ship, Mr. Kef, and you will do well to remember that."

    "Aye, it's the dreamer's curse alright. I'm afraid there's nothing to be done about it," said Scarlett, and all of the devilish mirth was gone from her voice. There was a look in her eye as she watched the sleeping boy, which belied something far more dire than what was in her words. Zelda looked up at her in silent wonder.

    "Here is the boy you had us risk our lives for, Princess," said Gwen, "He is trapped in his own dreams, and nothing can wake him. He would have been executed if he had remained with Nyarlath. Now he has the option of dying slowly from thirst and starvation, and there's nothing to do but sit here and watch it happen. What say you to that? Are you glad we risked so much for him? Would you still scream for the guards so that we wouldn't leave him behind?"

    "It cannot be…"

    "It is," said Scarlett, very sternly, "I'm afraid there's nothing else for it. We'll have to put him out of his misery. Ms. Gwendolin, take the Princess topside, she doesn't need to see this."

    Scarlett unhitched a leather holster on her hip and drew a single-shot powder pistol from it, knocking the hammer back and leveling the weapon directly at Link's forehead. Zelda screamed.

    "No!"

    She broke the grip of Gwen from the sheer shock of her scream and put herself right between Scarlett and Link. The barrel of Scarlett's gun was pointed right at her heart.

    "No, you cannot do this! I will not let you!" shouted Zelda.

    "Don't be a fool, Princess! The boy is as good as dead," yelled Scarlett, "What I do now is a mercy compared to the suffering he'd go through if we left him like this. Can you imagine the dreams you might have if you were slowly starving to death? If you couldn't drink any water?"

    "He is just a boy," pleaded Zelda, tears streaming down her face, "You cannot. You just cannot. It is all my fault!"

    "Ms. Gwendolin, hold the Princess back."

    Gwen took a step forward and grabbed the struggling Zelda by the shoulder, tearing her away. She kicked and screamed and cried, but the pirate's grip was too powerful. There was nothing she could do. Scarlett leveled her weapon once more, aiming it straight for Link's head.

    "May you find yourself on brighter shores than these, lad," said the captain, quietly. Her finger was on the trigger…

    "Awaken!" screamed the boy, sitting bolt upright on the cot. His eyes were wide, and his breathing heavy, but he was alive!

    "Link?" said Zelda, not believing her eyes. Then, "Link!" as she rushed to him, throwing her arms around the boy and hugging him as tightly as she could, "Oh, Link! You are alive, you are alive!"

    "Huh?" said Link, looking confused, "What? Yeah, I'm fine. Are you okay?"

    All she could do was sob into his shoulder uncontrollably.

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    "So you just woke up, huh? Simple as that?" asked Scarlett, disbelieving. They were in the Captain's cabin, Zelda, Scarlett, Link and Gwen. The pirate had stared awestruck at the boy for several minutes after his awakening, seemingly unable to process what was happening in front of her, before storming back above deck, barking at Gwen to bring the two of them up immediately. Now Link and Zelda sat on a plush red couch in Scarlett's quarters. The Captain was interrogating the boy quite fiercely.

    "Uh," said Link, feeling a little harassed, "Yeah, I just sort of woke up. I don't remember anything. Did I do something wrong?"

    "No, Link, you have not done anything," said Zelda, shooting a dagger stare at Scarlett, "These pirates are simply barbaric, and cannot accept that anything pleasant should happen to anyone."

    "Shut yer trap, Highness, or I'll shut it for ye," said Scarlett, her voice sinking into the growling pirate drawl Zelda had come to associate with her temper rising, "Boy. There was nothing unusual that happened before you woke up? You didn't see anything? Have any strange dreams?"

    "Uh," said Link again, "Well, I have this nightmare about falling from the sky sometimes. Is that unusual?"

    "Zig dropped him when we were leaving the castle," said Gwen, shaking her head, "I don't think it's significant."

    "Hmm," said Scarlett, "Fine, I've heard enough. Ms. Gwendolin, take the Princess down to the galley and set her up peeling potatoes or something. I won't have any idle hands on my ship. I have a few more words to say to the boy, in private, and then we make way for the Temple of Life."

    "Aye, Captain!" said Gwen, saluting, and then she took Zelda roughly by the shoulder and began to drag her out of the room.

    "Unhand me, you!" said Zelda, trying to resist, but Gwen dragged her right along. "Link! I will see you as soon as I can. Stay safe!" called the Princess, just before the door slammed shut.

    Link was alone now with Scarlett.

    "Listen to me now, boy," said Scarlett, "This isn't my first day of buccaneering, you'll find me as savvy as any captain worth their salt, and I know that you are hiding something. Normally, I'd string a little liar like yourself up to the keel and drag him until there were nothing left but bones, but as your luck should hap the thing you're hiding is of a very particular interest to me. So, you can stay on my ship for the time being, and work as a cabin boy for my crew, but keep in mind: I've got my eye on you."

    Link stared blankly into the Captain's single, crimson eye. He felt himself gulp audibly. What had he gotten into? He stuck his hands into his pockets and his fingers brushed the Sleepstone, which rested there, safe and secret, for now.