Legend of Groose

After the defeat of Demise, and the fall of the Isle of the Goddess, the long ordeal against the forces threatening skyloft and the world below were over. Or so it had seemed. Link and Zelda decided to remain on the new land that they had found below the clouds and build the country that would one day be Hyrule while Groose returned to the skies and his beloved home of Skyloft. Regaled as a hero for his efforts in aiding Zelda and Link in their destined quests, none denied that the immature bully had grown to be a man worth respecting. Of course, this is not to say that the newfound respect does not occasionally go to his head. No one realized, no one suspected that the very night of Demise’s collapse, another threat would soon be born. Nobody saw what happened the night of that final battle.

A tall figure stepped through the shadows. Though only a half demon, he was powerful, curiously so, and he could sense the fragments of Demise’s broken power. Enough so to create a small void pinpointing another power…one akin to his own. His fingers curled around the pommel and he slowly drew Demise’s blade from the void before it closed once again forever. “Time to go, brother.” Murmured the cloaked half demon, turning on his heel and disappearing as if he never were, just as silently as he came.

Five years of peace followed the end of Demise, until all at once the land sickened, the skies turned angry, and the Dragons became ferocious and unpredictable, not even given audience by their own servants. The unpredictability of this new balance is threatening the young and only newly established settlement of Hyrule, and Skyloft has troubles of its own. Late one night it was said that someone riding a loftwing of jet black feathers and a golden crest was spotted flying into Levias’ thunderhead, and the sky deity was grievously wounded. A talented young student at the Knight academy named Quintinius rides such a beast, and has been blamed for the incident. The scandal has brought the neighboring islands to give serious misgivings about the stock that the Knight academy has been producing since the land met with the sky, and the young man at the center of it has disappeared from sight.


Quintinius' eyes slipped open slowly as the first rays of dawn started to rise over Skyloft, and of course, in order to rise over them, they had to get higher in the sky. It was a truly ungodessly hour when the sun's rays filtered into Batraux's old cabin. He rubbed at his eyes tiredly with his arm and sat up, running a hand through his tousled, dark brown hair. The sun wouldn't be there for long, it would soon rise higher in the sky and leave the cabin in shadow for the remainder of the day, but Quintinius knew that he needed to get supplies today, and about now was going to be his last chance before the remainder of Skyloft woke up. He'd intended to get up a few hours ago, really and if he didn't want to go hungry, he had to move now. It had been a week since he had been forced to make a hasty exit from the Knight quarters. Headmaster Gaepora had tried to be supportive and protective of him until his innocence or guilt could be proved, but the outrage that had lashed out at the injury of Levias had been too strong, and for his own safety he'd had to flee.

He was certain that his parents must have been quite ashamed of him when they had heard the scandal. They were probably more angry that it wasn't likely they would be able to boast to their friends anymore of what a promising young knight their son was becoming. The shame would just be far too much for them now. They were probably denying he existed at this point. He sighed, pulling on his boots properly and hoping that he could remain disguised properly. His fortune in all of this is that he hadn't really been overly well known before he won the statue at the goddess ceremony, so very few recognized the stranger who was merely here studying abroad from a further distant island. He thought that he had been able to convince the people of Skyloft that he had already fled to another island, but just the wrong person spotting him or the tiniest slip of disguise could give him away. He had been forced to abandon his knight's tunic for some simple nondescript clothing and his dark curls were hidden beneath a cap and a short blond wig he'd been able to procure. Only someone that knew him well had any real chance of recognizing him now, and he tried to avoid contact when he could. He climbed the long ladder that led to the graveyard and slipped out in silence, Skyloft still rather dark in its current place above the sun. If he was lucky he could find some nice mushrooms this morning.

It was that morning that that Gabriel, a senior knight at Skyloft's fine academy, was sleeping in after a long night on patrol. There had been little reason for it anymore for a while. Monsters had long since disappeared from Skyloft, but with the recent dangers, everything had become far worse, and security had needed to be ramped up quite a bit.

A certain mewling in his ear alerted him to the sound of his pet Remlit, Eclaire, begging for food. "Mngh...can't it wait..." Gabriel mumbled, rolling over and burying his face in his arms, though a painful nibble on his ear woke him right back up. "All right, all right," he resigned, giving a faint wince as he rubbed at his ear. "We'll go to the store, since we've run out," he said, snatching his wallet from the drawer by his bed after getting dressed. Eclaire hopped up onto his shoulder, her bushy tail draped around his neck, as if to anchor herself to him.

Gabriel smirked faintly, making his way out the door. It was still very early, and he had a feeling that some creatures might still be lingering about, so he brought along his shield, just in case.

Well that had been fun. A lone Skyloftian was making her way across the stones that made a path across the river hat stemmed from the mysterious, never-ending pool of water flowing down from the island above. She landed a bit wobbly on the other bank and shook her head. What time was it? She didn't know. It was too late to be early but too early to be late. Wait, what? She blinked her eyes that were starting to blur from exhaustion. She had been one of the last ones to leave the party, as usual, and she was hoping there wasn't any important test today. She'd be sleeping through it regardless.

She made her way along the path, past the Bazaar that was all closed up for the night, that would no doubt be bustling as always withing a few hours. She climbed the stairs that led up to the Knight Academy, where she studied, where she ate, where she slept. Yes. Sleep. That sounded so nice. She took the route she always did. The girls all slept upstairs but she was ahead of the game. She always left her window unlocked when she went out. With the grace and skill of a drunk Mogma, she climbed up some strong ivy right up to her room before slipping inside her room. Well, that was how it was supposed to go. But it didn't.

Right before she could heft herself in, her hand slipped and she dangled by one arm from the stone windowsill. 'Augh...dammit!' the voice in her head hissed as she tried to clamber back up, her grip slipping. She was going to be caught for sure!

'You've screwed up royal this time, Aileen.'

Quintinius sighed, his arms wrapped around his midsection. He'd found no food thus far, and he was running out of night time. Since the island of the goddess had gone down to the world below, the best place for foraging was gone as well. He'd done his best to sustain himself on what he could find on the island without taking anything that wasn't free to everyone. He'd just about gotten the lot. He was starting to wonder if the insects were going to have to suffice at this point.

He was sneaking by the Knight academy about now, looking for any food and taking a long look at the home he had once known in this place. It was probably a good thing for the young woman that was dangling by one hand from her window. He thought he could surmise why she was dangling, but he didn't want her to fall, no matter how dangerous it might have been for him. Quickly he climbed up and got to where he could reach her, placing his hand beneath her foot and supporting her. He gave her a push up, the bottom of her foot in his palm.

Gabriel was on his way out the second-floor of the Knight Academy when he heard some slight scuffling sounds coming from the side of the school. His curiosity was piqued-after all, it was something unusual for him to hear at this hour, let alone at all. He made his way around the building, shocked by the sight that greeted him.

He recognized Aileen, up hours past the normal curfew, dangling from the window of her room. He thought to go push her up, as her door was locked and he wouldn't be able to pull her into her room-not to mention it would be inappropriate for him to be in there in the first place-before he saw a man he didn't quite recognize already in the process of trying to push her up to the window. He saw tufts of blonde hair beneath his cap, and the only one that came to mind was Link-perhaps this was just one of the others from another of the islands in the sky.

Aileen was sure her goose was cooked. 'Ah man...if they don't kick me out this time, I'll be on kitchen duty for the rest of my life!' Just as she finished lamenting over her impending doom, her grip slipping all the more, she felt something push up from under her foot. She glanced down and noticed some scrawny guy with blond hair supporting her. Was he from the party? She couldn't remember. With his help she was able to quickly reestablish her grip and she hoisted herself into her window, sitting down on the window sill to catch her breath and calm her nerves a bit. She got a better look at her savior and was about to thank him when someone else caught her eye.

It was Gabriel.

"Ah crap!" she hissed quietly. "He's going to rat on me for sure and he'll get me kicked out. Damn it all!" she pulled herself in further so she didn't fall out, her exhaustion making her feel a little woozy. Hiding now was pointless, Gabriel had seen her, and she was sure he'd ask questions whether it was just the two of them now or if it was in the Headmaster's office where she'd be pinned in between Gaepora, Owlan, and Horwell with no escape. Explaining this to her parents when she came home from the Academy early with nothing to show for it was going to be fun. "Hey thanks." she whispered to the guy who had helped her up. At this point she wondered if she would have been better off if she had fallen.

Quintinius dared not to speak to her, lest his voice be recognized but he gave her a nod instead, which proved to be disastrous. The vines caught hold of his wig and tugged it clean off of his dark curls. The numb shock that followed the realization of his blunder as he saw the wig dangling tangled quite effectively in the vines left him motionless for a moment and his eyes darted up at Aileen, who was, naturally, still looking down at him and sure to recognize him. But she'd also mentioned someone else was there that would 'rat her out'. Surely whoever that was was seeing him now too and an alarm would be raised. He let go of the vines and allowed himself to drop the several feet.

He grit his teeth at the wrenching pain in his ankles and his knees when he hit the solid ground but he ignored it, tearing away as fast as his feet would carry him toward town and the river. There was only one place he could think of that he could hide, it was somewhere he had mapped out before for emergencies like this, he just hoped that his energy didn't give out, that he could handle the race. He was so hungry, and he was feeling weak, but the adrenaline was keeping him going for the moment.

Gabriel took notice of the man running, and it clicked instantly the identity of the man: Quintinius! The man that had attacked Levias, and he was right there! Gabriel had seen the man save Aileen from falling, so he was sure that something had to be up with the whole thing...he couldn't be a completely evil bastard if he was willing to risk himself to save a young woman. However, answers were needed, and they were needed now.

Gabriel gave chase, sending Eclaire ahead to try and stall him. Gabriel was quick and agile, and he employed the best and shortest route he was able to try and catch up.

Quintinius darted as fast as his feet would carry him across the landscape of Skyloft. He'd learned quite a bit about the town since he had been forced to hide from view and knew a fair few shortcuts himself. He took the swiftest most direct route he could find, Eclair trying her best to slow him and he grabbed her by the scruff, throwing her a few fee backwards and knowing she could handle the landing. He reached his goal at last and dove head first into the river, trying to get as much depth as he could so he could get to the opening beneath the windmill.

His muscles felt like lead as he forced himself to swim with all the energy he could muster, grabbing the top edge of the opening and pulling himself down and inside, allowing himself to float to the surface afterward and breathing a soft gasp as he broke the surface. He spared just enough energy to get himself pulled up onto the ledge and pressed against the wall so that no one would see him inside it before his world went black.

Eclaire mewled, looking around for the wanted criminal as she pawed at the edge of the water, trying to find where he'd dived into.

Gabriel caught up with his pet, cursing his rotten luck. Had he been just a little faster, he could have nabbed him by this point. He frowned, seeing his feline pet looking down into the water. He looked, seeing some damp splotches a little further up on the edge, signs of splashing. So he'd chosen to take a swim, but there weren't that many places to escape to aside from off the island, and that was a pretty hefty drop. He scanned the river, looking for any direction that he could have taken. He noticed, just a little further down that there was an opening down by the dip in the river. He wondered...it wasn't impossible to make it down there and up in one breath...provided there was an opening and it wasn't just a gap in a bridge.

"Eclaire, stay right here," said Gabriel, diving into the water himself. At night the water was almost frigid, and Gabriel shivered as he swam through it. He swam through the opening, looking up and seeing only darkness. It didn't seem like a barrier was ahead, so he kept going, feeling relief as he broke the surface with a gasp. It was still too dark to see well, but he scanned the small alcove anyway.

That's when he found Quintinius, unconscious. The man must have overexerted himself during the chase. This was going to be a nightmare. The man was sure to be extremely heavy now that he was dead weight, and he would only be able to use his feet...he would have to exert himself further in order to get the both of them out. He had some cord, binding Quintinius' arms behind his back and binding his ankles and knees as well, taking him into the water, using the weight to help them sink to the opening in the bottom faster. The hard part was getting back up, and Gabriel kicked as hard as he could, using his hands to keep Quintinius from breathing in.

He was relieved when he pulled the man up onto the shore, taking a quick breather for a few minutes. Had he only come quietly...no matter. Once Gabriel was finished, he sent Eclaire on ahead to rouse Gaepora, carrying the unconscious criminal towards the academy.

Quintinius gasped and coughed feebly when they surfaced, his dark curls soaked around his head, but he didn't wake. He was far too weak and his body had given out. Draped over Gabriel's shoulder he dangled limp as a rag doll, his head lolling with the knight's rhythmic steps. A soft moan escaped him, his body aching for calm and quiet rest. His current predicament made him intensely uncomfortable, even in his current state. He had no idea that he had been captured only that he had reached his hiding place and had only been able to pray for the best. The dripping pair drew close to the academy, in sight of Aileen's window. Quintinius was a pitiful sight indeed, and likely to be in a great deal of trouble very soon.

Gabriel carried the unconscious Quintinius through the halls of the school, his boots dry enough that he didn't slip on the way up to Headmaster Gaepora's door. He rapped his knuckles on the door, hoping that the Headmaster would wake, and was relieved to see the elderly man did.

"I found him outside the school," explained Gabriel. "Oddly enough, he was helping Aileen out outside. She'd nearly taken a nasty fall when I arrived."

"Quintinius....bring him inside, lad." said Gaepora, leading him in and having the soaked young man laid down on the floor. He knelt down and removed the young man's bonds. "I don't think he'll be going anywhere in this condition." he said, gently touching the young fugitive's brow to check for fever. "You saw Quintinius and Aileen together? Did anyone else see Quintinius?" After receiving a 'no' from Gabriel he gave a faint nod. "I see. I want you to go and fetch Aileen. I wish to speak to the both of you about what has transpired tonight. I doubt Quintinius will be waking with any swiftness at the moment and I wish to know as much of the story as possible."

"Will do, Sir," replied Gabriel as he made his way towards Aileen's room. He knew how much of a party animal the young woman was, and had no doubt that after all that excitement, she'd want to sleep. He actually felt bad, knowing he'd be the one to interrupt her slumber, and he knocked on her door. "Aileen? Aileen, open up. It's Gabriel. Headmaster Gaepora wishes to see you," he called, hoping she'd wake up. He'd hate to have to drag her out.

Aileen had had a long day. Her day had started tending to Isolde, not that she minded, then sitting through boring lectures, which she did. After lunch and dinner had passed and she had done her other chores, a party invitation had been a welcome reprieve from the monotony that had become her stay at the Skyloft Knight Academy. She had made a few good friends during her night life so she took every opportunity to party that she could.

The one she had been returning from had been a wild one indeed. She had realized she had probably had too much to drink too late and there was no stopping her. How she managed to get across the rocks leading from the cave was a mystery. By all rights she should be dead. Drowning, taking a tumble from the side of the island, and well, she had almost broken her neck before that mystery man who turned out to be a criminal had caught her. Soon after Gabriel had given chase Aileen had fallen inside the window and had dragged herself over to her bed where she promptly passed out into a drunken sleep.

When the knock sounded at her door she had been asleep for a good half hour and much to the chagrin of the man outside her door, she was not waking up on her own.

Gabriel pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, wondering how much whiskey she'd downed to knock her out like this. He shook his head, supposing there was nothing to do but to fetch her himself. Hopefully she'd be quiet; it was still very early, and not many would be up.

He opened the door silently, peering in, and seeing that she was indeed asleep. He shook his head. One of these days, she'd have to answer for all of this. He gathered her carefully in his arms, being gentle so as not to jostle her awake as he carried her out the room, towards the Headmaster's instead.

Gaepora frowned when he saw Gabriel carrying Aileen inside and he sighed faintly. It was quite clear now what the girl had been out doing, but he still needed to ask her some questions about Quintinius. He didn't like that the girl stayed out all hours like she did, but he supposed teenagers would be teenagers. He went to a cupboard and took some smelling salts out, having had Gabriel set the girl down in a chair. He leaned down and placed the bottle under her nose, waving it back and forth beneath her nostrils to revive her from her deep sleep.

The young teenage girl was still sound asleep even when she was sat up in a chair. She hadn't even noticed being jostled about and carried by Gabriel, and she started to slump in her chair a bit. When Gaepora waved the smelling salts under her nose, her body jerked and her eyes snapped open. She looked around wildly, confused, until she recognized the room she was in. At that moment she froze, all but her eyes, which saw the young man who had helped her before lying on the floor, Gabriel the Goody-Two-Shoes, and the Headmaster, who was looking right at her. She loosed an audible groan. She was doomed now.

"Aw hell..."

"I hate to wake you at such an hour Aileen, but there are some questions that I need to ask you. Gabriel has reported to me that you were seen dangling from your bedroom window, and that Quintinius here helped you back into your room and prevented you from falling. I can make assumptions on what you were doing dangling from your window at such an hour. Normally a talk about you breaking curfew could wait and the fact you nearly fell and broke your neck would be punishment enough for your lack of judgment. However, the appearance of this boy complicates matters, and I want to know what he was doing at your window. Have you been in contact with Quintinius?"

It took a few good seconds before the Headmaster's words sank in to understanding. She scowled and glared up at him. He was treating her like a criminal, and the last she checked, staying up all night and having fun wasn't criminal activity. "Hey, just because the guy kept me from breakin' my neck doesn't mean I know him, okay? Just because you got your fancy school and your daughter's some important...something or other, doesn't mean you can look down your nose at me. I still manage to do all my chores and keep up with lessons so you can think what you want. I pay to be here just like everybody else." She was angry and in her mind, rightfully so. He had roused her from sleep and was accusing her of consorting with criminals. Hell, she didn't even know what the kid had done, she just knew he was in trouble.

"He sure does look like some dangerous felon. Starved, dirty, and passed out on your floor. What did you do, send Gabriel the Butt Kissing Snitch to sock him a good one?" she shot a nasty glare at the knight who had more than likely brought her here.

"Slow down, Aileen. Now first, when you enrolled in this school you did so knowing that the purpose was to train you to be a knight, which requires discipline, responsibility, and respect for the law. The rules are in place to teach you to uphold laws and to teach discipline along with other obvious reasons depending upon the rule. You are talking to me as if these expectations are unreasonable, and that I have no right to enforce them, but I believe it is you that are staring down your nose, because you think that the rules shouldn't apply to you. You behave as if you're somehow more privileged than the rest and can do whatever you please without any consequence.

Now, that aside, I wanted you both here tonight for a more important reason than breaking curfew, and it could not wait until morning. For Quintinius' sake. The fact of the matter is that I would not have been angry with you if you had befriended Quintinius, Aileen." said Gaepora. " I have in fact, been quite worried about him since he fled the academy after that whole sordid business with the accusation that he attacked Levias. I do not believe for one moment that this young boy is the one that attacked the guardian of our skies and caused him to act as he is now. However, people in Skyloft are angry and unwilling to listen to reason and it is very dangerous for him now. The real purpose of bringing you here is to ask your silence of what you have seen tonight. I am relieved to have Quintinius back under my charge right now, because it is obvious that he needs some good meals and some care, but no one must know that he is still in Skyloft. It would be disastrous for him. I want you both to promise me that you will speak to no one about this night and what you witnessed."

Gabriel's indignation at Aileen was evident on his face at her words. He was merely doing his duty as a knight of Skyloft-something he expected her to do as well as a student of the academy. However, his frustration faded as Gaepora asked the two to keep their silence. A task such as that was no easy feat, especially when the evidence pointed towards Quintinius in the first place.

"I'll admit, Headmaster...I'm uncertain about this. What makes you so certain he didn't commit the deed in the first place?"

"Whatever is ailing Levias, I very seriously doubt that a young Knight apprentice would be capable of causing harm that alters a deity's behavior. Besides, there are reports from the surface that the same thing has happened to the Dragons there, and Quintinius has never been to the surface. Nor do I think he could be acting with others, because as you can see, he's been quite alone after this incident with no other goal than to remain hidden from the people of Skyloft.

Quintinius comes from another island a bit distant from here, and he has no one to go to or that can vouch for his character aside of myself. The fact that he was a more quiet student only served to make him seem more suspicious to others. Being quiet, however, is not grounds for assuming the worst." said Gaepora. "When the first accusations arose, Quintinius tried to face them and asked for my help for his defense. However, the crowd was too angry to listen and he was forced to flee for his safety. I'm certain you both remember the terrible mob, when the people from the nearby islands arrived under the impression that a student at the Knight academy had caused this grief. We had to repair the front doors."

Aileen was listening numbly as Gaepora rattled on and on about the dragons. So that had been a mob all that time ago? Aileen had thought it was part of some huge party and had wondered what the occasion was for. As if she would keep up with world events.

"Yeah sure, whatever. He kept me from breaking my neck. And it's not like I really care what happens to those dragons anyway." she shrugged her shoulders, her apathy only intensified by her intense headache and sleepiness. "Might wanna keep a muzzle on your golden boy over there though." she jerked a thumb in Gabriel's direction. "If you couldn't tell already, Head Master, he's a right snitch."

"I am not going to criticize Gabriel for reporting something he witnessed on his watch, that is his duty and his responsibility, and as far as he knew, Quintinius was being rightfully pursued. Appropriate diligence is important for good security and trustworthy sentries. Just because his duty interferes with your preferences does not mean he was in the wrong. However, now that the matter is in hand there are some situations where following the rules to the letter isn't feasible. I would not be asking you and Gabriel to remain silent about Quintinius if I felt he was guilty and deserving of punishment. As he is now, I think he's been punished quite enough.

Quintinius shivered where he lay on the floor, sprawled out a bit from just being set down when he was brought in. A soft groan escaped his lips.

"Aileen, I have one more task for you tonight and then you can return to your quarters and be excused from classes for tomorrow with my personal permission. I need you to go to the linen closet and collect a pillow and the warmest blankets you can find. Take an extra uniform from there as well, the medium size will do fine for him, I think."