CHAPTER 8

After resting for a few days, things started to get back to normal. Emily started her training again, but still had a few mistakes along the way, shown by the holes in the walls of the castle that were being quickly fixed.
Sage had a fit while Link and Perrin tried to heal him with a fairy, thinking that it was a Will-of-the-Whisp come to take away his soul. They had to hold down his hands and feet while Zelda released the fairy over Sage to heal him. He had spent the last day or so sharpening and practicing with his claymore with renewed vigor.
Zelda, along with Deeana, the potion shop keeper in Kakariko Town, the old hag that ran the shop, and the old scientist from his Lake Zora lab, and the few Zoras that he had brought, read every thing that they could find for the possibility for Sage to go back to his life in Scotland. They had a few leads, but nothing really went anywhere, and Sage was starting to get worried that he would never see his home again. So, to cheer him up, Link and Perrin took him hunting in the Lost Woods.
Bow in hand and riding Epona, Link tried to cheer Sage up. "Come on Sage, we're out here to have some fun, cheer up some man."
Sage sighed as Perrin continued in a reassuring tone. "Yeah, Zelda has the greatest minds and magic workers in Hyrule trying to get you home! I'm sure it won't take them that much longer."
Still looking down, Sage sighed again.
"You know Sage," Link said with a slight chuckle. "You're not going to get anything hunting if you don't keep your head up."
Before Sage could respond to Link's obvious bad joke, an arrow hit the ground in front of the three mounted men. Their horses reared back as a group of stalfos fell from the trees above them. Perrin quikly fired an arrow at one of the skeletons, but it went right throught the space inbetween two of it's ribs. A look of confusion apeared on Perrin's face.
"Ganon is not pleased in what happened," The living skeleton's voice sounded like stones being rubbed together. "So, he sent us to take you back." The stalfos pointed his crooked sword at Sage and smiled, or what passed for a smile on a living skeleton. A look of terror came to Sage's face as scenes from the hell that he had suffered at the hands of Ganon played through his mind, but he quickly regained his composure.
"Sorry boys, but this is a private party!" Link said as he spurred Epona forward and drew the master sword, kicking in the skull of a stalfos as he rode by.
Dismounting, Sage drew his claymore, it's newly polished blade reflecting the sun's rays. 'I'm really getting sick o' this.' Sage thought to himself as he cut through the spine of a stalfos.
Perrin also has his share of fun with the skeleton knights. One charged at him with an outstretched sword. Perrin dropped to his left knee and grabbed its arm as it passed over him. Perrin threw the living skeleton over his head and into a nearby tree, shattering it into a pile of bones. As he was standing up, a stalfos from behind him was bringing his sword down at Perrin's head. Turning around, Perrin thought that this was the last thing he would see, but that was not the case. Sage's blade blocked the sword of the stalfos, inches from Perrin's nose. After Sage gave him a quick look, Perrin nodded his head and swept the skeleton's feet out from under him. After landing on the ground, Sage crushed it's skull with the pommel of his claymore. "Noo we're e'en." Sage said smugly looking over to Perrin. Perrin smiled and nodded appreciative.
"Hey you two," Link yelled, his back against a tree surrounded by five stalfos. "You think I could get some help over here!?"
"Gee Link," Perrin called to Link teasingly. "I thought you could handle something as simple as five stalfos!"
Ducking beneath a sword aimed for his head that embedded itself in the tree behind Link, he yelled. "Damn it you two get your asses over here!"
"What ya say, Sage should we help him?"
"Heh heh, sure why not?"
With the three working together, the stalfos were soon beaten. "Gee, thanks you two." Link said sarcastically after the last of Ganon's little party had been defeated.
Smiling ear to ear, Perrin gloated. "No problem, Link."
The two started laughing, but Sage stood with his lips pursed in deep thought. 'The longer I stay aroun', the more chance me friends will get hurt.'
"Come on, let's go back to the castle." Link said, mounting Epona.