Chapter 1: The Monster Squad

Hyrule Castle Town was thriving as great as ever. The busy streets of the town were met with activity of all sorts, from shopkeepers to street performers to wandering travelers to the inhabitants of the town. The place was crowded.

Poump, a young Hylian male who recently made it through his year at knight school, shared a drink with his friends in a tavern. "Another one, you big fat cow!" Poump very rudely said to the barkeeper.

"That'll be some extra rupees you washed up oaf." The barkeeper replied, washing her glasses. Attempting to scrounge for some rupees, Poump wasn't able to cover his next drink.

His friend interjected. "It's alright buddy, I'll pay for you."

"Bah!" Poump suddenly jumped off his chair and headed for the door, but then passed out on the floor.

Observing a weapon shop, a Sheikah Warrior browsed for fitting weaponry for his arsenal. "And how much will these arrows cost me?"

"For these, a stash of 50 will go for 25 rupees for normal customers, but seeing as you are an all important Sheikah Warrior," the shopkeeper paused as he observed the Sheikah Warrior's weapons on his back, "I will sell a stash of 50 at a discounted rate of 15 rupees. Just for you."

"Thank you kindly." The Sheikah Warrior traded the rupees, and took the arrows in his quiver.

"Would you like anything else, sir?" The Shopkeeper asked.

The Sheikah started eyeing some of the bombs in stock. "No, nothing else." And then he started to walk out. He noticed a female Zora from the outside looking through the glass window at the weapons in the store. "Hello there, Zora. I don't see many of your kind around this town."

The Zora looked back at the Sheikah and said "Well I don't see many of your kind around at all. The only place I've ever seen any Sheikah Warriors were in history books or plays, never in a weapon shop."

"Consider yourself lucky to be in my presence." The Sheikah replied. "What brings you to this weapon shop?"

"Weapons." The Zora replied, as she walked right in.

Meanwhile at the tavern, Telma, the barkeeper, asked Poump's friends about getting him off the floor. "Are any of you gonna do a thing about your buddy on the floor?"

Poump's friend got off his chair and started to pose dramatically, "Don't worry about it, lady. This is a job for Groose and the Gang!" Poump's two other friends sat on their chairs, facepalming at Groose's behavior. "Come on guys! We need to have ourselves a name for when we're all banded together!"

"We're just picking up the washed out body of our friend. There's not much heroic energy coming from this." The female friend added.

"Ah alright whatever." Groose said as he picked Poump right up and hastily plopped him back onto his chair.

Poump began to awaken again. "Wh-what happened?" Still feeling a bit woozy from his last drink.

"Not much, don't worry." Groose said in reply. "Here, I'll pay for the rest of whatever you need to eat."

Poump begrudgingly insisted that he would pay for whatever he was having. "Are there ANY BOUNTY HUNTING JOBS that I can TAKE in order to get some damn rupees for MYSELF!"

Telma replied "Honey, it ain't that easy. Bounty hunting is just a profession that is used in plays. As of now, Hyrule only wants people joining the military, or the shopkeeping businesses. There's a handsome pay for people who work at Lon Lon Ranch just south of here, or you can put that Knight school to good use and apply to work for the Hylian militia. I hear they pay well also."

"Oh Hylia, I wish I wasn't too young on the days when monster hunts were abundant. The idea of going out into the world in search of a monster to slay and bringing its body parts to a shopkeeper for a handsome reward just sounds so exhilarating!" Poump said as he sobbed himself into the bartop. "All of these current jobs are boring and require standing around hoping that you aren't stabbed by a Yiga spy!"

The whole tavern went quiet at the sound of someone saying "Yiga spy". Even though most of the town hasn't been met with Yiga attacks, they've seen the newsboards showcasing what they've done in other parts of Hyrule. The very possibility that Yiga assassins could be hiding right under everyone's noses is a paranoid subject.

"You're scaring my customers, Poump. I suggest you leave, before you start any trouble."

"Alright, fine then." Poump replied to Telma. As he got up off his chair, another customer zoomed right by him in a hasty speed. Feeling around his waist, Poump realized his rupee wallet had been stolen. "Hey, get back here!" And so Poump chased after this person outside the tavern.

"There he goes." Groose's friend said in disappointment.

"Ah give him a break, he had a hard semester at knight school. This will probably be enough to bring his spirits back up." Groose replied.

Running through the streets, the thief wore a cloak. Poump pursued him through the narrow streetways crowded with other civilians. He passed right by the weapon shop that the Sheikah Warrior and the Zora were at. They noticed the two individuals in a chase and took a pursuit after them. The curious individual dashed into the main plaza and disappeared into the crowd.

"Dammit!" Poump exclaimed.

The Sheikah and the Zora caught up to Poump. "What's the matter?" The Zora asked.

"My wallet's been stolen by a thief! And he's somewhere in this crowd!"

"A petty thief? I have more important matters to attend to." The Sheikah Warrior said as he walked off in the opposite direction.

All of a sudden, the crowd in the main plaza started to disperse and scream as they scrambled off to any indoor areas that they could make it into. At the center of this area, appeared to be the hooded figure, with a sickle to a civilian's neck. "Children of the Royal Family!" the hooded figure proclaimed, "Watch as the Yiga take back the land that we truly belong in!"

In a gust of wind, the Sheikah Warrior appeared behind the Yiga and stabbed him through the stomach, causing the Yiga to lose hold of the civilian and fall to the ground, dead. The civilian thanked the Sheikah, and hastily ran for the nearest indoor area. The Sheikah Warrior picked up the wallet that the Yiga had stolen. "This is yours?" He asked Poump.

"Yeah, it is." Poump said in reply. The Sheikah tossed him the wallet. The Zora, in shock by what had happened, took a brief dip in the fountain to regain her senses. "I thank you for retrieving my wallet from that thief, but I have other places to be." Turning around, Poump started to feel uneasy. Two more Yiga assassins appeared from the shadows, making a go at the poor Hylian. The Zora took out her spear at the sight of the other Yiga assassins, and the Sheikah brandished his sword. The Sheikah swiftly defended Poump from the incoming Yiga attacks. Poump took out his own sword and his wooden shield and started flailing his sword at them. They were rather fast opponents, and weren't very easy for the young Hylian to get a good cut in. The Zora waved her spear around, and some of the water from the fountain came out and engorged one of the Yiga assassins in a block of water. The slowed down Yiga was easy to hit for Poump, and the Sheikah made quick work of the other Yiga assassin. One last Yiga appeared in the area, but decided that the fight wasn't worth it. The last Yiga teleported to the rooftops, where he was promptly killed by a figure with a glowing sword. The figure looked down at the group, and left their sight.

After the fight, some Hylian soldiers lined themselves into the area and observed the situation. One of the soldiers walked forward, wearing different armor from the others. "You have done a great service at standing up against these Yiga spies! The Queen would like a word with you!"

"The Queen?! As in, Zelda?" Poump thought to himself. He had seen her in person before, but that felt like ages ago. Following the soldiers, the Sheikah, the Zora, and Poump walked through the gates of Castle Town towards Hyrule Castle. The Castle was a grand monument. It was large with spires that stretched out into the sky, and purple ribbons with the Royal Family's Crest were draped over several archways. Some spider-like robots, commonly known as Guardians, were patrolling around the courtyard. Poump only knew of the courtyard because of his time in knight school, and the Zora only knew of this castle as a landmark in the distance.

They passed by a cucco coup. One of the cuccos looked at the group of people walking by, and jumped out of the coup. It followed the group.

The group was soon enough presented within the throne room of Queen Zelda herself. At the throne, was Zelda, standing in her regal uniform. To her left, was an old man wearing a red robe. "I suppose you know why I summoned you here?"

Poump almost opened his mouth, but was silenced by the Sheikah's glare. The Sheikah answered, "We were summoned here because we defeated those Yiga spies, correct?"

"That's part of it." Zelda replied. "I also summoned you here because you are one of the few Sheikah Warriors across all of Hyrule that is willing to accept help from a team of others. The Zora warrior and the young Hylian trainee look like they make good companions for you, Sheikah."

"It is true, your highness, we Sheikah Warriors aren't known for cooperating with other people. But surely there is another reason I am here before you right now?"

"Yes indeed." Zelda then motioned to the other soldiers in the room to leave, as well as the old man. Zelda walked up to the group, as they were now alone. "I have you here because I have an important mission that I've been overlooking for the past 8 years. The monsters are rare in numbers, but pose a danger to passersby in the mountains of the Hebra region, the desert of the Gerudo region, and the canyon area just north of the Akalla region. I want you all to work together and kill off the last of the monsters, for a high price."

Feeling satisfied with these words, Poump spoke out, "How many rupees are you talking about?"

"5,000 rupees. For each of you." Zelda said. She handed them a Sheikah slate. "Here, this will be of some use to you. You can use it to communicate with me if you ever need my help. I trust that you will be fulfilling this mission cleanly. Get this done, and I will have all of you promoted. Any questions?"

Poump replied "I got all my answers, Angel!"

"As long as the pay stays good, I'll be happily enjoying this mission." The Zora said.

"We will heed your advice, Queen." The Sheikah added.

"B-b-b-b-BACKAW!" The cucco exclaimed. Everyone looked at it, and it looked around at everyone else.

"I hope you make it back in one piece. That is all for now. Use the Sheikah Slate if you ever wish to contact me again." Zelda said, as she headed back to her quarters. She momentarily turned around to look at the Hylian teenager. She felt like she saw him somewhere before, but couldn't put her finger on it.

The soldiers reappeared and guided the group back out to the Castle Town. The group all looked at each other. "Well well well, we have a royal mission to attend to now!" Poump exclaimed. The Sheikah and the Zora looked at Poump and his enthusiasm.

"I will allow you to say your goodbyes to the people you know in this town." The Sheikah said. "The Zora and I will meet you at the front gates."

Poump went back to the tavern and said his goodbyes to his friends. He went to his house and collected his belongings and walked to the front gates. There, the Sheikah and the Zora were on their own horses, and Poump went onto his own horse that the stable had cooped up for him. The cucco jumped onto Poump's horse.

The group set their sights for the Hebra mountains, which was the closest place to Hyrule Castle. On the ride there, Poump decided to start up a conversation.

"So… uhh. My name's Poump." Poump said. "What are your names?"

"I don't like saying my name. I don't like how it sounds. Just call me Zora." The Zora said.

"Oh, alrighty then. What about you, Sheikah Warrior?" Poump asked the Sheikah.

"I've never said my name in a long time. And it's for a very good reason." The Sheikah replied. "I won't say my name. Not now, not here."

"Oh. Okay then." Poump said. An awkward silence overwhelmed the group as they galloped along the road to the Hebra Mountains.

They went through a checkpoint on a bridge. The guards on the checkpoint checked their belongings and allowed them to pass. They passed by a stable, and eventually started to enter the cold and snowy weather of the Hebra mountains. The Zora started to feel herself freeze up.

"G-g-g-guys. We should head back." The Zora said, as she started to feel the chills run all over her. Poump and the Sheikah also felt cold. The others listened to her and headed back towards the stable that they passed.

"What are we gonna do to help ourselves get through the cold weather?" Poump asked.

The Sheikah replied, "We could buy her warm clothes, but those were sold back at the castle town, which is quite a ride from here."

"OOOOOOHHHHH!" The group turned towards a skinny individual with a large backpack. "A heat potion is what you are in need of!"

"Who are you?" The Zora asked.

"I am Beedle! Seller of bugs! I love bugs a lot! Did you know that you could mix them up with other ingredients to create different potions of varying effect?"

"We don't need any silly bugs, weird man." Poump said, rather rudely.

"OH-HO-HO-HO! Since you are customers in need of a special type of potion, I will give you some heat potions, for the low low price of 5 rupees per bottle!" The Sheikah immediately jumped at this offer and paid for 5 bottles of heat potions. "THANK YOUUU!" Beedle exclaimed.

"With these, we can get through the cold weather of the Hebra region." The Sheikah stated. The group all got on their horses and rode for the Hebra region again. The cucco was still with them. They drank up on their potions, and rode through the snow. Eventually, they noticed the faint silhouette of someone looking at them through the blizzard. The Sheikah knocked an arrow and shot it at the figure.

"AAAAAHHHH!" The figure exclaimed. They took a closer look and realized that it was a Rito. "Why did you do that?"

"Oh I'm sorry. You startled me." The Sheikah replied.

"You hit my wing."

"Here, have a heat potion."

"Ah thank you. With this, I can be able to walk to the nearest shelter. I'll pay you back once I see you again." The Rito then walked in the direction the group were coming from.

They rode forward along the path, and eventually came up to the entrance of a cave. The Sheikah Slate started to vibrate. Poump picked it up. Zelda was calling over video call.

"You have arrived at the monster hideout. There is an entire dungeon's worth of challenges through that cave, which will eventually take you to where the monsters are. Be safe." She then hung up.

The adventurers got off their horses, and proceeded into the cave. The Zora took notice of the cucco following them, and she carried it in her arms. The cave started to gain some walls as they walked deeper into it. They ended up in a corridor which had some bones on the floor. The bones fixed themselves into a skeleton and it ran right for the adventurers. They made quick work of the skeleton. "That was crazy." Poump said, feeling a bit shaken.

"Whatever we agreed to, there's plenty of rupees in it for us." The Sheikah said.

They eventually found a chest with a key in it, and they were then greeted by a slime creature, that the Zora recognized as a Chu-Chu. Poump almost fell into what seemed like a bottomless pit. They went through a door and found themselves in a room with a bridge to the left and a gaping chasm to the right. They looked across the bridge to see a chest, and a large statue of what looked like a knight. They walked across the bridge and it collapsed.

"Just great." Poump said. "At least we have big ol' knighty to keep us company." He then kicked the statue of the knight, and then it all of a sudden brought its foot up and walked towards Poump. It raised its large sword towards Poump, and he dodged just at the right moment. The Zora took her spear and started jabbing at the walking statue. The Sheikah attempted to slice at it, but the statue knocked him off to the side with it's large shield. The cucco went right up to the statue's boots and pecked at it. The cucco pecked at it enough to the point in which it's armor fell off, revealing chainmail underneath the armor. The statue kicked the cucco away. This sparked an idea amongst the travelers. They all banded together and struck at it's armor until all of it fell off. The statue, with most of the armor off, threw away the big sword and shield it carried and brandished a new skinnier, but still tall sword. Without the armor, the statue moved much faster and made life for the adventurers a hell. It danced passed all of their attacks, and managed to fracture Poump's shield. Unaware, the statue was being stabbed in the back by the Zora's spear, and the Sheikah attempted to cut it's head clean off. However, the Sheikah's blade didn't seem to cut off it's head, but rather create a small incision in its neck. The resilient statue turned to the Sheikah and then the cucco flew right up to its face and brought it down to the floor. All of the adventurers plunged their weapons into the statue's chest. It cried out in pain and then seized any signs of life within itself.

"Whoa, that was crazy." Poump said, exhausted.

"Well it looks like there's something in this chest that might help us." The Zora said. They walked up to the chest and discovered it's contents. It appeared to be two clawshots! Convenient instructions within the chest explained what the clawshots did. Poump equipped them and then yanked at the chain ceiling from above him. He propelled up to it and climbed his way to the other side and yanked at a switch, that reengaged the bridge across the pit. The adventurers walked across and eventually found themselves at a big locked door. They navigated a door behind them, and poump used his clawshots to propel himself towards a chest that contained a big key. He got himself back towards the others and they entered the big door.

On the other side, they saw a large cave, being held up by what looked like a large fish's skeleton. At the end of the cave, the adventurers saw the elusive monsters that they were after. They brought out their weapons, ready to reap in their rupees when all of a sudden the Sheikah Slate started vibrating. Poump picked it up. It was Zelda. "Hello. I take it that you have navigated your way through the dungeon?"

"Correct!"

"Good. Now I am going to ask you something very important that I have only kept to myself and a select few people in all of Hyrule. Do NOT kill the monsters."

"What? Why?"

"It's a very long story. My main mission that I have been trying to complete for years is to escort these monsters off of the mainland of Hyrule and onto an island that I believe will work as a good habitat for them to live in peace, away from the Hylian intervention that would lead to their extinction. I chose you lot to work on this job for me because I believe that you are skilled enough to carry out this job better than most people. I want a small party to know about this because if the word spreads that monsters are being spotted across Hyrule, the Hylians of this land will attempt to kill them for their parts. So please, I beg of you, do NOT kill these monsters. I have already spoken with the Rito population about accommodating the monsters next to their village. They have agreed to take this lot of monsters under their wings. In order to escort them through the mountains to the Rito Village, you're going to need a flute, and a song of the forest. The flute resides in Kakariko Village, and the song of the forest can be learnt inside of the Lost Woods, just East of Hyrule Castle. Mind you, the flute is a special flute that emits magical energy unlike any other flute, so you can't use any old flute. I'd advise you to meet my partner before you enter the Lost Woods. He lives in Hateno Village. He is among the few people in all of Hyrule that knows of my plan."

"Wow, that's a lot of information to take in." Poump replied.

"And I can trust that you can use this knowledge for your greater good. I will still pay you 10,000 rupees for getting this part of the job done. Thank you. And good luck." And then Zelda hung up.

The adventurers all looked at each other. As they all walked out of the cave, they spoke to each other about this mission.

"It will pay well for us." The Sheikah stated.

"If we fulfill this mission, we might even be considered heroes of Hyrule." the Zora said.

"We need a name for ourselves." Poump said. "How about we call ourselves… The Monster Squad!"

"BACKAW!"