Cafeteria: Lunch…
"So, there we were in the middle of the night." Nora was telling a story, trying to sound ominous.
"It was day." Ren calmly corrected.
"We were surrounded by Ursai." Nora continued.
"They were Beowolves." Ren corrected again.
"Dozens of them!" Nora shouted.
"Two of them." Ren corrected
Link was sat with Teams RNBW and JLYN as they ate lunch.
"They were no match for Ren and I." Nora declared. "We took them down and made a boatload of lien selling Ursa-skin rugs."
Ren sighed. "She's been having this recurring dream practically since we arrived."
Given what Link learned about the pair, this made perfect sense to him. He didn't know weather to be worried or content in feeling this way about it.
Yang had noticed something was eating her leader all lunch. "Partner, what's on your mind?"
"Huh?" Jaune placed his fork down, trying to look away. "Oh, uh, it's nothing."
"It's just, you seem a little…not okay." Ruby voiced.
"Guys, I'm fine." Jaune gave an unconvincing grin. "Seriously, just look."
"A liar you are not." Link shook his head. "Especially since we all know Cardin's been on your case since the first week of school."
"Uh, who? Cardin Winchester?" Jaune tried to wave it off. "Nah, he just likes to mess around. You know, practical jokes."
They heard laughter from a nearby table. Team CRDL had surrounded a female student with waist-length brown hair and a pair of long, brown rabbit ears, a Faunus. Cardin sat on her right while Russel was on her left, and Dove and Sky were in front of her.
Jaune saw this and clenched his fist while Link casually took out his scroll before discreetly hitting record. It'd be good to have the evidence on hand given the type of character Cardin has shown himself to have. He didn't need Cardin attempting to escalate things if he acted.
Being a Beacon student, there were certain instances where a teacher would step in and certain instances which were to be taken care of among the student body. In a school which is meant to train you to fight, instances like this fall under the latter.
It's not like Link couldn't understand where that Faunus was coming from though by not doing that, leading to him only taking this recourse at the moment. He knew the second it got physical; he would have to disregard how she appeared to be handling it.
"He's a bully." Ruby stated..
"Oh, please." Jaune retorted. "Name ONE time he's 'bullied' me."
"I could name the very first instance, but I'll forgo that to name three more." Link returned.
Flashback I
Jaune was walking down the hall with some books in his hands. Cardin happened to walk by and took the opportunity to slap them out of his hands before walking on like nothing happened.
"Oh, come on!" Jaune yelled.
Flashback II
Jaune was walking into a classroom Cardin was walking out of. As they walked by each other, Cardin hit the button on his sheath that turned it into its shield form, and it got stuck in the door.
Jaune tried to get it free with little success. "Agh! Oh, come on!"
Flashback III
The students are in the locker rooms with Professor Goodwitch. "Each of you will be assigned one rocket-propelled locker to store your weapons and extra armor. Additionally, your locker can be sent to a custom location based on a six-digit code."
In the back of the group, upon hearing that, Cardin shoved the blond leader into an open locker.
"What!? No, wait, wait! Get me out of here! Please, don't, don't, don't!" Jaune pleaded as Cardin hit six random numbers to send the rocket locker blasting off into the sky. "OHHH, COME OOOONNNNNN!"
Cafeteria: Present.
"I didn't land far from the school." Jaune tried.
"Look, I'm all for people handling things like this on their own; however, you got to know we'll help if you ask." Yang offered.
"Yang's got the right idea!" Nora stood with a maniacal grin. "I say we break his legs!"
"Guys, really, it's fine." Jaune stood up with his food tray. "Besides, it's not like he's only a jerk to me. He's a jerk to everyone."
"Ow, that hurts!" The female Faunus called out, Cardin pulling on her ears as he and his team laughed. "Please stop."
"I told you they were real." Cardin told his team, obviously not caring.
"What a freak." Russel voiced as they continued laughing.
With their attention on this, none of them noticed the fact Link had stood until he'd already walked over. He'd slipped his scroll into his pocket and ended up behind Cardin where he cupped his hands together.
Cardin's team just now noticed Link before he smashed a hammer fist into Cardin's back. The sudden, surprise blow saw him releasing the Faunus' ears before being knocked clean over the table and hitting the ground with a thud.
Before he could recover or speak, with Cardin's team members presently stunned by what happened, Link lept over the table and landed feet first on the guy's back. He then wretched his arms behind him, holding his fellow first year to the ground.
"Now that I have your attention…" Link began.
Cardin growled as he struggled. "Get off of me…"
"Guess I don't yet." Link wretched the guy's arms back further, getting a slight cry of pain which was enough to stop the other members of CDRL from moving. "As I was saying…Now that I should have your attention, you're not acting in good faith as a Hunter in training.
From my understanding, Hunters should not be the cause of negative emotion. Part of our job, at least if you want to be a good Huntsman, is to keep emotions up. You have failed and left me weary of you since I don't have faith you'll defend a Faunus from a Grimm.
In the end, I'm not the one who decides whether you stay." He let Cardin go and stepped off him. "If you attempt to paint this situation as a way to escalate things to teachers, do know I have recorded everything you've done. Now, leave this student be."
Cardin growled as he quickly got to his feet, looked to his team, and pointed at Link. "Get…"
"I would think carefully about what you intend to do." The Mistralian Champion warned.
Ruby, Pyrrha, Blake, Ren, Yang, and Nora had all gotten up and moved to support Link, with Weiss and Jaune staying near their prior table. Even though Cardin was a confident person, seven on four were not good odds. He left with his team.
Link nodded to everyone, seeing them return to the table before he turned to the rabbit girl. "You okay?"
"Uh, y-yes." The girl replied timidly. "Thank you."
"What's your name?" Link asked.
"Velvet. Velvet Scarlatina." Velvet answered.
"Velvet, I understand an eye for an eye can make the whole world blind; however, you're taking it too far in the other direction." Link reasoned.
"I just want to see if maybe I can befriend Cardin, so he'll stop bullying people." Her timidness vanished, replaced by determination. "I'd rather gain friends than enemies anyways."
"If that's the path you believe in, follow it." Link started to walk away. "Just don't follow it so far you'd let people hurt you, like Cardin was doing."
Link soon sat back down with the two teams.
"People like Cardin are atrocious." Pyrrha stated angrily. "I can't stand people like him."
"He's not the only one." Blake added, showing her own disdain.
"It must be hard to be a Faunus." Yang uttered, feeling bad for them.
Jaune just sighed as he walked away, not feeling good about the whole situation.
History: After Weapon Engineering & Upkeep…
Teams RNBW, JLYN, CRDL, Link, and Velvet were now in history where their professor, Dr. Oobleck, displayed rather energetic behavior, speech, and movements. He had spiky green hair, glasses, and standard attire compared to pretty much any other teacher.
While most of the students were listening and trying to take notes, Jaune was fast asleep within his seat. Something Link was starkly aware of since his fellow blond had really been slipping from the first day. None of that touched on his performance in Sparring & Team Building.
"Once classes are over, I'll have to talk with him." Link recognized.
"Yes. Yes, prior to the Faunus Rights Revolution, more popularly known as the Faunus War, humankind was quite, quite adamant about centralizing Faunus population in Menagerie." Dr. Oobleck quickly stated while taking a drink from his coffee mug.
"While this must feel like ancient history, it is imperative to remember these are relatively recent events. Why, the repercussions of the uprising can still be seen to this day." He took another sip. "Now, have any among you been subjugated or discriminated because of your Faunus heritage?"
Despite her views expressed to Link, Velvet wouldn't deny raising her hand now with other students in class. "Dreadful, simply dreadful. Remember students, it is precisely this kind of ignorance that breeds violence.
I mean, I mean, just look at what happened to the White Fang. Now, which one of you young scholars can tell me what many theorists believe to be the turning point in the third year of the war?" Weiss raised her hand. "Yes?"
"The battle at Fort Castle." She answered.
"Precisely!" Dr. Oobleck stated. "Now, who can tell me the advantage the Faunus had over General Lagune's forces?"
Just then, Cardin flicked a folded piece of paper at Jaune's head which woke him up. "Hey."
"Mr. Arc, finally contributing to class." Oobleck got right in front of Jaune's seat. "This is excellent, EXCELLENT! What is the answer?"
"Uh, the answer…" Jaune was trying to come up with something. "…The advantage the Faunus…over that guy's stuff…Uh, I."
Oobleck looked on unamused while students like Cardin laughed. "Amusing, Mr. Arc." He sighed before looking the other leader's way. "Cardin, perhaps you would care to share your thoughts on the subject?"
"Well, I know it's easier to train an animal than a soldier." Cardin snarked, making Oobleck shake his head in disappointment.
"You're not the most open-minded of individuals, are you Cardin?" Pyrrha rhetorically asked, irritated.
"You got a problem?" Cardin begrudgingly asked.
"No, I have the answer." Pyrrha retorted. "While it's not a common trait among all Faunus, enough do have perfect vision in the dark for it to be a huge factor here."
Cardin growled in anger.
"General Lagune was inexperienced and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep." Blake added. "His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured."
"He was arrogant enough to ignore such a point that it left him vulnerable." Link continued. "You must never underestimate your opponent, otherwise you walk into your own defeat."
"Multiple factors can lead one to defeat." Oobleck nodded. "Nicely done you three."
"Too bad SOME people seem unwilling to learn." Yang voiced, obviously referring to Cardin
That made the leader stand out of his seat with his fist clenched.
"Mr. Winchester, please take your seat." Oobleck instructed before moving in front of Jaune, who was laughing at Cardin. "You AND Mr. Arc can see me after class for additional readings." This was to Jaune's dismay. "Now, moving on."
Sparing & Team Building
Professor Goodwitch began running through fights until she reached the last on her list. "Alright, we have time for one more fight, and it's the last of the one on ones I wanted to run. Would Cardin Winchester and Jaune Arc please step into the arena?"
Cardin chuckled at that as he stood. "Oh, I'll be right on down professor."
Jaune had hoped the only retaliation he'd receive would have been that shove to the ground Cardin ended up giving him as they left the history classroom. Of course, Jaune recognized that wasn't his fault, but it was evident Cardin considered it as such.
"You got this fearless leader." Nora cheered him on.
Ren merely nodded in support.
Yang stood, dragging her leader up before patting him on his back with enough strength to send him stumbling forward. "Yeah, get to it!"
Link wasn't certain about this, and it's not because he prayed for his fellow blond's downfall. It's simply the fact Jaune was an absolute novice in swordplay. The only thing that ever kept him afloat in prior matches was a tactical mind and large Aura reserve. Those never saw him win.
Upon the two students now standing on the stage, Glynda nodded as everything was in order. "Begin in three, two, one…"
Jaune vs Cardin
Cardin moved in, swinging his mace. Jaune didn't even bother drawing his sword as he expanded his shield and braced it with both his arms. While this protected his body, Cardin's sheer strength picked the blond up off his feet.
While the larger leader wasn't all that fast, the bracing actually worked against Jaune in that he hadn't flown all that far. This enabled Cardin to close the distance and engage the Fire Dust Crystal within his mace before slamming home a hit into the blond's gut.
There was an explosion which sent Jaune flying across the stage. He ended up crashing down, on his stomach, just near the edge of the stage. There he began digging around in his pocket. Cardin paid this no mind, merely smirking as he casually strolled across the stage.
"Too bad you didn't land outside the ring Jauney-boy because this…GAHHH" Cardin cried.
Jaune had risen a little while removing his hand from his pocket to throw sand in Cardin's eyes, momentarily blinding the larger leader. Jaune now withdrew his sword and lunged forward. He first bashed his shield into Cardin's torso, having him stumble back.
The blond followed it up with a thrust of his blade which managed to get the larger leader off his feet. Jaune attempted to push his advantage, but Cardin was quicker to get to rise that he had been. The larger leader's eyes had snapped open, red from the sand and showing clear rage.
Cardin growled as he gripped his mace with both hands and swung. Jaune only just managed to get his shield up and brace it once more. Whether it was because the larger leader hadn't used Fire Dust this time or was still off balance, Jaune managed an awkward skid to stay on his feet.
Carding now stormed forward, still angered over this wimp getting one over on him. Jaune clenched his teeth, his eyes quickly darting around before noticing the evening sun coming in through the window above. He glanced at his shield before angling it exactly right.
The light reflected off it into Cardin's eyes, temporarily blinding him once more. He now wildly swung his mace in anger over being blinded for the second time this fight. Jaune pushed forward, using his shield to deflect the mace and swung his sword with reckless abandon.
Cardin took a few hits before snarling as he lashed out his hit foot, managing to slam it home into Jaune's gun and seeing him stumble back. Jaune was left hunched over, trying to catch his breath while Cardin glared daggers his way. The blond collected himself before rushing in.
This time, Jaune couldn't think of a trick, so he just swung his sword. The larger leader simply stepped aside to avoid the attack. Jaune turned only for Cardin to swing his mace upward towards him. The blond managed to block the attack with his shield but couldn't brace for it.
This saw his shield knocked out of his hand while he was sent crashing to the ground. Jaune rose back to his feet before charging Cardin again, wielding his sword with both hands this time. He slashed downward, but Cardin blocked with his mace.
"This is the part where you lose." Cardin declared firmly.
"Over my dead…" Jaune began, only for Cardin to pull back, making him to stumble forward.
In this moment, the larger leader gripped his mace with both hands, activated the Fire Dust within, and swung with all his might. Jaune couldn't defend and took the full force of the blow in the stomach. He was sent flying well passed the stage and came crashing down.
Sparring & Team Building
"That's the end of this match." Professor Goodwitch voiced.
The screen showed Cardin's Aura was still in the green, though just above turning yellow, while Jaune's was red.
"As you can see, Mr. Arc's Aura dropped into the red, and he fell outside the arena." Glynda informed. "In a tournament, this would mean Jaune has lost due to Aura and ring out. Mr. Arc, it's been weeks now. Please try to refer to your scroll during combat.
Gauging your Aura will help you decide when it is appropriate to attack, or when it is better to move to a more…defensive strategy." Jaune looked at his scroll, showing his teammates' Aura was green while his was red. "We wouldn't want you to be gobbled up by a Beowolf, would we?"
"Speak for yourself." Cardin muttered, placing his mace on his right shoulder.
"Cardin sure is cocky, especially after what happened at the beginning of our second class." Link noted.
Flashback: 2nd Sparring & Team Building
Professor Goodwitch strolled into the middle of the arena and addressed the gathered students. "Now students, as I mentioned last evening, if anyone can defeat me in the arena, they will be allowed to skip the rest of these classes with an automatic passing grade. Do I have any takers?"
"I'll have a go, Professor!" Cardin called out with a smirk as he stood. "I'll do better than some upstart bat."
CRDL's leader looked pointedly at Link upon saying that last part, though said 'bat Faunus,' as people seemed to consider him to be, paid him no mind. Professor Goodwitch instructed Cardin to join her on stage.
The large boy quickly did so with a look of self-importance. Professor Goodwitch smiled politely as she tapped at her scroll to bring her Aura reading onto the screen. Then, she helpfully walked Cardin through the process to do the same.
"On the buzzer, we shall begin." Glynda informed; their respective Auras now displayed.
She held her riding crop loosely at her side, waiting patiently. At the sound of the buzzer, Cardin lurched forward while raising his mace above his head. Glynda flicked her riding crop at the large boy.
Suddenly, Cardin found himself floating six feet off the floor with no discernible effort on the instructor's part. The leader strained and flailed, but the larger boy had no way out of this like Link had yesterday.
"What have we learned, Mr. Winchester?" Glynda asked.
"What do you mean?" Cardin frowned. "I haven't learned anything because you're using some cheating Semblance."
"The use of one's Semblance is permitted in any tournament match." Professor Goodwitch's gaze turned frosty. "Even then, you did see my match with Mr. Sherwood yesterday, did you not?"
Cardin hesitated, the look on Goodwitch's face warning that he moderate his answer. "Yes, professor."
"Therefore, you should have known something of what I am capable of." Professor Goodwitch nodded. "In the future, I suggest you think seriously about how you would counter someone's abilities before challenging them to a match."
"You're talking as though this is over, yet my Aura hasn't even budged!' Cardin called out.
"Hm, that would be a mistake on my part." Glynda waved her riding crop, and Cardin flew outside the arena where she then set him down gently. "One I have corrected. After all, you have left the arena, so you lost this match."
Cardin could only growl. After that, no one else seemed willing to challenge Professor Goodwitch, so class began properly.
Sparring & Team Building
"The bell will be ringing in just a few moments, so I will leave you with this." Glynda stated. "The Vytal Festival will happen at the end of this school year. While that may seem long time from now, it won't be long until second semester arrives. With it will come students from the other kingdoms."
The bell for the end of class rang, seeing students beginning to leave. Jaune hung his head despondently as he sat where he'd ended up landing at the conclusion of his battle.
Link looked to LYN and RNBW. "You seven go on ahead because I need to have words with someone."
Just as he was about to leave without waiting for a response, Yang stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. "Since you're talking to my partner, I'd like to be there."
Link shrugged. "Sure." With Yang in tow, he approached Jaune and picked him up by the arm. "You're coming with me."
He dragged Jaune off, Yang following, without waiting for a response.
Dorm Roof
The three of them eventually made it to the roof of one of the school dorms, seeing the evening light turn to night.
"Alright Jaune, you've been having a difficult time in class, and it's evident you lack a lot in combat." Link voiced. "That's why I'm going to help you."
"You think I need help?" Jaune sadly questioned, rubbing the back of his head.
"I think everyone sees it, partner." Yang smiled. "Hey, Link here is a rather good teacher. Given you two use the same weapons, you'll probably learn even more than I have from him."
"Jaune, everyone needs help at some point." Link added. "I didn't get where I am by being self-taught. The fact you made it into Beacon tells me you can go the distance."
"You're wrong." Jaune turned away from them. "I-I don't belong here."
"While you certainly need work, I think you've shown enough that says you do." Yang retorted.
"No, I don't!" Jaune yelled, turning back to them before sighing. "I wasn't really accepted into Beacon."
He turned away again.
"What do you mean?" Yang asked.
"I mean I didn't go to combat school or pass any tests. I didn't EARN my spot at this academy." He turned back around. "I lied. I got my hands on some fake transcripts, and I lied."
"I don't have transcripts, nor did I take any tests." Link shrugged. "Ozpin just told me to pass initiation, and I was in. Quite sure that's the only criteria that counts, far as the headmaster is concerned."
"That is a valid point." Yang noted before turning to her partner. "Even with that, why did you do this?"
"This is what I always wanted to be." Jaune replied. "My father, my grandfather, and his father before him were warriors, heroes. I wanted to be one too, but I was never good enough."
"You can be if you let us help you." Link stated.
"I don't want help!" Jaune yelled. "I don't want to be the damsel in distress! I want to be a hero! I'm tired of being the lovable idiot while his friends fight for their lives! If I can't do this on my own, what good am I?"
"At this rate, all you'll be good for is being a stubborn idiot." Link retorted, growing frustrated. "You want to be good; however, you won't accept help and aren't putting in the effort. You sleep through classes, and I've seen no indication you are training by yourself."
Those words only frustrated Jaune more. "I'm pretty sure I just told you I don't need help."
"You know what, you're right." Link shook his head before walking off. "You clearly got everything handled."
Yang watched Link leave before turning to her partner and putting a hand on his shoulder. "Jaune…"
Jaune turned, only to receive a fist to the gut which had him gasping. "Was that for lying about how I got here?"
"If you paid any attention, you'd know at least Link and I don't care you lied." Yang shook her head. "That punch was for being every bit the stubborn idiot Link now thinks you are."
She then stormed off and left Jaune there; however, he wasn't alone.
Almost as soon as he stood up, Cardin climbed onto the roof with an amused chuckle. "Oh Jaune."
Jaune quickly turned to him. "Cardin!?"
"I couldn't help but overhear you three from my dorm room." Cardin crossed his arms. "So, you snuck into Beacon, huh? I got to say, I never expected you to be such a rebel."
Despite what Link had said, Jaune didn't know what would happen if anyone else found out. "Please, Cardin, please don't tell anyone."
"Jaune, come on." Cardin grinned. "I'd never rat out on a friend."
"Uh, a friend?" Jaune questioned.
Cardin walked over to him, putting Jaune into a tight, one-armed head lock. "Of course we're friends, Jauney-boy. As I see it, if you're there for me any time I need it, we'll be friends for a long time." He then dropped the blond, who gasped for air.
"That being said, I don't have time to do those extra readings Dr. Oobleck gave us today." He rubbed Jaune's head. "Think you could take care of that for me, buddy? That's what I thought." He walked to the roof's edge. "Don't worry, Jaune. Your secret's safe with me."
Cardin then climbed back down to his dorm room, leaving Jaune to look at the sky worriedly.
Link's Mindscape
"The Triforce of Wisdom grants divine wisdom due to the blessings of Nayru; however, this is only through attempting to lead its user to making the correct decision." From the moment this lesson began, Wild noticed something was off about Link.
"By all accounts, through their own intelligence, they can go against how the Triforce leads them. Beyond this aspect of wisdom, it also grants untold mystical abilities. Some of which are to heal others and communication telepathically."
Link's gaze was far away rather than in the moment, prompting Wild to go silent. He observed the current spirit of the hero, though he said nothing about the lesson having stopped. This prompted him to transition next to the student and tap him on the shoulder.
"Wild!?" Link's gaze returned to the here and now.
Rather than be mad, he merely nodded. "You thinking about what happened with Jaune?"
"No, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't force them to drink." Link looked down at the ground. "I guess, in a way, he's got me thinking. He mention his family, and I guess it brought my parents to mind."
Wild, like every Link prior to him, was more than aware of this Link's own past. Naturally, there was a significant difference between observing someone from afar and hearing about it from that Link.
"Two years since I arrived, and in all this time you haven't spoken about them." Wild noted.
Link not bringing up his parents wasn't anything having to do with what he's learned about himself. In fact, not too long after they passed, he stopped bringing them up to anyone. This was naturally well before he learned the truth of his life.
"I don't know." Link shook his head, as even though he didn't bring up his parents he knew he loved them. "I guess I just didn't see a reason; however, they're on my mind now. It's got me wondering if they ever wanted me to follow in their footsteps."
"To varying degrees, there is only so much any of us are allowed to do in the positions we are given." Wild withdrew a sealed envelope, passing it to Link. "Given this wasn't taken from me, it seems it's alright for you to have it."
As Link turned it over, there didn't seem to be anything particularly noteworthy about this. "What is this?"
"It's for you." Wild looked straight ahead as he nodded. "Open it."
Link looked to the past life he had called mentor these last two years before casting his gaze to the envelope and opening it.
"My Son,"
Link gasped because this was his father's hand writing.
"An abnormally large wave of Grimm is heading in this direction on its way to Vacuo, this caravan situated between the two. There's no circumventing it as things stand. Despite how happily you've grown, your mother and I often wondered if this was ever right for you.
Even before this, I've wondered what would have happened had we the courage to cast aside this way of life and settle down. To disregard our reputation and responsibilities to instead hold onto the new life arriving soon as tight as possible.
It's much too late to run. I look back at your sleeping form now, and I am afraid every decision we made were mistakes. If neither of us return, know we're sorry for all the ways in which we may have failed you. Despite our selfishness, we loved you."
Link shook as his tears hit the paper. "All they ever wanted was for me to live…"
Wild said nothing as he put his arm around Link and drew him in close.
Team JLYN's Room: Later…
Jaune returned to his team's room late. Ren, Nora, and thankfully Yang were all sleeping as he sat down on his own bed with a sigh. He turned his gaze to the window before putting his head into his hands.
"I can't believe this." Jaune whispered.
"No, you can believe every aspect." Jaune went wide eyed and turned to see himself standing on the bed. "Every bit of it is your punishment for not belonging here." All he could see was purple, thorny vines ensnaring him. "Don't you agree?"
For this chapter, aside from combining Jaundice part I & II with a small segment from Ice Queendom, I ended up switching around the events of this two parter to correlate with the schedule I revealed in the First Day chapter. As for how Jaune reacted here, guy was absolutely stubborn with Pyrrha. What I had Link bring up is something no one ever seemed to address. Jaune wants to be good at this; however, he wasn't working for it alone nor seeking help.
Note: I kind of just got this chapter done quick, so here it is.
the mysterious Mr-E: Link wants to help, but Jaune is just far too stubborn for his own good at this point.
Honorbowned: It all depends on timing. Also, thank you.
Monster King: Thank you.
Wicker3: There's eight characters to interact with, figured doing a chapter like that every now and then would help offload some of the relationship burden. As for Ruby making more weapons, I think that will depend on when I end up deciding the arsenal is done. I did say before the docks I believe, putting it arguably in the middle of this stories volume 1 since I still got the Ice Queendom plot and a little extra, I want to throw in after that.
Perhaps another order for weapons will be put in sometime in Volume 2. As for Sages and Maidens, I'm mulling over if I want to keep them as two seperate aspects or not. The Maidens were created by a byproduct of the brothers while the sages are a byproduct of the three goddesses. Guess it'll depend how I'm feeling. All I'll say on Amber is there are so many things I can do with what's in play to draw from.
As for the Link from Link to the Past, it seems online that people have varying thoughts about if he's a seperate Link from both Oracle games. I tend to personally wrap the Oracle games, Link to the Past, and Link's Awakening all into one Link. In that instance, he'd be the Hero of Legend. As for what Lorule is like today, it's certainly a potential avenue to explore should I choose to.