Once, in a far away land, there lived a young knight, named Sir Rumbold!
Rumbold was known across the land of Veronia, as a Hero! But, not all creatures and ponies adored the bravery of Rumbold!
There was one creature in particular that held a deep hatred for the likes of Sir Rumbold! Her name was Diamova Tiarus! She'd tap her hooves together, wondering out loud "Oh, how will I be rid of that accursed Hero?!"
Then, a young naive girl wandered into the lair of Diamova... Her name was Silvera Spoone. And Diamova quickly casted a spell on Silvera, brainwashing her! Diamova even coerced a bit of information out of her... "Sir Rumbold has a friend named Scootasquire, who travels in these woods."
Soon, Diamova set a trap, and imprisoned the young Scootasquire! Luckily, the Cute Crusaders were nearby, and were able to run back to the fair city of Equinopolis, where Sir Rumbold was staying!
"Ser Rumbold! Ah can't believe it! Scootasquire has been taken by the evil Diamova!"
"Rumbold, we have to do something!"
Now, as brave as Rumbold was, he knew that Diamova's powers came from the Gilthy Dich bloodline! So, he needed help in his quest!
Rumbold went to the Great Archives, where Twilitus the Princess spent all of her time.
"Dear Princess! Scootasquire has been taken by the evil sorceress Diamova! What am I to do?"
"That is troubling news, Sir Rumbold! I fear her magic is very powerful! But! There is a way to defeat it!" Twilitus pulled down a book, and handed it to Sir Rumbold. "There are three Sages of the Earth, of Life, and of the Air! They will grant you the power necessary to defeat Diamova!"
"There are those who would aid you in your quest, if you manage to convince them! There is the Gilded Griffon, a dragon hidden underneath the streets, and a stallion of great strength!"
"Princess! What of Scootasquire? Time is of the essence! Can't you send somepony to help? Can't you go?"
"The Great and Powerful army to the north is barraging us. Their leader, Trixella, has agreed to peace talks, but I must be there soon. I am sorry, Sir Rumbold. You must do this yourself."
"Princess, what of your brother, Shining Armoure?"
"He will accompany me in case the peace talks are a trick. I am sorry, but there is nothing I can do. That book should supply you with the information you need." Rumbold nodded, taking the book and running out of the Archives.
But, he immediately ran into the Baroness Raritya. "I am so sorry, Baroness! Forgive me!"
"It's nothing, Sir Rumbold. I never thanked you before from saving me from Diamova's Hounds all that time ago! They wished to make me mine for jewels! Can you believe that?"
"No Miss Raritya, but, I really need to go!"
"Well alright! Goodbye!"
Sir Rumbold made his way back into town, meeting back up with the Cute Crusaders. "What news, Ser Rumbold? Will Scootasquire be alright?"
"Oh please tell me she'll be okay!"
"Peace, please! Twilitus has given me what I need to know."
"Why don't ya look happy?"
"Because time is of the essence and I must find these Sages! Valuable time is slipping away!"
Rumbold looked at the list of allies Twilitus gave. The Gilded Griffon... He had seen that somewhere! The blacksmith! Rumbold raced over, already making out the griffon at the forge. "Are you the Gilded Griffon?"
"Gilda. Gilded Griffon's the name of my shop. And what dweeb wants to know?"
"It is I, Sir Rumbold, and two of the Cute Crusaders! Scootasquire has been kidnapped by Diamova!"
"So, you need a sword or something? Armor? Maybe a helmet to keep that precious head from being smashed in?"
"I need your help! In order to find the Sages!"
"The Sages?! Heck no! Never gonna happen!"
"Please! Twilitus said I needed you in my journey!"
"I don't care if it came from Nightmarus Moon! No!"
"But-"
"I'm not leaving my shop so you can track down a bunch of dweebs! Find 'em yourself!" The door slammed shut, leaving Sir Rumbold troubled along with Applia Bloom and Sweet Bellius.
Sweet Bellius got right back up, and knocked on the door. It opened, revealing Gilda's face again. "I already told you, no!"
"Please help us! Scootasquire needs our help!"
"And why should I care?"
"Come on, Sweet Bellius! Ah don't think she wants to help."
Sweet frowned. "But..."
"We can find the Sage without her." Sir Rumbold walked away, face hard as a stone.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa... Didn't you just say you needed me?"
"We can do it without you."
"Why'd you beg me, if you didn't need me?!"
Rumble flashed a glance at Gilda, smiling a bit. "I thought you didn't care."
Gilda huffed. "I don't..."
"Then we'll be leaving..." Rumble turned around, and kept walking.
"Wait!" Gilda crossed her arms, pretending to look at something else, obviously sneering. "I'm gonna help you, cause if I don't, you'll end up dead."
Rumbold smiled. His plan to get her to come along worked after all. "I'll help you three find the Sages."
"Ah don't understand what just happened."
"Go with it, Applia!"
Rumbold looked to the Crusaders, frowning. "You both need to stay here."
"What?!"
"We wanna help!"
"This could be dangerous, and I need somepony to keep an eye on what Diamova's doing." They both groaned, but nodded. Rumble really didn't need it, but he didn't need any more of his friends getting hurt.
The Crusaders ran off, leaving Rumbold with Gilda. "What now, little dude?"
Rumbold wandered through the town, trying to find an entrance to the underground. The last he checked, that was where the dragon was. He came to a sewer entrance, where Gilda had stopped beside. "I'm not going in there!"
"C'mon, Gilda!"
"Just get your dragon and be happy I'm even coming with you to find these stupid Sages."
Rumbold sighed, and ventured into the sewers...
