Skyloft

Skyloft, also known as the Isle of the Goddess, was a series of large islands floating above the clouds. The main island included the Skyloft Bazaar, a large residential quarter, a bathhouse, as well as a plaza and the Light Tower. Prominent features among the other islands were the Knight Academy, a boarding school run by Gaepora that Link and Zelda attended along with several other students, and the Isle of the Goddess, which held the Statue of the Goddess.
Skyloft was a set of floating islands in The Sky and was inhabited by Hylians who descended from those who lived among The Goddess Hylia. The citizens of Skyloft were noted for traversing the sky by riding large birds known as Loftwings. The floating civilization was home to a number of notable features including the Skyloft Bazaar, the Knight Academy, the Waterfall Cave, the Statue of the Goddess, Beedle's Air Shop, a Graveyard, and a large number of households. During the day, Skyloft was full of life, but became infested by monsters during the night as a result of Batreaux's curse.

History

Skyloft was created at the end of the Era of The Goddess Hylia when a crack in the earth appeared, and from the fissure came Demise and his demonic hordes. They launched a massive assault on the world known as the Surface, burning forests to ashes, choking the land's sweet springs and killing without hesitation. Hylia gathered the surviving Hylians on a small outcropping of land and sent them skyward along with The Triforce to protect them and the sacred relic from the demonic hordes that had overrun the surface. This plot of land became known as the Isle of the Goddess and along with other floating islands constituted the new home of the Hylians, which became known as Skyloft.
In order to keep the sacred power from falling into the hands of Demise, Hylia also hid the portals to the three pieces of The Triforce within Sky Keep, and enshrined the Goddess Sword inside the Statue of the Goddess, leaving it to be found by a chosen hero when the time was right. Skyloft remained in the sky above the clouds for generations, and knowledge of the Surface and the origins of Skyloft became nothing more than a legend. However, despite knowledge of their origins dwindling, the present people of Skyloft still knew of The Goddess Hylia and believed she was watching over them to that day, unaware that she was living among them in a mortal form in what was now known as the Sky Era.
25 years prior to the events of Skyward Sword, the people of Skyloft established the Knight Academy, a school for the Knights of Skyloft, and the Wing Ceremony, an annual event where students at the Knight Academy compete in the ceremony to advance to their next level in class. The Wing Ceremony concludes with the winner reenacting the role of the Goddess's Hero from long ago with another student playing the role of the Goddess herself. In the present events of the story, Link competes against Cawlin, Strich and Groose in the ceremony, winning and getting to spend personal time with Zelda, playing the role of the Goddess and giving him the Sailcloth she made. As she is about to tell Link something personal that has been on her mind, she is swept away to the surface world by a tornado conjured by Ghirahim. Link tries to follow with his Loftwing, but is blown back and knocked unconscious by the tornado. Link wakes up in his bed and tells Gaepora of the day's events. Gaepora assures Link that Zelda is still alive and tells him to rest. Link suddenly hears a strange voice and opens his door, seeing a strange figure. Link follows the figure as it floats away from him, and it leads him into the interior of the Statue of the Goddess. Upon entrance, the figure reveals itself to be Fi, and instructs Link to pull out the sacred Goddess Sword and raise it skyward. After Link raises the sword, Gaepora walks in, shocked at what he sees. Fi gives Link the Emerald Tablet and instructs him to place the tablet into the altar. After Link does so, a rift in the clouds forms, revealing a path to The Surface, where Fi says Zelda is located. Late in the events after learning the Song of the Hero from Levias, Link discovers the Sky Keep, an ancient temple that was built inside the Isle of the Goddess with the sole purpose of protecting The Triforce. After venturing inside and receiving The Triforce, Link wishes for the eradication of Demise, and the Isle of the Goddess breaks off from the remainder of Skyloft and begins to descend towards The Surface. The isle settles in the large spiral pit in The Sealed Grounds, successfully destroying Demise.
After Demise is successfully killed in the past, various residents of the present-day Skyloft including Gaepora, Cawlin, and Strich journey to the surface and seemingly discover their true origins. It would seem that over time, people from Skyloft chose to stay on the surface world like Link and Zelda, and by the time of the Force Era, many humans live on the surface world that has come to be known as the Kingdom of Hyrule.

Type

Island, Floating