He didn't know where he was or how he got there. All he knew was that he'd been awoken by a strange voice that had called his name and he'd opened his eyes to find himself in a dark chamber lined with strange designs.
The blonde boy, Link (that's what the voice said. Yes, that sounded right) looked around to get a better look at his surroundings and noticed several other pools just like his. Before he could investigate, three of the occupants rose. Link was taken slightly aback by their strange appearances: a rock-like creature, a tall woman with bronze skin and fiery red hair and a man-sized blue bird.
"Oh man, I feel like I've been asleep for the last hundred years." The rock creature groaned.
"I'm up, I'm up, let me just get some coffee…" The tall woman moaned.
"Mother, I don't want to go to school today." The bird complained.
As the three got their bearings, Link noticed that the fourth occupant had yet to rise. Struck by worry for reasons he did not know, Link went over and looked inside, discovering a beautiful fish girl with red and white scales. He didn't know why but his heart skipped a beat and a strange warmth flooded through when he saw her. Slowly, her amber eyes opened and met with his own.
"I…I had a dream about you." She said.
The five looked at each other. By all accounts, they were total strangers but at the same time, they each had a nagging feeling that they knew each other.
"Does anybody know what's going on?" The rock creature asked.
"Are we going to be forced to kill each other to earn the right to escape?" The bird asked.
Before they could debate that, a pedestal suddenly glowed blue. Link slowly approached it and it revealed a strange tablet-like device
"That is a Shiekah Slate. Take it. It will help you all after your long slumber." The voice said.
Link removed the Slate from its pedestal and the screen blinked to life. He and the others all had a feeling they'd seen it before. Suddenly, a door opened. They slowly made their way out, their senses on high alert but the room was empty, save for large crates and chests containing old clothes which Link, Urbosa and Revali donned. However, a large door blocked their way.
"Well, now what do we do?" Revali asked.
"I could try to open it." Daruk volunteered.
He began to move towards the door but Link raised a hand to stop him. The human boy moved towards a pedestal by the door, which began glowing once he got near enough.
"Hold the Shiekah Slate up to the pedestal." The voice instructed. "That will show you the way."
Link did as he was told and the pedestal reacted accordingly.
"Authenticating…Sheikah Slate confirmed." It droned.
An eye symbol on the door glowed blue and it slowly opened, filling the room with sunlight.
"Link…Mipha…Urbosa…Revali…Daruk…you all are the light-our light-that must shine upon Hyrule once again. Now go…"
The five warily went up the steps towards the outside. Link took Mipha's hand.
"Don't be afraid." He told her.
"I won't." She replied.
Link led Mipha out, holding her hand in a way that felt so familiar to the two of them. Soon, the five of them were out, their eyes straining against the sun. They were greeted by a lush forested landscape with the silhouette of mountains, a volcano and a castle in the distance.
"Now there's a pretty picture." Daruk said with a whistle.
Urbosa frowned as she looked at the castle, taking note of the strange clouds swirling around it.
"Does that seem familiar to anyone?" She asked, pointing.
The others looked and were filled with feelings of anger, apprehension, dread and even fear. Revali attempted to brush those feelings off by taking notice of temple, a campfire and figure in the distance.
"There's somebody over there." He said pointing.
"Let's go. We might get some answers." Urbosa said.
The group ran over to the campfire and found an old man with a long white beard and a red cloak sitting next to it.
"Well, you're an unusual lot. It's rare to see several species of Hyrule together in one group." He told them.
"Hyrule?" Link asked.
"That's where we are. This is-or should I say, was-the kingdom of Hyrule."
"That…sounds familiar." Mipha mused.
"I imagine you've been saying that a lot recently." The old man chuckled.
"Sir, this is going to sound insane," Link interjected. "But we just woke up in an underground chamber by a voice saying that we're this land's only hope."
"That does sound hard to swallow," The old man admitted. "But I've heard and seen far stranger things."
"Look, it seems like you're the only person around for miles, so if you have any answers, we'd like to hear them." Urbosa said somewhat impatiently.
"Yes, yes, I imagine you do. Sadly, the best I can do is point you in the direction of the temple over there."
"Are there going to be answers there?"
"Maybe. But you won't find out until you look."
Urbosa let out an angry snarl, grabbed Link and Mipha by their arms and dragged them off towards the temple. Revali shot the old man the stink eye, kicked some dirt at his campfire and marched off after Urbosa. Daruk gave the man an apologetic shrug and followed his companions.
"Seems a hundred years in that shrine hasn't changed any of you a bit." The old man chuckled to himself.
The group eventually made it to the temple which, aside from being old and abandoned, did not seem like it would be helpful to them in anyway.
"I knew I should've pressed that old man harder." Urbosa grumbled.
"Come now, surely there must be something helpful in that temple." Mipha said. Revali rolled his eyes skeptically.
Link wasn't listening. The mysterious voice was speaking to him again.
"Link…Link. Head for the point marked on the map on your Shiekah Slate."
Link did as he was told and found the glowing point on the slate's blank map.
"Whatcha lookin' at, little guy?" Daruk asked.
"This way. Follow me." Link told the others before running off down the temple's weathered stairs.
"Sure. Why not? What's one more wild goose chase?" Revali asked as he and others dashed after Link.
They ran down the hill and across a clearing that had a large pile of rocks at one end. Link looked at the map again and saw that that's where the glowing point was.
"Over there. At those rocks." Link told his companions as they caught up with him. "That's where we need to-"
He suddenly cried out in pain and fell to the ground, an arrow sticking out of his shoulder. On a small hill by the rocks, a small group of red skinned creatures with pig-like features squealed and jabbered triumphantly.
"Attacking from behind. The cowards!" Daruk growled before charging towards them. "You'll pay for that!"
"Are you all right?" Urbosa asked, dropping to her knees next to the fallen Link.
"Well, I'm not dead." Link said through gritted teeth. "But it hurts like hell. Is it bad?"
"Let me see." Mipha moved her hand over the wound to pull down Link's shirt when suddenly, her hand emitted a brilliant light that caused the arrow and Link's wound to vanish.
"How did you do you that?" Revali asked in amazement.
"I…I don't know…" Mipha said, looking at her hand in equal astonishment.
Link slowly got up and tested his arm.
"Like it never even happened…"
"Well, at the very least, it'll be very useful to us." Urbosa commented.
Link and Mipha looked at each other. What she had done felt so familiar, like the two of them had been in such a situation numerous times. But stranger still, it felt so much deeper than that…
"Hey! Is the little guy okay!" Daruk called.
Everyone looked up to see Daruk coming back, his hands bristling with weapons.
"Yes, he's fine!" Mipha called back. "But are you hurt, Daruk?"
"Naw, those dinky little weapons didn't even scratch me." Daruk said, dumping the weapons at the others' feet. "Here. I figured you guys would need these things."
The group sifted through the weapons and took the ones that felt the most familiar to them: Revali a soldier's bow, Urbosa a traveler's sword and a hunter's shield, Mipha a rusty halberd and Link a rusty broadsword and boko shield.
"Well, now that we're 'properly' suited up, where were you taking us?" Revali asked Link.
"Right over here."
Link led them to the rocks where they found a pedestal just like the one back in the shrine. He put the slate in and the pedestal reacted accordingly.
"Sheikah Tower activated. Please watch for falling rocks." A voice said.
"Falling what-now?" Revali asked.
Suddenly, the very ground beneath them began to shake. Birds flew shrieking from the trees, woodland critters fled and even bokoblins took notice. A gargantuan tower burst up from the rocks and ascended skyward. Elsewhere all over Hyrule, other towers did the same. When the shaking stopped, the companions got back to their trembling feet to see a drop of light fall on the slate, creating a clear map of the Great Plateau. As the group tried to steady their nerves and digest what happened, the voice spoke again to all of them.
"Remember…try…try to remember…"
They all turned to look at the castle, which now had a shining light burning from the middle.
"You have been asleep for the past one hundred years." The voice told them as another rumbling shook them and the tower. Dark clouds swarmed around the castle as something with tusks and glowing eyes flew around the castle towers. "The beast…when the beast regains its true power, this world will face its end."
"Now then…" The voice continued as the light in the castle grew brighter, causing the clouds to disperse. "You must hurry, Link…Mipha…Daruk…Revali…Urbosa. Before it's too late…"