As I mentioned in the previous chapter, I'm not a big fan of BOTW's shrines and will skip them. Do not worry though as I will mention the runes Link unlocked in all of the three others.
After unlocking the Sheikah Slate's first rune - Magnesis - Link used this new upgrade to move metallics items all across the shrine, finding a treasure chest which contained a Traveler's Bow which he switched for his Boko one. At the end of the shrine, he met a monk who affirmed serving the goddess Hylia and gave link an item called Spirit Orb which entered his body before he himself disappeared. Link didn't really understood the nature of this item, but it was already inside of him.
The second shrine he went to visit unlocked another rune called Remote Bomb which allowed him to create a bomb - either a ball or cube-shaped one - that could be detonated remotely.
The third one unlocked Stasis, a fonction that allowed him to stop an object from moving for a moment while storing its kinetic energy meaning that he could hit the frozen object in question and that, once it would un-freeze, all the cumulated hits would release at once. This was particularly useful against big objects that were hard to move. In the same shrine, he found a treasure chest that contained a Traveler's Shield.
And finally, the fourth and final one was located on the highest mountain of the plateau where it was freakingly cold. Cold to the point Link's body was suffering too much for him to reach the shrine. Luckily, the old man was kind enough to join them with his paraglider and accepted to give him a Warm Doublet in the shape of a dark green pullover with gloves that protected him perfectly from the freezing air.
The final rune to be unlocked was Cryonis which allowed him to create pillars of ice on the water's surface. This new rune was particularly helpful to cross lakes and rivers. Specially the freezing one on top of the mountain which he had to go around from to access the shrine.
With all the runes in his Sheikah Slate and the four Spirit Orbs he obtained from the shrines, Link was now ready to go talk to the old man and get his paraglider to finally leave this plateau and explore the rest of Hyrule.
As he exited the shrine, Link was looking at all the new runes he unlocked on his slate. "Hey, Rukkic! I got the last rune for my slate as well as my fourth Spirit Orb-"
CLING!
He stopped talking as he heard the sound of metal clashing and looked up from his slate to see something he wasn't expecting to see at all.
Rukkic was in the middle of a sword duel with an Hylian man, clashing his cemetery against the boy's knight sword. The boy in question had short, untidy aubrun hair greying in some areas, grey eyes; a scar on the left eye and a pretty athletic build. He was wearing a full Hylian set with a blue tunic dyed blue.
"You really though I was gonna let you slip behind me and stab my back, coward?" Rukkic asked with pushing back and getting back on the offensive.
"I already told you! That's not what I was trying to do at all!" the boy replied with blocking every one of the Rito's attacks with a surprisingly good agility.
Link blinked before deciding to interfere. "Hey! Rukkic! What's going on here?! Who's this guy?!"
"I have no idea, Link. He jumped out of nowhere and engaged me in battle!"
"That's not what happened! I told you that..." the guy started, but suddenly interrupted himself to look at Link. "Wait a minute, you're Link? The warrior I was told about?"
He then noticed the Sheikah Slate in his hands.
"And is that a Sheikah Slate in your hands?"
"Yes, why? And how do you know my name?" Link asked with a puzzled look.
"I bet he's some kind of spy for Ganon or something!" Rukkic declared with his cemetery rose toward the newcomer.
This last one slowly walked toward Link who carefully putted his free hand on the handle of his Traveler's Sword...when he suddenly bowed before him on one knee.
"My name is Redire, great grandson of a Knight of Hyrule who was at the service of the Royal Family. I come from the village of Hateno where I grew up for a part of my life until my eighteenth year from when I decided to venture outside of Hateno and help protect the few people who dare take chances outside safe areas in Hyrule and stand against the Calamity and his sbires."
Link looked at him in surprise. "You're the great grandson of a knight at the service of the Royal Family?"
"That still doesn't explain how you know about Link," Rukkic pointed out, his cemetery still in wing.
"Lady Impa from the village of Kakariko told me to travel to this Great Plateau; she affirmed that I would meet someone that would help redeem my family's name," Redire explained.
Rukkic looked in surprise. "So you know Granny Impa. Then..." he said with regaining his sword to his belt.
"And what makes you think I'm this person?" Link questioned.
"She mentioned it would be someone like I've never seen before. And to be honest, it's the first time I see someone wake up after 100 years of sleeping or hold a Sheikah Slate as I though their people left this land a long time ago. So I don't doubt it is you."
"And what makes you think it's not me?" Rukkic asked. "I'm a very formidable character myself, if I may say," he said, speaking high for himself.
"Nah, I already met a lot of show-off warriors in my life, wether it's a Hylian, Rito, or anything else."
"WHAT?!" Rukkic shouted, his eyes widened and nerves appearing on his head.
"But who told you I slept for 100 years?" Link asked with a confused look.
"That would be me." They all turned to see the old man arriving with his paraglider from apparently out of nowhere once again. He turned toward Link.
"With that, you now have all the runes of your Sheikah Slate as well as the Spirit Orbs of this plateau. Oho ho! Extraordinary!" he happily exclaimed.
"Old man, why did you send this guy," Rukkic asked with pointing a feather at Redire "to us? You know who he is?"
"Of course. He's the great grandson of a Knight-"
"Yes, yes, yes. He already told us," the Rito cut him off. "What I want to know is how can you be sure he's not some bad guy?"
"Trust me, Rukkic, if he was, I would have already known by now," the hooded man assured before turning to Redire. "You can rise now."
"And why did you told him I was asleep for 100 years?" Link asked. "Did I really sleep for so long in this cave? Why didn't you told me earlier?"
The old man's smile suddenly dropped down for a more serious one. "Link, it is finally time for me to tell you everything. But first, join me at the old temple where you met Rukkic. I shall wait for you there."
He then turned toward the trio and suddenly turned into jade green flames before fading away in the air.
"What the...?! What happened to him?!" Rukkic asked as he looked all around for any trace of the old man.
"I don't know, but he told us to go at this plateau's temple. So this is where we should go," Redire pointed out as he regained his sword and turned toward Link. "I'll follow you, Sir Link."
The blonde boy just smiled. "Alright then, let's go."
He was about to lead the way, but Rukkic putted a wing on his shoulder to make him stop. "Be careful with that guy; I still don't trust him," he whispered before taking off.
So the trio walked all the way back to the temple (except Rukkic who flew). On the way, they met a few Bokoblins whom Redire defeated with swift sword moves and bow shots. As they entered the temple, Link noticed a giant stone statue at the very end of the half-destroyed temple which was glowing with a soft light.
Link exchanged a glance with his two companions before walking over to the stone statue and decided to pray as he remembered what those statues were for. A beautiful multi-coloured light started shining above the statue and a voice started talking:
"You who have conquered the shrines and claimed their spirit orbs. I can offer you great power. It appears you have claimed four Spirit Orbs. In exchange for four Spirit Orbs, I will amplify your being. So tell me what is it that you desire."
Link was a bit confused, so Redire took care of explaining: "I've seen many statues like this across the land; you can wish either for a Heart Container which will give you a better resistance and make it harder to kill you or a Stamina Vessel which will increase your endurance and stamina. The choice is yours."
Link though about it for a moment before finally making his choice. "I wish for an Heart Container."
"I shall grant the power you wish," the statue said and took all of the four Spirit Orbs inside Link before a strange red and gold metal heart came flying down from the sky and into his hands. It soon turned into red energy which entered Link's chest and suddenly made him feel stronger than he was seconds ago.
"Go, and bring peace to Hyrule..." the statue said before the light disappeared.
"There was a talking statue that can give hearts on this plateau all this time and I never realized it..." Rukkic mumbled with rubbing the back of his head.
Link then felt something and looked up at the broken ceiling of the temple to seethe old man, still with the jade green aura around him, standing on the roof and looking down at them.
"The blessing of the Goddess has made you that much more resilient, I see... Here I am, get up here - quickly!" he seriously ordered before walking away.
"How are we supposed to get up there?" Redire asked.
"There's a ladder on this side of the temple," Rukkic informed. "You can use it to join me on the roof. See ya there!" he said with taking off to the roof.
The two Hylians followed their Rito friend's instructions and indeed found an old but solid-looking ladder on the side of the temple, outside the wall. They both climbed it off (Link was glad he took an Heart Container as it meant he would survive, should the ladder break down) and carefully made their way across the half-destroyed roof until theyr reached the temple's tower where the old man was waiting alongside Rukkic.
The old man laughed. "Well done there, young one! Now then... The time has come to show you all who I truly am. I was King Rhoam Bosphoramus hyrule. I was...the last leader of Hyrule. A kingdom which no longer exists."
Rukkic and Redire widened their eyes in shock. "What?! But that's impossible! King Hyrule died 100 years ago!" Redire exclaimed.
The old man suddenly exploded with a jade green light which blindfolded the trio for a moment. Once the light faded and the boys could see again, they saw that the old man was now wearing royal robes with a golden crown on his head.
Rukkic and Redire gasped simultaneously. "Your Majesty?" Rukkic exclaimed in shock. "How...?!"
"The Great Calamity was merciless..." he softly started. "it devastated everything in its path, lo, a century ago. It was then that my life was taken away from me. And since that time, here I have remained, in spirit form."
Rukkic got a shiver at the realization that he had been hanging with a spirit during all his time of the plateau.
The king slowly turned toward the broken open window of the toward. "I did not think it wise to overwhelm you while your memory was still fragile. So rather than that, I thought it best to assume a temporary form." He turned to look at the boys. "Forgive me. I think you are now ready. Ready to hear what happened 100 years ago."
While Link looked curiously, Rukkic and Redire looked down with sad looks, as if they were about to relive terrible memories.
"To know Calamity Ganon's true form, one must know the story from an age long past. The demon king was born into this kingdom, but his transformation into Malice created the horror you see now. Stories of Ganon were passed from generation to generation in the form of legends and fairy tales. But there was also...a prophecy. ''The signs of a resurrection of Calamity Ganon are clear. And the power to oppose it lies dormant beneath the ground.'' We decided to heed the prophecy and began excavating large areas of land. It wasn't long before we discovered several ancient relics made by the hands of our distant ancestors. These relics, the Divine Beasts, were giant machines piloted by warriors."
"We also found the Guardians, an army of mechanical soldiers who fought autonomously. This coincided with ancient legends oft repeated throughout our land. We also learned of a princess with a sacred power and her appointed knight, chosen by the sword that seals the darkness. It was they who sealed Ganon away using the power of these ancient relics. One hundred years ago, there was a princess set to inherit a sacred power and a skilled knight at her side. It was clear that we must follow our ancestors' path."
"We selected four skilled individuals from across Hyrule and tasked them with the duty of piloting the Divine Beasts. With the princess as their commander, we dubbed these pilots champions - a name that would solidify their unique bond. The princess, her appointed knight, and the rest of the champions were on the brink of sealing away Ganon... But nay..."
"Ganon was cunning, and he responded with a plan beyond our imagining. He appeared from deep below Hyrule Castle, seized control of the guardians and the Divine Beasts, and turned them against us. The champions lost their lives. Those residing in the castle as well. The appointed knight, gravely wounded, collapsed while defending the princess... And thus, the kingdom of Hyrule was devastated absolutely by Calamity Ganon."
"However... The princess survived...to face Ganon alone. That princess was my own daughter. My dear Zelda."
Link widened his eyes in surprise at those revelations while Rukkic and Redire were still looking at the floor sadly upon remembering all those terrible events.
"And the courageous knight who protected her right up to the very end..." the king continued before completely turning back to the boy. "That boy was none other than you, Link."
This caused him to widen his eyes. "Really?"
"You fought valiantly when your fate took an unfortunate turn. And then, you were taken to the Shrine of Resurrection. Here you now stand revitalized, 100 years later. The words of guidance you have been hearing since your awakening are from Princess Zelda herself. even now, as she works to restrain Ganon from within Hyrule Castle, she calls out for your help. However, my daughter's power will soon be exhausted. Once that happens, Ganon will freely regenerate himself and nothing will stop him from consuming our land."
"That would be terrible!" Redire exclaimed, sweat started to form on his head.
"Considering that I could not save my own kingdom," the king continued "I have no right of asking this of you, Link..." he hardened his fist while frowning. "But I am powerless here... You must save her...my daughter. And do whatever it takes to annihilate Ganon. Somehow, Ganon have maintained control over all four Divine Beasts, as well as those Guardians swarming around Hyrule Castle."
He turned toward the open window. "I believe it would be quite reckless to head directly to the castle at this point. I suggest..." He once again turned to Link. "that you make your way east, out to one of the villages in the wilderness. Follow the road out to Kakariko Village," he said with pointing at the horizon.
"I know the way!" Redire suddenly exclaimed. "I come exactly from there. We just have to go through the twin summits of the Dueling Peaks and then head north!"
"Very well," the king said with a little smile. "Go on, my friends... Here is the paraglider, just as I promised," he said with giving the piece of blanket to Link who putted it into his inventory. "With that, you should be able to safely fly off the cliffs surrounding this area. And... I think that's it. I've told you everything I can..."
He suddenly started turning into jade flames again. "Link... You must save...Hyrule..." And with that, he faded once again, leaving the three boys speechless.
After a long moment of silence, Link looked as the evil energy surrounding Hyrule Castle and putted on a determined look. "So the fate of this land rest on my shoulders..."
"Sir Link!" Redire suddenly exclaimed and kneeled once again. "Please, allow me to accompany you on this quest! I know everything about this land and can be of a great help! If you accept me, that is."
Link looked down at him for a moment before putting his hand on his shoulder. "Stand up, knight. It would be an honnor for me to have you as a companion on my quest. I am certain you will be of a great help."
Redire stood up with clear joy visible on his face. Link then turned to his Rito friend.
"What about you, Rukkic? You want to come with us?"
Rukkic looked at the horizon with a serious look. "You know, Link, as much as I have respect for you and your intentions, I too have an objective in life. There's some guy I want to fight someday and prove how strong I've become. But I won't be able to do it, if our world is destroyed. Also, I'm sure you will face many strong opponents in your quest. If so is the case, then I accept to join your group."
Link smiled as he now officialy had two had two companions to back him up in the strong quest ahead of him. "Thanks. Now, let's start things off by leaving this plateau!"
I wanna thank KR-Orion for lending me his OC which is Redire. I have good plans for him.
Except that, we're done with the plateau and can finally start the adventure for real this time!
