Link awoke refreshed the following morning. The emotions of the previous day had drained him, making falling asleep on his pallet the work of a moment. Now he felt purged, the dark weight of Dorian's death somewhat lifted from his soul.
Turning over, Link saw that breakfast had already been laid out on the elongated table in the hut. He wondered if Paya had brought it, then scolded himself for doing so. He could not afford to give place to love's mind-addling powers. Forcefully driving that line of thought from his mind, he dressed and ate quickly.
Link's resolve lasted until he exited the Sheikah hut - and found Paya waiting for him outside. By all appearances, however, she was just as intent on avoiding an emotional lapse of decorum. The woman's eyes were once again downcast, her voice and demeanor formal upon greeting him.
"If you please, Sir Link, Lady Impa waits for your coming," Paya informed him.
She did not look nor wait for an answer, but simply turned toward Impa's raised hut, which was easily visible from every part of the village. Without a word, Link followed.
His momentary irritation at Paya's behavior gave way to curiosity as they made their way through Kakariko. This was the first time Link had properly taken in the village during the day. His first arrival with Brigo had been a heavily monitored one, and he had been too focused on meeting Impa at the time.
Now, Link could appreciate the privately thriving community. Like Hateno, several plots of farmland neighbored their owners' huts, though on a much smaller scale given the limited land the hill-encircled village offered. Every crop was already being tended. Link could tell the harvest would be good this year. Healthy carrots, growing tomatoes and even large pumpkins were all well begun.
Livestock were also in evidence. One Sheikah farmwife spread seed before a large flock of cuccos within their enclosure. Another farmer finished filling a trough with edible refuse before contentedly patting the extremely large pig that began to feed. His family would eat well come winter. The open doors of a nearby set of stalls framed several Sheikah men and women, each of which was milking his or her own cow.
Thinking of the relatively small population the village contained, Link asked a question before he remembered it was Paya who would have to answer.
"Many of your goods go to others outside the village, don't they?"
A telltale faltering of her steps gave away Paya's surprise at being addressed. She recovered quickly, however, declining to turn her head in reply.
"Yes, Sir Link," Paya answered coolly. "Kakariko supplies much of Hyrule through traders who buy our goods and then sell them at stables or communities in need. That is why traders are allowed to enter the village."
Seeking to quell the annoyance Paya's emotionless information stirred within him, Link focused on what she had said. He remembered Brigo telling him of trading parties commuting to Kakariko often. Despite the village's ample supply, however, he saw no evidence of any such commerce happening now. Given the lack of Hylian havens after the Calamity, Link thought the lack of traders was unusual.
He said as much to Paya as they came within sight of the familiar village clearing and the long stairway leading to Impa's hut. The young Sheikah woman seemed to hesitate before replying.
"Merchants usually come often, Sir Link," Paya finally admitted as she stopped short of the steep stairway. "Now that the Yiga have once again made themselves known, we must conduct our business outside of the village for our own safety."
Having arrived at their destination, Paya was forced to turn and at least give the pretense of addressing Link directly. She continued to avoid eye contact, however. Puzzled more by her words than her behavior, Link decided to pursue the subject.
"Again?" he persisted.
Paya looked up at the question, but her delicate face and brown eyes were neither neutral nor softly emotional. To Link's surprise, he saw they radiated a blaze of anger.
"We have arrived, Sir Link," she said with barely contained heat. "Lady Impa awaits your coming."
Paya gave a stiff, if still technically proper, bow and left in a direction that would not force her to walk directly past Link. Like her farewell, her gait was only just contained within the bounds of Sheikah decorum. Link wondered if she would have stormed off had it been allowed.
Thoroughly confused, undecided if he should be angry at Paya or himself, Link ascended the long staircase and entered the hut through its wooden double doors.
The interior looked no different than it had at Link's first encounter. Evenly spaced mats lined a center rug that ran to the rear of the spacious dwelling. Despite the early morning hour, all the windows had white shades drawn to diffuse the sunlight and allow the hut's dark wooden floors and walls to dominate the ambiance. At that rug's end, standing on the floor rather than sitting atop a pile of cushions, was Impa.
"You have not long been awake, but already something troubles you," she remarked aloud the moment Link shut the doors.
Reminded of Impa's unerring observations, Link smoothed the irritation from his face and followed the rug's path until he was directly in front of Impa, who was smiling up at him. The diminutive woman's next words explained why.
"It is refreshing to be in the company of one who dismisses position and propriety," she said lightly. "That being said, I would ask that you kneel or sit down. Not out of respect for myself, mind you, simply for convenience."
Realizing the differences in their respective heights would indeed make conversation awkward, Link acquiesced, removing his cloak and sword. Even seated, he was very nearly as tall as the Sheikah elder. Perhaps her throne of cushions was more necessity than luxury after all.
"You know considerably more than when you were last here, Link," Impa calmly began, her hands resting atop the short, carved handle of her wooden walking stick. "My sister set you on the path of recovering your memories and The Sword That Seals The Darkness. I trust you still desire to know the rest of what needs to be done?"
Link's answering nod was an easy decision. The mention of the Sword and the idea of taking his next step toward saving Zelda had already set his heart pounding in anticipation.
"Very well, then," Impa said briskly. "While the Sword and your sense of self are the final keys to victory, they cannot be the only ones. You will never defeat Ganon's forces nor breach the walls of Hyrule Castle alone. Zelda knew this and, before she returned to the castle, asked me to give you a message after you awoke from your slumber."
Link started up at this. "A message?" he asked incredulously. "What message did she leave for me that you felt should wait until now?"
"One you would have no hope of understanding without the memory you have just obtained," Impa responded readily. "You now have a true, if rudimentary knowledge of the Champions who fought alongside you. You know what peoples they come from and, to an extent, who they were. As Rhoam previously told you, each of them was charged with piloting one of the four Divine Beasts meant to help turn back the Calamity. He also told you that Ganon somehow turned them and the Guardians against Hyrule's own people.
"What you do not know," Impa continued forcefully, "is that the Divine Beasts even now reside near the homes of their former Champions. They are still ensnared by Ganon's power, though his control over them is no doubt limited given his current state. Even so, they are tools of magnificent power and untold terror as long they remain under the Demon King's influence. Zelda's message was this."
Impa leaned forward over her walking stick, her aged eyes blazed with a light Link had not seen in them before.
"Free the Divine Beasts!" she cried. "Marshal them and the peoples of Hyrule, and they will fight alongside you against Ganon!"
Link's hand unconsciously tousled his hair, as though it could grasp the task laid out before him. Questions flitted through his mind, each one more vague and childlike than the last in its lack of comprehension.
"Rhoam said they were large," Link began uncertainly. "How am I to do this?"
Impa smiled approvingly in response.
"Before the Calamity," Impa replied, "you would have charged headlong to your duty without fear — or appropriate questions. This is better. Bring me that parchment, Link."
Impa illustrated her request by pointing toward the wall to her right. Only then did Link see a large, single sheet rolled into itself and propped up against the wall. He was hardly surprised to find Cado waiting there as well. The stern-faced Sheikah said nothing when Link approached the retrieve the parchment, and Link was more than happy to return the favor after their tense moment the day before.
The paper was yellowed and cracked, and Link thought it a wonder it did not crumble or tear as Impa began unfurling it. Link assisted her in the task after his questioning look was met with a nod of encouragement.
Now he knelt on the other side of the revealed parchment, the contents of which faced toward him. Dominating its center was the drawn depiction of a black beast with a red mane and tusked snout. A small warrior garbed in green faced the monster with sword upraised, while a golden-haired girl wearing a white robe appeared to be casting some kind of magic at the beast's back. Drawn around the unusual trio was an army of what Link recognized to be miniature Guardians. All of them were identical, from their urn-shaped bodies to serpentine legs and singular eyes.
Nestled in the four corners of the parchment were figures of size equal to the large monster at the center. Link realized they were animals, though he only recognized two of them: a bird and a lizard. The other two were completely foreign to him. One had a long, curved neck and two humps on its back. The other sported large ears and a long, snake-like nose.
Impa, noting Link's puzzled frown, gestured to the top side of the parchment. Its border was made up entirely of small pictures that framed the main depiction below. Impa's short, wrinkled finger traced along drawings of what appeared to be people interacting with various tools, machines and magics.
"Ten thousand years ago," Impa began, "Hyrule thrived as a highly advanced civilization. The Sheikah technology made commonplace what we would consider wondrous today. Powerful tools, fantastic weapons, and other mechanical aids all but ensured the kingdom's prosperity.
"Rhoam told me of your conversation at the temple," Impa continued. "He explained the nature of the war between Ganon and Hyrule, and how a princess graced with Hylia's power and a chosen wielder of the Sword had always risen to meet him. Even knowing that, these people sought to tip the battle's balance further in Hyrule's favor."
As she said this, Impa's finger traveled to what were unmistakably miniature recreations of the Sheikah towers. Link nodded slowly to show he understood. Satisfied, Impa proceeded to point at the four, large animals at each of the parchment corners.
"Their most ambitious undertaking was the construction of four mechanical wonders that came to be known as Divine Beasts," Impa continued. "These great machines were piloted by individuals of exceptional skill from across Hyrule. The Guardians were also created to ensure additional protection and prevent the need for human bloodshed. Thus, the plan to neutralize Ganon was forged."
At this, Impa's hand glided back to the center of the parchment, where it rested just above the red-maned monster. Then it briefly touched upon the smaller figures on either side of it: the blonde-haired girl and sword-bearing warrior.
"Upon Ganon's inevitable return to Hyrule," she explained, "the princess carrying Hylia's blood and the Goddess's chosen hero fought alongside the four Champions. They, the Divine Beasts and the Guardians unleashed a furious attack upon their terrible foe. The hero, bearing the Sword That Seals The Darkness, dealt Ganon the final blow, allowing the princess to use her sacred power to seal away the Demon King."
"You see, now," Impa added while briefly drawing Link's attention from the parchment, "the extraordinary measures taken to defeat Ganon in the past. Our ancestors were successful, and we strove to follow their example one hundred years ago as the Calamity's return drew near."
"Except Ganon stripped those measures away," Link interceded, recalling Rhoam's tale on the plateau. He understood now, even if he did not yet fully comprehend the magnitude of his present duty. How did one "free" a giant, mechanical wonder? "And now you - and Zelda - believe they must be taken back to defeat him."
Impa nodded, then gestured once more to the animals cunningly drawn at each parchment corner. "The four Divine Beasts are ancient Sheikah weapons that can only be boarded and piloted by a chosen Champion. You, Link, are one such Champion. As such, you will be able to enter the Divine Beasts and use your Sheikah slate to seize control of them once again."
Link gazed once more at each of the animals on the parchment. The thought of entering enormous renderings of strange animals exceeded his imagination. Then he remembered the swirling apparition he had seen swirling around Hyrule Castle after awakening - and the many foes he had faced since. He needed these things, however foreign they seemed to him now. Trepidation resolved, Link rose to his feet.
"Where are they?" he asked.
For answer, Impa walked around the parchment and held out her hand toward the slate hanging from Link's belt. As he had done in his previous visit to Kakariko, Link handed the device to her. The shrunken Sheikah held the small rectangle in front of her and spoke in a clear, unmistakable voice.
"You will find the Divine Beasts and free them from Ganon's hold," she intoned.
The smooth, black face of the slate flared blue light until its map - still mostly unfilled - appeared. Impa handed it back to Link, who saw that four gold dots now blinking in unrevealed portions of the map. One lay far to the southwest, while another sat nearly in the northwest corner. Still another resided directly north of Kakariko, near the map's top-most border.
The fourth and nearest, Link saw, winked northeast of the village, roughly the same distance from Kakariko in that direction as Hateno lay to the east.
"Which Divine Beast is this?" Link asked, pointing to the nearest glowing marker.
Impa peered intently at the map, then nodded in satisfaction.
"It is likely that is Vah Ruta, the Divine Beast commissioned to the Zora," she answered. "Its Champion was Mipha, daughter of King Dorephan and late princess of Zora's Domain."
The red-skinned Zora flashed in the eye of Link's mind, sending a familiar wave of bittersweet ache rushing through his heart and stomach. Was it his imagination, or were Impa's brown eyes closely searching for some reaction? He moved on from the moment by pointing to the map's revealed area northwest of Kakariko.
"Is there a direct path to the Zora from here?" he asked. Impa's shaking head answered him.
"The Rutala River and mountains on either side of it are too perilous to cross," Impa replied. "You must circle north around the Lanayru Wetlands before finding the path taken by non-Zora to reach the Domain. The way is dangerous, Link," she added gravely. "Ganonspawn are massing in the wetlands. By now they no doubt know that you are awake and on the move."
Link nodded before securing the slate back onto his belt. With luck, he would find a Sheikah tower to illuminate his path. Which reminded him…
"The slate took me to the shrine in the village," Link said suddenly to Impa, who was still standing expectantly in front of him. "Before I left for Hateno, you said I could enter it upon my return."
"Indeed I did," the elderly leader agreed with another nod of approval. "That task is what awaits you now. I advise you to complete it before departing for Zora's Domain."
Link frowned down at Impa, who stood no higher than his waist.
"Why must you set my path for me?" he asked quietly. He did not need to look up to know Cado had once again stiffened in indignation in the now darkening corner of the hut. Impa, however, merely smiled sadly in return.
"It is not I, but Hylia who sets your path," she answered calmly, the old woman's gaze meeting the young man's visage. "If and how you chose to walk it, Link, is entirely up to you."
As he had little more than a week prior, Link found himself standing in front of the shrine of Kakariko village. Shaped like an upturned urn, it squatted before him with an eerie orange light emitting from between whirling patterns etched into its metal surface. A large, raised steppe protruded from its curved entryway. A bronze circle made up of more whorling designs was centered on that steppe, and it was there, Link knew, his paralyzed body had traveled the moment Dorian had pressed the shrine's coinciding symbol on his slate.
The shrine entrance itself was little more than a dark archway. Link knew from past experience that the door led only to the small circular chamber just inside. The Sheikah-sigiled floor within would carry him deep underground to whatever awaited him.
When Link, Impa, and Cado arrived at the shrine, two guards had been standing watch over the ancient structure. They stepped aside and filtered wordlessly behind them — mingling into a crowd of fellow Sheikah that had begun following the trio to the southern side of the village.
Link glanced at the gathered collection of white hair and solemn faces, then spoke to Impa in as low a voice as he could muster in order to avoid being overheard.
"Must they be here to witness something they won't be able to see?" Link asked softly.
"They have been told to prepare for your return since they were born," Impa answered with a kindly smile. "Do not begrudge them the moment they have waited their entire lives to see."
"And what moment is that?" Link persisted, albeit in tones too low to be heard. "What awaits me in the shrine? And what happens when I return?"
"Unlike many of the questions you have asked before, the answers to all of these will be clear in but moments," Impa answered kindly before assuming a much more business-like air. "Now, choose your arms, Link."
Only then did Link realize that a small selection of swords, spears, bows and shields lay neatly organized on the grass to the side of the shrine. He quickly looked back at Impa.
"You would risk my life before my journey begins?" Link asked incredulously.
"The shrines were built before the sires of my ancestors dreamed of having children," Impa calmly answered. "I know only that this one was meant to 'test the mettle of Hylia's Champion.' As for what awaits you should you succeed, it is written that 'the survivor of shrines will be armed with death's reach.' Whether the former concerns you or the latter intrigues you," she added wryly, "I would think it foolish to enter such a place unarmed."
Truth be told, both warning and reward tugged at Link with equal strength. Curiosity ultimately won out. The shrine at the plateau had enhanced his slate with abilities that had helped Hateno stave off destruction. Could he afford to put off another gift from the Sheikah before setting off to do the near-impossible?
Without a word, Link doffed his cloak and set it next to the series of weapons. From those he selected a shield bearing the Sheikah eye sigil and a longer version of Dorian's curved blade, which still hung at his side. Securing both additions to the belt on his back, he entered the shrine.
Link did not turn around as the floor began to move, or he would have seen white-haired heads craning to glimpse him descending into the earth.
As it had on the plateau, the circular platform bore Link ever downward in a column of blue light. The walls of the narrow tunnel encircling him were sheathed in Sheikah metal, their flawless surface hypnotic in its monotony. It was several moments before he arrived at the true interior of the shrine.
Exiting the platform's narrow confines, Link stepped into a vast chamber with high ceilings that emanated blue light. The same metal from the tunnel covered the walls, though here they were adorned with bronze constellations.
The similarities to the shrine at the plateau ended there. There were no hallways leading off to separate chambers, nor was there a pedestal into which Link might insert his Sheikah slate. Instead, four pillars of flawed stone stretched from floor to ceiling. Link wondered at their presence. They served no purpose that he could see, and he very much doubted the shrine needed just the four of them for support. Even odder, centered perfectly between the pillars was a large, square hole in the otherwise perfectly designed stone floor.
It was at the far end of the square chamber that Link finally noticed an object of interest. Two torches containing blue fire framed what would have been an open archway - save that it was sealed by a grille of unblemished Sheikah metal. Decided, Link started forward.
To you who sets foot in this shrine, I am Ta'loh Naeg. In the name of the Goddess Hylia, I offer this trial of combat that you might prove yourself as Her chosen champion.
Though his name was different, Link recognized the dry, lifeless voice as identical to the one he had heard in the shrine at the plateau. His words, however, were unique. Trial of combat?
The floor shook. Link stumbled slightly but kept his footing. He did not remember removing the shield and sword from his back. He wielded them now, his eyes focused on the square hole in the floor, for it was from there that more noise was emitting.
Like a puzzle being completed, the square was filled by a portion of stone that had risen to fit perfectly inside it. On top of the stone, its blue eye swiveling malevolently, was a Guardian.
At least, it reminded Link of a Guardian. It was much smaller than the rusted hunks of metal he had seen on the plateau and the Ash Swamp. It sported three legs instead of six, each tipped with a trio of razor-sharp claws. Its bell-shaped body separated at its middle, the smaller head extending upward to increase its height. The single blue eye found Link and immediately turned red.
Link snarled and leaped sideways, instinctually rolling out of his landing just behind one of the stone pillars. His escape was not a moment too soon - three short blasts of blue light shot from the Guardian's eye, scorching the stone floor Link had just departed.
The telltale sound of metal on stone told Link the machine was coming closer, searching for the foe it could no longer see. He briefly wondered if it could hear or smell him. Until he knew for sure, he had no choice but to assume it could. Link could hear the whirring of its swiveling head accompany its clawed steps. A serpentine, metallic leg stepped into sight.
In one motion, Link pivoted from behind the pillar and swung his sword toward the thing's head. The quiet swiftness of his strike should have caught the machine unawares. Instead, a thin metallic arm unfolded from its body. From its end a single-edged blade of blue light sprang to life and met Link's sword in a shower of sparks.
The force of the weapons' impact sent Link to the floor. The Guardian was on him instantly, its blade seeking his face. Link raised his shield - and felt the machine's sword slice through it as easily as butter. He gasped as the blue blade pierced his shoulder, failing to pierce cleanly through only because it had already exhausted its reach.
Desperate to separate himself, Link kicked upward. His booted feet caught the Guardian squarely under its rotund bottom. It was enough to send the machine toppling over, allowing Link to scramble to his feet. Throwing aside the now useless shield, he raised his long Sheikah blade with both hands just as the Guardian righted itself on its sinuous legs.
This time Link waited for the machine to make the first move while keeping a wary eye on its single blue orb. Rather than blast more blue light, the Guardian charged forward, sword upraised. Link rolled to one side, leaving the mechanical strike cleaving only empty air. Link rose to his feet and swung his sword like an axe at the machine's body.
The metal blade bit into the neck-like extension between the Guardian's bulbous lower body and its eye-adorned head. Quick as a blink, the thing swiveled its entire upper body, flinging Link into one of the pillars. A clawed foot removed the Sheikah blade in a shower of sparks, snapped it like a twig and discarded the now-broken weapon aside. A gash of exposed, spark-emitting innards showed from within the wound, but the thing appeared as functional as ever. Reoriented, it found Link. Instead of charging again, the single eye's red glow intensifying once again.
Half-breathless and dazed, Link saw what was about to happen. A memory he had seen more than once resurfaced in his mind's eye. He banished it, willing himself to face the present threat rather than dredge up one long past. Desperate, daring to hope only that he might confuse the Guardian, he rushed forward.
As the machine's eye turned deep scarlet, Link jumped, drawing from his waist the shorter sword Dorian had given him. Just before the Guardian released its deadly blast, he drove the curved blade point-first into his foe's lone eye.
Link felt his sword sink deep as he toppled onto his mechanical foe. Man and machine went tumbling to the ground. Only after scrambling to his feet to avoid clawed feet and glowing weapons did Link realize the thing was dead. Where its eye had been, a thin column of black smoke spiraled lazily from the now lifeless husk of metal.
Hunched over and breathing heavily, Link glanced at the sword he had kept gripped in his hands. The blade was scorched black, its once razor-keen point chipped off. The rest of the metal might very well be flawed. As it was, Dorian's former weapon would be of little use now.
Still, Link could not bring himself to simply cast it aside. As he had realized the day before, the sword was more than a weapon. It would remain so, even if it would no longer aid him in battle. Consciously returning it to its sheath, Link turned his attention to the archway at the far end of the shrine. The grille was gone. The doorway stood open.
His right hand staunching the blood flowing from his left shoulder, Link passed through the archway and saw a familiar sight. A small chamber with walls of transparent blue light sat before him, its only occupant the long-dead remains of a man seated and slumped a throne. A pendant bearing the Sheikah eye encircled its neck.
Its mouth did not move, but Link heard the same rasping voice fill the shrine once again.
Your triumph speaks of the hero of prophecy. Take the gift of those who came before and use it on Hylia's behalf.
The blue light surrounding the corpse faded with its words. Only then did Link see a small chest sitting before him, its size and appearance equally unimpressive. He knelt, undid the clasp and lifted the lid.
No magnificent weapon or tool greeted him. Nestled in the middle of an aged piece of cloth lay a small orb of silvery metal and yellow light. The latter shone from within crevices of the former, illuminating the wooden walls and nondescript cloth within the chest.
Link removed it carefully, but the curious object did nothing. No further instructions issued from the strange Sheikah voice. What it was or what purpose it served, Link could not tell. His unmet expectations allowed the pain in his shoulder to flare back to awareness. Grimacing, he stowed the orb in a pouch hanging from his belt with no small amount of disappointment.
Is that all? Link wondered angrily. Is this the price of prolonging my stay? A wound and a useless trinket?
Incensed and in pain, Link once again crossed the large main chamber of the shrine. As the platform ascended, he leaned against the smooth metal wall, allowing himself a momentary rest before returning to the world he had left behind.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
So begins Link's true mission. He now knows what he must do, and has gained at least some modicum of transparency from Impa in the process. For those of us who have played BOTW, it's easy to visualize the Divine Beasts and the idea of reclaiming them. For Link, with nothing more than an elderly woman and some age-old drawings, it's a mind-bending proposition.
Link and Paya seem caught between affection and duty. Their hearts yearn for the former while their moral compasses dictate the latter. Will they find a middle ground between the two?
It took me a lot of sitting and staring at nothing to figure out how the shrines would ultimately come into play (aside from their transportation features, of course). You have probably already noticed that Hyrule is not dotted with them willy nilly as it is in the game. Their number and purpose is much more selective in the story. I'm excited that purpose realized... even if it will take a couple more books to do so.
As always, please feel free to leave a review, even if it's simply your reactions to the story's development. I'm grateful to those of you who have done so already, and I don't mind new/refreshed commentary as the book progresses. If I'm lucky enough to have written something you like, don't hesitate to hit that Follow/Fav button. The next chapter gets a bit emotional... and surprising. Hope life is treating you well. - mattwrites