===== November 9, 2022 - Floor 1: Lakeside Village =====

Link stood with a stupefied expression on his face, watching Zelda walk away from him. He had just (finally) opened the message Zelda had sent him the night before. Apparently she had learned some things that were completely new to him, namely the facts that:

- showers existed in Aincrad;

- so did cameras;

- players had the ability to completely disrobe; and

- everyone and everything was completely anatomically correct and accurate.

He was still trying to process this new information when the girl they had met upon arriving in town the night before ran up to him. "You're the first visitors to our village in quite some time! Does this mean the road is clear?"

"Yes, the road is clear," Link managed to untie his tongue long enough to spit out.

"Wow! You must be a really strong hero if you were able to clear the road of poison. Will you please lend us your aid again?"

Before Link could respond, a quest dialog box popped up:

*****Unique Quest*****

Ilia, Chief's Daughter

The village is in grave danger. Monsters and wild animals roam the field near the river, attacking any who stray too close. Villagers are being driven insane and attacking travelers. The village chief's daughter thinks the source is coming from the river. Investigate, and clear the corruption if possible.

Accept / Deny

Link quickly tapped 'Accept.' "Oh, thank you!" Ilia droned on in typical NPC fashion. Eventually she ran off back to wherever she came from and Zelda took her place by Link's side. "Well, hero, I guess we've got a job to do." She tried to latch on to Link's arm, but he snatched it away from her and turned his back to her. "I'm not talking to you right now," he blustered as he crossed his arms across his chest.

Zelda grinned. "Aww... you didn't like the pictures I sent you?"

"Not. Talking. To. You." He stormed off toward the village gate, as it seemed like the only way to keep Zelda to keep from seeing how red his cheeks were.

"I'm sorry... the next set will be better."

"Not talking to you!"

"Why not? Oh, I know... you can take them yourself!"

"SHUT UP!"

The pair worked in concert to clear the rest of the poison from the fields, taking care to avoid attracting the attention of any nearby monsters. Eventually, the path led to a short waterfall about a kilometer and a half away from the main road. It too was covered in purple muck, which was poisoning a nearby river. "This river... it seems to flow back to the road. If that's the case, and creatures are drinking from it..."

"That would explain the crazy strong monsters!" Link exclaimed. "What did that 'Unique Quest' say? Something about monsters in fields-"

"And people going crazy... suddenly it all makes sense." What didn't make sense, however, was the lack of any eyeballs controlling it...

"Link, look. Behind the waterfall..."

"It looks like..."

"...a cave?"

"It looks safe enough to approach from the water..." Link waded into the river. He still felt the effects of the poison, but they were lessened due to the rushing waters, which were only waist-deep. Zelda stowed her bow for the moment, opting to watch Link's back with her greatsword. They cleared the waterfall, and Link sensed an ominous presence in the cave. "See anything?" he whispered.

"No, nothing," Zelda replied, cautiously scanning the cavern. The deeper they passed, the darker it got until the light from the outside was almost completely gone. Suddenly Link jumped back, almost knocking Zelda off her feet, causing her to yelp in panic. "Link! Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. But that poison's in here, too!"

"How do you know?"

"...Because I just stepped in it, genius."

"Well, if there's poison in here..." She sheathed her sword and equipped her bow.

"There's got to be some of those eyeballs in here."

"Umm, Link, do me a favor..."

"What?"

She passed Link her sword. "Hold this straight up in the air."

"Umm, okay..." He did as he was bid, and immediately the room became a little bit lighter.

"Perfect." She drew back her bowstring and let an arrow fly through the biggest, yellowest, most revolting disembodied eyeball she had ever seen. It spewed toxic liquid all over its surroundings (Link chief among them) as it shriveled up and died, but once it did, all the poison vanished and a soft, dim light filled the cavern. Zelda used another healing crystal to restore Link's health, and another antidote to remove the effects of the sludge's poison. "Wow... you seem to be full of good ideas here," Link remarked.

"Thanks. It looked like it was just outside range if we were standing normally, but I thought the added range of the sword might get it to open up."

"Looks like you were right. Hopefully with that, the river should be cleared... wait a second, what's that?"

The cavern wall began to collapse in front of them... no, it wasn't collapsing; it was cascading into a long stairwell. A stairwell that, oddly enough, seemed to get brighter towards the top. They both readied their weapons and began to climb the stairs, the light getting brighter and brighter as they climbed, until all they could see was white light. Eventually the light faded...

...leaving Link and Zelda standing on a small island in the middle of a vast lake. They looked around and marveled at the sheer beauty of the place. The shore was full of animals (healthy and docile now, presumably thanks to their dispelling the corruption from the cavern below) and the lake itself was so clear they could see to the bottom. Link sheathed his sword and shield for the moment and sat on the grass, seeing that there were no threats in the area. Zelda strapped her sword to her back and removed her helmet, letting the breeze blow through her hair. She sat down with her back to Link, and noticed his hand was stretched out on the ground. She thought back to the night before, when she had clung herself to his arm in a fit of petty, jealous rage. She had felt somewhat ashamed of that afterwards; it wasn't like they were a couple - hell, she had even said as much herself - so what had possessed her to act like that?

Still, she thought to herself, it would be nice if he would just hold my hand...

Slowly and nervously, she crept her hand along the grass near his...

I can't believe I'm doing this...

Suddenly, the ground below them started to shake! Link instinctively threw himself on top of Zelda as a giant stone... something rose up from the ground beneath them. Once it was fully exposed, the ground settled and was still again. "It stopped..." Link sighed.

Zelda let out a sigh of relief as well at the fact that they were both alive and on dry land... then pushed Link off of her and into the lake. He came up spitting, fuming and swearing. "What the fuck was that all about?!"

She turned with a huff, crossing her arms defiantly. "Sorry. I just panicked." Indeed she had panicked... although she wouldn't admit that it hadn't necessarily been because of the giant rock bursting up out of the ground.

"You 'panicked...' right. You couldn't 'panic' in a way that ended up with me on dry land, I guess?"

"Shut up," she murmured.

"Anyway... holy shit, what is this?" Link finally took the opportunity to get a good look at the stone monolith that had risen up from beneath his and Zelda's feet. It was maybe twenty feet tall, with odd spirals and curls carved into the sides. There was a small round platform with what looked like a pedestal of some kind, and behind the platform was a strangely uniform wall. Above the wall there were more intricate designs carved into the stone - designs which Zelda faintly recognized. "Where have we seen that design before?"

"Now that you mention it, it does look familiar... wait a second!" Link grabbed the tablet from his belt and turned it over. The design on the back was exactly like the one on the top of the stone. "No way... that's un-frickin'-real. So this thing wasn't a complete waste of data after all. Maybe now we can figure out how to use it."

"Here's hoping... any ideas on how we do that?"

"Well, let's start with the pedestal. It's the only thing we can really interact with right here and now." With no clear-cut better ideas, they approached the pedestal. The one noticeable feature about it was a rectangular cutout surrounded by inert circuitry - the type of cutout a particular waist-carried object would fit into perfectly... if only they could figure out how. "Look there," Zelda said as she pointed at something inside the cutout. "It looks like some kind of lens... doesn't your tablet have a lens on the back of it?"

"You're right, it does. And it's offset to one side, which means this thing is only going to fit one way. Now the question is, how do we actually put it in?" Link tried inserting the tablet at an angle using the handle, and to their surprise it fit perfectly. Suddenly a voice started speaking out of nowhere:

North, south, east, west
Lies the power to continue your quest
Travel there and activate
The powers of your Sheikah Slate
Twilight, time, wild, and wind,
The hero's challenges you must contend
Only then will you begin
To awaken the gods within

Another quest dialog popped up:

*Unique Quest*

The Sheikah Slate

You found a small tablet in your inventory on launch day, called the 'Sheikah Slate.' After much searching, you discovered a pedestal that the slate fit into, but nothing else happened. A strange voice then advised you that the Sheikah Slate could only be activated by traveling in the four cardinal directions (north, east, south and west) in order to "awaken the gods within."

The dialog vanished after a few moments and the quest populated in both players' quest logs. "So we have to travel 'north, south, east and west' to find the power to make this Sheikah Slate work. Then presumably we come back here to 'awaken the gods within?' Where was all this during the beta?" Link said as he clipped the Sheikah Slate back onto his belt.

"I honestly have no idea," Zelda replied as she pulled up her map. "Well, this is interesting..."

"What is?"

"This lake and island are smack dab in the center of this floor."

"Hmm... that's pretty helpful information. Gives us a pretty solid reference point for our travels, I would say."

Zelda nodded. "Meantime, I say we head back to the village and see if we can't gather any additional information."

"Sounds like a plan."

Zelda grabbed him by the collar and pulled him eye-to-eye with her. "And this time, we do it together."

"I wouldn't dream of doing anything else... now would you please let me go?"

Zelda grinned and untwisted his collar, giving him a slight shove in the process. Link was ready this time, though, and grabbed Zelda by the wrist and flung her into the lake. She swore, she struggled... and she sank. Link jumped in after her, horrified at the fact that he hadn't taken the weight of her armor into consideration when he tossed her into the water. He pulled her up spitting, coughing and swearing even louder than before. "I swear to whatever gods this world adheres to, I'm going to slit your throat in your sleep one of these nights," Zelda fumed.

"Whatever... we're even now."

"Even?! I didn't try to drown you in a suit of full plate!"

"You threw me in the lake; I threw you in the lake. We're even."

"Ooooooooohhh... you are so gonna pay for this!"

"Maybe..." Link scanned the lake; it was maybe two hundred meters to shore, well within his swimming capabilities. "But you gotta catch me first!" He dove into the water and took off. His mail armor weighed him down a little, but only to the point where he couldn't swim quite as fast as he normally would have been able to. About halfway across he turned back to check on Zelda, who was now in her underwear and cutting through the water after him! Link took off toward the shore, reaching the shallows mere seconds before his unencumbered partner. She equipped a simple blouse, skirt and boots, and then drew the biggest greatsword she had in her inventory. Oh shit, Link thought before taking off for the river. He was still a stronger swimmer than her, if only he could get his damned armor off... he tapped his chest and a dialog box appeared:

Footpad's Tunic

{{Change}}

{{Remove}}

That was it; that must be how Zelda removed her armor so quickly. He tapped "Remove," and his chain shirt and tabard disappeared into his inventory. Significantly unburdened, he jumped into the river with Zelda hot on his heels. Luckily for him, he had the river's current with him on top of being the stronger swimmer. Eventually the water carried him within a short sprint of the village gate. "Perfect," he thought aloud as he reequipped his armor. "Just gotta make it inside the gate and I'm safe." He took off running just as Zelda emerged from the water. The longer he extended the chase, the angrier she seemed to get. She was now taking wild swipes at him with her sword, out of reach but getting ever closer with each attempt. He crossed the gate with mere moments to spare, and turned around just in time to catch the hilt of Zelda's sword flush to the chin. While he didn't lose any HP thanks to the safe zone's protection, the sheer force of the blow knocked him clean off his feet, much to the shock of the players who were starting to gather in the village.

Link came around sometime later with Zelda sitting on his chest. "It's about time you woke up. Here." She handed him a sandwich. "We should eat before we do anything else, so I bought us lunch."

Lunch? "How long was I out?"

"Not long. Only a few seconds."

"Really? Feels like it was longer than that..."

"Nah. The game doesn't allow unconsciousness longer than sixty seconds. You maxed out 'cuz of a head injury."

"Because you hit me in the face."

"Which... caused a head injury."

"Whatever. Truce?"

"Eh, sure... whatever," Zelda said with a smirk as she helped Link to his feet.

The two ate lunch and gathered as much intel from the various NPCs in the village. They were able to piece together enough to have a decent shot at completing their Unique Quest within a day or two, depending on travel. What they learned was that the object that had risen from the island in the middle of the lake was a "shrine" of some sort, and there was one about an hour's march in each cardinal direction from the lake. The fields were full of monsters comfortably close to their player levels, so they could safely hunt while they traveled.

As they walked around the town, Ilia approached them again. "I heard you cleaned up the lake. Thank you so much!"

*****Unique Quest Complete*****

Reward: Activation Circuit

"I found this down by the riverbank the other day," Ilia continued. "I don't know what it's for, but you can have it. Take care!" She then ran off back to wherever she had come from, leaving Link to ponder over the odd computer chip sitting in his palm. "It's gotta be for the Sheikah Slate... what else do we have that could need to be activated?"

"Valid enough point," Zelda nodded.

"So let's see where this thing fits... ah, here!" Behind the handle was a small slot exactly the width of the activation circuit. The chip fit perfectly, and the device hummed with energy... but didn't seem to do much of anything else. "Well, at least it seems like it's... kind of working now?"

"Yeah... hopefully we'll learn more about it at these shrines."

Armed with their weapons and as much information as they hoped to gain from the small village, they set out to the south in search of the first shrine. Their intel proved to be accurate, as they got there after about an hour and a half. The pedestal was different, needing only to be touched by the Sheikah Slate in order for the "wall" to be revealed as a door made up of two dozen stone beams, which swung inward to reveal what looked like a platform. Far from incredulous at this point, Link and Zelda stepped on the platform and descended into the dark earth. They emerged in a small room, with a huge, ornate wall separating them from another, larger room. On the far side of the room was a set of bars, blocking what he presumed to be the exit. There was an arch in the wall, which Link knew would slam shut as soon as they walked through it. "Stay close to me," he said to Zelda as he took up his shield and sword. Zelda nodded and kept up next to him. True to Link's instinct, as soon as they had walked through the arch a set of bars slammed shut behind them. "Well, what do we do now?"

"Hmm... good question. See that pit in the middle of the room?"

"Yeah..."

"Someone or something is going to rise up from it and try to fight us. We win, the other gate opens and we leave. That simple."

"How do you know?"

"Because I've played a video game or two in my time."

"Oh... right."

Almost on cue, a platform rose up from the pit, creating an even floor. On this platform was a skeleton, dressed in a green tunic and hat, with tan tights and boots. It carried a sword and shield like Link, except its sword was in its left hand. It charged menacingly, shooting lasers from its eyes as it got closer. "Watch out!" Zelda cried, shoving Link aside and blocking the beams with her greatsword. "You okay?"

"Yeah, no damage. You?"

"Minimal. Get behind me and watch its attack patterns."

"Right!"

The skeleton moved and attacked jerkily, so the two had no problems whittling its health down to 50 percent. At that point, it started using a new attack: spinning its head around 360 degrees and shooting lasers at the floor. Zelda couldn't block the beams, and she and Link were both swept off their feet and knocked out of range. They regrouped quickly, charging in and slashing at their enemy until its health had dropped down to 25 percent. Then it began charging up a great deal of energy, like it was preparing for a massive final laser blast. "We have to split up! It can't target us both!" Zelda cried.

"What if it targets you?"

"I'll be fine! Just get behind it and start smashing the ever loving hell out of it!"

"All right, you got it!" Link sprinted around to the other side of the room, and the creature's gaze tracked him. "It's following me!"

"I see that! Turn it all the way around and guard with your shield!"

Link did as he was instructed, putting a good deal of distance between himself and the skeleton and hunkering down behind his shield. Wait a sec, he thought to himself, at this range, I should be able to dodge anything that thing tries to shoot at me. Fortunately he never got the chance, as it soon collapsed in a heap and exploded in a shower of sparks. Zelda had quite prudently and efficiently 'smashed the ever loving hell out of it' before it could get off a shot.

Once the last of the dust had settled, the gate on the far end of the room opened, revealing a small platform. They approached it and a ghost appeared in the air in front of them. It was dressed the same as the skeleton they had just fought, but its weapons were on its back. It spoke to them in a haunting, yet not entirely threatening voice:

I am the Shade of the Wild.

Ages ago, I took my place in the legends of the Calamity.

Many times has it reared its head against the land of Hyrule, and always has a Hero risen to drive it back.

Now, a new Calamity like never before threatens to wipe out this new world of Aincrad, and so a Hero must once again confront it.

Defeat the Shades and conquer the shrines on this floor, and learn your true destiny.

The shade seemingly then tossed a small medallion towards Link. It spun slowly in the air as it hovered above Link's hands:

Medallion of the Wild

A small token bestowed upon you after challenging and defeating the Shade of the Wild, stored in your Sheikah Slate. Acquiring all four will open a new way forward.

Link tapped the dialog box, and the medallion disappeared from view. The shade then finished speaking:

May the Triforce light the way of the Hero.

With that, the spirit disappeared and Link and Zelda were teleported back to the surface entrance of the shrine. Link checked his Sheikah Slate, and noticed four LEDs on the handle, one of which was illuminated. With the path in front of them that much clearer, they circumnavigated the countryside in search of the three other shrines. They defeated the Shade of Time in the east, the Shade of Winds in the north, and the Shade of Twilight in the west (the toughest fight of the four, due to its ability to morph into a ghost wolf during the fight). They were now working well into the night, and decided to retreat to the safety of the village inn. Unfortunately it was completely booked, so they were forced to teleport back to the Town of Beginnings, where they were able to find a place to sleep. They set their normal tasks of resupplying, loot sorting and selling for the morning, climbing into bed as soon as they could.

As Zelda buried her back into Link's chest and wrapped his arms around her, she felt all the day's stresses, wears and tears just... disappear like magic. Shrines, shades, eyeballs, calamities, heroes, gods... all of it be damned.

Link was her Hero.