In roughly the blink of an eye Epona had crossed the grassy natural bridge to the mainland, Navi emerging to streak alongside. And just as quickly, the Stalhorse had veered to the right off the road and raced along the bluff overlooking Lake Akkala and the sleepy little town he'd just left. Before the Shadow could even ask what she was up to, she'd vaulted over a natural rock wall; he was startled until they'd cleared the low border and the soft, ethereal music that seemed unique to the Great Fairies reached his ears at the same time as his eyes registered the gentle, sparkling glow coming from the enormous flower.
Epona came to a stop just outside of the inner circle of rock around the supernatural foliage and bowed her head, obviously intending him to dismount.
He sighed, then reached down to pat her neck. "All right, I get it: visit the Fairy," he said, rolling his eyes as his feet hit the ground.
She whinnied at him and pushed his shoulder toward the flower while Navi giggled and twinkled merrily at him.
He snorted. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going." As he drew closer he noticed three glowing pink Fairies hovering nearby, but he no longer really needed the one he still had in his pack so he let them be, walking up the steps formed by the caps of the closely-gathered toadstools. "Hello?" he ventured.
The calm surface of the dark water bubbled and broke over the head of an enormous purple-haired woman.
"Ahhh! There we are— oh! I was expecting someone… bigger, I guess. But a slim little lad like you will do just fine. Yes. Welcome, Shadow Link and Navi! I am Mija, Guardian Spirit of these lands. I will soothe your wounds and comfort your weariness."
"Hey, wait—" he started, but it was too late. The Shadow barely had time to brace himself before a huge hand had enveloped and dipped him beneath the surface of the water. A moment later, he was completely dry and surrounded by the laughter of both Fairies as well as Epona's snorts of merriment. He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Hilarious." He was absolutely not going to mention that the quick dip had, in fact, eased the minor aches and discomforts he'd been semi-conscious of.
The Great Fairy grew serious. "Many tests of strength and courage lie behind you, but many more yet await. The fate of Hyrule depends upon your ability to walk the most dangerous paths, and while elixirs are lovely, they are limited in their usefulness by their time constraints. Hold out your left hand."
With no slight trepidation, the Shadow did so, but she merely touched the back of it with a single fingertip for the barest of seconds. In the fraction of an instant it took to slide his eyes to the spot, a red symbol that looked like the tip of a flame arrow was already disappearing into his skin.
"Ooh," Navi cooed appreciatively.
"Death Mountain is not named lightly," Mija informed them. "To tread there requires either special armor, which is heavy and cumbersome, or the continuous use of elixirs, which have the potential to be an untimely distraction should the effect wane in the midst of battle."
He nodded. "Of course, that's the only time it would happen."
Navi sparkled sagely.
Mija concurred with a nod. "In general, if a thing has the potential to go wrong, it shall find a way to do so. The charm I have just bestowed upon you will function the same as the Goron-made Flamebreaker Armor but will not encumber your movement or hamper your vision, and will protect you and everything in your possession."
He glanced over to where Epona was standing, looking intently in their direction. "What about my horse?"
The Great Fairy smiled at him. "I can offer no greater magic for your companions than what is already in effect, and that is not something I have had occasion to say often!" she laughed as she retreated to the center of her pool.
"Farewell, Hero of Hyrule. Anytime you are weary of battle, please come back to visit me!" And then she was gone, the surface of the water perfectly calm once more.
The Shadow turned and looked at Navi. "That was surprisingly helpful, too. I feel weird."
Navi snorted, trailing slightly behind as he walked back over to Epona. "It is necessary for the Guardian Spirits to know your heart. Their duty is to protect Hyrule, and it is clear that Mija decided you are up to the task and wished to assist in her own way."
"Hooray for me," he deadpanned, then looked down at the back of his hand, where he could see nothing at all. "Guess this was what we came here for. It's probably time to head up the mountain, then," he said, looking at Epona.
She nodded her head, he mounted, and they took off, the ground falling away beneath the Stalhorse's hooves. Just after the quick chain of East Sokkala, Sokkala, and West Sokkala Bridges, Epona slowed and Navi hid herself just as the sounds of a struggle reached his ears.
Someone was being attacked by a silver Bokoblin near the lean-to camping shelter built from a rock, some sticks, and a weather-beaten piece of canvas. A lone lantern lit the scene dimly.
He pulled his sword to find it completely dark— even the normally-swirling jewel was eerily dormant. It even felt somehow heavier than normal in his hand, as well, dead weight where he'd become accustomed to undeniable liveliness. Brow furrowed and readying himself for the shock, he tapped it.
Nothing happened.
"Shit," he frowned, sliding the sword back into its sheath to grab his Lynel bow and an ice arrow instead. He took aim, calling out a warning as he drew back: "Hey! Look out!"
The cloaked person spared him a quick look, then shoved away from the Bokoblin with a grunt. As soon as the Shadow saw a sliver of space between them he fired, freezing the monster mid-snarl. Then, on a whim, he followed it up with a fire arrow and was treated to a purple-and-black explosion that was unexpectedly spectacular.
"Ooh, that was interesting," the Shadow thought out loud. He put the bow away and patted Epona's neck, thanking her for her steadiness.
The camper he'd just saved walked nearer. "Well, you sure made that simpler than it would've been otherwise. I should do something to thank you, I suppose," they said, turning so their face was illuminated by the lamplight to reveal feminine features and pulling from a pocket a vial of murky and pungent liquid, holding it out.
He stared at it. "What is that?"
"Monster Extract. It's a kind of flavoring that makes any food taste amazing. I know it's made of monsters, but it's good stuff. Never, ever eat it raw, though" the would-be victim told him, shuddering.
He frowned. "Not sure I want to eat it at all," he said, not reaching for it. "It smells vile." Epona stomped twice and shook her head vehemently to concur.
"Oh, it's fine, really! Just cook it first." The camper was still holding it out.
"Um. No, thanks."
"Are you sure?"
"Appreciate the offer," he nodded.
"Well, my name's Chabi, and I guess I owe you one."
"What, like a debt?"
Chabi wrinkled her nose, finally withdrawing the vial of dubious substance. "'Debt' sounds so formal. I just meant I owe you a favor. You know, you scratch my back, I scratch yours."
"I don't want to do either of those," he said, slightly alarmed at the direction this interaction had taken and regretting stopping at all. "Let's just forget about it."
"No, no, it's just an expression. It means you helped me so I'll help you with something. You know, quid pro quo."
"I don't know what squid pro roe is, but, uh, I gotta get going. Long way to go before dawn."
"That's not quite—"
"See you around sometime," he said, thinking Hopefully not. Epona took that as her cue, leaping into a run.
"That was awkward," Navi emerged to say.
"Yeah, I know. I was there."
"You're going to actively avoid her in the future."
It wasn't phrased as a question, but he answered it, anyway. "You know me so well. Hey, why was the explosion so impressive when I used the fire arrow after the ice?"
"Any strike to a frozen enemy results in triple the damage. In addition, elemental weapons are particularly effective against their opposing element. So against an Igneo Talus, for example—"
"A what Talus?"
"Igneo— from 'igneous', meaning volcanic rock."
"Goddess damn it." He hung his head for a moment.
"Some of Hyrule's monsters and giants have adapted to their environments; in Eldin, for instance, you'll find creatures like the Igneo Talus that are immune to fire but weak to ice. Likewise, there are those like the Frost Talus with ice in their veins yet fall quickly when hit with fire. And I'm sure it will thrill you to know that electric enemies have no elemental opposite and are themselves resistant to shock."
"Well, of course they are."
"You'll generally find your remote bombs fairly effective against most monsters, which reminds me— you'll want to store your bomb arrows, certainly, and probaly also your fire arrows and Great Flameblade somewhere before heading up the mountain."
"Why?"
"Well, the intense heat will negate the elemental effects of the arrows and sword and will also activate the bombs the instant they leave the protective enchantments on you."
"Ooh, no. Don't want that." Again. He shuddered at the memory of learning Lesson Number Three the hard way.
They hadn't gone far at all when they came upon the Akkala Parade Ground Ruins and the blue Hinox snoring blissfully under the moonlight, which they could hear well before the great, hulking form came into view. "What the— how many of those fuckers are there?"
"At last count, forty. So thirty-seven now."
"Good fucking goddess."
"There are also thirty-nine Taluses. Only twenty-two Lynels, though, and a mere four Moldugas."
"That's not the selling point you seem to think it is." He sighed as Epona slowed to a halt. "I don't even have my sword," he sniped.
"Well, you have it, it's just… inactive. I suspect it suspended its stores of energy in that last battle and needs some time to rest and recover. It would still cut, slash, and stab just fine, I should think. You know… sword-y things."
"Ever the fucking optimist," he lamented as he dismounted to make his way quietly over to the sleeping Hinox. He stood for a few moments, watching the giant eye twitch in slumber and made a quick decision.
He took out his bow and a Light arrow; in the next heartbeat the Hinox was gone. There was no pile of loot, but he was still satisfied. "Remind me to never let myself run out of Light arrows."
"They certainly do save time," Navi agreed. "But they leave nothing behind, so use them wisely."
He nodded as he remounted Epona and held on as she kicked into stride. The incline didn't bother her at all— her sure, bony hooves not on the ground long enough to notice much of anything— and within minutes they'd reached the point where the road forked back to Akkala or continued southwest along the cliff face. It also afforded the lovely view of the ruins of Akkala Citadel, the seat of Akkala Tower; he shuddered at the vivid, recent memory— and the two Skywatchers still endlessly patrolling the grounds, not to mention the ragtag group of Moblins and Bokoblins that had made camp at the intersection. He could see them sleeping around the fire while those on the lookout towers turned every few moments in their tireless watch.
A few well-placed bomb arrows ignited the powder kegs conveniently lying around the camp while his remote bombs finished off the survivors. A few minutes later, the Shadow had padded his pockets further with several red and blue rupees and five more bomb arrows from a chest, and Epona had leapt into top gear in a blink.
The rest of the trip was uneventful until the last bend in the road before Foothill Stable, where the exposed skeleton of an ancient homestead was being actively haunted by a Blizzrobe. The floating blue-and-white wizard danced rather dopily in midair and seemed to be singing to itself as it froze random bushes and a few unlucky creatures that had chosen the wrong spot for a rest.
"Ooh, what luck!" Navi said as Epona slowed to a more normal walking pace.
"I don't think that chipmunk thought so."
"I'm serious. You should destroy the Blizzrobe and take its Ice Rod. The number of shots will be limited without the wizard's magic to keep it charged, but it will still prove useful and save you some ice arrows."
"All right, that makes sense," he agreed, and Epona halted altogether. A few moments later the Blizzrobe fell to a single bomb arrow. "One shot is definitely the way to go." He dismounted to climb the little hill and retrieve the softly-glowing Ice Rod. It was cool to the touch, and he took Navi's advice, fastening it to his belt rather than storing it on his back as he walked back to Epona, since he'd likely have need of it relatively soon.
With the stable just on the other side of the hill, it didn't really make sense to bother climbing back up on Epona's back. She must've had the same idea, as she snorted at him with a nod and fell into step next to him. A short walk later, he was greeted with the unmistakable and familiar sound of an accordion wafting on the night breeze. It was the melody Kass had been working out the last time they'd seen each other, now well-practiced and polished.
Around the fire sat two Hylians, two Gorons, and a Gerudo, listening intently. As he drew closer, he caught the minstrel's eye and they shared a nod of greeting. The Shadow thought for a split second that he'd seen a mischievous twinkle, but dismissed it as an optical illusion caused by the reflection of one of the lamps burning contentedly around the camp.
And then the lyrics began.
"Our long history tells of a recurring duel waged
Between a valiant knight and his magical shade.
But an unprecedented twist of such curious fate
Left Hero-less a land where evil ne'er abates.
Until the unlikely Choice of a Goddess so bold
Rewrote the old legend and broke every mold.
From the shadows emerged two unusual in aspect,
Defending, protecting, and earning respect;
A living myth and his supernatural steed,
Dark beacons of hope in Hyrule's hour of need.
Improbable, unconventional, spirited, and brave,
Should they cross your path, do not be afraid;
Quick as lightning, red eyes aglow,
They destroy monsters wherever they go."
"Well, fuck." The Shadow sighed, letting his chin hit his chest. All eyes around the fire had shifted to him one by one until he felt like he was on display. He'd known the troubadour was working out a new tune— he'd just assumed they did that from time to time or risk boring their audiences. He'd had no inkling he'd be its subject, though, and he wasn't entirely sure how he felt about it, but his cheeks had grown warm as he'd listened. Shaking his head in disbelief he raised it again, one corner of his mouth pulled up against his will as he met Kass' eyes.
The minstrel's rhythm never faltered but his smile did widen noticeably as he went on to the next verse, telling the tale of Lakeside Stable in excruciating detail before moving on to chronicle the Shadow's continuing adventures in the next verses.
The minstrel had certainly been busy.
Epona had started nodding her head, keeping perfect time. The Shadow could admit to himself that he was a little flattered, but also a bit uncomfortable with being lauded in such a way. It felt somehow much more personal and impactful than a gossip rag heaping overly-effusive praise on him from afar. He had to admit he was impressed with the scope of the song, though it made him sound abundantly more heroic than he'd like or, indeed, had ever felt.
"Oh, hiiii!" a very familiar voice said, interrupting his thoughts. Eager for an excuse to gracefully leave the immediate area, the Shadow turned to find Beedle emerging from the stable.
"You really get around," the Shadow said, moving to meet him away from the fire so as not to distract the others still enraptured by Kass' music.
"Sure do! So do you, from what I hear," the cheeky little shit said, eyes sliding over to Kass. "How do you like the song?"
"It's… unexpected, for sure," the Shadow hedged. "I do like the melody."
"You headed up the mountain?" Beedle asked, worry dimming his smile as he glanced at the ominous black cloud blocking the moonlight overhead and then toward the volcano.
"Yeah; actually, I'm glad I ran into you. Can I get some more ice and Light arrows?"
"Oh, sorry, I only have ice right now; haven't been able to restock the Light arrows yet. A guy over on Tingle Island makes them, but he gets weird if I visit too often. I mean weirder; he's always a little weird. So I only go there every two weeks or so. But I do have about thirty ice arrows for you."
"I might as well just take everything you've got, I'm sure I'll need it at some point." A few minutes later, his quiver was fit to burst (were it possible) and Beedle's inventory was depleted.
"Is there anything else you need or want to get rid of?" the merchant asked.
Having none, the Shadow held out his hand for a shake before the traveling salesman resumed the activity for which he was named, taking the road south away from the mountain as quickly as his feet could carry him.
The Shadow walked over to the counter where, without preamble, the gray-bearded attendant barked, "Ya can't board that Stalhorse here."
The Shadow felt his face harden. "Wasn't going to."
"Right. Good." The man brightened considerably. "Well, then, what can I do for you?"
Body relaxing in response, the Shadow asked, "I need to store some fire and bomb arrows and a Great Flameblade somewhere before I go up the mountain. Can I pay you to keep them here for me?"
"Well, sure. Don't see why not. Name's Ozunda. How much stock are we talking about; how much space do ya need?" Now that they'd established Epona would not need the services of his stable, the owner was pleasant and helpful enough, though his eyes did slide behind the Shadow a tad nervously from time to time.
They agreed on a price and the Shadow paid it, heading back to the fire to sit and have a bite to eat before heading up the mountain at last.
Kass was still playing, though a different, wordless tune, and the audience was now enraptured by a new fellow apparently telling jokes. The Shadow just caught the dubious punchline: "Rectum? Damn near killed 'em!" which made everyone around the fire laugh uproariously— even Epona snickered— while the newcomer grinned, obviously pleased with himself.
"Whoa, hello!" the jokester said, smiling widely at the Shadow. "Don't need to ask who you are. Word about you's spread like wildfire. I'm Dayto," he introduced himself, holding out his hand for the Shadow to shake.
The Shadow then sliced a few apples and used the public cookpot to bake them in some melted butter, then spent a few minutes enjoying the sweet snack before gathering his things and rising to his feet.
"Are you going up the mountain?" the Hylian woman asked, eyebrows raised.
"I am."
"Do you have enough Fireproof Elixir?"
"I'm covered," he answered.
"There's a recipe on the wall inside if you need to make more; you might want to check that out before you leave," she advised unnecessarily, though she couldn't have known that.
"I'm all set," he assured with a nod.
"Watch yourself," the lighter-hued Goron warned. "The road to Goron City is absolutely crawling with monsters— I've never seen so many!" He shook his head. "If I couldn't roll, I'm not sure I'd have gotten down the hill," he added, which didn't make sense to the Shadow.
"'Roll'?"
"Oh! Like this." The Goron tucked himself into an impressively-small ball of living rock and rolled in a little circle. "Can't roll up the mountain, though," he added, seemingly put out by the basic concept of gravity working exactly as it should.
"I highly recommend the hot springs along the way," the other Goron added, "especially if you're feeling at all weary or if you get attacked and need to recuperate a bit." He looked up toward the summit. "I hope Yunobo's all right."
"I'm on my way up to Goron City to check on him now," the Shadow told them. At their twin looks of surprise, he added, "Greyson in Tarrey Town is worried."
"I don't think he'll be in the city itself," the darker Goron advised. "With the size of that cloud and as long as it's been building, I'll lay odds he's wherever the blockage is trying to fix it. I know he's young, but he's trying his best to learn to be a good leader."
The Shadow nodded. "I'll find him." He climbed up on Epona's back and lifted his hand in general farewell as she leapt into the night.
Right in the middle of the road up the mountain was a sign that pronounced the spot 'Death Mountain Marker #1'.
"You'll find markers spaced every so often as a reminder that it's time for the average non-Goron traveler to take a dose of Fireproof Elixir," Navi said.
"Is the ground really that warm here?" But by the time he'd finished his question, he was already passing the first hot spring, the water bubbling and steaming welcomingly. "Never mind."
It was immediately apparent that the Goron had been correct about the monsters along the road up the mountain. The Shadow had no sooner lost sight of the stable than they were beset by a mob of Fire Keese which were not deterred by Epona's speed and tenaciously followed, forcing them to slow so he could deal with them. He'd no more than rid the world of them before the telltale theatrics preceded the appearance of a Yiga fighter some distance away.
But this was no ordinary footsoldier; this one was roughly twice the size of the others and wielded a long, wicked-looking blade that seemed to be made of bands of both shining silver and some sort of darker metal designed in such a way that they left three openings down the center.
"Yiga blademaster!" Navi cried. "With a windcleaver— look out!"
But by the time the warning came, the overgrown Yiga had pulled back the blade with both hands and quickly brought it in a slashing motion across his body.
A blast of wind burst from the end of the blade and hit the Shadow with the force of an explosion, knocking him sideways off Epona's saddle and smack onto his ass.
"Oof. Got a theory on how that sword got its name," he snarked breathlessly.
Epona answered with a snort while the Sprite cackled and twinkled. "Nothing gets past you. But that sword might be useful."
The big bastard had disappeared just like the footsoldier; perhaps it was some sort of trick aided by a smoke bomb and clever sleight of hand or perhaps the Yiga actually possessed the ability to teleport short distances. Both options were equally annoying.
The Shadow had no more gained his feet than the muted boom! came from just behind him. Spinning, he armed the hookshot and fired it at his unsuspecting attacker. It struck the middle of the expansive— and possibly armored— chest, and the brute immediately disappeared with another poof!
Having bought himself a few seconds, the Shadow readied his bow and an ice arrow. When the unmistakable sound came, he spun toward it and loosed his arrow as soon as his target appeared, hitting them in the midsection and turning them into an instant block of ice. A quick follow-up with a remote bomb finished the fight quickly, leaving behind the interesting blade.
It was heavy, requiring two hands to wield it. He swung it the way he'd seen the blademaster do, smiling to himself when he successfully created a localized wind blast identical to the one that had put him on his rear. "That's much more fun from this end."
Navi's laughter followed as he remounted Epona and they took off once more. The next set of Fire Keese was accompanied by a Fire Chu, neither of which presented much of an obstacle thanks to both the Shadow's bag of tricks and the neat fact that Epona running through the Chu made it so that little firelets didn't sprout.
It went on that way, the road liberally smattered with flaming versions of Keese and Chus, along with submerged Octoroks and a new type of well-camouflaged red Lizalfos which boasted the additional feature of breathing fire.
"Fire-breath Lizalfos," Navi supplied.
"It's a mystery how they got that name," he deadpanned, sparking her laughter.
Soon enough the ground turned into cooled lava, though the road was still discernible. A steamy haze hung low over everything, and the Shadow found himself grateful for the charm the Great Fairy had given him every time he had to dismount.
The windcleaver was a good tool but he couldn't swing it fully on Epona's back, so when he ran across a red Moblin, he jumped down to unleash a blast from the blade before moving in to use the actual blade on the monster and finish it off. While down there, he noticed some mushrooms sprouting from the base of a husked-out tree.
"Ooh, Sunshrooms!" Navi observed. "They can help you endure the cold for short periods when cooked, and my last Link seemed to really enjoy their flavor. Those Zapshrooms you ate in Akkala would've had a similar benefit of mild shock resistance, but I'm sure the Goron spice disguised the feeling. There are a lot of different types of mushrooms, herbs, and creatures that can give slight effects; you should take some time to look through that database Robbie loaded on the Sheikah Slate."
"Yeah, I probably should. Isn't it strange that there are all these high-tech Sheikah items everywhere but that most of them— everyone in Kakariko, for instance— lives like the wheel is something they came up with last year?"
"They got burned by their own inventions pretty badly when Ganondorf's malice infected them, and they subsequently shunned most of what they'd previously built. It's one of the larger reasons Robbie and Purah decided to leave Kakariko; they didn't want to give up their tech."
As he was bent over retrieving some of the reportedly-tasty fungus and contemplating all they'd discussed, he heard a strange squawk and looked up to see an enormous… bird? standing a short distance away. It was taller than himself— legs, neck, and rear end all elongated and arranged oddly, and seemed to lack wings entirely. "What the hell? Is it still a bird if it doesn't have wings?"
"That's an Eldin Ostrich; it has wings, they're just not large or strong enough to lift their bodies so they keep them tucked along their backs except to display aggression. They are very fast runners, however, and I'd advise against angering them. They're feisty."
He smirked. "I bet Epona's faster."
The bird squawked indignantly at him.
"I don't think it liked that."
He nodded, keeping an eye on the creature… which was also watching him steadily and took two rather threatening steps forward as he remounted Epona. It was disconcerting and slightly alarming, and he wasted no time in leaving the oversized nightmare-Cucco behind.
The Ice Rod, as Navi'd said, was extremely useful… for about twenty-five shots before its internal light sputtered and died. He was about to chuck it at a Fire-Breath Lizalfos but Navi cautioned him to hold onto it for a while, see if it would recharge at all without the Blizzrobe, so he hung it on his belt instead and made good use of the rest of his bag of tricks.
He discovered that if he used Stasis it would hit a single Keese the rest would fly away, which was only so helpful considering how often he was attacked; the tenacious fuckers probably just came back.
Cryonis was entirely useless, the water much too hot to even attempt forming a block of ice. There also didn't seem to be any enemies in the hot springs, though the lava of Gero Pond was ostensibly guarded by a Guardian Stalker for some reason.
The Shadow put his shield to excellent use, taking just three well-aimed blocked beams to finish the fight. He was satisfied when he was able to pick up two more Ancient screws and a shaft, as well as a few springs and gears, all of which he packed away quickly; they weren't making great time up the mountain stopping to eradicate all the monsters lurking along the path, but he didn't really have a choice with as frequently as they were attacked. However, he'd discovered loose chunks of ore lying near a few skeletal wagons left by past travelers who'd obviously failed to plan sufficiently for the intense heat, so the trip wasn't without its rewards.
With the horrid light of the Guardian gone and the moonlight blocked by the black cloud, the road seemed to be lit by the orange-red glow of the exposed pools and flowing rivers of lava, as well as what appeared to be large, burning embers in crudely-worked metal sconces placed at intervals high on the rock. He could see Eldin Tower, but the light it emitted seemed to be mostly absorbed by the inky cloud above and didn't help much.
It was so dim he failed to notice he'd entered a cavern until the ambient light brightened noticeably and he looked up to see a whole fucking colony of the flying fire-bastards.
He dismounted so he could use the windcleaver; rather than standing around idly, Epona bolted ahead to destroy the Fire Chus in their path. He discovered— entirely by accident, as he was beset by flying assholes on all sides— that if he spun tightly and quickly enough with the blade held out, he could unleash a much larger, hurricane-force wind in all directions that neatly obliterated the flaming, batlike fuckers.
Inside the cavern, the path hairpinned, switching back and angling fairly steeply upward before opening back up to sky above. Past lava flows met and ran over the road, creating pseudo-paths up the mountain from the caldera now directly above.
He was a bit astonished at the sheer number of the husks of Guardians obviously caught in some of those now-cooled flows. He should've started counting when he'd seen the first one just after the first hot spring.
At the second Death Mountain Marker, in addition to directing travelers ahead to Goron City, there was an addendum claiming the heat level to be at 'one star' and suggested non-Gorons should use extreme caution.
The path devolved into a series of rather large steps, but Epona simply backed up a smidge and vaulted effortlessly upward, even clearing the last one that was nearly double the height of the others. The road picked right back up, running along the lavatic Medingo Pool and directly into the path of another active Guardian Stalker. It spotted him almost immediately and began to charge, but when its first laser blast bounced off the Shadow's shield, the force of it pushed the surprised Stalker off balance and it toppled head-first into the lava, its legs kicking ineffectually until they, too, sank into the angry lake while the gigantic skull of some long-dead creature kept watch over the proceedings.
The Gorons, presumably, had done what they could to mark the path by placing heat-resistant metal plating in a sort of trail. Along both sides, small piles of volcanic rock pushed up through the cooled lava, glowing eerily in the night. One pile, directly in the middle of the path, was suspiciously large and he eyed it cautiously as he passed.
His concern was well-founded as the glowing rock rose out of the ground, forming into the Igneo Talus Navi had warned him of.
He wasted no time in hitting it with an ice arrow, but it only served to cool the inner fire. He hit both arms, too, and the monster fell to the ground, ore deposit pointed skyward.
"Get up on its back while you can! The effect won't last long!"
He dismounted to do as the Fairy instructed, drawing the windcleaver and giving the ore deposit on the creature's back as many good hits with it as he could before the rock underfoot reignited and began to rise up again.
The Shadow was extraordinarily glad that he'd purchased extra ice arrows, since it took three rounds to destroy the hot pile of semi-sentient and entirely-too-mobile rocks. When he finally prevailed, the ground was littered with about a dozen chunks of various ores. He plopped down on a rather large sapphire and caught his breath.
"Well, that was lucrative," Navi remarked as she flitted around the precious gems glittering dimly in the orange-tinted low light.
"That it was." When he felt ready, he packed the stash away and they continued on, but soon enough the road disappeared completely beneath a lava flow that formed a vertical wall. Only the very surface had cooled, with several large and inconveniently-placed patches decidedly not.
He dismounted and patted Epona's neck. "Go on. I'll call you."
She nodded and was gone in her extraordinary way.
The Shadow aimed the hookshot at the actual rock that would normally hang high over the now-obliterated road and hoisted himself easily to the top, which turned out to be the apex of a curve. At the bottom, a metal bridge spanned a relatively-thin river of lava, across which was posted a sign proclaiming the spot to be the third Death Mountain Marker, subtitled 'Southern Mine'.
Beyond it was evidence of the purported mine, exposed ore deposits glittered everywhere and the path forward was illuminated by fresh embers glowing along both sides in elevated, two-legged baskets. Next to an enormous stone pickaxe stood a small metal lean-to, the slatted metal canopy of which did absolutely nothing to absorb the stentorian snores of the pair of Gorons sleeping beneath it. Across the way burned a campfire with a public cooking pot, but the area appeared mostly abandoned; the only other sign of life was an older Goron near the far edge of camp, diligently mining ore in a clanging rhythm despite the lateness of the hour.
The Shadow walked up to the quietest of the three Gorons, who turned from his clamorous work looking surprised. "Hmph. Who the heck…? At this hour?" He had a long, white beard and one hand came up to stroke it as he squinted at the Shadow. "Somethin's off about you, but I can't put my finger on it… What's yer name, then?"
"Shadow Link, and I'm here to—"
"Haha, I've gotta interrupt ya real quick! I'll give it to ya straight, I thought that was a joke the day shift came up with," the Goron laughed wheezily, pickaxe glinting in the low light as he twirled it along his massive shoulder with one hand and pointed toward the sleeping Gorons with the other. "But at my age, I've seen a lotta things, and I can tell yer no run-of-the-mill Hylian just by lookin' atcha. But, uh… there any way you can prove what yer sayin'?"
The Shadow held up the back of his right hand, Triforce Mark now clearly outlined on his hand and easily visible even in the low light.
"Well now, would ya lookit that? Guess it must be true." He paused, nodding to himself. "Strange though they may be, you've got good eyes on ya, little guy. Honest eyes. So go ahead— ask me anything."
"Is anyone here Yunobo?"
"Oh, no. He's probably at either the summit or the North Mine, where them new monsters showed up with their foolishness; damned hooligans. Terrible all around. We're making the most of digging here, but production's decreased substantially on account'a so many of us are busy trying to contain the beasts and unblock the vents," the Goron shook his head sadly, as if he took the loss personally. "S'just the foreman and his li'l brother over there, and myself, o'course; my name's Bohrin. I'm here 'cause I might be old, but there's still plenty of fight left in me!" He raised his fist, shaking it and then gesturing with his thumb at some unseen enemy behind him. "As long as someone's workin' over 'ere, those buggers over there seem to keep mostly to themselves, not like them other ones giving the upper mines such trouble."
The Shadow wondered, not for the first time, what in the overheated hell was happening on top of the smoking mountain. "What's over there?" he asked, gesturing to the outpost he could only just barely see across the lava river at the edge of the camp as he resolved to deal with one problem at a time.
"Eh, bunch'a Moblins and them damned fire-breathers. Nothin' too terrible, but we can't do much about it because this is the only functioning mine right now so if we stop for more than just short breaks, production halts altogether instead'a just laggin', and we can't have that. Hyrule depends on the ore we produce."
"It also depends on the mountain not erupting and burying everyone in boiling hot lava."
"Tha's a fair point."
"And what are the 'new monsters' attacking the upper mines?"
"Above my pay grade is what that is. But whatever's goin' on, it's bad enough to have repurposed most of the workforce to try an' deal with it so watch yerself, li'l guy."
"All right, appreciate the warning," the Shadow said as Bohrin turned back to his ear-splitting work with a nod of farewell.
Crossing the thick, bubbling river, the Shadow felt a trickle of sweat between his shoulder blades, a testament to the incredible heat that was putting a strain on even the Fireproof Charm the Great Fairy had given him. He felt more sweat beading at his temple and rolled his eyes in annoyance as he wiped it away before it rolled down his face.
As anticipated, just beyond the bridge and off to the left, right on the bank of the river of molten rock was a tall outpost topped with enormous bones positioned in a way that he supposed resembled horns. The road itself climbed steeply upward and to the right of the camp, a sign at the crest of the hill labeling the spot the fourth Death Mountain Marker.
He moved toward the edge to have a look at the monster outpost now across from and just below him. The entire structure was made of a heat-resistant metal arranged in three spiraling levels, all occupied by at least one Moblin. He assumed the fire-breathing assholes were camouflaged somewhere on the ground, which turned out to be correct when his hand accidentally sent a few small rocks tumbling over the edge and dinged one of them right on the head.
It jumped up, looking around confusedly for a few moments— never up— before lying back down and disappearing into the landscape.
The Shadow smiled to himself and pulled out his bow and ice arrows and went to work on the enemies he could see. One of the Moblins he hit with an ice arrow conveniently fell off the edge as a block of ice and landed on a hidden Lizalfos below, obliterating the smaller enemy and stunning the big fucker long enough to fall to a follow-up bomb or four.
Between the ice arrows and remote bombs, he quickly cleared the camp— though the cheap bastards gave up no money so it was just a headache, really. He could see the horizon under the inky cloud lightning in the east as dawn threatened, so continued on up the road to Goron City on foot rather than calling Epona back. He was sure she was fine with it since she was technically dead and time likely meaningless to her when she was not on this plane of existence.
Not many enemies lingered between the now-defunct outpost and the capital city of the Eldin Province, just a few Octoroks and big asshole birds with attitude problems, both of which were more nuisance than anything, and as the sun peeked over the edge of the world, the Shadow crossed under an archway and into another well-lit area. Overlooked by a Goron that was carved out of the mountain to give a happy thumbs-up to all who viewed him, the path led up to another archway that was blocked by a living Goron guard.
"Whoa! We don't get many Hylian visitors, 'specially lately," the guard laughed nervously, glancing up. "How was the trip? Everything all right for ya? Any word from the Southern Mine?"
"All's as well as can be expected, and the road between here and there is clear for now," the Shadow said. "I'm here to check on Yunobo, and Bohrin said he'd be around up here somewhere. Can you tell me where?"
"Oh, uh, no. Sorry. You'll have to ask Bludo that. He's laid up right now because he threw his back out, but he's still runnin' things just fine!" the Goron said, obviously lying as he glanced quickly up at the sky, then back at the Shadow. "You doin' okay, little guy? You need to stop at the Ripped and Shredded for a set of Flamebreaker Armor?"
"I'm fine." At the guard's dubious look, the Shadow added, "I'm tougher than I look."
The guard's snort said what his thoughts were on that statement.
"So may I pass?" the Shadow pressed.
"Heh, not much of a guard if I don't stop people from entering the city." He spared another glance up. "But if something doesn't change soon it might not be an issue, since we'll all have to leave."
"Then you should probably let me in, since I'm here to help."
"You make a good point. Bludo's place is the big one straight ahead when you get in there," the guard said, thumbing behind himself as he moved aside to allow the Shadow to enter the city. "Can't miss it."