The ride to Hateno provided the Shadow with his first prolonged look at the wider world of Hyrule. According to the map in his head, he'd only seen a small portion of Faron, so far— the kingdom as a whole was divided into eight regions: Faron, Necluda, Lanayru, Akkala, Eldin, Hebra, Gerudo, and Central Hyrule. Lakeside Stable was nestled pretty much in the center of southern Faron, while Hateno was along the southern edge of Mount Lanayru. The road would take him through much of that region, but first came the peaceful woods he'd rid of monsters earlier, fireflies lighting the way sporadically while the moon rested behind a blanket of clouds.

They'd no sooner sprung out from under the canopy than the clouds decided it was a fine time for a drizzle, but a quick word and a push of magic from Navi kept them warm and dry (and bug-free, which the Shadow strongly approved of). The Sprite chose to recline on Epona's bony neck, basking in the comfort and privilege of her spells.

Epona streaked across the Bridge of Hylia, neither the moisture nor the camp of Lizalfos at the midpoint posing any obstacle for her. As she mowed down the monsters— launching several over the edge with the toss of her powerful, bony head— movement drew the Shadow's eye off to the side where the vast form of Farosh was wending its way around the western edge of the lake. The embodiment of an electrical storm teased the earth along with the rain, tossing off balls of lightning at random intervals. One struck an unfortunate nocturnal critter, which dropped like a stone to lie motionless on the shore.

What felt like a few minutes later, they veered east along the Squabble River and over the Proxim Bridge where, off to his left, the Shadow spied the hulking form of Hyrule Castle, large enough to be visible even at this distance, far beyond the vast footprint of Castle Town.

Standing sentinel at the other end of the bridge was the ruin of an ancient-looking metal and stone... squid? It was sunk several inches into the soil and slumped over like an old soldier, tilted to the side and covered in crawling vines and wildflowers. "Navi, what is that?"

"Oh, it's a Guardian Stalker. Ancient Sheikah technology intended to protect Hyrule against the Great Calamity. There are these that roam the land— dangerous even without their six legs due to the laser—"

"The what?"

"It's a beam of incredibly-destructive, concentrated light—"

"Fucking— what?" He again roundly cursed his lack of knowledge.

"—but the Guardians are not impossible to defeat. Not many things are invulnerable to being stabbed in the eye, after all, and Link's Hylian shield has the power to reflect laser beams." The Shadow thought about his own dark Hylian shield— would it have the same ability? To that matter, the Master Sword was the Sword that Seals the Darkness; his own dark blade also held some inner power, but were they equivalent? Would Navi know? But she wasn't quite finished enlightening him about the mechanical nightmares yet. "There are also the smaller Scouts, the immobile Turrets, the extremely-mobile-but- localized Skywatchers, and the orderly Sentries. But during the Great War nearly three hundred years ago, Ganondorf somehow managed to infect them all with malice and they turned against the kingdom."

"Shit, that's…" He imagined one of these huge metal monsters stalking menacingly toward Lakeside Stable— toward Anly, Ardin, and Cima innocently going about their day, "not good."

She snorted. "A bit. Anyway, you'll find the ruins of them scattered around Hyrule. If you're incredibly lucky, we won't run across any active ones."

The Shadow slitted his eyes at her. "What."

"Oh… Surprise?"

"You sit there and tell me that there's a giant metal squid death squad roaming around Hyrule and all you have to say to me after that is 'surprise'?"

"They don't all have the tentacle-legs."

"But they all have the laser thing?"

"...Yes."

"That doesn't really make it any better, then, does it?"

"I see your point."

"And you said some of them fly, too. Fuck." He paused for a moment; he really wanted to know, and now was as good a time as any— before the need arose, preferably. "Navi, are my sword and shield as strong as his?"

She cocked her head at him for a moment, then darted behind him and spent a few minutes examining the items in question, a few clinks and bangs making their way to his ears. When she returned, she was sparkling contemplatively and sat on his hand where it rested on the Stalhorse's mane— his right hand, he noticed, directly over the Mark. "The Hylian Shield is not necessarily unique; one appears every cycle on the arm of the Chosen Hero of Hyrule, and some have been broken. Shields emblazoned with the Triforce are standard issue for knights of the kingdom; the Hero's is different because it carries the addition of the red Loftwing once ridden by the first Link and because it is filled with the Hero's power, having been blessed by Farore. Yours is made of the same materials and is a perfect copy in every way but color, of course. And it, too, has been blessed by the Goddess of Courage. I would feel absolutely safe behind this shield.

"I am less confident in my answer regarding your sword. It is quite powerful, there is no doubt about that, but I do not know its origin and cannot begin to estimate its magnitude.

"I can tell you that, despite its long life, the Master Sword is not eternal— to maintain it requires sacred power from Spirits, Great Fairies, and Sages. It was originally forged with the three Sacred Flames by Hylia herself to rid the world of evil; over time it was tempered with unique materials by worthy smiths, which changed the color and shape of the blade ever so slightly. There is a legend that states that when Hyrule is in crisis, only one who is pure of heart shall be able to draw the Blade of Evil's Bane from its pedestal; those whose hearts are tainted cannot claim it because it possesses the Light Force that is the source of all life in the world. Over the course of history, the Master Sword has spent a great many years lying dormant, waiting between worthy Heroes to be taken up and wielded in the name of the Goddess and her legacy of peace.

"What any of that means for you, I cannot say. Fi is much better-equipped to field questions on swords in general," she somehow managed not to smirk.

He sighed. He hoped Fi visited his dreams soon; he was acquiring a backlog of questions for her.

The road snaked along the south bank of the Squabble River, taking him past several camps of Bokoblins and Moblins on either side of the water. Epona slowed without any signal from him, bony hooves eerily soundless. The monsters slumbered obliviously around their campfires, the rain light enough here not to douse the flames not partially-covered by a lean-to.

It was unfortunate for the nearby group of Bokoblins that there was suddenly a bomb in their campfire, and that when it exploded it sent flaming embers and burning logs everywhere, destroying several of them instantly in plumes of purple-black and wounding the rest. A few well-placed arrows and two sword strikes later and the camp was cleared; all that remained were several rupees of different colors, a few smoked fish on spears, and some wooden clubs.

As he bent over to pick up a red rupee, something rather large and solid smacked him on his backside.

Epona and Navi both snickered as he drew his glowing sword— he did not yelp, damn it— and spun around, but—

"What the hell?" There was an empty river, the surface dancing merrily in the rain. He was just about to turn back around when the water bubbled up quickly under a small patch of watergrass and resolved into the otherwise-smooth, bulbous head of an Octorok. "Oh, fuck you."

He grabbed his shield as its cannon-mouth popped above the surface of the river and shot another rock at him. It bounced harmlessly off his shield and smacked the Octorok in its big blue head, making it retreat beneath the surface. It hadn't poofed out, though, so he waited for a moment and, sure enough, up it popped for another shot. This one, too, was sent back; the third one finally ended the fight, the purple smoke a definitive sign.

"Jackass."

"On the bright side, we know your shield is effective."

"Against a rock, sure. Exactly the same impact as a laser beam, I've no doubt," the Shadow snarked as he rubbed the sore spot on his rear. He finished clearing the Bokoblin camp of valuables and spent a moment looking around before remounting Epona. There were four camps directly in his path; based on this one, destroying them could be fairly lucrative for him. "Hey, Navi; feel like having a little fun?"

She twinkled extra brightly and flitted in a wild circle. "I thought you'd never ask."

Three more Bokoblin camps, one full of slumbering Moblins, and six more Octoroks fell to his remote bombs and various other tricks. The Stasis rune was particularly fun: he could freeze an enemy, beat the shit out of it for a few seconds, then watch it sail off into the night and explode into purple vapor a good distance away. Being along the river afforded him the perfect opportunity to test the Cryonis rune, too, which was also delightful; it gave him the ability to freeze any enemy within a certain range in the water, just like the ice arrow had done to that red Bokoblin in the woods. Magnesis allowed him to grab away the large iron sledgehammer a Moblin tried to use against him; a swing to take out its legs and then two good hits to its head were enough to finish it.

All the while, Navi sparkled mischievously, zooming here and there, poking eyes and generally making a tiny nuisance of herself to the monsters, giggling and cackling delightedly at her own antics. He watched her glimmer full-speed right into the back of a Moblin's knee and throw it off balance before she poked it in both eyes. The Shadow smiled and chuckled at her before bashing in the Moblin's skull to finish if off.

By the time they sprinted through the towering Dueling Peaks for which the area was known, the rain had ceased and the Shadow's wallet was quite a bit fatter— enough to warrant one of Navi's expansion charms. He was also feeling that annoying twinge that meant he would have to stop at the stable and relieve himself.

He patted Epona's neck. "Hey, girl. I gotta make a quick stop."

Before he'd even finished speaking, she'd slowed to a sedate trot and Navi'd winked out. They crossed the Big Twin Bridge and halted altogether on the road before the stable proper. He dismounted, then stroked Epona's mane. He could feel eyes on them and he smiled to himself.

"Go on. I'll whistle for you when I'm ready."

She nickered softly, nudged his shoulder, and disappeared in her amazing way. The Shadow couldn't help but watch, then turned to find two identical men gaping at him and the place where Epona had just been.

"Rensa," said the man behind the counter.

"Tasseren," replied the doppelganger in front of it, his voice a slightly lower timbre than his brother's.

"You saw that, right?"

"Stalhorse, dropped off a rider with red eyes and then disappeared in a swirl of blue and gold?"

"Yep."

"Okay."

"Huh."

"Say, this rider— he sort of, uh, 'dark and mysterious'?" The Shadow felt his brows furrow as the twin nearest him blatantly looked him over from head to toe.

"You mean, like a, ah, 'dark version of the one and only Hero of Hyrule'?" Now the other's eyes raked the Shadow. The hell?

"Yeah."

"Yep."

"You see a black-and-red replica of a certain sword, too?" Rensa's gaze was now fixed on the hilt of the dark blade at the Shadow's back. He felt his brows smooth back out. News sure travels fast.

"Yep."

"Huh."

The Shadow had finally reached the counter; Tasseren, behind it, and Rensa, standing next to it outside, were dressed exactly alike, right down to their facial hair. The only difference was that Tasseren's eyes were a clear green and Rensa's a darker hazel, but that could've been a trick of the low lighting.

The Shadow nodded in greeting as he proceeded around the side of the building and back to a separate row of three enclosed stalls for patrons to take care of their business. When he'd finished, he washed up at the nearby pump, then made his way back to the counter.

As he neared the counter, he could hear the twins arguing well before he rounded the corner.

"I'm just saying that it's no coincidence he's here, is it? So soon after? And you read the Rumor Mill, too; he's bound to help us."

"I'm just saying that back when I was your age—"

"You're literally two minutes older—"

"We asked, like civilized people, when we desired someone's help, Rensa."

"But he's a Hero—"

"Hey, no," The Shadow interrupted, finally coming into view and holding out his hand, palm out. "I'm going to stop you right there." He decided now was as good a time as any to disabuse them of that particular notion. "Mercenary. Not 'Hero'."

The twins turned in eerie synchronization to peer curiously at the Shadow. Tasseren recovered first. "What's that?"

"Mercenary?" Rensa asked.

"Nah, the Mill says you're a Hero, so that's what you are," Tasseren dismissed with a wave of his hand. "Traysi knows what's what, got her finger on the pulse of Hyrule, and all that."

"Plus, Heroes probably don't go around calling themselves Heroes, do they, Tass?

"Y'know, that's a good point, Ren." Tasseren turned and squinted at the Shadow. "Kill any Hinoxes recently?"

The Shadow tried again. "Look—"

"It's a 'yes' or 'no' question," Rensa pressed.

The Shadow sighed. "Yes."

"Ah-ha-ha-ha! You hear that, Ren? Guy says he's killed a Hinox, just like Traysi said, but he's no Hero!"

"It was two, actually—" Damn it. Shut up, mouth.

"Two Hinoxes?!" Tasseren's eyes had grown so wide, the Shadow worried they'd fall right out and roll around in the dirt. His brother nudged him in the arm and handed him a green rupee, which he put in his own pocket.

"—and I got paid—" the Shadow attempted.

"Oh, we can pay you," Rensa interrupted.

"It's just that that's the only road into Kakariko," Tasseren put in.

"And it's needed for the supply chain—"

"They're working on getting it rebuilt, of course, but it's a big bridge—"

"And the thing's been so quiet for so long, we sorta forgot it was up there, actually—"

"'S the nature of rocks, Ren—"

"But then all of a sudden, a few days ago, it came down—"

"Wait— what came down?" The Shadow was trying to keep up, but the twins made for dizzying conversation.

"Oh, the Stone Talus," Tasseren supplied.

"Been up on North Mable Ridge for ages—"

"Only really know it's there 'cause every so often some adventurous young buck'll wander up there, thinking he's hot stuff and run afoul of it—"

"—Come running back here, shaking like—"

"Wait, you want me to go against a Stone Talus?" The information in his head was simply 'walking fortress', which was both helpful and not.

"Well, now, any rational person would think—"

"If you've already taken down two Hinoxes—"

"This shouldn't be that big of a challenge for you." Tasseren finished, looking satisfied.

The Shadow frowned. "It's a rock."

"A perishable rock," Rensa assured.

The Shadow sighed, resigned. "What did you have in mind for payment?"

"Well, now," Tasseren put his hand to his chin and stroked his small, pointy beard. "What's your going rate for Hinoxes? Gotta be a pretty comparable price, eh?"

"Oh, uh," the Shadow stalled. What should he say? Sure, this mercenary (not Hero, damn it!) thing was a pain in the ass, but he didn't want to ask for an amount above what they could afford. Not only were they watched by Malanya— to whom the Shadow was incredibly grateful for granting him the use of Epona— but stables were useful places on their own merit, dotting the landscape at regular intervals for weary travelers, and he wanted to be able to stop here again, should the need arise. Well, there's something. "Well, I won't need to stable my horse, but I may need to rest and clean up—"

"Say no more, say no more. We'll keep a bed available and you'll never be charged a cent here, of course!" Tasseren interjected.

"Absolutely!" Rensa agreed. "Least we can do."

"—and as for payment, well, Anly at Lakeside gave me a bunch of useful items—" the Shadow got out.

"Oh!" Tasseren looked surprised for some reason. "Hey! Hang on." He disappeared behind the counter for a few moments. When he reemerged, he was brandishing a golden bracelet triumphantly. "Almost forgot about this."

"Ah." Rensa's face had scrunched up when Tasseren had vanished, now it cleared in recognition. "Oh, yeah. Dead useful, that is."

The band was carved with a distinctly different, much blockier pattern than the delicate swirls of the Hookshot on his left arm. "What is it?" the Shadow asked.

In lieu of answering, Rensa stepped away from the counter a bit and pointed to a covered stack of crates a short distance away. "Can you lift all that?"

The Shadow frowned because he actually had no idea; he knew he was strong— Anly had said as much— but he'd had no metric by which to verifiably measure it. Well, now was as good a time as any to find out. He walked over, squatted in front of it, got a good grip, and heaved with everything he had (the thought coming faintly to lift with his legs, not his back).

To the utter shock and delight of the twins behind him (and to his own pleased surprise), he was able to lift it to mid-shin before he lost his grip and dropped the load back to the sandy ground. He turned to his audience, finding them both with their mouths hanging open. The warm glow reasserted its presence in the Shadow's chest, but it had a little extra… tang to it that wasn't usually present, a… spiciness? He wondered what that was.

Rensa shook it off first and began laughing heartily; Tasseren pulled out the same green rupee from earlier and gave it silently back to his brother before saying, "All right, well. This won't be quite as impressive to you as to most, I guess, but, uh, why don't you put it on and try that again?" He handed the bracelet over for the Shadow to slide onto his sword arm. It settled just above the jut of his wrist bone, feeling both supple as leather and solid as the metal it appeared to be made from. A low thrum seemed to pulse from within it, burying deep within the Shadow's bones, and he felt… stronger.

He returned to the stack of supplies, squatted, got a better grip than before, and lifted. The entire stack rose as though it weighed next to nothing, and it felt that way to him, too. His muscles registered no strain, his hands barely aware of the work of gripping; he easily raised the crates above his head and then set them gently back down.

He turned to the twins and nodded at them, one corner of his mouth turning up. "This will be extremely helpful."

"Be helpful not to have to remember to worry about that damn thing up there anymore," Tasseren harrumphed, then yawned.

It occurred to the Shadow that it was probably after midnight. No time like the present; he might as well get on with it. "Which way?"

"It actually isn't that far, but ya gotta do a spot of climbing to get to it," Rensa supplied. "Just take the road there north to where you can't cross the water—"

"Since there's no bridge, see—"

"—then go up. Stay close to the lake; when you see a big pile of rocks and a large, black ore deposit sitting in the middle of nowhere, standing out like a sore thumb, you're in the right place."

"Right." The Shadow nodded, then gave a loud whistle. Immediately, the air next to him swirled blue-gold and then Epona was back, nudging him gently in the shoulder. "Hey, girl. Making a quick detour." She nodded her head and stomped her foot, so the Shadow leapt into the saddle, nodding to the twins who stood there, silent and awestruck, before shooting north on the road.

Just a few minutes later, the Stalhorse drew to a halt at the edge of Lake Siela. As the duplicate stablemasters had said, the bridge to Kakariko— the oldest city in Hyrule, outside of Castle Town, and an important farming community— lay in ruin. The stone steps on either end were intact, but not a single stone of the structure actually spanning the water remained unbroken, as though the monster had taken particular issue with the material used for the building of the bridge as well as the location.

"Oh, Hylia! Someone sure has some anger issues to work out." Navi said as she reappeared by his shoulder.

"That's what I thought, too." He shook his head as he dismounted, patted Epona's neck, and told her, "Go on, take a breather. I'll let you know when I need you." She nodded once and was gone, and he turned to the steep cliff before him.

Off to the left the angle wasn't so severe, so he headed that way and found a natural, rough pathway in the rock that took him most of the way up with precious little actual climbing involved. He found himself on a spacious, grassy mesa with several pockets of clusters of large boulders, several with large black protrusions sparkling silver in the moonlight.

"For the love of— Of course there are more than one," he sighed.

Navi helpfully flitted off to investigate the farther ones. "Hey!" she called from near a cluster in the center, nearer the far end where the cliffs rose again. "This one looks different!"

"How?" he asked, moving toward her.

"The others reflect the moonlight; this one does not."

"That's handy to know." He eyed the large, normal-looking boulder. It was about as tall as his chest and half again the full length of his body. The obsidian chunk did look different than the others, now that she'd mentioned it, as though all the light from the moon was being absorbed into it rather than bouncing off. He noted his distance from it and then retreated several steps before pressing the bomb button. He waited a second to lob it, trying to time it so that it exploded as it struck the ore deposit.

His aim was perfect, striking the rock and detonating in a perfect one-two that… pissed it off enough to wake up, apparently. Suddenly faced with a towering, irate chunk of stone, the Shadow readied and tossed another bomb. It connected with the thing's arm, blasting it off in a burst of purple. The other arm and the rest of the monster remained, however— possibly even angrier, if the shaking of the boulder-fist in his general direction was any indication.

Then it reared back and threw its arm at him. He managed to dive out of the way in the nick of time, feeling the whoosh of air as the projectile flew past his foot. "Whoa, there, asshole." He quickly tossed another bomb at the armless rock monster, trying to pitch it just behind the body to explode nearer the black protrusion again. He must've gotten close because the walking boulder shuddered and fell forward, nearly landing on the Shadow and exposing his target directly for the first time since the thing had become animated.

"Hey! Look!" Navi's voice drew his attention to where the Talus had burrowed itself into the ground. It wasn't still, however; it kept gyrating rhythmically. "It's regenerating its arms, Shadow Link!"

"Son of a— Of fucking course it is; why wouldn't it?" he grumbled to himself.

"It'll take a few moments; now's your chance. Climb on its back—"

"Are you fucking with me right now?"

"No! You must climb on its back and strike at the ore deposit with your sword! It's the heart of the Talus; destroying it destroys the golem!"

"And probably my fucking sword, too," he griped, but took a running jump onto the boulder, anyway.

"It will not dull your blade, now get to it!"

"Yeah, yeah." He nonetheless grabbed his sword— the edges of the blade gleaming purple in the darkness— and began swinging. With the power of the bracelet lending strength to his motions, he saw a crack form in the smooth black surface after just his second strike.

That was all he had time for, however, the ground rumbling as the Talus rose up, once again with two large boulder-arms. It gave a huge, decisive jerk, tossing the Shadow to land gracelessly in the dirt.

"Well, fuck you, too, asshole." He had to cease grumbling then because the monster wasted no time in rearing back to toss one of its new arms at him, narrowly missing him again.

"Try to get behind it!" Navi called as he tossed another bomb up and over to explode near the ore deposit again.

"Oh, you mean where the thing I need to hit is? Great idea. Super helpful." Even as he spoke, the walking pile of rocks readied itself to throw it's other arm. He waited until it had loosed the projectile appendage, then, quick as he could, the Shadow raced forward, darting between the stubby stone legs and using its footstone to launch himself up its back. It began to lurch from side to side in another attempt to send him flying, but he planted his feet and was able to get in a few more solid whacks before the Talus succeeded in tossing him off.

He was more prepared for it this time, using the momentum to roll back up onto his feet just in time to dash out of the way of the body basically tossing itself at him, landing in the dirt where it immediately began to regrow its arms once more. He wasted no time in vaulting back up to attack the ore, swinging the glowing sword with everything he had until he heard a massive crack! that echoed through the clearing, and then he was falling again to land in a heap among a veritable pile of various precious gemstones. Two sapphires, two rubies, a diamond, and three chunks of amber were strewn around him, colorful flotsam glittering in the moonlight.

He stayed where he was for a few minutes, letting the rush of the fight leave his muscles slowly before he sat up to look around himself. He got to his feet, gathering it all and storing it in new pouches in his pack, then moved to stand near the edge of the cliff overlooking the currently-bridgeless lake. Navi hovered next to his shoulder contemplatively.

"We should let them know in Kakariko that they can start rebuilding the bridge. I bet you can make it across if you jump from one of the ledges a bit farther that way. And you've got the hookshot, so you'll be able to get back across, too. In fact, besides me, a Rito, or a Zora, you are the only one who can; there aren't any Rito or Zora handy and I'm not generally meant to speak to anyone but you." That explained why she hid herself whenever they encountered anyone else.

"Hey, where do you go when I can't see you?"

"To anyone else, I look like a pin on your hat."

"Oh."

She flitted some distance back the way they'd come, then zoomed out over the lake and back. She spent a few minutes looking around, then called out, "Here! You can make it from here."

He moved to join her, but caught movement out of the corner of his eye and stopped in his tracks, hand automatically reaching for the hilt of the sword. Turning his head fully, he saw a small, pink pinwheel near the base of the southern cliff face across the clearing, spinning merrily in the nearly-calm night air.

He moved cautiously toward it, feeling Navi's presence appear behind his right shoulder. "Why does this feel familiar?"

"Touch it and see."

He stopped and turned to face her. "Is this another one of those little, uh, plant people?"

"A Korok, yes."

He frowned. "Is this one going to give me poop, too?"

She giggled. "Probably."

He sighed. "Do I have to?"

"You never know, it might come in handy some day."

"You just think it's funny that I have to touch poop."

"You're a really fast learner, did you know?"

"Fuck off."

"No."

"So annoying." He bent at the waist and reached out. As soon as his hand brushed the soft, spinning blades, the same tiny puff of green smoke and wooden maraca sound came. This Korok looked almost exactly like the other one, except the face-leaf was a different color and shape.

"Ya-ha-ha! You found me!" it said and wiggled excitedly. "Hi, Fairy!" It held out its tiny hand, in which was nestled another smooth, odorous ball. "This is for Hestu. Tell him Chio says 'Hi!'"

"Sure, pal." The Shadow took the offering and placed it quickly in the smell-proof pouch. He might actually thank Navi at some point for that little bit of ingenuity, he thought. Not anytime soon, though. "No problem."

The particular ledge Navi had picked out earlier offered minimal viewing, as the moonlight had again been swallowed by clouds. "If you jump in that direction, you'll land near the abutment on the Kakariko side. I'll light your way."

He couldn't deny that that was an excellent idea. A few minutes later, he set down just in front of the stone steps leading up to the destroyed bridge. "Don't tell anyone I told you, but gliding in the dark is insanely fun."

"My lips are sealed. But there's another Korok flower over there by those rocks."

He sighed, going to meet the happy little plant person and receive its poop. He'd no sooner stored the little nugget in his pack than the sky, which had darkened quickly with fast-moving clouds, opened up once more, drenching him in moments.

He whistled for Epona, Navi worked her anti-rain, anti-bug magic, and they sprinted up the winding path to Kakariko, the Stalhorse slowing to pass through the gates minutes later. The rain was coming down harder now, lowering the visibility even further as Epona picked her way with surefooted grace through the town to the warmly-lit and inviting Shuteye Inn. He dismounted and sent her on her way, then climbed the few steps and let himself into the bright interior.

Behind the desk, a Sheikah man slept peacefully in his chair. His white hair was piled atop his head and bound, two slender wooden sticks poking out of the bun, and he wore the traditional beige, red, and navy blue the tribe was known for, the garments specially-made to be both waterproof and somewhat resistant to lightning. As the Shadow approached, the attendant startled awake. "Ack! Are you a-a guest?" Then, without pausing, "I suppose so…" A muttered, "You s-scared me half to death…" rounded out the less-than-warm welcome.

The Shadow noticed that the man had red eyes, too, but unlike the Shadow's own, only the irises of the clerk were crimson. The guy hadn't seemed to notice anything off about the Shadow, either, introducing himself as Ollie and throwing out the offer of a regular or soft bed.

"What's the difference?" the Shadow asked.

"Well, the regular bed is twenty rupees, and th-the soft bed is forty," Ollie said around a yawn.

"No, I mean, what makes the 'soft' bed soft?"

"Oh, the difference? The soft bed is stuffed with premium Cucco feathers… or something. I think. Sleep on that and, um.. Ya know… You'll be more energized than usual," he finished, yawning again.

"Okay, I'll take a soft bed for the night."

That made Ollie sit up a little straighter in his chair, leaning forward to remove a room key from the rack to his right and sliding it over in exchange for the Shadow's two red rupees.

"Th-thank you. Hey, where'd you come from? I thought the bridge was out."

"It is. I climbed the ridge across the lake and killed the Talus, then came here to let your people know they could start rebuilding it."

"Oh. Cool. So, um… When should I wake you?"

It seemed like a bit of an odd question considering the information the Shadow had given moments earlier, but Ollie was just staring with droopy eyes at the Shadow, so he felt it best to answer. "Uh, morning?"

"M-morning? All righty. If you insist." Ollie yawned again, then grumbled, "I wonder… if I'll be awake…" around yet another. It was making the Shadow tired, too. "Room's upstairs and to the right, number five. Sleep great, grey guy," Ollie slurred, chin nudging back down to his chest as his eyes closed. A soft snore pushed the Shadow away from the desk and up the stairs, finding his door and unlocking it quietly.

Inside, he set his pack on the ground, toed off his shoes, and lay on the bed. Okay, that really was soft. He lay there for a few minutes, until he felt himself relax, then he sat up, unpacked a light meal for himself, ate, and thought about the day.

It had not gone at all as he'd expected, but the Shadow was content with where he'd ended up. Tomorrow, he'd return to Dueling Peaks Stable, give the twins proof that their Stone Talus would trouble them no more, and finally be on his way to Hateno.

He finished his dinner, took care of the rest of his needs for the night, and surrendered himself to the softness of the Shuteye Inn's finest mattress, asleep within seconds.


Author note: I have to tell you that this is a freaking BLAST to write. We took a detour in this chapter - we weren't due to go to Kakariko until a few plot points from now, but then the Stone Talus happened and now I'm just wingin' it here, and I have only the vaguest idea of what's going on. I mean, there's an outline - and it's a good one, too - but there are only 15 plot points on it, we're this far in and we've literally crossed off ONE of them, so... strap in, kids. We're going on an adventure!

Anyway, I love feedback, so let me know what you think so far!