Headcanon that Link uses sign language and King Rhoam knows it too, but doesn't use it except in private.
The journey to Death Mountain was a long and painful one, which made Link glad he knew how to brew elixirs. The fire resistance one was incredible, preventing the scorching heat of the mountain from affecting him and the rest of the soldiers with him. King Rhoam and Queen Zelda did much of the same, though the sour taste was masked by Lynel guts, the sweet taste of the rare delicacy enticing many to seek it out, though few returned.
A Goron came up to the party from where they were currently stationed near the southern mines, welcoming the Hylian royal family to the Goron habitats.
"Welcome, your majesty," the main Goron said, many of the rest having stopped mining to greet them. The Goron bowed at the waist, somehow bending his large form in order to be respectful. It was a welcome gesture, one of respect from one person to another.
"I am just as glad to be here," King Rhoam cordially replied, bowing in much the same fashion. It was important to show respect, no matter your standing, Link surmised, still with his head bowed in deference. "May you point us to Goron city, good sir?"
"Yeah, it's just over that way. The path is straight, though there are some damaged bits," the Goron responded, gesturing to the left of the three paths left by the mines. Some ores laid unhit around them, left by the Gorons for later harvesting, allowing the value of the minerals to increase over time.
"Thank you, we will be on our way now," King Rhoam responded, Queen Zelda nodding in tandem. Link took that as his cue to start going forward, the knights following his lead and clearing the way for the King and Queen. There were no threats in sight, that is, if you discount the bubbling magma and boiling hot temperatures all around them. The bridge to Goron city was fully functional, allowing safe passage to and from the mountain above. The rocks above posed a threat should anything shake it, but they seemed stable enough, so Link deemed it safe to pass.
A hiss and a pop startled Link, making him quickly take out his bow and notch an arrow in the direction of the sound. Allowing his vision to focus, he spied the fiery red blob with two blue eyes peering back at him. Link still let the arrow fly, knowing that Chuchus were dangerous, especially if they got up close. He let out a bated breath as the monster blew up into smoke, and set to put his weapons back when a cry from a soldier alerted him to another threat. Link turned around, ready to see what it was, and got nailed in the gut by a Moblin club.
The sheer force of the blow sent Link flying backwards, ending up dangerously close to the lava, only not falling in because of pure grip strength. The heat burned dangerously close to Link's feet, sweat pooling up beneath his collar. Even the fire resistance elixirs couldn't stop all the heat, and Link couldn't stand anymore of it, his armor now melting with the temperatures. Taking off his helmet with one hand, Link took a giant gasp of air and pulled himself up and over the ledge, he took a few deep breaths before standing up. Tossing off the heavy deformed chainmail armor and leggings, Link drew his sword and charged into battle with no time to spare. Quickly cutting down a stray Moblin close to the king, Link stood and surveyed the battleground. There was just a bunch of small fry, quantity compared to quality. The knights could easily take care of those, so Link focused his attention to the main monsters at the back. Nothing was special, a few fire Moblins, three or four Wizzrobes, he could never tell, and something more behind the wall. Rushing through the lines, he caught sight of what it was as he cut down various monsters.
Oh god, was that a Hinox?
Yes, yes it was. Red in color and with a pungent odor, it could be nothing more. Link got distracted by the sheer size of the beast, and nearly missed the fireball a Wizzrobe threw at him, but deflected it and shot it down nonetheless. A Fire Moblin swung at him, but Link backflipped over the obvious sideways swing, giving him time to rush in and land a few good hits, weakening the monster before decapitating it. The Hinox roared and charged in, killing several Bokoblins in the process, but he paid it no matter as he rushed forward. The ground shook, but Link held his balance long enough to shoot down the other two Wizzrobes and dodge the swing from the second Moblin.
Drawing his spear, he threw it into the Moblin, nailing it in the heart and collecting the weapon as it dissolved into black dust. With nearly nothing left, the Royal Guard of the King of Hyrule stared down the Hinox on the path to Goron city.
Link quickly took charge of the situation, ordering half of the soldiers to stay back and focus on archery, aiming for the eye in particular. The Hinox didn't wait for them to finish planning, however, and rushed forward, shaking the ground with each step. It jumped up in the air and used gravity to propel itself downwards, the shockwave blowing the knights back.
Yelling out a war cry, Link charged in and pointed at the eye, signaling the archers at the back, who all fired at the same time. The Hinox let out a cry as its eye was shot seven times, standing up and stumbling back with its hands over the sensitive spot. Link took this as his cue and rushed in, slashing several times at the armor over the legs, hoping to dislodge it before the beast recovered. The Hinox shook its head, dislodging the arrows, and Link was forced to step back, a single thread connecting all the armor. His sword was slightly bent, but it would last for the full fight. This time, when the Hinox charged, it swung its hands in a U motion, much like how the Lynel did. Link stepped back, but before he could charge and damage the beast some more, another hit was coming, forcing him on the back foot once more. He was close to the bubbling lava now, but the Hinox focused on other people, giving him some time. A fire was burning on his wooden pot lid, the one he still carried around because of its significance to him. A stroke of inspiration hit him, and he charged back into battle carrying only a pot lid.
Throwing the lid like it was a frisbee, the lid landed on the wooden armor strung together to protect the lower half of the Hinox. The wood easily caught fire in the temperatures, burning away any sort of defense the Hinox had, as well as any clothing.
I did not need to see that, Link blanched before running in while the Hinox was distracted covering its private regions. Link grabbed the spear he killed the Moblin with and threw it into the eye of the Hinox, causing it to stumble back and fall onto the floor. Link jumped onto the arms of the Hinox and got straight up to the neck area, preparing the final swing to kill the beast. A solid swipe had broken his blade, but cut the jugular of the Hinox, the top half of the sword lodged into it while Link slid down with the second in hand. The Hinox collapsed on the floor lying down, in pain as it died. Link clambered up to the face and brought the rest of his blade up, before stabbing down in the eye once more. This killed the Hinox, fading into black dust as Link fell to the floor.
Link cried out in pain once he did so, as he hadn't noticed that his arm got dislocated in the fight, and his arm popped out of his shoulder when he swung at the neck of the Hinox. A soldier rushed forward to help him up as the rest gathered around the King and Queen as they continued on their journey to Goron City as if nothing had happened. Link stood up and gestured for the soldier to come closer, before grasping his arm and shoving the ball back in its socket. Another cry of pain was heard as the arm reattached, but it was drowned out when Link bit his arm to stifle the sounds. Once he felt the pain die down to a more manageable level, he gestured the soldier forward and asked for some bandages, which were easily provided. After wrapping his arm in a makeshift cast, he ran with the other soldier to catch up.
Met by a worried gaze from the remaining guards, which Link waved away, the youngest took his position at the rear, watching for any threats from behind the party. Pretty soon, Goron city came into view, allowing Link to view the sight in front of him.
Goron City was laid out in front of him, the intricate layout of the city suspended over the treacherous magma below. The city was suspended in the air, held up by various rocks and connected by bridges of rope. There were cave houses, dug into the walls, which held many a Goron apiece, a sturdy and stable area for many to live. Link and the rest of the party followed King Rhoam and Queen Zelda as they went to meet Bludo, the current leader of the Gorons. Bludo was a young and energetic man, strong as twelve Hylians and sturdier than rocks.
"Ah, my king, how may the Gorons help you?" Bludo bowed, as well as the other person in the room.
"Rise, my good man," King Rhoam stated, before boisterously laughing and hugging Bludo, his arms nearly going around the Goron but being stopped just before he could do it.
"So, what brings you here, King Rhoam?" Bludo asked, still riding his high. However, King Rhoam stopped, turning sober and solemn at that, Bludo noticing and sobering as well. "What is it?"
"The calamity is upon us, my friend," King Rhoam stated, nodding as if to convince himself. Seeing as the King could not continue, Queen Zelda stepped forward.
"We wish for a Goron to pilot Divine Beast Vah Rudania," the queen stated, doing a small curtsy as she did so.
"Well, if you want a Goron, there'd be none better than Daruk over here," Bludo said, patting the other Goron in the room and sending him forward. "He's the strongest and sturdiest of all of us."
"Yep, I sure am!" Daruk said, flexing his muscles and smashing a hole into the rock wall, excavating more area for the house.
"Quite incredible," the Queen remarked, looking in wonder at the damage he caused. "Very well, would you mind us going to the Divine Beast for some inspection?"
"Uh there's gonna be a problem with that, my lady," Bludo stated, Daruk looking down solemnly. "The way up is blocked by quite a few monsters, and we do not wish to lose anyone to them. We have some Gorons digging a path upwards to where Vah Rudania is perched, but it would take a couple weeks at best."
"Oh my," the Queen said, before looking back at the Royal Guard, and more specifically, Link. "Well, I believe that we can help with that problem."
"Truly, my lady?" Daruk asked. Zelda nodded, and Daruk whooped in joy. "What are we waiting for, then? Let's go!" As they all went, King Rhoam held Queen Zelda behind, and the two had a private conversation.
"What are you doing? You know that Link is injured," King Rhoam stated, looking out in worry.
"He will be able to fight through it. If not, he isn't worthy of being in the royal guard," the queen replied, ready to leave.
"I don't know why you despise him so much, but-" King Rhoam tried, before being cut off by his wife.
"I do not see him differently compared to any of the other guards. You are merely seeing conjecture where there is coincidence, dear. If that is all, I will be taking my leave," the queen easily stated, before walking out, still keeping her regal air. As she was leaving, the queen glared at where Link was standing, listening to the guards talk with Daruk. She didn't know why she disliked him so much, but something about him just rubbed her the wrong way.
Link, you will prove your purpose or die trying, she thought as she walked towards them. Meanwhile, still in the house, King Rhoam was having very different thoughts about the same dashing young man.
Link, I don't know what my wife hates about you, but you must survive. I fear that if you do not, Hyrule will fall without you, he thought, before grabbing his claymore and stepping out of the cave dwelling, ready to charge up the mountain.
The group was ready for the journey after replenishing their fireproof elixirs and weapons. The King and Queen took their diluted versions, not as long lasting but tasting much better. The group journeyed up the mountain, and Link let his left arm fall from the cast. Rolling it around experimentally, he tested out mobility, as well as how it held a shield. Deeming both to his satisfaction, he continued in the ready position, the only one without armor of all the knights due to his melting. The group encountered some stray monsters on the way up, those being Lizalfos, Bokoblins, and even a Moblin, but they were all dispatched quickly, allowing the group to continue moving forward at a decent pace. Standing at the top of a nearby hill, one of the knights chuckled and rolled his arms.
"That wasn't so bad," the guard whispered, but Daruk put a hand on his shoulder from behind and gestured to beyond them.
"That wasn't what we were talking about," Daruk quietly stated, everyone looking where he was. "That encampment is," he said, pointing forward.
Made of a giant skull, a horde of Bokoblins lounged around, cooking birds on campfires and sharpening weapons at stakes. About a dozen Moblins were there as well, each of them seemingly on patrol. In the center of the camp were two Lynels, one with fiery red hair and the other being silver. A swarm of Keese stood still in a nearby cave, eyes closed, waiting to attack something. However, the cherry on top of all these monstrous activities was the Igneo Talus in the middle of the lava lake, looking like it was asleep, and very, very big.
"Oh shit," one of the knights cursed, before pulling away and looking at Link, the unofficial leader of the group, being the most skilled of all of them.
"Well, what's the plan?" one of the guards asked, nervously looking around as if waiting for something to happen. Link put a hand on his chin in thought, scouting different strategies for taking down each and every one of the monsters. Suddenly hit with a Eureka moment, Link turned around and signed the plan to the rest of those in the Royal Guard.
Link walked slowly to the center of the Moblin patrol units, sneaking around by using the rocks as cover whenever one of the large beasts looked around. Luckily, they weren't very smart, and only sounded the alarm if they saw someone, so Link was fine. The rest of the knights were in position, everything hinged on him being able to pull off this maneuver, with very little margin for error. He had contingencies, but this was their best bet at getting out of this uninjured.
The Moblin stopped and froze in place, sniffing the air around him. Link knew it was only a matter of time before he was found out, so he knew he had to take this chance. Rushing forward, Link readied his sword for a swing. The Moblin turned around at the light pattern of running steps, and brought his horn to his lips, but his hands were slashed off by Link, who then easily decapitated the Moblin. The beast dissolved into blackish dust, leaving behind some remains and a nice, sturdy spear that Link intended to use. Pulling up one of the barrels of dangerous explosives, Link threw it as far as he could towards the two Lynels, the box exploding on impact with the ground, sending up a pillar of flames, and knocking the two Lynels away. Quickly jumping forward, Link stabbed the Moblin spear into the face of the silver one, killing it instantly. The other one had recovered at the moment and noticed Link, as well as the Igneo Talus, and the rest of the monsters. However, Link wasn't waiting for anyone, and rushed into the skull cave, going through and out the other end. The Lynel rushed forward, intending on catching Link, and ended up inside the skull cave. Seeing that as their signal, the guards fired their arrows, hitting each and every one of the explosive barrels within the cave, detonating all of them and killing every monster inside instantly. Soon, all that was left was two Moblins and the Igneo Talus, all three mobs against a party of experienced guards and the two strongest Goron in all of Hyrule.
The Talus woke up, standing up and using the two legs of molten stone to walk forward. The stones on its back stood out, sparkling like a gem, drawing their attention to what was likely the weak point of the monster. The Moblins were dispatched by Bludo and Daruk, and the crew faced down the giant monster blocking their way.
The Igneo Talus punched the ground, sending tremors through the stone, making several guards trip and fall. Then, the fiery beast launched one of its hands at them, the stone detaching and flying towards them. Link got out of the way but saw that it was going to hit some other guards, only for the boulder to shatter into a million pieces.
Daruk stood, an orange sphere around him, bits and pieces of rock resting on it. The sphere shut off, and Daruk laughed, holding his Boulder Breaker in front of him.
"Gonna take a lot more than that to break through my defenses," Daruk smugly replied, Link looking on in awe. Quickly looking at another soldier, he signed at the guard quickly, allowing the man to translate.
"Link says he'll go in if you stay on defense," the soldier translated, before looking back at Link. "You should be able to protect everyone while they shoot their arrows at the gemstone on its back."
Daruk nodded as the rest of the guards sought higher ground, aiming downwards at where Link and Daruk were facing off against the Igneo Talus. Link darted to the left, grabbing some explosives, and threw them up at the beast, lighting on fire the second they touched. The explosives blew, stunning the Talus and allowing Link to rush in and take swipes at the crystal with the boulder breaker granted to him by the Gorons. He landed two hits in, cracking the crystal slightly, but then he had to retreat as the Talus got back up.
Link readied himself to just go in when arrows rained from above, each one striking home on top of the crystal. Link dashed to the side and got a single hit in, increasing the size of the crack, but not enough to break it anytime soon. Link retreated, getting back behind Daruk in time for the Goron to save him from a flying boulder.
It turned into a cycle, Link dashing in and hitting the crystal before retreating behind Daruk, waiting for arrows to cover him and stun the beast. Eventually, after about seven repetitions of the cycle, the crystal was cracked enough that Link was confident he could break through on the next swing. Screeching an inhuman sound, the beast slammed both arms into the ground, causing rumbling from the volcano. Seven rocks fell from the sky, falling between Link, Daruk, and the Talus, separating them while the Talus tried to retreat. Not having any of it, Link pushed forward.
Jumping onto one of the fallen rocks, Link jumped towards the Talus, not realizing it was just above the lava. Taking a swing, Link cracked the crystal, the ore shattering into pieces, precious minerals falling out. Both the Igneo Talus and Link went careening forward into the magma, and Link would have fallen into his death had it not been for Daruk. Daruk held him up by the hem of his shirt, stopping him at a full 90 degree angle, his face nearly being burned by the lava. Daruk pulled Link up, the boy catching his breath as he nodded a thanks to Daruk.
Grabbing the last explosive, Link aimed carefully and threw it into the hole left by the crystal, the bomb landing inside the Igneo Talus before blowing it up, shattering the rocky body into a multitude of fragments. Panting slightly, Link let himself relax before being clapped on the back by Daruk, sending him stumbling forward slightly.
"You and I are gonna make a great team, buddy," Daruk chuckled, and Link nodded, inclined to agree. Turning back, the group continued their trek up the mountain to see the divine beast.
Three days later, Link and the rest of the guard with the King and Queen were traveling once more. They had gotten a call from two sheikah that there had been an important discovery made on the Great Plateau, more specifically the Shrine of Resurrection, as it was called. So, they were all going to the area in order to check it out, which would likely be an important discovery and good weapon in the war against Ganon.
The Plateau was slightly elevated compared to the surrounding area, something that proved slightly challenging to solve. Eventually, they figured out that they could use nearby trees to make ladders, something done and then the rest climbed up the thirteen meter cliff in order to reach the top. Link could've easily climbed it by himself, but nobody else could follow, so he had to help here.
They walked through the plains, passing some rocky outcroppings and the sheikah tower located here, orange in color. Eventually, they arrived at the specified location, a cave dug into the mountain located in the center.
"My lord, my lady," three sheikah said in unison, before popping into special stances as if choreographed.
"My name's Impa," the girl on the left said, "and I specialize in excavations and digs. You might remember me from the divine beasts," she said, finishing in a bow.
"My name is Purah," the girl on the right said, "and I am the best when it comes to modifying ancient technology," she finished, bowing like Impa.
"My name is Robbie," the man in the middle said. "And you will never find someone who knows more about ancient technology than me."
"We requested your presence here because we found something that would drastically help our chances of beating the Calamity," Impa stated, before leading them inside, where a small tablet-like object was wrapped in cloth.
"Behold," Robbie said, before unveiling the object. "The Sheikah Slate!" It was about the size of a sword hilt, but it was clearly intricately designed, adorned with a multitude of patterns and extravagant craftsmanship.
"It's an omni purpose tool that can be used to do nearly anything!" Purah exclaimed, demonstrating by picking it up and waving it in their faces.
"Can you demonstrate?" the Queen asked, clearly fascinated by the tool.
"Uhh, no," Purah stated, looking down. "We haven't yet figured out how it works."
"We'd need to figure out a way to activate it first," Robbie stated, still working through a box of parts that none of them had noticed. "But we have no clue how to do that."
"Very well," the Queen said, looking extremely disappointed. "Do you know of a way to activate it?"
"Well, we have reason to believe that it is connected to the various sheikah towers around Hyrule, my lord," Impa stated, ever the diplomatic one.
"Very well. Would you mind if we dragged you along with us on our travels to different regions of Hyrule?" King Rhoam asked, looking for a solution to please both sides.
"I wouldn't be opposed to that," Purah stated, Impa nodding along. However, Robbie shook his head in a negative way.
"I'm sorry my lord," he stated, bowing deeply. "But I believe that my work in Akkala is to be continued and it cannot be taken to another region."
"Very well. Would you mind if we went with you there? On the way there, we can stop at some other points of interest," the Queen stated, as everyone nodded in agreement. "Good," the Queen smiled. "Then let's go!"
On their way off the Great Plateau, the two guards at the start suddenly stopped and took out their swords, looking off to the right, tense and waiting for a threat to appear.
Link rushed to the front, drawing his sword and ready to fight whoever was there, but then he turned to the side and realized why they had stopped.
The very same sheikah tower they had seen on their way had changed. Instead of the dark orange, it had changed into a bright teal color, ancient symbols glowing and floating in the air. Still with his sword in hand, he walked forward, slowly, and touched one of the symbols with the tip of his blade. Nothing happened, the blade just passed through, not affecting it in the slightest. Stepping even further towards the tower, Link laid his hand on the metal of the tower, testing whether it was safe,
… and promptly recoiled his hand, clutching at it with his other hand, hopping on one foot and shaking it like it was burned. Peeking out of the corner of his eye, he saw the horrified expressions on everyone else's face, and dropped the act.
Letting his hand fall, he erupted into silent laughter, chuckling and guffawing in a way that made people wonder if they played the game with volume off. Signing quickly to let them know he was okay, Link continued to laugh as they realized that the pain was an act.
Calming himself, Link looked back at the tower and noticed a small opening at the bottom, which someone might be able to climb into. Signing a question to another guard, the guard repeated it to the king
"My lord, Link wishes to know if he should climb to the top of the tower to see what's up there."
"Go ahead, Link," King Rhoam stated, much to the displeasure of his wife. "It's dangerous to go alone," he continued, taking something Impa handed him. "Take this," he said, tossing the sheikah slate to Link. Link nodded and clipped it onto his belt, before starting to climb.
Taking use of the platforms spaced sporadically on the tower, Link made it to the top in slightly under five minutes, climbing the tower took a small bit of his energy, meaning he was slightly winded at the top.
Looking around, Link noted the symmetry, the tower divided essentially into thirds. In the center was a small podium, something about the size of the sheikah slate, so Link put the slate into the slot, allowing machinery to take care of the rest.
A blue drop of something fell from the ceiling, coalescing into a small ball and falling onto the sheikah slate as something happened. The slate was presented to him, and he saw something fill in on it. Realizing it was a map, Link scanned for accuracy. Everything was perfectly as he saw it, at least on the Great Plateau, the only part of the map that was filled in.
Looking around, taking in the outside for the first time, Link saw an aerial view of this area for the first time since he worked in Hyrule castle. The vastness of the land always stunned him, leaving him breathless as to what he was witnessing.
Looking around, Link saw everything he stood for, everything he fought for. Looking at the castle, Link smiled.
This is a land worth fighting for, Link thought. This is a land worth dying for.
I'm trying to make the calamity happen soon but pacing makes it an issue. Also next time will be the four great plateau shrines and if i can, the travel to gerudo desert..