By the time Link came to the realization that he could not outrun or dodge the tail, it was too late. The tail came at him with more speed than he expected, bringing with it a powerful wind. In one last attempt to dodge its blow, he threw himself against the ground. But the tail didn't make contact with him. Instead, it made an odd clunking kind of sound, as if it had hit some kind of barrier. Link looked up to see Yunobo at his side, and around them a large, round red barrier that acted as a shield. Vah Rudania's tail had bumped against it and the Divine Beast hesitated for a moment at the surprise of the impact. It let out another roar and Link scrambled to his feet, pulling Yunobo forward before the tail could swing around once more.
Vah Rudania moved quicker as it came to the realization that something was behind it, but Link and Yunobo were close enough to their intended target - its back legs. Link threw himself at the Divine Beast, clinging to the rungs that moved up its leg and pulling Yunobo along with him just as the leg lifted off the ground. They clung to the rungs as it moved through the air and came down hard on the ground once more. The sensation made Link's stomach churn sickeningly, but he pulled himself up to the next rung quickly, scaling the Divine Beast until they reached the top. Link pulled himself up, then turned to help Yunobo shuffle up.
Link straightened, taking a moment to balance himself as Vah Rudania continued to move beneath them, and took in his surroundings. In the middle of the Divine Beast's back he recognized the control panel. Zelda had used the Sheikah Slate to activate it before. Would it be as simple as that?
Link's answer came to him, first as a bellowing shriek, then as a tall, fiery phantom fast approaching them. A Fireblight. It wasted no time hurling its attacks at Link and Yunobo. Massive fireballs soared through the air before Link could react, but they bounced off the red shield that Yunobo pushed up around them.
"Th-that's it," Yunobo said, shaking. Link could sense the shield around them growing weaker as a result of Yunobo's fear. "That's the thing I saw."
The Fireblight, angry that its attackers were so easily deflected, screamed as it rushed at them. It threw its body at them before shooting up into the sky, causing Yunobo and Link to stumble backwards from the force. The round shield dissipated around them and the Fireblight circled around to rush at them once more.
This time, Link took aim with his gun. His arms shook for a moment until he wrapped his finger around the trigger and a sense of familiarity came rushing back to him. He was no longer afraid of the weapon, or even doubtful in his abilities for that matter. His arms were still and his breathing steady and for a moment, the world seemed to fall still and silent. The Fireblight neared, and he fired off three consecutive shots with ease. Each shot met its target, ripping through the flesh of the creature. It shrieked in agony and plunged down onto Link. Once more, Yunobo's shield flew up around them and the Fireblight bounced off of it.
It shook its head as if to orient itself, but instead of plunging at them once more, it stood in the air and gathered a large fireball in its palm. It grew and grew, red hot flames licking the air threateningly. The Fireblight threw the fireball forcefully towards them, and both Link and Yunobo threw themselves away from the attack. The fireball landed between them in a fiery explosion. Link scrambled to his feet, sprinting across the Divine Beast in an attempt to avoid any debris and ash from the blast. He readied his gun and once more took aim at the Fireblight in the sky. He shot off three more rounds, but this time the phantom anticipated his attacks and was quick to dodge, only one of the bullets ripping through his flesh. But it was enough to bring it down, screaming in agony as it landed across from Link. Its body shook as it screamed, and Link reloaded his gun for the final kill, but the Fireblight had one last trick up its metaphorical phantom sleeve.
A large, round, fiery force field of sorts, similar to Yunobo's red shield, erupted around the Fireblight, and it shot up into the sky once more. Link followed it with his gun, peered down the sight, and shot off a round, but the bullet only ricocheted off the blazing shield. The Fireblight zig-zagged through the air for a moment, positioning itself across the Divine Beast, and the shield disappeared. It began to collect more energy in its palm, summoning another fireball. Link didn't waste a second searching for somewhere to shield himself from the fiery blast, and as the fireball was hurled down towards him, he dove behind one of the pillars on Vah Rudania's back.
Though the pillar was wide and sturdy, the flames from the attack licked around it and he threw himself away from the searing heat. He scrambled to his feet, spinning around once more to see the Fireblight's fiery shield rise to his defenses once more, making Link's shots useless. He cursed under his breath as the Fireblight zig-zagged through the air once more to position itself for its next attack.
Yunobo rolled to Link's side, panting, and pulled at Link's arm. "It drops its shield to attack," the young Goron said. "That's your chance. Get him when he drops his defenses and before he can hurl that fireball at us."
Link looked up at the blight as it settled into position, and once more, it dropped its shield and started gathering energy for another attack. Link muttered to himself; it was so easy to predict, he felt like an idiot for not noticing sooner. He took aim as the fireball grew in the phantom's palm and fired off three more shots. The fireball exploded in the blight's hand and it fell to the ground once more shrieking in agony.
"Get it!" Yunobo shouted.
Link emptied the rest of the bullets in the gun on the blight and its screamed bellowed and bounced off the mountains around them. It withered and screamed before finally exploding before them. Yunobo raised his shield around them as the embers scattered in every direction, and then the world fell silent.
"We did it!" Yunobo cheered, but his grin disappeared when Link narrowed his eyes disapprovingly at him. "You did it," Yunobo said. The smile returned. "I knew you could it. We Gorons owe you our thanks!"
Link pocketed his gun and pulled out the Sheikah Slate. "Don't mention it," he muttered. He moved towards the control panel, his eyes moving from it to the slate in his hand, then back to the panel. With a shrug, he placed the slate on the panel, and the wicked red glow faded into a cool blue. Vah Rudania's roar echoed throughout the land as it settled down and rested against the mountain side with an almost animalistic and calm sigh. Link removed the slate as Yunobo stood a his side. He peered at the control panel curiously.
"So, this is Vah Rudania," Yunobo said with admiration. "Daruk always seemed to like being up here. He knew just what to do with Ganon attacked."
"Well," Link started. "This war isn't over with. Someone will need to man Vah Rudania when the time comes to defeat Ganon." He turned his gaze to Yunobo and raised a brow. "You up for the challenge?"
Yunobo blinked at Link, his expression blank. "Me?" He thrust a thumb into his own chest.
"No one else knows it like you do," Link said.
Yunobo turned his gaze to the horizon, hesitant. "I will make Daruk proud," he said, placing his hands on his hips. "I will gladly serve with you, Link." His eyes met Link's. "Just… no Fireblights, right?" Daruk's death was obviously still fresh in his mind.
"I promise," Link said in his best attempt to reassure the young Goron. "Ganon won't be getting at the Divine Beasts again."
This seemed to satisfy Yunobo and the smile returned to his face. "Vah Rudania and I will be waiting for your command."
"Thank you for stopping Ganon's blight, Link," Bludo said. "It would have turned Vah Rudania against us. We are in your debt."
Link leaned against the open door of his car. He turned his gaze to the Divine Beast that was perched atop the mountain. It no longer threatened Goron City and waited for further command from its new Champion, Yunobo.
"Where are you going now?" Yunobo asked.
"Looks like I've got three more of these things to reclaim," Link said. "Next up is Vah Medoh."
Bludo's eyes were soft. "Daruk did not go down easily," he said. "I'm certain the other Champions fought valiantly as well. Ganon won't get away with this. Be careful out there, Link."
Link nodded to Bludo as he slid into the car, closing the door with him. He winked at Yunobo who waved excitedly at him, then pulled away from Goron City, back towards Hyrule.
His eyes glanced over the map on his phone, then across Hyrule as he descended the mountain. The easiest way to Rito Village would like be to take the northern route, behind the palace and the city and around that way. It avoided the main interstate, which Link hoped would mean avoiding some of the Guardians.
To his relief, his prediction was correct. Away from the city, on the lesser traveled roads, the Guardian presence proved not to be as heavy as it was around the city. Which meant for fairly smooth sailing across Hyrule. From time to time, he ran across a stationary Guardian, and while some of these seemed to be inactive, others lit to light as they sensed his presence. But Link was able to out drive the machines with ease, dodging their blasts and continuing on his way.
It was late in the night when Link decided to stop. He pulled off the road, hoping to keep out of sight of any unexpected Guardians. He put the car into park in a thick covering of trees, cut the engine, and slunk back into the seat with a sigh. He pulled his sleeves up and inspected the burns on his arms. They didn't seem to be as bad as they felt. He pushed the seat as far back as it would go, laying down and staring up at the ceiling. It was much too dark to see anything. The streetlights on the roads did not work, and there was no moon out to provide any relief from the darkness. So when the roof of the car suddenly seemed to glow with a blue light, Link's heart jumped into his throat until he realized that the source of the light came from his phone.
He pulled himself upright and peered at the phone. Something had woken it up and turned the screen on, but he wasn't quite sure what that was. There was no text message, no incoming call, no notification of any sort. Except for something in the top corner of the screen. Something that flashed for a moment, then remained still. Two weak bars indicated that the phone had located service from a working cell tower somewhere. No longer was there a line through it with the words 'No Service' across the top.
Link looked around, as if expecting to see something in the darkness of night, but he could not make out any sign of life, and certainly no nearby cell tower. Regardless, there was service in that area. He wasn't sure exactly what that meant, but it brought a feeling of hope in his otherwise dark and memoryless life.