"Many, many years ago, a giant octorok began to reside in Hateno Bay. This monstrous creature was big as a mountain, its long tentacles powerful enough to pull entire boatloads of fishermen down into their watery graves. Its reign of terror sent shockwaves down the coastline, and word of this colossal, destructive enemy eventually made its way as far inland as Zora's Domain. There, a young prince found himself compelled to do something about this evil threat…"

"Father, please, you must allow me to assist these Hylians. We are the only race that is suitably equipped to deal with this monstrosity-"

"I am sorry, Sidon," King Dorephan interrupted. "But I cannot allow it. I have already lost one of my children to the forces of darkness... I absolutely will not let it happen again. This is selfish of me, I know it well. But that is my decree. And that is final."

Since childhood, Sidon carried a rather reckless, courageous streak. But even he hesitated at his father's sharp rebuke of his intentions. Rather than continue to fruitlessly argue his case, the young prince nodded respectfully, then took his leave from the throne room.

As he made his way down the stairs and towards the main square of the domain, he sighed quietly to himself. Sidon had, after all, just finished his growth stage. He was a full-fledged adult now, ready to take on the world. Why couldn't his father see that he was old enough to make his own decisions? That he was more than capable of taking care of himself?

As he wandered through the domain in deep thought, the familiar sight of a large, blue sculpture soon entered into his view - the likeness of his long-lost sister, Lady Mipha.

It had stood in the center of the square for well over a year now, crafted carefully and lovingly over several years by the domain's most skillful artisans. Its presence there served as a persistent effort to honor the memory of their beloved princess. Yet Sidon still found he couldn't quite get used to the sight of it. He missed his dear sister terribly. And not a single day went by when he didn't long for her unlikely return.

"You're looking rather downcast there, Sidon. That's odd."

Sidon turned around, the smiling face of a gray-scaled Zora greeted him.

"Ah, Gaddison! Greetings, my friend." He attempted to smile at her, but he still could not fully hide the troubled look on his face. "I was just… admiring the beauty of my dear sister's-"

"He said no, didn't he?" Gaddison said.

Sidon frowned. "That… is correct." He crossed his finned arms across his chest. "My father doesn't think it is wise for me to undertake such a dangerous mission. Especially not after what happened to… well, you know."

Gaddison nodded. "I had a feeling it would be something like that. It has been… well, about fifty years now, since that dark day. Since we lost Mipha. Since we lost Link…" She shrugged. "And yet the pain of loss is still fresh in my heart, even now. I could understand why he wouldn't want to risk losing another child."

"Nevertheless," Sidon said, "I have been trained by the finest warriors of the domain. I have fought many a great beast in my time, and countless octoroks at that! Surely, I could handle this. Surely, there is nothing for him to fear..."

"Then why don't you go anyway?" Gaddison asked. "You already made your mind up about going before... what's stopping you now?"

"I refrain, solely out of respect for my father." Sidon said. "If he fears putting me in danger, then I must obey his wishes."

"But that's never held you back before," she said. "In fact… that never held Lady Mipha back before either!"

Sidon didn't respond. They just stood there silently for a while, listening to the familiar sounds of flowing water which snaked through the winding paths of Zora's Domain...

"Perhaps this is naive to say…" Gaddison finally spoke. "But if you ask me, it's far more dangerous to know you have the power to oppose evil... and yet do nothing about it. We've been under Ganon's shadow for far, far too long now. And I have to say, I'm pretty tired of living in fear!" She turned back to face Sidon.

"So for what it's worth, if you decide to go, you'll have my full support. And if you decide not to, well… then perhaps I will have to go and play the heroine in your stead!"

She began to make her way back to her guard post to resume her patrols. Sidon stared after her, carefully considering her words. And after some time a wide, razor-sharp grin began to grow across his face…

"With newfound resolve - and a mild sense of gleeful rebellion - the Zora prince quickly snuck out of his home, making his way to Hateno Village to offer his assistance. It was a perilous journey, full of danger, excitement, and wonder. But with his considerable skill and his courageous resolve, he made it through the Hyrulian wildlands, arriving in the village just after sundown.

His arrival was met with much fanfare as the villagers flocked to catch a glimpse of this strange foreign warrior offering them aid. But in no time, a crew of brave fishermen volunteered themselves to be lead into battle by this wily aquatic warrior. They set off immediately to hunt down the enormous, destructive octorok..."

Sidon swam alongside the fishing vessel as it sailed out from the shoreline of Hateno Bay, crewed by a group of a dozen brave fishermen warriors.

"It normally patrols in this area around this time," explained Rozel, a young volunteer from the distant Lurelin Village. "Although, it is a bit strange that we haven't even seen a glimpse of it yet. Usually the beast is perfectly visible from miles away…"

Sidon immediately dove underwater to investigate, returning a few moments later to swim alongside the boat once again.

"Well, my friends," he said, "I have good news and bad news. The good-"

He paused.

"...Well, actually, I will spare you the wordplay." He suddenly stopped swimming, the group of fishermen staring back as he called after them.

"Our target… is right below us."

A loud sound of rushing water was heard, as the ocean exploded around the group. An enormous shiny dome - dark blue in color - began to rise from the surface. The sea parted, sending huge waves out and away from the center of the protruding mass. The fishing boat nearly capsized in the chaos, but just barely managed to stay afloat as their enemy finally revealed itself. It loomed over the group of warriors, blotting out the entire sun behind it.

Prince Sidon laughed loudly at the challenge before him. It seemed that it wasn't mere hyperbole after all - the creature truly was as big as a mountain!

"And so, the battle was on. The brave warriors put up a brief fight, but the octorok simply proved far too much for them to handle. Their weapons could scarcely penetrate its thick skin, their arrows were swatted aside like so many flies. Their fishing vessel was immediately destroyed by a mighty swipe of the octorok's tentacle. And before long, Sidon alone was left to face the monster."

"Fall back to safety!" Sidon cried. "I will handle this on my own!"

The fishermen piled into their lifeboat, frantically attempting to row back in the direction of the distant shoreline. Seeing that they were safe, Sidon glanced back at his opponent, just barely managing to dodge an enormous boulder that shot from its mouth. The large waves generated from the splash nearly toppled the lifeboat.

"You must return with us!" Rozel yelled back. "It's too dangerous to go it alone!"

"No chance!" Sidon turned back to the fishermen, struck a pose, and grinned widely.

"In the name of the Zora, I swear to you, I will"-

SCHLOOP!

"Instantly, the octorok inhaled Sidon whole. Such was the sad fate of many strong warriors who had gone to slay the octorok - and not one had come back alive. Just as it seemed that Prince Sidon would be counted among them, the giant octorok suddenly twisted in pain..."

"What in the world is that?!" One of the fishermen yelled. The crew turned in time to see a crescent-shaped speartip suddenly shoot straight out of the side of monster's stomach with an incredible spray of blood.

"That's… that's Sidon's spear!" Rozel yelled, as the speartip began to stab itself out repeatedly from the inside of the octorok. The beast let out a shriek of pure agony that reverberated across the entire bay.

"...No longer able to bear the pain, the octorok coughed up the prince and scrambled to escape. With the creature bleeding out and almost certainly dying, the fishermen decided not to give chase. The Zora prince returned to the side of his fellow fighters, reveling in their cheers and congratulations. As the crew returned to Hateno Village, led by their victorious Zora champion, Sidon let out a raucous shout of happiness and triumph.

"Marvelous!" He said. "I cannot wait until my father hears about this!"


"...And ever since, the fishermen of Hateno Bay have passed down this heroic tale: The Prince Who Slew the Fell Octorok."

Link grinned as he reeled in yet another catch - his tenth one within the hour.

"That's quite the story, Rozel," he said. He netted his fish - a mighty porgy - and threw it in with the rest of the day's catch. They were sitting on a large fishing raft, far off the coast of Lurelin village. From this far out, Link could barely make out the mass of land in the distance - though the growing collection of storm clouds overhead hardly helped with the visibility. But even with this persistent source of unease, Link couldn't help but find himself at peace. Out here on the open ocean, he felt free. He felt alive.

He felt like he was home.

"I've known Sidon since he was a child," Link explained, "so it's always interesting to hear stories about him. I'm sure he made his father proud..."

Rozel raised his eyebrow at Link's comment. It had, after all, been fifty years since he'd fought alongside Prince Sidon in that great battle. And based on looks, Link couldn't possibly have been any older than seventeen years of age. He knew that this mysterious blonde-haired warrior had quite the backstory to tell, but he was hesitant to press him about it at the moment.

"At any rate…" Rozel said, "I suppose with that, it's time to tell you the true reason I brought you all the way out here…"

Link thought for a second, then laughed abruptly.

"Well, I had a sneaking suspicion that catching fish wasn't the only thing on our agenda for today..."

Rozel puffed from his pipe, removed it from his mouth, and gestured towards Link with it. A wild expression appeared on his face.

"My boy... I hope you're properly steeled for this. Because today… you're going to help me defeat that same giant octorok, once and for all!"


A roar of thunder signaled the arrival of the approaching storm, and rain began to fall in sheets around the pair. The sea grew choppy and rough waves crashed around them, as Rozel calmly explained the situation.

"It would seem… that Prince Sidon didn't quite finish the job all those years ago," he explained. "The creature hadn't been spotted since that day, kept at bay since its last encounter. Only now has it returned, patrolling all of our usual fishing spots. And it's only a matter of time before it begins to rampage again… which is why we need your help!"

Link shrugged. "You know, I sort of wish you'd asked me before we left on this fishing trip, instead of being all dramatic about it," he said. "We're not really equipped for battle here on this dinky raft of yours…"

But Rozel only smiled. "You're underestimating me!" He reached into his long storage basket, producing a pair of large harpoons from the bottom. "I've long prepared for this moment! Have a look."
Link carefully examined each one of the harpoons and sighed loudly in exasperation.

The tips weren't even sharpened.

"Is that it?" he asked. "How exactly are you expecting to penetrate its thick skin... with these ?"

Rozel shrugged. "I figured you could just figure that out for us, once we got to that point!"

"You're insane."

"...Am I?" Rozel grinned.

"Yes!"

"Ah, well. I suppose it doesn't matter. There's no turning back now…"

Another crackle of lightning, another mighty rumble of thunder, and a massive looming figure began to show itself in the distance as the pair sailed farther and farther into the horizon.

Link's mind immediately entered a state of hyperactivity as he formulated a plan of action. With his knowledge of octorok behavior - as well as the toughness of the giant octorok's skin - he began to cram all of their large fishhooks, harpoons, and other equipment into Rozel's storage basket. He even snapped their fishing poles into dozens of jagged pieces, placing these into the basket as well. For a finishing touch, he threw a pair of remote bombs from his Sheikah Slate in as well.

Time to see if Purah's rune enhancements are all they were cracked up to be... he thought.

Satisfied, he turned his attention to the once-distant creature, now only a short ways away from them. And in no time the mountainous entity descended upon them. It let out an enormous roar, signalling the start of the battle.

If they were fortunate… it would be a rather short battle indeed.

Rozel immediately steered the small sailing raft to the right, barely dodging a large tentacle that slammed into the water next to them. As they swerved around the creature at high speed, Link spotted an enormous jagged scar on the beast's side - the result of Sidon's handy work several decades before.

That's it!

"Rozel!" Link cried, "Let's try to circle the beast for another pass. I have an idea..."

The old fisherman playfully saluted Link and nimbly steered their raft in a wide turn around the octorok, which attempted to turn and face the pair once more. It continued to attack with its tentacles, and Link found himself rather impressed by Rozel's incredible boating skills. It seems he'd underestimated this crazy fisherman after all…not that he'd admit it.

Realizing its inability to land a blow on this agile target, the giant octorok prepared for its next move. It began to inhale the raft directly into its huge, suckerlike mouth.

Perfect…

"Steer into it!" Link yelled.

"What?!"

But Rozel did as he was told, and the raft began propelling itself straight towards the open mouth of the beast. They were only a few yards away from it now, drifting closer and closer to their likely demise...

"Here we go!" Link lifted up the basket, full of shrapnel and explosives, and hurled it straight at the beast. He pulled out his Sheikah Slate, and waited. The basket entered the creature's mouth first, with the raft only a few yards behind it. But before the pair was sucked in themselves, Link immediately detonated his remote bombs from inside of the octorok, tackling Rozel to the floor of the raft as he did.

BOOOOOM!

The explosion from his enhanced bombs absolutely rocked the interior of the octorok, sending jagged metal and shrapnel erupting out of the creature's flesh at every angle. Briefly stunned and wracked with pain, the giant creature shut its mouth and rolled over on its side, its old scar exposed to the open sky.

Link immediately seized the opportunity, leaping from the raft and onto the octorok's face. He climbed its slick skin with rapid speed, drawing the ceremonial trident as he approached the old wound. He began to stab repeatedly at the scar, opening a hole just big enough for him to slip through.

Link turned to face Rozel once more, and smiled.

"I'll just be a minute."

He dove into the open wound with perfect form, leaving the stunned fisherman alone on the raft, shaking his head in disbelief.

Once inside, Link took a second to admire his efforts. Hundreds of tiny holes littered the octorok's interior, letting in precious light for him to work with. As he squinted his eyes, he finally spotted what he was searching for - an enormous boulder, still unfired from the octorok's mouth. Link activated his Stasis rune, grinning widely...

Outside of the beast, Rozel attempted to steer his raft away from the stunned octorok. It was only a matter of moments before the thing would recover, beginning its furious attacks anew again. What in the world was this crazy Hylian boy thinking?

Soon, the monster did indeed recover. Its gigantic red eyes opened up, and it spotted the wooden raft in front of it. Blood spurted in every direction from its open wounds, and it writhed in agony as it slowly righted itself up once again. It let out one last shriek of fury in Rozel's direction, causing him to brace himself on his raft.

Rozel began to scour the raft for a weapon - any weapon - but there was none. Link had wasted them all in his initial attack, which had appeared to be for naught. And only then did Rozel truly begin to panic. He dared to wonder if it had been a mistake dragging this strange warrior out for such a reckless endeavor…

FWOOOSH!

A loud noise shook the interior of the octorok once again, and an enormous boulder rocketed out the side of the beast's head in a great shower of blood and gore. Rozel's eyes widened in shock. The octorok let out a final shriek of misery as it rolled over on its side once more, finally perishing for good.

The battle was already over.

Soon, the familiar sight of a smiling, blonde-haired Hylian emerged from the gaping hole in the octorok's side. Link stood there triumphantly, rain pouring ceaselessly around him, hands on his hips. The look of a true hero….

"We won!" Link yelled.

"You're insane!" Rozel yelled back.

But Link just grinned in return.

"...Am I?"


A gentle breeze blew through the open doorway of the cabana inn, rousing Link awake. His ears perked up at the relaxing sounds of waves lapping on the shoreline of Lurelin Village. The sunlight was breaking in the distant horizon, its rays just barely illuminating the interior of his room.

He rolled off the bed, stretched his arms to the sky, and sighed.

It was the best sleep he'd had in quite some time.

After gathering his things, he took a moment to speak with Chessica, the owner of the inn. Like the other citizens of Lurelin, she had dark, tanned skin and dark hair. Also like the other citizens, she was quite loud and very friendly.

"Please, allow me to make it up to you." Link said. "I don't have much money… but surely I could offer something in exchange."

"Not happening!" she said. "It's on the house! Least I could do for our village's new hero! Honestly, I feel like I actually haven't done enough to express my gratitude..."

Link wasn't about to argue with that. "I see... Well, in that case, maybe you could help me with something else then! There's a certain… creature I'm searching for. A 'goddess' of sorts..."

"Oh, you mean Malanya?" she said. "I heard from Rozel, the village leader! We've been asking around the last couple of days, but have yet to hear anything on it. I'll certainly keep you posted."

Link frowned a bit at this, but shook it off. It was already his second day in Lurelin Village, and he still wasn't any closer to finding this mysterious entity.

Might just have to head straight for Gerudo Desert at this rate…

"I do know something that might help you in another way, however." Chessica said. "That is, if you have a bit of time to kill."

"As a matter of fact I do!" Link said. "Rozel and his family are treating me to a congratulatory dinner tonight, so I've got the entire day to myself."

"Excellent! So… you said you're a bit short on money, right?"

Link shrugged. "Only have about twenty rupees or so, yeah…"

"Okay! Well, there's a man named Cloyne, he runs a… well, a 'business' just up the way. A gambling game. If you play your rupees right, you could get pretty rich there!"

"Sounds like a total scam to me," Link said flatly.

"Oh yes, yes. Cloyne's definitely a crook. He makes a killing from ripping off travelers who pass through and play his game. Or at least… from those who don't know his secret!" She winked.


Link immediately felt uncomfortable as he entered the dimly-lit hut that housed Cloyne and his treasure chest gambling game. Cloyne himself was a rather shady-looking Hylian, and his beady eyes narrowed to slits as he peered at Link from behind his desk. Empty bottles of liquor littered the floor behind him.

A drunkard. Great.

"How'd you like to be rich... without having to work for it?" Cloyne began.

"That's the kind of attitude that destroys societies you know," Link countered.

"Fair enough! But hey, I'm not talking about anything illegal here. I'm talking about a game!" He gestured over to a set of three treasure chests placed along the wall behind him.

"See those chests over there? How about a little wager on 'em? The idea is you pick any chest you want and open it. Simple, right? The best part is whatever chest you open, you get all the money inside. Course, only one chest is worth opening, heh heh. Don't come crying to me if you pick wrong!"

Oh, I don't think I'll be the one crying after this, Link thought.

"Before you go opening any boxes, you'll have to show me what it's worth to you." Cloyne continued. "What's a bet, after all, if you don't stand to lose a bundle on it? That's the part that really gets a man's heart racing! The more you bet, the more you stand to win. Man like you must have expenses. Couldn't hurt to make some quick cash, eh? Am I right? I know I'm right."

Simply being in this guy's presence was making Link's skin crawl. But he persisted nonetheless.

"I'm in." Link said.

"Attaboy, attaboy! Now… how much will you wager?"

"Ten rupees." Link replied.

"You're kidding."

"Nope."

Cloyne shrugged. "Sounds like you're really hurting for some money then. Can't say you'll make much with that kinda bet... but suit yourself."

Link handed him the rupees, and Cloyne set up the chests for the game.

"And there we go! Step right up and take your chances! Take all the time you need to choose a chest to open. Look, listen, smell... taste 'em if you think it'll help."

Link was quite put off by Cloyne's cocky little grin, but returned one of his own. He walked straight up to the middle chest, opened it up... and produced three-hundred rupees from inside.

Cloyne's smile faded a little. "How did you… I mean. Ahem. That's some luck you've got there, boy!" His full smile returned again. "Like I said, the more you wager, the more you stand to win. How's about another bet?"

Link nodded, handing him all three-hundred rupees as his next bet.

"All of it! Heh heh. Way to live on the edge there, pal! That recklessness - er, fearlessness - almost reminds me of me! All right then. Let me set up the chests again. No peeking!" The game continued for several minutes, with Link opening chest after chest in each round without hesitation. Each time, he multiplied his winnings. And each time, Cloyne's smile gradually faded more and more into a desperate scowl. Before long, Link had won over twenty-thousand rupees from the game. At this point, Cloyne was utterly drenched in sweat from nervousness and worry.

"Listen, um, buddy. Look," he stammered. "You've... totally cleared me out here. Seriously. Have a little mercy will ya?"

"'Them's the breaks,' right?" Link said.

Cloyne shook his head, laughing nervously. "Right right. You got me. But hey, um… I'll tell you what. If you're game, maybe we could work out a little deal here."

"I'm not so keen on participating in another scam." Link replied.

"This isn't another… I mean, this isn't a scam. I swear. Listen." He pointed out the door and towards the eastward road. "I got a hut down by the beach over there. I never use it. Beachfront property, it's prime. Waddya say we make an exchange? Your winnings, for the house?"

Link... actually liked the sound of that. It would be quite nice to have a place of his own to rest and recuperate. There was just one thing-

"Half."

"Half?" Cloyne said.

"Half my winnings."

"I, um, well…"

Link shrugged. "Or we could just go another round then...?"

"Okay! Okay! Half your winnings. Deal."

Link smiled. "But, I do have to see the place first."

Cloyne wiped his brow in relief. "Of course, of course. Right this way…"


"Let's have a toast!" said Rozel. "To Link's selfless heroism… and to his new home!"

"Aye!"

The group clinked glasses, and took their sips of rice wine - a gift from Rozel for such an occasion.

"I don't know how you did it," said Sebasto - Rozel's son - as he glanced around the interior of Link's new beachfront cabana. "But I gotta say, it's quite a feat to pry something like this away from ol' Cloyne. And it's about time he got a taste of his own medicine!"

They were sitting in the front room of Link's new house, enjoying their celebratory dinner over the defeat of the legendary giant Octorok. The laughter of Rozel's grandchildren echoed through the interior as they scampered from room to room, dancing and playing. As they ate their dinner, the family marvelled at the sheer amount of food Link was able to shovel into his stomach - and his sheer lack of manners to boot. But they nevertheless enjoyed his company. This young Hylian was quite friendly and funny, and really good with children. It had been quite some time since they'd had this much fun with a stranger from out of town. And they made this fact known to him.

"...But I suppose I'm your neighbor now, rather than a mere stranger!" Link said, laughing.

Kiana, Sebasto's wife, giggled along with him.

"Ain't that the truth!" she said. "And I'm sure you'll make a great neighbor indeed!" As she said this, she also took the time to glance around the interior of Link's home. Her eyes eventually fixated on a certain ornate trident mounted on the nearby wall...

"That's a beautiful weapon you have there. It's something rather… special, I take it?"

Link looked over to where she was pointing, and sighed quietly.

"Ah, that. It's... really quite precious to me. I was hoping to store it here for a time. It once belonged to my fiancé."

Belonged. Past-tense.

Kiara decided not to press him any further on that. Sensing the mood was beginning to sour slightly, Sebasto decided to change the subject instead.

"Well, young hero, I've got some good news to break for you," he said. "It's about Malanya."

Link stopped himself mid-bite, eyes widening.

"Have you learned something?" he asked, unable to mask his excitement.

"Indeed! We asked around the village, and it would seem that a recent traveler actually found the very spot that she's located! She refused to see him, however."

Link dropped his utensils and leaned across the table.

"Please, tell me you remember the location!" he said excitedly.

"Even better! I have a map. Check it out." Sebasto handed Link a paper map, which he examined thoroughly.

Link smiled. Her location wasn't too far out of the way, on a mountain somewhat off the main road. Right along his planned route to Gerudo Desert.

"Thank you so much!" he said. "This is tremendously helpful. I'll head that way first thing tomorrow!" He began to shovel even more food into his mouth, chewing happily.

"It's our pleasure," Rozel said. "It's the least we could do for your troubles…" he paused briefly, then glanced over at Sebasto. "Although… we do have one last request. If you'll hear us out."

Link shrugged. He'd already done quite a bit for these people, but it was still very much in his nature to help out however he could.

"The giant Octorok… wasn't the only thing disrupting our fishing patterns lately." Sebasto said, stroking his goatee absentmindedly. "There's a monster encampment. Right along the beach far west of here. Rozel and I used to frequent there, and it's a prime spot for catching fish. Unfortunately, it's far too dangerous to sail out there anymore. And to make matters worse… they've stolen something from us. A treasure of sorts, which they're guarding quite aggressively now."

"...And I take it, you need me to clear them out for you?" Link said, mouth full of chewed food.

"Yes. But I understand if it's too much trouble-"

"I'll do it." he interrupted.

"You will?!" The family members all sighed in relief.

"You have our gratitude!" Sebasto said. "Seriously. You're a lifesaver!"

Link shrugged. "Whatever it is they stole... it had better be pretty amazing. If I'm going through all this trouble…" He winked.

He was joking of course - he'd undertake this mission, with or without a prize of course. But his sense of humor seemed to fly right over their heads.

"Oh, well, of course it's amazing!" Rozel said. "A wonderful treasure - it's an artifact that we've held in high esteem for some time now. Something glorious… magical. Something that would surely help you in your journey, should you manage to retrieve it!"

Link smiled. "Well, I like the sound of that. So what is it?"

Sebasto smiled back. "You'll just have to find out when you get there!"

Link paused briefly, then rolled his eyes.

Why is everyone always so cryptic about these things…

"I'll head straight there on my way out tomorrow morning," Link said. "You have nothing to fear."

"Excellent!" cried Sebasto. "Let's have another toast to that!"

"Aye!"

As they clinked glasses once again, a feeling of warmth and comfort spread in Link's heart. The laughter flowed freely, his worries melted away, the tightness in his chest was lifting.

He truly felt at home here, truly felt that this was the place that he belonged.

I think I'll just retire here, when all is said and done. Link thought to himself, smiling inside as he sipped his wine.

Retire… and die alone.


No longer weighed down by two weapons, Link found that his combat speed was much-improved as he buried the tip of the ceremonial trident in yet another bokoblin warrior. He'd already slain a dozen of these creatures, but they seemed to be crawling all over this enormous floating fortress like a colony of ants. And to make matters worse, these bokoblins were far tougher than the typical red-colored monsters he'd previously encountered. Some were blue, some were brown, but all were aggressive and ferocious. They even seemed a bit smarter… if that were at all possible.

Not wanting to waste much time with this mission, Link's mind turned to his remote bomb runes in his Sheikah Slate. And as with his encounter with the Lizalfos in their rivertop fortress months earlier, he hesitated to use them, at risk of destroying the entire fortress...

Eh.

Whatever.

Link began to hurl glowing the enhanced explosives left and right with reckless abandon. Bokoblin bodies were tossed left and right with ease, plummeting to the waters below and disintegrating in a puff of blackish smoke. The explosions ripped the ocean fortress apart at its very foundations, causing a chain reaction that sent the entire thing toppling over into the sea.

In just a few short minutes, Link had obliterated the entire encampment.

Mission accomplished.

He swam over to the bokoblins' treasure chest, which floated amongst the debris and ruins of their former home. With ease, he towed it across the water and back towards the main beach, eventually tossing it into the sands as he made his way out of the shallows.

Link felt a mix of excitement and anxiety as he prepared to open the chest. With the key he'd procured from one of the fallen bokoblins, he carefully unlocked it. A bead of sweat rolled down his moist cheek. He rubbed his hands together, moved them to either side of the lid.

And he began to open it, breath held, eyes wide.

The sun's bright rays began to penetrate the dark interior of the chest. And as Link peered inside, no longer able to contain his sheer exhilaration, he saw it: The prize he'd gone through all this trouble, all this destruction to obtain.

The reward to end all rewards.

The prize to end all prizes.

The very thing that these monstrous creatures had fought to their deaths to protect.

It was a boomerang.


The feedback has been very, very encouraging for this story, and I'm incredibly humbled by all of your reviews and comments. Let's hope we can carry this momentum forward! I'll continue to strive to make every chapter as good as it can possibly be. And yes, it's decided. The DLC and any subsequent news about it will have no bearing on the plans for this story. Onward we go.

Next is the conclusion of the recovery arc, Chapter 23: Eternity Road. See you then…


Wanted to give a few of shout-outs to a few influential fanfiction writers.

First: Schell21 on fanfiction dot net, author of Zelda: Legend of the Sam'kemesa. This was one of the first fics I ever read as a kid, and therefore a much older one. As a big fan of Saria, the story really showed me what was possible with a big imagination, your favorite characters, and a bit of spare time.

Second: Tairis Deamhan, also on fanfiction dot net, author of Razor's Edge - a TaliXShepard Mass Effect novelization. I followed this story years ago, and I credit it in part for giving me the idea of doing a BotW novelization. If you're a fan of the original ME trilogy as well as Tali'Zorah, I highly recommend it.

Finally: Taylortot on AO3, author of heartstrings, a Miraculous Ladybug fic (and I think one of the most popular ones on the site). I don't even watch Miraculous Ladybug, nor do I consider myself a fan, but there's something about this fic that resonated with the gooey romantic inside of me. It's an entertaining read for sure, especially if you like straight fluff most of the way through (as opposed to the occasional fluff you find here in AFooW). It's also responsible for introducing me to the AO3 website in the first place.