Link reminisces about dismantling a machine and is given almost nothing but bad news. Instead of checking in on Epona, we see what the evildoers are evildoing in Hateno.

Rauru stood next to Atmus and examined the map on the wall . Link, Purah, Robbie, Jerrin and Gralens crowded the table.

"...Okay so I'm thinking the blizzard is the first problem I tackle. It's a pretty immediate threat to their lives and the Rito, once their problems are better, are the fastest travelers around. If I solve this, we have messengers and scouts that no one can beat." Link said. "Plus, I already have some cold weather gear and spicy peppers. "After that, I'm not sure if the Gerudo or the Zora are higher up on the triage. As bad as it feels to say this, I think the Gorons will survive without help for now. I'll try to help the Survey Team or the Monster Control if I run into them."

Purah nodded. "Yeah, that's a solid plan. I'm worried about your navigational abilities though. It was bad before the upheaval."

"I'll be fine, I have the Purah Pad map!"

Robbie gave Link a doubtful frown. "You still got lost with the Sheikah Slate map..."

"If I may," Rauru said to Link, "I can also help you with remembering directions."

"Thanks, I just heard Rauru. He says he can try and help me navigate."

"We don't know him, but he cannot be worse than you."

Gralens was confused and asked, "His sense of direction cannot be that bad. Doesn't he travel all over Hyrule?"

"Oh, you poor naive man," said Jerrin. "He had the Slate and his horse helping him and he still got lost." Rauru looked somewhat alarmed.

"By the way, where is the Sheikah Slate? I haven't seen it since Zelda confiscated it. Don't we have any spare Sheikah tech lying around I could use?" Link hoped he could get the runes back in his mitts. He'd already checked to see if he could program things on the Purah Pad itself, but they'd locked it down. Someday I will get back into the command line, Link thought. The Sheikah all failed to give him good tidings.

Purah did not lend any sympathy. "You are NOT going to have the slate back after that stunt you pulled with Vah Rudania, Linky. "

Robbie added, "I did not think it possible to get arrested for committing arson inside the Death Mountain Caldera."

Gralens recoiled away from Link. Atmus likewise. "That was him?!"

Rauru folded his spectral arms. "Arson in a caldera? Is Death Mountain an active volcano? Zelda didn't tell me this story."

Link muttered, "Later, Rauru." Link regretted that. He felt bad for upsetting the Gorons. He also sold off everything but his armor and the clothing off his back to pay for the property damage. The hours of community service were not so bad; hanging out with Gorons rocked. "What about the parts from-?"

"Vah Ruta was in such disarray we decided to scrap the remains for the Skyview Towers. It was a shame you never finished putting it back together, the water would have helped a lot with the sludge."

"I would have finished if the Zora just let me. Why don't they trust me?" Link lamented the loss. He had been this close to figuring out the problem before Zelda and the Zora pulled him away. Dismantling Vah Ruta was an essential part of the troubleshooting and repair process. They should have understood that. Of course, since they broke his concentration, he forgot how to put it back together. No one could read his diagrams of the stages of deconstruction either. That left them with a useless wreck of a Divine Beast. Given the trauma associated with the thing, the Zora were not overly torn up by the loss.

They might be changing their mind about it now.

"If it's any consolation, it probably wouldn't have mattered. Vah Naboris apparently was classified as a weapon to the decay..."

"The same one that made our weapons all useless?"

"The very same. We barely managed to find anything usable in there. The Gerudo were fortunate to have no one on board." She did not need to explain the fate of Vah Medoh. Vah Medoh had been dismantled three years ago like Guardians had been after a village vote. Link mourned that loss. He protested and let them know how Anti-Maliceware worked, but to no avail.

"Oh yeah, where did my shrines go?" Link feared he knew the answer to that.

Jerrin kept disappointing Link. "Same thing as Vah Naboris."

Link sighed. "My armor?"

Jerrin smiled and Link felt hope re-enter his life when she said, "We left it in a package at Zelda's, sorry, your house after we finished cleaning it! It should still be there for you to pick up."

Back in time, a few nights after the Upheaval started making life interesting

Cece admired her sketches. It was a fun challenge trying to design for Gorons. They had to use different materials as well thanks to their lifestyles. Cece tried to plan for the lava and knew she had something great. No longer would she limit herself to Hylians! Given the late hour, it was usual midnight snack time. Carrots called to her tastebuds.

She was startled when the Princess herself started admiring the papers. "Ah! Princess Zelda? How are you in here?"

"Sorry, I just couldn't wait for morning. Cece, I need your help with something. I see you have a design for Gorons here. Would you be able to help me with a piece?"

"Why certainly! You came to the best designer in Hyrule. I knew you had good taste."

"I need to design a mask made of gold for a Goron. Here are his measurements." The fake Zelda handed over a note.

"With pleasure! Would you be paying now or by credit?"

"Credit please. Link will be the one to deliver the payment for you. Oh, and one more request I have for you." Zelda held up a box. "This old armor set needs a redesign for Link. It's hideous. I just want the mask design tonight"

Cece made disapproving noises as Zelda handed over the Ancient Armor. She then felt a weird unease and dread as Zelda watched Cece work over her shoulder. Normally Cece wasn't hampered by an audience but tonight it felt very creepy. She quickly passed over a finished sketch for approval and to get the visitor to go away.

'Zelda' reexamined the golden mask design. "This is excellent work. I shall let your village live for now."

"Okay?" Cece watched Zelda disappear in front of her eyes. That was weird. Cece shrugged it off as a trick of the light and started on her new project. A commission from the Princess herself, one that the legendary swordsman would wear? This was going to be great! She could not wait to see his reaction. Cece devoured her vegetables, oblivious that she'd prevented a fifth regional phenomena problem presenting itself at Hateno area.

I have failed to address reviewers properly! Still haven't quite figured out the cats but probably going to have Kilton involved. I had some ideas for the Divine Beasts but not all of them until recently. This might be a chapter I edit later. Goron Luchador mask for Link isn't happening since there's not going to be DLC. It also seemed funnier to me to have the phantom doing this instead of some disguised Yiga.

You know those people who will dismantle electronics to see each and every piece to figure out the functions for themselves? Then never quite manage to put it back together? That was what Link did to Vah Ruta.

The recommendation of Saphroneth's Breath of the Wolf is pretty great. I hadn't finished all the chapters which means, reading material! Oh gosh current writers are giving us good things to read. Between that and the new chapter of "Above and Below" by livywinks I am getting spoiled. Ah wait, that one might only be in Ao3.