It took nearly two minutes for Izuku and Link's lift to reach its destination, and Izuku couldn't help but marvel when it did. The lift shaft ended a couple meters from the floor, turning instead to a shimmering blue curtain of light that revealed the room beyond to the intrepid treasure hunters, a room that looked an awful lot like the one where Izuku and Link had met.

The walls looked like they were the same material as the tower and the cave, which, Izuku realized, probably wasn't a cave at all. Light blue light shone from overhead, though Izuku couldn't see the source of the light from where he was standing. The walls were covered in the same constellation-like patterns of red lights and gold filigree, breaking up the monotonous dark gray. At the end of the room, the wall changed from solid stone to iron bars, allowing the two to see a little further into the shrine.

Other than the strange architecture, Izuku could only see two things of interest in the room: two large iron plates of some kind resting in the center of the room, and another terminal for the Sheikah Slate. Much like the tower terminal, this one had an odd pillar protruding over it.

The platform came to a smooth stop on the floor, and the hard light curtain shimmered and faded, allowing the two to step off the lift. As the walked into the room, Izuku heard a deep, masculine voice in his head.

"To you who sets foot in this shrine, I am Oman Au. In the name of the Goddess Hylia, I offer this trial."

Shrine? Trial? What trial? Izuku waited, but the voice didn't say anything else. "W-What do you think it's talking about, Link?"

"I'm not sure." Link looked after at the terminal, clearly thinking hard. "I think Rhoam knows far more than he's let on, as that is clearly another object the Slate can interact with. What his game is... we'll just have to see."

Link walked over to the pedestal and inserted the Sheikah Slate. The tablet spun into position and the pedestal lit up orange, followed by the same cool feminine voice. "Sheikah Slate authenticated. Distilling rune..."

The column above the pedestal lit up and characters began crawling down the surface toward the Slate, coalescing into a small dew drop at the tip of the pillar. After what felt like an eternity, the drop fell and splashed across the tablet and pedestal, turning the orange lights blue. Izuku leaned over Link's shoulder and watched as the map on the screen disappeared and was replaced with a short row of empty boxes. One of them lit up, revealing what looked like a red magnet.

Link tapped the box and a little window filled with unfamiliar text appeared. Izuku squinted, but it wasn't written in a language that he understood. "What does it say, Link?"

The warrior didn't say anything as he scanned the small paragraph, but Izuku could see a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. After a moment, the blond looked over at him. "It says that we can use this to move metal objects."

Izuku felt his eyebrows rise. "Wait, how? It's a tablet."

Link shrugged. "I'm not sure. According to the directions, if we point the Slate at an object made of metal..." he casually pointed the tablet toward the steel slabs in the center of the room, "...and tap this button..."

Link tapped the magnet again. A ball of red-yellow light shot out of the tablet and flew toward the center or the room where it collided with the nearest plate. The plate began to glow with the same light and floated up about a meter into the air.

"...the object should float," Link finished, grinning broadly now.

Izuku couldn't speak for a moment. When he did find his voice, words began to pour out of his mouth. "That's amazing! I wonder what kind of Quirk was used to make it. Or no, it wouldn't be a Quirk since we're not on Earth. That means that it probably functions using electromagnetism, though how would that work? Can electromagnetics move objects more than just closer and farther away from themselves? That would explain it if it was the case. Ooh, if only Hatsume were here; I bet she would have a bunch of ideas on how thi—"

The sound of Link chuckling distracted Izuku, and he looked up to see his friend grinning at him. "Was I talking out loud again?"

Link nodded, still laughing quietly. "Very quickly, too. I've never heard anyone rattle off words as fast as you did just then."

Izuku felt his cheeks heat up, and he scratched at the back of his head sheepishly. Link, perhaps sensing his embarrassment, added, "Being curious or analytical isn't a bad thing, so long as you don't start speed mumbling when confronted with an opponent." He waved the Slate and the metal sheet floated off to the left before dropping to the ground in front of the bars. "Now, let's see what those sheets were hiding."

A passageway, apparently. When Izuku looked into the hole that had been revealed by moving the metal, he noticed a ladder leading down to a narrow walkway ran off in the direction of the metal bars, presumably further into the shrine. Next to the walkway, water gurgled flowed out from a grate in the wall and gurgled softly in the small canal, flowing in the same direction as the path. It kind of reminded Izuku of what a sewer in a fantasy game might look like, though much cleaner.

The two didn't waste any time. Link clambered down into the small tunnel first, with Izuku right behind them. Once inside, they could see that it wasn't very long at all, opening up into a larger chamber only a few meters away. A wide staircase led up into the upper portion of the room, which was, Izuku realized, the one he had seen through the bars. The only other remarkable thing in the room was a large metal block sitting in the far corner of the room, and a wall of stone blocks, with another metal block nestled in a little left of the center.

Link eyeballed the wall for a moment before pulled the Slate out again. He pointed it toward the steel block and tapped the magnet icon again. The red-gold ball of light shot out once again, latching on to the block and causing it to glow. Link tugged the tablet toward him, and the block slid out of the wall and out into the air. The blocks above it fell down and toppled forward into the room. Almost like a stairway. For giants.

Clang!

Izuku winced as the block crashed to the floor. It didn't seem like Link was too bothered by the sound, though, as he had already started climbing the goliath staircase. The greenhead hurried forward to follow, but as his hand touched the stone—porous and rough rather than the smooth stone that the rest of the shrine was made of—a thought struck him. "H-hey, Link? D-does this seem too easy to you?"

Link paused in the act of pulling himself up to the next block. He held the position for a moment before hauling himself upward, twisting around so that he could sit at the top of the block and face Izuku. "I've had that feeling since we entered the shrine. This hasn't felt like so much a 'trial' as much as 'instruction.'"

Izuku gulped and pulled himself up, wincing as the muscles in his arms, still a little sore from the training camp, groaned in protest. "S-somehow, that's not terribly reassuring."

The warrior reached down and helped pull him up, and the two of them jumped down the other side into a large, open room. There were a series of platforms in the center of the room that led across to the far side, where two giant doors were set in the wall. Izuku also spotted a ledge protruding from the the wall near the far side of the room that had what looked like a chest on it. Water trickled around the base of the platforms, most likely, Izuku realized, coming from the slipway they had passed earlier.

Link's outstretched hand kept the hero-in-training from walking further into the room. Izuku opened his mouth to ask why, but then he heard; a faint, metallic skittering noise. The sound was accompanied by the sound of sloshing water, suggesting that whatever was making it was down in the small moat. Link stowed the Slate and slowly crept forward toward the edge. He was almost halfway there when a clawed metallic tendril appeared over the side of the platform.

Link watched grimly as the dripping machine pulled itself up onto the platform. He didn't know why his stomach felt like it was lined with lead, or why the machine looked so blight-blasted familiar. Something about the machine, with its spindly legs, squat, glowing body, and single blue eye, filled him with dread that, he imagined, a rabbit might feel when it sees a fox.

"Izuku, be careful. This thing is far more dangerous than a bokoblin."

The warrior didn't wait for his strange friend's response. Instead, he unsheathed his sword and pulled out his shield before slowly creeping forward once more. The dome on the top of the little scuttler swiveled back and forth, its baleful gaze fixing first on Izuku, then Link, then Izuku, before resting on Link. Blue light began to swirl into the eye, causing it to glow more brightly.

wwhhhHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRR!

Pew!

Cruumpt!

Link dove to the side, rolling to a stop next to the edge of the platform and avoiding the bright blue projectile that flew through the space he had just vacated. The sound of the explosion behind him confirmed what he had originally thought; he didn't want to take a hit from this thing if he could avoid it.

He glanced up at the machine before rolling back toward the center of the platform, narrowly avoiding another blast of blue energy. As he came to his feet, he could see another shot charging up. Link cursed again and readied his shield, ready to take the hit. But the hit never came. Instead, he heard a yell.

"SMASH!"

He glanced over his shield and saw Izuku, surrounded by green lightning and kicking the machine. Time seemed to slow down for a moment as Link watched the energy that had built up in the evil blue eye swell before the demon soared across the room and into the far wall.

BOOM!

Debris rained out across the room, clinking against the floor and walls of the shrine and splashing into the water below. A few pieces even reached as far back as the pair, and Link too refuge behind his shield once again, letting the hot pieces of metal deflect harmlessly away.

Izuku's yelp told him that the greenhead—Link still couldn't believe that the boy's natural hair color was green, of all things—hadn't been so lucky. The boy was hopping on one foot while frantically brushing smoldering bits off his strange clothes. "Damn it, that hurt," he said. "That little robot was way more dense than I thought."

"Are you okay?" Link asked. He quickly sheathed his sword and went over to examine Izuku's leg.

The greenhead winced as Link prodded it. "I-I think it'll be all right. I didn't use too much of S-Superpower, so I don't think there's any lasting damage." He gingerly rested some of his weight on it, wincing again. "It's going to be sore for a bit, though."

Link eyed his friend. "Well, we'll keep an eye on it. Maybe don't—what did he say he did to the slime?—punt anything else for now, okay?"

Izuku nodded, and Link sighed. The longer the two of them were together, the more strongly he felt that the two of them were more similar than was probably wise. A thought crossed his mind, and he chuckled to himself. I may not remember my past, but I have the instincts to make sure that I don't repeat it.

Now that he was sure his companion was uninjured—well, mostly uninjured—the warrior turned to look for a way across. A single metal slab, like the two from the first room, stretched between the middle platform and the one the two were standing on, while the space on the other side of the center terrace was empty. He cocked his head slightly, his eyes narrowing as he considered. Surely, it can't be as easy as that... can it? Well, I guess there's one way to find out. He strode across the steel bridge, Izuku limping along behind him, and unhooked the Slate once he got to the other side, tapping the magnesis box as he did so. Within moments, he had maneuvered the makeshift bridge around to allow the duo to cross the second gap, and a few more moments put them solidly on the other side.

Before examining the door, Link used the tablet to lift the steel chest down to the floor. He had noticed it earlier, before the robot had appeared, and from Izuku's nod as he turned off magnesis, he gathered the greenhead had seen it, too.

The chest itself, however, wasn't like the ones they'd found earlier. Unlike the others, there didn't appear to be any sort of latch or lock; instead, there was a circular panel inlaid with orange lights that formed two concentrated circles. There were more lights inlaid in a thick band that ran from the lid to the bottom of the chest.

Link heard Izuku shift behind him. "I-I think I might have an idea on how to open it." The greenhead hobbled past and knelt down in front of the chest. "B-Back home, we have these puzzle boxes that are like little chests that can be opened by moving things around the right way. I think that this is something like them." He traced the patterns on the lid and on the bottom of the chest for a moment before nodding to himself and putting a hand on the panel. Link could see his friend's face scrunch up for a moment, and he wondered if the greenhead had been wrong.

After a moment, Izuku's face cleared, and leaned into and twisted the panel. It spun around silently, lining up the two protruding light patterns with the patterns on the rest of the chest.

Click.

"Got it!" Izuku exclaimed as the lights flashed white and faded into the familiar, brilliant blue. The chest popped open, and Link leaned past the apparent puzzle master to investigate the contents. Inside was a bow and quiver nearly identical Izuku's. The teen extracted the bow and held it out. "Here. I've already got one of my own."

"Thanks." Link slung the bow across his back and hooked the quiver to his belt. "Now, let's find out what's behind that door."

The door proved to be just as simple to solve as the rest of the shrine had been. A simple tug with magnesis caused both doors to swing outwards, revealing a short flight of stairs leading up to a small viewing platform. A veil of shimmering blue light hung in front of the platform and seemed to surround another raised square platform. More interesting to Link, however, was what was on the plinth. Link heard Izuku gasp behind him. "I-Is that a person in there?"

Link ignored Izuku's gasp of realization, walking ahead of his companion. As he climbed the stairs, he noticed that the same oddly familiar eye had faded into being in the center of the veil, almost as if it was a seal. When he got close enough, he reached out and tapped it. The barrier, hard and yet paradoxically soft at the same time, bent under his fingers before molding back to its original appearance.

Light rippled away from the eye and across the veil, revealing that the veil was not as solid as it appeared, but instead was made up of dozens of thin rods of light. Each of these rods began to glow when the ripple effect touched it, going from light blue to a brilliant blue-white. As the ripple finally faded, the veil shattered, spewing shards of energy and light outwards across the room. Link winced and covered his face, but didn't feel anything touch him. He glanced backward to find that the shards had slowed to a halt and were floating in the air, immobile streaks of blue energy. Izuku was looking up at him, eyes wide. The warrior nodded before turning back to deal with whatever he'd unleashed.

That "whatever" turned out to be a mummified figure, seated cross-legged, as if meditating. If it wasn't for the gentle, almost imperceptible rise and fall of the figure's chest, Link would have thought that they had disturbed a crypt of some sort. After a moment, it spoke, though Link could not see its lips move.

"You have proven to possess the resolve of a true hero. I am Oman Au, the creator of this trial. I am but a humble monk, blessed with the sight of Goddess Hylia and dedicated to helping those who seek to defeat Ganon." The monk paused for a moment before continuing, its deep voice taking on a reflective quality. "With your arrival, my duty is now fulfilled. In the name of the Goddess Hylia, allow me to bestow this gift upon you... Please accept this Spirit Orb."

Oman Au stopped speaking, and silence filled the room. After a moment, a purple sphere emerged from the monk's chest and drifted down toward Link. As it got closer, Link could see some sort of stylized bird depicted within, but before he could get a good look at it, the Orb touched his chest.

Link gasped as warmth filled his body. The Orb broke apart into streamers of light that swirled around him before entering his chest at the same point. Link clutched his chest in surprise, and after a few moments, the strange heat faded.

This just gets more and more interesting. The warrior looked back up at the monk and thought he saw the ancient lips twitch upwards. "One final thing. Value your companion and his friends. They may yet prove vital to Ganon's defeat." Oman Au opened his eyes, and they shone with an intense inner light that spoke of ages long past. His lips opened, and his deep voice creaked from age. "Now, may the Goddess smile upon you both."

As the final word faded into silence, particles of green light quickly rose from the monk and started to float away. Within moments, the monk was gone. Link felt his chest again, and he thought he understood why. He squared his shoulders and walked back down the stairs to his dumbfounded comrade. "Come on, we're finished here."

The two retraced their steps through the shrine and soon were back out on the surface. Link blinked several times as the lift came to a stop, trying to get his eyes to adjust to the sudden change in light. Most of the day had passed away, and the sun was low on the western horizon. Which presented a problem.

"We were inside for too long," Link said grimly. "I'd wanted to get off the plateau tonight, but that doesn't look like it'll be possible."

Izuku shaded his eyes with a hand and peered toward the hill where they'd left the old man. "I-I don't see Rhoam anywhere. I guess he went back to camp?"

Link started walking. "Well then, let's go find him."

"Welcome back, young champions!"

Despite his residual irritation at being forced to stay on the plateau another day, Link couldn't help but smile. "Good to see you too, All Might. How did the exploration go?"

The skeletal man shrugged. "Not much to say. The old temple must have been gorgeous when it was in good repair. Rhoam shared some more of its history, and how it used to house sacred relics of great power." The hero grinned suddenly. "I did run into one or two of these 'bokoblins' you talked about. Tenacious little creatures, but nothing I couldn't handle."

Nothing you couldn't handle? What kind of man are you? Link decided that that was a question that could wait for later. Right now, he had more important questions. "Good to hear that things went well. Has Rhoam come back yet?"

The other blond nodded and pointed back toward the sheltered fire. "He's preparing some sort of stir fry."

"Thank you."

Link walked past the old hero and up toward the fire. He had to admit, the old man knew how to cook. The food smelled great, and from what he could see as he approached, it looked tasty, too. Rhoam, for his part, didn't look up from the stir fry until Link had sat down opposite him, and when he did, there was a twinkle in the old man's eye that Link didn't trust. "Oho! It seems you managed to get your hands on a Spirit Orb. Well done!"

Link narrowed his eyes. "How did you know?"

"Clairvoyance!" the old man exclaimed, gesturing with the spoon he was using. He chuckled again. "...or perhaps just something similar. As one gets older, it can become more difficult to see what is right before one's own eyes; however, that which was once hidden from view can often be crystal clear. But perhaps that is not true for everyone, oho ho!" The hermit paused for a moment, and when he continued speaking, his voice had taken on a musing tone. "The appearance of those towers and the awakening of the Oman Au shrine... it is all connected to that Sheikah Slate you carry on your hip there."

The warrior touched the Slate out. "You know that I used this to activate the tower. What does any of this have to do with the Spirit Orb?" Link asked as Rhoam went back to stirring the pot.

"It has been some time since I have seen that Sheikah Slate." The hermit stared into the pot as he spoke. "Long ago, a highly advanced tribe known as the Sheikah inhabited these lands. The great power of their wisdom saved this kingdom time and time again. But alas, their ancient technology disappeared long ago... or so it is said."

He tried some of the stir fry and shook his head. "Just a little longer. Anyway, it is interesting to think how something like that survived all this time, hidden away in a shrine. These shrines are tucked away in numerous places across the land. On this plateau alone, I believe there are still three more. Bring me the treasure from each of those shrines... and I will give you—and your companion—my paragliders.

"T-That wasn't the deal!" Izuku exclaimed. Link jumped; he hadn't heard Izuku and All Might come up behind him, so intent had he been on what Rhoam was saying.

"Oh? Well, I suppose I changed my mind. Consider it as training, for the land of Hyrule is not nearly as safe as it once was. I'm sure that won't be a problem for a couple of young go-getters like yourselves!"

The old man held up a hand to forestall any objections. "It is for your own good and understanding, trust me. To aid you, I will teach you a trick for finding shrines: it's always best to survey the landscape from a high point. Let's see here..." he looked out across the landscape thoughtfully. "How about you make your way to the top of that tower again?"

"You're joking."

Rhoam laughed. "I'm afraid not. But do not worry! I have another little trick to share with you to aid in your efforts. Take a look at the map on your Sheikah Slate."

Link sighed, but pulled the map out anyway as the old man began to ladle food onto wooden plates he had pulled out of his bag. The map looked the same as before, except this time he noticed something different. There were several blue icons on the map, marking the location of the shrine, the tower, and the cave he had awoken in. He looked up from the map and accepted a plate of food from Rhoam. "Are you talking about these symbols?"

Rhoam nodded and continued to hand out food as he spoke. "Indeed. From what I have heard, if the Slate's user taps on one of those icons, they are warped or teleported to that spot. I... do not know if it actually works as such, however."

Link paused mid-bite, thinking. If such were true, it would make travel to other areas considerably easier. "Does it work with multiple people?"

"That, I could not tell you. I suspect that you would have to try it and find out."

The blond nodded and continued eating. The food, a mixture of spicy peppers and meat, was delicious in its simplicity, far better than the fish from that morning. As he was eating, he could feel the warmth from the peppers spread throughout his body, and sweat broke out on his forehead. He grinned; as quirky as Rhoam was turning out to be, at least he could cook decent food.

After a few more bites, he was finished. He glanced over at Izuku, who had gotten seconds. "Do we want to give this a go?"

The greenhead swallowed down another bite before nodding. "I-If we could teleport, it might save us a lot of travel time, especially if we need to visit all four shrines."

"Okay, let's give it a go, then."

Link stood up and pulled the map out again. He paused, considering how to get both of them to teleport, assuming it worked at all. "Why don't you grab onto the Slate as well?"

Izuku nodded and quickly swallowed the last of his meal before grabbing the other side of the Slate. "Ready when you are."

The blond didn't need to be told twice, and tapped the icon for the tower. Immediately, a feeling of weightlessness overcame him as everything around him turned blue. He looked down and realized that his feet had left the ground and were actually floating maybe a span in the air. A glance at Izuku showed that the greenhead was in the exact same position as he was and was just as clearly freaking out a little bit. Link opened his mouth to reassure his friend, but no words came out. Instead, he watched as streamers of blue light started to come off his and Izuku's bodies.

The weightless feeling increased, and within moments, Link was zipping through the air, twisting and turning the wind. He could feel the different portions of his body spinning around each other. He couldn't see Izuku, but he sensed the boy soaring just off to his right, and he imagined that he was in a similar situation.

Just as quickly as it had started, the teleportation ended. Link gasped as his body reconfigured back into its normal state, energy reforming into solid matter. Beside him, he heard Izuku heaving great lungfuls of air, and he couldn't say that he blamed him; the experience had been unsettling, to say the least.

After a few moments, Izuku straightened. "O-Okay. T-That's useful, but I don't think I'd want to do that very often."

Link just nodded. It wasn't his favorite, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant. "We'll need to use it once more to get back over to the cave, but that should be it for now. For now, let's find those shrines."

The two split up to look. It turned out to not be terribly difficult, as each of the shrines was glowing, making them much easier to spot in the rapidly encroaching night. One was located in the center of some ruins, another near the edge of a cliff, and the last at the top of a mountain. Link couldn't help but despair a little bit as he looked out at their varied destinations. He sighed.

Izuku patted his shoulder. "I-It'll be all right. If we leave early tomorrow, I bet you we could get to that shrine in the ruins by noon."

Link repressed another sigh and smiled weakly instead. "You're right. Let's go back to camp. We can deal with this tomorrow."

And here's chapter five! Link and Izuku have quite the adventure ahead of them, one that will probably take far longer than our impatient Hero of the Wild would like.

Speaking of taking a while, it'll probably be about as long in between chapters for the next bit. I've got a book list that's literally as long as my arm for university. Thanks for your patience, everyone! I've loved reading people's responses, and have actually implemented pieces from some of them, as they make the most sense. Hope you all enjoyed, and I'll see all next time.