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Cover by Ruebird on Tumblr

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My (e/c) eyes fluttered open slowly, catching sight of the grass I'd fallen asleep in. I rose up to a sitting position and turned my head around, searching our campsite. Despite the full night of rest the boy had gotten, he remained sleeping soundly at my side. Often during the night, I'd awoken to look around and ensure that there wasn't anything trying to kill us, and not once had he stirred. I leaned forward and situated myself so I was laying on my stomach, propping up my chin with my arms. His breathing remained steady as he slept. I reached forward and moved a stray strand of blonde hair from his eyes, before shaking his shoulder gently. The sun had risen and it was about time to pack up and leave. He snored and rolled over. I sighed, shaking a bit more violently. Finally, he gasped and opened his eyes, not sure why he was being shaken. I released his shoulder and smiled as he looked over to me. "Oh? Morning (y/n)," he greeted.

I nodded as I rose to my feet, extending a hand to offer him help. He took it and I raised him to his feet once more. "Sleep well, Blondie?" He nodded. "Good. We're going to need to do a bit of hunting if we want to eat this morning." Link stretched and yawned tiredly as I began gathering up my stuff. I returned all my essentials to their place and took a drink of water before offering the bottle to Link. He took it and drank. "So, where are we going anyway?" I stood up and took my bottle back. "Just down the mountainside until we come across any sort of animal." He nodded and I grabbed my spear as we began our decent down the mountainside.

We'd traveled decently far when we stumbled across another person, who I presumed to be Hylian. He was traveling down towards a camp consisting of a small fire and a log. He wore a dark hood and clutched a walking stick in his hand. He turned his head slightly at the sound of us approaching, and we saw that he had a long, frosty white beard that covered a large portion of his front. I placed a hand on Link's chest, unsure whether or not we should proceed. The old man chuckled and turned back to his campsite. "There's no need to be scared, my dear." I grimaced. His slightly creepy attempt at comfort was rather unconvincing. Link gently pushed my arm down and moved closer to him. "What?" I hissed. Link shrugged. "I don't think there's anything to worry about. Besides, there's only one of him, and two of us." I rolled my eyes. "You tried to hunt me with a twig yesterday. Not sure I trust your fighting prowess."

My words were ignored as Link continued down the mountainside with less caution than I would've preferred. He approached the old man and greeted him. "Hello. It's rather odd to meet strangers around here." I walked up beside Link, pushing him a little ways behind me. "So... Who're you?" I asked him accusingly. His gaze shifted to meet my (e/c) eyes and he shook his head. "I'll spare you my life's story. I'm just a old man who's lived here on his own for quite a long time now." Link edged out from behind me to question the old man. "Where are we?" He asked curiously, as though he couldn't of just asked me that question. The old man shrugged. "I believe we were fated to meet today, so I will tell you. We are all currently on the Great Plateau." He rose to his feet and pointed to the rotting temple that lay not far from his campsite. "There is a temple who was once home to many sacred ceremonies. Unfortunately, it has been forgotten for a century, and it has wasted away." Link and I exchanged a curious glance, unsure of why the man had pointed out the decay of the building, and no other sights around the plateau. The old man shrugged and sat back down, the lantern on his walking stick clinking as he did so. "I'll be here for a while. Let me know if I can be of service." I nodded slowly and grabbed Link's hand, leading him away from the old man. "Thank you, we'll be going now..."

After that disturbing encounter, Link and I continued on. I walked a ways in front of him to scout ahead and ensure nothing would jump out at us. Occasionally, I looked over my shoulder to see if Link was still alright. He gave me a nervous smile each time. I turned my head once more to look for Link, only to find him standing about, looking around him. I walked back and asked him what was wrong. "I-" He removed the slate from his hip. "I heard a voice. A woman... She told me to go to the place that was marked on my... My Sheikah Slate?" I gave him an incredulous look and took the slate from him, examining the map. Sure enough, a glowing orange symbol had appeared a ways away from us on the Great Plateau. "Huh..." I returned the slate and shrugged, asking him what he'd like to do. "We should head there. Hunting can wait right? We've found quite a few apples on the way over here."

"Yeah I guess, but are you sure you want to trust this random voice you heard?" He looked back down to his slate for a moment and nodded. "Yes. What's the worst that could happen?" I rolled my eyes. "We could be walking into a trap and be horribly murdered by thieves." He gulped and returned the slate to his belt. "I'll try not to think about that. Come on, it's this way." I followed him closely as we made our way to the point on the map. Along the way, I crouched down in the bright green grass, raising my spear over my shoulder. I aimed at a nearby boar and threw it, hitting it directly in the head. We walked over to the site and collected the materials it'd left, before continuing on to the point.

As we walked, Link halted in front of the old temple, staring into the decaying building. I placed a hand on his shoulder and he looked to me, his eyes reflecting his curiosity. "Can we go in?" I nodded. "Yes, but stay close to me." I said as we ascended the many rotting stairs that led up to the temple. At the entrance stood a red bokoblin, prancing about excitedly at the sight of us. I lifted my spear and struck him twice, effectively killing off the obstacle. Link crouched down and took a horn from the creature, as I had mentioned how you could sell monster parts for rupees once you made it into town. He had looked at me confusedly when I'd mentioned going into town. He didn't know how I'd managed to get down from this plateau in order to visit the neighboring towns. I'd only sent him a mysterious smile and led him on through the green plains.

We stepped forward through the entrance and looked around, marveling at the putrefying architecture. Link walked off, opening a nearby chest and retrieving a bow. I smiled. "Know how to shoot?" He shrugged. "I feel like... I do but, I don't remember ever doing it." I scoffed and continued further into the temple. Link returned to my side as we reached the giant stone statue of the Goddess. I sent a quick prayer to the Goddess, and Link followed suit. The statue seemed to smile down at us as a beam of light shone through the broken rafters of the roof. I grabbed Link's hand and turned on my heel, knowing that we'd already explored the entirety of the building, or at least what was left of it. We carefully stepped over the crumbling stones that lay around the temple as we continued the trek to the point on the map.

Eventually, we had reached the point. At first glance, there was nothing special about it. A bit of ancient technology lay buried under the ground after years of neglect. Link continued walking forward to other side of the protruding building. I reached out and rested my hand on the technology until I heard a scream. I turned just in time to see the ground beneath Link crumble away, letting him drop to whatever lay below the building. My heart leapt into my throat as I approached the edge. I peered over cautiously, only to see Link sprawled out on his back lying on the floor of yet another layer of the mysterious building. "Link?! Are you alright?" I asked from above. He groaned but sat up, rubbing the back of his head. He sent me a halfhearted thumbs up and mumbled something like "Yeah, yeah." I breathed a sigh of relief and moved around the building to where the earth began to slope, following that trail down to Link's elevation. He was up and standing near a podium that was glowing a soft orange light. We both stared at it incredulously before he removed his Sheikah Slate and placed it into the opening.

A loud rumbling sounded and the ground shook beneath our feet. "Ah! What did you do?!" I yelled, struggling to be heard above the cacophony. Before Link could respond, we were lifted skyward as a giant tower emerged from within the ground. The tower glowed a bright blue and settled down, ceasing its movement once it had reached its full height. Link and I stared at each other in shock as the podium in the center of the tower began to scan the area, sending the information back to Link's Sheikah Slate. I rushed to the edge of the tower to examine the surrounding area. Everything looked minuscule from this height, and I could almost see the entire plateau. I whistled in amazement and turned back to Link. "Hey kid are you seeing thi- Kid?" Link looked bewildered as he stood in the center of the tower, staring down at the pedestal in front of him. "Y-You alright Link?" He stumbled to the edge of the tower, staring off to the castle in the distance. The ground shook and his eyes widened, as though he'd come to a realization. I grasped his shoulder to steady him before staring off into the distance with him. A storm of darkness swirled around the ancient castle, seemingly responding to the towers that had sprung from the earth. Link turned to me, his eyes still wide. "I've been... Asleep for a hundred years?" I pursed my lips, concerned for his wellbeing. "I-I don't know. Let's get down from here, Link." I said, nervously steering him away from the edge of the tower. We stood next to the opening in the tower floor, peering down at the many steps that led to the ground. I readied myself and began my descent, dropping down from ledge to ledge as Link followed suit.

In a few minutes, we were on the ground once more. I shaded my eyes with my hand and squinted, staring at a figure that was growing closer in the sky. Soon enough, the old man from before was standing in front of us. He packed away his parasail and brought his walking stick out once more. I stepped closer to Link and sighed, still not trusting this man. 'He has a parasail too...' I mused as the man spoke. "My, we have quite the enigma here. Towers have risen all over the land." He gave us both a knowing look. "Almost as though an ancient power has been awoken." He stroked his beard thoughtfully and stared up at the looming tower, now glowing with blue light. "Tell me..." He shifted his gaze to us once more. "Did anything occur whilst you were at the top of that tower?" Link and I exchanged a glance, unsure of how much information we should entrust to the man. "I-I heard a voice." Link said.

I tilted my head. 'So he's been hearing voices, huh?' The old man hummed and tilted his head. "A voice? Did you recognize it?" Link shook his head. "That is most unfortunate. I assume you two have already seen the darkness that is encircling the castle. That is Calamity Ganon. One hundred years ago, that evil force rose up and came close to destroying our world. Many were killed, but now it is contained by Hyrule Castle. But alas, this barrier cannot hold forever. Calamity Ganon gains power with each passing day, and eventually he will rise up to claim this world once more. This day is fast approaching." Link swallowed nervously as the old man faced him. "Do you intend to go there, courageous one?" Link nodded and I grabbed his shoulder. "Link, to go there now would be suicide! What do you intend to do once you arrive?" The man chuckled. "Protective as always, Lady (y/n)." I looked up to him. "What is that supposed to-" Link cut me off. "What do I need to do to reach the castle?"

The old man nodded and gestured to the surrounding area. "Currently, we're atop the Great Plateau, and we are distanced from the rest of the world due to the steep cliffs that circle this land. There is no way down them, unless you'd like to die a horrid death. Unless of course, you had a paraglider like mine." He sent me a curious glance as he said this, and I held tightly to my spear. I didn't intend to tell Link I had one of my own. We needed two, or else Link would have to travel alone. I was not going to allow that. "How much do you want for the paraglider?" I asked impatiently. The old man chuckled. "I'm afraid I'm not looking for money. Instead, how about the two of you bring me a bit of treasure?" I titled my head. "Treasure? Where exactly?" The old man began walking up the hill. Link and I sighed and followed closely, until the man stopped and pointed to a mysterious glowing building. "These building began to glow at the same time as these towers sprung up from the ground. I do believe they house some sort of treasure. Sounds like a fair exchange, yes?" I placed my hands on my hips, clearly distrusting this man. This could just as easily be a trap. Link agreed to the man's request and grabbed my hand, leading me to the building. "Link?! What're you thinking?" I hissed as soon as we were out of earshot of the mysterious man. Link grabbed my shoulders and gave me a stern look. "(Y/n), I really don't know what I'm doing here, but so far, I've just been doing what feels right. I feel like I'm supposed to be here with you... Like I've done this before.... But I also feel like it's our job to destroy Calamity Ganon, and make everything alright again!" I blinked and rubbed my arm awkwardly. "Kid, I know what you mean. But, please be careful. If you're planning to be the hero, you can't get killed just yet, got it?" He nodded and sent me a heroic smile. I couldn't help but laugh at his behavior as we continued on to the mysterious building. Once we arrived, Link placed his Sheikah Slate on the adjacent podium, which opened the door to ancient shrine. We stepped inside and situated ourselves atop the glowing circle that lay in the middle of the building. The circle glowed blue and I held tightly to Link's hand as we slowly descended into the darkness below.

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