Chapter Text
Blinking as he emerged into the light, the old man smiled to Link, bowing his head in thanks. His craggy features seemed especially fitting for their surroundings, as though he'd been worn away from a boulder himself.
"Thank you, lad. Wouldn't normally be a problem navigating these tunnels in the dark, but we've had so many new sinkholes these days." He sighed, taking clearly well-practiced steps to a particular cave entrance, waving him to follow. "If my granddaughter were still here...but there's not much a man like me can do about that." His voice was soaked in regret, dripping off every word, and Link's heart ached for it.
He stepped inside, and Link followed after, surprised how comfortable he found this dwelling. Cool, but without the mustiness he'd associated with the countless tunnels and caves he'd had to navigate these last weeks. Carpeted, well lit. with a stocked larder. A simple cloth mat for a bed, and a shelf full to bursting of books. A modest home, but a well-lived one.
Link walked the edge of the room, inspecting it all. Habit more than anything, though he managed to hold back the urge to test the strength of the walls, at least. But one in particular made him stop short. What must once have been engraved runes, now cracked and eroded to illegibility.. And above it, a unfamiliar three-pronged emblem nearly as lost, resembling the talons of some predatory bird.
Tracing his fingers along the edge of the symbol that itched at his mind, he was caught by surprise as the man spoke up behind him. "They haven't been here since the War. Not in Hyrule, at least."
"...who haven't?"
"The Gorons." His smile more melancholy, the old man stepped to his bookcase, running his fingers across the numerous spines. "These tunnels were theirs once. Much better kept in those days, so I've heard. Full of life, full of laughter." Finding what he wanted, he pulled it down, showing a particular woodcut to the young Hylian: a massive figure with wild mane, fists on his hips and head thrown back in laughter, his shoulder marked with the same symbol.
With a chuckle, he nudged Link. "Not much resemblance, I suppose, hm?"
"...what do you mean?"
"Chief Darunia of the Gorons. The Sage of Fire, and my ancestor. I might be the last of his lineage in Hyrule anymore."
Link blinked at him, eyes wide. "The Sages weren't Hylian?"
"Oh, no. That's what they teach these days, but only because there's none left to argue against it. No, the Sages spanned each of the peoples that once called Hyrule home. Goron, Sheikah, Zora..." He shook his head, returning the book to the shelf. "I might look Hylian, but I still have Goron blood running through me. That's why I call this cave home; so as to not let them be forgotten. Oh, I could talk your ear off about them, but I'm sure you have better things to do than to let an old stone like me ramble on."
"No, no, I-"
He chuckled, shaking his head as he began rummaging through a lockbox. "You certainly do, lad." Link glanced away as the old man found what he'd sought. "You have a quest to return to, hm?"
"...how did you-"
"Those pendants you wear. Two of the Pendants of Virtue, no?" Approaching him, he sighed, offering him one more smile. "You're seeking the Blade of Evil's Bane. And by Din but I'm glad someone is. If you can save my granddaughter from whatever foul intent they have for her, I won't be delaying you one instant more than needed."
He pressed something into Link's hand; a silvery disk mounted in a gold fixture, just a bit larger than his palm. A perfect mirror, despite the runic circles of sharp angles and geometric shapes emblazoned in its surface. Link never much cared for mirrors, but there was a beauty to this one; the room seemed brighter in it, and yet at the same time, the shadows seemed sharper. And there was something different about himself...
"An old heirloom from the days of my ancestor, imbued with some of the power of the goddesses. It's said that if you ever find yourself lost, this mirror will help you find your way back home."
Broken from his trance, Link looked up in shock. "Oh, no, I couldn't!"
"Please. It's the least I can do. Now, hurry on, boy; you'll need to make your way to the Tower of Hera, hm? And the best of luck to you."
He nodded, stowing the mirror carefully with his other goods. "And...and to you. I might come back another time, to hear some of those stories?" Link offered a smile in return, clasping the man's shoulder.
"Dangerous offer, that!" With a deep laugh, he returned the clasp. "But I'll look forward to it! Now hurry on, before I start rambling on again."
He pushed on through the tunnels, fending off more Keese than he'd ever seen in his life, swarming about the one who dared to bring light into their dark home. Signs of the once-great city that this had long ago been caught his eye now and then; strangely familiar, now that he knew what to look for, though he hadn't a clue why. A cubby here. Ancient etchings there. If he hadn't thought to look for them, they would have seemed nothing more than more natural formations, but knowing what this used to be, it all but shouted at him.
He seemed to walk the caves almost by instinct, as though he'd been here before; a feeling he'd had time and again, ever since he first stepped out of the sanctuary and truly began his quest. The Lost Woods, the Desert of Mystery, Lake Hylia; places he'd only read of before, that had always drawn his thoughts towards dreams of traveling the lands. Yet every now and then something would spark in his mind, and he'd find some buried alcove lost for years as though he'd been there when it was carved.
Even the rocks that spewed from Death Mountain seemed familiar to him; feeling a rumble beneath his feet, he rose his shield, deflecting a stone plummeting towards him before he'd even had a chance to see it. It unnerved him, these reflexes. They'd saved his life again and again, yet even so, he hated the thought that his body was beyond his control.
As he emerged from the heights of the once-city back into the daylight, his breath was taken by the vista that stretched out before him, the breadth of Hyrule spanning before his eyes. A warm breeze blew about him, pure but for the whiff of sulfur, but the stench hardly registered. The view here, the full scope of the land, it was beautiful, even for all the pain it yet suffered under Agahnim's influence.
Of course, he couldn't enjoy it for long before needing to fend off a few territorial Deadrocks, the vicious lizards pouncing at him with a screech before being knocked into stony stasis.
Reminded of why he was here, he turned away from the panorama and towards the edifice nearer than he'd thought he'd ever be. Behind him, the Tower of Hera stretched up into the clouds; an ancient structure, one he'd often seen when clear days gave him the chance. He'd always been curious what it was, and none he'd asked could say word on it. It had stood long as they could remember, and yet the books they had barely mentioned it. Even the name was a mystery. So much knowledge was lost over the ages, over the strife and violence of history, and however peaceful things had been before Agahnim, so many of the questions he'd raised to his elders still went unanswered for it.
Even then, he'd never even considered that he might one day set foot inside the edifice, and yet now he was mere feet from it. The aged red stone stood out against the blue sky, and he was near enough to see that its marble pillars were decorated with long-worn reliefs; still too far to see detail, but near enough that he knew he simply had to get a closer look.
Yet he was at a loss. The rock face before him was sheer, impossible to scale even for the mere ten feet between him and the tower despite his best efforts. Leaping for the edge, he came away only with raw fingers and crumbled stone.
Blowing on his injuries, he glowered; the idea that his quest would be halted by something as simple as a chunk of stone frustrated him to no end. No new tunnels stood anywhere nearby, no pathways; naught but Deadrocks and stone.
...stone.
His eyes strayed to a particular trio of boulders arrayed on the wide platform. Nothing but remnants of the mountain's eruption, he'd thought, but on closer inspection, they were carved. Eroded, but carved. And similar to the woodcut the old man had showed him. Three Gorons, squatting and staring to a center. And in the stone floor itself, if he looked close, he could see divots running between them. Once-sharp lines that crossed between them, carving out an emblem familiar to any Hylian: the Triforce.
The meaning, though, eluded him. It itched at his mind, like those times past; like he should know it. He stared along the ancient engraving, both curiosity and ancient instinct drawing him to the center. A breeze blew about this structure, swirling around faster and faster as he drew nearer. Reaching the center of the three statues, he froze as the air rippled and sparked. Magic swirled about him, fiery auras that seemed to be imbued with the strength of Din Herself.
Link set himself firm, drawing his blade as he stood ready for whatever threat might show itself. But no beast made itself known; nothing but a burst of blinding light, of pure magic. Bright enough to overwhelm his thoughts into darkness, and powerful enough to rend space itself, forcing him through the reality of the material to the reality of the spiritual.
As he collapsed to unconsciousness, he flickered and vanished. And the ancient magic fell quiet once more.