Chapter Text
It’s been a few months since the defeat of Calamity Ganon, and Hyrule has started to recover after its initial attack. However, despite peace slowly returning to the land, and that the champions are now alive and well, the final battle came at a great cost. Terrako, the Guardian that traveled back in time to save Link, Zelda, and the others from doom, sacrificed himself to give Link and the others a chance to defeat the Calamity. However, it was still possible for Terrako to be rebuilt despite being destroyed, and Link is determined to bring him back.
Our story begins on the Great Plateau with Link by the Shrine of Resurrection as he scans the wide expanse of Hyrule. He sees that life is slowly returning back to normal as people have started to move back into Hyrule Castle. However, something was bothering his mind. Link remembered Terrako being his loyal friend as he will stick by him through thick and thin. He would also remember how the Guardian would bring Zelda great comfort. It hurt Link deeply when he remembered Terrako sacrificed his life to save everyone from Calamity Ganon. He also remembered the moments after the battle when right after the successors were brought back to their original timelines, he saw Zelda glance at the one remaining gear that was all that’s left of Terrako. Link remembered her saying that she will bring Terrako back. He then brings his head back to reality as he states to himself, “Zelda, I will do everything I can to help you fulfill that promise and restore Terrako.”
Link remembers what Purah said that it’s possible the rebuild Terrako back to his old self as long as they had that gear that contains his memories. He turned his attention to the Guardians on the Great Plateau. Most of the Guardians here were destroyed and decayed after the battle for the Plateau. The parts within these Guardians are too decayed. Link figures. I won’t be able to find any of the components necessary to rebuild Terrako from these. Then he spots a fully functional Guardian Stalker as it roams around the Plateau. It is being accompanied by five Bokoblins and a Moblin as this prompts Link to see that this Guardian is still hostile to the people of Hyrule and that it has a Terrako component.
Just before he decides to rush in, he finds Impa right behind him. “Link, you have any luck searching for components?” She asks.
“Impa, that the Guardian may have what we need.” He replies.
Impa takes note of this and examines their defenses. “We shouldn’t just rush in at the Guardian and the monsters. We to plan strategically on how we should go about this.”
“So what do you have Link in mind in dealing with this threat?” He asks quietly.
“I have an idea. I'll deal with the Bokoblins while you deal with the Moblin.” As she briefs him on what to do, the two set off with their tasks.
Impa stealthily circles around the monsters as she creates sounds that lure the Bokoblins away from the Guardian. One by one, Impa stealth kills each of them as they fall into her trap. As soon as the Moblin realizes that its troop is gone, it branches off to investigate. Link his hiding at the top of a nearby tree as he takes aim at the Moblin, and fires an arrow to its head. The shot connects and kills the Moblin, but the Guardian finds Link and takes aim. He readies his shield quickly as he manages to deflect the laser away from him. The Guardian aims again, but Link fires an arrow at its eye and dazes it for a few seconds. This allows Impa to activate her clones after stealth killing the Bokoblins. She and the clones surround the Guardian as they slice off its legs rendering it immobile. Impa leaps into the air and throws several kunai bombs at the Guardian as it takes heavy damage. This allows Link to rush in and stabs the Guardian on its eye. This destroys the automaton as Link tells Impa, “Nice work, Impa.”
“Thanks.” She replies. “You’re not so bad yourself.”
The two of them scrounge the destroyed Guardian for parts, and now they found an Ancient Shaft. This is a necessary component to rebuild Terrako back. “At the rate, we’re going, the Guardian will be online in no time.”
Impa then expresses her thoughts on the matter. “You know, I never thought that I would want to see that Guardian again. I often get into fights with Terrako over Zelda’s attention as well as for the stupidest things. I realize that now that he’s gone, I miss that egg boy a lot, and I want to make Zelda happy by bringing him back.”
Link nods to this. “We should head back to Akkala Fortress. There we’ll be able to deliver it to Robbie and Purah.” Impa nods to this as they head to the nearest Sheikah Tower to be transported to the fortress.
The duo arrives at Akkala Fortress where they head into the Ancient Laboratory to meet Robbie and Purah. They meet the eccentric duo as they make a flashy entrance with their theatrics. “We found an Ancient Shaft that you might be able to use for Terrako. “Impa says.
Robbie takes a look at it and says, “This will do quite nicely! Purah get Terrako’s body ready.”
“Okey Dokey!” Purah says as she zooms into a different room. This excites both Link and Impa to see their friend back.
“Robbie, where’s Princess Zelda?” Impa asks.
“As much as she wanted to be here today, she has to help her father rebuild the lives of the people of Hyrule.” Informs Robbie.
“Princess Zelda must have a lot on her plate right now.” Link says.
“To call it that would be an understatement.” Purah barrels in and brings Terrako’s body into the room.
Impa then remarks, “I’m impressed that you two managed to get the body ready in no time.”
Purah then replies, “Before the Calamity, Terrako had been helping us with our research. At the time, we were examining Terrako’s body while he helped us.” Link gets weirded out that they would do such a thing.
“Link, I assure you that we never dissected him to some degree.” clarifies Robbie. Link is relieved to hear it. The two scientists get to work as they begin to install the Ancient Shaft into Terrako’s body. After 30 minutes, the shaft has been implemented. “Ladies and Gentlemen, our little Guardian friend is near completion!”
However, the two scientists feel down all of a sudden. This worries Link and Impa. “Robbie, Purah what’s wrong?” asks Link.
“Something tells me that there’s one more thing we have to do… what’s the problem?” Impa chimes in.
“We’re missing one more component,” answers Purah.
Robbie states, “That last component we need is an ancient core unit. This item is completely unique to this model of Guardian, and it cannot be found anywhere else in Hyrule.” This saddens Link and Impa as they desperately ask where they could find one.
“We’ve already scanned the entirety of Hyrule, but there was no sign of this.”
Link slams his fist to the wall. “Darn it! Is there nothing we can do to restore Terrako? Link says.
Robbie sighs as well as he then says, “There’s a good substitute that could work.” This widens both Link and Impa’s eyes as they ask where they could find it.
Purah then follows up by saying, “The last component is located in the continent of Fodlan.”
Impa crosses her arms upon hearing that name as Link gets even more curious. “Impa, do you know about this place.” He asks.
Impa decides to answers him. “Fodlan is a land found northeast from Hyrule. It’s populated by humans, and its society is a lot more complex than that of Hyrule. King Rhoam and I went there in secret a few years ago to see if they would be able to help out Hyrule against the Calamity. However, we called it off because the politics of the land are not trustworthy enough.”
“I see, I think I get the gist of it. Also, what makes the people there stand out from those in Hyrule?”
“For starters, some of the people there have powers called Crests. These Crests can amplify certain abilities and give them certain boosts to their physical and magical prowess as well as a tool for social status. The Crests also give them the ability to hold powerful weapons called Relics. I've also heard rumors that a few of these Relics can rival even the Master Sword.” Link gets more intrigued upon hearing that. Impa then turns to Robbie and Purah as she asks, “What exactly are we looking for i. Fodlan?”
Robbie starts first, “The item we need is an Agarthan Core Unit. Its ancient technology that was used by Agarthans long ago. The remaining users of this tech, the Agarthans, were found in the Alliance. Their fortress, Shambhala, is where they kept all the ancient technology.”
Purah chimes in and says. “Shambhala would have been your best bet in finding Agarthan core units.”
“What do you mean?” Impa ponders as she took note of how Purah said it. “Are you saying that it’s no longer there?”
“Correct. The fortress of Shambhala and its city are destroyed along with all the remaining Agarthans.”
“What? What happened?” Link asks.
“A huge Fodlan army led by the Emperor, King, Duke, and a high ranking Church officer destroyed the fortress a few months ago,” Robbie answers him. Ironically, the day the fortress was destroyed was the day we took down Calamity Ganon.” Link and Impa find this intriguing.
“How do you know this?”
Impa answers this by saying, “When the King and I were there, we deployed several minuscule Guardians throughout the continent. This will us help monitor certain parts of Fodlan at the time.” Impa turns her attention back to the scientists as she asks, “Where are the remaining Agarthan core units currently.”
Robbie replies by saying, “We’re not exactly sure where they are, but based on the information we have, the last confirmed location of the remaining core units are located somewhere in Enbarr, the Imperial Capital.”
“The Agarthan Core Units are being kept under high security for some unknown reason.” Informs Purah.
“Looks like we can’t just ask them nicely for them to give us one…”
At this time, Link has made up his mind. “I’ve decided that I’m going to Enbarr and acquire an Agarthan Core Unit.”
Impa gets surprised by this and asks him to reconsider, “Please Link, I know how much Terrako means to you, but it’s too risky, and an incident like that could cause war for both Hyrule Fodlan.”
“I know, but I'll do whatever it takes to bring my friend back. I promise I’ll be discreet in my visit there.”
Impa groans as she sees that Link won’t change his mind, “Alright, since you’re not going to change your mind, I’ve decided to come with you, and help you acquire one.”
“Impa, I can’t have you risk your life for me.”
“I can’t just leave you alone either! If something happened to you, I could never look Zelda in the eye ever again!”
Link sighs; “Alright, we’ll do this together.”
“Glad to hear it. I’ll prepare for the trip, and ask permission from the King. Also, it pains me to say this, but I need to ask you not to bring the Master Sword so that we don’t attract too much attention.”
“Alright.”
“Also I need to tell you that Enbarr is a city by the ocean.” Upon learning this information, Link knows how they’ll be able to get to Fodlan. He doesn’t seem to like it, but he has no other choice. Robbie then places a potential route for Link and Impa to travel to get to Enbarr. With that, the duo goes their separate ways as they prepare to infiltrate Fodlan.
Link immediately heads to Zora’s Domain to ask King Dorephan and Mipha for a favor as both of them are surprised to see him here. Link then prostrates himself before the two to give his respects. “Link, there’s no need for you to prostrate yourself,” Mipha says.
“That’s right.” The king said. “You are always welcome here, and we treat you like you were one of our own.”
“Thank you for your kind words.” Link says.
Mipha then asks Link, “May I ask what is the reason for this visit?”
“Of course. I need your help to get to Fodlan.” He then explains the entire situation to them, and both of them get the full picture of the situation.
“I see…” The King states. “I assume that you will need my daughter and Divine Beast, Vah Ruta to get to Fodlan?”
“That is correct.” Link says. “However, in all honesty, I don’t want to endanger Mipha to any more danger after the Calamity, but I have no choice as it’s the only way I can restore Terrako. I know this is extremely selfish of me, but I have to do it.”
King Dorephan has similar sentiments as he also doesn’t want to endanger his daughter. However, Mipha runs to Link’s side, and tells him tenderly, “Link, it’s alright. I appreciate your concern for me, but I assure you that I'll do everything I can to help you, no matter what the task ‘ may be.”
“Thank you, Mipha and I’m very sorry for putting her through this.” He says softly. Mipha turns to her father as she asks for his permission to take Ruta and escort Link and Impa to Enbarr. Upon seeing the resolve in her face, the King grants them permission. “I promise that I’ll bring Mipha back safely when this is all over.” With that out of the way, the two of them get themselves ready.
Link heads to the nearby areas and starts gathering the necessary supplies for the journey as well as the Eightfold Longsword and the Royal Bow. He also gets the Zora Armor Mipha prepared for him just in case. He then heads for Vah Ruta as he is in awe at the sight of it as he states that he never gets tired of it. “I see you’re nearly finished prepping the Divine Beast.” He calls out Mipha.
As he comes to meet her, she states, “Yup I’m almost done prepping Ruta.” A slight pause happens before she continues. “You know, this will be the first time I’ll be leaving Hyrule. I wonder how different the places are like outside of Hyrule.” Her hands starts trembling as she feels scared. “I have to admit… that I’m scared of the uncertainty… what if-“
Link calms her down by placing his hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry Mipha.” He states. “I promise it’ll turn out fine as long as we’re careful about traveling.”
“Link, I… thank you for calming my nerves.” She says as her excitement returns. “I’ve always wanted to see the Imperial Capital. I heard that there’s an opera house there, and I would like to visit it sometime.”
Link smiles as he states, “We could visit there while we’re there in Enbarr. I’m also very curious about what kind of food they have there, and I would like to get some recipes.”
Mipha chuckles at that prospect. “I look forward to what we see in Enbarr as well as bringing Terrako back.” Link responds to that with a sad smile.
The next day, the two of them are all set to set off to Fodlan when they are rejoined by Impa who is then followed by Zelda and the other Champions. Zelda sees that the three of them are all ready. “We’ll all be leaving very soon, My Lady,” says Impa.
The Princess then asks, “Are you sure there's no way I can go with you?”
“You can’t as it’s too risky for you to go. “If you’re found in Enbarr unannounced, you could spark an incident in the Empire that could mean trouble.”
Urbosa chimes in and tells Zelda, “Impa’s right, Little Bird. The people of Hyrule still need you in this time of recovery.”
This saddens Zelda to a degree, but she knows that both of them are right. “As much as I hate to admit this, I have no choice, but to stay behind. There is still so much work to be done in Hyrule. Impa, I entrust Terrako’s fate in your hands.” Impa nods to this as the Princess turns to both Link and Mipha.
“Princess, we will do everything we can to fulfill your promise and get the last component Terrako needs,” Mipha said.
“We’ll also watch each other’s backs, and be back home safely, My Lady.” Link adds.
This relieves Zelda for now as Urbosa tells the three travelers. “From what I understand, you’ll be entering unfamiliar territory. Remember to keep your guard up once you enter Fodlan.”
The three of them take note of this, “Hmph, I can’t believe that Link is going on a new journey so soon.” scoffs Revali. Daruk smacks the Rito on the back lightly (for Goron standards). “Hey watch it, Daruk! I’m not as sturdy as Link!”
“Do not worry, Revali,” Daruk says. “You’ll get your chance one day. For now, we should support Link with everything we got.” Revali grunts at this as he still doesn’t look convinced.
“Goodbye, Father. Goodbye, Sidon.” Mipha says to her family. “I promise that I will come back alive, Father, and Sidon, please stay strong for the Zora during my absence.” the little Zora responds with a smile as they are ready to set off.
Before they do, Zelda calls for them, “Wait! There’s something I wish to say before you set off.”
“Ok, what is it?” Link asks curiously.
“May I ask if you could deliver a certain message to the Emperor?”
Link and Mipha are bewildered by this sudden request and Impa facepalms herself as she knows what she means. The other champions are stunned by this as they wonder what she meant. “Princess, I understand how much you admire the Emperor, but I also doubt that we’ll get the chance to complete such a request.”
“Impa, what’s Princess Zelda talking about?” Link asks.
“Well…”
“Impa allow me to explain,” Zelda says as she starts talking more enthusiastically. “The thing is I've been monitoring the Emperor’s endeavors through the minuscule Guardians. During that time, I was really impressed on what the Emperor has done over the past four years of her rule.”
“My Lady speaks the truth. During the current Emperor’s rule, Enbarr is a lot more prosperous than it was before.” Link and Mipha take note of this as they are impressed by this.
“Here, take this,” Zelda says as she then gives them a small envelope. “Could you please deliver this message to her?”
Link takes the envelope, and he says, “We’ll try our best to do so.”
“Thank you. I’ve always wanted to say what’s said in the letter to the Emperor.” With this, the trio says their farewells to Zelda and the Champions. Mipha submerges Vah Ruta into the water as it leaves the Lanyaru Great Spring, and makes its way into the ocean.
As the trio reside in Ruta, Link asks Mipha, “How long will it take before we arrive at Enbarr?”
The Zora replies, “It’ll take us at most a day before we get to the continent at the pace we’re going.”
Link takes note of this as he prepares himself for traveling into an unfamiliar land. He then turns to Impa and asks, “Impa, are their several leaders in Fodlan? I remember being told that Shambhala was destroyed by an assault led by four leaders.”
Impa then decides to explain to Link the basic structure of Fodlan society. “There are four major governing factions in Fodlan. These factions are the Adrestian Empire, the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, the Leicester Alliance, and the Church of Seiros. Each of these is led by the Emperor, the King, the Duke, and the Archbishop.”
“I see. What about the high-ranking church officer that led the assault on Shambhala?”
“All I knows is that he’s a professor and an ex-mercenary who taught the current Emperor, King, and Duke. I’ve also heard that the Professor holds the strongest Relic that exists in the land.”
“Is that so… He sounds like someone who I wish I could duel.”
“I’ve also heard rumors that the Professor is supposedly given power from the Goddess of Fodlan.”
Link is astonished by this as he asks, “Is this all true?”
“The bit about the Goddess is just a rumor. However, have to be ready for anything in case we face him.”
“Noted. Impa do you know his name?”
“His name? Hmmm….” She thinks for a while until she caught the correct answer by snapping. “Ah, I think the Professor’s name is Byleth.”
“Byleth… I’ll make sure to remember that name in our time in Fodlan.” Link says that before he goes to sleep as they head to Fodlan.
Meanwhile, in Fodlan, some distance away from Enbarr, a group of Alliance soldiers and Knights from the Church are headed towards the capital. Leading this group is Byleth as he has a lot on his mind right now. He’s unaware of the events that will happen within the next few days in Enbarr.