The three selected to travel to Death Mountain make sure they have everything they need before setting out. Impa puts on a pink fire suit since they are heading into the heat of the volcano. The guard of her helmet is up so she can see as they walk. She puts a bunch of potions into a bag she carries over her shoulder, and her weapon hangs from her opposite waist. John's outfit is dark blue where the fabric rests. He hooks his helmet onto his back, since it might take them a while to get to the Eldin region. He moves his sword to his side and rolls up the sleeves for now, leaving the metal gloves on. Ethan chose the red outfit, which is pleasing to him. His helmet is hooked onto his side, since there is no room on his back due to his axe. Though his armor and weapon are pretty heavy, he is starting to gain a lot of muscle from all of these fights. It's getting a bit easier now to run around with all this stuff on. He barely even trembles anymore upon carrying the two handed axe.

After saying their goodbyes and good lucks to the others, they head north for the mountains. Impa leads the way, carrying the map, giving the boys enough time to enjoy the scenery. There are a lot more people walking around here than in the game, Breath of the Wild. It isn't until they reach the area north of Lanayru when the crowd starts to thin out. They find a small forest line where Ethan leans against a tree. "You guys mind if we stay here for a few minutes?"

John and Impa instantly agree, wishing themselves to rest for a snack. They take out some wrapped goods that Julia made for the ride. Stuffed rice balls, sliced apples and carrots (with a small dipping sauce she made), and some hylian herbal tea she put in separate containers from their water. John reheats the tea by making a quick fire and they enjoy the small lunch.

"This is great," Ethan says. "Nothing like a little trip to the mountains to talk to Gorons."

"Weren't all the Gorons wiped out in the time where you're from?" John asks, making Impa raise a suspicious eyebrow.

"All but one," he corrects. "Poor guy traveled around the sea, trading old artifacts. All of the Gorons were wiped out in your world though, right?"

He nods. "This will be rather strange for me. I've only read about Gorons in old books. Even then, we took those as old fairy tales. The war between the Hero of Time and Ganon was like a story parents use to keep their kids from wandering around at night." He turns to Impa. "So, when you started telling the story about the Six Sages, I could piece together what you were saying."

John tunes out the rest of the conversation, not really knowing where that information came from. He's never played Link Between Worlds, and yet he knew exactly how to respond. It's almost as if he gained the memories of the hero from that time. Some aspects of the story are still foggy, but he remembers certain things, like who his friends were, what Zelda looks like, and that someone does give him this bracelet in order to merge into walls.

Ethan feels the exact same sensation, although he has played his game before. He feels as though he was the hero, viewing the memories from the hero's eyes instead of just playing it on screen. Like John, some of the events are blurry, but nonchalant ones are as vivid as the shining bronze of his gloves.

The two of them gain Impa's attention once more as she says, "We should arrive by morning if we keep walking. Let's make it to the hot springs before it gets too dark, then we can set up camp."

"Awe heck yes, hot springs!" Ethan beams. John rolls his eyes playfully as Impa lets a small smile form on her face. She hopes the side of the helmet covers it up, but John notices.

The sun starts to set as they pass the first valley of hot springs. The air is so fresh from the steam that it seems like the perfect place to relax. Ethan takes off the metal parts of his outfit, then helps the others do the same. He puts them in organized piles along with their other weapons and supplies.

Impa, now in a pink turtleneck with no sleeves, stretches as she sits by their things. She puts all of her hair down and crosses her legs, starting to meditate. Ethan knew they would be traveling past hot springs, and brought a towel just in case. He heads over to a spot a long way from camp so he can privately have a small dip into a pool. It's honestly the most relaxed he's ever been since he got here, the water seeping into the small wounds he's gotten from battle and mending them. John does roughly the same thing, but decides to just lie by the pool and steam. Now that all of his armor is off, he feels more comfortable just wearing a blue tank top and brown pants. At one point, he dips his face into the water and lets the warm droplets trickle down his skin. Both boys took their weapons with them just in case.

About an hour passes by and Impa opens her eyes. She leaves the fire going so John and Ethan can find their ways back, but decides it's time for her to sleep now that the moon is rising. The crackling of the fire and gentle wind sings her to sleep.

He has no idea how long he has been in the hot springs, but once his hands start to prune, he knows it's time to get out of the water. Quickly, Ethan dries off and puts his long sleeved red shirt back on along with his pants. He is just about to pick up his axe to travel back to camp when he hears a scream. Ears instantly perking up, he grabs his weapon and runs in the direction of the noise.

On the way, he passes John who is in the same fight or flight mode. "What was that?"

"I don't know. It sounded like it came from-" John is cut off by another scream. "Camp."

Now even more worried, the boys sprint back to where they know Impa and their supplies are. They arrive to see the fire was put out, and there is a new figure there. He has a purple cloak on, and is standing with one foot on Impa's wrist. A golden trident is aimed at her neck.

"I won't ask again," the cloaked figure growls. "Where are the two men of whom you're traveling with?"

"Let me- AGH!" Impa yells once more. In one stroke, the man swipes at her neck and leans more heavily on her wrist, snapping it.

"Next time, I will make sure to slice your head off! Now, where-"

"ASSHOLE, GET OFF OF HER!" Ethan yells, gaining their attention.

"No, guys! Run!" Impa says. With ragged breathing, she hooks her feet around the man's long cloak and pulls down, making him choke and stumble backward. Ethan quickly helps her to her feet while John jumps up with his sword, and tries to stab it into their attacker.

The man quickly rolls out of the way, smirking, and grabs his trident by the neck. "I was hoping to run into you two." Without wasting another breath, he dashes at John with a stab. He lifts his arm to quickly dodge the attack then brings it back down, locking the weapon in his grip. Now that the man is closer, John tries to stab him once again with his free hand, but he expertly grabs his wrist. John gasps, trying to wiggle free, but his fingers give out and he drops his blade. Only the man's smile can be seen behind his hood, but John's attention is more focused on his arm. He feels the man make a move for his bracelet, so he tries to jerk away and kick him, but misses and gets kicked in the shin instead. At this moment, the man is able to dig his fingers under John's bracelet. He frees his trident and goes to cut off John's hand, but Ethan shoulder-bashes him away.

He takes his axe and starts swinging, the metal of his weapon scraping against the gold of his opponent's. The man is forced to take on the defensive, stepping backward every time a blow is dealt. But then, he manages to swipe at Ethan's face. Although the attack missed, Ethan gets a clear view of the weapon. Andrew.

Seething, Ethan glares at the man and yells, "What did you do to my brother?! Answer me!"

"Hmm," the man hums through his teeth. His smile widens upon seeing how upset Ethan is getting. "He was the easier of the two to dispose of."

John pauses, absorbing the information as Ethan yells in rage. Gavin. Without even thinking, he picks up his sword and rolls behind the man. He lunges, but the man instantly vanishes and the attack goes through Ethan instead.

Impa gasps and runs over to them, clutching her broken wrist. As Ethan falls to his knees, John catches him and keeps him from lying on the wound. "Oh my- oh my- Ethan, I'm so... what did I just...?"

Impa takes over his position, allowing John some room to breathe. He looks at his hands before raking them through his hair. After a few moments, his gaze turns to their things and he instantly starts rummaging for a healing potion. He finds Impa's bag and shakily picks up a bottle of red liquid.

"W-we have to get the sword out," John stutters.

"Okay," Impa says. She turns to Ethan who is still kneeling against her, trying to keep his eyes open. "I have to do this. It's going to hurt for just a second, okay?"

He grips her shoulders and nods. Impa takes hold of the sword's handle and pulls it toward her, quickly taking the weapon out of his abdomen. Ethan yells in pain and falls to the floor completely, and she makes sure he doesn't hit his head. "Now, John. The potion."

Without another word, he opens the bottle and pours the contents into Ethan's mouth. His breathing slows and becomes more even as the wound closes, and the two let out a sigh of relief.

John gets another potion for Impa to heal her wrist, and then sits down at the opposite side of their burnt out campfire. He stares at the blackened wood, watching the remaining streams of smoke swirl into the sky. The fingers on his left hand play with the bracelet on his wrist, many thoughts swimming through his mind.

How could he be so reckless? Isn't that Andrew and Gavin's job? But, once he heard that the man "disposed of" Gavin, all logic and reason just flew out of his head. The only thing that he could see was the glowing, golden trident the man was carrying, and knowing Ethan was right. It was the one Andrew used to wield. Over and over, John repeats to himself that the man was lying. There is no way those two could have... been killed by him. It had to have been a hoax to get a reaction out of them. And, it worked. He stabbed Ethan... John's face falls into his hands and he starts rubbing his fingers against his forehead. It's so lucky they brought three healing potions because they truly needed them. But, now they only have one left, and this easily could have been avoided.

Impa feels her wrist mending itself, but it is still tender so she rests by Ethan. She lets his head lie on her lap as he sleeps, her non-injured hand filing through his hair. What did that man want with John and Ethan? All doubts that they weren't the chosen heroes from the past are now completely gone. If that man went to such great lengths to find and harm them, then it's no longer a question of if they are real, but why. Why were they sent here? And, knowing this man was looking for them, they came back to save her anyway.

She looks at John, who seems completely distraught, and feels immense pity for him. "It wasn't your fault."

"I attacked. I wasn't thinking. I just don't know what came over me."

"I had the same thoughts when I saw the weapon that man wielded. But, I assure you that your brothers are still alive. He didn't even mention Gavin or Andrew before Ethan brought them up. I know he would have been gloating about it to me if he did kill them," she reasons.

"You're right."

"You will see them in a few days, I'm sure."

John takes a deep breath. "Okay." He stands and crosses the campsite to pick up his sword. He travels to the nearest pool to wash the blood off it, making John feel better as it shines in the moonlight. As he walks back to the group, he finds Ethan and Impa asleep next to each other, so he decides to take the first watch. There is no way he's letting them get ambushed again. After about three or four hours, he wakes up Impa and she lets him sleep the rest of the night.

The boys wake up to the smell of eggs burning over the campfire. Impa hums a little tune which sounds exactly like Zelda's Lullaby. She kneels by the fire, stirring the eggs until they are cooked. "Rise and shine, sleepy heads," she says, peeking her face over her shoulder. "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better, thankfully," Ethan responds, sitting up easily. All of the pain from the fight last night is gone, the only evidence of soreness being from sleeping on the ground.

John doesn't respond, but combs his hair with his hands to make himself look more presentable. The two of them huddle around the fire and share breakfast with Impa. After their energy is replenished, they put their armor back on and start walking up the slope of Death Mountain.

"Hey," John speaks up for the first time that morning.

"What's up?" Ethan asks. He is taken aback by a surprising, very tight hug.

"I'm so sorry."

Still astonished, Ethan takes a moment before smiling softly and returning the gesture. "Don't worry about it, man. I was seeing red, too."

Impa breaks the boys apart by sliding between them and hooking her arms around their shoulders. "Alright, you two. Let's go recruit a Sage."

The climb up the mountain is a lot less intimidating than Ethan thought it would be. Him and John easily scale the mountain, which makes him think it was the best choice to send the two of them here. Whenever Impa gets stuck on a ledge, she uses her Sheikah training to vanish and teleport to a better vantage point. In no time, they arrive at the mouth of Goron City.

And it's completely empty.

At first, John thinks it's the waves of heat in the air making his eyes see things. Or, rather, the absence of things, but there are no Gorons to be seen at all. "This doesn't make any sense," he says breathlessly. "Where is everyone?"

"Let's check the chief's house," Ethan suggests, and Impa leads them there.

On the way, they peek inside the other abodes. Upon not seeing any Gorons, a sinking feeling manifests in their chests. Impa enters the house of Daruk and bites her bottom lip nervously. "Something isn't right here."

"You think... it was the work of that man?" John asks.

No one gets the chance to answer because an explosion booms over their heads. The ground shakes as what sounds like rocks fall on top of the roof. Quickly, they all rush outside. Ethan looks above them and quickly spots the problem. "Up there!"

"What is that?" John asks, shielding his eyes from the dust.

"It's an igneous talus!" Impa answers. "It's a monster made purely of rock, and this one seems to be fueled from the fires of the volcano!"

The talus lifts a giant rock fist and slams it into the side of the mountain. Debris breaks free and once more starts falling toward them. Not really knowing where to go, the three brace for impact. A few moments pass and he doesn't feel the rocks even brush against his skin, so Ethan slowly opens his eyes and looks past his arm. A Goron is standing there in front of them, crossing his arms over his face and creating a huge, red shield as the rocks come crashing down. After everything clears away, the Goron turns to his visitors and breathes a sigh of relief. "How's it going, Impa? Long time, no see."

"Impa gasps, instantly smiling. "Daruk! What's going on?"

"Well," he starts, stretching his shoulder by swinging his heavy weapon around, "it was a day like any other when that igneous talus suddenly appeared. It was attacking the city, so I evacuated everyone to the mines. I was just about to head up there and fight it myself when I saw you three."

"Ah, right! Daruk, this is Ethan and John," Impa introduces. "They're heroes from a distant la-AH!"

More rocks fall, and Daruk puts up his shield once more. "Let's save the formalities for later. How's about we tackle this thing together, then you can catch me up to speed?"

Without needing to be convinced any further, the three of them agree and they start following Daruk up the mountain. Luckily, there is a pathway they can follow. Daruk is way faster than them because he can easily grip onto the steep edges, so he takes care of any stray monsters that might be blocking their path. Mostly, it's kees and rock octorocks he needs to worry about.

"Ugh," Daruk groans, "This is insane! The city hasn't gotten overwhelmed by avalanches like this in decades, and now of all times?"

"I think we know the reason," Ethan says quietly to the others.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," John says, changing the subject. As he crosses a bridge, he looks over the edge and notices monsters of a higher capacity taking another path downward. "Please don't tell me that's where the mines are."

"Damn it," Impa whispers under her breath. "Daruk! Monsters are going to corner your people in the mines!"

The goron chief instantly turns around to see for himself. Sure enough, handfuls of fire moblins, bokoblins, and wizzrobes are passing right by them. "It's like the talus is a distraction!" he says.

"Impa and I will help the people. You and John tackle the rock monster!" Ethan orders quickly.

Daruk smiles with a thumbs up and jumps next to them. "Grab on. I can get us up to the top in no time!"

"Are ya sure?" John asks. He's in temporary shock at the suggestion of Daruk giving him a piggyback ride up a flipping mountain.

"Dead serious!" he responds, smile never wavering.

"Okay, just be- AH!" Right as he grips onto Daruk's shoulders, the chief leps up and starts climbing quickly up the mountain.

Impa and Ethan hold onto each other as they slide down the side, realizing that's the fastest way to get to the mines. Once they reach a level platform, they take off running. "We need to get to the front and cut them off from the people!" Impa instructs, which is exactly what Ethan was thinking.

Even though they reach some of the monsters, they only have time to quickly slash at them as they keep running. Impa takes a few deku nuts out of her pocket and throws them on the floor, using the sparks to vanish and appear right above a moblin. She lands on its shoulders and stabs it in the collar bone, then uses the momentum to roll away. As she sprints, she lowers her head and quickly slashes her kodachi at a handful of enemies' knees. Ethan is following behind her, yet a bit slower. His swings take out more enemies in one swipe, and me makes bokoblins go flying before they poof into smoke. A wizzrobe tries to shoot fire at him, but he uses his weapon to parry it away and onto a nearby lizalfos. He slashes his axe vertically, but just misses the feet of the hovering wizard. Impa looks back and sees him grit his teeth in frustration, so she uses another deku nut to teleport over to the shoulders of a moblin. Instead of attacking it, she jumps off and finishes off the wizzrobe instead. Landing next to Ethan, she gives him a smirk.

"Looked like you were having a bit of trouble there," she teases.

"If I was only a little taller," he jokes back, making her genuinely laugh. Together, they continue to run to the mouth of the mines.

This was definitely the craziest but most brilliant plan, John thinks as he attacks monsters on the way up the mountain. He is able to hook his legs around Daruk in a way that his right hand is free enough to kill any monsters with his sword. This way, Daruk doesn't need to worry about getting hurt as he climbs. In no time, they make it up the mountain and onto the cliff where the talus is.

It's a lot bigger than John imagined. His eyes widen as he regains his footing on the floor, and is able to size up the monster. It's probably just a little bit taller than the Guardian they faced back at the canyon, and its entire body is coated in lava, dripping from the cracks in the rock. Every time it moves, it oozes liquid fire that singes the ground below it. On its shoulder is a black rock that looks like ore. It doesn't take a genius to guess that's its weak spot.

"Don't get too close to it, now," Daruk says, taking a protective step forward. "Hylians can't take the heat of an igneous talus."

"Noted," John responds. "Ugh, I can't believe I'm saying this, but having a person who wields an ice rod would be very useful right about now."

The rock monster notices them and raises its fist. Its first attack is to throw its entire arm at John. Luckily, there is enough room for him to roll out of the way, but the move made him get separated from Daruk. Thinking quickly, he yells, "Flank it!"

The goron nods with a chuckle, trying to gain the monster's attention. However, as the two of them run up to it on either side, the talus chooses to face John. It crushes its weak side into the ground, picking up rocks to form another arm. This time, John sees where the joints would be and forms an idea in his head. He jumps, kicks off the wall to gain height, and slashes down at the talus's new elbow before it could absorb its body's lava. The rocks crumble, but in doing so, it blocks his escape route. Unable to roll away this time, the talus succeeds in stomping on his ankle. John yells in pain, only able to keep himself up by leaning on the rock behind him.

He looks around for anything at all he can use, but the only thing that comes to mind is his bracelet. As the talus raises its only fist, he takes a leap of faith and merges into the talus. Instantly, he knows it was a terrible idea. His entire body erupts in flames and he is forced back outside.

"John!" Daruk yells with worry. He jumps off a ledge and lands on top of the talus. Desperately, he tries to attack the ore on its shoulder, but the rock starts tossing him around. Not having any other option, he is forced to cling onto its back so as to not be flung.

Still shaking a bit from his burns, John wraps his fingers around his sword and lunges forward from his sitting position. He cuts off the talus's legs, giving Daruk a chance to finally punch the ore off. He leaps with a flip, landing between the hero and the rock monster, and creates a fire shield around the two. The monster explodes, sending small, flying rocks in every direction. Once the debris settles, Daruk extinguishes his shield.

"Th-thanks," John stutters.

"It's no problem, kid! Say, that was a pretty neat trick you pulled off with trying to merge into the rock. But, oh brother, it looks like that did a number on you!" Carefully, Daruk scoops John up and looks around. "We gotta get you back to your friends. What's the quickest way...?"

In the distance, they hear an echoing noise and the clanging of metal.

Ethan and Impa finally made it to the opening of the mines. They tried to defend it at first, but started to quickly get pushed further down the tunnels. "If we can meet up with the gorons, there's another exit we can take," Impa explains. "It might be better if we lose the monsters in the caverns."

"How do you know so much about the area?" Ethan asks.

She pauses for a moment, not really knowing how to respond. "Well, in the past, the Sheikah and gorons have always been close." Once she says this, he remembers how Kakariko Village is always at the foot of Death Mountain, so that makes sense. "I... would visit Daruk often, and hope he would be able to teach me more about the sages. Purah was born with powers. I had to learn how to fight, how to protect her."

He glances over at her as she turns her head away. The two stop jogging for a moment, realizing there are no monsters around. The mines sparkle with pockets of ore surrounding them. Ethan notices how it makes her red eyes shine with glimpses of different colors. "It's hard being the one not chosen," he says, and she turns to him.

"But, you're a hero. You were chosen."

He shakes his head. "Was I? I mean, everything that happened, I was going in blind. I learned things along the way, got stronger as I fought more monsters. It seems like you made yourself a hero just like I did. Nothing gets handed to us, not even the sages. We all have to work for it."

"That's..." Impa brushes her hair behind her ear. "The kindest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thank you. And, thank you for before, when you saved me at Hyrule Field."

"It looked like you could have used some help," he responds with a wink.

She rolls her eyes at her words being turned against her. "Yeah, yeah."

The moment is unfortunately disrupted when a lizalfos peeks its head around the corner and spits fire at them. Impa yelps, but he grabs her wrist and pulls her into a narrow tunnel. "This way!"

Once they reach the other side, they finally find the hiding gorons. The one nearest to them gasps and says, "Lady Impa!"

"Phoe-goro! It's so good to see you. Listen, we don't have much time. Monsters have entered the mines. We need to head to the east exit."

"Our recons just said the same thing. We were just heading out!" the goron replies. "We have the miners in front leading the way. Follow us!"

Together, everyone starts heading for the exit. Occasionally, a lizalfos will catch up to them, but before it can attack or run away to get more monsters, Ethan and Impa take care of it. Luckily, it doesn;t take long for the massive group to find the end to the tunnels. The bright afternoon light shines as they reach the uphill slope of the caverns.

"Keep going, brothers!" one miner at the head of the group yells. "We're almost there!"

Right before the first goron could exit, giant boulders fall and slam on the ground, trapping everyone inside. "NO!" Impa yells, and runs to the front. She slashes the rock with her kodachi, but nothing works.

When Ethan catches up to her, he gestures for her to stand back before he attacks it with his heavier weapon. Still, nothing. "What could have...?" his voice trails off as he puts a hand against the rock. The talus must have done this.

However, the answer to that question doesn't matter. The group of monsters finally find them, pinning them in place. Impa and Ethan quickly make their way back to their posts, protecting the citizens. They hold onto their weapons tightly, waiting for the hundreds of monsters to make the first move, when something shines in the corner of Ethan's eye.

At first, he dismisses it, thinking it's the shimmer of the ore. But, it catches his attention once more and he turns his head to see it. A silver baton in the ground. Without thinking, he dashes over to it and drops his axe, choosing to point the baton at the monsters instead.

"What the heck is that?" Impa asks right as a bunch of fire kees shoot at them.

The gorons and Impa duck to dodge them, but Ethan waves the baton in such a manner: Up, Left, Right. You've played the Wind's Requiem. With his free hand, he gestures forward, and a huge gust of wind flies past him and the gorons. All of the monsters lose their balance and fall, no matter how hard they try to stand their ground. Once the wind dies down, Ethan raises the baton again and he conducts this instead: Left, Center, Right, Center. You've played the Command Melody. He isn't sure how it was going to work, but now wherever he points his baton, the moblin in front of the group starts moving. Impa chuckles as she catches what's going on, watching as the Moblin starts beating itself with its own club.

"How are you doing that?" she asks.

Ethan laughs. "I'm the Hero of Winds, and I was just gifted the Wind Waker."

After a few moments, the monsters seem to come out of their shock and decide to start running at the sight of their comrade punching itself in the face. Ethan feels a boost of confidence enough to chase after them, but before he can an explosion makes the rocks crumble away. A beam of light shines through the exit of the cave, and they all walk outside. Impa and Ethan exit to see the gorons all cheering and applauding to the sight of their chief on top of a giant mechanical gecko.

"No freaking way," Ethan says, smiling. "Daruk found Vah Rudania."

Impa and Ethan walk with the rest of the gorons back to the city to make sure everyone stays safe. After receiving many thanks from the citizens, they make their way to Daruk and John to get to their side of the story. Ethan is beyond amazed at the sight of Vah Rudania. It's exactly like how it is in the game, except not dark when he first steps inside. It's a lot easier to get around as well, all of the traps not being activated. He leads Impa up the stairs to the outside platform where Daruk is controlling the Divine Beast.

He is using his Sage of Fire powers to activate it, his hands covered in fire as he deals with the controls. "This is the coolest thing ever!" he keeps repeating until he notices the two newcomers. "Ah, you two! It's about time. I was told one of you has a healing potion."

"Why do you need a healing potion?" Impa asks. She gets her answer when Daruk nods his head to John who is sitting, leaning against a wall.

"Hey, guys," he says breathlessly. "I may have had a hard time with the igneous talus."

"Oh my-" Without finishing his sentence, Ethan fumbles for his last potion. He quickly takes it out and gives it to his friend who is very grateful.

"Ugh, thanks. Remind me never to merge into a wall of fire ever again."

"Excuse me?" Ethan asks with a chuckle. "I leave you for one battle and you try something as crazy as merging into a fire wall? What happened?"

Daruk laughs and retells the story of their side of the fight, John filling in some blanks. As the story goes on, Ethan has to massage the sides of his head to destress himself. Impa is just impressed the two of them were able to take down a powered up talus alone.

"I remember having to run and get help from a group of gorons whenever I would run into a talus," Impa recalls. "I can't believe you survived!"

"That's not all," John says. "We hopped on the Divine Beast to get back to you guys, but as we got over the ledge, we saw someone use magic to block the exit to the mines."

"Don't tell me," Ethan groans, and John nods.

"It was the man who attacked us earlier."

Daruk scratches the back of his head. "We instantly scared him away when I shot at him with the Divine Beast's power, but the damage had already been done. I had to find a good vantage point to destroy the rocks blocking the mines, but also make sure the rocks wouldn't make the caves... you know, cave in."

"I wouldn't worry too much about it. I was able to stall the monsters with this," Ethan says smugly.

"A stick?" John asks.

"It's the Wind Waker! Gosh, sorry it's not a fancy wall bracelet, but it's my gift from the goddess!"

"Ah, I remember hearing about the Wind Waker very vaguely. How did you come across it?" Daruk asks.

"Well, now might be the perfect time to tell you what's going on," Impa says. The four sit down on top of the Divine Beast and explain to Daruk the coming of the Calamity. They also tell him about the six heroes who have jumped across time to help them with this war, and how they are recruiting the sages to pilot the Divine Beasts.

"I love it!" Daruk exclaims. "Of course I'll be the captain of this beast. I want to do everything in my power to help you out. Hehe, Calamity Ganon won't know what hit him!"

"That's amazing, Daruk!" Impa says with a sigh of relief. "You have our thanks, and that includes Princess Zelda and King Rhoam as well."

The goron chief jumps to his feet and scoops everyone up in a giant goron hug, cracking their backs in the process. "This will be great! I can't wait to meet the other pilots and train together. Woah, WOAH!"

The weight of everyone together makes him lose balance, and Daruk falls backward onto the control panel. The Divine Beast opens its face and a blue beam shoots out of it. John scrambles to his feet and says worriedly, "Uhh, is that a problem?"

Daruk laughs nervously. "I-I'm sure it didn't hit anything. See? It's aimed at the sky. No big deal!"

"Yeah, you and the other pilots are going to need a lot of training indeed," Ethan says, once again rubbing his forehead with his fingers. Daruk powers down Divine Beast Vah Rudania and the four of them head to Goron City to celebrate their victory with rock sirloin, and barrels of what the boys find out to be mead a little too late in the night.