Just five more minutes.

I have taken some time to recover after the battle in Vah Ruta. I remember so much of Mipha, and my time here in Zora’s Domain, now. There is so much I wanted to say to her, but in the end, I couldn’t manage to speak a single word aloud.

I’m so sorry, Mipha. I couldn’t help you back then. I could barely free your soul now. We were so close then. I think...if you had asked me, up on Vah Ruta before we parted ways, I would have said yes. 

Your brother and father miss you sorely. The others in the Domain as well. The knowledge that your spirit is freed from the corruption of the calamity eases their pain, but I can still see that it weighs on them. I’ll do everything I can to ease their troubles before I go.

I’ve made it inside Vah Ruta. Assailing the outside of the beast was a challenge, but after a few tries, I managed to shut down the water production and give it pause. Prince Sidon gave me a few words of encouragement before I made my way inside, which I sorely needed.

I can hear her voice here. There’s a pain where there was hollowness now, and I can hear the sadness she must be trying very hard to hide, and it makes the pain twinge. I think I understand what it is, now.

I miss her. The memories I’ve regained of her just in the time I’ve been inside Vah Ruta have been telling of the relationship we’d had. Sidon told Muzu the truth, but not all of it. I hadn’t known she’d planned to propose. Or that she’d been concerned about the increased time I had to spend with the Princess. I think she worried about me slipping away from her, into the Princess’ arms. Everything I feel suggests that was about as likely to happen as me waltzing up to the Calamity to give it tender affections, but I do understand why she worried.

I am not a Zora. She wasn’t a Hylian. There are a lot of pressures to be with one’s own kind, especially when one is royalty. Mipha...I’m so sorry. My break to write down my thoughts while I eat is almost at an end. I’ll offer a prayer to the goddesses. For both of our sakes.

I was right. It was too treacherous to ride a horse up to Zora’s Domain. With all of the rain, and monsters, I never would have made it here with her. It took a while, but I made it, and I have been preparing for the outing with Prince Sidon for days now.

I have remembered some things in my time here. It’s strange. It feels like I’m looking through a window at someone who looks like me, a twin, and how they interact with others. I remembered Bazz, training with him, the...the club we had. I remembered Muzu, and the other elders, and their disapproval of my friendships with the younger Zora. I remembered Mipha.

I feel...I don’t know how to describe it. Some parts of me feel hollow, like something important is missing, but others feel weighed down, as though invisible stones were clinging to me. The closest feelings I have to match it with are sadness and loneliness. Whatever it is, I feel it to my core.

Tomorrow morning, Sidon and I are going to tackle the Divine Beast. I’ve gathered as many shock arrows as I can the last few days, and after the Zora Chestplate from Mipha was given to me, I tracked down the helmet, and obtained the greaves from the daughter of the last armorer who made them.

I think I’m as ready as I’ll get. I’m going to do my best to free Divine Beast Vah Ruta from it’s state. I don’t know if I’ll manage it, but I’ve got to try.

I have done a little investigating and information gathering, and I think I know which Divine Beast I’m going to attempt to tackle first. The most pressing of them all at the moment seems to be Vah Ruta, as it’s causing flooding and could rupture the dam, which would put a significant portion of Hyrule underwater. Not only would it cause all of Zora’s Domain to be destroyed and countless Zora lives to be lost, it would reach untold losses among others as well, considering how far the destruction would reach. Next up would be Vah Rudania, as Death Mountain erupting from it’s antics could reach near as catastrophic levels as Vah Ruta. Vah Medoh after that, and then finally Vah Nabooris. Vah Medoh and Vah Nabooris are mostly a danger to the villages they’re directly near, but Vah Medoh is much more mobile, and more likely to decide to veer off in a random direction, which could pose a significant threat to others.

I’m gathering materials and equipment for my trip to Zora’s Domain. I don’t know that I’ve mentioned her yet, but I have a horse, and she’s currently in the little stable and field next to the house I bought, and she’ll make the trip significantly quicker than it would be otherwise. I don’t know that I’ll get her all the way up to the Domain, considering how many monsters are there, and how much it’s raining, but even if she only gets me to the stable at the start of the path, that’s just that much I won’t have to walk.

The way between Hateno and Kakariko is pretty familiar at this point. I’ve traveled the road enough to where I can get between them without much trouble.

I’ve done enough monster hunting to sell spare parts I’ve removed and cleaned for potions, and after talking to everyone in Hateno Village, I’ve learned about a house that’s been abandoned. It’s taken a little work to gather enough wood and sell enough to get the rupees for it, but I convinced Bolson, the construction company’s leader, to let me take the house off his hands rather than destroy it. It feels...familiar, somehow. Like watching it be destroyed would be like losing a part of me I didn’t know was there.

It’s going to take a little bit longer for me to pull together enough rupees to fix it up properly, but Bolson says I can take my time. 3,000 rupees is a lot to drop on one purchase, and I had enough left over to get a bed and a door installed.

At least now I have a place to stay while I’m not traveling around, and I can focus on getting things done...I have somewhere to store my spare equipment and tools, to cook food and make potions, to rest when I need to. I no longer need to worry about that, and I can sit down and plan where I’m going to start with my mission.

Free the Divine Beasts...that’s what I’ve been told to do. Which one to start with?

Back at Kakariko. I have new tasks to fulfill, and I am still confused and overwhelmed. I don’t know how to deal with all of this.

Looking at the photos that were unlocked on my slate, I feel...nothing. No familiarity, no sense that I’ve been there before. Impa says the locations that the photos were taken may jog my memory.

I’ll be heading out in the morning, so I’m spending my time now maintaining the equipment I’ve obtained, and stocking my travel bag with necessities. I have plenty of food to work with, and I’ve gotten enough rupees to buy some armor, but my weapons and shields have an alarming tendency to break.

I recognize that I’m not writing down my thoughts as often as I’d like. There’s just so much to put down, and not enough time to do so.

I get to make my way back to Impa, now that my Slate’s runes are repaired properly.

Purah gave me a bit of trouble. Little scamp. I’m not sure how to feel about her. Definitely tired, though.

I’m going to check in at the inn. Relax until it gets dark, and then sleep until morning.

My trek from Kakariko to Hateno has been eventful. Met a lot of monsters and a new friend. Also some monsters masquerading as Hylians. I am...unenthusiastic about those ones.

My new friend is a dog. Quite large, has strange markings. I’d like to say we bonded over campfire-roasted meat. He’s very friendly. And aware that villages are difficult, for him.

I did my thinking and made my way to Kakariko. Speaking with Impa was less illuminating than I’d hoped. I’m staying at the inn for tonight, and heading out to Hateno in the morning.

I’m so confused. I understand the story I’ve been given, but...there’s so much I don’t know, so much is missing.

Goddesses preserve me.

I completed all of the shrines, obtained the treasures, met the old man where he asked...I knew he was lying to me. I never would have guessed how much.

There’s so much I have to do, and my head hurts with all of the information he shared. Impa...I guess meeting Impa is the next step in this mess. I’m going to find a safe spot to camp for the night, and I’ll set out first thing in the morning.

Second shrine is completed. I’ve gotten the Bomb runes now.

I’m not feeling much better this morning.

I am partway to the next shrine, and can’t help feeling frustrated. Why not just say he wanted all of them from the start? The runes are helpful, and I’ll be glad to have them, but it’s more than a little irritating that he’s obviously hiding something from me.

Maybe I just need to take a break and eat something.

He knows a lot about the slate and how it works, for there being only the one I have.

“Slow down for a moment, my courageous friend,” he says. “I have yet to finish speaking!”

Forgive me for thinking you were done. You stopped speaking. Perhaps less pausing for dramatic effect, and more getting to the heart of matters, is a good plan.

Not that it will help me much, considering the old man is asking for more treasures.

The voice and the old man called this device a Sheikah Slate. The device has many things called Runes, which perform different functions depending upon which one I pick. I currently have the Map rune, which displays an interactive map that I can place pins and stamps on, and the Social rune, which is the one I’m on right now.

I think it’s safe to assume this is meant to act as a way to contact others who have a Sheikah Slate, but as I don’t know anyone else who does, I think I’ll use it as a journal.

The old man has offered me his glider, in exchange for some treasure from the shrines nearby. He says it’s the only way down off of the plateau. It definitely looks too high to jump safely, and I don’t think I can climb down without hurting myself either, so I suppose I don’t have much choice.

I’ve gotten a few supplies for the day between the place I woke up and here, but I’m going to need to keep sharp to find more. I will update again after I have gotten the treasure the old man’s asked for.