Darkness…. Surrounds me. I… I’m… floating, or is it drifting? There’s nothing around me, much like the past… however long I’ve been here. It feels like no time at all, but also forever. I know there’s some sort of passage of time, since there are points where I’ve been alert and aware of my current predicament, but there’ve been just as many where I ‘slept’, I guess.

How did I get here? Where is ‘here’? And, more to the point… who AM I? I must have had a name, right? People have names… I think? It’s very hard to focus, sometimes, due to the nothingness around me… I can’t feel anything, either. Am I dead? Is this what being dead is?

If so, being dead sucks! It’s so boring! This is such BS! If I’m dead, then HOW did I die? Why don’t I remember my life? I must have been alive in order to be dead now, right? I don’t FEEL dead, though…. Wait, something’s happening! FINALLY!

A voice and a golden light break through the blackness. A girl’s voice, too!

“Link…. Link, open your eyes…. Open your eyes! Wake up, Link!”

As the voice resounds, the golden light turns blue, expanding across the entire void I’ve been trapped in. It fades, and I feel EVERYTHING now. I’m not floating; I’m lying on my back in a shallow pool, in some kind of glowing bathtub. There’s an array of glowing cyan lights above me, and, when I sit up, I’m only wearing a pair of shorts. Weird. And uncomfortable. Raising my hands to my head, I feel my hair. A long fringe that almost reaches my eyes, two long bangs flowing down to my shoulders, and a ponytail that hits the nape of my neck. For some reason, I’m not feeling cold, despite the fact that I was lying in water until a minute ago… and… I’m in a cave, for some reason? Why was I in a bath, in a CAVE?

Upon looking around, I spot a pedestal, glowing with more blue lights. When I approach, the lights on the angled top of the pedestal brighten, and a series of clicking noises echo from the plinth, something inserted into the top rotating and levering upwards. I hear the girl’s voice again. She’s nowhere to be seen, though. It sounds more like she’s in my head, than anything.

“That is a Sheikah Slate. Take it! It will help guide you after your long slumber.”

A long slumber? Shrugging, I reach out, and pull the Sheikah Slate free. It feels… like I’ve seen this thing before, and yet… I can’t remember ever laying eyes on it. As I hold the device, a portion of the cave wall slides up into the ceiling, leaving me a way out.

In the next room, amidst an assortment of crates and barrels, I spy two chests, with a mark on them that tickles a strange sense of melancholy. I feel like I should know that insignia… shrugging off the feeling, I kneel beside the first of the two chests, and pry the lid open, with a muffled squeak, the contents mine to claim, since no-one seems to be around.

A pair of trousers and some shoes! Yes, something to wear! Turning to the next chest, I find a matching shirt. It’s a little too short, but at this point, I’m too happy to have something to cover myself. Beyond the chests is another pedestal, with… orange lights on it? Huh. Maybe…

When I approach, the voice fills my mind again. “Hold the Sheikah Slate up to the pedestal. That will show you the way.”

I hold the Slate up, slipping it off my belt. Its presence causes the pedestal lights to flash blue. A voice, not the same one as the one in my head, chimes, “Authenticating…Sheikah Slate confirmed.”

A strange mark, shaped like an eye with a tear running from the centre of the bottom, lights up on the door as it slides into the ceiling again, letting warm, golden light spill into the chamber, and I hear the girl’s voice again.

“Link… you are the light-our light- that must shine upon Hyrule once again. Now, go…”

I guess my name is supposed to be Link, then? It doesn’t feel right, but I don’t remember if it was always my name. And Hyrule… who’s that? Or is it a place, and not a person? Approaching the doorway, I head through, up a flight of stairs. The short ascent ends at a muddy, puddle-filled climb. I guess the stairs are broken in this spot, but the place they would’ve continued seems easily climbable.

Grabbing onto the rough stone and scaling it without much trouble, I find the other half of the stairs. This rock seems like it was part of a blockage. It looks like it’s been here for ages, though. This place clearly isn’t natural, it was BUILT. So… why did I wake up alone? Where are the people who should be here? Shaking my head, I press on, up the stairs, into the light.

Grass meets my feet, soft and thick, as I exit onto a cliff! Running to the edge, I stare out, looking over the vast expanse of trees below, turning my head, before spotting someone, an old man judging by the enormous white beard, heading down the nearby trail, towards a small fire. Looking around, I reach down and grab a branch off the ground. Without my memories, I’m vulnerable, and I don’t know where I am or who that guy is.

Making my way down the trail towards the fire, I pause, spotting a large cluster of bright red mushrooms with orange spots. Something about them seems like they’re edible. Maybe I’ve eaten these before?

The mushrooms seem to vanish as I ponder about how I can take these with me, and, when I feel the Sheikah Slate hum on my hip, I remove it from my belt and bring it to my face. Somehow, the mushrooms are… inside it? It even has something to say about them!

“Hylian shroom. A common mushroom found near trees around Hyrule. Eat it to restore half a heart…”

So, that answers one question. Hyrule… is a place! As I start to put the Slate back, the girl’s voice rings out again! Seriously, I just woke up! I think.

“Link… Link! Head for the point marked on the map in your Sheikah Slate.”

I have a map?! Oh thank whatever kind soul left me this thingie! I thumb at the device’s face for a few minutes. Each touch seems to bring up a different page, like a book. Some are blank, and a notification appears. ‘The Sheikah Slate has been damaged’. Aw, nuts. Maybe I can find someone who can fix it, or something?

 On my way further down the path, I see a tree, a few red, shiny spheres hanging from its branches! Climbing up, I pluck two, and they vanish just like the mushrooms. On the ground, I check the Slate, and it confirms my suspicions.

“Apple. A common fruit fond on trees all around Hyrule. Eat it fresh, or cook it to increase its effect.”

Was I a cook? Or did I just enjoy eating? Something tickles the back of my non-existent memory, and I shrug, stowing the Slate at my hip again, approaching the fire. The old man is sitting by it, apparently dozing. Something smells… divine! What IS that wondrous scent?!

Scanning the ground, I spot the source. Lying next to the fire, just out of reach of the flames, is something brown and steaming. I reach out, picking it up. The Slate chimes in, and I read the new entry that just popped up.

“Baked Apple. Direct heat has softened and sweetened this apple. Eat it to restore three quarters of a heart.”

As I read, the old man roars at me.

“I BEG YOUR PARDON! I do believe that is MY baked apple! You can’t just go about taking whatever you please!”

I stumble back, hands up, almost dropping my Slate and the apple I’d inadvertently stolen. The old man laughs, and I look warily at him.

“Ohohoho, forgive me. I could not resist pulling your leg. Please, help yourself. An apple and an open flame make for a succulent treat, young friend. It is a bit strange to see another soul in these parts.”

I sit by the flames, closing my eyes briefly as the blessed warmth soaks into my bones. Opening them again, I ask, “Who… who are you?”

“Me? I’ll spare you my life story. I’m just an old fool who has lived here, alone, for quite some time now. But, what brings a bright-eyed young man like you to a place like this?”

A pang runs through me when he says that, but I don’t know why. Brushing it off, I ask, “Where are we, anyway, sir?”

“Hmm. Answering a question with a question. Fair enough. As I cannot imagine our meeting to be a simple coincidence, I will tell you. This is the Great Plateau. According to legend, this is the birthplace of the entire kingdom of Hyrule.”

The old man stands and gestures down the path. “The temple there… long ago, it was the site of many sacred ceremonies. Ever since the kingdom’s decline, 100 years ago, it has sat, abandoned, in a state of decay.”

He turns to look at me, sidelong. “Yet another forgotten entity. A mere ghost of its former self…”

Sitting down, he returns to staring into the flames. Feeling bad for him, I simply rise, offer an awkward wave, and leave, heading to check out this temple. Maybe I’ll find a clue about this place, or about who I am…

Making my way around the bend and up towards the temple, I can’t help but feel a connection with the ancient, decrepit edifice. It’s clearly seen much better days, but it’s still got an air of grandeur about it, despite everything. Suddenly, a ball of blue slime with bulging eyes drops down from the branches of a tree. I instinctively yelp and smack it with my tree branch. It bursts with a satisfying ‘pop!’ and I end up with a blob of something the Slate refers to as…

“Chuchu Jelly. A gelatinous substance that came from a Chuchu. It’s unusable in this form, but applying a bit of elemental stimulation will change its form.”

That blue blob was a Chuchu, then? Huh, okay. Hearing laughter and snorting from nearby, I approach a bend in the path. There’s a drop, and two boulders sit on the edge. Looking down, I see two red-skinned, pig-like creatures. Something about them just SCREAMS ‘enemy’, and I judge the odds. With only a tree branch, and outnumbered… yep, time to use my brain! I set my hands on the boulder, testing it. It rocks with a push. Perfect!

Leaning my full weight into the huge stone, I push, throwing everything I have into it, until… away it goes! Rolling down the steep slope, the massive rock crashing into the pig-men, and they burst in clouds in purple-black smoke, leaving various things strewn in the pillow-thick grass.

Descending the slope with care, I sort through the things left behind. Two crude clubs, which seem better than nothing for defence, as well as a few other things.

“Bokoblin Horn. The severed horn of a Bokoblin, a creature often encountered on the plains of Hyrule. It isn’t edible, but it can be tossed into a stew with some critters to make an elixir.”

There’s another horn, and something else.

“Bokoblin Fang. A tooth obtained from a Bokoblin. It’s worn down and not very sharp, but it’s still pretty hard. Cook it alongside a critter to make an elixir.”

Returning to the path, I’m set upon by two more Chuchus, which pop just as satisfyingly as the first, thanks to my new club. Snagging the jellies they left behind, I grab more apples from a nearby tree, as well as a new plant.

“Hyrule Herb. This healthy herb grows abundantly in the plains of Hyrule. Cook it before eating to increase the number of hearts it restores.”