Summary: The attack on Hyrule intensifies as monsters emerge from additional shrines. Link's recollection of shrines he completed long ago provides a possible insight into which shrines are corrupted.

It was a typical cold, clear evening as two Gerudo guards sat huddled on either side of a lit fire pot beneath the awning of the small platform atop the Northern Icehouse. Usually, only one guard would be stationed here. But Queen Zelda had spoken to Chief Baleria a week ago about her unease, and so the Captain had doubled the guards in some locations.

"Sarqso! That was tasty, Sarge, spicy and sweet at the same time," said Lana as she swallowed the last bite of a spicy steak they had shared and followed it with a gulp of water. "It really warmed me up! What did you use to give it that flavor?"

"Just two pinches of Goron Spice," said Salana. "Don't overdo it, or your mouth will burn like Death Mountain."

Lana laughed.

The fire pot provided warmth during the cold desert night, as well as the ability to cook a light meal. Alongside each of them lay a Gerudo Spear and a Golden Bow along with an assortment of arrows that could be replenished by Tab if necessary. Aside from their voices, the only other sound was the whistle of the brisk north wind that blew down from the Gerudo Highlands. To the south, you could make out the tall rocky spires of Gerudo Town in the distance.

The Northern Icehouse was something of an anachronism in modern-day Hyrule. Like horses, it was a throwback to an older and simpler time, and most people in Hyrule were entirely satisfied with their own ice. But Gerudo purists, including many who frequented the Noble Canteen, claimed that the ice from the Northern Icehouse made for better-tasting drinks. And so, the icehouse remained staffed with an attendant and supplied Gerudo Town with ice on a regular basis.

"Nothing like doing night duty at the Icehouse," laughed Lana as she picked up her Tab again. "But I shouldn't complain. I was guarding the Chief's residence last week, and that was a nice soft duty in town."

"I was stationed at Kara Kara Bazaar last week," said Salana. "It gave me a chance to check out the Voe who passed through. So far, though, all I can say is, ugh."

"I hear you," laughed Lana, not looking up from her Tab.

"But, at least there's a beautiful view from here," said Salana. "The stars are so bright, and the whole desert lays before us. You should put your Tab down for a few minutes, Lana, and enjoy it."

"You do get a nice view from here," said Lana, putting her Tab aside for the moment and looking to the south. "But I'd still rather be sitting in the canteen right now, sipping a Noble Pursuit and laughing it up with friends."

They sat quietly for a few more minutes, enjoying the warmth of the fire. Finally, Lana spoke up as she noticed the time on her Tab.

"I guess it's my turn to check on the area," said Lana.

Lana stood up and made her way down the small ladder at the rear of the platform, then climbed to the top of the rocky structure above the icehouse and behind them. She couldn't help a small shiver after leaving the warmth of the fire pot, and steam from her breath was visible in the cold night air. The moon shone over the uppermost rim of the Highlands, and it helped illuminate their surroundings.

Lana didn't see anything unusual, and that's what she expected. The cliffs were empty of movement, and the desert sand remained still. Though, as she looked back at the sand to the west along the base of the cliffs, it did seem lumpier than she remembered from her last inspection. She squinted, then used the long-range lens feature to look through her Tab for a better view. Yes, her eyes had not deceived her. There were some odd shapes in the sand now, quite a few of them, in fact. It was an unusual arrangement of the sand. Had the wind done this?

And then she nearly fell off the top of the crag as she lost her footing and jumped back in shock. Red eyes had suddenly appeared in her Tab view of the strange shapes lying in the sand.

"Holy Nabooru!" she exclaimed as she scrambled back to her feet.

"What's wrong?" Salana shouted from the platform below and stood up.

This better be important, Salana thought, or they would both get an earful in the morning if they woke the icehouse attendant below for no reason.

"Look to the west!" said Lana as she made her way back down to the lookout platform.

It was still hard to make out, but now they could see dozens of lizards rising from the sand. They must have managed to sneak there and hide, camouflaged. Almost all of them began making their way south. At the same time, there was a thud as an arrow embedded itself in the underside of the platform they were standing on.

"Get down!" Salana hissed as she squatted down and pulled Lana down alongside her, kicking the firepot off the platform onto the sand below in the process. They positioned their shields over themselves for protection.

"I'll call this in, but they won't believe me, so be ready to confirm it," said Lana.

Salana nodded and kept looking about as Lana contacted headquarters.

"There are dozens of monsters heading toward town!" cried Lana.

"That you, Lana, at the Northern Icehouse?" said the guard who answered. "I hope you're not drinking on duty. Could you repeat that?"

Lana had something of a reputation as a party-loving person who enjoyed a good drink or three. The last thing the guard in town wanted to do was sound a false alarm based on her hallucinations.

"This is Sergeant Salana," said Salana as an arrow made a clanging sound bouncing off her shield. "Sound the alarm at once! Dozens of enemies are heading toward town from the north, and we're under attack here as well."

"Understood," said the guard. "And they're monsters, you say?"

"Yes, lizard shaped creatures that walk on two legs and shoot arrows," said Salana.

Lana ended the call, and then they began considering how best to defend themselves. Luckily, the icehouse attendant locked the thick door at night, so she should be safe. And access to their position was quite restricted. They should be able to pick off any enemy one by one if they attacked. They both threaded arrows into their bows and waited. But the army of Lizalfos was not much interested in the icehouse. Their objective was Gerudo Town.

When the alarm sounded in Gerudo Town, Chief Baleria jumped out of bed and quickly dressed. A moment later, her Chief of staff, Galena, appeared.

"Chief, monsters are reported approaching in force from the north," exclaimed Galena.

"What? Monsters? How many? And have we sealed off the town?" said Baleria.

"Yes, the town is being sealed, and guards are rushing into position," said Galena. "The report came from the Northern Icehouse, and the word used was 'dozens.'"

"Dozens? I'll be right along," said Baleria. "Alert Hyrule Castle Command and see what they can do. 'Dozens' sounds ominous."

So, Zelda had been right, thought Baleria. She wondered if Naboris would be needed.

Meanwhile, at the Hyrule Castle command center, battlefield information was coming in rapidly. General Haston occupied himself with commanding the army and coordinating the defense of central Hyrule and the Castle itself. Alerts had also gone out to all the villages to be prepared for possible attacks. Zelda was busy reviewing what was taking place throughout Hyrule.

"We have a report Gerudo Town is under possibly massive attack and is looking for help," announced one of the officers monitoring communication.

"We don't have any troops stationed nearby," said Haston, looking up.

"Let's ask the Rito if they can assist," said Zelda. "Revali will be overjoyed that we need their help again. I'll be hearing 'told you so' for a while if we come through this. I'll speak to their leader personally. Speaking of the Rito and Gorons, has there been any word of attacks from either of them?"

"No, Your Majesty," said the communications officer.

Zelda called the Rito Elder, and, as usual, when the call involved matters of combat, he asked Revali to join him.

"Two things, and I'll come straight to the point as time is of the essence," said Zelda. "Can you send some archers to help the Gerudo? They are under large scale attack from north of their city. Secondly, can you scout throughout Hyrule and report any monster activity you see and where it is originating from? Our understanding is monsters are emerging from Sheikah shrines, and I fear we have detected only some of them."

"I wonder if this isn't a job for Medoh?" Revali asked, always eager to pilot it in battle.

"Maybe, if it comes to the defense of your village, perhaps," said Zelda. "But it will take too long to fly Medoh all around Hyrule. We need scouts sent in every direction at once to locate the origins of these attacks."

"I was also thinking of using Medoh to repel the siege of Gerudo Town," said Revali. "I believe Medoh is vastly superior to Naboris."

"If the combat is at close quarters, we don't want Medoh demolishing Gerudo Town in the process of repelling an attack," said Zelda. "I still think it's better to send archers for now. And please, let's all work together on this and not try to prove superiority. Naboris is quite capable as well."

"Very well, Your Majesty," said Revali. "Leave it to me, Elder. I'll work out the details and mission assignments. And I'll prepare Medoh, just in case."

"Please hurry with the archers to Gerudo Town," said Zelda. "Their message sounded desperate!"

They ended the call, and Zelda shook her head. Revali was an amazing Champion, though she thought he had semi-retired. But he seemed unwilling to give up his role, and his ego sometimes got in the way. She knew she could count on his support in the end, though. He loved Hyrule as much as anyone though he liked to hide his true feelings. And besides, she thought, he could never resist an opportunity to earn some bragging rights.

She sent a message to Baleria that Rito archers should arrive soon to assist, then returned to learn what else was new. But as she neared the communication area, she suddenly felt faint and had to stop and grasp the wall for support.

"Your Majesty? Are you all right?" said a nearby guard who rushed over to assist her to a seat.

She hadn't been sleeping well all week and hadn't eaten anything lately either.

"Would you mind getting me something to eat?" Zelda asked as she sat and held her head. "Whatever you eat while on duty here is fine."

The guard rushed off to get Zelda some rations.

Meanwhile, in Gerudo Town, the Lizalfos force had arrived at the town.

"Here they come!" shouted the Gerudo Captain. "Keep your positions on the walls! Shields up and spears ready!"

Gerudo guards had taken up positions all around the walls. Gerudo archers with Golden Bows were positioned higher up and were already starting to pick off individual Lizalfos. They primarily targeted any Lizalfos who stopped to fire an arrow their way. Even so, some Lizalfos reached the walls and attempted to scale them and enter the town. Guards used their spears to repel them, but that left them vulnerable to arrows, some of which hit the Lizalfos instead of them. Apparently, monsters did not worry about killing their own kind in battle. The Gerudo were experiencing some losses, too, though.

Baleria stood by the Captain.

"How does it look," Baleria asked.

"Not good," said the Captain. "We're barely holding our own for now and destroying scores of them. It's a ridiculous way to attack us and wasteful of their lives. But there are simply too many of them. Their number seems limitless."

"Hang on," said Baleria. "Rito archers are on the way. I'm going to activate Naboris and try to eliminate more of them before they get too close to town. I'll teleport there now."

The Captain nodded, then ran off to assist with the defense.

Baleria activated her Tab rune, and an instant later materialized at the travel gate on Naboris. As was her custom whenever she entered Naboris, she bowed her head and said a silent prayer to Urbosa. Then she made her way to the main control unit and activated it. Naboris hummed with electric energy, and Baleria climbed to the head of the Divine Beast. She could control it from there, and it afforded a perfect view.

"Come, Naboris," said Baleria. "Time to defend our home."

Naboris cried out, and then the ground shook as it began walking toward a position that could reach where Lizalfos were rushing toward Gerudo Town. As Baleria looked from her high vantage point, she could see Lizalfos climbing down the cliffside of the Gerudo Highlands. Whenever they were coming from, it was somewhere in the Gerudo Highlands. Perhaps when the town was safe, they could investigate that further. But for now, they had work to do.

Naboris took aim, and then Baleria activated its beam. A massive pulse of ancient blue energy streamed from Naboris, destroying any Lizalfos in its path. Baleria aimed the beam to sweep back and forth, killing many of them. It was helping, of course. But as many as were destroyed, more followed without any concern for their lives. Ganon was not a merciful leader, she thought.

And then she saw a squad of Rito warriors flying in and letting loose a flurry of Bomb Arrows. She breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like Gerudo Town was safe, at least for now. She turned back to using Naboris, careful to keep its beam well away from the conflict closer to town. They couldn't win this battle, but it looked like they wouldn't lose it yet either.

Meanwhile, in Zora's Domain, another pair of guards had arrived at Inogo Bridge, and matters were under control. So, Mipha and Link returned to the Domain and went home to meet with their family.

"Thank Nayru! You're both safe!" Mila exclaimed as she rushed to hug them both upon their arrival.

"Can you tell us what's happening?" Midon asked.

"Dr. Purah messaged me that she, Robbie, and some staff are confined to the Royal Ancient Lab under soldier protection," said Lapha.

"We believe Ganon is spawning monsters from some shrines and using them to attack," said Link. "Central Hyrule is under a major attack with monsters from several locations. So far, we have only had monsters attack our Domain from the Inogo Bridge area. It seems we have that location under control."

"Can't we help in any way?" Midon asked. "We're not small children anymore."

"Perhaps if necessary," said Mipha. "But right now, staying safe here lets your father and I concentrate on what we need to do without worrying about you at the same time."

"Linky wanted to return from North Hyrule to help," said Lapha. "We all urged him not to."

"Yes, he should stay safe there as well," said Link. "And I'm sure ferry service is canceled anyway. Now, we need to see your Uncle Sidon, who is coordinating our Domain's defense. Promise us that all of you will stay safe here?"

Everyone nodded, then Mipha and Link left. As they made their way toward the throne room, both their Tabs went off. It was Sidon.

"I just had a report that a large group of Lizalfos is approaching us by the waterfall just north of Tal Tal peak," said Sidon. "They're using Sky Octoroks to ascend the cliff there. There are already four guards there by now."

"Link and I are on our way to investigate," said Mipha, and she ended the call.

"Coming up the waterfall north of Tal Tal Peak?" Link said. "The closest shrine to there is in Ulria Grotto, the Ke'nai Shakah Shrine if I remember. At least we have the high ground. What's the best way to get there from here?"

"By way of the northeast pier at East Reservoir Lake," said Mipha. "Let's go!"

They made their way down to the familiar northwest pier of East Reservoir Lake with its canopy covered bed, then dove into the calm waters and swam across to the northeast pier. The sky was a bright blue, and a steady wind from the Lanayru Sea blew white clouds across the sky. They raced up the grassy slope and then swam up the waterfall that lay southwest of Tal Tal Peak.

"We should be on our guard now," said Link after they emerged from the water. "Some Lizalfos may have already reached here."

But they did not come across any enemies as they ran up another grassy slope until they met up with four Zora guards near the top of the waterfall. The guards did not have time to greet them because they were all busy using their bows to shoot down Lizalfos ascending from the ground below on triangular-shaped platforms lofted by three Sky Octoroks. The guards were holding their own for the moment.

But looking beyond the waterfall, you could see dozens of Lizalfos approaching on platforms, floating over the ground and toward the waterfall.

"It looks like they are coming from the direction of the shrine in Ulria Grotto as I thought," said Link. "There are some thermal air vents in the grotto there which would be perfect for ascending on platforms attached to Sky Octoroks. I think we could use a couple more guards here to be safe. And it might be wise to have guards at Toto Lake as well, in case monsters from the Dah Hesho Shrine start heading our way instead of toward Tarrey Town."

"I'll let Sidon know," said Mipha pulling out her Tab and relaying the message.

"The question is, what can we do now?" Link said, shaking his head. "I'd love to investigate the shrine there. But getting to it is a problem with all those Lizalfos in the way."

"Why would you expect it to be any different inside than the one at Inogo Bridge?" Mipha asked.

"You're right, it probably isn't," said Link. "I would just be confirming it. But getting to the shrine would allow us to bottle up their reserves and limit their attack to one enemy at a time, as is the case at Inogo Bridge. Right now, Ganon can send an endless supply of enemies our way. We can hold our own for now, but what if a hundred of them ascend the waterfall at once?"

"I'm beginning to think we need Ruta's help in this battle," said Mipha. "If not to attack Ganon himself yet, then to help destroy his minions."

"I think you're right," said Link. "But in the end, we will need to turn off Ganon's monster spawning process somehow."

Just then, two more Zora guards arrived and took up positions, firing arrows and destroying the platforms before the Lizalfos could ascend.

"You need to rest," said Mipha looking at Link and seeing how tired he was. Neither of them had gotten much sleep. "I'll maneuver Ruta into position to attack the shrine and fire on the enemies that attempt to emerge from it. That will limit the number our guards have to deal with. You can rest in Ruta with me for a while."

"I feel so frustrated right now!" said Link, shaking his head. "But I guess you're right. It makes sense to rest until we're truly needed."

"I'm going to teleport to Ruta now," said Mipha taking out her Tab. "When she is in position on top of Tal Tal Peak, you can join me there. Promise me you will be careful until then?"

"I promise, sweetheart," said Link. "I'll just help out here a bit until I see Ruta in position. I love you."

"I love you, too," said Mipha as she activated the rune and dematerialized.

When Mipha arrived at the travel gate on Ruta, she immediately went to the central terminal, checked everything was ready, then activated it.

"Time to help save our home again," said Mipha and Ruta bellowed.