Summary: The Sheikah Slate from Eventide Island reveals a well-known story.

It was early morning in the calm river waters near the Royal Ancient Tech Lab as Lapha and Midon were each eating a quick breakfast fish. They were both eager to make their way back to the lab and determine if Midon's passphrase of MARK OF THE SHEIKAH ANCIENT ENERGY would unlock a portion of the ten-thousand-year-old Sheikah Slate found on Eventide Island.

"It's funny how the alternate passphrase just popped into my head," said Midon after swallowing a bite. "I guess I was just staring at the letters so long they floated around in my mind. I can't wait to try it."

"I'm eager too, but let's not choke on our fish," said Lapha.

"Should we wake Dr. Purah and Dr. Robbie?" asked Midon.

"I'll send Dr. Purah a message," said Lapha. "I'll leave it to her to wake up her assistant."

"She won't be upset if it turns out the passphrase is wrong again, will she?"

"No, no, not at all," laughed Lapha. "Don't worry. Nobody is a bigger enthusiast of trial-and-error experimentation than Purah. Robbie likes to tease Purah that her research is more like trial and error and error and error. She's quite accustomed to experiments not always succeeding."

They finished their fish, and by the time they climbed the stairway to the lab, Purah and Robbie were already awaiting them.

"I understand you have a new idea for the passphrase? Let's try it at once!" said Purah as she eagerly rubbed her hands together, and they all gathered around the guidance stone holding the Sheikah Slate.

Lapha entered the passphrase, and the device accepted it, opening up a new folder.

"Hooray! It worked!" Lapha exclaimed. "Nice work, Mido! Let's see what it reveals."

"Yes, marvelous job Prince Midon, that was clever," said Purah.

Lapha scrolled through the folder.

"Besides some additional pictures, there are some documents here," said Lapha excitedly. "But the documents are written in the ancient Sheikah dialect, and it will take me some time to translate them."

"Robbie and I can help with that," said Purah. "Prince Midon, you can take a well-deserved rest while we work on this."

"Thanks, I'll just sit over there and work on some ideas I had for automating the decryption process I went through," said Midon.

Purah, Lapha, and Robbie began working on translating the first document from ancient Sheikah to modern Hylian, while Midon started working on code.

It was later that morning in Zora's Domain as Mipha and Link sat together holding hands on a large rock adjacent to Lulu Lake. The sky was a bright sunny blue with only occasional wisps of white clouds. A Woodland Boar was foraging under a clump of nearby evergreen trees and ignoring them, as was a family of three ducks in the lake itself. The sound of the waterfall drowned out most other noise, including that of Tara, Tila, and Linky playing together at Mikau Lake below them. They had spent most of the morning together with them until Mipha finally pulled Link away.

"I know you love being with the family," said Mipha. "But we should also make time for ourselves, just the two of us. And I don't count time spent going on adventures together!"

Link laughed and squeezed her hand, then leaned over as they kissed.

"I know, and you're right, of course, sweetheart," said Link after their kiss ended. "It's funny, though. I never realized how attached to our family I would become and enjoy just spending time at home with them. Maybe it's because I hardly had a family of my own growing up, and I'm seeing it from the other side now. You were probably the closest thing to a family I had when I was small."

"After I learned you were an orphan, I did my best to look out for you when you came here," said Mipha. "And when I could, I would pry you away from your delinquent friends in the so-called Bazz Brigade."

"Speaking of which, I haven't gotten together with them in a while," laughed Link. "But we all turned out fine, wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes, by some miracle," said Mipha, then she leaned over, and they kissed again.

"It seemed you slept well last night, by the way," said Mipha after a few moments.

"Yes, and I had a fun dream," said Link, and then he went on to describe it.

It was early evening at Ralis Pond, and he was there with Mipha. She had just splashed him with water, and they were both laughing as he dried his face with his tunic.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist," laughed Mipha. "You looked so funny chasing the frog."

"You may be better with water, Princess, but I bet I can catch more Sunset Fireflies than you," said Link.

"We catch them, then release them and keep count, right?" said Mipha.

"Yes, right," said Link. "And no cheating by quickly re-catching the last one."

"You doubt my integrity? Are you suggesting I was not raised properly? I shall complain to my Father about his poor upbringing."

"No, no, please don't get me in trouble with your Father!" laughed Link.

"I'm teasing you, of course," laughed Mipha. "Father is actually quite fond of you."

"Okay," said Link. "The game ends when the last firefly disappears, or we catch five. Are you ready? Go!"

They each raced about the area but had to slow down and use stealth to get close enough to capture one. As Link grabbed his fifth firefly, he shouted, "Time!" But he was surprised to hear Mipha shouting the same thing at the same instant.

"Wow! We tied," said Link as they rejoined each other. "I guess we're naturals together, perfect companions."

"Then I woke up," said Link.

"We did that for real, you know," said Mipha as she brushed some hair back from his forehead.

"Yes, I don't remember the actual event, but I remembered after I woke up that you told me about it. It was back before we married when you first helped me try to recover my memory. You know, before you could accept that I was really me."

"Thanks for reminding me," laughed Mipha. "You don't know how much I cried when I learned you were a different you in a sense and had forgotten so much of our time together. But of course, I came to understand it was the only way this could happen. And you were so sweet and persistent."

"That wasn't an easy time for me either, sweetheart," said Link. "As for the dream, maybe my mind is recovering more memories in my sleep, some good and some bad."

They were quiet for several more moments, enjoying the peaceful scene.

"You're a bit quieter than usual," said Link finally.

"I'm waiting to see how long you can go without mentioning one of the children," teased Mipha.

"Okay, okay," laughed Link. "I promise the rest of today will be for just the two of us."

"We'll see," laughed Mipha standing up. "Come on, then. Let's race up the waterfall and do some hiking."

"One of these days, I'll win," laughed Link as they held hands and waded into the lake.

Meanwhile, back at the Royal Ancient Tech Lab, after working on the translation for some time, Lapha spoke up.

"Some parts don't translate well," said Lapha. "I mean, I can translate the literal words themselves, but the meaning is different or even unclear sometimes. For example, it seems like what we call a Sheikah Slate they called an 'Energy Activator' back then. So, I will just translate it as Sheikah Slate for simplicity and do the best I can."

"Yes, that makes sense," said Purah. "We never really knew what the device was originally called, and I was the one who came up with the name Sheikah Slate. But let's keep going."

It was late afternoon by the time they had translated the first document.

"It appears to be part of a journal or diary," said Robbie.

My name is Salena, and I am, or was, proud to be the Sheikah scientist in charge of assisting the Gerudo with Divine Beast Vah Naboris. My mother was one architect of Vah Naboris, so it was natural for me to follow her path. And being a Vai made it all the easier for me to enter Gerudo Town for meetings or relaxation. I think Vah Naboris is the most challenging of all the Divine Beasts to work with. Dangerous electricity courses throughout the mechanism and requires great care. One of our workers named Tolin was nearly killed when he touched a live electric connection testing the device. My time may be short, so let me get to the point of this narrative.

Our victory over the Calamity was a wonder to behold and a matter of great rejoicing. Our planning had worked to perfection. Each Divine Beast did its part, draining the Calamity of its strength and easing the hero's burden in their mission to strike it down with the sacred blade. And when the King's daughter finally sealed the great evil away, the skies cleared, and the sun shone on a kingdom saved from disaster.

That will always be my proudest accomplishment, assuring Vah Naboris was in perfect working order and ready for its heroic pilot to aid in our victory. It brought me great joy!

But, alas, that joy was short-lived.

Now I am a fugitive trapped in the desert and fear for my life. I write this as I hide during the day and move stealthily at night, risking capture at any moment. The Travel Gates have been shut down or guarded, so I can only travel by foot.

I could find safety in the company of the rebels, of course, joining their cause. They would be happy to accept me into their ranks and use my knowledge to their advantage. But I refuse to break my sworn oath to the Goddess and the Hyrule Royal Family, though the latter have grown unworthy of it now. I could also find safety by surrendering to the Hylian Army, who are also eager to round up our scientists and have them forswear any further research. But I also refuse to betray my family's heritage and renounce my search for knowledge. My family instilled a love of knowledge in me from an early age, and it would dishonor their memory to repudiate what they and I love. I am and always will be a scientist.

I will turn now to what happened and return to myself later on, should fate allow me time for it. I will tell all I learned from messages we Sheikah received as events unfolded and before so many had their Sheikah Slates confiscated. The story begins in Hyrule Castle.

It was a sunny morning at Hyrule Castle as the King gazed out the window of his office in one of the tall castle spires and admired the surrounding countryside. It was a magnificent view and one he had often enjoyed looking out over the extent of his kingdom. But the view was not as magnificent as it had once been or as much to his liking. For five giant columns had pierced the ground and surrounded the Castle like massive teeth or silent sentinels. It looked to him as though the Castle was about to be swallowed up by some giant five-toothed worm emerging from deep below it.

The Sheikah had said that all five columns would be returned to below ground, just as had the great Sheikah Towers before them. But first, they needed to gather and return to storage within them all the Guardians that had emerged from those giant pillars upon Calamity Ganon's attack. The Sheikah were doing that now. But given the enormous number of Guardians the pillars contained, that would take some time. The King shook his head, filled with suspicions. Were the Sheikah truly returning Guardians to storage as quickly as possible? Or were they stalling with their own hidden agenda? Calamity Ganon had given them an excuse to muster a vast army of automated Guardian soldiers. Perhaps they now see the value of maintaining that force in place as leverage. For that matter, did the Sheikah really need so many Guardians to protect against Calamity Ganon? Even a single Guardian could destroy an entire village if unchecked, especially the flying kind. Most Hyrule weapons were useless against them. And so, the vast number of Guardians also made him suspicious. It was frightening to consider how they could ever battle them, never mind the even mightier Divine Beasts!

The destruction of Calamity Ganon had been the eye-opener. Everyone knew the Sheikah were powerful, of course. And their technology was valuable, not the least of which was in keeping monsters at bay. But until the battle with Calamity Ganon, he and his people did not know how truly powerful the Sheikah were! Given the number and strength of their inventions, he knew the Sheikah could crush his entire army and destroy his kingdom. And that was not a comfortable position for the ruler of a kingdom to be in.

There was a knock on the door, and the King remembered it was time for his appointment. He had scheduled a meeting with the General of the Army and the Foreign Minister.

The Foreign Minister kept in close contact with the other rulers in Hyrule, including key Sheikah members, and he handled communication between the Hyrule Royal Family and them. He had built up a good deal of trust over the years and was well respected by the Sheikah. The General commanded the Hyrule Army and handled the safety of the kingdom and its people. He was considered a forceful leader but known to harbor some resentment toward the Sheikah. For he felt their devices had played the critical role in Hyrule's defense against the Calamity, to the detriment of his and his army's glory.

"Come in," said the King, and both individuals entered and bowed.

"Please, sit down," said the King as they all sat down together at the King's desk.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," said the General. "Her Majesty and Her Highness are both well, I hope?"

"Yes, they're both fine and spending the day together," said the King. "But let's get down to business. I wish to discuss the Sheikah and what we should do about them. Minister, any word from them on when those giant pillars will be sunk back below ground?"

"Not yet, Your Majesty, there are still quite a few Guardian Stalkers yet to be recovered. The Sheikah have ordered them to return here, and they are all doing so. Most of the Skywatchers have already been returned to the pillars for storage, however."

"Speaking of Guardians, I must report that the people are restless," said the General. "More than restless - frightened. People share their fears with my soldiers, explaining how they feel when they encounter one of those Guardian Stalkers in their travels. The Guardian stares at them, and it freezes their blood, realizing they could be vaporized with one blast of its powerful beam."

"Frankly, I don't blame them. I fear them too," said the King. "And what about the Divine Beasts? Each one could destroy the entire kingdom!"

"But those devices were our saviors, Sire, and none has ever attacked an innocent person!" said the Minister with some feeling. "Besides, the Sheikah have been loyal servants of the Hyrule Royal Family since earliest recorded history and keep their devices under their control. We have no reason to fear them or doubt their loyalty."

"Perhaps," said the King. "But you are looking at the past. Can we be certain of their continued loyalty in the future? Over time, they may lose respect for us and grow to believe their technical superiority makes them the natural rulers of our land. Some may already believe that to be so."

"With respect, Sire, I very much doubt that," said the Minister. "All my dealings with the Sheikah tell me otherwise."

"Looking at matters from a military perspective, I must disagree with the Minister and agree with you, Sire," said the General. "It is unwise and dangerous for our kingdom to depend upon a group's goodwill for survival - to be helpless should they turn against us. My army cannot defeat their devices should they attack."

"Precisely," said the King. "As Hyrule's ruler, I cannot leave the fate of our kingdom to the whim of another. Luckily the Sheikah are not great in numbers, and it is their technology that we must be wary of. So, that suggests a solution to our predicament."

"What are your wishes, Sire?" asked the General.

"This is how I see things," said the King. "The threat of Calamity Ganon is over now. Once all the Guardians are safely in storage, we need to abolish this technology for the safety of our people. We must close the Sheikah labs and stop any further research. And their scientists must be watched and kept from resuming their work. General, you will need to move quickly but quietly before the Sheikah suspect anything."

"I will begin quietly positioning forces at key locations," said the General. "Once we are in position, we will await your command."

"Again, I must respectfully voice my objection. I do not think this is wise, Sire," said the Minister.

"Your objection is noted," said the King. "But I have decided, and that is that."

It was a month later when the King summoned the General and the Minister to discuss progress.

"What is the situation now, General?" asked the King.

"We have had mixed results, Sire," said the General. "Their ability to message each other with their devices made a surprise attack difficult. Those Sheikah who swore loyalty and renounced their technology have surrendered any devices they possess and will be permitted to live in a secluded village they built called Kakariko. We can use the Hateno Fortress to monitor any comings and going's from there toward central Hyrule. Some Sheikah fled to the Gerudo Desert before we could strike, and we're doing our best to track them down. But the area is almost impossible for us to patrol, and frankly, the Gerudo do not welcome Hylian soldiers in their land. Finally, another Sheikah faction gathered up what they could and took to the sea. They sailed North toward uncharted lands before we could prevent it, and we do not possess enough sea-going vessels to pursue them."

"I see, General. What do you recommend we do then?" said the King. "I had hoped for a complete victory with no one escaping."

"As I said, Sire, once our operations began, word spread quickly," said the General. "Or perhaps the word of our plan was already leaked to the Sheikah."

The General cast a glance at the Minister, but he ignored it, and the General continued.

"As you know, the Sheikah can communicate over their Sheikah Slates," said the General. "But we have been collecting them and destroying them as we find them. I fear we will need to rely on the Gerudo to hunt down the Sheikah who fled to the Gerudo Highlands. As for the Sheikah who fled across the sea, we cannot pursue them. But I recommend we build a fortress in Akkala over the site of one of their towers to defend against any attempt they or others make to invade our land. They took none of their Guardians with them, so our canons and other weaponry should suffice for now to repel any attack from the sea."