Pictures of the Past

Continuation of the Evening of Monday, May 13, 2019 (comprised of raw note editings from April 5, 2023 through April 16, 2023 that I really hope sound consistent because I left it alone for too long)

Pictures of the Past

I really couldn’t remember. I couldn’t remember whether I had ever read Robbie’s Memoirs before.

I went to the first page....

Let me start from the beginning. It was

100 years ago... Calamity Ganon had

already swallowed Princess Zelda.

Oh.... Oh my. Wait, but hadn’t she—been the stronger?

What had happened to her? What did she do?

Dr. Purah and I had already taken Link

to the Shrine of Resurrection and left

him to recover.

Wait, then.... those two Sheikah soldiers.... Zelda had ordered them directly to transport me there. But here Robbie was saying that he and Purah had gotten me to the Shrine of Resurrection?

Then.... were there four of them that day?

Dr. Purah and I departed for

Kakariko Village, where we left

Lady Impa...

All three of us couldn’t stay together, of

course. We couldn’t risk Calamity Ganon

getting all of us in one strike.

Made sense.

If that happened, there’d be no one left

to deliver Princess Zelda’s message to

Link when he recovered and woke up...

I wonder.... did they expect it to take as long as it did? Did they know? What plans had they even laid? That’s a long time to wait....

We had to ensure at least one of us

would be able to talk to him.

Or perhaps it was that the world was still full of dangers, and the Calamity’s influence still reigned.

But if Zelda had already been swallowed by Calamity Ganon, as Robbie put it.... then that begs the question.... What battles was the Princess fighting on her own during that time? After she was swallowed but while the three Elder Sheikah were still in danger? What was going on? How long did it take her to subdue it? What struggles raged in the Castle?

So Dr. Purah and I set out to survive as

long as we could. We were lucky...

So they knew the Shrine of Resurrection would be a long time, then.

We found large amounts of ancient

energy in the Necluda and Akkala

regions. We could continue our research.

Ancient energy? ....The furnaces?

Just as we had in Hyrule Castle, we could

again set ourselves to finding some way

to seal Calamity Ganon away.

We decided who would go where in the

only fair way: rock, paper, scissors. [Oh gosh.]

I set out for Akkala soon after.

Next page.

I was all set to go to Akkala, but first I

decided to go with Dr. Purah to the

ancient energy source in Necluda.

...Actually, that implies I had any choice. [Uh?]

Dr. Purah laid on a pretty heavy guilt trip

when I suggested her going alone.

Ha, brazen as ever, I see.

“In a world as dangerous as ours, are

you seriously asking me to travel alone?”

She’s so darned pushy...

Well, if the Calamity was as big a threat as they claimed it was....

Anyway, Dr. Purah promised Lady Impa

that they’d meet again someday, then

she and I set out from Kakariko Village...

But not before loading a cart with the

Guidance Stone Dr. Purah had been

using at Hyrule Castle.

That thing that had upgraded my Slate, I think.

Next page.

We traveled for some time. South of the

Pillars of Levia, across Lake Siela, and

through Blatchery Plain...

The Valley of Terror.

Then we came upon Fort Hateno. Link

had battled an army of Guardians there [Half-remembered, half-imagined lightning flashed in my brain as the rain slicked over my hood on the parapet once more.],

and it was where he’d been defeated.

....Yes.

A master swordsman such as Link, who’d

impressed King Rhoam enough to be

made Princess Zelda’s personal knight...

Well, even someone like that has their

limits.

I’ll.... forgive your grammar for now, Robbie.

I’m sorry, Link...

I spent so much of my life researching

the Guardians...

Even with all my knowledge, I wasn’t

able to give you the weapons or power

you needed to succeed.

But I’m sure you did your best, Robbie.

I’m sure we all did our best....

Those were my thoughts as I looked

upon the broken husks of the Guardians

strewn around Fort Hateno.

You know, Robbie.... I have a great friend around those parts by the name of Garill.... Perhaps you two ought to talk. I’m sure hearing his words would return some strength to your heart.

Next page.

Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t notice that

Dr. Purah had slipped away.

!

I knew Hateno Village wasn’t much

farther along the road, and that the

Calamity had barely touched that area...

So I felt safe letting her continue on her

own. We parted ways without even

saying good-bye, I suppose.

Haahhhh, after all that fuss about traveling together, Purah?

Stirring myself back to action, I set

out on my own journey back toward

Kakariko Village.

Oh? But Akkala was the other way....

Next page.

With Dr. Purah “escorted” safely to

Hateno Village, it was time for me to

head to my new home in Akkala.

I returned to Kakariko Village to collect

the remaining Guidance Stone [Ah. Of course.], then I

immediately set out for Akkala.

I made my way through the

Lanayru Wetlands and headed

toward Ternio Trail.

I knew that once I crossed the

Akkala Span [That bridge....], I would officially be in

Akkala.

The autumn leaves brought some joy to

my spirit as I crossed Shadow Pass

then headed north from Ordorac Quarry.

Me too, Robbie. Me too.

Akkala is known for its long stretches of

nothing. I’d set out hoping that would

still be the case...

Uh oh....

I was attacked by a Guardian here and

there as I went [!!], but remember, I’d spent

my life studying them.

Robbie!?

Dispatching them individually was no

challenge at all.

I find your nonchalance upsetting, sir.

In time, I reached the lighthouse in

Akkala. What a perfect place to keep an

eye on the monsters out there.

It was originally.... a lighthouse?

Who would need a lighthouse, here?

....

Hungry visions once again swirled in my mind of the lands beyond Hyrule. Or rather, in this case, the seas beyond. And a tiny bit of the horizon’s depressing sterility washed away in the waves.

I unloaded my Guidance Stone and

settled into my new home.

Feels.... like a lonely way to live. The necessity of it notwithstanding. Having to fling themselves all out to the wind like that?

I wonder how they all felt about it.

I wonder if they all wondered how I had felt....

Next Page.

And so began my life of solitary

research...

I knew I had to continue to research the

ancient soldier gear for Link... [!] He could

wake at any time.

Robbie.... You kept trying for my sake.

And “wake at any time”? Then.... But no, he hadn’t written this until after a hundred years had already passed. I think they knew the Shrine of Resurrection would take a long, long time.

I quickly settled on a routine. First,

I would carry the blue flame from

Tumlea Heights.

Next, I would melt the ancient materials,

refine the result, and then shape it into

ancient soldier gear.

It’s difficult to say how much progress

I made on my research. The routine

demanded so much focus, day after day.

I feel you, man. Boy do I feel you.

But then I had a clever thought!

I realized I could automate the entire

refinement process!

It took some significant work, but I was

able to successfully remodel

the Guidance Stone.

Thanks to my effort, it can refine any

ancient material inserted into it and offer

something in return.

Ah. Cherry.

I named this machine Cherry, after the

first girl I ever loved...

Ah yes.

Next page.

My research didn’t end with the creation

of Cherry, not at all! I realized that if she

was able to refine the ancient materials...

There was no reason she couldn’t also

manufacture ancient soldier gear, too!

Anyone could make ancient equipment!

I also decided then that I wanted to be

able to give her a voice so she could

speak.

I was filled with ambition then, but it was

no easy task to make my dreams a

reality.

But you did it.

Automating the manufacturing process

was extremely difficult. It took me

decades to figure it out.

....Sir I’m afraid I have no more words.

I’ll spare you the details of all the things

that went wrong...

But I will say it was complex enough that

I had to put my desires to remodel

Cherry on the back burner for a while.

Next page.

Days and months came and went. Before

I even realized it, I’d reached the ripe

age of 90.

The flow of time is always cruel, Robbie.

I would have been lost in my work even

then... But around that time, a young

woman named Jerrin arrived.

Ah.

She’d first trained with Dr. Purah, then

Lady Impa had sent her to aid me. She

quickly proved herself quite capable.

She carried the blue flame from

Tumlea Heights and even reworked and

improved my designs for Cherry.

The very fact that she had trekked all the

way from Kakariko Village alone proved

she was no ordinary girl.

Her intellect, her spirit... In hindsight, is

it any surprise that we eventually ended

up married?

Well, not since I first heard the story it isn’t.

Next page.

Thanks to Jerrin’s redesign, Cherry was

soon crafting ancient soldier gear

perfectly and speaking beautifully.

She spoke better than any machine I’d

ever heard. It would have been hard to

tell she wasn’t a native Hylian.

Yes, about that....

If I said, “Good morning,” she’d respond

with a sweet, “Good morning, Robbie.”

And she was helpful! “Cherry, where’d I

leave my book?” “It’s the third book from

the right on the second shelf, Robbie.”

She also knew to ask if she needed

something. “Robbie, could you increase

the furnace heat a little?”

I’d always go personally to fetch more

blue flame from Tumlea Heights. I didn’t

realize our interactions hurt someone...

Oh boy....

That someone...was Jerrin. Perhaps it

was due to her namesake, but my

exchanges with Cherry hurt Jerrin.

Next page.

Despite the fact that she knew Cherry

was only a machine, she still felt uneasy

with my interactions with her.

She was in tears when she told me. She

knew it made little sense, and yet she

couldn’t help how she felt.

I was devastated. I hadn’t even realized

the pain I was causing.

Much of offense is taken, too, Robbie.

Although Jerrin had designed Cherry, she

was now being hurt by her own creation.

We agreed to restore Cherry to her

original, mechanical way of speaking. I

took it upon myself to make the changes.

Ah. So that’s why she was the way she was.

Next....

From then on, I was careful to not refer

to her as Cherry. Doing so would anger

my wife. Instead, I called her...

ancient oven.

Some time later, Jerrin gave birth to a

baby boy, a beautiful young one who

bore all the features of his mother.

We decided to name him Granté, and

together we passed the time as a happy

family at Akkala Ancient Tech Lab.

It was, unfortunately, only a temporary

peace. Princess Zelda did her best to

contain Calamity Ganon...

! Then she was struggling....

Around the time Granté turned three, a

letter from Dr. Purah arrived. It was a

shock to receive it.

Yes? What did it say?

The last time she’d written, it was to talk

about an assistant from Kakariko Village,

whom she felt was useless.

?

She was writing now to let me know

she’d completed research on powering

up the runes, like Stasis.

Hearing this reinvigorated my interest

in researching ancient soldier gear.

NEXT PAGE AGAIN—HOW LONG DOES THIS GO ON FOR, ROBBIE?

Granté grew fast, and it wasn’t long

before he towered over me!

This book is towering over me....

He loved to carry blue flame from

Tumlea Heights, calling it a chance to

train his body.

I could see the curiosity in his eyes, and

so I encouraged him to travel the world

and see as much as he could.

He’d always been independent. But I was

still surprised when, the very day I told

him to travel, he left!

Oh.

Writing about Granté’s training

reminds me...

A few days before he left, I thought it

might be a good idea to have Granté

study with Dr. Purah.

I wrote to her to ask what she thought of

such an idea, and she sent a letter that

simply said...

“Don’t send anyone here!”

I wonder what happened to her to make

her say such a thing...

Oh.... That must have been when she.... when that happened to her.

That was all there was to the book of Robbie’s Memoirs.

Longer than most logs I’d read around Hyrule.

....

But perhaps I’m not one to speak.

Those three. Robbie, Impa, and Purah.

Robbie said he and Purah had gotten me to the Shrine of Resurrection.

But what about those two soldiers?

Were there four people that day?

The artworks in my head rippled and morphed, burgeoning out with the irrepressible ferocity of a creeping kudzu....

I really needed to wrap this up. It was my bedtime.

I’ll go back to my house in Hateno....

But upon warping back to the village I thought.... But first....

But first Purah. I want to find and read her diary too.

I remembered her warning me before not to go upstairs and look at her diary, and I remembered looking about the space of her tech lab, and finding that there didn’t seem to be an upstairs. Just a ladder that led to nowhere. Why hadn’t I pursued her hints then?

But in poking about a little deeper this time, inside and out, I was able to get up on top of her roof, and it was here that I discovered a little external staircase spiraling up and around the single large tower in the architecture, to a door in its side.

Had I really never been here either?

Somewhere so obvious and beckoning as this?

Surely I must have noticed this spiraling walkway countless times before....

Was it just Hateno’s sullen flavor for me?

I didn’t know.

I only walked through the high door and found myself in a cluttered little loft of a bedroom, rife with bookshelves and strewn with guardian-bits, and containing a little writing desk in the center, lit by a lantern.

There was her diary sitting open upon it.

Research diary for anti-aging rune.

CLASSIFIED! For Purah’s eyes only!

Oh! How piquing....

First page.

Date: ???

Work has finally begun on my anti-aging

rune. If all goes to plan, I believe it will

effectively reverse the aging process.

This technology will enable us to make

retired warriors young again, thereby

strengthening the Hyrulean army.

Hadn’t thought of that application but okay.... Couldn’t speak to how the soldiers would feel about it.... though I’m sure they’d answer any call from their beloved King....

When Calamity Ganon inevitably returns,

we’ll be ready. Our offense will be solid,

and our defense impenetrable.

The need for this tech pains me, but I

truly hope to use it to attain everlasting

peace for all.

Your heart’s in a good place, Purah.

Next page.

Date: ???

The beta version of my anti-aging rune

is complete. I have already added it to

the Sheikah Slate I made for myself.

Purah made her own Slate?

....

I guess it shouldn’t surprise me.

Since I am to be the test subject of this

experiment, Symin booted up the rune

and directed its rays at my body.

After 20 seconds of exposure, I felt

extreme fatigue and broke into a fever,

forcing us to cease the experiment.

20 seconds?

She’s braver than I.

Unable to stay awake, I went to bed

immediately. Tomorrow I will try to

figure out what went awry.

Next page....

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 2

My extreme full-body fatigue has slightly

improved, for which I am grateful. Still,

I do not recognize the face in my mirror.

Oh boy....

My hair is thick again and floor-length.

My wrinkles, once deep as trenches,

have vanished without a trace.

It seems the anti-aging effect works.

However, I did not expect the reversal

to happen so frighteningly fast.

Maybe next time try just three seconds.

This morning I kicked Symin awake and

had him run a full physical exam on me.

My height, weight, vision, bone density,

heart, blood... We tested everything we

could, pushing our facility to its limit.

Our discoveries were startling. My results

were typical of a Sheikah woman in her

early 50s.

Wrinkle-free in your fifties sounds pretty good!

In other words, I reversed my age by

more than 70 years in a single night.

Wait wait wait, Purah—you’re....?

I mean pardon me for posing such a forbidden question, but you had lived into your.... hundred-and-twenties?

....

I guess Japanese women really don’t get old or fat.

I can only hope I do not awaken to find

I have the body of a newborn baby...

Oh gads....

Next page.

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 3

I awoke with an abundance of energy.

It has been decades since I slept so well.

Oh wow.

Upon waking, I immediately checked the

mirror, only to be greeted by a youthful

version of myself.

According to Symin’s examination,

I have the body of a Sheikah woman

in her 30s.

Thirty years old... I was around that age

when I was first able to continue my

research following the Great Calamity.

Purah.... How long had you lived? How long have you lived?

The first thing I did was try to figure out

how to expand the functionality of the

Sheikah Sensor.

I was around 80 years old when that

expansion was completed. I intend to

bequeath this tech to our sleeping hero.

Oh wait, then was Purah’s Sheikah Slate back then, the one she says she built.... actually the one I had in my possession right now?

I thought the one and only Sheikah Slate had been unearthed or something somewhere. Didn’t Zelda say something about that....?

Or am I misremembering?

I hope to the gods that he will be able to

assist in the destruction of the Calamity

that swallowed our Princess Zelda whole.

Again, they mention this—Zelda, what happened to you? What did you do?

Into what terrible jaws did you march away so willingly?

Or was your showdown entirely of your own accord?

What did you do?

Next page.

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 4

After today’s routine physical, the results

show that I have the body of a Sheikah

woman in her 20s.

Well at least it seems to be slowing down.

I haven’t felt this good in a century!

This is all taking me back to when the

Great Calamity happened...

Ganon had been dormant for 10,000

years. Perhaps his power had been

building all that time.

The slaughter that followed was arbitrary

and merciless. The destruction complete.

No....

We lost everything... Hyrule Castle,

Princess Zelda... Well, perhaps not

everything was lost.

But I saw her. In a memory from my sword, I saw her.

She escaped to the forest with my blade.

She had to have only gone back to face the Calamity of her own volition.

Hadn’t she?

A youth named Link was brought to me a

hundred years ago, covered in wounds

and on death’s doorstep.

!

Was that.... our first meeting, then? Purah’s and mine?

Link... So young, yet so courageous.

Please.... Attribute it to Farore, not to me.

[Er wait would this Link think something like this?]

He was the youngest knight to have ever

been appointed to the Imperial Guard at

Hyrule Castle.

Was—was I now? I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere before....

He was also a gifted swordsman who was

selected as captain of Princess Zelda’s

personal guard.

Captain? Me?

I thought I was just her one appointed knight....

Did I have men under my charge?

I thought of all those swords I had seen stuck into the earth, out in Blatchery Plain, out in the Valley of Terror. Out where we had made our final stand....

Had others fought with me there?

Had others died with me there?

I thought his skills would be enough to

defeat Ganon in glorious fashion...

But....

Since ancient times, the royal family of

Hyrule and us Sheikah researchers have

had a strong bond. Their pain is our own.

We took the swordsman and the

Sheikah Slate Princess Zelda left

behind to the Shrine of Resurrection.

Then were there two Sheikah Slates after all?

Although the Slumber of Restoration had

not been fully tested, we decided to put

the swordsman under to save his life.

I’m glad you did, Purah. Between untested hazard and certain death.... I’d take the hazard.

It was the best we could do...

Next page.

Heh, that she always called me “the swordsman”....

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 5

I awoke to something horrifying...

a scarlet lump scarring my

otherwise youthful face.

After analyzing this monstrosity,

I have come to the conclusion that

it is just a pimple. A big one.

Oh boy. Still younger again.

The results of today’s physical exam

indicate that my body and mind have

reverted to those of a teenager.

And mind, you say?

I feel like Symin looks at me differently.

Which irritates me. I got angry when he

insisted on running my blood test for me.

I mean, really! What even! I can do it all

by myself! ...In any case, I wonder what

experiment I should focus on next.

Mm-hmm, and mind.

The blue flame in the furnace outside is

growing weaker by the day. I do hope the

Guidance Stone doesn’t stop working...

Next page.

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 6

My age reversal has progressed

further still. I now look and feel

like a 6-year-old.

Oh Purah.

My height has regressed so much that

I can no longer reach things in high

places. It’s super annoying.

Where is that genius swordsman we

placed in the Slumber of Restoration,

anyway? Wake up, already!

Purah would you even know how to rush something like that?

If he doesn’t awaken soon, my feature

expansions for the Sheikah Sensor will

go to waste.

But even if he does manage to wake up,

how can I be sure he’ll find me here?

I want to go and just kick Linky awake, [Linky?]

but I doubt Symin would help me. It’d be

hard with my 6-year-old body anyway.

Well I’m glad you didn’t, Purah....

Instead, I think I’ll begin working on a

rune to un-reverse my aging process.

I hope it works for you; sounds like you’ve had too much of a good thing....

Next page.

Anti-Aging Experimental Trial

Day 7

This morning’s exam results indicated

that I am still age 6, same as yesterday.

Perhaps my age-reversal has stopped.

Well that’s a relief.

As luck would have it, today I also

finished developing the beta version

of an age-boosting rune! ♪

Uh oh.

If successful, this should be able to

reverse the effects of the anti-aging

rune. I hope it will, anyway.

All I need to do is increase the output

and expose myself to its rays...

Just be careful, Purah; I’d hate to see you age too far and die.

However, when I tried to add this feature

to the Sheikah Slate I made, I found that

the Guidance Stone had stopped!

Ah.... can’t say I’m sorry about that.

What’s more, the blue flame in the

furnace outside has gone out!

I sent Symin to the ancient furnace,

but he was too clumsy and it was

raining and nothing went to plan.

So I had to go down there to help,

but a girl in the village saw me.

What a mess I’ve made...

!

I think I’ve spoken to that girl.

Not only am I unable to continue my

research in this state, I can only work

by the light of gas lamps. What to do...

Next page.

Date: ???

I can’t believe it... Our hero, Linky,

has awoken from his 100-year slumber!

As expected, he has lost his memory.

I think I preferred her as an adult when she just referred to me as “the swordsman”.

And what did she mean “as expected” anyway?

The Slumber of Restoration... I really

should have done a test run on that

thing first. Well, live and learn.

Indeed.

But I’m still not sorry for its help.

In any case, he got the ancient furnace

working, so now I can start my research

once again. Finally!! ☆

Only a truly gifted and heroic swordsman

like him could have achieved all that. ♪

Speaking of...this seems like a good

opportunity to get him to do some

other chores for me too, heh. ☆

That.... seemed to be the last page.

....

These diaries.... They all made for.... interesting reconstructions. Some of more import to me than others.

It gave me much to think about as I finally made my way back to my house.

UH, WHERE IS MY DOOR.

MY WEAPONS?

But no, they suddenly populated on their mounts.

BUT WHERE IS MY DOOR?

UH?

I went up the stairs to my bed. Turned around.

Oh, my door was there.

....

You know.... I begin to worry about this game. First that Big Yiga that I toyed with for ages out by the river, and the strange chanting animations he would get stuck in.... and now my disappearing house.... I’d been half-expecting to see Bolson standing around outside asking for more cash....

Huh.

....

I’d better hurry up and finish this game....

....

I put Link to bed this time in nothing but his Gerudo Sirwal Harem Pants.

They looked comfy.

It’s my house I can walk around with no shirt on if I want.

Good night.