Hyrule Castle (Four Swords Adventures)


 * This article is about the stage in Whereabouts of the Wind. For the stage in Near the Fields, see Infiltration of Hyrule Castle.

Hyrule Castle is a stage in. It is the third and last stage in the Whereabouts of the Wind level.

Themes and Navigation
After making their way through Lake Hylia and the Cave of No Return, the Links finally make their way back to Hyrule Castle. As they approach the castle grounds, Kaepora Gaebora arrives and warns them that a terrible fiend inside the castle is leeching power from the captured Maidens. He cautions them that in order to rescue the Maidens, they must first face this incredibly dangerous foe. The Links also find a signpost left by Tingle, which informs them that an adorable female Fairy Tingle met had went inside the castle, and has not been seen since. Tingle signs off that he suspects she was captured, and implores that someone save her.

The castle's interior and exterior, for the most part, greatly resembles the one from, although it is considerably larger and contains even more rooms than its predecessor. Soldiers heavily patrol the castle grounds at every corner and attack intruders on sight. Two Bomb Soldiers also patrol the entrance from the castle walls high above, and throw Bombs at anyone who comes near. The Links must find an underground entrance to the castle to activate a switch that opens the gate to the castle. At the castle's courtyard, the young heroes encounter a Chief Soldier as well as a legion of Hyrulean Soldiers that will try to stop them from gaining access inside the castle.

Once inside the castle, the Links explore its various chambers as well as the roof in order to open the main door situated at the center of the castle, where they come upon a large arena that forces them to fight and defeat a Ball and Chain Soldier as well as numerous Hyrulean Soldiers. After their defeat, the Links find that the rest of the castle is bordered off by a magical barrier, preventing their approach. Through searching the area, they eventually find a River Zora imprisoned in a chamber. The frustrated Zora explains that she had heard the cries of the Maidens and came to investigate, only to find the castle ridden with Soldiers. They had captured and split her in two, resulting in her current shape. She asks the Links to help her find her other half in order to return to her former shape. Once the Links find the second half, the two Zoras request to be escorted to the barrier that blocks the Links' way. There, they merge together and are revealed to actually be the Fairy Queen. She immediately assists the young heroes by smiting all on-screen Soldiers and dispels the magical barrier, allowing the Links to continue. The Fairy Queen then thanks them and promises to tell the other Great Fairies to help them whenever needed.

The Links continue to search the castle and its chambers, while running into many more enemies along the way. At the throne room, the Links push aside the throne to access a hidden passageway that leads to the rooftop, where the Links ultimately face against Phantom Ganon as the evil fiend leeching power from the Maidens. Once it is defeated, a stairway reveals itself to a hidden chamber where the Links find four dark barriers imprisoning the Blue Maiden. The freed Maiden explains to them that the dark shadow that captured her and the other Maidens was a being that looks just like the Links. She implores that they save Princess Zelda and the remaining Maidens. Sensing that the next Maiden is imprisoned at the Eastern Temple, the Blue Maiden tells them to travel by sea under her protection, and transforms herself into a Fairy to guide them. The Links are then warped to the next area, The Coast.