Mermaid's Cave

The Mermaid's Cave is the sixth dungeon in Oracle of Ages, found at the base of Rolling Ridge. This dungeon exists in both the past and the present.

Entrance to the Cave
The entrance to the dungeon is found behind a waterfall at the base of Rolling Ridge. However, the waterfall seems to have dried up in the present, in which case the entrance is simply built into the cliff wall. The Mermaid Key and Old Mermaid Key are required to enter the dungeon in the past and the present, respectively.

Themes and Navigation
The Mermaid's Cave is a water-themed dungeon. The entire first floor of the Cave in the present somewhat resembles a mermaid, hence the name of the dungeon. It is the only dungeon of the game that can be entered in both the past and the present. In order to complete it, Link must travel back and forth through the past and present forms of the dungeon. In the present time Mermaid's Cave, Link will find the mini-boss, Vire, along with the Boss Key. Fittingly, he will also find the Mermaid Suit, which is required to explore the submerged section of the dungeon in the past. The boss of the dungeon, Octogon, and the Essence of Time it is guarding, are found in the past. After defeating Octogon in a partly above-water, partly below-water battle, Link will receive a Heart Container and the Lonely Peak, his sixth Essence of Time.

Trivia

 * Vire, the dungeon's mini-boss, bears some similarity to Swoop, the mini-boss of the Wing Dungeon. Vire also appears in Oracle of Seasons and Link's Awakening.
 * If the floors of this dungeon in the past are combined, they make the shape of the dungeon in the present. This means that between the two ages, something may have caused the floors to drain and merge together.
 * The fewest number of sword slashes to defeat Vire in this dungeon is 2. One must play Oracle of Seasons first and beat that, and then link it up with Oracle of Ages. One then must use secrets to obtain the Master Sword and equip the Red Ring.