Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess
Walkthrough — VII. Retrieving Evil's Bane and Into the Desert

Following the completion of the Lakebed Temple dungeon, and the return to the Overworld, you will appear inside the spring of Lanayru. However, when you turn around, you come face to face with a mysterious figure. It is none other than Zant, the evil mage who proclaimed himself the King of Twilight. He uses his brute strength in magic to render Midna and even Lanayru helpless. He takes the Fused Shadow power, which you worked hard to obtain, and works some wicked magic on Midna for betraying him. Zant then attempts to finish Midna off, but instead hits Link with his attack, which turns Link back to wolf form. He'll continue to stay that way even after Zant leaves and the light returns. Lanayru worriedly suggests that Link help Midna, who appears to be dying.

Head towards Castle Town and specifically to Telma's Bar in the alley. You really want to head to the Castle itself, but without opposable thumbs, your chances of getting through the front door are slim to nil. Therefore, stopping first at Telma's Bar, you can go inside the establishment, only to be thrown out by the frightened patrons within. However, Louise, Telma's cat, is fortunately in the alley. Having remembered your scent, the pampered feline recognizes you. Louise will let you in the Bar through he window. From here you need to cross to the other side of the Bar along the rafters and above the revelry below, using ropes to cross the gaps, and not knocking over any of the bottles (which will alert the people below to your presence). Once on the opposite side of the room, head through the door.

You'll now be in the house of Jovani, a greedy man who was transformed into a gold doll by some mischievous Poes. This'll give you a reason for all those Poe Souls you've been collecting all this time. Nevertheless, he'll point the way into an old entrance to the sewers of Castle Town. Head into the sewers (look familiar?) and follow them to the Castle and from there up to Princess Zelda's room where a cut-scene occurs. You'll be charged with tracking down the Master Sword, the only tool which can bring Link back to human form. In the ensuing drama, Midna will be saved by Zelda's magic, and the Castle will be encased in a large, mysterious magic field when you exit it.

Nevertheless, there's work to be done and Blades of Evil's Bane to be recovered! As such, head to the spot in Faron (just outside the Forest Temple) where you rescued Kiki and Talo. You will Kiki (reunited and it feels so good) being attacked by some odd puppet-like creatures, which are a cinch to defeat. Follow the path that Kiki points out, and use Midna to jump from one ledge to another, and you will end up at the entrance to the Sacred Grove. Also, there is one of the singing stones, which indicates the Golden Wolf and a new skill. Meet with the wolf, and continue.

Inside the Sacred Grove, you will come to a spot where you have to howl Zelda's Lullaby. As you proceed, a Skullkid drops out of a nearby tree. He plays his instrument, and those puppet creatures appear to do his bidding. Follow him throughout the grove, listening for his instrument, and attacking him whenever you catch up him. You will eventually come to a place where he stays, and you must fight him and his puppets. After he is defeated, he will surrender, and leave (though promising to meet again for another “game”).

Continue forward, and you will come to a Triforce carved into the ground where you have to howl Zelda's Lullaby once again. Do so to awaken the two statues in front of you. You'll be required to complete a mind bending puzzle (see the aside below for the solution). After you complete the puzzle and return the statues to their original spots, proceed to pass through the doorway to where the master Sword awaits discovery. Touching the blade breaks the spell placed on Link by Zant, allowing the Hero to regain his human form. Take the sword as your own.

To complete this puzzle, you need to move Link around so that the statues follow his movements (while mirroring them) and are eventually placed back on their original spots. On the diagram to the right, R1 and L1 are where the statues each need to end up, and R2 and L2 are where they start the puzzle at. The solution to the puzzle is as follows: Down, Up, Left, Up, Right, Down, Down, Down, Up, Up, Left, Up, Up, Right, Down

You now have the ability to warp between wolf and human form at will, which furthermore means that the warp ability is now available at any time. Let's take it for a test drive, and head back to Castle Town, eh? From there, meet the Golden Wolf and learn a new hidden skill from the Knight. Having done that, you should have also received a new letter by this point (if not, go run back and forth on the bridge to Castle Town for a moment to trigger the event). The letter asks you to head to Telma's Bar, so do so.

Within you'll meet the members of some anti-Twilight resistance front—Ashei, Shad, and Rusl—excluding Auru, who is at lake Hylia, or so you are told. After talking to each of the members, examine the map on the table to discern Auru's location. Leave Castle Town and warp to lake Hylia, and from there head to the spot on your map and ascend the watch tower that overlooks the Desert to meet Auru.

He'll tell you about the Desert and then how to get up the cliff face, and to the sandy expanses beyond—by cannon. Apparently, Auru saved the life of Fyer, the clown operating the cannon house, and Fyer owes Auru one. So, he'll give Link a letter, which you can take to Fyer in exchange for a free trip (all expenses paid) to the Desert.

Once actually at the Gerudo Desert, the goal is to reach the Arbiter's Grounds in the northeast corner of the area. As such, make you way in that direction to discover a goblin warcamp, and the way forward blocked off by a wooden fence. As such, dispatch the goblin archers on the towers and hop on one of the boars. Use the A button to get it in a frenzy and charging. While the boar is charging, smash through the gate to open the way north. From here climb up the ledge to the path ahead and then take the middle path to the Arbiter's Grounds prison complex.

When you arrive at the complex, proceed to battle your way through the club-wielding golbins and various archers. You will come to a spot where there is a hog roasting over a flame, which you can attack repeatedly to reveal a heart Piece within its roasted innards. Appetizing displays aside, continue with the battle until you find the goblin with the small key and collect said key.

Use the key on the locked gate you passed earlier in your massacre, and you will enter a room with a boar. An enemy will emerge from the darkness—the ogre! It's back from the canyon you unceremoniously dropped it in, and apparently looking for a rematch. This time, it is wielding a large stone axe and an attitude to match. Despite the threatening introduction, it's quite the push over—just let his axe come down, and slash repeatedly! Just watch out for his attacks, as they will take away three hearts. After he is defeated, he will limp away, and the goblin camp will catch fire. Use the boar to smash through the gate and escape the flames, and continue on to the Arbiter's Grounds dungeon.