Seeing has how it’s been awhile since I last gave an update on my progress with The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, one might think that, surely, I must be almost done with the game! Well, that someone would be quite incorrect, sadly. Indeed, much of my most recent time was spent with Red Dead Redemption (and I have no regrets!). However, over the past couple months I haven’t been completely ignoring Link (wolf and human) and Midna and those dastardly shadows. I’ve managed to get a few more stray hours; and with Red Dead Redemption done, I’m looking to play a bit more regularly…mostly. I hope.

Last time I reported having gotten my second fused shadow from the Goron Mines. That was a very exciting and hot-footed romp, certainly. So it was time to find the third shadow, but I ended up spending a little time in Kakariko Village first after talking to a couple of the villagers there. Good thing too, because from my efforts I got the Bomb Bag, which was nice, and Hawkeye, which was especially awesome as it makes long-ranged attacks with the bow and arrows much, much easier.

With my business in Kakariko done (as least as far I could tell), it was time to get back on Epona and figure out where to go next. The map suggested that I need to head back to Hyrule Field and then go along a path to the northwest. This led me to the Eldin Bridge, which was a bridge. Woo. And crossing it involved some more of those shadow enemies, which was little strange because I was human Link not Wolf Link at the time. Only then, after defeating them it was back into the shadows with Midna again. Odd timing, but okay.

Once again as Wolf Link (he gets more and more charming each time I get to be him) and with Midna alongside, we headed into the next destination following the scent of one of Link’s friends, Ilia. This led to Hyrule Castle Town. Unlike many of the previously unpopulated locales traversed by Wolf Link, Hyrule Castle Town was brimming with people. Though not very large, it was extremely interesting exploring the town as Wolf Link and listening in on various folks’ conversations. At one point, I almost forgot the reason Link was there in the first place, and I got back on track following that scent. The discoveries that came of it were that a sick child of the Zora people (water dwellers) had somehow gotten into the town (Ilia was looking after him), and that there was trouble at Hyrule’s large Lake Hylia. With that information, Lake Hylia seemed to be the next spot to visit. Upon arrival, it became quite clear that Lake Hylia was in trouble – it was nearly dry! It was up to Wolf Link to save the day.

Now, as with any game, there inevitably comes a point where I get annoyingly stuck. It just happens, and it happens most often in games like Twilight Princess where you usually don’t get a ton of direction on how to proceed. (I both love and hate this about games, generally…always have.) The situation was this: over the lake bed was a huge bridge. Once on said bridge, two little, evil bokoblins decide to light fires on each end of the bridge, apparently trapping Wolf Link in the middle. The only things visibly available to use in this moment of peril were a couple of boxes situated on each side of the bridge. Well…I don’t need to tell you how many terrible times (it was a lot) I had to watch Wolf Link die before finally figuring out that I had to push one of the boxes to the side of the bridge, climb up it, and then plummet forth over the bridge. How in the world was I supposed to know that a suicide jump would save Link?! Ah, well.

Thankfully, there was a sizeable puddle of water left in the remains of Lake Hylia, so there was no horrible SPLAT. Wolf Link and Midna went on their merry ways as it was time to fix the poor, dry lake. As with the bridge over the lake, it took me awhile to figure out just what I needed to do. Though, of course, I spent a good bit of time just exploring the lake bed because to was there. But eventually I got on track, defeated a crazy looking shadow bird, and it was the means by which to get to Zora’s Domain. That’s when things really started to come together in terms of the story, the sick Zora child, etc. etc.

Unfortunately for me, using the shadow bird by “flying” it through a series of narrow passages was the only was to access the domain. I hate flying in games, in all forms, with any vehicle, mechanical or living. HATE. IT.

Moving on, Zora’s Domain was also in a tragic state, with much of its populous somehow frozen in its own waters! Dreadful! So fixing Lake Hylia meant that Zora’s Domain had to be fixed as well. As with the stupid bridge and the suicide jump, I won’t bore you with the story of how it took me f-o-r-e-v-e-r to figure out that I had to go back the Goron Mines to get a big volcanic rock to thaw out Zora’s Domain. SIGH.

With Zora’s Domain once again flowing free with cool, crisp water, Lake Hylia was subsequently filled, much to the delight of the Hyrulians. But Link’s quest didn’t end there. Restoring Lake Hylia revealed the location of the third spirit of light, Lanayru. With this came the filling of another vessel of tears with sixteen tears of light. Yippee. My favorite. These sixteen were the hardest yet to get, as getting them involved traveling all over Lake Hylia and Zora’s Domain (to some rather out-of-reach locations!), and then back to Hyrule Town Castle. And the travels to get the tears were fraught with all sorts of messes, including more of those shadow monsters as mini boss fight with a pretty disgusting, ooey-gooey bug creature. It was exhausting! Honestly though, upon getting that sixteenth tear, I rallied. It was a very exciting moment…that quickly turned to I-don’t-know-what! Seriously guys, if you’ve played the game, you know what I’m talking about. That whole trippy thing with the red-eyed shadow Links and knife-wielding Ilia…yeesh. A very, very creepy interlude.

Eerie dream sequences aside, the spirit Lanayru revealed the next major location: the Lakebed Temple. And then it was time to say goodbye again to Midna as Link returned to the land of the living.

And that’s where things remain. I know where the Lakebed Temple is – underwater in Lake Hylia – and now I just need to get to it. Using Link’s Iron Boots is not help because he drowns well before reaching the bottom. I got a clue that I need help or something from the Zoras in order to breathe underwater. So that’s my next quest. I’ll be sure to report on it and everything else Twilight Princess in my next update, which I’d like to think will happen sooner rather than later, but y’know…”later” seems to be my mantra these days.