The Battle of Olympus/Crete

Buying greater power
Crete is unlike any location that you've visited so far. The vast majority of Crete is composed of colored rooms with three doors. These rooms connect to one another through these doors, although rarely in a straightforward manner. Three of the hallways loop around endlessly, making it difficult to discern where you are. The only way to tell is to look at the colors, the enemies that occupy the room, and the locations that each doorway leads to. If you choose not to rely on the map provided above, it is quite possible to map out the arrangements of each room in Crete with some diligence.

If you have been following this walkthrough, you will likely arrive at Crete by riding a dolphin from, although it is also possible to arrive via. Assuming you come via Laconia, you will arrive in section A. As you make your way to the entrance of Crete's interior, you will be attacked by a large Knight. Like the Bull and Lion bosses that you have previously faced, Knights rush towards you to attack. However, Knights are slightly smarter than the Bull and the Lion. Constantly swinging your sword will cause them to hesitate and back off from their attack. If you want the Knight to approach you, you'll have to stop swinging your sword long enough for the him to get close enough to strike. Kneel down and wait for the Knight to get close, and then stab his legs with your sword. He will bounce back and then repeat the action as long as you don't continue to swing your sword. Once you strike him 4 times with the Divine Sword (or 8 with the regular sword), he will be defeated, and the path to the entrance will be clear. Run to the right and enter the door to arrive in the center of section 1.

This section, purple in color, resembles most of Crete's rooms. A few enemies such as Amazons will attack you on the floor. If you attempt to avoid their attack by leaping up to the ceiling, you will similarly be attacked by a Shadow demon. While attacking the Amazons may net you an Olive or a Bay leaf, you're actually far better off avoiding as much conflict as you can, since there are many rooms to get through, and they are all occupied by enemies. Additionally, there are two Springs of Recovery whose locations you should learn as quickly as possible, since you are likely to take a good deal of damage in Crete even if you attempt to avoid conflict with enemies.

From this point forward, this walkthrough will take you along the shortest and most efficient path to complete all of the objectives in Crete. From your arrival in section 1, head to the left, and take the next door to blue section 5. When you arrive there, watch out for the Ghost that will come flying down, and continue left. Since this is one of the hallways that wraps around, you will arrive on the right side of section 6. The very next door that you come to is one of the Springs of Recovery. Step inside to restore your health, and then return to section 6.

Back in the blue hallway, run to the left. Dodge the smaller Amazons as best as you can while you continue past the center door and enter the left door. This will take you to yellow section 7. Fight or dodge your way to the right side of this section, and enter through the door. You will arrive at the temple of Ares. Speak with this god, and he will offer to sell you a very valuable item for 80 Olives: the Power Bracelet. Not only will the Power Bracelet double the strength of your attacks, but it will negate the curse of the Power of Argus, allowing you to shoot lightning bolts from the Divine Sword with no penalty to your health. However, before you say yes to Ares, make sure you have the full 80 Olives. If you are even one Olive short, he will become angry with you and strip you of the Sandals of Hermes. (You can reclaim the Sandals by visiting Hermes' temple in Argolis, and the finding him once more in Zeus' temple in Arcadia.)

Once you obtain the bracelet, half of your shopping is complete. The only problem is, you need another 80 olives to purchase another item. Obtaining Olives in Crete is particularly difficult, so you may choose to leave Crete and visit somewhere like where grinding for Olives is a little easier, or you may choose to stay in Crete and camp out near one of the Springs of Recovery. You can return to blue section 6, and walk to the right side where the spring can be found. Refuel your health, and then battle some of the Amazons and Ghosts near the spring. Then return to the spring whenever you are running low on health, or to refill your Trojan Pitcher. Repeat this for as long as necessary until you have obtained another 80 Olives.

The rest of the maze
From the Spring of Recovery in section 6, walk to the left, and pass through the center door to blue section 3. From there, walk to the right. The right door of section 3 leads to a boy who comments on how you'll have to save up on Olives. Continue on to section 4 and take the first door that you come to, which leads to pink section 9. The center door in section 9 contains important information and it's worth taking the time to step in and speak with the woman there. The instructions she gives you are the key to finding your way through Tartarus: Left, Left, Right, Left.

Exit out of her room and run to the right, past the door you arrived through, and on to section 10. Take the first door that you find and you will appear in red section 13. Run to the center door. Assuming you have at least 80 Olives and 20 Salamander skins, step inside and speak with Circe the witch. Pay her the olives and she will convert the Salamander skins into the Salamander Shield, which provides protection against fire.

After you buy the shield, exit Circe's room, and continue walking to the right. Exit through the right door to pink section 11. Continue right and you will reach the center door, which contains another Spring of Recovery. Stop inside and refresh your health. Then step back outside, and continue to the right to reach the next door, which leads to indigo section 14. Once inside, you'll be attacked by an small Amazon and a ghost. Take care of them and jump up the steps. You will notice an energy barrier further into the section. The barrier will only prevent you from passing if you do not have the second Fragment of Love. Since you should have it, you can easily slip past the barrier, which will shrink away.

Run to the end of the section, and you will meet the next boss: the Minotaur. He tosses clubs at you. While this boss is strong, and the clubs can do a good deal of damage, the Minotaur is not too difficult to defeat. You can easily back him up against the wall and strike him continuously with your sword. It will take 16 hits from the Divine Sword to defeat the Minotaur. Keep him pushed against the back wall until you beat him. When you do, a door will open up.

Follow the passage on the other side of the door that opens up, and you will arrive at another Nymph who is holding the third and final Fragment of Love. Talk to the Nymph, collect the fragment, and listen to the final message from Helene, who tells you that the door to Tartarus is now open. When you're done, exit the room and return to section 14. Run to the left side, pass through the door, and enter pink section 11. Return to the Spring of Recover in the center of section 11 if you need more health or to fill up your pitcher.

From here, you could easily reach by travelling to green section 12, exiting to section B (where you'll have to fight another Knight), and summoning a dolphin, and heading left to section C.  However, there is another location that you have yet to visit, and to get there, you must return to  first. Go back to the location where you fought the Lamia, and rescued the child, and use the Ocarina to summon a dolphin at the shoreline. Ride this dolphin, and he will take you to, where you must obtain an important item from the goddess Artemis.