The wizard Agahnim, however, was Ganon's pawn, and had come to Hyrule in order to break the Seal of the Seven Sages. Ganon needed the life force of the descendants of the Seven Sages in order to break the Seal and create a portal through which his evil army could invade Hyrule. With his new position of power, Agahnim eliminated the good king of Hyrule, and used his magic to control Hyrule's soldiers. He then imprisoned the female descendants of the Seven Sages one by one in the castle dungeon. The maidens' fathers, all of them old men, were powerless to stop Agahnim, although they knew perfectly well his intention: to create a portal from the Dark World to the Light World. In the castle tower at night, Agahnim would perform strange magical experiments on his prisoners, making them vanish one by one into the Dark World. Finally, only Princess Zelda was left.

Knowing that the time of destiny was drawing near, Princess Zelda telepathically contacted the one she knew to be the legendary Hero of Hyrule. At this time, a young man named Link was sound asleep in bed as a rainstorm pounded on the roof of his uncle's house. His uncle was one of the last knights who had not fallen under Agahnim's spell. Zelda's telepathic plea woke both of them.

Help me... Please help me... I am a prisoner in the dungeon of the castle. My name is Zelda. The wizard, Agahnim, has done... something to the other missing girls. Now only I remain... Agahnim has seized control of the castle and is now trying to open the seven sages' seal. ... ... I am in the dungeon of the castle. Please help me...

Link's uncle didn't wish for Link to get involved, so he commanded Link to stay in bed and wait for him to return. Grabbing his sword and shield, Link's uncle headed out into the rain.