Part 10: Don't Eat That!

So getting back into the action, we're just going to jump into it. That's kind of the theme here in Aitos… there's no reason not to just rush on through it, and I get the feeling that a lot of people don't like it for that reason.

Rock the Dragon



We start in on a convenient rock ledge that gives a false impression of the stage. It's actually a lot more varied, and some people think it's meant to call back to Japan.



The bamboo spikes are a dead giveaway...



"Although I don't remember anything about this."

Naturally this is an excellent opportunity to plummet to your death, but for large swathes where there's actually solid land below you.



If you want to score points, it's often a lot easier to just go along the ground and kill everything. You just have to not fall into the lava here while this Tengu shoots little whirlwinds at you.



After the flying chariot sequence comes some platforming in front of a waterfall. The one thing you want to get is this flaming sword power up, which appears nowhere else in the game. It makes the next boss fight a lot easier.

"Master, why don't I have a flaming sword?"

"Because we tried that once, and as I recall it didn't work out well."



The boss fight in this section is a very snakelike dragon that moves around the platforms in a pre-set pattern. The flaming sword power up gives you a distance attack, which means that you don't have to try nearly so hard to get a hit in on the head.



The power up also doubles your damage output, so he explodes segment by segment that much sooner. Based on how narrow the target area is you're better off using a sword than trying anything magical. Shortly afterward...




You want me to blow up rocks with lightning? That's the most inefficient thing I've ever heard. Have you people never heard of shovels and hammers?"

"Master, they were quite literally born yesterday."



So Aitos is covered in rocks, as we've mentioned, and introduces a new enemy. The skull head you can see here is a monster that takes 8 arrow shots to put down and can cause earthquakes if they're left alone long enough. The other problem is that they do a lot of damage to the angel and can be very aggressive. This one is fairly passive, and he's close enough that he's easy to take out quickly.



"Stupid… next time I'm creating them with tools in hand, do you hear me?"



"On the bright side, my Lord, it looks as though everything here can be dealt with using lightning."

"Lightning is your answer to everything… not that it's a bad answer."



For some reason they have pastures here instead of fields. On the plus side, it's one less place where we have to switch in wheat for corn, so I can't complain too much.



First order of priority is definitely getting rid of the skull head lair, which takes all of about 3 seconds once we get the townspeople moving.



"A statue. You really shouldn't have. Hey, wait, are you…?"




"Yeah, he was kind of bleeding all over the floor when you were offering up that statue."

"So, I alone must continue the building of Aitos for a while."

"Sure, sure. Tell him to stay off his feet and put some ice on it."




"I'm… happy for you? Angel, what do I say to this?"

"I don't know. Do you think they're intending to eat them?"

"Eww. Issue a commandment telling them not to do that immediately."



"I'll get right on that as soon as they finish sealing the Monster's Lair. Assuming that the horse isn't for the victory feast."



"Given that they're becoming more civilized, I'm certain that isn't the case."



"Good. Now, about things you can and can't eat…"



"Angel! Did I or did I not tell him to stay off his feet and put some ice on it?"

"You certainly did, Master."

"After sealing the Monster's Lair, he was fatally injured. He is now standing before the shrine with his last ounce of strength."



"I suppose it's the least I can do…"



"Although you should know these are tears for the relentless stupidity of the human race, not tears of pity."



"Oh Master, thank you for showing compassion on him in his great hour of need."

"Whatever you want to read into it."

And lo, five seconds later…



"Wait, why do you have windmills? What are even milling without any kind of grain crop?"

"Perhaps they're industrial size butter churns?"



This is the one and only place where the Wind miracle is ever used. Other than that, it's just a very expensive way (80 SP) of getting rid of all the monsters on the map for a few seconds until they respawn.



Next level: 3700. Normally we'd be a couple levels lower at this point, since it's more typical to do Aitos first and then Marahna.



"Well, at least it can't be about someone managing to get themselves injured sealing a monster's lair… yet."



"That's great. And those, also, you may eat."



"And be careful while you're at it!"



"At least nobody managed to get themselves killed this time."

"Master, what would we do if both of the original pair in a given town were to die?"



"Probably decide our work here was done and move on since nobody else would be bothering us with a new request every few minutes."



"The mountains hold many unseen mysteries. We will inform you if anything is discovered."

And with that, we'll break.

Next update: Mysteries of the mountains, a perfect cover for an earthquake, and the penultimate area boss.