Part 11: Chapter 7: Tower

Chapter 7: Tower

Welcome to the Tower of Ar Tonelico Public Access Terminal Network!

Computer, search all recent security logs for Tenba Corporation Firefly Alley Power Plant. Cross reference unauthorized entry and tower access path.

Searching... Records found. One recent record found.

Display.



Good job! Let's go!

Unauthorized entrants proceeded to nearby guard checkpoint and engaged security forces.



Guard B: They look suspicious.
Guard C: Stay right there!
I don't think they're just going to let us go.
We'll just have to make them sleep.

Guards were defeated by intruders, who continued on.



Show me the main office, I want to see what Bourd intends to do about this.



Guard B: There's no mistake.
That kid's got some nerve, trying to escape from me.
Assemble the special forces team. We'll chase them down.
Guard B: Yes, sir!
And prepare an airship. We're going to use aerial support this time.
Guard B: But, the Tower Guardians outside...
Use that armed ship to take those Guardians down, along with that kid.
Guard B But, we need authorization from the president to...
Don't worry about that. I'll be flying it. I'm sure the president won't mind at all.
Guard B: Y, yes, sir!
You're not getting away from me, kid.

Continue surveillance of intruders at power facility.



W, well... honestly...
I'm... afr, afraid of heights...
Really? You!?
...Yes. I didn't think the Pipeline... would be this narrow...
L, Lyner...
...Will you... hold my hand?
Uh, yeah, of course. Are you gonna be okay?
...I think so, yes. Just don't let go of my hand!
Okay, I won't.
...I mean it! Do you promise? If you let go, I'm gonna grab you!
Okay, I get it. I won't let go.
...Hmm?



Are you disappointed?
Huh? Not at all.
I think it's cute that you have at least one weakness.
...Hmph.

Surveillance continues on subjects. Location: Terraced Fields. Subjects encountered unidentified person engaged by local wildlife and rendered assistance.



Motor skills... failing...
Hey!
It's that girl we met before!
Are you okay?
Huh... who's there? Is that you... Luke...?



Oh, right.
Be careful. After we attack these guys, they can still recover.
They recover too quickly for me, so my attacks are pretty useless!
What!? Then this battle will never end!
Don't worry, Lyner. We can take him out in one shot using my Song Magic.
Lyner, try increasing the Ambience Field to boost my Song Power.
The Ambience Field...? Which one's that again?
Ugh! I can't believe you! You haven't studied at all!

As you hit enemies consecutively, the Ambience Field rises. It ranges from zero to three. At higher Ambience levels Song Magic does more damage. The plant monster we're fighting heals every time it's hit in combat. This makes it an ideal target to hit with powerful song magic, which makes them ideal to farm Dive Points off of as random enemies.



It wasn't Luke. Of course, it's never Luke...
...Luke?
...Thanks. Guess that's what I'm s'posed to say, right?
That's pretty rude of you! We just saved your life!
...Coulda handled it m'self.
B'sides, I never asked for help.
...I can't believe you! You were passing out when we showed up...
That's enough, you two. Let's just be glad that no one's hurt. Out here, we could all use a little help.
...Hmph.
Now, why don't we introduce ourselves. My name is Lyner.



Nice to meet you!
So, where are you from? You don't look like you're with Tenba...
You ran away from the guards earlier. Did you do something bad?
I don't have to take this from you! All I did was enter a restricted area.
I was trying to get some parts for an airship...
What!? Isn't that dangerous?
How so? You guys were in the restricted area, too.
Yeah, well...
So, what are you doing out here?
Couldn't take an airship from Firefly Alley, so I'm hoofing it to the Floating Wharf.
You're going to climb the outer wall!?
Yup.



Huh!? ...I'll be just fine. I have Lyner to protect me.
Well, I want Lyner to protect me, too.
Hmph! You barely even know him...
Okay, okay, calm down girls. Why are you going to the Floating Wharf?
I need to pick something up near there.
Getting there won't be easy. There are guardians up in the sky. Their job is to attack people.
And we don't even know if the Floating Wharf is safe.
I don't care if it's safe. I gotta go there.
Sounds like you really need to get up there. Why don't you come with us?
Lyner, what are you doing!?
We're all heading up there, anyway. It'll be safer for all of us to help each other out.
I... guess that's true. But...
There! Problem solved! What do you say, Krusche?
Sure, I guess.


Krusche joins us here. She's awesome. She has a heal, Cure Tablet, that scales pretty well. She chainsaws things as well. She's even cooler than Jack, which is hard.


Name: Krusche Elendia Age: 15 Height: 158 cm Weight: 41 kg
Notes: Information suggests subject is an engineer specializing in airships.

At this point I spent quite a long time grinding DP to finish Misha's dives. There were quite a lot of Talk topics with Misha that will go along with the Dives. Also, when you Grathmeld with a Reyvateil in your party they will often have a scene about the item and suggest an alternative name. I'll be showing some of those off as well with the dives.

Subjects approached entrance to Tower of Ar Tonelico.



But, no one's ever gone inside before.
None of our bombs can bust it open.
This door looks like...



I'll be damned!
FFT Spectrum authorization confirmed, Lyner Barsett. Awaiting commands.
Open B1 Dividing Gate No. 3.



In 2 seconds, the Dividing Gate will open. You are authorized to proceed.
It's still working. That's a great sign.
This door... it opened... Nobody's opened this door in years...
Lyner... who are you?
Well... I'm...
Lyner is an Apostle of Elemia. He can open doors all day...
Misha! Don't go around telling everyone who I am!
Why not!? What's the big deal? It's not like anyone will hunt you down and capture you.
(Actualy, they did hunt me down and capture me...)
An Apostle of Elemia...
...Okay! How about we go inside? I'll tell you what's going on later.

Subjects entered the Tower.



Let me see...
It's called Yuteria. It's commonly used for constructing walls.
...What about this one?
That's Airmetal. It's a rare and important material.
...What?
I wasn't asking you.
...So that's how it is. Sorry for trying to be helpful!
(I wonder if these tow can ever get along...)
Anyhow... you guys sure know a lot about stuff I've never seen before.
Can you teach me about it when we get the chance?
Sure, but it'll cost you... a lot.
That's nice. But, I'll just have Lyner teach me. You'll teach me for free, won't you?
Huh!? Well... sure, I guess.
Hmph! Be careful, Lyner. She thinks she can get whatever she wants.



Tower Guardians engaged intruders.



Wondering about it won't really help us now.
Could this really be caused by those new viruses...?



They take control of normal programs and rewrite them.
...? I don't get it.
Simply put, they're bad guys who live in the Tower.
It looks like they brainwashed the Tower Guardians. That's the only reason they would attack people.
Oh... okay. That's a much better explanation.
...Sure, it's much better for people who can't understand what's really going on.
So today, we learned that you suck at explaining things.
And we also learned that you have a foul mouth.
Look, my mission is to defeat the viruses.
See, I understood that.



Subjects approached shuttle 63. Local power failure had rendered it inoperative.



There are many of them in the tower. We can use it to easily go to the top.
Oh... So, the Apostles of Elemia don't need airships.
Well, not always... Let's check it out.
It's not running.
...No.
There might be a control room nearby. Let's look around.

Subjects approached the A1 Dividing Wall. Access denied as per special order.



We don't have access to these dividing walls right now. In theory every part of the Tower is connected to every other part on the other side if you walk long enough. Eventually we will meet the requirement to pass through them, but that's a long way off.

Subjects approached shuttle control room, Unauthorized access attempted.



I've seen doors like this in my hometown.
It's a few thousand stons above us...
Wow, you're from way up there.
So, do you live above the Blastline? I thought that was as high as anyone can go.
No, not that high up. I guess it's just below the Blastline...
Wow... Apostles of Elemia sure live high up there.
I've heard people lived up there, but I just couldn't imagine it was true.
Lyner, can you open this door?
Here, let me try.
Hmm... I guess not.



...This is gonna be tough.
...Hey, Krusche. What are you working on?
Grathmeld.
You're a Melder too!?
Yup.
I'd never guess. You sure don't look like one.
You really should't talk about not being what you look like.
Hey, Krusche. Can you help me unlock this?
Me? But I don't know anything about this stuff.
Don't worry about it! If you can Grathmeld, analyzing the Tower should be a piece of cake.
Don't worry! I'll teach you everything you need to know.
I don't know. You're a pretty bad teacher...



Just as I thought, I have no idea what any of that means...
Argh...
This one goes here, right? But I don't think this one connects with the black wire.
No, it does go with black!
...You really think so? I'm pretty sure we have to connect it to the green wire...
Oh yeah? Well, what if you're wrong?
If I'm wrong, I'll buy you a Dokkoi Set.
But, if I'm right, then you have to buy me a Dokkoi Set.
Then it's a bet!
Oh...! I guess it was the green wire...
...Hahaha. Thanks for the food.



(I thought they'd be pulling each other's hair out by now. They might be okay after all.)



No, I'm okay. I knew this door was gonna be a lot harder to open than those Tenba doors.
And I learned something new. Thanks, Misha.
You're welcome!
...Wow, seems like you two are getting along much better.
I guess working on projects together can build lasting friendships.
Well, yeah...



...Huh?
Okay! But if you can't finish them all, you have to buy me 10 more Dokkoi Sets!
And the same goes for you.
...Hehehehe.
...Hehehehe.
I hope they can get along...



Symphonic power...?
Hey, why don't we use the Green Magic we learned from the other day?



We're doing pretty good for not having a plan.
Yeah. Maybe we can just activate the other terminals just like this.
C'mon, let's go back to the shuttle.

Subjects passed through tower to location designated 'Floating Wharf'.



Thanks to us, that is.
Hey, I worked hard, too.
...!
Lyner!
Yeah?
That airship...!?

Tower Guardians engaged unauthorized airship in vicinity.



What? Is something wrong with it?



Radolf!
Lyner! What are you doing here!?
I was gonna ask you the same question! What's going on?
Tower Guardians attacked us on our mission.
What?
Lyner, you have to leave, too.
No, I'll fight!
Are you out of your mind? Those things can fly.
We'll be fine. With my Song Magic, we can take them out in one shot!
You're a... Reyvateil!?
I'll help out, too.
I won't be much help, but I can't let you fight without me.
The guardians are attacking from the other side of the airship.

Warning! System error! Unable to load remainder of record! Abort/retry?

Retry, you worthless piece of scrap.

Records damaged. Recovery of data underway. Please be patient. Your request is important to us.

To be continued...