Part 2: Chapter Two: Eden Undone

When last we left our tale, the land of Eden had begun to vanish and Felt had drawn the Azure Azoth from its resting place in Marmel Forest. Felt and Viese hurried back to the Eden Temple to report what had happened to them.

Video- “Eden Shattered”

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It’s gone. Everything’s gone… Not a single trace left…
……
I wonder what is happening to Eden…
I don’t know, yet. There are no records of this ever happening before.
And our records go all the way back to Eden’s creation.
Zuvelk: …
We need to gather more information. First, we need damage reports for every area left.
Thank you all very much.

It was worse than they could have ever imagined.



Viese, Felt, are you both okay?
Yes, we’re fine.
What’s happening?
We aren’t certain why, but it appears some sections of Eden have simply vanished.
Some sections…? Like the other holy grounds for Mana?
Other holy grounds? What do you mean?
We saw Dour’s great tree vanish before our very eyes.
Dour’s great tree as well…!
In that case, nearly half of Eden has been wiped out.
Half…
That wasn’t a mere quake.
And, take a look at this!

There were some positives, however.



I heard a strange voice coming from the sword.
It said something about Gardo and being ready.
……
From the very beginning, the Azoth has always protected Eden.
The fact that you were able to remove it could signal that a crisis is approaching Eden.
……
These events have me terribly worried.
Would the two of you like to help us investigate these events?
We’d do anything to help.
What should we do with the sword?
Felt, you were the only one who could pull out the Azoth.
There may be some significance to that.
You should hold on to it, just in case.
I understand.

They returned to Noir to check the damage there.



I… I don’t really know for sure.
I just heard that some parts of Eden disappeared during the quake.
Zuvelk: …
Weathervane Hill, the Crystal Monument, and Aquito Spring all vanished.
All of them?
Yes. The Eden Temple is looking into it now.
It seems like only the central part of the continent is left.
Melia: What happened to Eden?
I don’t know yet, myself.
But, I think something’s about to happen.
Zuvelk: …
……
Is this all that’s left?

Which only left the gate to Belkhyde…

Video- “Distress Call”

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???: Has the time finally arrived?
Huh?
The Belkhyde Gate…
Is it open…?
Felt, look!
Who’s that?!

And a young girl appeared, but she just raised more questions than answers.



…?
State of emergency?
???: The balance in the Land of Mana has begun to crumble.
I apologize for troubling you master, but…
Your intervention is required in these urgent matters.
The Azure Azoth…
???: We need the master who wields the Azoth.
Now, I must return.
Hey! Wait!
She’s gone.
Today, it’s just one thing after another.
The master who wields the Azoth? Does that mean… you?
Sounds about right.
The Belkhyde Gate opened for the Azoth.
The quake, the Azoth, that girl who called me master…
These all must be connected somehow…

The Gate remained open, though.



I have to go there.
Felt…
Yeah?
……
This might be dangerous.
I know. But, it seems pretty safe.
After all, it has calmed down around here.
We should go report this back at the temple for now.
Yes, let’s do that.
Felt…
Just stay put…

Days passed in Eden as they searched for the source of the damage.



None at all.
However, the cause is still a mystery. We must remain vigilant.
We have examined every inch of Eden…
That just leaves whatever lies beyond the Belkhyde Gate.
We must investigate the other world, and the ruins of legend.
But, who shall we send to investigate?
That girl said something about the Master who wields the Azoth.
Now, I don’t know whether it was by chance or by fate, but…
…the one holding the Azoth was me.
I should go…
You do realize, it may be dangerous.
I am prepared. But…
But what?

In truth Felt had always wanted to see the other world.



That’s been my dream for as long as I can remember… wondering what I might find there.
Yes… I know.
But, all the studying I’ve done on it up here has been a waste of time.
Hmm.
Perhaps it is your destiny to explore Belkhyde.
But, what of Viese?
……
I caught her crying…
She said, “You don’t even know where you’re going or what’ll happen when you get there!”
……
But still, I must go.
That may be our only hope of saving Eden…
And, knowing Viese will be here waiting for me, I know I’ll make it back.
In that case…
I shall leave the investigation into Belkhyde to you.
Thank you.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I must be on my way.

And so he resolved to leave.



The boy departs on a journey while the girl stands guard at home.
In the end, they both shall find independence.
……
May Lilith grant her protection to the boy and girl.

As Felt prepared to leave, Viese was hard at work to provide him with what assistance she could.

Video- “Alchemy”

Learn the Secrets of Alchemy

……
Something wrong?
Huh? Oh, nothing.
Let’s go!
There’s not much time left before Felt has to go. We have to hurry.
Relax, just leave it to me.
If you don’t have enough materials, go out and search for them!

Feinne’s Fourth Wall Lectures: Alchemy Basics
Okay, today I’ll go over the mechanics of Alchemy’s operation (I’ll go over some fun alchemy tricks later on). Creating an item with Alchemy requires three things. First is a Recipe, which tells you an item is possible and lists the basic requirements to create it. The second is a Pact with the appropriate Mana. There’s no wiggle room here, we either have it or we don’t. The Heal Herb we want to make now requires Dour, who we have. On the other hand, the Fear Bottle we got at the same time requires the Water Mana Nymph to synthesize, and we don’t have her yet. Finally, we need ingredients. Usually we can mix and match here, and indeed doing so is vital. It allows us to improve items by using higher quality ingredients and even discover whole new syntheses.



Woohoo! Good job! Good job!
The Heal Herb is great for treating injuries and fatigue.
And now it is initialized.
Yes, this will do nicely.
Now you can use Elements to make more Heal Herbs, anywhere.
Felt will definitely need this on his journey.

So, that brings up something else. There are three types of items we can Synthesize. Accessories are equipment like armor that increases a character’s stats. Alchemy Items are both used as ingredients and are a special class of equipment we’ll ‘unlock’ later on in the story. That just leaves items like the Heal Herb, Mana Items. These are consumables that cast a spell-like effect in and sometimes out of battle. The great thing about Mana Items is that once we’ve made them once we can make more anywhere through Mana Synthesis. We convert raw Elements directly into the item, and we can even do this in battle. As long as we’ve got a good supply of Elements, we’ve got all sorts of options.

Viese almost forgot the most important thing she had to give Felt.



Oh, you’re right.
We have to hurry.
Come on, come on. We’re gonna be late!
I know. Hold on.
Ah, there it is! The Share Ring.
I almost forgot it!
Viese… Get moving!
Okay! Let’s go!

She rushed to the Belkhyde Gate to meet Felt before he left.

Video- “To Belkhyde”

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Oh, you came?
Of course I came… You’re really going to Belkhyde, aren’t you?
You can’t start a trip like this without a fond farewell.
……
Are you ready, Felt? You know you always forget something.
Do you have the Azoth?
Of course I do.
Here, take this.
What is it?
A Heal Herb. Use it to recover your strength.
I’ve already initialized it, so you just need Elements to make more with Mana Synthesis.
You don’t know what you’ll find there, so you may need more.
Viese, thank you.

Neither knew how long he’d be gone, or even if he would return.



What’s this? A ring…?
It’s the Share Ring. It was made through alchemy.
Take it for good luck…
See? I have one, too. Quick, put it on.
You never know what might happen out there. It might be helpful.
And, um…
What am I saying?
I just want you to know… I’ll be waiting for you, Felt…
……
I’ll take good care of it.
You… are coming back, aren’t you?
Of course I am.
You have to. Do you promise?
I promise. I will come back.
Then, I will wait for you.
……

In the end there was nothing else to say or do.



While you are away, I must guard the place you’ll come home to.
That is my mission now.
Viese…
Now, go. Just come back safely.
I will be back.
Viese.
Yes?
I’m doing this for everyone… For Eden.
I know.



And then he stepped into the gate, and was gone. It would be a very long time indeed before he returned to Eden…