Part 86: Part Eighty-Six: Other Side of the Curtain

Part Eighty-Six: Other Side of the Curtain


So, here we are, getting our first glance of the world map from the Esthar side.


One of the side effects of Esthar's size is the fact that you can drive/walk around on the elevated roads, even on the world map. Like being inside the city, this can occasionally be a hassle - you could get lost, and it also makes entering the city much slower.


Now, being that the story is in and around Esthar, the first thing I did was head towards Great Salt Lake. Over here, we can see something interesting: namely, the wall made out of those camo panels from earlier.


You cannot cross the wall by any means, which means I can't make it back to Garden to talk to everyone, sorry! The wall only goes so high, though, so maybe with a tall enough ladder...


Of course, there are still some sights to see on this side.


First up is the old Lunatic Pandora Laboratory. If you're attentive, you might notice a difference from the last time:


(For reference)


If you didn't notice, this guy's got your back.

Guy Hangin' Out: Look at them running around together. They're so cute.


You can talk to the dog and the moomba, but neither is very chatty. Ain't that always the way?


Oh, the draw point's still around.


Inside the lab, there's another guy.

Inside Man: When the research subject moves elsewhere, I guess they move with it.

Huh, I guess they finally got the Lunatic Pandora moving.

Inside Man: I'm just...in charge of looking after this place. I come around on patrol once in a while with Moombas.

For the record, I think this guy is the same dude who was around the place when Laguna was here.


Leaving the lab, the next story beat is over this way.


Thank god for turnin' right.



Interestin' place.


Like it says on the box, this is Tears' Point.


In all honesty, there's not much going on here. I do like the look of the place, though.



Drawin' Life is okay.


Basically, Tears' Point is just a bunch of these pillars surrounding a statue.



Here's a better shot of the statue. I'm not sure what it's supposed to be.



By the foot of the thing, there's...some garbage old ring or something. Awesome.



I'll just take my spells and go.


The last stop before going to Lunar Gate is this thing over here.


This place is...


Oh. Well. I guess we'll have to come back later.


Hell, I'm not even gonna waste my time taking spells.


Now,


Let's go to Lunar Gate. There's the moon, naturally, and some tubes pointed right at it.


More terrestrially, the parking lot. You can also see Esthar in the distance.



Security Guard: Our staff is waiting for you inside the complex.


It occurs to me that we still haven't gotten any explanation of this place.


At least we got an explanation of doors.


I can see people over there, but I can't talk to them. This sucks.



Oh hey, Angelo's here. How ya doin'?



: (...It's gonna be ok. I'll take care of Rinoa.)


And so, her dog reassured, Squall sets off to, uh, do something to hopefully help Rinoa. There's still not much of a plan to go on, here.


How 'bout you take off, hosehead?

: Yes.
Lunar Gate Staff: Ok, this way.


Nobody else is talkin', so let's find out about distances.

: Where are we going?

A good question to ask, even if it is a little late.


Where are we going, though?

Lunar Gate Staff: First, we need you to enter the capsule inside this pipe. Here, you'll undergo the 'cold sleep' process.

"'Cold sleep' process" is 100% a euphemism for death.

Lunar Gate Staff: Once this process is complete, your capsule will automatically be loaded into the booster. After that, we launch. You should be there by the time you wake up. Leave the rest to the staff once you get there. ...Well, that's about it in a nutshell.

Where are we going, dickhead?


So, yes, as it says in the dialogue option, they're going to murder everyone and then shoot their corpses into space.


You can say this, but there's no point, so...


Let's get murdered!

Lunar Gate Staff: Ok, you need to decide who you're taking. The girl in blue has already undergone 'cold sleep' and has been loaded in. There's room for 1 more.


Edea is not going to space today.

: In the meantime, something must be done to suppress my powers...
: But it'd be too dangerous for Matron to be alone!

And so we have something for everyone else to do while they're not in space.


Seeing a chance, Zell still wants to be a leader.


But I'm not so sure...

: Are you sure you can handle it...?

Being as he's in the foreground, this is an important character moment for Zell.


See, he's still mad about getting insulted by Seifer. After all, Zell's never been the most mature person.

: ...Then...let me prove it to you! I'm a SeeD, just like you ARE!

So he's going to take this opportunity to prove himself. It's been a while since Squall has actually officially picked a C-Team leader, and the last time he didn't even consider Zell.

: ...I, too, would prefer Zell by my side. It would give me a sense of security...

Even though Squall's hesitant, Zell's got Edea pullin' for him here.

: I have no objection to Zell remaining.

And there's Quistis's vote - for the record, I'm pretty sure she would have been Squall's first choice for the job. She also still has pull with the group.

: Me, either!!!

It's not really important, but Quistis and Selphie are the former C-Team leaders.

: Then it's decided, Squall.

Irvine is also here, unfortunately.


Squall's still not sure about this.

: Ok. I'll leave it in Zell's hands.

He comes around, though.


While this is a character moment for Zell, he's still immature to begin with.

: I'll do whatever it takes to watch over you. Don't worry about a thing! Squall, don't worry about us!

Having finally been given the chance to lead, Zell's all over it.

: (...Matron is a sorceress. Don't forget that.)

Edea being a sorceress means two things, that a lot of people won't like her, and that she might be possessed by Ultimecia again.


To cap off Zell's moment here, I'll just point out that you can just skip it by choosing the other option.

: Ok, let me decide who's going.


Now, to close things out here, I'm sending Quistis to space with Squall and Rinoa.



Let's go to space.


Quistis goes first.


Then it's Squall's turn.





For whatever reason, these guys all have new lines here.



Well, see ya.


Once Squall gets in the space pod, the camera jumps up to this weird-lookin' machine.


Oh, hey, scientists.

Scientist A: All capsules are in place. Conditions inside the capsules are normal.
Scientist B: Boosters on standby. All systems normal.
Scientist C: Launch error correction, plus 2, Orbital correction, minus 1. Corrections complete.





I guess that's the launch permission.


Once the all-clear is given, the game switches over to an FMV.


Now we get to see what this thing actually does.



And what it does is interesting, to say the least. The capsule loads into the yellow thing, then it gets shot out like a bullet.





...And that's how Esthar solved its SeeD problem.