Part 169: Alent 2

To be fair, Rainbow Mountain was lacking in both loot and bosses, and the rest of Alent is cutscene, so they kinda had to shove plenty of both in there.

Speaking of Alent and cutscenes....

----

Welcome back!





Oh, hey there Liete. That was quick!

: It has been a long time since guests have come. Liete welcomes you.

: Liete... I finally made it! Like I promised! Just like I promised.

: So teach me all about Angelou!

: I see you have come with many questions. Feel free to look for your answers.

: Huh? What are you talking about?

: Don't you remember me? It's Justin! JUSTIN!

: So your name is Justin? It is an honor to meet you. My name is Liete.

: J-Justin...! Wh-Wh-What... are... those...?

: Huh!? WHAT...!? They're all Lietes...! Wh-what's going on!?









That... sure looks like a lot of NPC chatter. Better just skip to the one standing on that important-looking glowing spot on the floor.



: If you wish the answers to your many questions, first gather the necessary knowledge from the other Lietes before you ask the living Liete your questions.

Oh. Fiddlesticks.



Between the skeletal gargoyles outside, and this hanging cages thing here, I'm getting the impression that ancient Angelou was probably not the nicest place to be at the end.



Okay, maybe this won't be a total waste of time.

: Liete... are you all right? You have such a strange look.

: Why, I'm fine... I was simply greeting you the way I have observed others do on the planet.

Thankfully, each Liete disappears after her text box.



: The wise Mogay are merchants on the planet's surface. Knowledgable Liete witnesses history from above.



I suppose this is the one they intended you to talk to first.

: Because she must live alone in silence, she created us to make Alent seem like a living city. But, we are all illusions. So we disappear like this.

Eesh, Liete's got kind of a shit gig up here, huh?



: Liete has remained alone over the ages to guard the memories of Angelou. Ages ago Liete's father said that she would see through sad eyes. I don't know why he said that. I have never seen Liete with a sad expression.

At least she has some company now, right? I mean, sure, we're only here to bug her about the past, y'know, back before her friends, family, and everyone she did and didn't know died off, but it's better than nothing, right?



: Its fundamental nature is to assimilate Spirit and grow. Once Gaia begins to grow, it will assimilate all Spirits for its own growth. When this has happened, the world will be different. It will change into the World of Death.

I mean, we had kinda figured most of that out on our own, but the bit about it having once been a Spirit Stone is new.



: When one attempted to use the powers of the Spirit Stone without Icarians, the result was Gaia. Gaia is not simply an altered form of the Spirit Stone. It is a mirror of the greed and evil nature of its possessor.

Yep, Gaia is all spikey and tentacled because that's what Baal's soul is like. Or something.



: Long ago, all the races lived together without borders or strife. There were many races, all human. And they all lived together.

: Aww, man, Gaia invented racism, too? What a dick.



: And it was known as the Spirit Stone, two twin sister, the Icarians, were born of human parents. The Icarians and the Spirit Stone were of one destiny, one fate. It is said that when the Spirit Stone is one, Icarians are born. But the Spirit Stone was broken into seven pieces. Ever since, Icarians have ceased to be born.

: But, uh, Leen and I...



: Twins, Icarians, harmony?

: Even though twins are separate it is said their hearts are one. And the birth of Icarians is a token of the blessings of the Spirits on humans. Thus they are both considered symbols of peace and harmony. Now, please ascend to the Papal Hall upstairs to listen to the living Liete explain the rest.

So basically, Spirits made the Spirit Stone, and gave it to the people. Icarians were born, and could draw on the power of the Spirit Stone to make a peaceful, prosperous civilization. Eventually, though, people wanted the power of the Spirit Stone for themselves, and that greed in their hearts was reflected into the stone, changing it into Gaia. Something happened, and the Spirit Stone was shattered, which both stopped Gaia and prevented the births of any more Icarians.

Liete, meanwhile, has been chilling out maxin', relaxin' all cool in Alent, "living through and inheriting the history of Angelou", in her own words, observing the planet and writing literally everything down. Everyone else who lived there with her eventually died, so she populated the city with illusions so that it wouldn't feel like the ruined hollow shell of a once-great city.

Baal's plan, Operation Yggdrassil, is, on the surface, about gathering the pieces of the Spirit Stone to once again possess the prosperity of Angelou. In truth, however, his ultimate goal is the resurrection of Gaia for his own nefarious purposes. Since the shattered Spirit Stone is Gaia, there is no way that any good can come of its reassembly.

Got it? Because the game certainly expects you to when you step through that door.





I wasn't kidding about her writing everything down, either.

: Liete! NOW you're the REAL Liete!

: Welcome, Chosen One. Welcome to Angelou. Now...

: Justin, you who have many questions...

: Liete! I came just like I promised! Now answer ALL the questions!

: It is my duty to give the answers to the one who asks.

: Justin. I shall tell you all that I know.

: What I have inherited is my many old memories of Angelou. Together with those memories, I have also inherited the name of Liete.

: Liete?

Aw snap, another FMV? This one's kind of long, but worth watching. It'll last until the end of the update.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqouF3dNtFA (Polsy link)



: Long ago, in the ancient past, men could speak with Spirits. This is a story from an age when humans were merely a small part of this world.



: The people of this time spoke of many things with the Spirits.



: And the people also learned many, many things from the world.



: The light of the Spirit Stone, the symbol of the promise, continued to illuminate the world.



: The people gained sufficient power to travel,



: even to the faraway stars.



: But finally....



: The day came when men learned to steal.



: They stole riches from their own land, and power from the skies. And last of all....



: They stole the Spirit Stones from the hands of the Icarian twins. They even tried to change the world with that light.



: Gaia greatly changed the appearance of the world. But... People had forgotten that the light of the Spirit Stones reflects one's very own soul.



: The people who had forgotten the promise had already lost the blessings of the Spirits.





: Halting the death of the world was already impossible.



: Just as the people could not halt their own desire.