Part 11: Complications (Part 2)

(Continued from the previous post)

That night...

Music: None







Where are your men?
Upstairs, resting. The door's closed. They can't hear us.
They don't need to know anything. They'll be happy if they believe that they're serving the Republic. So, who's this man that's been following you?
It's Augustus. I met him again earlier, but I don't think he truly suspects anything.
Hmph, I know him, but it's hard to tell what he's thinking. But even if he thinks something's going on, it's too late for him to do anything. Starting from tomorrow, I will be the new Empress. No one will stand in my way.
Even the Republic will leave you alone, as long as you treat them as an ally.
Yes, I'll give them some insignificant territory to satisfy them, and then everything will be mine. And you will stay at my side, won't you?



Man, Tazar's just buttering up everyone, isn't he? Asshole.

I have no ties to that country. There's nothing to gain by going back anymore.
Excellent. I will make you a general. No, perhaps I'll make you a minister. That suits you more, doesn't it?
I'm grateful for your generosity, your Highness. Oh, but one more thing. What about -him-?
Who? Oh, you mean Felgorn? He won't be in the way. I made sure he won't be anywhere near the Emperor tonight. Now, I should return to the castle. My father is waiting for me. Call your men. It's about time.







Elsewhere...



Our viewpoint suddenly shifts to... someone we haven't seen in quite some time, actually. From the looks of things she's hanging out around Stonewall.





Helio? Why are you here?
That was going to be my next question. I thought you had a task.
He's not here. He went on a top-secret mission... even I can't find out more details.
Actually, I heard a rumor or two. For example... that he's in the Empire.
The Empire!?



Something is going on...
We can take you to the Empire, if you want.
No. That's not a good idea. Tell your boss to hold back for now.



Back with Hilbert...

Music:



And it's time to get this show on the road. We've got some new music for this segment, which will be playing for pretty much the entire mission, even during battles. It's one of the better tracks in the game, in my opinion.



Anyway, there's only one way we can go right now, as the path towards the castle from the eastern side is blocked off by a bunch of soldiers. Instead we'll have to head the long way around.



Once we reach the path that leads to Alexander's grave, a short scene begins.

Good luck to all of you. We won't see each other again until all of this is over. You two... you'd better make it back.
There's no need to worry about that. You and I are both too stubborn to die. I'll see you again later, Captain. Come, Lorenza. Stay close to me at all times.





Come on, let's move it!



Fade to black...







Well, no matter... Now that you're here, we can move on to the next room. Come, come everyone.





Oh, thank you Helga.



Fade to black...





All right, let's do this. Matilda won't let us leave, so there's nowhere to go but forward.









The second we enter the door in Alexander's tomb, a battle begins, one which I believe is scripted to occur. We're dealing with a Specter on the left and a Wraith on the right. Specters are essentially just straight upgrades on the Lost Souls from Farin Island, with a decent physical attack and the poison-inflicting Vile Sword. Wraiths, on the other hand, are much more annoying: their physical attack is pretty average, but they can bust out M-Spark whenever the hell they want to hit both Hilbert and Matilda for 30 damage each. Fortunately, neither of these guys have too much HP.



But the princess came here by herself earlier. Why wasn't she attacked?
Did something happen here?



We now have to make our way through the passage to the castle. This isn't really a dungeon, as it's an extremely linear path only a few screens long. We're attacked by Specters and Wraiths along the way, as well as...



... some Phantoms. These guys only have a weaker physical attack and go down quick, so they're not much of a worry.





There's a couple of treasure chests on our way to the castle, but they're about the only interesting things about this area.









The passage eventually spits us out in what appears to be a storeroom.



Entering this door ends the segment. Time to see what the rest of our team is up to.



At this point the menu pops up and we're given a chance to prepare and shuffle around spellcards if necessary. We're good, so let's get moving.





You can't pass through right now! Come back in an hour or two.
We can't pass? Then what about that person over there?





Works every time. These guys are the same Imperial Soldiers we saw back at Fort Walstein and they haven't changed since then. Thorve and Lorenza's attack spells annihilate them.









Another battle pops up immediately afterward, and like his buddies, the Imperial Sergeant in the center is the same as the ones in Fort Walstein. He takes a few more hits, but goes down with just as little trouble.



I'm fine. Don't worry.
We're heading straight for the gallery now. Be careful!



Fade to black...









This battle gets a fancy new background, but is otherwise the same as the previous ones. Next!





Your Highness, you must get out of here immediately! We're under attack!
An attack? Here!?
We don't know the exact number of enemies, but they appear to be after you. There can't be many of them, but you mustn't stay here. Please, let us escort you back into the castle where you'll be safe.
I-I don't know. Maybe we should...
Father! We should follow his advice. It's too dangerous to stay here.
If you say so too, Helga... then we should.



Fade to black...



Should we go any further?
No, it'll just make it harder for us to go back. The Emperor has probably already left the building. In fact, we should leave right now as well, while we still have the chance.





Uh, yeah, about that...







There's a battle between those last two screenshots, but just pretend Thorve and Lorenza bowled the soldiers over because that's basically what happened.





Aaaand another battle not worth covering.





I have a bad feeling about all this.
A bad feeling?
Run! We're going after the Captain! If we're quick they won't see us enter the monument!



Fade to black...









So, it's an attack? Looks like my suspicions were correct. It should be fine. I made all the necessary preparations.



Fade to black...



And we return to Hilbert and Matilda. Random battles are now off.











There's a bit of treasure along the path. The Clock Spring is an accessory that prevents Slow, which isn't too bad.







We head through a few more rooms and arrive at a long hallway.





As we reach the end, however, Hilbert stops, and the music suddenly changes.

Music:





Fade to black...



Oh hey, let's not worry about what's happening with Hilbert or anything. We suddenly cut to Thorve and Lorenza running through the tomb passage.



Lorenza abruptly falls to her knees.

Lorenza!! What's wrong? Are you tired?



What is this place?



I don't understand. Who are you?



Lorenza!
It... hurts...



There is a magical hum, and the screen flashes.

Lorenza?
I'm... okay now.
Are you sure?



Elsewhere...



Hang on, is that who I think it is? Man, we're just revisiting everyone today, aren't we?



We see the same brief flash we saw in the tomb, and our friend here stops walking.



That resonance... I've felt it before. Where? I must hurry. I've already lost too much time.



Back with Hilbert...



You are...?



Uh oh.



I am Felgorn.
The hero of the Empire... It was you! You're the one who caused the massacre at the northern outpost! Selene, Jord... It was you who killed them! You killed them all! How could you...
A soldier should not be asking a question like that. It's war.
A war you started yourself! Hero or not, you won't get away with this! I'll avenge their deaths!
You wish to fight me? Your revenge means nothing to me, but if you've come to assassinate my lord, I'll protect him with my life.



BOSS FIGHT: Felgorn

Music:



Felgorn gets his own battle music, and that means shit is going down.



Our look at his stats is... a bit discouraging, though. No steal? No rewards for winning? Triple the HP of the Marid King? I don't think this is ending the way we want it to...





Felgorn opens the battle by casting Wall, granting himself a P-Shield. In a neat little touch, he makes the Crisis casting animation when he uses it, which lines up with how we would cast it if we had a Rocksmash spellcard. Looks like Felgorn did the smart thing and came into this fight at full Crisis.



On his second turn, Felgorn casts Bolster, boosting his already formidable STR.





And on his third turn, he brings the pain.





Oh, and before you ask, no, you can't win this fight by grinding like a fiend. See, Felgorn is a cheating motherfucker and doesn't die if he reaches 0 HP here. And if the battle lasts longer than a few turns, he'll just use a technique that deals 9999 damage to everyone and end the fight instantly.

Music:



This is the power... of a real hero?
Your plan ends here. Prepare to die.





Music:



... Thorve? It's you?
I knew it. My hunch was right. Someone discovered us.
Thorve... I never thought we'd meet again like this.
You know each other!?
I was born in this country. I once fought for the Empire as well... but that was a long time ago.
But... even if it's you, I won't show mercy. I won't let you destroy the Empire.
The Empire tried to destroy the Republic. This wouldn't be happening if they hadn't struck first.
You're wrong. It wasn't us.



That can't be! It was the Farin Base attack that led to this war. Are you certain? If it wasn't you, then who was it?
Maybe you should ask your superiors about that instead.
Why should we believe you?
We're enemies. You have no reason to believe me. But Thorve, you know I'm telling you the truth. I would never lie to you. I know nothing about any imperial involvement in the Farin Base attack.
I'm willing to believe that you're sincere... but that doesn't mean it's the truth.
Then go and find out for yourself.
You're letting us go?
I'm here to protect the Emperor. If you try to get through to him again, I'll kill you. But if you escape right now, I won't stop you.
Felgorn...



The time when we were friends was long ago. You're the one who ran away. Things have changed since then. But... I was relieved that you weren't there. I'm not going to apologize for the friends you lost there. That's what happens. I don't expect you to be sorry for the men you killed getting here either. They were all soldiers. Now go, before it's too late.





Why are you a hero?
Why? I can't give you a reason. It's what the people call me. I didn't ask for it. What about it? Are you trying to become a hero yourself? Forget about it. It's just a meaningless word. If a boy like you tries to become a hero, you'll just get killed.







Music: None





I'm sorry.
Ah, I don't care. What's important is that the Emperor is safe. Yes, think about it. We saved his life, Felgorn. Imagine how grateful everyone will be.



What do you mean?



Fade to black...

Music:



Are we going back to the Commander's mansion?
I guess we don't have a choice.



Fade to black...





Music: None



Man, is anything going to go our way tonight?

Damn it! We can't get back! Forget the plan! We're escaping from the city!



Fade to black...





Music:



What about the Commander?
As long as they don't have any proof that he was involved in this, he'll be fine. If they do... Well, I wouldn't risk my life to save him.
I'm bothered by what Felgorn said, though. Is it really true that the Empire didn't attack Farin Island?
I'm not sure I believe it. It was that attack that directly caused this war. Who else could it have been?
The Republic itself, maybe? By making it look like they struck first, it would be easier to motivate people for a war.
Sounds too paranoid to me. I don't know anyone in the army who would want a war that badly. For all we know, it was something that even Felgorn wasn't told about.
I guess it's no use thinking about it.
But... I was surprised. You're actually from the Empire, Thorve?
It's in the past now.
But you never told me! And you knew Felgorn too? Captain, did you know about this?
Yes. I've always known. It's just like he said himself. It's in the past.





.... Yeah, you're right. So what are we going to do now? We can't return to the city.
There's no real problem. We can't use the underground path, but we'll just have to find another way to the beach. Getting into the city unnoticed was difficult, but all we have to do now is return to the ship.
All right, we should get going then. The sooner we get out of here the better.



Music: None



... No... I don't even know myself.
It's your choice.





Fade to black...



Someone has to pay for this. Someone needs to suffer for this failure!! Yes, I know! I'll have Tazar take the blame! It's all his fault!





I wouldn't strike such a tone to me if I were you. I know what you're doing. I know you were trying to have your father killed.
H-How dare you speak such slander! I'll have your head cut off!
They were using the passage underneath Alexander's tomb. How many people have a key aside from you? Or a motive?
W-What!? How do you know about the passage!? What have you been doing!?
Don't worry, princess. I am a friend. I have a very powerful ally. He can help you.



Next time: It's time for us to find a way back to the Republic. Again.

Also, just as a heads up: as you can see, this is where a lot more of this game's plot threads start becoming evident, but unfortunately, there's going to be a roughly week-long hiatus on updates while I visit my fiancee's family for Christmas. I'll still have access to the thread, so feel free to ask questions or speculate on the plot during that time. Happy winter holiday of your choice!