Part 12: My Sharon-a

Chapter 11 - My Sharon-a

Where we last left off, we just got an almighty exposition dump from Reym, learned the origin of the world, and how Lang was born from a sentient rock formation and the only one with the power to defeat Avalon, also sired by said sentient rock formation. No, really.

We have now been tasked with gathering the sacred stones and using them to restore the Source Forge (the sentient rock formation) to normal, having been corrupted by Avalon.

But FIRST!

We’re going to piss around on side content. Yuno’s up first.



Remember Miura? He was the bloke that gave told us about the Forest Maze before we even went to Mt. Gabel. Apparently, despite selling us THE Mizel Red Sand, Kenjiro actually had more of it to shell out to suckers like Miura.

Miura: “But…Now that I’ve used all the Mizel Red Sand how will I get back…?”

Miura says this, but you never need to use more of it to get in or out of the Forest Maze.



Cocky Lang is nice to his allies, so we say “It’s just like home”.

“Yeah. I’ve got my own room here, so it feels like home.”

“Really? Well, then. Let’s live here together! What do you say?”

”Maya the fucking apocalypse is nigh, what the hell are you on about?”

“But…You just said it felt like home!”

”I mean it’s cozy and all, but still, this seems like a BAD time.”

“Ha! Did you think I was serious? I was kidding! It was a joke!”

”Dammit, Maya.”

In case you’re wondering, where I’ve injected new dialogue, canon Lang just stammers like a moron. Not terribly interesting.

Let’s hear some campside chats.

Faldo and Maya



“What?”


“What’s wrong? You always played with him when you were little!”

“He even told me he would marry you, Maya.”

“So, what’s up with you two? Anything new? You saw him in Yuno, right?”

“Stop it, Kazan! You don’t have to talk about him right now!”

We get a dialogue choice. You either don’t care, sort of gossip about it, or act like this means Maya’s closed off to a relationship with you. Really, Lang’s all like “I got too excited…Man, do I feel dumb.”

But our choice is to be nonchalant.





“So what’s going on, Maya? Anything new?”

“I hate you, Kazan! Just leave me alone!

“What? Why’d she get so mad all of a sudden?”

Interior Design



“Sure you can. The room’s been looking pretty empty ever since we got rid of Kazan’s furniture.”

“I’m so sad…I finally return to Yuno, and I find someone threw out my favourite mask!”

“Well, it was so dirty, Kazan!”

“Also, I didn’t know when you were coming back. I had no choice.”

“I can’t believe it…Lang, you’d better watch out, too.”

You can actually do this without even seeing this chat, but basically you can get certain items to decorate the room Maya gave you with. It’s mostly functionless, except if you gather all the furniture, you get a special end game item out of it. But that’s way too tedious for my tastes, and we really won’t need the item she’s going to give us.

Lang’s Cold

“Aah….Atchoo! *snort!* Looks like I caught a cold.”

“Because you’re so lightly dressed. It’s snowing. Don’t underestimate nature.”

“I know, but…Atchoo! Aargh…I have a pounding headache…”

“Hold on…I have some cold medicine. Here you go.”

“Ahhh…Thanks, Maya.”

“Don’t push yourself. Keep warm, sleep well, and you’ll feel better in the morning!”

“…I hope so.”

Reym’s Fate

“Poor Reym…I never thought he’d go before I did…”

“But I bet Reym will come back after that black sun is gone and the world is back to normal…Don’t you think…?”

“We’ll be able to see him again, Kazan…Right?”

“Yeah…I bet you’re right. I don’t know if we can do it or not…but we’ve gotta try to fix things. For his sake, and for our own sakes, too.”

Lang’s Feelings



(I understand how he feels. After everybody was so happy about getting the Aqualith back! Now we’ve gotta take it away again.)

(Poor Lang…!)

We now head back to Nohl.



”Fuck you, Dein! You’re making this harder than it already is!”

Dein: ”Wait, shit, did you really bring back another disaster…?”



”Fucking Dein.”

Hawke is the man we need to talk to about taking the Aqualith.



“Well, Hawke…Actually…”

The screen fades to black as Lang explains.



Hakwe: “…And in order to save the world, you need the Aqualith…Am I right?”

Hawke: “So the goings-on at Hunter’s Wood are happening elsewhere…All that destruction…”

”Actually there’s not much destruction at all. People just keep whining about aggressive monsters.”

Hawke: “…Lang. As I have said this to you before, the thing that keeps all of us here alive…is that lake. And the Aqualith.”

Hawke: “You know that. That is why you brought the Aqualith back to Nohl. Isn’t that right?”




There’s actually quite a few residents of Nohl missing from this picture.



Hawke: “It concerns Lang taking the Aqualith with him.”




Koko: “Is all the water going bye-bye?”

Monde: “And what is your opinion on all this, Hawke…?”

Jill: “We’ll have to go through a drought all over again?”

Elukk: “No, Lang! Don’t take our Aqualith!!”



“But…our sun…I need the Aqualith. The world won’t return to normal without it.”



Dein: “Don’t you see?!?! This guy here, loooooves to make people really happy, and then screws them in the end.”

Dein: “Only thinking about himself…He doesn’t care about you or me, as long as he’s happy. That’s who he is!”



Hawke: “Dein…Were you not rescued from Hunter’s Wood by Lang?”

Hawke: “What did you do after that man seized the Aqualith? What were ANY of us doing then?”

Hawke: “Nothing! We had all given up. We always let it be, saying that it was meant to be.”

Hawke: “But Lang…You were different. The morning after you heard that the Aqualith had been stolen, you left Nohl to get it back…all alone.”

Hawke: “You didn’t know how it would end. But you didn’t fear the unknown. You kept your faith. I admire that.”



Hawke: “That black sun…To get rid of it, you need the Aqualith….that is what you said, right?”

Hawke: “Of course, it is hard for us to lose the Aqualith…But perhaps it is time to stop fearing change, and stand up to it, boldly.”




Turns out Galvan and Nancy were just waiting for the right moment to make a dramatic entrance.

“That’s right! Anyone got a problem with that, you’ll settle it with me!”



Dein noticeably jumps at Galvan palming his fist.

“Lang, there are certain things that only you can do, right? Well then, go do them!”



No, as is typical in this game, you can’t actually refuse. The other option just has Lang dither.

This is the stupid decision I mentioned last update. Everyone’s acting like it’s not that big of a deal, but this just seems ridiculous in the face of how bad it got when the Aqualith was first taken. The game went to every length to illustrate how Nohl needed the Aqualith, even making it clear that it just doesn’t rain much in Nohl. We heard about how the crops were dying, and everyone had to ration water. How can we be expected to turn around and act like it’s no big deal?

This is all exacerbated by the Eclipse. Hunter’s Wood is now full of super charged monsters, the same kind that are allegedly threatening Darakin’s walls and causing much grief for Yuno’s hunters. It will only be harder for Nohl’s Vigilance Corps to get to other sources of water. In theory, they should be lucky just to defend their wimpy palisade, let alone do everything while the town dehydrates to death.

Now of course we do need the Aqualith eventually, but do we need it now? There’s two other stones we need to get, and they’re all in different parts of the world. We are going to have to go on an epic journey to search for them, and all that time, the Aqualith is just going to sit in our hyperspace pockets with all the Heal Leaves I’ll never use again. It’s not like travelling back and forth is presented as difficult; all we need to do to go from Nohl to Yuno, which is technically the span of the continent, is click on the map. Why couldn’t we just come back for the Aqualith later?

The best reason to do this I can think of is to keep the Aqualith safe. Avalon gave it away, but we don’t know if he’ll change his mind. Velna’s also keen to kill us, and she can teleport. Doplin is also still interested in getting the stones to become a god. But this isn’t even brought up. The game just acts like you must have the Aqualith on your person to proceed.

The villager’s lives are at stake here, and no real thought it put into the dilemma. They just decide they’ll gung ho their way through the crisis.





“But in order to stop the black sun, and return the world to normal, I…I need the Aqualith!!”



Jill: “This is hard on us…but it’s even harder on you, Lang.”

Yes, it’s very hard for him to jeopardize the entire village so he can put the Aqualith in a sack for a year.

Joanne: “Not having the Aqualith is a problem, but if the world disappeared there would be no point in having it anyway…”

Koko: “Lang, take care of the Aqualith, okay?”

Monde: “We can’t fear change…You know what, that’s true. We can’t just sit around and mope!”

Elukk: “Lang! You’ll come back, won’t you?”




Galvan makes an extremely subtle head gesture that’s hard to adequately convey via screenshots.



Hawke: “That’s a reflection of your consideration for this town, and for all who live in it…”

Hawke: “Come back whenever you want to. This is your home…”

And now we’re free to leave.



We find Galvan making Dein do some work.



“I’m not worried at all. That’s because I know you’ll fix the problem, Lang.”



WWCLS: What Would Cocky Lang Say?

“Of course not. I will do something about it. Just relax and leave it to me.”

“Wow, you’re pretty confident, Are you 100% sure, Lang? It’s not like you!”

”…have you had you had your head up your ass this whole time?”

“*giggle* I’m only kidding!...We’re counting on you, Lang.”

Leaving triggers a scene with Maya and Kazan.



“I don’t know about the Aerolith…but the Pyrolith is a volcanic rock, right? It’s probably on Drakonia…”

“Hmm…I’ve heard that to the southwest lies the volcanic island, Drakonia…Let’s go and take a look.”

“First, we’ll need a boat. South of here, there is a port city called Tanza. We’ll pick one up there.”

Kazan doesn’t bother mentioning that’s where he’s from, despite doing so earlier.

“For that we’ll have to pass south of Darakin, through Kravia.”

We can have another camp chat after leaving.



“Don’t worry so much, Lang. People are stronger than you think. I’m sure they’ll find a way to survive on their own.”

“And if we don’t do something about that black sun, everybody will die sooner or later, anyway.”

“Yeah…I know that…But still…”

“Poor Lang…”

Let’s go back to Nohl for a quick bit.



“Yes, but this way it soaks up the flavour, and tastes better.”

“Hm. But too much flavour isn’t always a good thing either.”

“It won’t be too much, it’ll just be richer. Unless you understand that difference, you won’t make a good cook!”

“…I still think my way is better.”

“Well! You’re quite stubborn, aren’t you, Maya?”



“Wha…ME?!?”

“Right. It’s best to ask a third person at times like this.”

The screen turns black like it’s a blind taste test.

(gobble, gobble…Did Maya make this one? The taste is subtle, but you can tell a lot of work went into it.)

*gobble* *gobble* (…and this one must be Nancy’s. It tastes stronger, but it’s pleasant somehow…Maybe because I’m used to it…)



Unfortunately for Nancy, Maya is a party member.

“Hm…let’s see…I guess it would be Maya’s dish?”

“What!! What’s wrong with mine? I’m the one who feeds you every day!”

“B, b, Because! Maya’s tasted as if a lot of effort went into it. Like she takes cooking seriously…”

“Lang…thanks…”

“Hmph! If I actually put effort into it, I could make something really amazing! …You’ll see!”

“I could too! You’ll see!”

Whatever is chosen, Maya gets the “Dogged” nickname, described as being for someone “who is focused on winning”. Now the plain interpretation of that is that she wants to win the cooking contest, but given how much both girls want to jump Lang’s bone, well…

We now decide to move on with the plot.




“Jiyuu Toshi Karabia”. The translation is accurate. Worth noting that despite being a “Free City”, Kravia is very obviously controlled by Darakin.



Guard: “By proclamation of the new bishop!! From now on, we can’t let you through this checkpoint without a Kravian Pass from the new bishop!”

Gunther: “You’ve gotta be kidding!! To hell with this new bishop! Why can’t we just use our permits like we used to?!”

Guard: “These are the new bishop’s orders!! We can’t let anybody…NOT A SINGLE PERSON…through this gate without a Kravian Pass!”

Jon: “Hey, come on! You know me! I work at the inn. You can let me through!...Can’t you?”

Guard: “No one goes through without a Kravian Pass!! Kravian Passes are issued at Doplin Castle, in Darakin! If you want to go through, you’ve got to get a Kravian Pass!!”



”Alright, let’s bust through…”

”Lang, no! We’ve been over this!”

”Do NOT tell me you’re bringing up the overconfidence thing again!”

”We must do this legit. We must go and get a pass.”

”I swear, if we end up carving a bloody path through the castle AGAIN…”

Our only choice is to leave for Darakin.



Male Voice: “I never said any such thing! Give up on it!”

We hear this exchange as we pass the Green Lynx Inn. For now, we decide to ignore it.



Guard: “You want a Kravian Pass, too? But even if you apply for one now, it’ll take 2 or 3 years…Maybe even longer…!”

Guard: “Hey, you! Don’t fool around chatting! Just do you duty!”

”….should I even bother suggesting?”

”We MUST play it safe! The ruins are the ONLY way!”

”Fine, whatever, I guess I’ll look forward to killing another big knight guy….”

As you might have guessed, our only choice is to go visit the inn.



Male Voice: “Damn it, woman! Stay there if you want. But get it through your head that I just can’t get one for you!”

I presume they wanted to make sure the player couldn’t forget the inn was the place to go.








“What’s going on?”

Joe: “Aw, she wants a Kravian Pass…I don’t mind her coming to me for help, but in this case, I can’t do anything for her…”



We know he can’t give us one, so maybe a little information could be useful.

“What’s a Kravian Pass, anyway?”

Joe: “It’s a pass you need to get through the checkpoint at Kravia. You used to have to have a permit, and they were really hard-nosed about it. But now you need a Kravian Pass!”

“Where can we get one of these Kravian Passes?”

Joe: “At Doplin Castle. That new bishop supposedly issues them personally.”

“What do you mean, ‘supposedly’?”

Joe: “As far as I can tell, not one single Kravian Pass has ever been issued…Looks like the new bishop…is trying to isolate Darakin!”

“I see…Well, that certainly explains why not even you can get your hands one one!”

Joe: “Exactly. I can’t do anything about this one…”

“That’s awful! Why would he want to seal off the checkpoint?”

Joe: “Who knows? All that trouble to seal the place off…Maybe they don’t want to let something out…? Anyway, there just aren’t any passes out there! It’s no use.”



Joe: “Nah, never mind! No need to answer that. It’s just that…If somebody could get into the castle, they could steal a Kravian Pass! If they exist, that is…If the passes don’t exist, they could see the bishop directly, make him issue one! Now, who could do that, I wonder…? It’s just an idea…”

Suddenly, there’s a thumping noise.






“Who are you?”




Yes that’s right, Sharon here is our 4th party member. In my opinion, she’s the best damn party member in the game, both narratively and mechanically. I’ll go into more depth in the next update.

Now Playing – Pirate’s Pride

(The title’s a technical spoiler, and yet only Sharon thinks her piracy is a secret)

“I’m Sharon.”

“I can’t get through the Kravian checkpoint, either. I’m stuck here.”

“I asked Mr. Information there to get one for me, but he’s useless…”

Joe: “Yeah, you might’ve asked me, but I never said I could do it…! You never give me any respect, but then when you need something, you come running to me!”

“Are you still mad about that one incident? That was such a long time ago! You sure can hold a grudge!”

“Um…”

Joe: “Look, I’d really like to help you, for old times’ sake. Really! But I can’t get you something that doesn’t exist!!”

“Excuse me, but…”



“Um…, excuse me!!”



“If you don’t have a Kravian Pass either, why don’t we try to do something about it together?”

“Maya…?”

“But she needs help! We have to do something for her.”

”Why ‘but’? I didn’t object…”

“Yeah, but…We don’t have a Kravian Pass, either. We’ve got to go the castle and try and see the bishop or something. We’ve got to get one of those Kravian Passes!”



“Let me come with you!”

“What?!



“That mark on your chest…Don’t tell me you’re a Mystic, too…!”

“You…! You’re a Mystic, too?”



There’s an awkward pause as Sharon realises what she said.




“…And I really wanted to see it, too….”

“Anyway…You want to come to the castle with us, but it’s a pretty dangerous trip…And you can’t promise you won’t hold us back…”



“If you don’t believe me, why don’t you take me along and see? If I do hold you back, just tell me to scram. I won’t mind.”



Now it’s not our canonical choice, but let me just show you what happens if we say “Better not…”


We choose to welcome her gladly.






“How are we getting into the castle?”

“Where was that secret passage…? The first floor of that fancy hotel, wasn’t it…?”

“That’s right! It said, ‘The Three Star Hotel.’”

“Well, if you know where it is, then let’s go! Come on! Let’s move, people!”

Joe: “Hold on. If you’re going to the castle, you ought to be careful. I’ve been hearing a strange rumor. The guards say the new bishop is strong, strong enough to rip up steel with his bare hands. Don’t know if you can believe what the guards say, but I still think you should watch it.”

“You’re giving me free advice? That’s not like you!”

Joe: “Well, you did come to me for help. I want to be of some use. Be careful, Sharon…”



”…oh Holy Banderas, I LOVE you!”

”I get that a lot!”



I am going to leave this update here, as it’s pretty damn long as is.

Join me next time, where we learn more about Sharon and meet the new bishop.

By the way, care to guess who the new bishop is? It’s someone we know.