Part 4: ARC I: Part 4: Andau.

ARC I: Part 4: Andau.


We find ourselves in a long hall filled with ghosts. They all say 'May Arcadius be with you.' except for one guy that advertises Smirnoff Ice.



And when you talk to the guy at the end of the hall...


They disappear.


This fairy still can't tell us about the boss.


Let's find out!


Score! Then we go back out and upstairs.


The stairs come out from under this table.


There's only three enemy types in this half of the dungeon. Manic Moppets just cast a single or AOE fire attack, while Squid Billys buff an enemys evasion by a lot pretty often, or can inflict silence or paralyze. So they're really god damn annoying.


In a side room we find History #1. Pay attention, there's going to be a test on this.


Here's the third enemy type. Just a weakass bat.


This chest in the confessional is a cute little trick. You'll come in one door, see it on the other side of the counter(?) and go out and then in the other door, and it'll have moved to the other side. The trick is to go down and around the counter.


Leaving the churchs main hall leads to... some kind of entry hall that the upper levels look down over?


Can't open the front door from this side.


And this door has a barrier...


If you've a good eye, you'd notice the tile between two other pairs of pillars are darker than the other tiles, but this one isn't. There's a click when you step on it and we can now go through the barrier door.


You can see a bat flying north here, it's headed to a doorway. When it goes through, the room...


... goes dark... If you step off the walkway you have to start the room over. The first room you can generally make across as the bats going through the door, but the next two rooms are longer and more complex and you have to do the last parts by memory.


Beat your dirty little tricks, bat!





We turn on the water somewhere.

I go back to the entry and go downstairs there.




Hmm...


AH FUCK!

Anyway, these bats aren't encounters. They just flatout deal damage to the whole party and make you stop for a second while you want to press three more pressure plates in 15 seconds. That's actually plenty of time even if you get bitten a couple times.


Voila!


This is the only thing down here in the basement, so let's get back to things we actually have to do. There's one more space off the entry hall...



I think there is a torch in front of us. If we light it, we should be alright.
So I move forward and press action.





"Either way, it won't be easy."
Actually, lights on is easy since the bats are just the bat trio encounter, which is the easiest encounter here, and they never respawn and there's not that many of them.


"would come centuries later."
This is History #2.


I wind up fighting all the bats on purpose.


Then in the next room I have to light all the torches. This is one of those puzzles where using one tocrh reverses the state of the adjacent torches. To compensate for how dead easy it is, the puzzle resets twice to make you do it thrice.


There's also a slightly secret passage headed to a miracle drop in the previous room.





Still two more faucets to turn on.


This is an armour breaking type attack. Shroud also learns 'Cold Snap' which cures all status effects. Nice spell to get this early on.

And that's all the areas off the entry hall done. We head back into the church proper and then go upstairs.


The middle door on the second floor leads to...



"pain in the butt! You better have a move that can hit multiple enemies when dealing with him or you will be in trouble."
... the room where the pipes we've been opening are, and also a fairy that can tell us about the boss for once.


There's a door at the other end of this walkway with a barrier on it, which is our ultimate goal.

Back out on the second floor, the other two doors just lead to the third floor.


History #3.





Bats fly over these torches, putting them out if you light them.


The bats shoot out of those two pipes there and there's only one crate big enough to block them initially. But if you push one of the crates on the depressed pressure plate... and then the other one near it...




Bats keep shooting out of the pipes and smack into the crates with a thud sound, presumably exploding into a thousand pieces, repeatedly. It both looks and sounds goofy.


One last tap to leave on.





The bats here work like the other timed section and try to keep you from getting to the door at the other end before it closes.




Seems to be excerpts from various historical accounts. However, they don't appear to be in any particular order.

My history is foggy enough without having to sort this out. Wait... weren't there some other pages of history lying around here somewhere?

Perhaps they could help us get a better idea of the chronology.
You of all people shouldn't need help with this chronology Stoic...

So the idea here is you look at the excerpts and light them in a certain order from earliest event to latest event.










And that's that.






Despite the fact we've opened the way to the end, there's one last passage on the third floor, that leads to a set of stairways up to a small room.


A diary?

Yeah... I wonder what it's doing here.

Look at the date on this entry. That's right during the height of Gallia's reign.

"Today my little sister and I had a lovely walk through town. The sun was shining and many of our friends were spending time in the park.
When we returned, Mother had dinner ready. It was wonderful. Then I continued reading The Times of General Mephesto for my university studies.
Normally I find history terribly dull... but this text is quite intriguing. The Third Age was a fascinating time. Before I knew it, the moon was full and it was time for me to sleep. Even as I write, my eyes are having a hard time staying open."

Sounds like this guy led quite a riveting life.

We should take this wit us and I'll read it the next time I'm having trouble sleeping.

Ha ha ha!

Let's go ahead a couple of years. "My sister has changed so much. She's always going on and on about how Gallia needs to be brought down, how evil it is. It seems like every time she opens her mouth, some call to action comes out. All I can say is that I'm glad we live outside of Gallia's walls, or else that talk would get her killed! To be honest, though, sometimes the things she says strike me. They make me think about whether Gallia's mission is what we humans should really be striving for. I personally have no ill will towards the other races. Live and let live, they say."

Interesting.

"Last night was horrific. I was going for a hike in the hills and I heard the most blood-curdling scream. I looked out and saw Gallian soldiers chasing a young girl down the road. I couldn't fathom why this was happening. A young human girl having her life threatened in this way. I remembered my sister's warnings about Gallia's vicious nature, and I decided I had to intervene. I ran in front of the soldiers and assured them they must have made a mistake.
Before they could say anything, I felt the most horrible pain in my neck. I couldn't even move for several minutes, it was so excruciating.
The guards ignored me and continued to chase her. I slept for what must have been several hours, because when I awoke, it was now day.

Something was different, though. It felt like the sun was melting my face off. I have never known such heat. I made it home, thankfully."

Well, what's next?

This entry is a couple weeks later. "I've lost it all. That little whore has ruined my entire life! Because of her bite, I've become this awful... thing!
My own family ran in terror from me! I've found I feel so tired during the day... and if I step outside, that horrible pain returns! One night I realized that all of my family's things were gone! They had come during the day and completely moved out... without me. The other villagers run from me as well.
One of them called me 'vampire.' Is that what I am now? I can't stay in this house any longer. I must find a new place to make my home.

And I must find a way to satisfy this terrible hunger."

This is...

... Andau's diary.
And then... if you use the diary a second time...

This time let's look at the most recent entry.

"I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to feed in Port Arianna. The last several times I've gone, I've encountered that masked imbecile and that blockhead skeleton.
I didn't think there were people left in our world who were so skilled at combat. Since Gallia fell, there hasn't been as much need for warriors.

I've been able to evade them so far... Logic dictates that I should find another place... and yet I can't bear to. There are so many fools in the port, so many vapid girls who have yet to feel my bite. I will let nobody get in the way of my revenge!"
Ah geez. Well... Time to head through the last door.











Stoic's shouting wakes the bats.


They begin flying in formation around the walkway.


And then Andau teleports in.

Of course. Do us a favor and don't run away this time.

No... No more running. What's the use? I clearly can't evade you.

Andau, I know what happened to you. I still think that if you let us, we can help.

No need. I know my fate now... I know my purpose.

I wouldn't turn down that offer, creep. Otherwise you have to deal with me.

My family is long gone. Everything I knew has already been taken from me. If I were to return to live among you, I would have nothing.
All that if left for me to do... is exact my revenge on the temptresses of the world... the harlots who lead men away from their paths and towards ruin.
I will continue this quest until the gods finally decide to relieve me of this miserable life.

Vengeance won't make you feel any better.

Like hell it won't!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8EfxAhz8-o

The only solace I have left is in those moments of fear when one of those ingrates realizes that she is about to follow me into oblivion.
I'll never stop! Not until I'm no more! Or you are!

Alright then, if that's the way you want it!

Die!!






Andau opens the fight, before we even take a turn, by hitting both of us with some kind of spell. It does 30ish damage.


Anyway, since this is the first real boss fight it's easy. Andau doesn't do much beyond direct damage. I just have Stoic boost his attack, and then armor break and both our guys go crazy on him, with Shroud healing now and then.
After you pound on him for a bunch of turns...





You want to annihilate some of the bats quickly, because six all up can do some nasty damage.



Woo


Why did the bats catch on fire


He never will. Nothing gets through to him except our weapons.

I can't accept that.

Fool! You speak as if I am beaten!
Andau charges Cade!


And Cade blows him away (literally) at the last second.


We hear a splashing sound.

That's a long drop. He couldn't have survived.

Damn...

Port Arianna is safe. We've won a true victory this day.

................

Some people don't want to be saved, chum. Now let's get out of here.


...



We've been chasing him for a long time.

I know it was hard for you, but he was coming right at you. What else could you have done?

I know...
... It's just that what he went through... losing his family like that. It's something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemies... including Andau.


https://youtu.be/X130NPh92HM



Then there's a rather lengthy pause...

RAYNE: It's up to you and me now, Cade.


...



Cade stares out his window a while, before an explosion causes Bones to jump in surprise.

Arrgh!! Finley, stop messing around with those damn guns and go to sleep!

What do you care, B-Man? You don't even have eyes!

Neither will you if you don't quiet down!
I'm gonna kill that fool.
Have you been awake all this time?

I can't stop thinking about that elf girl.

The ghost?

Yeah.

Her story was very upsetting. There are many elves from Rellenia who can tell stories like that.

It wasn't just that she was killed. Don't get me wrong, that's awful and I still have trouble believing the world was once like that, but...
... What I keep thinking about is... how there was so much hate all around her, and all around that Gallian man. In spite of that, they found love.

I never figured you for a romantic. You're too sensible.

It just makes me think about how different things are now. How high the stakes were back then. People today don't realize how easy life is now.
That must be why they act so thoughtlessly.

Perspective is a good thing. So is sleep.

Ha ha... I know. I won't stay up much longer.

...

And that's the end of this update. Next time we... fight more crime!

the end