Part 50: ARC V Part 5: Affirmative Knighthood.

ARC V Part 5: Affirmative Knighthood.


The population of the village of Overmoss has vanished and our heroes, suspecting The Hand may be involved, decide to check it out. Back to the Jungle Maze!



So this is going to be our actual proper exploration of this dungeon.

Before very long I find the resident fairy through another (optional) hidden passage.



"order it may give you a clue to what attack they may use next."

The exit to Overmoss is right behind her, so that hidden passage lets you skip most of the maze and 7 whole treasures. And uh... there's not really much else to say about the Jungle Maze. You find treasure in it and fight nothing but tigers jumping out of bushes and its a maze. Also, lots of hidden passages you have to use to find most of the treasure. Or skip tiger fights.



Dark Wind attack that causes silence.



The third (or fourth by now?) level of Stoics single-attack skill.



I should not need to explain this.



I also find a second water rifle in a chest, and notice that having one or both of them equipped gives The Baron this skill.







I don't know... But I don't like it.

You sense anyone, Laurel?

Only faint thoughts... I think there are one or two people around here somewhere... but I certainly would have expected more from a town like this.

Yeah... I think most of us expect towns to have people living in them. Let's try and figure this out.
So now we have free run of the town. I enter a building to the left first.



There's three chests upstairs that I loot before moving on to the next place.



More loot upstairs...





Same deal here...





This is probably the supply shipment that the people in Undermoss were waiting for... but it never left town.

That building over there is likely an entrance to the mines. Maybe something happened down there.

Yeah, a cave-in could have trapped some folks down there. Let's take a look.

Do you think everyone who lives here works in the mines?

Well, what else is there to do around here? This place is in the boonies.

I have no idea, but for now there's not many places we can look.



We can't climb that ladder...



And we can't continue on just yet. So back to that shack!







This is where Solik and Rana were last we saw them.

And just a second past that...



What?

This door won't budge. It's all boarded up.

But why would they cut off access to the rest of the mines? Their economy seems based on delivering these minerals.

Good point, Bud. Not only that, the people in Undermoss made it sound like the shipments were frequent. This was boarded up recently.

Well, we gotta get through. What do you say, guys? Use the dunamite or let Stoic have some fun with it?
STOIC SMASH!

This is where it gets fun!





Still nothing... Not even the random encounter bar...



Ohohoho.

I suggest a third option. Using him as a battering ram.



YES





AH DAMN IT ALL


... I have Stoic Bull Rush it again.





No chitchat this time so... Bull Rush!





Our vision blurs for a moment, before refocusing...




Dead... all of them.

But who would do this?!

These people are human... So this is not The Hand. The only times I've ever seen anything close to this...

... Necromancers were involved.

That's who did this? A necromancer?

Seems to be that way, yes. And it's been done recently. Eventually, the culprit will come back to claim his new minions.

Such a horrible practice. At least... when used this way.

I know we need to meet up with Marin... but we can't let this go.

We... we... we can't! How can we stand up to someone who is capable of this?! I... I...



Laurel... is whoever did this still nearby?

Someone is... not sure if it is the culprit, but there is someone close.

Laurel... how are you so calm? How are all of you so calm?! I... I feel like... like I'm going to pass out!

We all feel like that! But we have to pull ourselves together and do what we can to avenge these people!

You're right... you're right. Okay, let's go.

I have to admit that I thought I would not see carnage like this after Gallia fell... but it seems I can't escape it.
And then we can move on... But not before grabbing something from a dead merchant.







Then backtrack out...


Still can't head north, so back to Overmoss!



Can that really be...?






https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JozVfR-XavQ 'Rana's Theme' Theme of Laura (Reprise), Silent Hill 2


Wha?! What are you doing here?!
No! Stay out of my head!
Rana casts a spell as the rest of the party catches up.



Rana?

No way.

The last time I saw you... was in Rellenia... except you were with...
It can't be...
Oops! Now we can't take her in alive.

Just hold it right there, Rana. You've got a lot to answer for.

Get away from me! All of you just leave me alone!



Rana flees, running into the yard on the right and jumping the fence to do so.

Look out!





These guys are actually a minor challenge. They do a lot of damage, and can and often will turn invisible which sets their evasion to 100% so only magic can hit them. They inflict bleed a lot, can paralyze, have a lot of HP... Stoic and Baron can't do crap when they're invisible, and Shrouds magic isn't the greatest.





You okay, Laurel? You look sick or something.

I'm fine. She just used a technique to protect her mind from my telepathic powers. It's a pretty basic dark magic spell, I had just never experienced it before. It's quite painful... but I suspect it will pass.

I never expected to see her here... Though I don't think she's alone. As shady as she is, I doubt she's capable of this. Someone else is pulling the strings.

... I agree. She is an apprentice, after all. Her master must be the necromancer who is responsible for the murders here.

My skills are returning to me... And I sense something terrible in the direction that she ran. Something almost... not of this world.

I'll bet you do... But we have to follow her. If we don't stop this necromancer now, he'll raise the people here as skeletons and use them to do this same thing to Undermoss!

By Arcadius... and then he'll move on to other towns.

This is a classic necromancer's campaign. Whoever is behind this certainly has a fondness for tradition.

It's a tradition Solest can do without. Let's go.


...



Solik follows the tracks precisely, until Rana shows up.



I really love Solik.

We're in trouble! Oh, we're in big trouble...

Hmm? What are you talking about? What are you doing here anyway? I told you to gather some tigers.

Well... I was... But now I think I lost the only ones I made. Stoic... and the others... They're all here!

Here on Nuntak? Are you certain?

Yes! They're right in Overmoss! What are we going to do?!

Calm down, calm down. I'm not sure why he and his friends are all the way out here, but this may work for us.

They know everything... I think they were in the mines before I saw them.

Don't worry about the mines. We don't need those bodies anymore.

... We don't?

From what I know about Stoic, he will pursue us for as far as we will lead him. Yes, he will be very useful.


...











It's actually a bit of a walk to get here.



She's already on her way down the mountain to those forests.

Arcadius only knows how long it will take to find her in there.

Not if we know where she's going. There's more down there than just forest.





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OshTocyMPIQ Epica, The Alleged Paradigm

















Indeed. A long time ago...

Stoic, I...

Don't worry, Bud. Keeping track of everything going through my head right now has to be difficult.
I never thought I would be here again...

What's going on? Just what is this place?

Be patient. I'll tell you all as we head down the mountain. For it to make sense, I'll have to start where we left off...


...



Hmm... where did I leave off?

You left your hometown.

Oh, right. Right. By Arcadius, this is all so long ago.

But what did you do? Start selling armor?

What? No. I never sold armor in my entire existence up until a few months ago.


...









ZENO SLADE effortlessly fights off some thugs and quickly leaves after the woman approaches him.



"region, you got into the lesser developed areas. I felt completely aimless... Until one day in a small bar."


...









KNIGHT: Everyone knows there are no girls in the knighthood.



ZENO SLADE gets up...

KNIGHT 2: "Earned." Ha ha! We know what that means.

But before he can do/say anything...





https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OshTocyMPIQ Epica, The Alleged Paradigm. AGAIN





MAN: The one who knighted her, of course.

KNIGHT 2: We aren't stupid. The only person who can knight someone is Drake Ramzad.

MAN: That was true for a long time... but no longer.
Daphne is just one example of what tomorrow's knights will look like.

KNIGHT: Are you saying something rude about the Solendians?

MAN: That was the intention, yes.
The Solendians have become obsolete...
But there is another choice now.

KNIGHT 2: You better watch it!
Our sons are real knights!

MAN: I suspect their best qualities came from their mothers.

KNIGHT: Oh, that does it! You're gonna pay, wise guy!

DAPHNE: Hmmph... Threats. The only way fools like you two ever respond to an intellectual challenge.

KNIGHT: We'll see how intellectual he is after his face has been rearranged!







The man blows them up with some kind of fire spell? Or something.



BARTENDER: Hey, none of that in here! I don't need my place burned down!

MAN: No... Certainly that's not what I would want either. However, I am not going to tolerate being threatened this way simply for sharing information.
What I said was true. There is a new knighthood now. If you are tired of the Solendian traditions of belligerence and ignorance, traits you have seen on display here this afternoon, know that there is an alternative.

DAPHNE: Anyone is welcome. Men, women, humans, non-humans. We don't restrict anyone who wants to do good in the world.





DAPHNE: Yes?

ZENO: This new knighthood... Anyone can join?

MAN: Indeed. That is what she just said. Are you interested?



MAN: Ah, good. Feel free to come with us. What is your name?





VOLRATH: So I finally meet the famous man in the red bandana.

ZENO: You've heard of me?

VOLRATH: I would not lie.

DAPHNE: Come on! Our castle isn't far.

ZENO: Castle?



That castle is the reason we're hearing this story, so I would assume it's the same one.

But how could someone start a knighthood in a backwater place like this?

It wasn't always an island, Baron.

She's right. This all happened before the Rain of Fire. This island was once part of a continent that included both Harrol and Nillen Valley.

Oh... wow, the Rain of Fire. I hadn't thought of that. What was that like?

That's not exactly relevant to the story I'm telling now.

But I wanna know!

Let's at least hear this stuff in order. Would you stop in the middle of a book and go to the last page?

It's not nearly the last page in this book.

I guess not... but you know... it was a metaphor.

What happened when you got back to the castle, Stoic?



ZENO: I never knew there was another knighthood out there. I wish you could have sent a recruiter into my hometown. That might have saved me some trouble.

DAPHNE: Recruiters are a luxury we don't yet have. We haven't been around nearly as long enough to function as steadily as the Solendians.

ZENO: How long have you been active?
There's a short pause.
Why do you look so embarrassed?

DAPHNE: Two... almost three years.

ZENO: Really? How did all of this start?

DAPHNE: What those fools said back in the bar was not entirely wrong. I did have family in the Solendian Knighthood... and I hoped it would put me in a position to eventually change the rules.
I wanted to be a knight so badly... and I knew a lot of women who felt the same way.



DAPHNE: No, and unfortunately we were led to believe it would. When Grandmaster Atiled announced he wanted to retire, the city became obsessed with the question of who would replace him. The one who made the strongest case was Drake Ramzad.

ZENO: The current Grandmaster. I've certainly heard the name.

DAPHNE: He promised a change in the way the knighthood would be run. When he succeeded in becoming Grandmaster, we all waited... and waited.
Eventually, it became clear there would be no change. The only thing that was different was the name of the person in power.
It's hard to even describe how devastated some of us were... Though we weren't the majority, there were many of us, mostly younger.
All of our knighthood's earliest members used to live in Solendus, including Sir Volrath.



DAPHNE: Our numbers are increasing. Word is spreading... and the best thing we can do is train ourselves, to make sure each one of us is just as good as a Solendic Knight in terms of our battle skills.

ZENO: You don't intend--

DAPHNE: I know what you're going to say, and no, we are not going to war with them. But at the same time, we can't let them be more effective than us.
With our combination of female knights, members of other races, and the use of magic, I'm confident we will be able to do much more good out there than they could ever hope to do.

ZENO: Wow... this is almost overwhelming.

DAPHNE: Yes, I felt the same way. Actually, you picked a good time to join. We've had so many new members recently that Sir Volrath feels he has to reintroduce himself. He's scheduled an address to our members when we return to the castle.



Not yet... Just two more scenes... in video form. The first scene is one I've always been pretty fond of, so make sure you watch it!!!




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Efqfq2c-r3A




The track in the speech scene is 'Elegie' by Secret Garden. In the BGM folder, it is named 'Birth of a Dream.'

Anyway, next time there'll be more of ZENO SLADE's story, as well as the hunt for Solich and Rana.


the end