Part 30: New Direction (1)

To make up for Chapter 6 being so short, Chapter 7 is double the length of any other chapter so far. As you may have guessed, a lot of that has to do with this "Seven Needles" mentioned in the chapter title. But more on that in a bit.





We begin the chapter by watching the Masked Man enter what appears to be Osohe Castle.







Seems Lucas and Boney ended up back in Tazmily, though Kumatora and Duster are nowhere in sight. Also, there's no music for this part.



Don't worry, Boney is in tip-top shape, too.



At this point, we've got free reign to walk around.



Not that we can actually leave first, of course.



She saved your lives.

And if we talk to Alec again...

No matter where she goes, Hinawa is always thinking about you.



Hinawa appeared in Alec's dream and told him to pile hay at that one spot. Then, in the real world, right out of the blue, you two fall right into the pile... It's as strange as strange can be.

So the whole "Chapter 6" thing may have a bit more to it than simply making people cry some more. Or at least that's the excuse for showing it, of course.

If we talk to Wess again...

It's an absolute miracle that you didn't even get a scratch.





And that's pretty much it for that.



Well, except one more thing from Alec.



Yes, though apparently not anymore. Duster's not really good at staying with the group, it seems.

Ah. I thought so. But... I doubt there's any need to worry. I'll let Wess know.



They might not look like it, but they're trustworthy. They may be able to help you out.

Talk to Alec again...

...I'm sure he's fine.

At any rate, let's go back to, uh, whatever. I don't know, maybe some weird situation will arise that will get us moving to where we need to go.





Woof woof! (What's that?!)



Looks like we've got a familiar face in an unfamiliar appearance.

I'll show off what the townspeople say in a future update, though suffice to say they don't know what to make of what's going on, certainly not enough to help. For now, let's help Ionia.



Ooh, I unded the gag on my own! I just moved my mouth up and down like so and slowly slipped it off! Ooh, I'm wonderful! I hate to be a bother, but could you stand me up?





I was minding my own business, taking off my makeup, when suddenly I was physically assaulted! Oh, what an unfabulous time to be attacked! Oh, my!



It seems the threads of fate have led us to each other again. From the moment I realized you could use PSI, I knew there was something between us. You're undoubtedly the one we Magypsies have been waiting for for tens of thousands of years...right? Can you sense it, too? Can't you feel "the time" drawing near? It's okay if you can't. I'm not entirely sure about it, either.



I hope Aeolia is all right! I wish I could fly there, but I can't without my makeup on! All I can do is walk on land like a human. How tragic. Oh, well. I'll walk if I have to. And you. You're coming with me! Come on, let's go to Aeolia's house!



Oh, uh, sure.

Marvelous!







And so Ionia joins as a temporary party member.





I have noooo idea what you were talking about just now, but if it's up the river you need to go, then it's our time to shine!



At this point, we're free to do whatever. The Tazmily Rowing Club can take us to Aeolia's, or we can simply walk there through the forest, though there's no point in doing the latter.

As you may expect, there's a ton of new NPC dialogue, but I'm going to save all of that for the next update since I want to go ahead and get the plot for this chapter established.



Except this guy, this guy's fondness of rowing is integral to the story.



Yes!











And so we ride up the river, complete with rising bridge and a scenic view of Osohe Castle.





Now to check on Aeolia.





At least she seems to be fine so far.



This is no time to be silly, Aeolia! I was attacked. So I rushed here to see if you were all right.
I'm just fine. I'm as lovely as I always am. But never mind me...why don't you untie that rope already?
Oh?! I was in such a rush I never even noticed! What a shock!







I'm sexy, even without makeup on.



Yuck. You can keep that lipstick. Indirect kisses with other girls aren't my thing.
Oh. I have a bad feeling...







Then a lengthy scene of screen shaking and color flashes occur, until...







Oh, my! Aeolia! Your body! Your body! Your body! It's starting to disappear...!
Oh, my! Oh, my, oh, my! So it is! It's disappearing! I'm disappearing, but I'm well.
But... Does this mean...?





Someone has pulled it. Someone able to pull the Needles...has finally appeared.







You can get to the courtyard of Osohe Castle through this underground path. If the Needle really has been pulled, I will vanish very soon... But it would be wise to know who pulled it. Someone with a dark heart, or someone with a light heart? The answer to that may change the fate of the world completely. Oooh. So today is the day I disappear.





You were an openhearted person. That's why we got along so well.



Let's follow this underground ptah to Osohe Castle's courtyard!

But before we do...







We can pick up Aeolia's memento. This item is a one-time auto-revive, instantly reviving the holder as soon as they're knocked out. Very handy to have.







The music changes once Aeolia's gone.

But we have no time to notice such things, we've got to check on this needle thing we still know nothing about.





The pathway to Osohe Castle is uneventful. It's pretty straightforward with no notable items and only one type of enemy along the way.







Cleocatras aren't too troublesome on their own, kind of annoying in larger parties.





First off, they can cast Lifeup Beta, which can undo a lot of damage, especially with your gimped party. They can also cast Hypnosis, which can be bad if both your characters end up asleep.









Ionia doesn't do much in battle, with the biggest thing being a very slight heal. Don't know if her scream will wake you up.





And that's pretty much it for that path.





The Dark Dragon's heart will become as light or as dark as the person who pulls it... That's what is said, anyway, but I don't sense anything here at all. I don't sense a heart of good OR evil. ...How mysterious. Could there be people in this world without hearts?



...... No, we still have a chance left.





Oh, that's right. I haven't explained anything to you at all. I need to tell you about the Needles.

So after all that, we're finally going to learn just what the hell is going on.










It says only those with the power of PK Love can pull the seven Needles. Not even we Magypsies have that ability. In other words, you're able to pull the Needles because you're a chosen boy.

So Lucas can pull the needles, but that does leave one pretty big question.





At any rate, to sum everything up, we gotta go pull up the rest of the needles before the bad guys do, because if we wake up Dragon God he'll be all awesome and stuff, but if the bad guys do, they'll probably do stupid stuff like mix Boney with a stag beetle or something.





While we mull all that over, there's a phone ringing (despite the sound file, I'm pretty sure this isn't Fassad's).



But but but the monkey! We need the monkey! The monkey can open it! Gah, what a pain in the neck! Anyway, the monkey's the key! I'll explain the details later! P-p-please come to the Chimera Lab! I assume you know where the Chimera Lab is, right?

It's to the left of the Club Titiboo skyrail, but I'll let the Pigmask explain it because I'm lazy.

Huh? Commander! Your voice sounds kind of cheery today! Well, anyways... Please take the Cross Road train to the factory, and when you arrive, go west from the ropeway station that's behind the factory.



He'll repeat himself if you didn't.

Oh, if you know where it is, then there's no problem at all. Please hurry. *beep*



Free phone!





I'm worried about my own Needle now.



But if we don't, then that means one of us has left this world...





The power of make-up.







And this path takes us to Osohe Basement, which we've already seen back in Chapter 3.





There is a new enemy here, or rather, a new combination of two old enemies. Apart, they were pushovers. Together, they're frightening.









They can do a combo attack, where one bro does a PSI attack and the other does a physical. Best to take it out quickly.



The rest of Osohe Castle is uneventful (no new enemies or ghost dialogue). Once we reach the graveyard, though...







Apparently Boney wants our attention for something.







He was just here visiting Hinawa's grave. He's probably headed back into the mountains yet again to look for Claus.



Look for Claus, visit Hinawa's grave. That's all your old man does anymore.



You've grown so strong that Flint doesn't need to worry anymore. You've grown up to be a truly good lad.



He asked me to give it to you the next time you came by. Supposedly, it's a good luck charm your pop's treasured since he was a boy himself.



That's nice to have, since now more than ever we need some courage to face what's in front of us.





And on the way to save, I learn Defense Up Omega, which boosts the entire part's defense at once. Very handy if we get a full party again.

Next time, we'll catch back up with Tazmily before we start the world-saving part of our adventure.