Part 43: To The Future

Gfy

: In what wasn’t a particularly close vote at all, we’ll be heading towards Udmildhe and the Withdrawn for another round with them. The Spring of Jomuer is only one biome away from the Ridge of Gol, so the flight won’t be that long.

: The stars revealed to you a path toward the Spring of Jomuer, where the Rites shall soon continue. Come morning, your travels shall continue. For now, everyone needs rest.

: I think you can tell the writers were starting to get a little exhausted at this point. Speaking from experience, it can be pretty easy to fall into repetitive habits (“shall [soon] continue”) when you’re tired of looking at a big project and you just want to hit your quota.



: A little bit to do before we embark, though. Let’s see who’s saying what.



: Ti’zo’s looking a bit forlorn. But, good news is, the Downside Berry is ready to harvest again, so that’s nice.

: You find Ti’zo there in the blackwagon looking rather more despondent than usual. When you attempt to reach out to him, he barely acknowledges you.

: (Ti’zo indicates that he wishes to be left alone right now.)



: Oh! I’m sorry, Mister, I was just wanting to come check on little Ti’zo, there, I think maybe he’s taken ill, or something?

: On further inspection, it occurs to you that Mae perhaps is not off the mark, and that Ti’zo is unwell for some reason.

: Come on, Ti’zo, you’re going to be all right! You might be the smallest one of us, but I think you’re the toughest!!

: Considering he regularly blows himself up as a feature, she’s not wrong.

: Though, Miss Jodariel, she was the toughest one of all, wasn’t she? I so miss her sometimes….

: (Ti’zo appreciates the kind words, but still wishes to be left alone at this time.)

: Oh… don’t be silly, Ti’zo, you know I won’t be doing that, don’t you?

: Wow, what a power move.

: Mae turns to you for a moment, lowering her voice.



: It’s just, Ti’zo, well, I told him not to eat something, there was this, well, I think it was a mushroom, maybe? Growing in the corner over there?

: So, I see Ti’zo sniffing at it, and he’s always hungry, and, usually, I try to feed him, but this time, I told him no!

: Because, I know my mushrooms, and, whatever that was, I think it was a mushroom? But it wasn’t one I know? Well… Ti’zo ate it, anyway.

: (Ti’zo corroborates Mae’s recollection of what happened.)



: Because, when I ate things I thought were mushrooms around here, I coughed them up, as well. They made me rather sick! Kind of like Ti’zo, over there.

: No good game is complete without a puke/poop emergency in there somewhere.

: I hope that I’m not being un-appropriate, because, it’s not polite, maybe? Oh, come to think of it, Ti’zo! Why don’t we go outside?! Because, then, I won’t have to clean up after you, like the last time when you ate something I said maybe you shouldn’t, remember?

: (Ti’zo indicates he remembers full well, and regrets not heeding Mae’s food-related counsel.)

: Oh, don’t worry, silly, if you’ve taken ill, then I think you’re going to be fine? Once you have a little walk outside, with me? Because you’re very tough!

: Ti’zo is beginning to look better already.



: Then, she snatches Ti’zo up in her arms, and whisks him out of the wagon with her. You hear her call back to you over her shoulder.

“Bye, Mister! I’ll make sure that Ti’zo is all right, I promise, OK?”

: Although the prospect of Mae administering medical assistance normally would give you pause, Ti’zo seemed to accompany her willingly enough. The two have shared a rather close bond since Mae first made contact with the group. For someone like her, who has lived alone for so long, the friendship must be vital. And as for Ti’zo, he must be impressed that a non-native of the Downside seems to know her way around food safety even better than he.



: I wonder if this scene would have played if we had liberated Mae but not Hedwyn. He was the cook among us, if you remember; of all the people in our triumvirate, he knew how to make food that was halfway palatable, and when we told him that we missed the food in the Commonwealth, he laughed at us.

: In any case, we unlocked some new content in the Book, so might as well give that a leaf before heading out. Like I said, it’s not exactly a long flight back to the Spring of Jomuer, so we can afford some leisurely time.


Gfy




: It’s interesting, but I guess not entirely unexpected, that the Dissidents are actually Ha’ubs triumvirate. Logically it couldn’t belong to anyone else – just, you wouldn’t think that, considering Barker’s personality and the fact that he’s a cur, not an imp.

: But, according to Ha’ub himself, the Dissidents represent ‘absurdity’ and charge that ‘those that do not belong, belong.’ Of everyone we’ve met so far, Barker fits the bill pretty decently, and the fact that he doesn’t mesh makes him the accidentally-intentionally perfect candidate.

: Now then. Last update, I said that I was tired of sitting on the Wisdom Trace, and that I promised to use it immediately after the Rite with Barker.






: Mae is ineligible for it, since her Enlightenment is maxed out. So it comes down to these four lucky contestants.

: It’s… well, this decision mostly asks just one question: who would it be most effective on? In order for Enlightenment to be ‘effective,’ it needs to either put a person up a level so they can get a new perk, or it needs to change the standings with regards to who would be eligible for Liberation.

: The thing is, because Mae and Volfred both have Banishment Sickness, giving the Trace won’t matter for the standings because, well, it’s guaranteed to be Mae, Ti’zo, and Pamitha. Ti’zo edges out Bertrude in Enlightenment very slightly, and Pamitha is guaranteed to max out in her next Rite, with or without the Trace, so the standings are a forgone conclusion.

: To that end… Pamitha is closest to her next level, and I can’t tell if the Trace is going to get her there.



: Might as well find out.



: Fuck.

: Well, that’s on me for waiting so long to spend it, I guess.



: We have a witch to say hello to.





: Tamitha is in the area, but bumping into her provokes no reaction – I don’t think she’ll ever forgive us or be in a talkative mood again. Can’t say I blame her, and I can’t say I’m personally missing out on much. Hope Pamitha can mend that bridge someday, though.



: Our two landing options are, for the… third or fourth time, Gluehive and Fallflat.




: Both Mae and Pamitha were in the previous Rite, but Pamitha was voted in, ahead of Mae and behind Volfred. Sorry, Mae; maybe next time.




: It’s getting awfully quiet lately, what with the faster turning of the Rites and the fewer pals to travel with. Whole lott’a nothin’ goin’ on here, so, might as well just get on with it.

: You and Pamitha spend much of the day searching through the desolate sprawl of Fallflat, until, at last…

: Hey, this is something, at least.




: Seventy bucks isn’t anything to scoff at, that’s for sure. It’s just a little less valuable than one of Sandra’s Talismans. Although, I have to wonder why Ron would find these mushrooms so valuable, considering I’m picking them straight out of the ground and he’s willing to pay a not-insignificant amount for them.

: … you know, besides the obvious reason.



: We’re already on the cusp of our next Rite. Let’s go see how that exorcism’s been treating Udmildhe.


Gfy



You are nothing, Reader. Nothing but a mindless child.

Your every action is a stain upon the legacy of the Eight Scribes.

The Rites have been a long-held secret to keep out those such as you.



: Hah, nuts to that. Brighton’s clearly shitting his pants over Volfred’s revolution and he knows there’s nothing he can do to stop it, so he’s resorting to name-calling. Let him cry all he likes, if you ask me!

: If the Voice truly is that of the Archjustice Androbeles IX himself, as Volfred indicated… then none of you are likely to receive too warm a welcome, should you regain your freedom.

: Well, if my pattern recognition has taught me anything, it’s that I’m about to get a letter from Sir Gilman that’s going to open with him being warmly welcomed back into the Commonwealth and offered a prestigious position in its aristocracy somewhere.




Gfy



: You learn that his return to the Commonwealth was met with much rejoicing, and that before long, he was promoted to the rank of Veiled Captain on the Bloodborder.

:

: And yet, with tears welling in his eye, he did refuse the post, stating he no longer had the heart to fight against the Highwing Remnants as he once did. He then cast down his helmet. And, when next anyone saw him, he was among Volfred’s agents, having joined the revolution to re-shape the Commonwealth from within.

: You thank the messenger-imp for the report, and salute it crisply as surely Gilman would have. Soon, the news has everyone in the wagon talking.

: Nrrrggh. The tears he shed ought have been bottled, and thus set aside for use in various salves.

: Often the pragmatist, that Bertrude.

: (Ti’zo feels inspired by the news of Gilman’s selfless actions.)

: Noble Gilman made the gallant choice, it seems. Our plan comes closer to fruition through his good example and support.



: Do you think that one day I can be as brave as him? Because, I don’t always think I can?

: The news of Gilman’s liberation fills you and your fellow exiles with newfound resolve.




Gfy

: Contrary to the patterns I’ve established by now, I’m actually going to go to Ron first, and then read the Book second. Let’s see what’s new in the Slugmarket.




: The only new thing in Ron’s inventory is a bottle of Fortified Star Serum, which will permanently boost the Quickness of whoever it’s used on by one. Not a bad little item, but, similar to the Sun Serum, it’s prohibitively expensive at eighty-four Sol.

: But, you know, that said… I kinda have a ton of money right now. I’m not really sure how I let it all creep up on me like that. And I’m about to make some more!




: So now I’m sitting on nearly three-hundred Sol, which is a huge amount. I could buy anything I want from the Slugmarket if I wanted right now.

: Like I said in the previous update, though, my strategies are kind of set by now. Buying anything from Ron at this point would be kind of superfluous.

: But, you know the one thing that I can’t seem to get enough of?




: Not that I’m really using them for much at the moment, but, to be honest, I… kind of feel bad for taking all of Ron’s money and not buying anything in return. Besides, we’re coming up to the endgame, here. I could easily blow all my Stardust on some of the Talismans I am using.



: Now that we’ve unlocked a brand new page, we can go back and give the Book a read. The reason why I wanted to put it off is because, until this Downside Dining page, we were actually completely caught-up, with the exception of the Afterword, and I want to save that one for a little bit later. There isn’t a lot of Book left to read; I don’t know how many more pages we can expect to unlock, considering we’ve been just about everywhere and done just about everything.


Gfy





: It’s time for Bertrude’s rematch against Udmildhe. I’m sure they’ll be thrilled to see each other.

: As the sky above the Spring of Jomuer darkens, your companions watch in silence, and await the commencing of the Rites. Volfred speaks up after a time.

: It’s time again, Reader, my boy.

: Now everything is ready, and the stars begin to shine once more, precisely as foretold.

: Haha, real eloquent, Volfred. Also, ‘precisely as foretold.’ I think you can tone down the mysticism a little bit; we’ve done this dozens of times by now.



: After the positively brutal thrashing I gave Barker, I’m not really seeing the reason to turn off any of the Stars – except maybe Endriga The Widow, since Volfred isn’t available for my team this time, but even then, I shut-out Barker; it wouldn’t matter if I had one-hundred Pyrepoints, or seventy, or one.

: Fuck it, I’m feeling large and in charge. Let’s go in with all twelve.




: Previousss time… ye snuffed our Pyre’s flame. Prevailed. Thisss time… all for Yslach. No matter the result. And, no matter the cossst.

: ‘No matter the result,’ huh. Enjoy the dirt, then.

: Your adversaries are prepared, Reader. Who shall conduct the Rites on your behalf?



: Oh. I, uh, forgot she had that. That’ll make this match a whole lot more interesting.



: Arizech is being a bit of a pain in my ass, but it could be a whole lot worse, that’s for sure.

: Two of our companions are down with Banishment Sickness, leaving only three of us eligible to compete. Because of this, there’s no vote this time: I’m forced into using Bertrude, Pamitha, and Ti’zo. And since this isn’t a Liberation Rite, the order I send them in doesn’t matter.

: Let’s dance, Udmildhe.


: To The Future – Gameplay



: Ti’zo is almost as close to his final level-up as Pamitha was. And, speaking of…




: …I can fly free no longer, yet, that anger… I don’t feel it, anymore.



: For her final reward for achieving true enlightenment, we have our choice between her second-level perk Sleight of Wing, which allows Pamitha to switch places with her nearest ally whenever she salutes, and her first-level perk Winged Fury, which boosts Pamitha’s speed by 30% for a short time every time she gets a kill.

: Sleight of Wing is in pretty much every way the worse choice. It requires me to salute, which I don’t like doing, but more than that, it’s counter to Pamitha’s roll in the team. We’re getting to the point where there isn’t a lot of incentive to switch Pamitha out whenever she’s deep in enemy lines:

: The original idea was to switch her for someone that could do a ton of damage, like Jodariel or Bertrude, but Jodariel hasn’t been on our team for a dog’s age, and Bertrude is generally too useful to go a round with her banished. Plus, if Pamitha is equipped with Triesta’s Feather, there’s a chance that Pamitha can get a dunk and still return regardless.

: Whereas Winged Fury makes Pamitha even more devastating at her job, which is to puncture the enemy’s front line and either get a dunk herself, or do as much damage as she can before she’s caught. And if she’s moving 30% faster after each kill, everyone will have one hell of a time trying to catch her.

: So…




: Assuming our next team is composed of Ti’zo, Volfred, and Bertrude, everybody will achieve the Final Forms by the next Rite.



: Those afflicted with Banishment Sickness seem to be doing better, at least, and express gratitude to Pamitha, Ti’zo, and Bertrude for their efforts.

: Just then, The Lone Minstrel appears before you. No words escape his lips; you can guess full well what he has come to indicate to you, and follow him back out into the darkness.





: Who could it be…?