Part 16: Time Passes

: Music: Time Passes



: That must be a sombre and awkward conversation. Jodariel has left the Downside forever and the next time we see her won’t be for quite a while yet, if ever. So… now what?

: I don’t know what I’m going to do without her here.

: Don’t go getting all mopey on us now, Hedwyn. Jodariel didn’t raise you in the Downside for the past however many years just for you to come out co-dependent.

: Well look on the bright side…! It’s one less mouth to feed.

: As opposed to the bright side that is ‘Jodariel escaped this unforgiving hell forever’? These guys are acting like she’s dead. She had given up on gaining her freedom for long enough to grow an impressive set of horns; you’d think these guys would be ecstatic that freedom from the Downside is possible and that one of their own just made it real.

: We’ll see Jodariel again if we persevere. Our journey’s now begun in earnest. We’ll just need to make a few last preparations, while we’re here.

: What about the stars? Can we afford the time?

: About that… Reader, go see for yourself.





: Hmm.



: Looks like a pretty typical country night.

: Actually, that gives me a thought. Where is the Downside, and where is the Commonwealth in relation to the Downside? When we liberated Jodariel, she went flying straight up. If we can see the starts, then we aren’t underground, far as I’m aware, not unless Pyre is pulling some Kenneth Oppel Firewing shit.



: All the stars that were previously illuminated as they showed us the way towards the Fall of Soliam are currently… uh, not shining. At least, not as illustriously as they were before. Maybe Pyre is also trying to warn us of the side effects of light pollution? It gets pretty lame when it’s night time and you can’t see the stars very well.



: The stars revealed nothing, did they not?

: You confirm his suspicions.

: It’s as the book foretells. This is the chance we need to make ready for what lies ahead.

: There’s a haven south of here we’ll travel to at dawn. And, when the stars decide to shine for us again… we’ll be ready. Mark my words.



: I’m gonna guess it’s Hedwyn. As much as I think that we should be holding a party in Jodariel’s honour, the fact that she’s removed from Hedwyn’s life after they had spent so much time together has nonetheless got to sting. Even though it’s ‘see you later’ and not ‘goodbye,’ there’s still a Jodariel-sized hole in his heart that he won’t be able to fill for some time.



: Nailed it. Also, I should probably give Sandra a visit.



: Someone in the thread asked in Jodariel had the sense to remove her Talisman before she was sent to the Commonwealth. The answer is yes: all liberators(?) remove their equipment before they get sent up.

: That said… Soliam’s Horn is right there. It’s worth a good 80 Sol, which can go quite a distance, and only Jodariel can equip it, so it’s useless for everyone else. The only reason we’d want to hold onto it at this point is for its sentimental value.

: I won’t call this a vote, but, what do you think? Should we sell off our unique Talismans when their sole user gets liberated? Or would it be crass to sell the only thing (aside from the throw rug) we have to remember her by? Personally, I think Jodariel would appreciate knowing that she was still helpful to us after she had left.



: He looks up at you, but his familiar smile is nowhere to be found.

:

: I’m sorry, my friend, I should be in a much, much better mood right now, it’s just…



: Then, he shakes his head.

: Listen to me, I’m talking like she’s….

: He falls silent again. You can tell he needs some time to himself right now, and turn to leave.

: Wait, hold on, don’t leave me here just yet.

: First of all, my friend… thank you. I don’t like to think of it in quite these terms, but… out of all of us, I really hoped she’d manage to get out of here. She’s been here the longest… not to mention, I’d probably be dead ten times over by now if not for her. What’s more, maybe other than Volfred himself, I have a feeling she’s really going to make an impact on this Plan of ours, back on the other side.

: Just the same, though…



: You and Hedwyn share some memories of Jodariel for a time, though it grows clear to you that he needs some time alone.

: …Thanks again, my friend. I hope that one day all of us can meet again. Jodi, she’d be happy on that day, I bet.

: It is very late now. You part ways, after bidding each other a good evening.

: He’s a big boy; I’m sure he’ll move on. Like I said, Jodariel didn’t save a mouse; she saved a man.

: With Hedwyn’s head cleared, if only a little, let’s give Sandra a visit. Surely she’ll have happy memories of Mount Alodiel.



: Tell me what you know about mountains.

: This place… where you currently reside, it must be Mount Alodiel, is it not? This was where those blasted Scribes decided what to do with me. I had already failed in my mission to eliminate the demon Soliam Murr. I did not anticipate his retinue, you see.

: They took me and some of my Beyonders alive, although, do not expect to see account of that in their good Book. Whether it was for mercy or for spite, I never became certain.

: They probably presumed that my expulsion for eternity would eventually have taught me some respect for them, but no, not yet. Not yet.

: Well… I do not mean that, really. The Scribes did spare my life. And were it not for that, I would never have been thusly trapped, to then enjoy your company, O lovely Reader.

: Now, having met my quota of blaspheming for the time, I think it best that we resume the normal sort of business between us, if there is any to speak of.

: And… good hunting at the precipice. May you soon rid the Downside of some useless idiot.

: I… can’t get a read on Sandra. She says she’s really enjoying our company, but, like most positive things she says, it’s entirely possible she’s being sarcastic. There’s no way she appreciates being imprisoned for 837 years just for the opportunity to meet us, but then, what would she have to gain to string us along like that?

: Well, whatever the case, I’m sure we’ll learn a bit more about Sandra in due time.




: Now then, Volfred. Where is it we go from here?

: Good morning, my boy. The place I noted earlier… let me illuminate the way.



: That was a bit more literal than I meant, but, sure.



Gfy

: Volfred leads all of you into a calm and quiet clearing, tucked away inside one of the mountain’s hidden folds. All about, you see a variety of strange items and equipment.



: Looks like we got a well, some flowers… what looks like party balloons…?



: You find Volfred, seemingly lost in thought, but then he turns to you.

: Greetings, Reader. This wagon and I, we’ve many memories together, and I could not help reliving some of them just now.

: I suppose some aspects of my past may be of relevance to you, given your role.

: If there is something that you wish to know, you need but ask.



: Wow, a rare opportunity to really talk with one of our companions and learn more about them. The last time we had the freedom to ask a buddy to open up like this was with Hedwyn.

: However, also like with Hedwyn, it’s possible that we only get to choose one of these options, and the others will either be lost to the ether or will come up much later. With that in mind, I would think that the most pressing, relevant matter to us would be why the Nightwings disbanded. Everything else is pretty juicy stuff, but the old Nightwings are the most important, I think.



: You express interest in knowing more of how the Nightwings came to be here, and Volfred’s past connection to the group.

: I have been connected to the Nightwings almost since the beginning of my days in exile. They found me, in a manner as I understand quite like how Hedwyn and the others found you.





: Once in a while, we let little Ti’zo stand with us as well. He is rather older than he looks.

: The other triumvirates we stood against… they feared us. Only the Tempers presented any threat to us, in any given Rite.

: But…



: He fell from Mount Alodiel…. We lost him, as well. On the night when he was to be free.

: We were… reckless… hasty. And, I was powerless to stop any of it. I blamed the Rites themselves. The circumstances that put us into danger. The Downside has claimed many lives, yet this, it was too much…. I vowed never again to don the mask and raiments.

: I had the blackwagon cleared and buried, such that it could not be used again. If the Nightwings would rise again… it would be under different circumstances, under new leadership, and towards a different purpose.

: That is all I wish to say of this, my boy.

: Damn, I don’t blame you. Oralech fell off a mountain on the night that he was to be anointed. Hell, even, Volfred said that no triumvirate could stand against them except the Tempers on a bad day – his freedom was nearly guaranteed, and instead, two people died.

: I can’t fault Volfred for not wanting to talk about the old Nightwings anymore, but, that said, there’s still something that he neglected to mention: what was Tariq’s role with the old Nightwings? He said himself that he travelled with Volfred back in the day.



: You ask Volfred about his history with The Lone Minstrel, whom he seems to know quite well.

: Tariq was there with the Nightwings when they took me on. His manner has always been much as how you’ve seen.

: Dude should get some sunlight.

: Although, he is somewhat more cheerful now than I recall back then, if you can believe that. I think our Plan has sparked a little fire in him.

: He serves the Rites, and the Nightwings. I have tried to ask him of his past before, but he seems rather reluctant to speak of it.

: Though, it is plain that he’s not from around here.

: This being the Downside, I respect his wishes for some privacy. Nonetheless, although I do not know too much of him, I count him as a friend.



: It’s been good to see him doing relatively well… anyway, was there anything else you wished to talk about, for now?

: Man, that didn’t really tell us much at all. All we learned was that Tariq used to not be such a life of the party. Maybe asking Volfred about himself will get us some more exciting results.



: You ask Volfred about his past in the Commonwealth, and how it is he came to be in the Downside.

: How rather forward of you, my boy. Most whom I have met during my travels here have been reluctant to approach the subject of one’s history before one’s exile.

: Nonetheless, I am happy to tell you.

: Well, since you have the same mark on your forehead as I have on my back, something tells me you and I aren’t so terribly different.

: As a Reader, I assume you are familiar with the Stamping-Press. I owned and operated one.

: Yeah, okay. To be honest I’m surprised they put you in the Downside for encouraging others to read, and that you weren’t burned at the stake or something. You’re made of wood, it would have been real easy.



: Under pseudonym, of course.

: Still, I knew I was putting myself at risk, and sure enough, my Stamping-Press was eventually discovered, and burned to the ground. I, however, managed to elude capture for a while.

: But not for long enough…. Here, in the Downside, I chanced upon the Nightwings, who were searching for a Reader. In that respect, my past, I think, is similar to yours.

: Anyway, that is the long and the short of it. Now then, was there anything else?

: It’s pretty wild that Volfred wasn’t just a librarian, when that itself was dangerous enough – he was a publisher. It’s surprising to me that the Commonwealth would consider his crimes equal to mine, or to anyone else’s. But, I suppose, casting people to the Downside is just as deadly as the chair or something, but more ‘humane.’



: You thank Volfred for his time, and bid him a good rest of the afternoon.

: Likewise to you, Reader. Be well.



: Nothing else to do here, I suppose, so… let the thumb-twiddling commence.

: Everyone… the amenities are modest here at Moonlight Alcove, but I suggest that you get comfortable. We may be here for some time.

: As for myself… I have some business to attend to. Please leave the wagon in my care, for now. It shall be ready by when you need it next.

: Don’t we… don’t we sleep in that?




Then, you shall have another opportunity to free one of your own.

You may earn back their freedom, one by one.



: May I have a moment, Reader…?



: In the ‘many moons’ since Volfred took our wagon and left, our character had kept busy by reading the Book and keeping up with the Rites and the Scribes. What this results in is a whole shitload of pages being unlocked, all at once, and it isn’t even the whole book yet! I won’t dump them all immediately, but I’ll be sure to at least include a page or two at every stop, until we work through everything the book’s given to us up to this point.

: Begging your pardon, but, there is something you may wish to see. Please, follow me.

: You follow him into the cold night.

: Look forth, Reader sir.

: The stars shine like you have never seen. Once more the path toward salvation is revealed, but now, something is different…






: Each prior time you searched the stars, they showed to you a single path. But now, several Rites avail themselves to you at once.




: Well. It’s not going to be hard to know when we aren’t welcome back at Mount Alodiel at least.





: We’ve explored every biome that the Downside has to offer, and we’ve done righteous battle in the Sportsball courts with every triumvirate. From this point forward, we may choose which biome to go to and which triumvirate to play against – of the options given to us, of course.

: And like a lot of things in this Let’s Play so far, I’m going to give the choice to which location we visit, and therefore which triumvirate to play against, to you.

: Do we play against Lendel and The Accusers in the Nest of Triesta? Do we play against Sir Deluge and the Pyrehearts in the Pit of Milithe? Or do we play against Dalbert and the Fate in the Ridge of Gol?

: First to five votes gets us going in that direction! We’ll save the vote for who we bring into the ensuing Rite for a later update.