Radiant Historia Part #36 - At Journey's End

Part 36: At Journey's End

We have shown them the dread power of our weapon twice, yet they still resist... I knew Raul would not simply roll over, but to put up such a fight is rather impressive. ...It seems the only way to stop them is to obliterate them.

Chief Engineer Fennel, make ready our Divine Judgement.

I told you before, stop using that sensationalist term. This is the result of thaumatech engineering, not some kind of pretend god's display of power. ...Not that you could tell that to the faithful if your life depended on it.

...... If the power of Flux is at our disposal alone, then it is not so different.

Oh, so you're a god now? You're truly declaring yourself a god?

...It does have a nice ring to it. Now make ready with the weapon!

Impossible. The control unit's adjustments will take time.

Then hurry to it!

I keep telling you, it's impossible! Even with Etherion in the unit, the power of Mana damages the machinery. The slightest miscalculation could cause an explosion, and then we'd have one big desert. That's what happens when you don't heed my warnings. You used it too quickly.

Enough excuses! The Rebel army is at our doorstep, and your head is at stake here too!

Well then, I suggest you make do with the army you have on hand. If you can hold them off for a month or so, Alistel's thautomatons might be ready.

A month!? Preposterous! I can't wait over a month...!

Wasn't it you who said army policy considers the long view, or something to that effect?

Ngh...! If the control unit had been at full capacity, the Sand Fortress would have been a Rebel grave!

...It seems someone is in a foul mood today. What happened to that unshakable confidence?

...Do not mock me. I am quite calm.

Haha... Well, they say the best laid schemes of mice and men go oft awry. So why not consult the Prophet Noah? I'm sure he will offer his gracious words to provide the inner peace you seek.

When I am in the mood for jest, I will call upon the fool.

So Noah cannot be depended upon in this dire hour? What, then, will you do?

In so many words, I just need to buy time. Fortunately, we have the perfect pawn to accomplish that with.
Hiess: I see... Fodder before the cannons, is it? Not bad. You'd best entertain me at the least.

...

Music: Beyond the Wilderness

Stocke... You'll lead the way?

Yeah.

Alright, we get to go through Gran Plain again!

This actually isn't that awful, since we need to go in there for a sidequest.

You may remember a stick was lodged in the ground near where we fought that boar after first meeting Aht.

This is...!
????: Ah... You are a Gutral warrior. I can see you've been training...

There's a flash of light, and...

So you're Master Bergas' senior disciple, Golhda.
Golhda: Yes... It's quite interesting to get to meet Berga's disciple. You seek the "Beast God's Nail," don't you?

You are correct.
Golhda: Hm... The rightful bearer has appeared. Here is the Gutral treasure. I had been worrying.
Obtained Beast God's Nail
Golhda: The original meaning of the act of stringing beast nails into a necklace is admonition. To control the power of beasts with the wisdom and heart of man... That is Beastkind. But be careful. That nail is not just a reminder. It is also key to releasing your humanity, to become a true beast. I chose not to. Yet, if you have foes you must defeat, take that path. Master Galva will open the door.

Golhda disappears.

Releasing my "humanity," huh...

Well, we might as well go back and finish this quest up.

Music: Wildness and Toughness

Our village's treasure has been returned to us. ...You must already know what the Beast God is, if you were able to return that. ...I am prepared to begin the ritual at any time. Come back to me once you have decided.

Let's go
~~Wait~~

Then let us proceed to the ritual grounds.

Becoming the Beast God means to cast aside your heart and become a raging beast. But you will also be throwing away your life, and any chance at happiness. Gafka... Do you still wish to become the Beast God?

(Should I remain silent? If Gafka goes through with this, he will become something completely different... I have to think about this one carefully...)

Don't say anthing
~~Wait.~~

Yes. I will do anything to crush the enemy.

I see... Then, Warrior Gafka! Surrender your soul to the Beast God's Nail!

Gafka sparkles, and then starts to glow black.

...

Music: Rebellion

"H-Here it comes!"
"Damn beast!"

The soldiers begin to run.

"Run! Run! Nothing can stand against that thing!"

As the soldier flees, his comrades are tossed past him.

......

Gafka had thrown away his conscious mind, but it did far more than increase his power... Gafka never saw the faces of his enemies. All he cared for was killing foes... and finding more. After utterly destroying the forces of Granorg and Alistel, Gafka turned his gaze southward... In the desert land of Cygnus, humanity's last stand against Gafka is about to begin...

Music: Interrupted Moment

"Beast God's Reign"
FIN

Music: The Melody Connecting the World

As far as I know, Gafka is only the second Beast God in recorded history. It seems his predecessor also fared... poorly.

The source of that power is a mystery, but I'm more curious why that power even exists.

......

Perhaps it proves the existence of "superhuman powers" that fought on this continent.

Wait... "Superhuman"? Not just strong, but something... beyond?

Yes... Just like us.

!

...

Hm... I was thinking you may say something like that. You always make me see sense.

Music: To the Future that Awaits Ahead

Then...?

I have made my decision. I will not become a Beast God.

Are you afraid to become a beast without heart or mind?

No, Sir. We should not let our destiny fall into the hands of a beast.

Hm. Good answer. Then be aware of your rational mind, Gafka, and keep it strong. Take this with you. It is a weapon created with a conscience, for wielding the baser power.
Obtained Magic Fist Forza.
Obtained Tristrike Book.

You have my thanks, Red One. Now, shall we go?

Magic Fist Forza is a pretty nice fist for Gafka. It's got a huge attack boost and increases paralysis resistance. The Tristrike book is another part of Gafka's skill quest, which we're going to use right now.

Bergas is a little tougher this time around, but he starts in the center square so turn changing a few times and piling on Musous will finish him easily.

The text box lies, because "Three-Tier Attack" won't fit on the skill menu. We actually learned Triple Strike, which hits the enemy with three normal-strength attacks.

We've also opened up the most frustratingly obscure sidequest in the game, so we continue with the plot a bit until we get to Skalla immediately before our assault on the Sand Fortress.

Music: Dreams Showed by a Cloud of Dust

Marco and Raynie are standing around town, and talking to Marco starts the quest.

Hey Stocke, can I talk to you? Don't you think Raynie is acting a bit strange?

Raynie? I hadn't noticed anything strange about her...

I can't really describe it... But she's missing that... sharpness, that energy. I might be overthinking it.

No... You've known her for much longer than I have. And your perception greatly surpasses mine.

R-Really? You think so? Can you lend a listening ear for her? I want you to make Raynie feel better.

All right.
~~Leave it alone.~~

...Okay. I'll keep an eye on the situation.

Thanks, Stocke! I think she's at the inn right now. I'm counting on you.

Raynie is waiting for us in front of the inn.

Wh-What's the matter, Stocke?

Is something troubling you?

Why would you say that all of a sudden?

I'm just saying that I'm here if you need to talk.

Talk to you, huh...? ...... All right. Let's talk.

Okay.

I know this guy, okay? He's a real strange one. He never speaks up for himself, so I never know what's on his mind. And he tends to jump straight into certain death all on his own, without letting us know. He's tough enough, and he tells us not to worry... But I can't help myself. I can't stop worrying anyway.

Hmm... He sounds like he'd be hard to handle, all right. But he must have a reason for acting the way he does. Maybe you should take that into account before worrying.

Oh, I do! But... this guy... He'd never tell me anything...

Relax, Raynie...

Sorry.

Don't be. You really love him, don't you...?

Love... Yeah, you might be right. Could be I've been fooling myself. I guess that won't work, will it? I admit it, Stocke. I love you.

...I-I thought we were talking about "this guy you knew"?

Yeah... We were. I've never done this before. I didn't know where to start. So I'll just say it... You know, Stocke, I've lived as a merc for so long, always putting myself in harm's way. It's just recently, watching you fight, that I started to think about that... About how maybe there's another way to be, one without fighting.

......

Maybe I shouldn't have said anything and just went on helping you out, Stocke. But I don't think I can go on like this anymore.

Raynie...

I claim to know what drives you to fight like that, Stocke. But... Don't you want to try to find another way? With me...? You don't have to force yourself to live on a battlefield, you know? Why don't we throw our swords away... together...?

(Could there be a way to save the world from desertification without violence...? I've never actually given it any thought...)

Stocke... I'm begging you.

(Raynie has serious worries about my way of life... Is she right? Should I go on like this? Or should I try to find another solution...? I have to think about this one carefully...)

~~I can't give up.~~
I'll stop fighting.

Music: Where the Wind and Feathers Return

...You win, Raynie. I'll put down my sword if you put down yours.

...What? Really? You mean that...?

I'm the kind of man who knows how to fight, and little else. But if you want me to...

I'm in the same boat. I've never done anything but mercenary work. So why don't we try to change together? We could take a stab at a more normal way of life...

...Yeah. We could make a go of it. You'll be there with me, Raynie?

Stocke...!

Thereafter, Stocke and Raynie decided to withdraw together. They informed everyone of their relationship and decided to settle in Skalla. Unexpectedly, Rosch and the others had nothing for the two but congratulations. A year has now passed since the day Stocke and Raynie renounced war... Together with Raynie, Stocke did his best to search for a way to save the world... to no avail. The war showed no sign of ending. And the world's desertification proceeded steadily on... No one could predict when the end would come, but Lippti and Teo foresaw ruin. As he held the hand of his beloved, Stocke sensed the end of the world drawing near...

Music: Interrupted Moment

"Oncoming Calamity"
FIN

Music: The Melody Connecting the World

I hadn't expected you to turn away from an imminent threat. But we're happy to see you back with us.

Now, let us resume our efforts to find salvation for this world. Our hopes rest with you, Stocke.

...

...I'm sorry, Raynie. I can't abandon this fight. Not until it's all over...

...... Sorry. I didn't mean to bother you. But... Thanks for opening up to me.

...I'm sorry...

Music: To the Future that Awaits Ahead

Hey, don't apologize. That's how things are for you, isn't it? It's not like I didn't know. But... When you have finished this fight... Will you give it some thought?

Yeah... When the war's over, I'll lay down my sword. When that day comes, I hope you'll show me another way besides war.

Really!? Great! Then until that day comes, I've got your back!

I'll be counting on it.

That's a promise, okay? You'd better not forget it!

...I promise you... I'll never forget.

Heehee... It's kinda awkward standing around, making solemn promises about the future. But I'm really glad I was able to talk about this with you. I'll see you later!

To end the sidequest, we need to talk to Marco again.

Music: Dreams Showed by a Cloud of Dust

...I'm sorry, but I can't tell you the specifics. I can tell you that she's all right.

...I see, so you got her to talk. That's good. Is she all right now?

...Yeah. At the very least, you don't have to worry about her anymore. She's going to be fine.

That's fine. I understand. Both you and Raynie are here, continuing our adventures... And that's all that matters.

...Your empathy always helps me out.

Hehe. Well, then take this. Give it to Raynie.
Obtained Priere Bonheur.

She likes stuff like this, so I'm always keeping an eye open for it. I hope she gets better.

Then why don't you give it to her yourself?

I'd feel a little embarrassed... Oh, and please keep the fact that I was worried about her between us.

Okay, Marco.

Thanks, Stocke. I hope Raynie feels better soon!

The Priere Bonheur is a spear with a huge magic boost, and a bonus to fear resistance. It's a great spear for Raynie, but we could actually equip it to Rosch if we wanted to.

Now you may be wondering, why couldn't we start this quest when we were here before? The first time you're here Marco and Raynie will be standing around, but Marco won't ask you to talk to Raynie. The requirements for opening this sidequest are super dumb.

Back in Standard History - Chapter 1, when we first met Aht, we were given a seemingly pointless choice. If we chose to wait and see, Marco and Raynie would have said something to the effect of "What the fuck, man." and then we would have immediately gone to help her anyway. The hidden affect of this choice is that choosing to help is step 1 of opening this sidequest, if we had made the other choice we would have had to travel back to this spot and do the scene a second time.

In Alternate History - Chapter 2, when the Alistel army was ambushed by Granorg, we're given another choice that doesn't seem to affect anything. We had to select "I leave it to you" here in order to start this quest.

Lastly, in Alternate History - Chapter 5, we have to go bring our men back immediately. Once we've made all three choices correctly, Marco will finally give us this quest.

The idea is that these decisions play a big part in how Raynie feels about Stocke, so if you chose to let the little girl fend for herself against the panthers, she won't fall in love with him.

This quest is really frustrating, because there's absolutely no indication that it exists at all. Even if you happened to pick the right choices every time, the last choice is after where this sidequest begins, and there's no reason to come back to Skalla at this point in time unless you didn't complete the quest with Aht and you needed to talk to Vanoss to get your prize. This is the only sidequest I needed to use a guide for the first time I played, and I'm sure loads of people couldn't find it at all. The worst part is that you have to complete this sidequest to see the true ending.

I like the quest itself, I just hate the requirements to start it. But enough about that, let's get back to Granorg in the present day.

Music: To the Battlefield

This place is just as big, if not bigger than Alistel.

That should make it easier to blend into the crowd... Eruca... We're supposed to go behind the bar, right?

That is correct.

Granorg is full of Alistellians who moved here after Hugo took over. Our target is the bar, but we can wander around and talk to NPCs to see how things are.

"The Prophet Noah walks among us as a true god! Let us join hands in prayer!"

"I'm going to spread word of how great the Prophet Noah is."

"That's fine, but every time they open their mouths, it's Noah this and Noah that. It's annoying."

Basically all the Alistellians are talking about spreading word about Prophet Noah, and basically all the Granorgites are complaining about how obnoxious this is. Even the children talk about the glory of the Prophet Noah.

We head to the bar when we're done.