Part 20: Update 18 – Little Jack

Finally, Valua!



So, this is where the Yellow Crystal is hidden, right?

Yes. It is sealed somewhere within these lands, along with the Yellow Gigas.

Considering how much trouble we've caused the Valuans already, we should be extra careful, right Cap'n?

......



Ah... um... nothing. I'm sorry... were you saying something?

Nothing really. It wasn't anything important.



Oh dear, Drachma seems to be brooding. Normally I'd take the piss out of the crew for not calling him on it, but firstly he's their captain, and secondly he threatened to throw them overboard in the last update, so I'll cut them a little slack.

Besides, we have more important things to worry about. Once again, new lands means new discoveries!





Sadly, while there are quite a few discoveries around the continent, these are the only two we can actually get to right now. Remember way back when I said Valua was basically a giant crater? That makes it almost impossible to navigate – the mountainous regions are just too high to fly over. On the bright side, that means we're effectively sealed off from Valua city, safe from the Armada.



And fortunately, we don't want to go to the city anyway. We're headed to here, the Maw of Tartas.



Does the symbol on that seal look familiar to you? It should do, because it's the symbol of the Yellow Moon. Recumen isn't the only one with the number/seal theme going on. Remember how Grendel had one glowing red eye? One is the number of the Green Moon, which I totally forgot to mention while he was actually onscreen.

That chunk of metal is huge!!!

Beneath it is the "Maw of Tartas." It's an entrance to a series of caverns. These caverns are the resting place of the Yellow Crystal as well as the Yellow Gigas. This seal was built by my people after the Rains of Destruction in order to contain the Yellow Gigas. Now the Yellow Gigas lies dormant...

Good... keep that thing locked up...

Well, I know this means that the Gigas can't get out... But, it also means that we can't get in!

Hmm... I don't think there's any way we can get through this seal. What should we do?





Welp, the jig's up. Guess we better just go along quietly.

Yeah, no. These schmucks don't even get boss battle music like the guards in the train chase. They get a renamed version of Zivilyn Bane's Burst and that's about it.



Grenade is actually pretty strong, but they're still a joke to our party. They don't even have a Latin name – they're called “Enforca”.



Tell us how to open the seal, and we'll let you live!

Valuan Soldier: That's impossible! Our entire army couldn't open it! Our commanders aren't concerned with the Yellow Crystal right now because it's already in Valua and it's safe from you.

Hmm... That makes sense. They'll go after the other Crystals first...

Something's not right... You'd think that this area would be more heavily guarded. Where are the rest of your men?

Valuna Soldier: They're preparing for the raid on Nasrad.

Remember how I said Nasr and Valua were locked in a stalemate because Nasr had impenetrable sky rifts on all side? I direct you to rule 49 of the Grand RPG cliché List.

49. Maginot Line Rule
It is easy to tell which city/nation is the next conquest of the Evil Empire: its streets are filled with citizens who brag that the Empire would never dare attack them, and would be easily defeated if it tried. (This smug nationalism always fails to take into account the Empire's new superweapon.)

Just, uh, don't go reading any of the others on the list if you want to avoid spoilers. Half of them are named after this game.

What?! Valua is going to start a war with Nasr?

Valuan Soldier: I, I think so. I'm just a grunt, so I don't know any of the details... And there was a giant arcwhale... It destroyed a few of our ships recently... One of our Admirals is hunting it.

A giant arcwhale?!



Man, Drachma really needs to learn some other forms of interaction. I think this is about the fifth update in a row he's struck that pose. On the other hand, when all you have is a giant mechanical arm, everything starts to look like a skull.

Valuan Soldier: I, I don't know for certain. Some fog rolled in yesterday and there were sightings of a huge creature!

That means it's probably still in the area. I have to go after Rhaknam... I've been following you kids around looking for the Crystals all this time... but now it's your turn to follow me.



Danger, schmanger. This is the ship that took down two Gigas, what's the worst that could happen?

Well, it doesn't look like we'll be able to get to the Yellow Crystal anytime soon. Okay Drachma, we'll go with you.

Very well... Now the time has come for me to finally face Rhaknam. He was the reason that I got the Harpoon Cannon in the first place... I'm going to kill him... or die tryin'.

We can walk around the Maw of Tartas now, but there's really nothing here but the giant seal. Cupil, however, goes absolutely nuts because the whole area is filled with these.



There are no actual Chams in the area, but there are plenty of Choms. Choms are corrupted Chams, and have a rather unpleasant effect on poor Cupil. You know how after a particularly dodgy takeaway you feel like you want to vomit up everything you've ever eaten? Same deal here. One Chom Biryani to-go and poor Cupil will throw up every Cham he's ever eaten back into your inventory and revert back to his basic form. I'll explain a bit later why you would ever want to do that to him. For now, let's just head back outside.



There's always a thick fog surrounding him. He knocks ships out of the sky and they never see him coming.





Rhaknam is nearby... That's all I could think as I lie there, trying to sleep. It doesn't look like I'm going to get any shut-eye. Maybe I'll take a little walk to try and calm myself down.

We get a while to explore the Little Jack now. You can go poke around the ship you're on at any time just by selecting it from the menu, but since the game actually makes you do it at this point we may as well have a look around.



Drachma takes health and safety very seriously. Never take your hands of the wheel until the ship has come to a complete stop! Also, multiple lifeboats even if the ship was only made for one person.



Ungh... I... swear... I didn't... steal... anything...

Hahaha... sounds like Aika's talking in her sleep again.



Captain? Captain... It's Vyse. You awake? ...there's no response. I wonder where he is?



God, I love the little details the game throws at you. How many people would even think to check after stealing Belleza's engine? And yet here it is, just for those special few. I admit, I never knew about this until I went to check everything right now.



What do you do with a thirsty sailor, early in the mornin'?

Ahem. That's about it for the Little Jack, so we may as well head outside for a little stargazing.


Click for video!

And it seems we aren't the only one, although Drachma looks like he has more on his mind than stars. Anything I could say could only possibly detract from the next scene, so I'm just going to let it play out by itself.





What are you doin' up at this hour? You should be gettin' some rest.

I was about to say the same thing. It's the middle of the night.



Hrmph...











You had a son?



A long time ago, I ran a fishin' boat in North Ocean... My son was learnin' to be a sailor. He used to come out with us. His name was... Jack.



......

One day, we went out fishin' as usual. Then Rhaknam came. We didn't know how powerful Rhaknam was, and we tried to fight him. But, there was no way a fishin' boat stood a chance against that thing. Rhaknam destroyed our ship. I barely managed to survive...







... Hrmph. I'm getting long-winded in my old age. Don't let it bother you... it's my problem.

It is really hard to show fog rolling in with screenshots so you'll just have to take my word for it.



Boy... go wake the others.



See you next time, folks. If you enjoyed the update and want something to do while waiting for the next one, I recommend watching Grave of the Fireflies, When the Wind Blows and the last 20 minutes of Old Yeller.

Video List

Little Jack