Part 55: A World Apart
The last thing we saw was Kyril disappearing into the blue dome of light. And as worried as Andarc and Seneca were, I doubt Kyril was any less so. This shit has probably been his worst nightmare these past years. (music)
He can hardly believe it...
...but this is no time to stand around being amazed.
Because Kyril isn't the only one who got transported here, and he has a final boss to slay.
(Okay so I lied a bit; Iskas really isn't the final boss, even as a fish.)
The world inside seems to be an endless expanse of blue water filled with neat lines of columns.
But again, we don't have time to be amazed.
Still, it's curious.
I remember this thing being a lot weaker.
That's a lot of damage!
And I expected Kyril to more or less one-shot it with this attack.
But in the end, it's still not a challenge. On its second turn, the Evil Eye just begins to glow.
On its third, it glows brighter, but it never gets a fourth.
This is it.
The final blow! And you should really be watching the ending. (I'll also link to specific parts of it as they come up.)
Please...Enough of this.
Meanwhile, the secret facility is breaking apart.
And it doesn't seem like the light show is quite finished yet!
The screen fades to white...
Kyril!
Kyril, however, is a little busy on his end.
(Kyril... son...) Huh? Father?!
She speaks! Yohn... you can talk?!Kyril is as amazed as I am. Maybe even more so, because he hasn't played the game before!
Not back there. But in this place, yes.(music)
(Yohn is a creature of this world.)So be honest with me here.
What kind of world is this? Did you know all along, Father?You thought I was kidding about the Goat Dimension, didn't you...?
(No... Not at first. But as I watched Yohn over time, I came to know her story.) ...There are so many things that don't make sense about that, Kyril doesn't even know where to begin.
I decided to track down the Rune Cannons -- the type you call the Evil Eye -- to find the connection.)
But, Father, because you did that, you died...I think he knows that.
(Don't let it worry you anymore. Yohn saved my soul. And now, Kyril... Thanks to all of you, Yohn can return to her own world.)
I have long sought a way home. When the Giant Tree was summoned, I too was caught up and sent here. Walter taught me hope, told me that I wouldn't be stranded here forever. But you showed me the way home. And now an end has become a new beginning...It's a bit of a cliché.
What do you mean? Every ending is but a new beginning.But maybe that's what passes for profound wisdom in the goat dimension.
Huh? You're going, too, Father?As awesome as Yohn is, I think bringing him back to the regular world is a bit beyond even her.
(That was my plan.)And even if she could... I'm not sure Walter would agree to it.
But why?There's a reason for that.
Uhhh...
And I suppose it's as good as any other.
What?!I'm not sure what shocks Kyril the most: that his dad got it on with goat girl, or that he's a Suikoden protagonist with a living parent.
(I'm going with her into the world beyond. My time here is fading... Will you join us?) The gate closes soon... (Kyril...)It sounds rather tempting.
But Kyril did promise to come back.
My friends are waiting for me. I don't belong where you're going. (I understand. You're doing what you know to be best.Take care, Kyril. I'm very proud of you.
Tell Andarc and the others how grateful I am. And tell them I'm sorry.)
I will, Father.And as strange as this story is, I have a feeling they're actually going to believe it.
That only leaves...
Yohn...Kyril thinks back...
...and recalls all the times...
...Yohn has helped him.
Yohn... Or should I say... Mother...?
Saying goodbye is kind of sad, but she has been assisting us all this time.
Now, just like the first time I had you, you shall be born again from this place.It feels good knowing we managed to do something for her, too.
...There's not much you can say in response to that... so Kyril doesn't.
He is engulfed by a bright light...
...and
back in the regular world , his companions are surveying the wreckage of the secret facility. (music) Nooo!! You said you'd be back, Kyril. You promised!Why?! Why did this happen?!
Whyyyy?!
Hey, it's too early for that. You haven't even found his horribly mangled body in the ruins yet!
Will you go back to Scarlet Moon now?
Yep. It'll mean going back empty-handed, but... what else can I do? Anyway, it's all for the best. I didn't really want to take that thing back to Scarlet Moon.
That sounds like the Coop I know.I rather wish we had got to see more of these two and their history.
I'm not really cut out for this sorta work. Once I file my report, I'm washing my hands of it all.Maybe if Coop hadn't been so terrible as to invite comparisons with Pablo, we might have kept him around and seen if they had more to say on the subject... Oh well.
Even if they aren't, I've decided to never let them be used again. They're far too dangerous.And Lino continues to be the best king.
Funny how things turn out... We suffered so much at the hands of the Kooluk... but just look at 'em now!
Their empire collapsed from within. It wasn't our doing. Always the voice of reason, aren't ya, Mizuki?And you're totally in love with her so shut your trap.
All right, then... Finally, time for us to go home!The ninjas and Flare all nod.
No, the empire is still there. It's just that its ruling family and most of its prominent politicians have all gone off and got themselves killed.
...well okay, it's not much of an empire anyway.
How could our hopes amount to so little...?
It's all because of Iskas. He--Ornela cuts him off.
No... No single person is to blame. Surely we, too, are guilty. Guilty of pride, deception, and many other sins... ...
Well, well... A member of the Imperial Faction who actually gets it.Sadly, we never find out what made Roget join the Patriarchal Faction beyond what he told Iskas before joining us. And as to at least not be guilty of any more deception, I'm going to confess that I still think Roget is the bee's knees and I wanted to see more of him.
Still, it's too late now...Much more.
Then, we have our pirates.
Lady Kika, whadda we gonna do now?This scene, even more than any of the others, seems like it would change depending on whether you've recruited and kept everyone alive.
Same as we always have! Who needs a Rune Cannon anyway?But I have no idea if there are really any alternate versions of it.
Hey, Dario, you're not too yellow-bellied to set sail without one, are ya?!I mean, it would mean breaking up Kika's scurvy crew, and then I'd feel like a horrible person.
They're right, Papa. We should all just go back to the way it used to be...No, I mean I'd really be a terrible person.
But I'm not, so enjoy your legendary Pirate Dario.
That's the spirit, Dario.
And finally...
Something wrong? What is that...?
What indeed?
Just this guy keepin' a promise.
(music)
He looks happy!
So does Corselia. (music)
And everyone gathers 'round to tell him how glad they are he's safe and what a big jerk he is for making them worry like that.
Really, you should be watching the video for this.
Suikoden Tactics posted:
Corselia thought hard about the choices before her. Eventually, she decided to let the Kooluk Empire collapse.
It seemed, to her, the best choice she could make at the time... both for her and her subjects.
And so the curtain fell on the chain of events connecting the Rune Cannons and the Kooluk Empire.
In time, those who could even recall what had happened grew fewer and fewer.
Meanwhile, Kyril returned home to live in the Scarlet Moon Empire, helping the needy with Andarc and the others. But every so often, a distant lonely look would cloud his face.
Years went by, but Kyril did not age like the others. He remained ever youthful in appearance.
Finally, he set out one day on a journey with no particular destination in mind. He was never seen again.
The rest of the ending is mostly text.
(music)
A letter posted:
I suppose he simply does not want to be found. I have come to believe this more and more strongly. Simeon, who joined me in my search, seems to think so too.
I plan on searching a little longer, but if I still do not find him, I shall return to visit you for a time.
I also made a short trip to Kooluk -- or should I say, the land that was once Kooluk. (My disguise was much better this time, so nobody recognized me.) Some villages have been absorbed into the Scarlet Moon Empire, while others have been abandoned.
The Tactics devs made the questionable decision to not have the usual And Then This Happened bit for our recruited people - but then again we know most of these from IV anyway, and the epilogue does a decent job with most of the new ones.
Instead...
...we just get the end credits. (And the end credits music.)
They are much shorter than they were for the previous game, but I still won't be posting them here.
After they end, the game still has a few words for us.
Suikoden Tactics posted:
Even if, having read this book, you wish to learn more about the Evil Eye and the man they called Kyril, I believe that these mysteries will never be solved. For, if other Rune Cannons remain lost, awaiting rediscovery, I do not see how another Evil Eye could ever be born again to this world.
It seems to underscore that this is the final chapter in the story of the Rune Cannons, even though it will eventually become clear that some did indeed escape destruction at this point.
But that is a tale for another time.
...and wouldn't you know it, my game freezes here, more or less identical to how it froze when we started.
But there is little left for us to do other than to close this book...
...and put it back where we found it...
...before we raise our heads and look out the window at the snow falling outside.
Because that, more or less, was Suikoden Tactics!
However, just like its predecessor, the game has a few tricks left up its sleeve even now. It is not quite over yet!