Part 6: I HATE lizards!

We tune in just as Arshtat formally informs Frey of his next task, so presumably a couple of days have passed since his return to the capital.

I wish for you to proceed to Stormfist and supervise the preparations for the Sacred Games. Queen's Knight Georg Prime, Queen's Knight apprentice Lyon, I order you to escort them.

Very few people in the Suikoden universe actually have a surname - generally established noble families, or people who are rich enough to act like it. The Queen and her children are named Falenas, and although I don't believe they ever say it outright in-game, her husband's full name is Ferid Egan.

In one week, the day before the opening ceremony, Lymsleia and I will arrive in Stormfist ourselves. Until then, you will be my representatives. Remember that.

"So leave that box of 'hilariously life-like' rubber spiders at home."

"Aww, but muuum!"

Let our mercy, as deep as the Feitas, and our authority, as powerful as the sun, be revealed to the entire world!

That's the motto of the royal family. We'll be hearing it again.



Then we get joining messages for all our party members... again.



And we're back in control. People around the castle have some more or less generic words of advice before we set out, so let's hear what they have to say. One that's pretty good and that you're likely to miss is one of Sialeeds' maids:



Don't worry about me! I can stay in bed. Georg, Lyon, and Frey will still be on the job.

...Hey!

Sialeeds, being Sialeeds. We can also talk to the maid a second time:

Maid: Prince Frey, when Lady Sialeeds declines to rise from her slumber, it is best to let her be. Otherwise, things can get... scary.

At least she starts with a wind rune, not something that can actually do damage.



We can also check out her room. There's no bed! Does she sleep on that thing in the corner? No wonder she wakes up cranky!

Of course, Lym's maids also have a few parting words.


The Princess will be so upset.



As for the other one...

Maid: *sigh* The Sacred Games are just around the corner now. If only a brave, handsome hero would come along, win the Games and sweep the Princess away!

I'm really worried now. Maybe we should just get Georg to sign up if Euram is any indication of the candidates we're looking at.



Most of them aren't all that interesting, though, so it's time to head out. The rest of the knights are waiting by the exit, though Kyle is conspicuously absent.


Most likely, he won't do anything to reveal himself, but please be on your guard, Your Highness.

Pfft, tell that to the spies. I don't want them making things too easy for me.

Despite what others may say about them, Lord Godwin and his son, Gizel, are both men of extraordinary caliber. You really should put aside the grumblings of the townsfolk and listen to what they have to say.

But I like grumbling townsfolk.

Ooh! Bring me back a souvenir, Prince! ...Oh, wait! I'll be taking Lum there later, won't I? Never mind!

Aren't you supposed to look after the Princess, you slacker?



I was going to talk to Ferid, too, but then Lym came running and interrupted it.

Frey! You're leaving again, aren't you...? How come everybody else gets to go with you, and all I get to do is see you off? No fair!!

That is a bit unfair. You'd think they would let her enjoy her last days in freedom.

That's the way it goes when you're just a kid.

*grumble*

Lady Sialeeds...



That's right, Lym. Very important business.

But, Father...

"I wanted to see what Frey was going to do with all those rubber spiders!"


What's most important is that you spend time among the people, learning more about them. In a way, the Sacred Games symbolize all of Falena. All its virtues, all its faults -- all right there at once. Experience it all for yourself! That's your mission, as our Prince, and as my son.

Yes, Father!

We could also tell him we don't get it, but that would make us look stupid. Er.

All right! Now, safe journey! And that goes for you as well, Lyon.

Y-Yes, Your Majesty! I'll guard the Prince with everything I have, I guarantee it!

Not just that. Well, yes, DO that, but... Take care of yourself while you're at it.

M-Myself?

I care about you, Lyon. You're practically my third child, you know. As I see it, I'm entitled to a little fatherly concern now and again.

Oh... Your Majesty...!



Now, now. That's enough of that bowing.

Yes, sire!

Ferid is the best dad, even to people he's not actually the father of.

Sialeeds, Georg, watch over the young ones.

You got it.

You really think the kids still need a chaperone? Well, if it's you and Arshtat asking me, what can I say, huh? One babysitter, reporting for duty.

Bah, you know you love it.

Good. All right, then, Frey, good luck!

We'll be coming to join you in one week! Until then, you'd better take care of yourself... or else!

"If you let someone else maul you while you're away, I will be very upset with you!"



We can go back in and talk to everyone again...

Remember, Stormfist isn't Sol-Falena. It ought to be a good learning experience for you, though. Trust your instincts.

I'm not sure I have any.

If you're going to go, then leave already! I hate goodbyes!

All right then. But not before I talk to some more people on the way.


*sigh* Some guys have all the luck!

...Yeah. Stormfist won't be Sol-Falena. And thank fuck for that.

Guard: Oh! Uh... Your Highness! I-I was just, uh... talking to myself... No, no, not thinking any impure thoughts, not me!

You're a pervert and an asshole just like the rest of the population. I'm starting to think I'll welcome the Mongolian hordes.



I'm inclined to agree, and I haven't even met him yet!



My brawls are never petty. They are suitably epic and glorious for a prince.



Appreciate the sentiment and all, but you're starting to sound a bit creepily obsessed.


I don't care who wins the Sacred Games. I despise both of them!

Hey, someone who makes sense.



...

Leaving now.



There's a lot of stairs on the way down to the port. A lot of stairs.



And hey, I wondered where you went.

Kyle?

Oh, no. Don't tell me you're coming too.

Ha! I wish. Nah, I just came to see you off. I still say they should have sent me along, but hey...

Now, Kyle, you know we can't take Lord Barows' greatest fan into Lord Godwin's hometown...

Oh, yeah, but it's perfectly fine to bring along his son's ex-- Hey! How about the weather!

...Seriously, though. You think everything's gonna be all right out there?

What do you mean?

I mean, it's kind of like going into enemy territory, isn't it?

Hey, don't say that.

Lord Godwin's not the Queen's most loyal subject, but he IS her subject.

Yeah, for now! I mean, what if he ends up throwing you all in the dungeon and holding you hostage or something?

He won't.
We should all wish he were that predictable.

He knows what it means to make Arshtat mad. He's seen it. Like we have.

He wouldn't stake his whole town on one stupid move.

Yeah, I guess you're right. I hope you're right. But hey, watch yourselves out there, huh? Especially you, Prince.



Good. You be careful, too, Lyon.

Yes, of course!

Fine. Enjoy your trip, and if you see this cute brunette, about five-foot-four... Ah, never mind. Go!

Going! But first I'm going to talk to you again.

Something about this bothers me. Maybe I should sneak along with you. Can't have you getting into trouble without me!

We don't get anything for it, though. Fortunately, he doesn't go through with it - having Sialeeds stuck with him on a boat would probably end in violence.



And we're off! I rather like the design of the boat.



Can't quite say the same for the river, but it's still miles better than the Goddamn Ocean, so let's not dwell on it.



I've no idea why there are two arrows. Anyway, we get a little more than halfway there...



...before something happens. (music)

Looking back, I think I caught this shot of Frey just as he was about to sneeze...

Yes, if it keeps up like this, we should reach Stormfist by tomorrow afternoon.

Nice we can go almost anywhere by ship, even though this is an inland nation.

Which means we can get all the good parts of Suikoden IV without any of the bad ones! ...so basically this isn't very much like Suikoden IV at all, is what I'm trying to say.

Yeah, thank goodness for the Feitas River.

(I do like the setting and all, it's just... well, I think I went over all the problems with that game in the previous thread, so let's not get too far off track here.)

But the convenience of the river has its disadvantages, too. I mean, we've been doing nothing but traveling lately! If we didn't have the Feitas, I bet we wouldn't have to take trips all over the place.

Hmph, don't know about that. The Queen doesn't exactly strike me as the merciful type...

No, you're wrong about the Queen. Her Majesty is really very kind. Right, Prince?



Frey's silent emoting works quite well most of the time, but if there's one thing I'm missing it's the ability to express more concern. Much of this probably goes over Lym's head, but Frey is old enough to know shit is wack. On the other hand, I also like the contrast between Lym as the loud and outgoing one and the prince as a more quiet person.

That's right. It may be a bit strange for me to say, but Arshtat is a very gentle and good Queen.

Yeah, I can tell.


But, if you ask me, though, she seems kind of... unstable at the moment.

I'm not surprised. From your point of view, you've only known Arshtat since she acquired the Sun Rune.

This is a really neat scene. It's something the party should be concerned about, and they are!

So, she was... different before?

Yes, after getting the Sun Rune, Her Majesty changed.



The sun rune business isn't just something we can maybe find out a little about if we talk to NPCs, or something the characters are ignorant of even though it's blatantly obvious to the player. Our characters aren't stupid, and that's something I quite appreciate.



Time passes...



Georg is the first to notice. (music)



But to be honest, I think him freaking out is scarier than anything that could have shown up and attacked us.





Both of you, get away from the side of the ship!

Something's coming!

The ship rocks...



And-



wait



what



It's a miniboss you're going to kill in two hits.





This could get interesting.



...well, or it could have if we didn't have Georg. Two rounds.



More rune pieces!



It didn't even touch you, you big baby.



Don't come over yet! Stay out of sight! And tell the crew not to leave their posts!

Captain: Yes, ma'am!

Lyon! What do you mean?

What do you think she means?



Hello!

Damn!



, now in stereo!



Suddenly arrows!



My EXP! You bastards!



Look!



It's the... Icelandic navy?

It's the Godwin family ship!

Or it could be the Godwin family ship. Either way!



The guy up front looks less generic than the rest.



Looks more reliable than Euram, too.



(Though that's not saying much. I've seen root vegetables that look more reliable than Euram.)

That's right... What would he be doing way over here?

Killstealing, that's what.

Your Royal Highness! Lady Sialeeds! Are you all right?



We'll be nice and polite for now. He has the bigger boat.

Ah, excellent.

I'd gotten word of these rampaging creatures. I thought of you at once, and came myself in our fastest ship. Just in time, it seems. Thank goodness.

My crew and I pledge to protect you. Please, allow us to lead the way.

We can't very well refuse. However...



...we can talk shit about him behind his back. So let's! (music)

You think he engineered the lizard attack? Wouldn't have been easy...

No, it wouldn't have... But I guess it's not impossible. Those creatures aren't hard to provoke, from what I hear.

Hmm... Frey, what do you think?



I think he's a dick for robbing me of all that money and EXP, and also he's kind of slimy, but he's still better than Euram Barows.

Hmm. Duly noted.

Hmm... but what would his motive be? If his plan was to make us trust him, I'd say it backfired!

No, it's probably nothing that simple. For all we know, he WANTS us to be suspicious. Or he could just be trying to shake us up for the hell of it.

Oh, great. Your ex is a real life troll. Maybe I should reconsider my stance on how he compares to Euram...

You're not serious. You think he'd do all this for laughs?

That's the kind of guy Gizel is.

...I'm starting to think your taste in men is as questionable as your taste in clothes.



Anyway, whether Gizel was behind it or not, we eventually end up in Stormfist without further mishaps. (music)

Georg, this is your first time here, isn't it?

Yeah.



We'll be spending quite a bit of time in and about that place.



Looks like a tough nut to crack.

I think it looks a bit like a papercraft model.



It'd be hard to attack.



No, sometimes he thinks about cheesecake, too.



Either way, we disembark the boat, and find a weird bald dude waiting for us. (music)

Welcome to Stormfist! I heard you met with great peril on the way. I'm very glad to see you're safe.

Well, well! Lord Marscal Godwin himself, coming out to greet us personally. We are much obliged.

Sialeeds is good at the whole diplomacy and politeness thing, but every time she gets like this with someone, I feel like she's mocking them. Maybe it's just my imagination.

As Her Majesty the Queen's loyal servant, it's the very least I could do.



Gizel. I trust you served our guests well.

Yes, of course.

"The baked potatoes and fresh lentils really brought out the flavour."

I hope I helped make their journey more pleasant.

Of course you did, Gizel! We wouldn't be standing here if not for your heroics. Thank you. From all of us.

The Lady is most kind. I am unworthy of such praise.



Ah, yes. Sorry about that, Father.
You must all be very tired from your long journey. We'll have a banquet tonight Until then, please rest in your rooms. Allow me to show you the way.



If Sialeeds can do it, I suppose we better try to look good, too.

Go on ahead, Your Highness. I'm going to have a look around.

Ah, surveying the lay of the land, are we? You're quite a cautious fellow. No wonder His Majesty searched so hard to find you.

Thanks, but I'm just going for a walk. Don't mind me.

Ha ha. As you wish.

Your accommodations are within the arena's grounds. Perhaps we could ease the good Sir Georg's worries with a bit of a tour?

Father, would that be all right?

Mmm. Be sure to mind your manners, though.

Of course.
Now then. This way, please.



Our party follows Gizel up the stairs, while baldy just stands and glares. Next, we'll have a look at the arena and explore Stormfist, and even make a new friend!




Gizel and Marscal artwork and outfit details. Note the date on Gizel!