Part 81: Confrontation with Alexei, First Try

Watch the cutscene & anime scene!



Whoa! No more barrier.
I wonder if this is Alexei's doing, too.
Ready to go in?
Take us there.
Estelle, where could you be?
Where do we even start looking in a city this big...?
We follow the aer flow. If Alexei is using Estelle and apatheia in his plans... It has to cause a disturbance in the aer.
Ba'ul!
...He found it.



Estelle!
And Alexei's right there with her.
Judy, take us closer!























You gotta fight it, Estelle! Don't give up yet!













Yuri!









Please Yuri... Kill me now.










Oh boy. Estelle, was that drama really necessary?


Watch the cutscene!





Ugh...



I'll be all right.
Aoo..oon
Ugh...I'm alive, but I can't say much more than that. Feels like I might've snapped a few bones.
Yuri...it hurts...



Must be what happens when you get a few apatheia together at once...
Don't try to talk. We're gonna get you both to a doctor. Try and hang in there for a little longer.

(to Ba'ul) Thank you, old friend. We owe you so much.
...It looks like Ba'ul won't be able to give us a lift for a while.
No. He'll have to rest somewhere until his wounds are healed.







Yeah...! If we don't hurry...
You've got plenty to worry about without thinking about Estelle.



Let's go to Nor Harbor. There's bound to be a doctor there.
Yeah.
I don't like that sky. The aer is boilin' like thunderclouds. ...There's a mean storm brewin'...





Man A: Is this a sign we're about to get hit with some kind of disaster?
Man B: I just finished building my house, for crying out loud!



I'll bet things are pretty crazy in the capital, too.



No, we were...
Why are all of you here?



Oh, it's you. We've been through a lot. Do you know any doctors around here?
Sure, I know a doctor, but...
Well, do ya think ya might be able ta bring the doc to the inn? We're too beat to even walk anymore...
All right. I'll be back soon.







Yes. I still can't thank you enough for your help before.
Now that there's a new magistrate, Nor had become a much nicer place to live...but now, with that sky looking the way it is...



A town official is currently going to see what happened.
Hey, where's that nice lady who was with you? Is she gone?
!
Now that I think of it, that girl would've been able to heal your wounds. What happened to her?



...
I see...I guess I shouldn't have asked.



Oh, really...



Really?! Yaaay!
For now, you should just get some rest.


Yuri doesn't need to rest! Instead, we can go around and talk to everyone, which isn't all that useful really apart from flavor text.






If we go outside, though, we run into this scene:




?!



Official: It's burning hot all around it. I wasn't able to get very close.
Magistrate: What? Just like that? I suppose that was what all that rumbling was earlier...
Official: Even if we were able to get near that hole, getting across it would be impossible...



Man A: So then, Nor is cut off from everyone else?
Man B: This is bad. This is real bad.
Could this be...the blast from the Heracles' cannon? What have they done...?


We can still walk around and talk to to the people outside now, but again, no real use for that. By going back inside we continue advancing the plot.


Watch the cutscene!



Thankfully it missed hitting any of the towns.



No, I hurt all over, but... Estelle's in trouble. I can't just lie around.
Yeah. What he said.



If the road to Ehmead Hill is out, couldn't we take a boat around?
I'm afraid not. A little while back the Knights came and took any boat that could make a long trip. Thanks to them, the harbor's dead empty.
Damn, at a time like this...



If it'll get us through, let's hear it. We've got to get to the capital fast.
I'm afraid it'll end up taking you a fair bit out of your way, but... If you go north, just before Ehmead Hill, there's a thin strip of coastline. It'll eventually come to a dead end, but in this season it freezes over and becomes an ice floe.
The Blade Drifts of Zopheir.
Right. If your lucky, you should be able to make your way across the floe on the ice. If you cut through there, you'll come out in the middle of the continent.
The Blade Drifts of Zopheir, huh...? I heard nobody goes there--not even fishermen--because of the stories.
You're also gambling on nature here, so there's no guarantee you'll be able to get through.
If that's our only way, then we'll have to go for it.



...Thanks for your help.
Least I can do. There wouldn't be much left of this family if it weren't for you all. Only thing I'll ask is that you don't disappoint my boy.
You got it!


Skit: What Estelle Tried to Say
Estelle said something just before her power was fully activated, didn't she?
What do you think she was trying to say?
Sorry, old Raven didn't catch it.
...
Yuri?


I'm not sure if attempting to cross the ocean on an ice floe is really a good idea, but alright.



To get to Zopheir, we just have to walk towards Ehmead, then make a left right before we reach it.



Skit: Worried about Ba'ul
...Ba'ul.
Will Ba'ul's wounds heal quickly?
My, is that concern I hear in your voice?
Well, yeah... I mean, we've been asking too much of him, really.
It will take some time, but he should recover. He's quite a fighter, you know.
Oh... Good.
So don't worry. Okay, Rita?
All right, I just...
Hey, I'm the one giving out the sympathy here!
You really must learn to control that temper...





Ehmead is indeed blocked, although I fail to see the hole. It's quite lazy by the world map designers, really, especially since Ehmead can be entered again just like normal, with no visible changes inside, after this series of events.



Skit: Alexei's Mess
It's total chaos and panic no matter where ya look.
People were just living normally, and then the capital winds up like this all of a sudden.
Heracles' cannon even changed the land itself.
Not really a situation where you can just tell people to calm down.
Nobody's gonna accept his rule with this mess going on.
Alexei... What the hell are you thinking?
Hmm, rule by terror, maybe?
Whether he can control the people or not, the world is headed for a crisis if this keeps up.
But just try telling people about the aer and the catastrophe it'll cause. They won't understand.
We're the only ones who know, so that means it's up to us.
This is gonna be rough...




After a fairly long walk, we start catching glimpses of Zopheir up ahead. The weather changes to a snow storm, as well.



Skit: Tougher to Get By
*Groan*...
Hmm...
What is it, Raven?
You first, kid. What're you moanin' about?
I feel kinda weird. Like there's a pressure on my chest.
Whaddya know? I'm right there with ya.
It may be some light aer sickness.
The amount of aer in the world is growing. It's easier to affect you. Many people may soon begin to feel it.
I hadn't thought of that... It's gonna get tougher...just to get by, huh?
So, we're comin' up on the end, then...


Among the couple battles I run into, Judith learns Lunar Storm.







Skit: The Port Is So Much Better
Ragou's gone, the new magistrate's here... Nor Harbor's so much better... It's not fair.
Yeah, I'm sure Estelle would love to see this.
We'd better hurry up and rescue her then, and bring her back here with us.
She did make a promise to Pauly, too.
And breaking that promise would go against the laws of Brave Vesperia.
Punish the unjust... Yeah.
We'll just have to come back once we've saved Estelle.



Skit: Ehmead Hill Blocked
If Ehmead Hill is blocked off, none of the people stuck in the capital will be able to escape.
Yeah, you're right. It's not like they can fly.
If the aer in the skies above the capital keeps increasing, all living things will be in danger.
And if we let that happen, we won't be able to go near the capital ourselves.
All the more reason to stop talking and start moving.



And, finally, after a long long walk, we reach the actual Zopheir dungeon. We'll go through it next time!