Part 27: Episode 26: Hold Me Tight
I guess it’s about time to make our miraculous regrouping with the party. I mean, it’s an RPG. There is no way everyone is not here.
But first, the most important thing to do in any new town. Collect stardust! Seriously, how the fuck are you supposed to find all this stuff without a guide. #36 is go.
Also if we try to head upstairs...
Owner of Hotel: “Sorry, but all the rooms are full. If you really want to stay here, you’ll have to come back on another day.”
I wonder who could be renting all the rooms. I'm sure you don't have the slightest clue.
Stardust #37 is in the clinic in a painting. This is one of the very few times I will walk into a clinic in this game. If we talk to some schmoes around town they’ll mention that the Queen Fury is docked in town. Shock of the century.
Kayla: "Even for the powerful Dart and Rose...."
Crew: "You, you are!!"
Kayla leaps about three feet backwards in shock. You know, she doesn’t look entirely unlike young Cloud.
Kayla: "Mr. Dart!! Miss Rose!!"
Dart: "Kayla. I had you worried."
Kayla: "Thank god!! Both of you are safe!!"
Dart: "That was nothing."
Says the guy who probably got a concussion and spent the night unconscious and in risk of death. Maybe Rose could get away with “That was nothing.”
Kayla: "Oh!! Did you see Miss Shana!? Please go see her, hurry!!”
Dart: "Is she on the boat!?"
Kayla: "Everybody is in the city now!"
Dart doesn’t even thank Kayla. He just walks off because he’s kind of a dick like that. Hell, Rose doesn’t even say anything here. I thought you were growing Rose!
When we head back up the stairs we immediately slam right into Meru.
Meru: "!! Ouch!! Don't you have eyes!?"
Dart: "Meru!!"
Meru: "Oh? Dart!! Rose!!”
Meru: “Did you see Shana? Bad boy!! Come with me quickly!! We're in the hotel!! Come quick!!”
I’m trying god damn it! I mean, it was the number #2 thing he said after he bragged about being a hard ass. Also Meru is blind as fuck. She does her whole don’t you have eyes things WHILE facing Rose and Dart. Clearly proving magic and intelligence are not related.
Dart: “Meru.... Where is she?"
I’m beginning to think this is all a while goose chase while they hide Shana’s new boyfriend. She’s probably still on the ship.
And once again Meru sneaks up and covers Dart’s eyes.
Meru: "Who am I!?"
Dart: "!?"
It’s GOTTA be kongol this time.
Shit! Wrong again.
Albert: "Welcome back!
Haschel: "We were tired of waiting for you!"
Kongol: "You, die, impossible."
Dart: "Everybody!!"
Rose: "Hurry. Go see Shana."
Awww. So much for Rose’s dream of macking on Dart. She knows where reality stands.
Albert: "She is in the back room upstairs."
Yeeeah. No one in this room is stopping until Dart and Shana hook up. I'm now curious what they say if you try to leave the room. Never even thought of that til now.
Hey! This isn’t fair. When I’m in control Dart can’t run up stairs. He has to slowly walk up them.
Meru: "Let's leave them alone!"
Haschel: ("Rose, she has changed somehow.")
Albert: ("I agree. Indeed I got the impression that she has calmed down. In any event, it's a good thing.")
Shana: "Dart?”
Dart: "I made you worried. Are you crying?"
Shana: "It was nothing.”
Shana: “So.... Please don't say anything. I'm happy just like this."
However this is an RPG so we can’t have more than about 30 seconds of seriousness.
Voice: ("Peeking is not a ladylike thing to do!")
Voice: ("I thought you wanted to leave them alone didnt' you!?")
Dart: "!?"
Meru: ("It's okay for me! I gotta learn about love and romance! You guys go back! Or we're gonna be caught!")
Dart: "Kids...."
Dart walks up and opens the door and everyone but Rose and Kongol come pouring in. I guess we know who our REAL friends are.
Albert and Haschel fucking haul balls out of the room.
Meru: "Wow!! Please excuse us!!"
Meru quickly follows without any type of an excuse. Jeeeerks.
Shana: "Ha ha! It's typical of Meru!"
Dart: "Finally, you smiled."
Shana: "True. It's been a while."
Faaaaade to black. *cues up some tasteful music*
Albert: "Not only that, you two are safe and sound. It is just a miracle that the seven of us can meet again. We have to offer our thanks to the Tiberoan God."
Dart: "We ought to return the favor to the God by taking the Moon Dagger back.
Haschel: "We have to catch Lenus then."
Meru: "May I ask you a question please!?"
Dart: "What's wrong? Why are you being so formal like that?"
Meru: "You guys were alone in the cave, weren't you?”
Haschel: "Meru! Don't be silly. Even though you are trying to learn about love it's too rude!"
Haschel is the LAST person that should be talking about appropriateness. A significant portion of his lines are being a lecherous old man.
Meru: "Okay."
Rose: "Haschel!!"
Dart: "Haschel!!"
Meru: "Haschel!!"
Albert: "Haschel!!"
My point eactly!
Haschel: "Sorry, sorry. It slipped out."
Dart: "What do you mean 'slipped'."
Rose: "Don't worry, Shana. Dart was concerned about you the whole time. Anyway, about Lenus.... We should go out and ask about her in the city. We may find out something."
Any ways. It doesn’t count if Dart was unconscious at the time.
Dart: "I...I agree."
I didn’t plan my line to match up with that so well, but I think I had to stick with it. Any way, our next goal is to pester townsfolk for information on the sea monster and/or Lenus. Luckily it’s pretty obvious where to go. Near the entrance a drunk and some concerned citizens have popped into existence while we were busy getting the band back together.
Drippy: "I saw a Dragon on the Prison Island!"
Dart: "Dragon!? On the Prison Island?"
Drippy: "You don't know that! My ship was smashed by the Sea Dragon rumored to live over the Undersea Cavern! I gotta have a drink or something! But! You cannot go there anymore! There are lots of monsters there! My house was taken by those monsters! I gotta have a drink! It was a half year ago that the monster showed up."
Drippy: “Give my ship and house back. ZZZZZZ...."
This is way better than the drunk that stole Dart’s booze.
Rose: "A half year ago.... It is the same time that Lenus joined the gang."
Dart: "Okay. Let's go to the Prison Island."
Drippy: "And, in the Prison Island?"
Once again it really doesn’t tell us where to go! But really we don’t have many options. It’s here, the cave, and Lidiera. We’ve already expended about all our plot to be had here so back to Lidiera!
Dart: "What is that noise!?
Shana: "It's from over there!"
Albert: "There must be something over there."
Rose: "It's not just 'something'. It seems that the rumor about the Sea Dragon is true."
Meru: "That is the Dragon's cry."
Rose: "I can't blame you for feeling scared."
Meru: "I...I'm not scared! A dragon or two is nothing!"
Dart: "We have to look for a way to go to the Prison Island."
It is kind of weird. I mean, she was EXCITED about facing a Virage. And it was more fearsome than the dragon the rest of the crew smashed back in disc 1. Maybe since she’s water oriented she picks up on something the others don’t? Who knows!
Now that we have advanced the plot a bit we can now talk to the three guys hanging out on the island dock thingy and get something useful out of them. Mayor Jerkass is still playing cards instead of serving his town.
Villager A: "Darn!! Not again!"
Mayor of Lidiera: "Well! I got a good win! Let's take a break! And what do you want?"
Dart: "We want to go to the Prison Island, but we cannot go because of the flood tide. We are wondering if there is any other way to go."
Mayor of Lidiera: "You said the Prison Island!?"
Villager A: "Are you serious?"
Villager B: "Do you want to commit suicide or something?"
Dart: "We are serious but we don't want to commit suicide."
Mayor of Lidiera: "You know it's dangerous to go there, young man!! But, why!? Why would you want to throw yourself into danger?"
How could you see that option and not take it?
Mayor of Lidiera: "What!? I cannot let crazy people like you go there! I didn't close the way because it was fun! Get out of my sight!"
The mayor is less amused. Danger attracts me gets about the same response. Luckily he has a short memory and we get to choose the right option.
Dart: "I need to see the monster."
Mayor of Lidiera: "You need to 'see' the monster!? ... ... You look serious. The appearance.... You are warriors, aren't you? I got it. I'll tell ya. But it's up to you, whether you can survive there or not! I closed the route to the Prison Island, after the monster problem arose."
Villager A: "Why didn't you close the whole cave, it's really dangerous."
Villager B: "Then we wouldn't be able to get to Fueno?"
Mayor of Lidiera: "That's why I closed only the path to the Prison Island."
Albert pops into existence just now so he can sperg out about their water flow system. Gooooon.
Mayor of Lidiera: "Oh! Don't be so puzzled! I just closed the gate to the sea when the tide was full! Then even after the tide has ebbed, the water level inside won't go down inside!"
Albert: "Oh...my. What a simple trick."
Mayor of Lidiera: "You imagined I could think of something complicated!? Haa haa haa!! Hey!! Open the gimmick gate for'em!!"
Uh, gimmick gate? I have no idea what the mayor is on about here. A gate that keeps people from opening a path to death cave doesn’t seem very gimmicky.
Villager: "I got it!!"
In the background a guy gets in a crude elevator attached to some pulleys to raise the gate up behind Pete’s house.
Mayor of Lidiera: "Go into the cave from the right side of Pete's house. Turn the Valve and you can open the gate. Then you can go to the Prison Island!"
A quick hop into the cave gets us a few items in addition to undersea cave access. A Healing Rain and a Healing Fog. The fog heals one character 100% and and healing rain the whole party 100%. Technically we could have grinded/purchased the shit out of tickets at the fair for these in disc 1 but fuck that noise. Lenus fight was as close as I’ve come to needing one any way.
Dart: "Now! We can go to the Prison Island!"
Well that looks like a friendly place. And that drunk sailor lived on there? Probably could have chosen a better home.
And we are just about done with disc 2. Going to have our last dungeon and boss fight next update and a little clean up in one after that. Look forward to more ~master plans~ from Lloyd!