Beyond the Beyond: Update 48: A Road Less Traveled (Zalagoon - Marion Borderlands pt. 2)

[ladyabaxa]

Beyond the Beyond: Update 48: A Road Less Traveled (Zalagoon - Marion Borderlands pt. 2)

With the team equipped, rested, and well informed they are ready to go. First though a look at how they're shaping up.

After some deliberation I settled on giving Finn the Ring of Power. It increases attack power by 5 points and with Finn one of the main attackers it seemed that, while it would be fun to stack all the +Attack on Samson and see how much of a beast we can make him, spreading attack power out a bit would be better overall. Finn has somehow become something of a lucky bug. He has managed to acquire the most luck out of anyone in the party.

So, Finn, are you starting to feel like a real knight?
Uh, I don't know. I only have Sir Samson for comparison and he's kind of a tough act to follow.

Annie's fallen significantly behind in attack power but it is mostly due to using a staff as she is only 4 points behind Finn in Strength. She's still managing to hold her own in random encounters so I'm not too worried. She's got a lock on Speed and is holding her own in Defense.

Worry about freeing Marion before obsessing over what a "real knight" is like, Finn.
Eh, I don't really give it much thought, sis.

Samson's attack power is pretty beastly right now. I just wish it translated into more impressive hits in combat. Enemy defense is either surprisingly high or there's some math going on under the hood which makes Attack growth come with diminishing returns.

I take it, Prince Edward, that you do not plan to wait and see if Sir Bison comes up with a way to break the stalemate.

Tont has caught up rather nicely with the rest of the team. For a squishy little thing he's got a surprising amount of Strength but his Defense and Speed are both abysmal. Not even a Wind Cloak + Tempest Ring combo can really save his speed although it does make him act ahead of Samson right now.

This town is pretty impressive I must say. Is Marion as big as this place?
More or less.
Awesome!

And finally there is Edward who really hasn't changed much. He has the same defense as Tont but is a little faster and has more health albeit at the cost of having less mana.

Well I do want a chance to chat with Aunt Scarlet and I'm sure Sir Bison will want you to go over his plans so I suppose we can wait until tomorrow if need be.
I might as well go see what Piat's cooking up then.
Very well. Meet in the town square later?
*nods*

Alright, day off!
It's more like half a day, Finn.
Whatever, I'm flexible.

A rather uneventful series of hours pass by. The kids lounge in the grass in the center of town.

Pryaar! There's Edward!
So did you see your aunt?
I did.
Hey what's that shiny thing in your hands?
Oh you mean this? *opens his hands to reveal a pendant*
That looks just like the one you lost.
Wait a minute. That is the one you lost.
Apparently one of the princesses keeps her eye on the rare jewelry market. A hunter found it in a bird's nest and tried to sell it. When she saw the seal she sent a letter to the queen. That's why Aunt Scarlet wasn't here when we arrived. She said she had hoped to use it to convince her husband to help Marion but of course by the time she got back... well, you know.
That's pretty lucky.
I'm just glad this is back where it belongs.

By mid-afternoon the group is once again assembled and heads out.

So what's the plan?
We should give Sir Bison a few days to organize his forces. Even if we did take the bridge now Zalagoon isn't quite ready to push into Marion.
Ok so what are we going to do in the meantime?
I'm going to check the bridge for myself. That much is certain.
I would like to stop by Simone and inform Elder Xelmet of what has happened.
Sounds good to me. Let's go.

How do the new weapons stack up? Well the damage isn't as impressive as the attack power would suggest but it is easy to chew through random encounters around Zalagoon.

Once again we hike across the countryside. Is it sad that this feels almost... normal now?
We make better time than we used to that's for sure.

Even Tont gets into the act!

I want to know when the monsters are going to figure out that they should really stop attacking us.

We need to return to Simone because the team is completely out of Mage Potions. Where we're going there are none for sale so we have to stock up now. Simone and Ophera sell them but I decided to go with Simone because it meant a shorter trip for everything that I had planned. After making a traveling merchant quite happy by buying 6 Mage Potions the team delivered their news to Elder Xelmet and then headed back towards Zalagoon.

On the way back a random Ghoul dropped another Illusion Potion. Sometimes I have the darndest luck when I least expect it.

Well there it is - the bridge that everyone's been talking about.

It doesn't seem like anything's happening.
Where are all the troops? Sir Samson?
Hmm, I have my guesses. Let's go inside.

For the first time since the team started visiting it this guardhouse it is actually staffed with a garrison of Zalagoon troops.

(N) Hi kids. Are you trying to cross the bridge?
Nope. Sir Samson here wants to know how the battle goes.
(M) Not well. The bridge is too narrow.
Well it is just a rope bridge, right?
Yes. The kingdoms never could agree on funding for something permanent.
(M) Our troops are pinned down out on the bridge. Any assault just gets annihilated.
I take it you've already had serious losses then.
(N) Yeah. It's too dangerous to go out on the bridge. No cover at all. Bandore has us pinned down.
(S) We can see there aren't many in the Bandore garrison. If only we could cross the bridge, we could outnumber them.
Not many in the garrison? Wouldn't Bandore want to reinforce their side?
Not if they don't know there's been a change in the situation.

I'm including this screenshot to highlight just how clunky the translation for this game is. The script definitely needed some work. Most of the main plot dialogue is alright but out of the way stuff like this clearly didn't get the attention it needed.

The team heads back into the kingdom's sprawling wilderness to ponder what should be done about the situation.

Well they need someone on the other side. That part is clear. Isn't there a path you guys took to get here in the first place?
Yeah but it was one way.
Oh. That would be a problem wouldn't it?
Sir Samson you know this land better than any of us. Do you have any ideas?
Hmm.
What does that mean?
There... might be a way. We'll have to go north towards the sea.

In the far northwestern corner of Zalagoon is this lonely little cave. No one ever mentions it so have fun wandering the countryside wondering what the hell the game wants you to do next.

Hey a cave. And where does this lead?
Hopefully somewhere we want to go.
Go ahead, Finn. This is where we want to be.
Sir Samson you seem rather on edge about this. Are you all right?
I'm fine.

Inside is a green cave with abundant water.

Eww, it's all musty in here!

Finn spots something bright and shiny in the distance.

Is that what I think it is?
As if you need me to confirm that for you, Finn.

Suddenly a Thief appears!

Another hooded traveler. Who is brandishing a knife at us.
Hello there do you know...? Oh well they're dead now. Shame.
You'd think they'd at least say something. It's kind of scary having all these people roaming around attacking others with no provocation.
If they wanna press their luck I will defend myself.

Inside the chest is a Healing Herb. I can't say I'm terribly disappointed in the treasure since we could have come here much earlier in the game.

Minutes later the team finds a set of stairs down.

Who goes around carving all these staircases in caves?
Thieves? Bandits? Rogue mages? Monsters?
People used to travel through here regularly.
Through a dank cave?
Before the bridge was built it was safer than trying to cross the river.

2nd floor

This cave looks kind of familiar.
Where does all the water come from and where does it drain out to?

Stairs, not just for floor transitions anymore.

I don't know but I have a sneaking suspicion this place floods regularly.

And then the game suddenly tosses out a three way choice of directions.

Uhh?
There's something shiny to our north, Finn.
To the north it is then.

A smoke bomb is retrieved from this chest. This is marginally more useful than a Healing Herb and gets to join the Smoke Bombs we already have in our packs.

To the south is another staircase.

Well we're here so we might as well see where this goes.

3rd floor

It's a pond. I wonder how far down it goes.
I'm not exactly eager to find out.

To the south is a Thunder Card because the game has apparently decided Annie needs to restock on the explosive one-use items.

To the west is a tunnel entrance.

*sniffs the air*
What is it?
A familiar smell. Finn, be careful.
Careful? How careful are we talking about?

Careful enough not to wake up a sleeping dragon, that's what.
This dragon looks familiar. Have we seen it before?
We saw a sleeping dragon before but from a different, uh, angle.
That tail is awfully twitchy.
Yeah I kind of noticed. Ok, turning back now.

Yup, we have to backtrack. It's not far and the enemies are all laughably weak for the team. Heading back to the 2nd floor they walk towards the tunnel entrance that they passed by earlier.

*wrinkles up nose* That's... what is that?
It's not another dragon is it?
No. I don't even know how to describe the scent.

In the next chamber is a massive open pit filled with what looks like an undulating cloud.

Whoa!
What... is it?
Careful, Finn. You don't want to fall in there.
Yeah I know.
This is what's making that weird smell.
There are odd fluctuations in magic coming from within it. It's almost pure chaos.
I'm pretty sure that's not a cloud or water or anything else we've ever seen.

After staring into the pit for a few minutes the team finally moves on heading north where they find a decaying wooden building inside the cave.

How did someone get all this wood down here? Why would someone bring all this wood down here?
Whatever the reason they sure didn't stick around, did they?
There's a chest in here.

Finn tries to open it but the chest is locked.

Damn. Whoever they are they knew how to secure treasure.
Leave it to Finn to focus on what he can get out of the mysterious ruin around him.
This place is a wreck, Steiner. Look around. No one's lived here in a long time. Whatever's in this box was abandoned.
In a few more years this place will have two doors.
We really should look around and make sure there's no one here, Finn.

Do graves count for occupancy?

Just feet from the crumbling building to the east are two grave markers.

Ok. I will admit a giant sword and shield is a pretty badass grave marker.
Wait there's something written here. "Marion's famous hero, Sir Norton, lived bravely and died for his love."
And got buried out in the middle of nowhere.
I've never heard of a Sir Norton.
Nor have I. Sir Samson?
Before your time.
Wait. I recognize this handwriting. Lord Kevins wrote this.
My dad? Why him? How old is this?
Like I said, before your time.
But why haven't any of us heard of this guy if he was so famous?
Finn we really don't have time to discuss this. We need to focus on getting to Marion, remember?
*sighs* I know.
Maybe there's something in the castle archives about this man. When we free Marion I could go look.
I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that it probably wasn't a happy story.
Pryaarr! What? Just because they ended up buried and forgotten out in the middle of nowhere, Annie?
More like that whole "died for his love" thing that was mentioned. Sounds like some courtly love gone horribly, horribly wrong.
There's something carved on the tomb next to it. "Marion's Princess Katherine, who loved the most honorable of knights and gave life to the Great Light, rests here."
It sounds like she was ritually sacrificed or something.
Edward, does your nation have a habit of burying dead royalty and heroes way out in the boonies?
Not that I am aware of.
I'm with you, sis. That sounds damn creepy. If we ever run into this Great Light thing it's got some explaining to do.
But I thought the Great Light hadn't been unleashed or whatever. Does that mean someone was sacrificed to create it and then it was stuffed into a box or something?

Suddenly the kids turn and look at the dilapidated house.

Naaaah.
I don't know of any Princess Katherine. Sir Samson how long do you think this grave has been here?
Many years now.
I hope that Great Light thing is patient.
Sir Samson I don't understand. Why are these two buried all the way out here?
It's better this way. Let's leave it at that.

The kids walk away leaving Sir Samson standing silently before the graves. After a few minutes, as the voices of his young charges start to fade in the distance, he turns and leaves.

Tucked into a corner to the southwest is a hole in the ground.

And where does this go?
I can smell the dragon down below.
I don't particularly fancy falling on a dragon. Steiner...
Way ahead of you.

After a couple of minutes Steiner returns.

It's safe. This leads to the ledge above.

True to Steiner's word the hole does lead to a ledge north of the dragon although it can't be seen on screen from here. It's easy to tell though by walking to the west and seeing the opened treasure chest. It's obvious that's the direction the team needs to head towards.

From there swift progress is made towards the exit.

So has that dragon been sleeping this whole time?
Probably. Dragons are creatures strong with magic. I wouldn't be surprised if one could sleep for centuries.
Hey, Steiner, why don't you have any magic?
I have cuteness powers!
I would laugh if it wasn't obvious that that's the reason you get out of so much trouble.

As expected the cave opens up to the crossroads the team had been stuck at months prior.

They hurry to the inn to rest and be grateful for their luck.

Hey there Brother Thomas!
What? Oh, oh my! Hello children. I didn't expect to see you here ever again.

-- BONUS CONTENT --

For most of the game Kevins is referred to with the title 'Lord'. This is one of the few times he is referred to with the title of Sir instead. This is something of a nitpicky distinction but it gives some idea of where Kevins sits in the social hierarchy. Those with the Sir title would presumably be knights in the service of the king or, like Samson, have an equivalent military rank. Knights are not necessarily landed (that is, they don't necessarily own land or control land on the behalf of the crown) and as we saw with Percy members of the knighthood don't always have the title. Presumably a Lord in Marion is a landed noble possibly succeeded in rank only by the royal family. To call Lord Kevins with the Sir title when he is a Lord would be technically accurate but a little insulting depending on the circumstances.

Also, I'm including this screenshot because the game really does point out that there's handwriting on the marker and that someone (although it doesn't specify who) recognizes who the writer was. Obviously it isn't Tont (who has never met Kevins) and probably isn't Annie either. Finn, maybe, if Kevins wrote to him on a regular basis but that isn't mentioned anywhere in the game. If I had to wager a guess I'd say Edward which is precisely why I had Edward take on that task in the update.

After all, why would Samson bother to specify who the writer was?

Next time on Beyond the Beyond - we've almost reached the Marion side of the border. Maybe if we ask nicely someone will let us in?

Update Forty-seven | Index | Update Forty-nine