Let's play Star Ocean 3! Part 20

Alright we're off to see what miracles Nel and Cliff accomplished during the last update, back to the throne room again.


Aquaria XXVII: According to your report, the King of Airyglyph has accepted our story at face value.
Nel: Yes. However, he did insist on speaking directly to Your Majesty.
Magistrate Lasselle: Directly? How absurd! We could never allow a hostile party to speak with the queen!
Aquaria XXVII: And the place for this discussion? Surely he does not mean to come here?
Nel: No, he specified the hall with the round table, in the Ancient Ruins of Mosel.
Magistrate Lasselle: In Mosel!? It's a dusty old ruin! They may have air dragons, but we'd have to walk!
Nel: He said that he wouldn't cooperate unless we accepted that single condition...
Aquaria XXVII: I see... Very well then. Let us go to Mosel.
Magistrate Lasselle: Your Majesty!?


Aquaria XXVII: Normally, we would never go to such a place. Now, however, is no time to be worried about such things. This is not the time to remain isolated within our own land. We shall travel to Mosel, and I myself shall persuade the King of Airyglyph.
Magistrate Lasselle: But it could be a trap!
Aquaria XXVII: Everything begins with trust. If we cannot trust him, then how can he ever trust us?
Aquaria XXVII: Did he say anything about bodyguards?
Nel: Nothing in particular. I guess that means we can do as we see fit.
Aquaria XXVII: Very well. Then you shall be our bodyguards.
Nel: Your Majesty.
Aquaria XXVII: Then we are agreed?
Fayt: Yes, Your Majesty.
Aquaria XXVII: Lasselle.
Magistrate Lasselle: Yes.
Aquaria XXVII: Give your full cooperation to Lady Elena while we are gone. And do not worry, I am in good hands.
Magistrate Lasselle: Your wish is my command. And the rest of you... Take good care of Her Majesty.
Fayt: We will.

The queen isn't a party member, but she is traveling with the group, which means we get to speak to her when we stop in cities, the same way we can with party members (or Tynave and Farleen whenever they were around). I'm not going to show the dialogue here, it'll be for extras, but she WILL say unique things if we decide to run all the way to Airyglyph right now and I think that rules.

Since we're reasonable during these story segments though, we just walk up the road to Surferio, since Mosel is past there, until we run into a cutscene halfway through the field.



Cliff: What!?
Maria: What is the meaning of this?
???: This war is not over. If Lord Vox were still around, he'd have stopped this sissy negotiation by brute force.
Fayt: What?
???: I am Schweimer. Now that Lord Vox and Lord Demetrio are gone, I lead the Dragon Brigade. I will not recognize any peace with the dogs that killed Lord Vox!
Aquaria XXVII: Does the king know of this?
Schweimer: Hah! How could he? I should imagine he's waiting for you fools to arrive at the rendezvous point!
Nel: Cretin! Watch your tongue when you speak to Her Majesty!
Aquaria XXVII: You shall let us pass.
Schweimer: And I say you shall not pass! There's no need for peace! Airyglyph rule is the best thing that could happen to Aquaria!
Cliff: You really are an idiot.
Nel: You can say that again.
Maria: All right, whatever. Shall we teach this idiot a lesson or two, guys?
Fayt: Yeah!

Schweimer is just another dragon rider miniboss like we've had several so far, so he goes down easy and doesn't even have a post-fight cutscene.

We run through Surferio, and through the caves past it, until we reach the Mosel Dunes, which is a big desert that we'll find the ruins in, and that has a fun little gimmick.



A water gauge! Any time we stand in an oasis, we recover water. Any time we're standing on sand, we lose water. So it's like a puzzle! The hardest part in my opinion isn't the water mechanic itself, since if you're careful it's easy to always find an oasis in time, but it's that it's REALLY HARD to see where the ruins are and where you're supposed to be heading to. We get there eventually, though, and eventually run into the gimmick of the Mosel Ruins:




Fayt: That sounded like a lock opening.
Fayt: Hmm... What was that all about? A battle between white and black pieces... I wonder if it's showing how to win at some kinda game?

Basically, we need to play the baby version of Runic Chess (which is a minigame that will show up again much later) in order to open up the locks to the central room of the ruins, which is where our meeting is set to take place. The Glyphians didn't need to worry about it because they have dragons and can just land there directly without all that fanfare.

The dungeon itself is really short and simple, and there's only three locks to open, but that's because there's two more optional floors we don't have access to just yet. So, off to our meeting.



Airyglyph XIII: Likewise, Romeria. You are as beautiful as ever.
Aquaria XXVII: And you have not changed one bit, I see.


Nel: Don't play dumb with us!
Airyglyph XIII: By that, I take it that something did happen. Please accept my deepest apologies.
Airyglyph XIII: Those troublemakers had the impudence to suggest that we need not ally ourselves with Aquaria if we could stand up to the new enemy alone. They urged me to conquer Aquaria and take your new weapon for ourselves.
Aquaria XXVII: A simple plan for simple minds.
Airyglyph XIII: They do not understand the dire consequences of misjudging this new enemy's strength. We are facing a much stronger threat this time and cannot affort to exhaust our strength.
Aquaria XXVII: Then you agree to our proposal?
Airyglyph XIII: Yes. We have no other choice.
Airyglyph XIII: Our military forces also sustained terrible losses in that recent attack. Out of the three brigades of Airyglyph, only the Storm Brigade still has a captain. Woltar is the only one left.
Fayt: (Hmm? What happened to Albel? I wonder if he was killed.)
Airyglyph XIII: But tell me, who is this enemy we face? I heard your agent's explanation the other day, but it made no sense to me.
Aquaria XXVII: I felt the same way. Perhaps they can explain it to us again.

Fayt steps forward and the screen fades to black.

Airyglyph XIII: Hmm... I have to admit I find it hard to believe. What about you, Romeria?
Aquaria XXVII: I must believe, Arzei. Lest both our countries be destroyed.
Airyglyph XIII: Turning these outsiders over to this new enemy is another option, is it not?
Aquaria XXVII: That might have been possible before, but now I am afraid it is no longer an option.
Airyglyph XIII: Why is that?
Aquaria XXVII: The enemy attacked the Shrine of Kaddan.
Airyglyph XIII: Kaddan was attacked!?
Aquaria XXVII: Kaddan has nothing to do with these outsiders. Once it came under attack, we realized that our lands had become the target of the enemy's aggression... Hence, there is but one thing left to try.
Airyglyph XIII: Engage them on our own terms...
Aquaria XXVII: Correct. We must unite the power of our nation's runological weapon and Airyglyph's air dragons.
Airyglyph XIII: This is no time to fret over national honor.
Aquaria XXVII: That is correct.
Airyglyph XIII: All right. Let us join forces. However, at present, having our air dragons carry your runological weapon will not be an easy task.
Aquaria XXVII: Please explain.
Airyglyph XIII: First, it is a matter of size. According to information obtained by our spies, your weapon would be too big to be carried by an air dragon.
Maria: How about carrying it with more than one dragon?
Airyglyph XIII: That too would be difficult.
Cliff: Agh, then what's the point of this alliance?


Fayt: Huh?
Airyglyph XIII: I said it's a matter of size. To carry a big weapon, we need a bigger air dragon.
Nel: Where could we find such a beast?
Woltar: In the Urssa Lava Caves near a place you have already been: the Bequerel Mines. An air dragon of immense size dwells within the caverns there.
Cliff: So all we have to do is capture the critter?
Airyglyph XIII: That is correct.
Airyglyph XIII: However, mistaking him for a mere air dragon would be suicide. The Marquis, as the beast is known, is a creature of immense size and strength. Even Vox was unable to subdue him.
Aquaria XXVII: Do not fear, Arzei. I trust they will be capable.
Airyglyph XIII: I do not doubt you feel that way. However, our trust is not so easily given.
Aquaria XXVII: Then what do you propose we do? Did you not consent to joining forces?
Airyglyph XIII: I only request that a representative of Airyglyph be included in their party. Then I shall withdraw my objections.
Aquaria XXVII: A just proposal... But who would you have go? Woltar?
Airyglyph XIII: No, Woltar is much too old. I do not have the heart to send him into the Urssa Lava Caves. I was thinking of someone else.
Fayt: And who might that be?
Airyglyph XIII: ... I was thinking about sending Albel.
Nel: Albel?
Airyglyph XIII: Do you object? I, for one, am quite fond of him. What do you think, Romeria?
Aquaria XXVII: I consent. This Albel shall travel with the party... You do not mind, do you?
Fayt: I personally don't mind, but...
Cliff: It doesn't matter what we think. The problem's gonna be what Albel thinks.
Airyglyph XIII: Then it is settled. Albel will be waiting for you in Airyglyph. You can meet him there.
Fayt: We understand.
Airyglyph XIII: We will be expecting you.



We have to go through Peterny anyway if we want to reach Airyglyph, so thankfully there's no extra detours for once. We do have to backtrack the entire way, but there's at least no extra interruptions this time.


Clair: Yes, leave it to me.
Aquaria XXVII: I do not believe it is a trap, but nevertheless, please, be careful.
Fayt: Don't worry, Your Majesty. We'll be fine!
Maria: It's just like Her Majesty said, 'Everything begins with trust'.
Aquaria XXVII: So it does. May Apris guide you in your path...
Nel: I look forward to bringing you good news.
Clair: And we look forward to your safe return.

And off to Airyglyph we go! This is technically the first time the game expects us to return since allll the way back in part 8, but we could have waltzed in at almost any point until now if we wanted, because no matter what we do none of the guards recognize us. I'll cover a lot of those times in extras because there's some fun ones. Most notably, every party member (and Tynave, and Farleen) complains about the cold at least once.

That said, it is our first time being allowed into the castle, so let's get to that.


Earnest Gatekeeper: ... Who are you and what business do you have with His Excellency?
Fayt: I'm Fayt Leingod. I'm here to pick up Albel Nox.
Lax Gatekeeper: Just a moment.


Cliff: Yeah. We escaped underground the last time we were here.
Woltar: Ho ho. You are the first people to ever enter Airyglyph Castle alive after attempts by all three of our military branches to hunt you down.
Cliff: I guess we should take that as a compliment...


Nel: Hold on... Don't those stairs lead to the dungeon? You're not trying to...
Woltar: You misunderstand me. You're here for Albel, are you not? He is down there.
Fayt: ?
Woltar: Just come with me and it shall all be clear.

Like with Nel in part 15, running off to explore is a PA, as well as talking to Woltar to hurry him up. This applies twice, both on the ground floor and once we're down the cellar stairs.


Fayt: Here?

Woltar nods and opens the door.



Woltar: Of course, the one who brought the charges against him is no longer in this world...
Cliff: Vox, right?
Woltar: Wait here.


Woltar: You have been given a mission to accompany these people to the Urssa Lava Caves. If you complete this task, you will be acquitted of all charges.
Albel: With those scum!? Those... Aquarian scum!? You must be joking!
Albel: You're senile, old man! They're the enemy!
Woltar: The situation has changed while you were imprisoned. Airyglyph and Aquaria are currently observing a truce.
Albel: What? That warmonger actually agreed to a truce?
Woltar: Vox is no more.
Albel: Dead!? Did they kill him?
Woltar: While they did engage Vox in combat, the killing blow was dealt by another.
Albel: Who? Other than these Aquarians and myself, there's no one in this world who could defeat Vox.
Woltar: They are not of this world.
Albel: Haha! You really are going senile, old man. From another world, you say? Tell me another one.
Woltar: I can hardly blame you for reacting that way. I'm not sure I believe it myself. But believe this, boy. A new, incredibly powerful enemy has appeared before us. Of this, I have no doubt. That's why we have to work together with Aquaria.
Albel: People from another world? Are you serious?
Woltar: Why would I make something like that up?
Woltar: In any case, without this new weapon, we have no chance of standing against this new enemy. That's why you must go to the Urssa Lava Caves and tame the Marquis.
Albel: The Marquis!? You're joking! That monster!?

Two soldiers walk up to Albel to unchain him.

Woltar: The way you brag of your skills, I would think the Marquis would be no match for you.
Woltar: Am I wrong, Albel the Wicked?
Albel: Rotten old man.
Woltar: I bet your father would gladly have risen to the challenge.


Albel: You make it all sound so simple, old man.
Woltar: If you fail, the rest of us are doomed along with you. There'll be no more Aquaria, and no more Airyglyph. This world will be wiped clean.

Albel lets go of Woltar.

Albel: Then I must go.
Woltar: Indeed.
Woltar: So, everything's settled. Try to get along.
Cliff: Aah, what can you do?
Maria: I feel like I'm missing something here, but I'll do my best.
Fayt: Me, too.


Nel: Just don't hold us back.
Albel: Bah.

New party member! Not that anyone is happy about this, for once, even if Maria is doing her best to be polite.

Next time: we completely ignore the Marquis and go do side content instead :D