So... the Bend of Time, Karsh in Termina(Home), Leena's
third tech, and, of course, Serge's reaction to "Luke,
I am your father..."
1. A Light Already Lost
===================================================
Serge's House, Arni (Home)
===================================================
[This scene occurs if Serge shows his mother the fragment of sea glass with
"M (heart) W" etched into it.]
Marge:
...
So it's over. I'm glad that you
were with him when it happened,
Serge.
Serge:
Then you ARE the one Lynx wanted
me to apologize to...but why? I
didn't even know you knew each
other.
Marge:
He wasn't always Lynx, Serge.
Before he changed, you knew
him too.
Serge:
Huh? I don't think I'd ever even
met a demi-human before all this
weird stuff started to happen.
Marge:
I've kept this from you because
it was a painful thing to know,
but maybe that was wrong of me.
Serge, Lynx was not a true demi-
human. Before his body was
twisted and his mind was torn
apart, he had a different name.
Serge:
"W"?
Marge:
Yes. "W"--Wazuki.
Serge:
Are you trying to say that Lynx
was...that Dad...that I... I...
Why didn't you ever TELL me?!
I...I killed...but I didn't
KNOW...!
[Serge falls to his knees and wraps his arms around himself]
Serge:
I just wanted...to see him
again... (I killed my own
father... I think I'm going to
throw up. How could this have
happened?! Why didn't anyone
just SAY something? If I had
known, maybe I could have saved
him...)
[Marge kneels down beside Serge and hugs him.]
Marge:
It wasn't your fault, Serge.
One of the last things your
father was able to say to me
was that he expected this to
happen, and he was prepared.
Serge:
Even so, I didn't want...
this...
Marge:
Nor did any of us. Your father
fought against his fate--against
FATE--for four years, but in the
end, he just wasn't strong
enough. I don't think anyone
human would have been.
...You know, this is the first
time I've seen you cry since
you were eight years old.
Serge:
Yeah, I...guess it is. (That was
the day I realized he wasn't
coming back.)
[Marge lets him go and sits back on her heels,
and Serge swipes the back of one hand across
his face. Both of them stand up.]
Serge:
When did he tell you? That he
thought I was going to...have
to... (I can't say it. It
would make it too real.) He
can't have been thinking about
that from the moment he got back
from the Dead Sea--that would
have been like giving up, and
Dad...wasn't a quitter.
[Marge turns to look out of the hut's rear window.]
Serge:
Mom, TELL ME.
Marge:
We thought at first that it
was a tumour.
Serge:
I don't understand.
Marge:
After Wazuki brought you back
from the Dead Sea, he started
getting headaches. He'd make
light of it, but we knew there
was something that wasn't quite
right, and when he started
having blackouts too, we were
sure that...well, there didn't
seem to be any other reasonable
explanation. But the Records of
Fate forbade us to seek medical
help for him.
Your father became convinced
that the Records were part of
some kind of conspiracy against
him, but I...didn't believe it.
Serge:
There was nothing you could
have done even if you had
believed him.
Marge:
It wasn't until the day he took
you with him to Opassa that
either of us really understood
what was going on, and by then
it was too late.
When the two of you were late
coming home that day, I went
there to look for you.
I still don't know who pulled
you out of the water, Serge.
They'd dragged you up past the
high tide line, but your clothes
were still damp and crusted with
salt, and your father... He was
kneeling, submerged up to the
waist, on what must have been
dry sand before the tide had
started to come in, staring out
to sea and mumbling to himself.
I had to wade out to get close
enough to him to realize that
he was saying he had killed you.
Serge:
I...don't actually remember what
happened. (Weird--I never noticed
that before, but now it's like
I've got a hole in my head.) Did
FATE really make him...push me,
or whatever?
Marge:
I don't know. All I know is that
he was beside himself. I had to
slap him across the face just to
get him to look at me, and even
then he was in a daze. I managed
to get him to help me carry you
back to Arni, but as soon as we
got you back to our hut, he
disappeared again. I couldn't
leave you alone, so it wasn't
until quite late that night that
I was able to go looking for him.
It took me almost until dawn,
and I almost gave up more than
once. Then I finally thought to
try the end of Cape Howl...
Serge:
(Cape Howl... I wonder if, in
the other world, Dad was up
there carving my gravestone
at the same time...)
Marge:
He was there, staring out to
sea, talking to himself in two
different voices, and...
twitching. I thought he had
gone mad, but then I saw him
tense and gather himself
together, and for a moment he
was the Wazuki I knew again.
He told me that ever since the
Dead Sea there had been someone
else inside his head, someone
who was fighting him for control
of his body...someone who called
himself "Lynx", who hated the
world and especially you and I,
Serge. And he said that if Lynx
were to hunt us down, we should
protect ourselves without
worrying about him, that he had
rather die than be responsible
for killing either of us, and
that he...
Serge:
(She doesn't have to say it.
I know he loved us.)
Marge:
The bits of glass...when we were
about your age, I found them
while I was walking on the
beach. Wazuki etched the letters
into the two largest, one for
him and one for me. He must have
had his in his pocket the whole
time he was...
[Marge buries her face in her hands. After a moment, Serge puts his
arms around her from behind.]
Marge:
You've grown to be...
so much like him...
Serge:
Mom...
[Marge lowers her hands and straightens up a bit]
Marge:
Three years after Wazuki
disappeared, a demi-human
calling himself "Lynx" came
to Arni, asking about you.
From that moment on, I've known
this day would eventually come.
[Serge lets her go, and she turns to face him.]
Marge:
You didn't do anything wrong,
Serge. In fact, if your father
were here, I think he would
be proud.
Serge:
...Thank you.
[Marge shakes her head]
Marge:
I didn't--couldn't--do anything.
If Wazuki is at peace now, it's
because of you.
Now, you're in the middle of
something, aren't you? Go out
and finish it before your
friends get tired of waiting.
I'll still be here when you're
done.
[Serge nods]
Serge:
Right.
[As Serge leaves, the camera pans back to Marge, who is
again facing the window, with her hands clasped up against
her chest as though she's holding a pendant or something.]
Marge:
He's become a fine young man.
Oh, how I wish you could see
him...
[Fadeout. The player regains control of Serge, who is standing on the
stairs outside the hut.]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Doing the Timewarp
[For this segment, I'm going to go with the assumption
that the player doesn't come here until after the
Dead Sea, and so Magus has recovered most of his memory.
If this were ever to be made into a game, I would have
to do a different version for TotallyAmnesiac!Magus,
just in case.]
====================================================
Bend of Time, Main Room
====================================================
[Timekeeper]
This is the Bend of Time...
A special battlefield, where
monsters travel across
dimension to gather.
You can battle monsters that
you may have missed...
Serge:
(Why would we want to do
something like that?!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Magus is present]
Magus:
...Odd.
Serge:
What do you mean?
Magus:
This place reminds me of
somewhere...but it makes even
less sense than the original.
It almost looks like Gaspar's
idea of a joke.
Serge:
(Gaspar? Okay, whatever.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
====================================================
God of War's Room
====================================================
[God of War]
Welcome!
Wanna go for it?
3 laps should be enough.
One lap means,
starting from the entrance,
then circling the room
clockwise along the railing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Magus is present]
Magus:
This idiocy again? And I suppose
you call yourself the "God of
War," too.
[God of War]
...
Magus:
Do we get some kind of reward
for playing along with your
little charade, Spekkio?
[God of War]
Eheheh...there's no one named
Spekkio here--nope, not at all!
Really. I'm not lying!
Serge:
(This is starting
to get freaky.)
Magus:
If you aren't Spekkio, then
what IS your name?
[God of War]
...You asked about a reward,
right? Well, if you circle that
railing, I'll show you something
you never expected to see again,
how's that?
Magus:
...We'll discuss this later.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If they actually run around the railing three times]
[God of War]
Heeey, nice circling job!
Well, battle away!
Serge:
Hey, wait a sec--
[Ozzie]
It's been a long time since
we've made an appearance.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Magus is present]
Magus:
It certainly has. What are you
three doing here? You should be
four centuries dead.
Serge:
(I guess this means
he knows them.)
[Flea]
We don't have to give that
information to a traitor
like you.
Magus:
Hmph. Four hundred years, and
you're still that angry?
[Slash]
Lord Magus, you destroyed our
dreams. Because of you, the
three of us are now exiles, and
our people are scattered. Do
you expect us to be pleased
with that?
Magus:
I EXPECT you to have a little
more spine.
[Magus and Slash both glance at Ozzie]
Magus:
...Well, perhaps not HIM, but I
had expected better of you,
Slash. If there's something you
want, stretch out your hand and
take it, rather than cowering
here.
[Flea]
I want what you told us we
would have--a future in which
Mystics will reign supreme!
And I'm going to take my first
step toward it by killing YOU!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Magus is *not* present]
[Flea]
They look pretty
incompetent to me.
[Slash]
Yeah, but you gotta give 'em
credit for making it inside this room.
[Ozzie]
We're the 3 mystical knights!
Show us your skills!
Serge:
(Again?! Is there something in
the water around here that makes
people want to fight random
strangers?)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Either way, combat is joined. Afterwards...]
Magus: [if present]
Unfortunately for you, I still
have something I need to do.
Perhaps when it's completed,
I'll return here and give you
another chance.
Serge:
(This place is crazy.)
[If they talk to not-Spekkio again...]
[God of War]
Whoo-hoo!
Then...
If the number of times you circle
matches the number inside my head,
I'll give you somethin' real nice.
I'll only give you 3 hints.
Serge:
So you're saying we're supposed
to read your mind.
[God of War]
We-ell...
Serge:
Never mind. (Maybe we'll get
lucky.)
[God of War]
Well, let's make it
less than 20 laps.
Hummm-baaa!
OK, I thought of a number.
Go for it.
[skip lap hints]
[System]
Lap number [Value]
[God of War]
Yes!
Exactly.
Take it.
Use it.
[System]
[Member] received
Dreamer's Sarong!
[God of War]
Maybe I'll see you in
another different dimension.
Bu-buba-bye!
Serge:
What was that all about?
Serge: [if Magus is present]
(I could ask him who "Spekkio"
is, but I'm not sure that I
really want the answer.
------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Home is where the Heart is
==========================================
Zappa's Smithy, Termina (Home)
==========================================
[This bit happens if Karsh is in the party when
they enter the location]
Zappa:
Karsh!!!
Ohh, Karsh!!!
Zippa:
Where have ye...!
Karsh:
......
Unfortunately,
I ain't your son.
How should I say this...
Anyway, YOUR son, Karsh,
is no longer in this world.
Only that's for sure...
Serge:
(Well, actually, we're NOT a
hundred percent sure--we only
found those freaky ghosts, not
their bodies...of course, the
bodies may not exist anymore,
either.)
[Zappa]
~!!!~
Zappa:
Karsh,
what are ye sayin', lad!?
Ye're in front of mah own eyes!
Ah dinnae ken how ye could no
be mah own son!!!
Serge:
He is, but he also isn't.
(How do I explain this without
having to tell the whole story
all over again?)
Karsh:
......
Arrgh, no use explaining!
That's right, I'm Karsh!
A lot of things happened,
but I'm back!!!
Serge:
Um, Karsh... (Does he really
know what he's setting himself
up for? ...Actually, now that
I think about it, this is KARSH.
Not only does he not know, he
probably doesn't care!)
Zippa:
Are the dragoons
all well?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Dario was recruited, and is in the party]
Dario:
We're all fine, Aunt Zippa.
You worry too much.
Zippa:
D-Dario, lad! Ye're--
Karsh:
Yeah--he didn't drown, in spite
of all that tin he carries
around on his back. Pretty
damned close to a miracle, if
ya ask me.
Dario:
I think so as well.
Karsh:
As for Zoah and Marcy, they're
the same as ever, and the
General...well, he got a bit
beat up, but he's on the mend.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Dario was recruited, but isn't in the party]
Karsh:
Everyone made it. Hell, we even
found Dario hidin' out on a
little island east of here.
Zappa:
Then the Four Devas are back in
business--ah, that's a fine
thing, lad!
Karsh:
Yeah. Only one who's not in
great shape is the General--
Lynx beat him up. But he's
healin'.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Dario wasn't recruited]
Karsh:
Don't know if they're
well or not...
But they're alive.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zippa:
Good...
That's a big relief.
Are ye gonna have time
to stay for a while?
Karsh:
Sorry, mom.
We've got no time
to rest right now.
But I'll be back sometime.
So, alright?
Zappa:
Ye must be workin' for the
better good.
Serge:
(I'm not sure what we're working
for, exactly. At first it was
all about getting untangled from
Lynx's net, and then things kind
of got away from us...)
Zappa:
But just remember, ye're
no good to anyone dead.
Karsh:
Yeah, I got it...
You be careful, pops.
Zippa:
Karsh, dear, take
good care of yirself.
I can't tell ye how
worried we were while
ye were missin'...
Ye probably wouldnae
understand how much.
Karsh:
......
Serge:
(Heh, I think he's blushing.
Just a little bit.)
-----------------------------------------------------
4. Grandma Knows Best
===========================================
Leena's House, Arni (Home)
===========================================
[Leena's Grandma]
Oh, Leena...
Wait...? You're not Leena?
But you look so much like her.
I wouldn't be surprised
if you were her twin.
So many oddities
in the world...
Leena:
Errr...
Yes, I'm Leena, too,
but it's hard to explain.
Don't fret over it,
grandma.
I'm sure Serge will
explain it to you one day.
Serge:
(Sigh. Oh yeah, sure, dump it
all on me, the way you always
do. I don't want to have to
explain the whole thing again!)
[Leena's Grandma]
This is beyond me, but
please take good care
of Leena, Serge.
Serge:
I always do. (Or I would if she
needed it--in my experience,
Leena can take care of herself
better than I ever will!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If Serge answered Leena's question way back at
the beginning of the game with, "We'll never forget
this day!"--]
[Leena's Grandma]
By the way, Serge.
Leena tells me that
you still remember the
promise you two made.
Something about
'"We'll never forget
this day!"'
Serge:
Um... (I think I might have
said that, right before
everything started to go crazy.)
[Leena's Grandma]
I really don't know
what's going on, but...
Here! I want you
to take this.
[System]
Leena received
MaidenFaith!
Serge:
That's... (I can't just come out
and ask, "What is it?" Leena
would kill me!)
[Leena's Grandma]
When I was young, I used to
be quite the animal with that.
Put it to good use, Leena.
Leena:
OK!
Thanks, grandma!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[If instead, he answered her question with,
"We'll forget it eventually..."--]
[Leena's Grandma]
By the way, Serge.
Leena tells me you
forgot about your
childhood.
Something about
'"We'll forget it
eventually..."'
Leena:
And the first time
you met me, you
called me a liar!
Serge:
(Give me a break! Everyone
forgets things sooner or later.
Especially when they're not
really all that important.
...Of course, Leena's idea of
"important" is...weird.)
[Leena's Grandma]
You sure don't have it easy.
Be careful of insensitive
men like him.
Serge:
(Sputter!)
Leena:
OK!
I'll be careful,
grandma!
The next installment will be chapter 25, in which Serge rescues Kid
from inside her own head, and Starky builds a flying boat...
