Star Ocean Walkthrough part 1 v 1.1

CONTENTS
VERSION UPDATES
NOTES
  Parties
  Private Actions
  Approval Ratings
CHAPTER 1: Back in time and the delivery job
CHAPTER 2: Ratix & Company vs. the Velcant Pirates
CHAPTER 3: Fear, the Astral Captain of the Guard
CHAPTER 4: Parji Shinden, Temple of the ancients
CHAPTER 5: Reunion
SUBQUEST: Joshua's Benefactor

VERSION UPDATES
V 1.1: Added some items that I had missed before. Thanks to Jason Murata
for pointing these out.
V 1.0: Initial release

NOTES
Note that I use "You" and "Ratix" interchangeably in this game. In SO, you
"assume" the role of Ratix; you control his actions separately from the rest of
the party, both in combat and in the story. With the exception of a few cut-
scenes, the entire game is seen from Ratix's point of view, which is why I do
this; it makes it easier. :)

Parties:
Please note that Star Ocean is a multi-linear game. While the story proceeds
basically in one way, there are many offshoots that you can take, depending
on which of the 7 characters from 300 years in the past join your party.  To
write this FAQ, I played two games simultaneously. These are the parties I
used in these two games:

1) Ratix, Milly, Iria, Ronixis, Cius, Fear, Joshua, Marvel
2) Ratix, Milly, Iria, Ronixis, Marvel, Ashlay, Tinek, Perisie

Another party I used before I wrote this walkthrough walkthrough is:
Ratix, Milly, Iria, Ronixis, Cius, Joshua, Tinek, Perisie (I had Marvel for a
while too, but I lost her)

Party 1 is the "standard party," the one you will probably get if you progress
through the game follow the events in a "standard" RPG fashion.  Ratix, Milly,
Iria, and Ronixis are all mandatory characters, you have to have them in
your party every game. Ashlay, Tinek, and Perisie are all secret characters.
(although Perisie is the only one that's really difficult to get)

There are many other ways to play through the game, so I obviously have
not seen everything. Towards the end of the game, the content of certain
events depends *heavily* on who you've got in your party.


Private Actions:
Private Actions are little extras that are thrown into the game. You can
complete the game without ever doing a Private action, but through Private
actions there are many important events and items that you will never see
otherwise. When you're in front of a town and a little bar saying "Private
Action" appears in the upper-right hand corner of the screen, if you press Y,
your party will split up for a moment. Depending on where you are in the
story, sometimes your party will all split up and enter the town for some
rest & relaxation. You can then enter the town, talk & have events with the
other characters in your party. Sometimes, if your party is in a hurry or
needs to find a special event, your characters will not enter the town on
their own and instead join back up with Ratix. If your characters are in the
town and enjoying themselves, and you walk away from the town, your
characters will come out and join up with you again. It is generally a good
idea to explore each town both as a group, and during a Private Action.

Approval Rating:
Each character in the game has their own personal opinions about the other
characters in your party. This is stored in the game in variables I call
"Approval Ratings," or "AR" for short. These ratings range from positive to
negative. Depending on each character's personalities and their actions
towards the other members of the group, their ARs will raise or decrease.
How they feel about other characters affects various factors within the game.
Overall, it is very difficult to evaluate exactly which events in the game
affect whose AR how, so just about all of the parts of this walkthrough that
talk about AR changes are guesses.  To find out more about Approval
Ratings, check out my Star Ocean general FAQ.

CHAPTER 1: Back in time and the delivery job
CHAPTER 2: Ratix & Company vs. the Velcant Pirates
CHAPTER 3: Fear, the Astral Captain of the Guard
CHAPTER 4: Parji Shinden, Temple of the ancients
CHAPTER 5: Reunion
SUBQUEST: Joshua's Benefactor
CHAPTER 6: The quest of the King of Van

This walkthrough starts when the party first travels back 300 years in the
past. For translations of everything comes beforehand, I suggest you look at
my translation file for it.

Here are the items you can get in the future:
Blackberry, Flare Bomb, Ressurect Bottle, Blueberry x 2, Necklace, Zebori x2,
Ruby, 200V


CHAPTER 1: Back in time and the delivery job

Ratix wakes up on a beach next to Iria. He goes over to her, and she tells him
that since they went through the portal at a different time than the others
since Ratix helped her when she tripped, they could be very far from where
Ronixis and Milly are.  As you approach the village of Clatos, it becomes
moring. Iria realizes her futuristic clothing will make her stand out. You get
two choices:

1. "I'll go find some for you"
2. "It's no big deal."

1) will increase your Approval Rating with Iria somewhat. Either way, you're
going to have to get the clothes one way or another, since she asks you to
find some anyway. If you say 1), you'll see Ratix&Iria laughing...they are
thinking about how Ronixis must be in a similar situation.

CLATOS VILLAGE
Treasure: Spectacles, 420V, Blackberry, Talisman

This place is much smaller than it is 300 years in the future. It's way off in
the boon docks with only a few people living there. Consequently, nobody
gives you any important information whatsoever, aside from telling you that
the town of Hot is to the north.

There are 3 ways to get the clothes.

1) Steal the drying clothes on the old lady's line.
2) Ask the old lady with the clothes on the line for some clothes.
3) Buy some clothes at the store.


1) You get two choices. A) "Steal, the clothes" or B) "I can't do that!" If you
say A) the game will berate you for being dishonest. The clothes are wet, and
Iria will notice. This decreases your AR slightly with Iria.

2) The old lady will give you clothes without a hitch, although they're kind of
old. Iria notices them and thinks they're kind of weird, but has no problem
with it. No AR change.

3) You get two choices A) "Ask about the clothes" or B) "Buy normal stuff."
A) Ratix asks, and the guy at the store says "Is it a present to this?"
Note the
picture of the hand with the pinky up. In Japan, this hand gesture is a semi-
lewd way to refer to someone's girlfriend. Ratix gets uptight and says he
wants something more normal. The guy will offer you adventurer's clothes.
It will cost you 10 Vol. Then you get the option to A) "He's suspicious, but no
big deal" or B) "Let's not." Buying the clothes here gets you the clothes that
fits Iria the most, and increases your AR with her.

Bring the clothes to Iria. She'll change, telling you not to peek. Ratix turns
away like a good boy. :) Iria comes out with her new clothes on, telling you a
comment depending on which clothes you got for her. Then she says you
have to start looking for Ronixis.

PRIVATE ACTION: CLATOS
Iria asks you to ask around to see if the Captain is around. You get two
choices. A) "Yes," and mean it, or B) "Yes," but you really don't mean it. I
have no idea if this affects your AR with Iria in any way or not.

P.A. Iria:
  1) She notes that there's nobody around.
  2) She is asking a townsperson about the Captain's whereabouts, but he
didn't see anything.
  3) She stands by a mailbox and asks Ratix about the postal system 300
years ago. He says that usually they use pigeons to relay messages, but they
also use other animals. Iria asks if they use other animals, and Ratix
starts to
laugh. Ratix tells Iria that Milly once tried to turn her cat into a
delivery cat
since she likes cats so much. After Iria asks how it worked, Ratix said it was
useless, before the cat was out of the house it had already ditched the letter
attached to it.
   Milly sneezes, and wonders if somebody is talking about her. (In Japan
there is a superstition that when you sneeze somebody is talking about you
somewhere else.) Then you see her going off with Ronixis, telling him she's
going to get him some cool clothes.
PRIVATE ACTION END

You won't get attacked on the way to Hot, which is fortunate since you have
no weapons to kill anything with. :)

Point of interest:
 You can go straight through Hot and into areas with monsters, before getting
weapons. You will see Ratix attacking with what appears to be a sword, even
though he's not equipping anything.  You will also get killed fairly quickly
this way. :)

Items on the way to Hot: Sebori x 3, Lavender x 2, 10V, Artemis Leaf

HOT
Treasure: Flare Bomb

As you enter the village, Iria says you should try and start to find some
people to ask about the captain's whereabouts. You will approach a muscled
man with a VERY large sword, who is fighting with a merchant who is trying
to sell him something. He storms off angrily.

There is a girl here who will ask if you know everything about the world. If
you say "no" she'll give you a quick geography lesson:
   You are in the country of Mooree. To the north is the port town of Portmis,
where you can travel to country of Astral, which is famous for its strong
knights. To the west of Astral is the country of Van. And north of Van is the
country of Silvalant.

Now that you know this, you can assist the puzzled man near the center of
town, Traveler Radol. He asks which direction Portmis. You can either tell
him 1) "North" or 2) "South." I don't know what happens if you send him on
a wild goose chase south, but if you tell him the right answer he will reward
you when you get to Portmis.

There is a Skill shop here! This is VERY important. There you can buy 3
Skills: Chishiki Kanren (Knowledge-Related) Level 1, (300V) Kankaku Kanren
(Sensation-Related) Level 1, (100V) and Gijutsu Kanren (Skill-Rated) Level 1.
(600V)  Buy all three of them. Now you have skills to spend your Skill Points
on! I suggest you give Ratix Dash Skill; it only costs 1 SP and allows you to
dash whenever you want for the rest of the game since Ratix is always in
your party. Spend your SP however you would like.

Talk to Badam, the shopkeeper. He hangs out behind the closest counter to
the door in the Skill Shop. Seeing that you're adventurers, he asks you to
listen to a favor. You can either say 1) "Let's hear it" 2) "No thanks" or
3) "I'd
like to buy Items."

1) Badam tells you there's something he wants from the Weapon Shop of
Portmis, but to get there you have to climb over Mt. Metox, which has lots of
monsters on it. He says if you deliver the thing for him, he'll reward you and
will give you a pass into Portmis. You then have 2 choices. 1) "Take the job"
or 2) "Refuse." If you say 1) then Baram will note that you don't have any
weapons and says he can't give you the job if you don't have any.
2) Nothing happens.
3) You buy items. :)

Go to the weapon shop at the entrance to town. He offers you a sword he
says was made by a fine craftsman. Iria says the sword looks great, and
Ratix says that if he doesn't have one it'll be dangerous from here on. The
merchant says it's 20V, and you can either 1) "Buy" or 2) "Not buy."

Choose 1, and the muscled guy with the big sword runs in, angry, and starts
berating the shop owner for trying to sell his stuff to someone who doesn't
know this area. (ie you) The owner starts to get mad, and the muscled guy
throws him against the wall. He then turns to you and tells you that the stuff
that the merchant is selling is crap that won't stand up in a fight. He
tells you
not to buy anything from the sneaky dealer, says "See you around" and goes
off.

Return to Badam's place. He tells you that the job's already taken. He points
to the big muscled guy (who is now in the store) and tells you that he gave it
to him. You are both distressed, and the muscled guy comes over. He realizes
that you came first and tells Badam that he can't muscle in on your job and
that he will let you have it. Badam says that you look very weak so he didn't
want to give you the job.  The muscled guy says that he'll lend you weapons,
so there should be no problem. Baram tells the muscled guy to go with you
and Iria and it'll be OK. The muscled guy turns to you and says that he'll
accompany you to Portmis. Ratix thanks him and he thanks you back, and
introduces himself as Cius Warren. Ratix introduces himself and asks Cius to
call him Rati. Cius tells you that you can address him informally, as Cius.
Iria
introduces herself too. Badam then tells you that he'll give you the pass to
Portmis tomorrow. In other words, you have to stay at the inn and come
back again.  Then he gives you some money.

If you go straight to Portmis w/o the pass, you won't be able to get in. Just
about everyone who plays this game (myself included ^_^) overlooks this
little fact at first. (Since he won't tell you twice that he'll give you
the pass
the next day, I had to start the game over from scratch and read more
carefully here the next time I played through. ^_^) Anyway, stay a night,
return to Badam and he will give you the pass.

Note that for Cius, Originality is a nice talent to have. If he doesn't have it
when you get him, you might want to reset and get him again. This gives him
a fresh set of Talents.

PRIVATE ACTION:HOT

P.A Cius: "This town is boring! It makes me want to cause some trouble!"

P.A. Iria: Iria is looking at an earring in the item store. You have three
options:
1) "Shall I buy it for you?"
2) "I wonder if it will suit you?"
3) "It looks really cheap though."

1) Iria complains and hints that you are hitting on her. Ratix gets uptight and
says that's not what he had intended. Iria asks if Milly would be happy if
you asked the same thing to her. Then Iria says, "Why not" and lets you buy
it for her. Talk to Badam and he will give it to you, saying it's cheap
anyway.
AR for Iria up.
2) You say that it would look good on her. She thanks you and leaves (but
without buying it.)
3) She says "It's not a matter of how expensive it is!" and walks away
slightly angry. AR for Iria down.

PA Iria/Cius:
After the earring event, there will be another PA you can do. Iria is looking
at the mural on the wall and wonders what its meaning is. Cius will remark
that the son of the owner of the item shop here painted an impression that
he got from an artifact of the ancient race that lived on Moore. Cius will ask
if you know about it. You can say 1) Tell me about it! or 2) Oh, I know.

1) Cius tells you that they appear to be extinct, but in the past there was a
race here that was really powerful.

2) Cius tells you nothing. You should have figured it out by now; if somebody
asks you if you know about something in this game and you say "yes" they
won't tell you about it, assuming you know it. :)

PRIVATE ACTION END

On the way to Portmis:
Treasure: Resurrect Bottle x 2, ?HERB (Mandrake), 380V, Spectacles, Sebori,
Artemis Leaf

On Mt. Metox, you will tell Cius that you're looking for Ronixis and Milly.
Iria
asks Cius why he's travelling. Cius' response: To improve my swordsmanship!
Iria remarks that he's pretty strong already. Cius responds that the world is
a big place.

There is a regeneration spring on Mt. Metox. You may need to use it a couple
of times, as getting to Portmis in one piece is not an easy task. Beware of the
Bandits, their blades are poisoned, and unless you bought any Aquaberries
you won't be able to cure it. Ratix's Gurenken is a good way to get a jump on
them (literally) without them getting a chance to whack at you.

PORTMIS
Treasure: None

Upon entering Portmis, Iria asks where the weapon shop is. Cius says he
doesn't know the town too well.

If you told Radol the correct way to go, he is here and thanks you. In thanks,
he gives you a Spell Potion.

When you get to the weapon shop, Cius tells the owner about the delivery.
The weapon shop owner (Papas! Dragon Quest 5 reference! ^_^) nods and
brings out a massive bunny rabbit-like statue. Cius says "How am I supposed
to carry something this big!?" but agrees to take it back.

Stuff going on in Portmis:
There's a girl waiting for a guy called Terry right in front of the fountain,
and is mad because he's late. Terry is hanging out at the docks. If you tell
him about the girl, he says "I was supposed to meet her!! Oh shit!!" and runs
off. You can then go see the girl, Candy, getting mad at him.

There's some interesting info here....apparently there is a rumor about
ancient ruins in Mt. Metox. There is also talk about a race of winged people,
and talk of pirates. If you talk to the port master, Ben, he tells you that the
Velcant Pirates are attacking ships from the north, and that you can't go to
Astral. At this, Cius will ask you if you're going to ignore the job. If
you say
that you won't deliver it (2) then he will leave your party. If you say (2) and
want to stop him say (1) and he will ask you if you want to go with him. Say
(1) again to say yes. If you don't stop him he will leave for good. If you have
him leave, skip ahead to the next chapter.

PRIVATE ACTION: PORTMIS

Cius will be psyched at a rest, and goes straight to the bar. :)

PA Iria: "The ocean breeze feels great..."

PA Cius: Cius offers you a drink at the bar.
           1) Well, if it's only 1...
           2) No thanks.
If you drink, once you leave the bar, Ratix gets tipsy, and as long as he's
whistling, he's still drunk.
You can repeat this twice. The third time Cius offers a drink, and Ratix
realizes he's had his limit. He starts to back off, but Cius, slurring like
hell,
forces the drink down his throat. Ratix collapses on his way out and Cius
laughs drunkenly as you leave.
     At this point you are REALLY drunk. If you enter a fourth time, Cius is
starting a fight with Arc, a thug, who dares Cius to say what he said again.
Cius calls him a hick and says he's a weakling. Joe, another thug, comes up
and says "I'm gonna kill you!" Cius replies drunkenly "That's my line!" The
bartender starts to freak.  You can now choose to either help Cius 1) or 2) let
him handle the fight on his own. If Rati is still drunk and you choose 1, he
will drunkenly call out that he'll help, and pass out on his way to the fight
and Cius will fight alone. If you are sober, you can help Cius in the fight.
Then you will leave the town, and Iria will be really mad at Cius. Cius will be
very embarrased. Iria's AR towards Cius decreases ever so slightly. If Rati
helped Cius out in the fight w/o passing out, Cius' AR improves slightly
towards Ratix.

PRIVATE ACTION END

Back at Hot, Badam will give you 600V in payment. As you leave, Cius starts
to leave, saying, "Well, I've got the money...I guess I'll go search for
treasure."
Choice:
    1) "Shall we travel together?"
    2) "Treasure?"
    3) "Let's split up here."

1) Cius says there's no real destination to his journey, so he'll travel with
you, and he wants to meet the people you're searching for anyway.

2) Cius says while traveling he found the entrance to the Metox Ruins, but he
hasn't checked it out fully. You now get to choose again.

3) Cius says goodbye, and says it's been fun travelling with you.

This is a fairly big choice in the game. If you split up with Cius now, you
can't get him back. (I think) However, if you keep him with you, you can't
ever get Ashlay, one of the secret characters, to join you. Ashlay joins you
relatively soon, so you won't be on your own for long.  You have to decide
which character you want more.  Ashlay starts out far, far more powerful
than Cius, and is one of the most powerful characters throughout the story,
but in the long run Cius will be ever so slightly stronger in that Ashlay's MP
are hideously low so he cannot use techniques much.  Ashlay's techniques
are very similar to Rati's, so you should decide which you want more:
Another character similar to Rati, or one that has Cius' powers. Both are
pretty good. So there are good sides and bad sides to either decision.

Anyway, whatever you choose, return to Portmis. If you asked Cius about
the treasure, Rati will stop him on the mountain and ask him about where
the ruins are. Cius will show you (They're right behind the first stone slab in
the wall when you enter) and suggest you take a look.  If you want to, take a
look. But just do that, take a look. There is lots of great treasure in
there, but
if you get attacked I guarantee you are dead. I have *never* survived a
battle in here at this point. Monsters do upward of 900+ damage here, and
I've never even managed to make it to the first treasure box and back.  If
you're a real daredevil go in here but I suggest you wait until you're at least
level 20.


CHAPTER 2: Ratix & Company vs. the Velcant Pirates

At the dock, when you talk to Ben, he'll say that boats can't go out on account
of the pirates. You then have three choices:
    1) Let's kick their asses!
    2) Let's do it after we equip ourselves
    3) Let's sleep the night and wait until the ship can go.

1) If Cius is in the party, Ratix and he decide to go kill the pirates and Cius
gets psyched, ready to rumble. :) Iria is shocked and asks if you are crazy.
Rati will tell Iria that it's probably going to be faster this way. If it's
just you
and Iria, she says nothing.  Rati (or Cius, if he's with you) will see the
dinghy
and asks to borrow it.  Ben is glad that you will go kill the pirates, but is
worried if you'll be OK. If Cius is in your party, he whips out his sword in an
attempt to impress him and show that he's tough enough.

2) You leave. You can come back later.

3) Ben tells you that for a while there won't be any ships that can make it to
Astral. He says that it will probably be that way for the next 20 days.  I
don't know if you can go to the inn 20 times and then get to Astral, because
it's a waste of time and money. :)

Once you choose 1) you get access to the Dinghy. When you walk up to the
dinghy 1) will take you to the pirates' hideout.  Note that you can get back
on the boat once you get there and return to Portmis.

THE PIRATES' HIDEOUT

Treasure: Lavender, Blackberry, Aquaberry, Resurrect Bottle, Rainbow
Diamond,  Recure Bottle x 2, Sapphire x 2, Blueberry x 2, Magic Card, Magic
Color, Ruby, Reverse Doll, Artemis Leaf.

This dungeon can be very difficult with only Rati and Iria,  so you may want
to return to town to rest and buy things every once in a while. If Cius is in
your party too you will have a more safe shot at doing the whole dungeon in
one trip, but it still can be difficult.  Generally in this dungeon you
will want
to have Rati target the same enemies that Iria is fighting because she is
slower than he is and while Rati is hammering away on an enemy they will
have less of a chance to hit her while she's recovering from her last strike.
Note that the monster "Velcant" here can be a tough customer; he has 2250
HP so it will take a while to wear him down, plus he does lots of damage and
is good at parrying blows.  If they start to bat a boulder at you use the "Y"
button to move your character to a spot out of their line of fire. They are
weak to fire, so Rati's Gurenken is a good idea against them. Overall though it
is a good idea here to conserve your MP, so you might want to set the AI of
your computer-controlled characters to a plan that doesn't use a lot of skills.

There are some wooden doors around that won't open normally. If you have
the Dash skill, hold B and run into them 3 times. You will then knock the
door down.  You have to bash down a door to get to the second level down.

On the first floor, there is a room filled with gas, which Rati will
notice. This
will be important later. On the second level down, there is a locked door.
Nearby there is a switch, use it to open the door.

On the third floor down, there is a tough-looking Velcant guarding some
treasure that you will have to defeat.

Velcant: HP 2250 Weakness: Fire
Bushwhacker: HP 450 Weakness: None
Rover Axe: HP 500 Weakness: Wind, Water

This can be a tough fight. If all you have is Ratix and Iria, cover Iria's butt
with Ratix because if you all get separated you will both be taken down
fairly quickly.  It also can be a good idea to fight with Iria
back-to-back; that
way, no enemies can sneak around and hit you in the back while you're
concentrating on someone else.  If Cius is in the fight, cover whomever's
closer to the Velcant since he does the most damage.  Generally, at this point
in the game, Cius can hold his own better than Iria so for the most part it's a
good idea to stick Rati and Iria together.  In terms of techniques, Rati's
Raimeiken is a good choice against the smaller enemies since it does a lot of
damage. The Gurenken is a good idea against the Velcant since he's weak to
fire. Iria's Kikoushou and Cius' Shoureiha are also good techniques and can
keep the enemies at a distance while inflicting damage. Another good plan is
to get Rati smack in the middle of the playing field and use a Senkouken.

You will get a Hiuchi Ishi (Fire-striking Stone) after beating the Velcant. If
you equip it, by pressing A you can generate a spark in front of you. You can
use this to blow up the gas that is floating around in various parts of the
cave.  Note that not all gas should be blown up; there are a few places where
blowing it up will put you in a trap. Also, it is NOT a good idea to be
standing
in the middle of the gas while you blow it up. :)

Further into the cave is the REAL boss of the cave.

Velcant Boss: HP 5200 Weakness: Fire
Velcant: HP 2550 Weakness: Fire

This is a tough fight, especially if you have to fight it with only Ratix and
Iria. Both of the enemies are weak to fire, so throwing Flare Bombs at them
can be a good idea. They will usually do 400+ damage which is a pretty good
chunk of damage, especially against the Velcant.  Get rid of the Velcant as
fast as you can so you can concentrate on the Boss.  The Boss does lots of
damage and has a really tight guard, so if possible, use the Y button to
position your character behind him and strike him from behind. If you are a
moving target you will be more difficult to hit. If you manage to dizzy the
Velcant Boss with a hit, be sure to take that opportunity to inflict as much
damage as possible on him. Also, if you can pin him between two characters
it makes him a lot less formidable. With Cius, the battle is not as
difficult but
you still have to be careful. Rati's Gurenken is a good idea here too. If
you're
around level 15 it will probably be a fairly even fight.

After you beat the Velcant Boss, you will get access to the Velcant's prison.
Rati will remark what an awful place it is, and Iria will notice the sound of a
flute. On further investigation, you will find a cat-like girl playing an
ocarina
in one of the cells. Ratix asks if she's OK, and the girl asks if you're
going to
hit her again.  Cius gets annoyed at this and tells the girl to come
quietly, if
he's in your party. Iria tries to relieve the girl's fear and tell her that
you're
not her enemies. Iria asks her name, but she doesn't respond.  Cius says that
talking to the girl is useless, and that her race is unemotional and
antisocial.
There's nothing you can do, so you will escort her out of the Velcant
dungeon.

Upon return to Portmis, the cat-girl turns around and says "I want to turn
into a little bird and fly away, so leave me alone!" and then runs away after
sticking her tongue out at you. Note that she trips and a little shining thing
falls out of her hand. If you walk up to where it fell and press A, you will
pick up her ocarina. You will need this ocarina if you want to get the secret
character Perisie, and you can't come back later and get it so you might want
to do it now.

After talking to Ben and telling him you defeated the pirates, he will thank
you and give you a ride to Astral for free. Once you're finished equipping
and whatnot, talk to him and take a boat to Otanimu

Once you're in Otanimu, you'll get a small cut-scene if Cius is with you:

Cius announces that this is Otanimu. Iria asks which way it is to Castle
Astral.
Cius stops in his tracks and asks if you intend to go there. Iria asks if
there's
a problem with it. Cius stutters, saying it's not bad, but there wouldn't be
much value to going there...he is obviously worried about something. The
nearby port worker tells you that if you're just coming to Astral, you should
go to Castle Astral, and that the booze there is really good.  Iria is pleased,
and asks if the food is mostly rice-based or wheat-based, and the worker
says rice. Iria asks how strong the alcohol is. The worker says it's
normal, the
strong stuff is in Silvalant.  Iria, very pleased, insists that you go.
Rati asks
where; Silvalant or Astral. Iria says it would be better to go closer, i.e.
Astral.
As Rati and Iria leave, Cius, mad as hell, kicks the port worker into the
water.


OTANIMU
Treasure: Poison Check

In Otanimu, most of the rumors floating around are about the Astral Army.
The Astral Kishis (Cavalry/Dragoon/Heavy Knights, etc...)  are the strongest
fighters in the world. The head of the Astral Kishis is a woman and is also
really strong. There is also a town, Tatoroy, near Otanimu,  that is famous for
its arena.  It's also said that you can win an Ougi (Book of knowledge, kind
of...tough to translate) at the same arena.

You can buy a book from the singing band "Stalkers" here for 980V. So far I
have found the item completely useless. :) There is also a guy who will
attempt to draw pictures of your characters for 5V. I've only got useless
chicken scratches from him, but possibly if your luck is good you can get real
pictures from him. If you don't get anything though, you can sell the pictures
for the same price you bought them for. Be sure to stop by the weapon shop
to upgrade your weapons, and stop buy the Guild to buy more Skills.

PRIVATE ACTION:

At your first stop at Otanimu, there is a set Private action. It gets dark, and
the party goes to pack it in for the night. Go to the inn and rest. You
will then
see a cutscene of what is happening to Ronixis and Milly.

Milly is standing by a window fantasizing about Ratix. Ronixis asks her what
she's thinking about.  She hurriedly makes up a story about "praying to the
god of the holy castle."  Ronixis is surprised for a minute at the use of "Holy
castle" and then realizes that's what Roakians call the Universe. Ronixis asks
Milly if, now that she's traveled through the universe, if she still
believes in
a god.  Ronixis says that where he's from, gods were only really seen as
something from the distant past.  Milly says that Ronixis' civilization is much
more advanced than her own, but she thinks he is wrong. Ronixis is
confused, and Milly asks him if he believes that what he sees and hears is
everything. Ronixis answers, "Kind of, yes." Ronixis comments that Roak's
civilization is somewhat of the kind of thing you would read about in a novel,
a "Dream world." and that the concept of a god seems ridiculous to them.
Milly is surprised, and asks if he believes that this world is nothing but a
dream, that meeting Rati and her and what happened to Dorn is just a
dream.  Ronixis tells her not to get mad, that it's just difficult for him to
believe.  Milly suggests that Ronixis learn Monshojutsu (Magic) and see for
himself, but she says all that she can use is healing Houshijutsu. Ronixis asks
if she's serious. She says that yes, if he learns he might be able to
understand better. Ronixis agrees.

Once that Private action is done, you can go through a normal P.A.

P.A. Iria: Iria: "Is Milly really all that important?"
   Ratix: "What is this, all of a sudden?"

P.A. Cius: "I want to go to a bigger town."

PRIVATE ACTION END

Your next stop should be Tatoroy. It's not too far from Otanimu, and you
probably won't have too much of a problem making it there in one piece. You
should be a little more careful if all you have is Rati and Iria, but it
shouldn't
be too much of a problem. Be careful of the Rover Axes though, they can
block your blows with irritating efficiency.

Items on the way to Tatoroy:
?HERB, (Mandrake) Blackberry, ?JEM (Rune Metal)


CHAPTER 3: Fear, the Astral Captain of the Guard

TATOROY
Treasure: Resurrect Bottle

Almost everybody here talks about the arena. If you go up to the arena, you
will hear cheering from inside and Iria will asks what the place is. The guard
says it's the arena, where people who want to improve their skills or make a
name for themselves go and fight 1-on-1 battles. There are a few people
who talk about Ashlay, how he's a famous swordsman who uses Edarl
Kenjutsu (The same type of swordfighting Ratix uses) and who is trying to
sneak into Astral Castle for some reason. There are two ways you can get to
Astral Castle. One is through a dangerous cave to the west of the town, or,
you can take a boat there for 50V. I suggest you go through the cave: it is
dangerous and hard to get through, but there is good treasure there and it's
a good way to build levels too.

There's a girl in Tatoroy who will play a "virtual RPG" with you, an RPG
within an RPG. Here's the whole details on the whole game.

PUFFY'S GAME
A)One girl, Puffy, asks "Want to do something fun with me? One time, 600V."
If you pay the money, she tells you to close your eyes, and then says "You're
in a cave and there's a fork in the road. What do you do?" You then get three
choices
    A1) Go right, I guess.
    A2) I want to go left.
    A3) Hey, what the hell is this!?

A1) Puffy says "Oh no, it's a trap! A pit! You fell in. The end." Then she says
it's over and you can come back later.
A2) Go to B
A3) Puffy gets mad and orders you to give an answer.

B) Puffy says "You come upon a disgustingly splattered corpse! What do you
do?
      B1) Examine the body
      B2) Pray for his soul
      B3) Ignore it and continue.

B1) She asks if it's really OK. You then can choose from three choices: Search,
Ignore and continue, or Pray for it. (basically the same as question B.) If you
do search it you find a Flare bomb and 120V. Puffy then gives you the items
for real.  Then you get a choice:
    B2) Pray for his Soul
    B3) Continue
B2) Puffy asks you if you do that kind of thing normally in an adventure.
She says "OK, you pray and you go on ahead." (Go to C)
B3) Go to C

C) A cat comes by and mews. Puffy says "Oh no, a Kimera has appeared out
of the shadows! Since you're only Level 1, you'll probably die. You can play
Jan-ken-pon (Like rock-scissors-paper) with her to fight the Kimera. You
then get three choices
     C1) Fight the Kimera
     C2) Use a Flare Bomb
     C3) Run away

C1) Puffy is impressed and asks if it's OK to call you Don Quixote. :)  You
then
Jan-ken-pon with her. You have the choice of
      C1a) Gu (equivalent of "Rock")
      C1b) Choki (Equivalent of "Scissors")
      C1c) Pa (Equivalent of "Paper")
What Puffy chooses is random. If you win, you win, if you lose, the minigame
ends. If you win go to D. If you lose Rati gets torn to pieces in the
story. :) If
they get the same, try again.
C2) If you have a Flare Bomb, you can't do it, but if you do, Puffy says
"That's a nice idea." She throws a bomb at the cat. :) The cat runs away, and
Puffy says that the Kimera runs away. Then she asks you for a Flare Bomb.
Ratix says "Huh?" but Puffy takes one of your Flare Bombs. (Go to D)
C3) Puffy tells you to run away. Rati asks why, but Puffy says it's supposed
to be a "virtual reality" so you have to run away, or at least pretend to. Rati
runs around as requested.

D) She then says that the Kimera left a "Melt Potion" and she gives you a
Melt Potion.
She says you reach Maou Naos' place. She imitates the Maou's voice
threatening you and asks what you do.
     D1) Fight!
     D2) Run away
     D3) Use an item
D1) Puffy says that Ratix attacks Naos and hits but does no damage! Then
Naos breaths fire and does 63,000 damage to Rati! Rati dies! The end. :)
D2) Puffy tells you to run away. Rati asks why, but Puffy says it's supposed
to be a "virtual reality" so you have to run away, or at least pretend to.
Go to
E.
D3) Puffy says "You're sharp. What do you use?
     D3a) Will Potion
     D3b) Megaflare Bomb

D3a) I have yet to find this item or mix one, so I have NO idea what happens
if you actually have one of these and use it.
D3b) If you have a Megaflare bomb, you throw it at Naos and do 65,000
damage, killing him! Go to F

E) You get lost, and are at an intersection! Which way do you go?
      E1) Ahead
      E2) Right
      E3) Left
      E4) Back

E1) Go to C
E2) Go to A1
E3) You find 1V. Go to C
E4) Go to B

F) After killing Naos, you get 100 EXP, 600V, and a Saber. But Naos is still
around and is injured. Puffy asks, "Do you give him any medicine?"
     F1) Give him a blueberry
     F2) Don't give him anything
     F3) Since this is virtual YOU take it!

F1) Naos eats the blueberry and runs away! Game Over.
F2) Naos falls over and dies. Game Over.
F3) She is surprised, but says "OK then, give it to me." Go to G.

G) You can then give her:
     G1) Blueberry
     G2) Melt Potion
     G3) Nothing

G1) She says that Naos eats the blueberry and runs away! Game Over.
G2) You give the Melt Potion to her...(melt potions instantly kill the imbiber)
and Puffy freaks! She runs around, and falls over. Game over. :) If you come
back again Puffy refuses to play with you any more.
G3) Naos falls over and dies. Game over.
PUFFY'S GAME END

How to get Ashlay:
First, if Cius is in your party, you can't get Ashlay. Go into the arena, and
watching near the top of the arena is an old man, Ashlay, who is commenting
how the only ones fighting are "like hammers."  Rati asks what he means,
and Ashlay just says he meant that everyone was fighting so obsessively,
without finesse, and that there is a higher level. Ashlay mumbles about
whether or not it was worthless to even come, and leaves.

Now, have Rati participate in a fight in the arena.

Now, go to the docks. Ashlay is there. Rati sees Ashlay, who says he's going
to Astral and asks if you'd like to come with him. You can say 1) OK, or 2)
I'm not going to Astral If you say 1) you can join him. He says that he saw
you fighting in the arena, and says while you're still a greenhorn you are
shining with potential. Ratix is taken aback, and Iria asks why he's being so
bashful. Ashlay laughs and says that it's good to give you support to help
you improve. Rati says that it's the first time anyone's complimented his
swordsmanship. Ashlay asks where you learned your swordsmanship, he
says it's much like Edarl Kenjutsu but it's very different in some ways. Rati
says his father taught him. Ashlay is impressed and says that it's good to
have the basics taught to you before you actually go into a real battle. Then
the boat leaves and everyone gets on.  Before he gets on the boat, Ashlay
thanks God that he has the chance to meet someone like Rati with so much
potential to teach. Now Ashlay is in your party! As you may have noticed,
Ashlay is lightyears ahead of the rest of your party in terms of strength, and
has THREE Ougis from the outset! He will certainly come in handy. :)

PRIVATE ACTION: TATOROY

P.A. Iria: "What incredible force! But to fight in the middle of such a big
place
in front of everyone...it's kind of embarrasing!"

P.A. Ashlay: "What's this Virchalian? What is that?"
Puffy: "Geez! It's Virtual Table Talk! Is it too difficult for you, old man?"
Ashlay: "O...old man?!"
Ashlay: "You dare to call the great hero of the war against the Makai an old
fart!? What's with girls nowadays!?"
Puffy: "Girls nowadays....? And you are pretty much an old fart."
Ashlay: "Gr..."

P.A. Cius: "What's with that technique!?
Cius: "Boo! You suck! Don't you know how to attack?!"
Cius: "I guess I'll have to...!!"
[Cius jumps in the ring]
Cius: "You're weak! You losers are all too weak! I'll kick your butt!"
[Fight]
(Assuming you win) Cius: "Whaddya think, aren't I great?"
(If you lose) Announcer: "Oh! The violent fight-crasher has been struck
down!"
PRIVATE ACTION END


Getting to Castle Astral:

There are two ways to get to Castle Astral. One is by taking a boat down the
river in a pass up to the mountaintop castle and city. The other way is by
climbing the mountan through Astral Cave. If you take the boat, you will see
the following cutscene:

The two guards outside the cave and a woman comes up. The guards greet
her as Fear, Captain of the Astral Kishis, and ask if she'll be OK going
into the
cave alone. Fear runs up and kills them both! Then she enters the cave.

If you take the cave route, you will see the same cutscene halfway through
the cave.

ASTRAL CAVE
Treasure: Aquaberry, Blackberry, Blueberry, Spectacles, 1200V, Saber,
Necklace, Fresh Bottle, Claymore, Hard Knuckle, Flare Bomb, Reverse Doll,
Poison Check, Sapphire x 2, Crystal, Iron, Silver.

This is a great place to build experience. However, be *really* careful of
those Armed Knights. Stay as close to them as possible because if they
manage to throw their boomerang swords your HP will go down FAST. One
sword throw of theirs can do more than 500 points of damage if it hits you
on the rebound. Use Rati or Ashlay's Raimeiken against them, they are weak
to lightning. Overall in the fights here you should have Rati cover Iria
because her HP will be the lowest. (although a thrown sword will do no good
no matter if you're covering anyone or not)

Once you get into the third chamber of the cave, there will be a large stone
door that is unopenable. On the far left of the third chamber is a door to a
room with a switch. Flipping this switch will open the door. Once you go up
two floors from here, you will see the cutscene with Fear and the cave
guards.

One floor up from the second save point is a room with four doors in each of
the cardinal directions. There is a switch in the middle of the room which
controls which door will be open. The doors all lead to a series of rooms
interconnected by a lot of doors. Depending on which of the four main doors
is open, the doors in the outer chambers either or open or close. Therefore, in
order to get Door X in chamber Y open, you need to have a specific main door
open. With the other doors, you can get into chamber Y, but Door X will not
necessarily be open. Therefore, for each main door open, you will be running
through the same chambers but through different doors. The way to proceed
further into the dungeon is through the north door, but the other three doors
lead to treasure so you might want to go there first. When you've gone
everywhere you can, flip the switch and explore the new route that is open
to you.

Once you get to the third save point and the healing statue, you are at the
summit of the mountain. Go straight through the entrance to the north to go
straight to Castle Astral. However, if you continue to the right, you can
travel
back down the mountain and get more treasures, and it's shorter than the
way back up. Careful though! At the end of the staircase down to the first
floor is a one-way door, and if you enter it you will have to go all the way
back up the long way.  If your eyes are sharp, you might notice a secret door
in the wall on the way down.  When you enter this tunnel, you will notice
that the tunnel apparently leads to a dead-end room.  Don't waste your time
searching for stuff here; it IS just a dead-end.  Get used to this; the
designers
of this game have fun with you a lot, putting in secret rooms with nothing in
them, doors you can never enter, and switches that do absolutely nothing. :)
On the other hand, there are also apparently unenterable places and dead
ands that are not in certain situations, so keep alert.


THE TOWN BELOW CASTLE ASTRAL

If Cius is in your party, upon entry here you will see a cutscene:

Cius is notably disturbed being here, and Rati asks's what's wrong. Cius says
it's nothing. At that moment, three Kishi comes by, and a woman riding on
one of the horses asks Cius in a derogatory manner if he is Cius.  Cius yells
back in an equally derogatory manner and identifies the woman as Fear.
She asks Cius if he's come back to grovel at the feet of Warren.  Cius
tells her
to shut up and that he's just stopping by. Fear says she's not surprised, and
tells Cius to leave the town as soon as he's done. She says that nobody will be
glad to see him here.  Cius gets mad and tosses back the insult that if
Astral's
Kishi-dan let her in then they're just like a mindless "school of fish."  Fear
tells him that if he's got something against her, he should make it personal
rather than badmouthing the Kishi-dan, that any insult to the Kishi-dan is
against the leader Warren himself.  Cius is silent. Fear says that Warren is a
great man, and that he believed in Cius, even though Cius was secretly
calling him an idiot. (She also reveals that Warren is Cius' father) Cius says
he has no intention of doing what his father wants him to do. Fear tells him
that refusing to be the head of the Kishi-dan is only proof that he does not
believe in his own power.  Fear calls him a coward and a traitor, and leaves.
Cius calls her many foul things after she leaves.  Rati asks "Do you know
her?" and Cius says "Yeah....I just know her...."
Afterwards, you go to the inn and you reserve a room. You then have 2
choices 1) Go to bed or 2) Explore the town. If you pick 2, the inkeeper says:
"Cius? Isn't that Warren's..."

With Ashlay in your party, upon entry here you will see another cutscene:

A woman rides in and stops. She asks, "Aren't you Ashlay?" in an honorific
voice.  Ashlay says he is.  She dismounts, and says "It's me, Fear! Don't you
remember me? Ashlay thinks, and then remembers, saying "Oh yes, you're
Ryas' adopted daughter."  Fear says long time no see, and Ashlay says that's
an understatement, considering it's been 10 years. He asks how Ryas is.  Fear
says he is, and is still working as the head of the Kishi-dan. She then asks
who you are. Ashlay says he met you during his journey.  Ratix introduces
himself and tells her to call him Rati. Iria similarly introduces herself. Fear
introduces herself in a very humble voice as Fear Mell. Ashlay says he's
going to stay with you so please come and visit later.  Fear offers to lead you
to Warren's house. Ashlay thanks her.  Fear and the rest of you enter a
house, and Fear calls Warren. Warren gets irritated at her using honorifics
towards him and says he'll be down soon. Fear then introduces you all. Ryas
comes down and sees Ashlay, then runs up to greet him.  Ashlay asks where
Ryas' son is. He says "Is Cius in the castle?" Ryas looks down and says he'll
talk about it later.  Then Ryas asks who Rati and Iria are, and Ashlay
introduces you. Ryas says "Any aquaintances of Ashlay are important
guests. He says "The conditions here are humble, but please make yourself
at home." Fear leads you and Iria to your room, which is HUGE. Rati says
"This is humble...?"  Iria asks "What do we do from here? We need to search
for the Captain and Milly..." You then get two choices: 1) Explore the town  or
2) Go to bed

Assuming you explore the town:
There is some pretty good equipment and other stuff here. In the skill shop
you can get Gijutsu Kanren level 3 and Sentou Kanren Level 3, but be
prepared to pay through the nose for them! Sentou Kanren 3 is a great thing
to have because with it you can get the skill Original Link Combos which you
can use to create successive uses of Hissatsuwaza. In terms of information,
you will learn that the world is essentially at war with the minions of the
Makai, the demon world, although not officially. Astral is not fighting them
directly, but they are sending a lot of soldiers out on patrol. You will hear a
lot about Ryas Warren, captain of the guard and a famous war hero. Also,
you will hear rumors about the Featherfolk, a race of extremely beautiful
winged people.  Inside the castle, you will also hear rumors about Monshou
hidden around the world with super-powerful spells.

If Ashlay is in your party, you can hear him talking with Ryas about Cius.
Ryas says that as soon as he entered the Kishidan, he needed a leader for the
First Battalion, and he couldn't find anyone else so he wanted Cius to take
the position. But Cius was adamantly opposed to the idea, and eventually he
ran away because of it. Ryas insists that he didn't want Cius to be captain
just because he's his son, but because he is incredibly skilled. Ashlay
suggests that Cius didn't know just how good he was. Ryas is really hard on
himself and Ashlay is suggesting that he's making himself out to be a demon
as the head of the kishidan, as a parent, and to himself.  Ryas goes on to say
that Cius' running away deeply hurt Fear and you can't even mention him to
her. Ryas says that since Fear secretly had a crush on Cius, it hurt her even
more for him to run away. Ashlay suggests that girls that age are difficult to
understand so the best thing to do may be to wait.

Once you go to bed, you will see another cutscene:

W/Cias in your party:
A guard on watch in the castle hears the sounds of clashing steel in Warren's
room. He enters to find Warren on the ground lying in a pool of blood! Then
he notices Fear...sees the bloody sword on the floor and makes the
connection. He says "Fia-dono, what on earth have you done!?"  Fear scoffs
and runs away.  The very confused guard starts to call for help.
In the hotel room, a bell starts to ring. Iria wonders what it is. Cius
says "It's
an Astral Kishi-dan code..." listens and deciphers it.  Startled, he says "No
way! There's no way she'd do that!!" He then hears where "she" is, and says
"Can I cut her off?" and runs out. Rati and Iria follow him.
Fear is outside the cave and trying to escape, and finds Cius blocking the
entrance to the cave.  Cius says that the port is blocked and this is the only
way out of town. Rati and Iria come running up. Fear says:
"Ci..Cius...Onegai Minigashite! A, anata to watashi no naka deshou?" (Cius,
please let me escape! You're my friend, right? [women's speech])
Cius says: "Who the fuck are you!? If you're going to imitate her, it's
Minigashite 'KURE.'  'OMAE' to watashi no naka 'DARO'?" (same meaning, but
men's speech)
Cius whips out his sword and says that the Fear he knows has been only
using dirty men's speech since she was a child, and since she tried to frame
Fear he is going to kill her.  "Fear" says that she has no luck and shows her
true form as a monster.  Then a voice appears "Don't both of us use dirty
speech?" The REAL Fear comes in, and starts insulting the monster calling
her ugly and says she will make her regret hurting Warren.  Then the fake
runs away.  Rati and Fear immediately give chase. Iria says to Cius "I'm not
sure, but isn't this a chance for you to make up with her?"  Cius gets pissed.
Iria then follows up by suggesting that the reason that she uses men's
speech is because of all the time she spent with him. Cius gets frustrated and
says "This is no time for talk like this!!"  Then you all regroup at the cave.

W/Ashlay in your party
The sounds of combat wake up Ashlay and he runs out of the room. Rati and
Iria follow.  After hearing the sound of a blade cutting flesh, Ashlay
calls out
Ryas' name and rushes into his room. You follow.   Ryas is lying on the
ground, and blood pools out from under him. Fear is standing right next to
him, and Ashlay asks how she could have done such a thing. Fear scoffs and
jumps out the window.  Ashlay says he can't believe it, that this must be
some kind of mistake.  After leaving the house, you can see Fear running
away from the house and into the cave.

Go down to the Tatoroy entrance to the cave. The fastest way there is to the
right of the healing statue.

When you reach the bottom:
If Ashlay is in your party, Fear will be there. She scoffs and notes how
persistent you are. Ashlay asks if she has any idea what she's done. Fear
says "What, you mean killing that old fart?"  Then she shows her true form
and changes into Darth Widow!  She says "If you hadn't gotten in my way I
could have gotten what I was really after!"  Ashlay realizes she's from the
Makai.  Then she attacks. If Cius is in your party, you just catch up with
Darth Widow and attack her.

Darth Widow: HP 10,000
2 Stropers: HP 1,600 Each

This is one of the easier bosses in the game.  If you have the
Rati/Cius/Iria/Fear party the Darth Widow is easy meat.  If you skipped the
cave altogether on your way to Astral Castle, the Darth Widow will be
slightly more difficult.  The key to beating her is to stay as close to her as
possible. If she gets far away from you, she can throw air blades at you and
keep you away, while doing significant damage.  Souhazan is a good
technique to use against her.  Get her pinned between two characters and
watch how fast she dies! And don't let the Widow pick on Fear alone because
she will die really quickly since she is a low level. It shouldn't be too tough
though. Don't lose any sleep over this fight. When you win a Longsword +1
will be your prize.

After Darth Widow is dead:

If Cius is in your party:
Fear says she will return to the castle with its head.  She'll tell you
that your
testimony will be needed, so she asks that you stay in the hotel. She starts to
leave, but Cius tells her to stop, and that he will accompany her. Fear just
says "Do whatever you want."

In the castle, a soldier tells Fear that Warren was hurt badly, but there is no
risk to his life. Fear thanks him and tells him he can leave.  Cius starts to
leave, and says that he's going to go back to you and Iria.  Fear asks if he's
going to see his father or not. Cius says "How can I?" Fear tells him that the
problem is only in his mind and that Warren is just waiting for him to
return.  Cius says that's why he can't see him.  Cius says he couldn't believe
it, but what Fear told him when he first met her with Rati and Iria was right.
Cius says he was afraid when he heard that he would be made a captain.  He
said that in order not to hurt everyone else he would be responsible, he had
to hurt his father, and he says that he really *doesn't* believe in his own
power. Cius goes on to say that he knows he doesn't belong back at Astral
yet. Fear asks if that's the reason he left Astral and Cius said that yes, he
wants to be stronger.  Cius then tells her not to tell anyone about what he
just said. Fear says a little anecdote about how it says that when improving
oneself while suffering, a Kishi who serves the king is no different from one
on his own; it's just that what they believe is different. Cius asks where that
came from, and Fear replies "nowhere, really."  Then Cius & Fear say
together the lines of a Kishi's chant, and Fear asks him if he believes
yet. Cius
says, "dunno." Fear asks if he really won't come back, and that she will
apologize for what she said. She then says that if Cius ever needs her power,
come back and ask.  Cius says it's OK, but he still won't come back.  Fear asks
why not. Cius says "There's someone incredible out there. His swordsmanship
is not as good as mine yet, but I know. He's incredibly skilled. I want to
travel with him for a while." Fear says that she herself is the type of person
to go on a journey out of nothing, so she won't stop him. Cius leaves, and Fear
curses him for always doing whatever he feels like.

In the inn, a knock on the door will come. A soldier comes and presents you
with things from Fear as thanks for killing the demon:  1 Cinderella Glass, a
Lunar Talisman, and 30 SP. The soldier then gives Rati and Iria a message: If
you are looking for someone, you should go to Parji Shinden. (Parji Temple)
The soldier says it is ruins from the ancient race that lived on Roak, and
there is an artifact called the "Shinjitsu no Hitomi" (Eye of Truth)  Cius says
that the Shinjitsu no Hitomi is a crystal that lets you see whatever you want
in it. You then get two choices of where you should head for your next
destination: 1) Parji Shinden or 2) Go around the towns towards Silvalant
and search. I f you choose 2) you can skip the next chapter. It's a good idea
to go to Parji Shinden though.

If Ashlay is in your party:
Ashlay says that he will return to check on Ryas. He asks you to take the
head of the monster and explain the situation. You now have to go through
the cave to the exit. Once back in the town, go to the castle. They will
let you
through with the monster's head. You will meet the king and he will thank
you for what you have done. Fear asks what the monster's intentions must
have been, transforming into her and attacking Ryas. The king says he can
think of one thing but it doesn't make any sense now.  Fear then goes up and
thanks you poersonally for what you have done and gives you a gift: A
Cinderella Glass, A Lunar Talisman, and 30SP.  Back at Ryas' house, Fear asks
if Ashlay is going to go with you. Ashlay asks her to give Ryas his regards
when he wakes up, and also tell him not to worry about Cius, since he will
come back eventually.   Fear starts at this and talks about how Cius is such a
traitor. Then you will get two choices
1) Could it be that Cius is...
2) Say nothing.

1) Rati asks if Cius could be the one that traveled with you. Ashlay asks if
you've met him. Rati says he has, if it's the same Cius Ashlay is thinking of.
Fear asks that if you see him again, to call him a "fucking asshole" for her.
Rati says he will, but thinks "If I say that to him he'll kill me!"

2) Just skip the dialogue that happened in 1.

Fear asks what you will do next, and you say you're going to find your lost
friends. Fear asks if you have any hints to where they are. You say you don't.
Fear suggests you go to Parji Shinden. Fear says that there is an artifact
there called the "Genjitsu no Hitomi" (Eye of Truth) Ashlay says that the
Shinjitsu no Hitomi is a crystal that lets you see whatever you want in it.
Iria
asks what you will do next. You then get two choices of where you should
head for your next destination: 1) Parji Shinden or 2) Go search all the towns
nearby. I f you choose 2) then skip the next chapter. I highly suggest that
you go to Parji Shinden though.


CHAPTER 4: Parji Shinden, Temple of the ancients

Items on the way to Parji Shinden: Moonite, Ruby, Smith Hammer, 1000V,
Iron, Shishi no Zou (Lion Statue)

The path to Parji Shinden is a long and winding one. When you go west of
Tatoroy, and get to the intersection, go north.  Follow the trail until you get
to a massive gateway. This is Parji Shinden.

Inside Parji Shinden, there are two large rooms, the first of which has an
unopenable door. The other room has a door to a smaller room with a switch.
Flip this switch and return to the first room, and the door will be open.
Inside is a crystal that will give everyone in your party 6 SP.  However,
other than this, there's nothing inside.

Go back outside, and climb the mesa closeby to Darma Shinden. There your
party will split up and search for a secret entrance (with Cius complaining
about it if he's in your party) If Cius or Ashlay is in your party, they
will pull
out their swords when a shadow appears over them. A flying man appears
overhead and apologizes for startling them, and asks them to put the sword
away. He lands, and Cius/Ashlay will recognize them as one of the
Featherfolk. The man introduces himself as Joshua (Prounounced "Yoshua")
and asks Cius/Ashlay to open the secret door to Parji Shinden that he found.
Iria asks if that's the case, and Joshua says that there is a big rock blocking
the entrance, and he's not very strong so couldn't move it. Cius/Ashlay
gladly accepts the job.

At the rock, Ashlay notes that it will be tough for an old man to move it, and
Joshua asks if he's up to it. Ashlay does move it though. (Cius doesn't say
anything, he just goes up and moves it.) Joshua then thanks you and enters
the palace.

However, if Cius is in your party:
After moving the rock, Joshua starts to enter, but Cius stops him.  Cius says
"I've never heard of a Featherfolk adventurer? Don't they all just stay and
sit in the mountaintops?" Joshua responds that Highlanders are supposed to
be the same, that they never leave the top of the mountain that Astral Castle
is on. Cius responds "Are you trying to tell me to mind my own business?" A
little "Sparks between the eyes" line comes between them. You get two
choices:
1) Stop the two of them
2) Be quiet and stay back

1)You run in between them and stop them. AR for Rati up for both Cius and
Joshua.
2) Iria runs up and stops them. AR for Iria up for both Cius and Joshua.

Joshua apologizes and says he wasn't acting like an adult. Cius basically says
the same thing.  Cius says that if Joshua doesn't want to talk about it he
doesn't have to, and enters the cave. Joshua says that calling Highlander
Adventurers "Fleeing the capital" is not permitted. (Considering Cius really IS
fleeing the capital, this comment was even doubly nasty, come to think of it)
Iria says that it's just the way Cius is.  Iria mentions that Joshua must also
have a chip on his shoulder since he got so bad by Cius' comment. Joshua
says that Cius is right, and that an adventurer like himself is very abnormal
for a Featherfolk. Iria then asks Joshua what his reason for traveling is.
Joshua enters and tells Cius his story. He says he was separated from his
sister when he was a young boy. You see a flashback of Joshua's sister,
captured, calling out to him. Two more Featherfolk are dead on the ground
and Joshua is being dragged away by another man.  Joshua says that his
parents were killed, and he was thrown off the edge of a cliff, but didn't die.
His sister, on the other hand, was abducted.  He says that the killer was a
crimson colored shield called Monshou no Tate. Cius starts at the name of the
Monshou no Tate, and says that he's one of the most famous users of the
Edarl form of swordsmanship. Joshua asks if he knows him, and Cius says
that no, he must be making some kind of mistake.  Cius asks if Joshua is
searching for the Shinjitsu no Hitomi, and asks Joshua to come travel with
you.

If Ashlay is in your party, he gets worried and says that for a Featherfolk
Magic-user, the palace would be very dangerous. He says that the Shinjitsu
no Hitomi is in the heart of the complex, but he is worried since Joshua
apparently didn't realize how dangerous the Shinden is.

Items inside Parji Shinden:
Resist Ring, Resurrect Bottle, Spell Potion

You would do well to be very careful in Parji Shinden.  The Sargwens are like
the Armed Knights, only tougher. They're weak to lightning, but they're
smarter than the Armed Knights and like to run away and throw their
swords, doing lots of damage. Also, you will fight your first magic-user
enemies here. If they start to glow, attack them fast! If they get off their
spell the damage will be unavoidable.  If they Magius' start casting and turn
gold while bouncing up and down, attack them immediately! If they pull off
that spell they will bounce around the room as a pillar of fire and do
*tremendous* damage if you get caught in her path. Joshua is as good as
dead if this attack hits him, and there is no way to stop her once she starts.

From the entry room there will be two doors. The right is unopenable until
you hit the switch in the left room. Note the blue bobbing sphere; you are
going to be seeing a lot of them in here. They will teleport you to various
places around the palace, and can be rather annoying. For the most part, try
to stay clear of them.

The third chamber in the Shinden has lots of those blue spheres. Be prepared
to be teleported a lot here. If you follow closely behind a sphere, you are
more likely to be cleared a safe path. The left side of the chamber seems to
be a quicker and safer route to the exit.

After the first floor, if Joshua is not in your party, you will encounter him
being attacked by a Velcant! You rush to his defense. This fight is the
Velcant/Bushwhacker/Rover Axe fight you fought back in Chapter 2, so
should be no problem to you now. (If it IS a problem, it is a miracle you got
this far into the Shinden!)
After the Velcant is dead, Joshua will thank you. Ashlay will tell him that
bravery is not always the same thing as intelligence. Joshua is silent. Ashlay
asks him if he'd like to talk about what he's after, and that by himself he is
not going to do very well. Joshua then gives his story: Joshua says he was
separated from his sister when he was a young boy. You see a flashback of
Joshua's sister, captured, calling out to him. Two more Featherfolk are dead
on the ground and Joshua is being dragged away by another man.  Joshua
says that his parents were killed, and he was thrown off the edge of a cliff,
but didn't die. His sister, on the other hand, was abducted.  He says that the
killer was a crimson colored shield called Monshou no Tate.  Ashlay starts at
the name, and Joshua asks if he knows him.  Ashlay says no, that he's only
heard about him. Ashlay asks Joshua if he's also searching for the Shinjitsu
no Hitomi, and asks him to accompany you. Joshua then joins you.

You will reach an intersection on the second floor. To start out with, go
right.
There will be a switch after a few rooms. This switch will open the second
locked door in a series of rooms to the left.  Towards the left area of
this part
of the dungeon, there is another switch that will open the first locked door in
the series. With both doors unlocked, you can get up to the next floor and a
save point.

In front of the save point is a tablet which says "The crimson flame is thy
enemy, and the opposite will show thee the way." Remember this hint, it will
be important later. Further ahead, you will reach two doors. The room on the
left leads to regeneration crystals, and the room on the right leads to more
crystals that give you SP.

After a long hallway, you will reach a room filled with those bobbing
teleport spheres. Some are red and one is blue. The red ones send you back,
so avoid them. Touch the blue one, as per the saying on the tablet. Once you
touch the blue sphere, you will enter the room with the boss of Parji
Shinden. Be sure you're at peak condition, because he's hard.

Boss:
4 Wolf Shapes: HP 5000 each

The main thing to remember in this battle is to protect Joshua. You're
surrounded by Wolf Shapes on both sides so you'll want to get Ratix as close
to Joshua as possible at the beginning. I suggest you use the form "Astral
Shift" and put Iria as character 3, and Joshua as character 4. Then, you can
have Ratix and Cius/Ashlay handle the 3 Wolf Shapes on the left, and let Iria
handle the Wolf Shape on the right. That way Joshua will stay safe, and can
heal any damage you take. I find the plan "Kaifuku Juuji ni" works best on
Joshua for this fight. If you can, try and get the three Wolf Shapes on the
left
get bunched up together. That way, you can inflict damage on all three of
them at once, and if you manage to sandwich them between two characters
it will increase your chances of winning unscathed even more.

The inner chamber is extremely ornate and fancy.  Cius gets excited at the
thought of all the treasure that must be there.  Iria wonders where the flow
of energy is coming from.  Ashlay/Cius tries to walk forward and gets thrust
back by the energy.  Three spirits, a green, red, and yellow, appear. The red
spirit tells you to go away and that there is nothing that selfish people would
gain here. The green spirit chides her for being so harsh. Then she turns
away and asks "the two from our world, and the two from another" to leave.
Ashlay/Cius/Joshua are confused by this (they don't know Iria and Rati are
from the future) and Iria and Rati are really surprised. Iria asks how they
can tell. The yellow one says that their "Time wheel-seal" is off balance. The
green one tells the yellow one to stop talking like that, because it will
"affect
the humans."  Joshua steps forward and asks if they're "Rune," the ancient
spirits.  Ashlay/Cius asks Joshua if he knows about them. Joshua says yes,
but it's his first time meeting one.  The yellow spirit is impressed, and says
that most people just know them as the "Maryoku no Minamoto" (Source of
Magic.)  Joshua says he came to look for his sister, and he doesn't want to
think of that as "selfish."  The yellow spirit says that she's not here.
Joshua
says that with the Shinjitsu no Hitomi, you can see anyone you want, and
asks if that's here.  The three spirits are silent, and the green + yellow one
note that its legend has been passed down.  The yellow one notes that the
legend is skewed, though.  The red spirit says that there is nothing in the
Shinden that grants that ability.  She then addresses Rati and Iria. She asks
if you're looking for those "like you." Rati says "Yes, a man and a woman."
The red one says that they can help, as long as they can feel the distortion of
the Time Wheel and the presence of its magic they can pinpoint their
location.  Rati asks if they know of it. The spirit says yes, but in return for
showing you, you are not allowed to proceed.  They show you an image of a
red forest, and an image of Ronixis walking with a strange woman. If Cius is
in your party the Milly will be accompanying them. They say that they feel
that strange sense from the land where the leaves are falling.  Ashlay/Cius
pinpoints that as the country of Van. The red spirit says that the deal is
made, and you are not to come near to the Shinden again. They then
disappear, and teleport all of you outside.

Outside, you decide to head for Van.

Cius/ Ashlay says that you wasted time, but at least it helped in some way.
You get two choices:
1) That's right
2) Hmm...

1) Rati says that's right, if you had advanced too quickly you wouldn't get
the experience needed to fight the really tough monsters from the Makai. AR
for Rati slightly up

2) Cius/Ashlay says, "So I guess time is that important, huh..." AR for Rati
slightly down.

Ashlay/Cius says that Van is a dangerous country, and proceeding will be
difficult.

If Cius is with you though...
Iria asks why. Cius says that the monsters are really strong. Iria gets
worried and says that the Captain and Milly could be in great danger.  Cius
says that they're tough, and that the people you are looking for must have
gotten really tough to have survived. Rati gets worried: "Might Milly be
tougher than me...?" Iria gets a wind of what Rati is thinking and makes a
nasty crack, making Rati irritated.

Iria asks what Joshua will do next. Joshua says that he will continue to
search for his sister and starts to leave, bidding you goodbye. You get two
choices

1) Stop him
2) See him off

1) Rati asks if Joshua will come with you. Joshua says that he thinks that he
will be a burden on the rest of you and starts to leave. You then get another
two choices
   A) Help us!
   B) I guess there's nothing we can do...

A) Rati says that he needs Joshua's power. Joshua says that he can't ignore
you since you seem sincere, and joins you.

2 or B) Joshua leaves.

Whether or not Joshua is with you, your next destination is Van. Head west.



CHAPTER 5: Reunion

Once you head west, you will soon get out of the Astral Desert. Head towards
the port town of Trop

Items on the way to Trop:
Ressurect Bottle x 2, Recure Bottle, Ruby, Iron, ?JEM, (Meteorite) Meteorite,
Sour Syrup, Megaflare Bomb, Spell Potion

On your way to Trop, Iria will stop and note a light in the sky. You see a
light
far above the sky and something strikes the earth's surface. Iria suggests
that it might have been a meteorite. Rati starts, and says "Could that have
been....theShip of the Stars?"  You then see Rati's flashback of the huge
spaceship wreck that's near his hometown of Clatos. Iria asks what it is and
Rati stumbles, trying to hide his knowledge of the future from your
comrades from the past. Iria says that you should go back and check it out.
You get two choices:

1) Go all the way back!?
2) Let's go!!

1) You ask "All the way back?"  Iria says yes, that you should go to Trop, and
see if you can pick up a ship there.

2) Rati says that he thinks it's the thing that is called the "Ship of the
Stars"
in his world.  Iria asks for more details and Rati says that it's the remnants
of a strange ship left in his world.

Anyhow, head to Trop (or if you're a masochist, backtrack ^_^) since you can
catch a ship from there.


TROP
What's going on in Trop:
Basically nothing. This town is about as boring as you get. No private action,
and basically the only thing anyone talks about is the fallen meteorite.

Items in Trop:
Cinderella Glass

Be sure to stop at the Skill Guild, and the Weapon Store to buy Joshua a new
staff if he's in your party. Also, you can go to the restaurant to order foods
that heal you more than most other stuff. Go to the port soon so you can
head back to Mooree.

When you reach the place where the meteorite hit, there is the "Ship of the
Stars!" Rati says it's newer than the one he knows, but that it is definitely
the ship.  Iria is worried, and Rati asks what's wrong.  Iria says it's
nothing,
but that it's the ship of the "third party" that started the whole virus,
so you
have to hurry. Now return back to Trop. If you're up to it, you might want to
try that secret cave on Mt. Metox, but it still might be a little difficult
to clear
the whole thing.  You also might want to stop by the arena on the way back
and see if you can get Rati to win the C rank level and get the Shichisei Ougi.

Once you're back to Trop, you can travel by boat to Ecdart.


ECDART

As soon as you enter Ecdart, Milly darts by and enters the inn. Rati notes
that it's Milly, and Iria tells you to follow her. Go to the inn.

Inside the inn, Rati calls to Milly, who turns around to see him. Rati says
he's
glad that she's safe, and Ashlay/Cius asks if she's the person you were
separated from. Rati says yes, and your characters introduce themselves to
Milly.  Rati looks around, wondering where Ronixis is. Iria asks where he is,
and Milly says that "The two of them were gone when I woke up." Rati asks
"The two of them?"  Milly says that he probably escorted Marvel, a
Monshotsukai, to the town of Ionis.  Iria is surprised, and Rati wonders why
she is angry.  Milly says that the day before, she heard a rumor that
someone called the "Shinku no Tate" came to Ionis, and Marvel turned white
at as a sheet. Then Milly starts showering praise on Marvel, saying she's
really beautiful, sexy, and really stylish. Iria starts to get pissed off.
Milly
says that as soon as she met Marvel, she implored her to accompany herself
and Ronixis.  Rati tells Milly to give it a rest.  Milly realizes that Iria
is mad,
and says that Ronixis didn't go off with her for some perverted reason. Iria
says that she knows, and that Ronixis would never "mix buisness with
pleasure" like that. She then says that it would be best to go ahead and find
them.  Rati asks why they went to Ionis, and Milly says that "Marvel's
enemy is there or something."  If Ashlay is with you he will get surprised,
and Rati ask what the matter is.  Ashlay says it's nothing. If Cius is with you
he will wonder about the "Shinku no Tate," saying that he's a famous fighter
and is known to be a good guy, and it seems weird that he would be some
kind of murderer. Joshua, if he's with you, says that he heard the same thing.
Milly asks when, and Cius says that Joshua is looking for his sister, and the
Shinku no Tate is also responsible for her disappearance.  Joshua says that
the only thing he remembers was that the man responsible for the
disappearance of his sister had a red shield, and there is no saying for sure
that it was the Shinku no Tate that did so. Then the party goes back together
again.

What's going on in Ecdart:
Not a lot of people give you useful information here, but there are rumors
floating around about the king of Van amassing an army to fight the demons
of the Makai who are plaguing the land.

Be sure to stop at the skill shop here! It has Kankaku Kanren LV 3, the last
skill level you need. Once you're here, you can have every skill in the game.
There's also a store that sells musical instruments at an exorbitant price. Of
course, this is also the onl y place in the game that you can get them, and
they're definitely worth it, once you get the money. There's also a store
where you can buy gems, and a store where you can buy wines that heal
your HP 30% when used as an item in battle.

Anyhow, head to Ionis next.


SUBQUEST: Joshua's Benefactor

This subquest is only available if Joshua is in your party. Head south of
Ecdart, and if Joshua is in your party, he will stop you and say that when he
was thrown off the mountain when his parents were killed, a man saved
him. Iria asks where the man lives, and Joshua says it's right near where you
are, and that you can get there by following an animal trail (you know, the
kind you see in the woods that is an obvious path but not made by humans)
Iria suggests that you go and see him, since it's been awhile since Joshua saw
him. If you want to, walk off the left edge of the screen to follow the
trail. If
Joshua is not in your party, you cannot enter this trail.

Once you get to the end of the trail, you will find a small house. Joshua will
go up to the house and call to Foster, the man who saved him.  Foster comes
out, and sees Joshua, welcoming him in. Joshua says that Foster looks well,
and Foster asks who you are. You introduce yourselves to him.  Foster is
surprised that Joshua made friends like you, and Joshua gets slightly
nervous. Foster then invites you all inside.

Once inside, Foster's first question is whether or not Joshua found his sister
yet. Joshua says no, and Foster tells him not to give up, and that he is sure
that he will find his sister soon.  Joshua asks where his bow is, and asks
if he
still hunts. Foster says he hasn't been recently. Joshua asks why, and Foster
says that it's too dangerous because the woods are full of monsters.  Foster
then tells you that while Joshua was staying with him the two of them went
hunting together. You then get two choices:

1) Let's get rid of the monsters
2) Say nothing

1) You suggest that you should all go and get rid of the monsters. Foster says
it's too dangerous, and he can't ask a guest to do that.  Iria says it's a good
idea.  Joshua asks if it's OK, and Rati insists that it's OK.  Foster
thanks you
and says the entrance to the forest is behind his house, and that you
shouldn't try to overdo it.

2) Foster says "You must be tired, stay the night." You then all get healed.
You can go into the forest now if you wish, but the monsters Foster sent you
to kill will not be there.

Items in the forest:
Shadowflower, Dwarven Helm, ?GUARD (Dwarven Boots), Dwarven Guard,
Spectacles ?GUARD, (Dwarven Mail) Blueberry, Lavender

If you agreed to get rid of the monsters, there will be 7 groups of Dragonflies
and 7 groups of Grels in the forest.  The Dragonflies are extremely easy, and
the Grels aren't too tough either, although they're good experience. You do
want to be careful though, since all of the Grel fights will be back
attacks; if
your mages are in the back rows they will be easy targets for the Grels.
Once all 14 monster groups are taken care of, go back and talk to Foster, and
he will give you an Elven Bow. This is a really powerful weapon and will
make Ronixis a really powerful contender from the outset.
SUBQUEST END

IONIS

As soon as you enter Ionis, Rati will see Ronixis, standing next to a woman
(This is Marvel.)  In front of them is a man with a red shield, the "Shinku no
Tate."  If Ashlay is in the party, he says "Argaswy!" (the Shinku no Tate's
real name) showing that he knows him.  You come in in the middle of their
conversation.  The Shinku no Tate says that he has no idea what Marvel is
talking about, and Marvel accuses him of killing her parents and brother.
The Shinku no Tate says that she is mistaking him for someone else.  Marvel
tells him to stop playing done, and tells him to prepare to die. Ronixis stops
her and asks her if she's sure this is the one.  Marvel says there's no
mistake.
The Shinku no Tate runs right up to Marvel with blinding speed, startling
her. He tells her to value her life, and then walks off.  Then Rati and the
others come up, and ask if she's all right.  Marvel asks who you are.  Ronixis
notices you and is glad to see that you're all right. Iria comments on Ronixis
making a "nice catch" and Ronixis is totally caught off guard.  Iria walks up
to Marvel and Marvel asks if there's something she can do for her. Then Iria
introduces herself politely, and Marvel then introduces herself.  Milly then
goes off babbling about how she was so worried about Marvel and thought
she was going to get killed.  Marvel apologizes.

At this point, if Joshua is in your party, Marvel will get shocked at seeing
him.  Iria asks what's wrong, and Marvel says it's probably nothing.  Joshua
asks her about the Shinku no Tate killing her parents and brother. Marvel
says that he did, and Joshua tells her the story about how his parents were
also killed, but he doesn't know anything about the culprit, so he is at more
of a loss than she.  Marvel says "is that so" and makes a comment about how
his sister must have wings like he does, and Joshua says that if she is alive
her wings have probably gotten very beautiful.

Ronixis then suggests that you go somewhere to talk about your quest. The
rest of the scene proceeds differently, depending on who you have in your
party. You all then go to the tavern to talk.

If Cius is in your party:
Ronixis starts to brief everyone on the situation, but before he can start Cius
calls to the bartender and asks him to bring 6 drinks.  Iria asks "What's with
asking the question like that!"  Rati tells him to be more polite. Iria
says that
that isn't what she meant, that she meant there are lots of different kinds of
drinks, and he should be more specific. Cius says "I'll drink anything!"  Iria
then says "Oh, OK," and then says to the bartender to just bring Cius the
cheapest, weakest drink because he gets nasty in the morning after drinking.
Cius then gets mad, and Iria says she was just joking.  Iria asks the
bartender what he's got, and then asks if she'd like "Bijoubu" and Iria says
"Great, I'll have that!" Rati asks since when she got well versed on Roak's
liquor.  Iria says he shouldn't worry about things like that. Milly asks for a
Pine Shake. Ronixis then asks if everyone's ready.  Iria apologizes.  Ronixis
then clears his throat and starts to speak, but is interrupted by the
bartender, who has brought the drinks.  Cius yells out and gets really excited
that the
booze is here, and Ronixis starts to get pissed off.  Milly says that the shake
is hers. Everyone starts drinking, and Iria says that hers is really good, and
tells Rati to taste hers. Rati does and agrees with her wholeheartedly. Milly
gets up and complains that she asked for a Pine Shake, and that the
bartender gave her a Mango Shake.

If Ashlay is in your party:
Iria asks the bartender if he can bring some drinks. The bartender asks her
what she'd like, and she says she wants some "Mukantha."  The bartender
compliments on her knowledge of which liquors are good and which are not.
Iria giggles, and asks Ashlay if he drinks, using a teasing form of address to
old people. Ashlay tells her not to talk to her elders like that, and says that
liquor's the same as water, and asks for a "Hi-iraz." Iria says that he's got a
good taste for drinks, and Rati asks since when she got well versed on Roak's
liquor. Iria says that "men shouldn't worry about little things like that,
right?" Ashlay agrees.  Milly asks for an Apple Shake.  Ronixis then asks if
everyone's ready.  Iria apologizes.  Ronixis then clears his throat and starts
to speak, but is interrupted by the bartender, who has brought the drinks.
Iria thanks the bartender and Ronixis starts to get irritated.  Milly says that
the shake is hers. Everyone starts drinking, and Iria says that hers is really
good, and tells Rati to taste hers. Rati does and agrees that it is really
good.
Ashlay tastes his drink and affirms that "this is a good year for this wine."
Milly gets up and complains that she asked for a Apple Shake, and that the
bartender gave her a Mango Shake.

If neither Cius, Ashlay, or Joshua is in your party:
have not played this part of the game in a game where I have none of the
above characters, but I have heard that in this condition, you get a choice of
whether or not to drink. I have heard that the following cutscenes do not
occur if you do not drink, and Marvel will also stay in your party if you don't
drink.

Several Hours later:

Everyone is wasted and is asleep on the floor, except for Joshua, Marvel, and
Ashlay, depending on who's in your party. Ronixis is pissed off that everyone
got all drunk during the important meeting, which never got started.  He
tells Ratix and Iria to wake up, but they are out stone cold.  Even Milly
is out,
so Ronixis gives up.  At this point Rati wakes up, and notices Ronixis. He then
gets startled and falls over on the ground.  Ronixis runs up to him, asking
"What's the matter!?" Rati replies "My head hurts!" Ronixis is pissed.


Now, this is the important part of this cutscene.  There are 3 possible
results.

*******************************IMPORTANT!!!**********************************
DO NOT READ THE SECTIONS THAT DO NOT APPLY TO YOUR PARTY UNLESS
YOU WANT TO GET REALLY SPOILED!!!
*******************************IMPORTANT!!!**********************************
I emphasize this, because you will learn certain clues about Marvel's past
here, depending on who you have in your party.  The mystery behind her
unfolds during the rest of the game, but you learn different parts here
depending on who is in your party. The rest of the info you will eventually
will find out later, but if you read the section that does not apply to you you
will be spoiled before your time! So avoid it!
********************************************************************************
To find out which section to read:

If Joshua is in your party, read Condition 1.
If Joshua is not in your party, but Ashlay is, read Condition 2.
If neither Joshua nor Ashlay is in your party, and Cius is, read Condition 3.
If none of the above are in your party and you chose to drink, read Condition
3.


*******************************CONDITION 1***********************************
********DO NOT READ THE ABOVE IF JOSHUA IS NOT IN YOUR PARTY!!!*******
At this point, Marvel has already excused herself.  Joshua asks where she is,
and he and Ronixis go out to look for her.  She is outside, near the tavern,
and is crying, talking about what a cursed fate she has.  Marvel then realizes
Ronixis' and Joshua's presence.  Ronixis asks if he maybe should have left her
alone, and Marvel says that she's OK now. Ronixis asks if she'd like to talk
about it. Marvel says she really is OK, and that she was thinking about how
she wanted to continue traveling on her own, but has decided that she really
does want to travel with you all, and asks if it's OK.  Ronixis says that
he was
going to ask the same thing of her.  Marvel thanks him, and then leaves for
the inn. After she has left, Joshua says that she is hiding something, but he
can't figure out what it could be.  Ronixis agrees.  Joshua says that there is
something not normal about her, and that he can feel no "living breath" from
her. Ronixis is startled and says "Do you mean she's dead!?" Joshua says he
wouldn't go that far, and says that even with the most powerful magic, the
only thing you can make is zombies, who are nowhere near as sentient as
Marvel is. He says "Maybe I'm just thinking too much..." and Ronixis says he
doesn't want to think about it. Joshua says he feels the same way, but "what
if..."
OK, now you can skip ahead past the spoilers.
********DO NOT READ THE ABOVE IF JOSHUA IS NOT IN YOUR PARTY!!!*******


*********************************CONDITION 2*********************************
****DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING IF ASHLAY IS NOT IN YOUR PARTY!!!*****
At this point, Marvel runs out of the bar. Ronixis chases her, and outside
starts to look for her.  He walks over to her, and apologizes for everyone
being so uncivilized. Marvel says that she thinks that they're all really nice
people, and for the first time in a long time she enjoyed herself.  Ronixis
says
that he's glad, but is still confused.  Marvel tells him that she wants to
continue her journey on her own. Ronixis asks why, since she just said she
was enjoying herself. Marvel says that's the reason she can't go with you.
Ronixis is confused.  Marvel says that if she leaves herself in fun situations,
she might forget about her brother, parents and her revenge.  Ronixis tells
her that he's not telling her to forget about it, but wonders why she would go
that far.  At this point Ashlay comes outside. Ashlay asks if he's interrupting
anything. Ronixis says he isn't.  Marvel then tries to excuse herself. Ronixis
tries to stop her and says she doesn't have to hurry that much. Marvel says
that the longer she stays with him the worse she becomes. She then starts to
leave, and wishes everyone well. Ashlay stops her though.  He asks her if she
is really chasing the Shinku no Tate. Marvel says she thinks he's not far so
she thinks she will follow him. Ashlay tells her it's futile. Marvel says
nothing. Ashlay stops and tells her not to get mad, and that what he wants to
say is that even if the person she is after really after is the Shinku no Tate,
the person she just was talking to is a totally different person. Ronixis
asks if
he's some sort of imposter. Ashlay says that it would be too easy to blow him
off as an imposter, and that he's probably not.  Ronixis is confused, and asks
what he is if he's neither the real man nor an imposter.  Ashlay says that the
Shinku no Tate and he were comrades-in-arms once, and that although he
couldn't truly call him a "friend," he couldn't find any other suitable words
for him.  Towards the end of the Makai Taisen (the war against the monsters
of the demon world) he was sent on a secret mission to search in a cavern
for something. He says that his orders were to find some sort of secret
treasure of the Ancient Race that used to live on Roak. Ronixis asks what that
was. Ashlay says it is the "Utsushimi no Kagami" ("Mirror of Duplication," I
think) Ronixis asks "A mirror?" Ashlay says that it was no ordinary mirror,
that it was supposed to duplicate whatever was reflected in it. The king
wanted it to produce more weapons and armor for the war. But that was not
the true nature of the mirror, it was a Demon Mirror with an evil spirit
trapped in it. What the mirror really did was warp the nature of that which
was reflected...and that is how the evil man "Shinku no Tate" was born.
Marvel asks then if it was that reflection of the Shinku no Tate that killed
her parents and brother. Ashlay says that is probably what happened, and
that all he could see was the real thing when he saw him just now. He says
that because of the Shinku no Tate, use of his left arm was lost. He says that
because of this even when he fights, he cannot use the techniques of his
Ougis, only knows the knowledge. Ashlay then asks if Marvel will join you,
as much for her own goal as the groups. Marvel, shocked at this new
information, agrees. OK, now you can skip ahead past the spoilers.
*******DO NOT READ THE ABOVE IF ASHLAY IS NOT IN YOUR PARTY!!!********


********************************CONDITION 3**********************************
*****DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING IF YOU DO NOT MEET CONDITION 3!!!*****
*************MEGA SPOILER! THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING!!!!****************
At this point, Marvel runs out of the bar. Ronixis chases her, and outside
starts to look for her.  He walks over to her, and apologizes for everyone
being so uncivilized. Marvel talks to Ronixis and says that she wants to
continue her journey on her own. Ronixis asks why, and she says that
everyone else is having fun, and she really enjoyed herself. She goes on to
say that all she has left is revenge, and she can't let enjoying herself make
her forget her revenge. She then says that the purpose of "this body" is to
get revenge.  Ronixis doesn't understand.  Marvel tells Ronixis that the body
she is in now is not her true form.  She says that she exchanged her true
body for the power of the ancient race that lived on Roak. She says that she
until recently, she had been brainwashed by a friend of the Shinku no Tate
and had been killing innocent people. She says that the more she hates the
people that killed her family, the more she feels the weight of her own
crimes, and can't be forgiven just because she was being controlled. She asks
Ronixis one thing.  She says if he ever find her finds her true body, not to
touch it, but she isn't allowed to say anything more about why.  Marvel then
leaves.
*******DO NOT READ THE ABOVE IF YOU DO NOT MEET CONDITION 3!!!********


*******************ANYTHING BEYOND THIS POINT IS SAFE!!!!*****************
In the morning, the party gets ready to leave. Iria comes in and says that
you should get up and get ready to go. Ratix asks if Van is your next
destination.  Ronixis says that yes, it should be to the west.
Ashlay/Cius/Joshua says that he is surprised to hear that you are after the
king of the Makai Asmodeus, (this is the first time that the host of the virus'
identity is revealed) since he thought you were just out to find your missing
friends.  Iria says that it is really important. Ashlay says that her will is
strong. Iria says that your mission is really though not to defeat him but
capture him, since it would create a paradox to do so. Ashlay/Cius is
confused. Iria tells him not to worry about it.


Items in Ionis: Magic Card, Ressurect Bottle

What's going on in Ionis:
Not much. Most people tell you about different kinds of skills + item
creations.

Most importantly in this town is the Item Creation Town! The shop by the
entrance to the city you can buy all sorts of items necessary for Item
creations.  Once you are here you can utilize your Item creations to build
your powers to obscene levels if you can figure out a way how to.  I won't
say how here because I want you to figure it out on your own and get the
satisfaction of puzzling it out. ;)  Sooner or later when you start to
experiment with the Item creation system in more detail, you will start to
see a LOT of this town! IMO, although in terms of actual content of this town
is rather low, this is one of the most important, if not THE most important
town in the game.

Anyhow, once you're done at Ionis, you should head out to Van.


Do not remove the following from this FAQ!
=============================================================
For any additions, corrections, or questions, please email me (Ian Kelley
at ikelley@mail.sas.upenn.edu. Thanks. If you want to put any or all
of this FAQ on your page, please let me know first. I don't mind
at all if you use this FAQ on your page, in fact I encourage you
to do so if you wish, but if you let me know first I can keep a
running tab on who's got it so I know who to email when I update
it. Plus I can look at your page too. :)
=============================================================
Do not use this FAQ for ANY kind of profit, be it selling it, using it as
incentive to buy games, or anything else AT ALL!  While it may be common
sense that doing this is illegal, there are many people who will do it anyway.
This is a warning to those people!
=============================================================
Do not use this FAQ for ANY kind of profit, be it selling it, using it as
incentive to buy games, or anything else AT ALL!  While it may be
common sense that doing this is illegal, there are many people who
will do it anyway. This is a warning to those people! I *WILL* sue
you if you do and I find out!
=============================================================
Thanks to:
Enix and Tri-Ace! Hats off to them for making what is quite possibly
the best console RPG ever!
Celica, (tanke@teada.tec.u-ryukyu.ac.jp) for telling me how to get
Ashlay and Perisie to join my party, among other useful tips.
Jason Murata (bludgeon_16@hotmail.com) for filling me in on many items I
missed.