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Update 9: Big Refuge; 3 AM

Alright! We are done with the Glen and good to go to head to the city! We'll still need to get one item and, of course, get the sun. Let's get the sun first since that item is just a teensy bit important.

Uh....uhhhhhhhhhhhh. That... doesn't seem good.

...

Goons...

Do you know... what happened?

We... no, we've got no clue what happened!

You....really?

but... but...

Oh... What am I going to do?

It... lit up again?

Phew.

UHhhhhhhhhhh??? Why... did it just lite up again? Does it draw power from Niko or something? I mean... it did that originally but it stayed lit up for Maize.

That uh, doesn't give me confidence for what will happen when we reach the Tower.

Well, we've got the sun back, and uh... Maize seems to be gone. Probably... for good. Did she drop something before she left?

She's gone...

Oh! There's something on the ground here.

It looks like... a kernel of corn?

She must've left it behind.

Huh, I'm unsure what we'll do with a kernel of corn but maybe it will come in handy for something.

It was a bit... touch and go there, but we have the sun back! Now we need to find some kind of writing instrument to get past the door guard. If we've explored everything in the Glen, then where will we find it? Well, there's a dude who wants to barter with us - and we've got some incredibly useful wool to trade!

But first... we've got some other items that we can try haggling with. Sure, a priceless family heirloom may not have a price to the kids, but it's got a price to me

I'm not trading that, Goons!

You're not trading what? What's that? A feather?

Mhm!

Wait...

Oh my stars! That is NOT "a" feather!

That is a feather from the late Prophet!

Probably one of the most sacred items there is! How in the WORLD did you get a hold of THAT?

...Wait, I guess it would make sense for you to have one.

Y'know, with you being the savior and all.

Um... okay.

Hmm, so I guess that means Magpie isn't willing to trade for it. Alright fine, we'll keep our sacred relics for ourselves!

What about a vial of water? That's about the exact opposite of a sacred relic?

How about this... glass tube full of water I got from a robot? Do you like glass?

Do I?

...do you?

I LOVE glass!

SO much.

...so much that I have too much glass and not enough other things. I gotta get rid of some of my old bottles and vials to make room for new stuff!

That's why I set up a tradepost in the first place.

So I guess that's a no-go...

Ok, that's fine. A tube of water seems like it'd have some use to us later on.

What about a kernel of corn? That doesn't seem useful to us at any point.

The seed left behind by the plant lady?

Oh, but what if... it's like... her baby...

I can't give away someone's baby like that!

Especially not to a bird...

...hey!

I uh... did not think about the baby angle... nor the bird one. Kudos to you Niko.

Alright, let's finally try and trade the SUPER USEFUL wool!

I think I have something I'd like to trade!

You'll take wool, right?

What can this wool get me?

Wool, huh?

That'll get you... This fine vial of...

I'm not sure what this is, actually! Some sort of fabric dye?

Hmm... how about it Goons?

Well, with a bit of fabric dye we could use some kind of sharp object to use as a pen so yeah, we'll take it...! However, let's do a bit of haggling, shall we?

Wait, Goons... you want to... haggle?

...really?

Alright then...

The Goons want a better offer!

Damn right.

Okay, okay...

In that case, I'll also throw in this commemorative T-shirt!

...I think we got out haggled, but we'll take it.

Pleasure doing business!

... Say Magpie, would you like to trade this shirt for anything?

I ain't takin that back!

The shepherd was handing those out a while ago.

But does it LOOK like it'll fit me?

Huh?

T-Shirts aren't exactly made for people with wings!

That must be why birds wear tuxedos.

So... what would you give us for... a bottle of dye that we... found somewhere else?

Hey! I just gave that to you!

What, you wanna trade it back?

Not really...

Good, cuz I wasn't gonna!

We really didn't want to trade that away anyway... The bottle of dye is our ticket out of here. But if you try and trade away every object in our inventory (including the items we haggled to get) then you get an achievement! Apparently the rarest achievement according to steam.

With the dye, we are ready to get past the door guard and head to the city!

[Have you found something to write with?]

We have! So we have the dye, but what item can we use to actually utilize the dye?

Oh yeah! We can use the feather as a pen!

I saw it in a picture book once.

That's right - turning the precious family heirloom into a pen. Surely the kids will understand.

I remember seeing a room to the west... It looked like it might be a good place to take a rest.

Here's what happens if you try to progress before letting Niko take a nap. Niko will straight up stop us from continuing until they get some shut-eye. Which is good, the scenes where we chat directly with Niko are some of the best in the game.

I'm a little tired from walking.

Is it alright if I take a nap?

Sure thing, Niko! Enjoy those naps, they get harder to have as you get older.

As mentioned before, the game saves and closes when Niko takes a nap - so the game has to be restarted to continue on.

Distant

Goons, I had another dream!

Did you all see this one too?

We did! Still not sure how, but hey - we did!

Into the Light

I was in a big field, like the one in my last dream...

And... I saw my village!

...but then I woke up. Sigh...

Ah, I don't think this world has anything like that...

I mean, big wheat fields!

The only big plants I've seen here are a bunch of weird trees.

And those balls of moss floating in the water...

Wait, is moss even a plant...?

...

Say, have any Goons ever seem a wheat field before?

I have! I spent a lot of time in rural parts of America so I've seen some wheat fields! I'm sure others have to.

The one around my village goes around for miles! The plants are really tall, sometimes I can't even see through them! When it's windy out, the wind can make waves in it.

It's like an ocean...

...of food!

Oh, wait, but there's food in regular oceans too...

Like fish, or crabs!

I've never actually been to a real ocean until now, actually...

Really? I've been to the ocean quite a bit! Helps that I live somewhat close to the coast though!

That's really cool! I've only seen the ocean on TV before.

I never thought I'd get to ride a boat through one!

The water back home doesn't have glowly stuff like how it is here, either!

Ah... but I guess it's because the world is already so dark...

Y'know, I used to be scared of the dark, Goons!

It's a little hard to imagine that now, after spending so much time here... but not long ago, I couldn't even go to sleep without a lamp...

I was too when I was younger. I couldn't sleep unless I had a TV on. Hell, I have a coworker who says they still need to do that.

Really? Even though you're a god?

Look, even gods have fears.

I see...

Otherwise I wouldn't last long here...

Then again, I've been carrying around the sun, so it's not too bad!

And also, I don't feel scared at all with you all guiding me!

So... thanks for that!

Aww, what a cute kid. We've just got a little bit to go and we'll do our job successfully - saving the world and sending Niko home!

With Niko's nap out of the way, it's time to sign this scroll and get past the guard.

I found a pen!

Sort of...

[Good. Please write your name here.]

Puzzle Solved

[Good luck.]

And we're through the Glen! It's finally time to see the big city everyone's been talking about.

Pretty Bad

What in the world...?

What the hell? Why did those squares just randomly appear behind us?

Why are they chasing us? What are these things!?

On Little Cat Feet

It was a bit tumultuous getting here, but welcome to the big city - the Refuge!

Ah, another big robot! This one was pretty quick after the last one.

[Ah, The Sun. Hello Messiah. Welcome To The Refuge. Do You Understand What You Must Do Here?]

I'm supposed to go inside the Tower, right? I already see the Tower! So I guess we must be close.

Where's the entrance?

[On The Surface.]

The surface?

[Look Down, Small One.]

Oooh, we're pretty high up! I guess I gotta get down a lot of stairs. Or find an elevator.

[Correct.]

[Finding The Entrance May Be Easy, But That Alone Will Not Be Enough.]

What... do you mean?

[Once You Reach The Surface, I Recommend Visiting The Library For Leads.]

Alright...

Thank you!

[Off You Go, Then. I Wish You Luck.]

Ah, thanks for the help big guy! Well let's continue on!

[Only The Bearer Of The Sacred Kernel Is Permitted Access To The Garden]

A seed like this, perhaps?

Oh! Like... a kernel of corn?

I have this!

It was left behind by the plant lady in the Glen.

[... That Is Indeed The Kernel. Then, It Is Your Duty To Regrow Her. Do You Understand What You Must Do?]

Uh, regrowing her sounds pretty self-explanatory? Assuming that it just means we literally regrow her and not conjure her from the dimensions between worlds.

[Good. You May Now Pass Through Here To Access The Garden.]

Awesome! Thanks Big Red! Let's head on past them real quick just to see what the Garden looks like.

Time to put the seed in the planter!

...There's no dirt in this pot. Will the seed really grow like this?

Unfortunately not. We will need to find some dirt for this planter, but for now - the kernel can sit in there all alone. Look we were asked to regrow her, not to keep her safe. Let's double back to the guardian and head the other way.

Come ooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!! Work already!!!!

Huh?

What was that?

Well that seems like something we should investigate! We are good at making things work again! And whoever wants it to work has a portrait - which means they're important!