After we managed to reach Slurry Quay via the ferry, we then did as I asked and went back to Stornway in order to see Simona. And wouldn't you know it, she was currently outside of the castle and currently speaking with our resident Innkeeper, Erinn.
"Oh! It's Drake and friends!" Simona smiled widely as we approached her and she smiled, only then noting Jona with our group. "Who's your new friend? She looks like she's not eaten for days," she said, Jona smiling at that.
"I live off of fish mainly, miss... I don't get much other nutrients," she said shyly as I then smiled at my wife.
"So... this here is Jona... and... well, how do I put this... she kind of wants to be in a relationship with me..." I said, Simona giggling at me.
"Is that all? Or did you come here for other reasons?" she asked as Erinn simply giggled, me blushing all over because of the embarrassment I was feeling at saying this.
"Look, to put it bluntly, Drake just feels uncomfortable about certain things in this world, like polygamy and having a girlfriend in Jona. Keep in mind, his world is vastly different, where people are required to be older for these things and marriage is between two people," Crux said, me sighing at that.
"He's right... I just feel like I'm the weird one because of how different this world is to my own..." I said, Erinn smiling at me.
"Don't beat yourself up about it, Drake. Besides, the only big rule to follow is that rape is considered a crime punishable by hanging, so even if they wanted to do stuff to you, if you don't consent, they'll leave you alone," Erinn explained, me looking at Jona and then at Simona.
"Okay... fine... I'll be open to it, but on the condition that we wait for the sex stuff until after we get the Fyggs. They need to be found first and we already have 2 of them," I said, that making Erinn confused before I then pulled out one.
"Ooh! So shiny..." Erinn smiled.
"And dangerous in mortal hands. It turned Abbot Jack from Alltrades Abbey into a monster and it turned Jona's dying father into a giant whale. The hoops we've had to go through just to get these Fyggs is painful," Pavo frowned.
"Point noted... now, where are you off to now?" Simona asked with a smile.
"The southeastern continent, just southeast of where the Abbey is," I said.
"Well, from what I've gathered, a wealthy aristocrat lives in a town called Bloomingdale there. That place is actually the biggest competition to my Inn and have come close to winning Innies in the past. There's also a boat owned by the aristocrat that is said to be magical. Maybe you could try to get it for your adventures?" Erinn smiled.
"Good idea, that sounds like it'd be so cool to do!" Keira smiled widely.
"Thanks for the info, Erinn... and Simona?" I said, her looking at me with a smile. "Would you like a kiss goodbye?" I asked, her giggling and nodding as she then approached me and kissed me on the lips, me simply allowing it as blush enveloped my face again, even after she stopped.
"Wow, you are quite the charmer," Veronica smiled at me.
"You can have me go to Slurry Quay with you for now, Drake. I can take the ferry back to Porth Llaffan afterwards," Jona said, me nodding as we then Zoomed back to said Quay and, before Jona could go to the ferry, I gave her a kiss on the lips goodbye, which caused her face to blush afterwards. "Mm... bye, dreamy Drakey... heehee..." she said with a flutter in her voice as she then skipped to the docks happily and Carly looked at me with a smug grin.
"You're getting all the girls, sure, but I'd like to find some guys, to be honest," she said, me smiling at that.
"Maybe at some point... though it might make Phlegming uncomfortable, you know?" Dillon said.
"Yeah, I mean, you're in the body of his flappin' wife, so that might be somethin' to ask in the future," Stella retorted.
We then trekked out of the Quay and due east, where we encountered Bewarewolves, Bud Brothers, Badjas, and Spinchillas, but after beating all of them, we then got a ton more experience and I decided to invest some of it into fisticuffs, just in case I wanted to be a brawny boy. And once we reached the locale of Dourbridge, Veronica sniffed the air and then exhaled.
"Ah... the stench of thievery, poverty, and destitution... welcome to my home, Dourbridge," Veronica smiled, that making me a bit surprised.
"Wait... if you're a sage, then how would you have become one when you lived in a place full of poverty?" I asked.
"It took a whole lot of begging, pleading, and foot-kissing to get to where I am today... and technically , I'm only a sage in training under Mistress Rosemary," she said, me smiling at that.
"So what do we do to make sure we don't get our stuff stolen?" Pavo asked.
"They'll recognize me just by appearance. And rule one of Dourbridge, ya can't pick the pockets of yer fellow citizens, only passersby. So long as you stay up here and I alone ask around, you'll be okay," Veronica said as she then went down the hill and the rest of us stayed on the bridge... and then, Serena appeared from the east.
"Hmm?" Keira hummed when she saw the girl. "Who're you?" she asked.
"No... not here either..." she frowned before then looking at me and my group.
"Hey, miss ghost?" I said, that making her gasp as she then came closer and looked at me.
"Can... can you see me?" she asked, me nodding at her.
"Yes, we can see you. I'm a Celestrian, after all," I smiled, her then looking at the others and then at me.
"I want you to help me find my love... but it seems you aren't strong enough yet... if you want to learn more... then meet me at Wormwood... then I'll tell you everything..." she said before then walking off again, making Stella look at me with a smile.
"Wasn't that the spook we saw near the Starflight Express? Before we left for the Observatory?" Stella asked in confusion. But as for Pavo?
"I sense something about her... a feeling I haven't felt since the ordeal with Corvus, the fallen Celestrian..." she frowned.
"Corvus? Wasn't he Aquila's former master?" Crux asked from my head.
"Indeed, and he went missing during the reign of the Gittish Empire, roughly 300 years ago. We should keep on our toes," Pavo said with a sternness to her voice.
After that happened, Veronica finally came back and had a smile on her face.
"Okay, I found out where Fygg number 3 is at. Apparently this one old guy called Mason came to town and traded a fancy sculpture for the golden fruit. And when I asked where to find him, the guy said he lives on a mountain. And that the summit holds his masterpiece. No doubt he might try to use that Fygg to immortalize it," she said, that making Carly nod.
"Then we should get going, then. The longer we wait here, the more likely that another Fygg could be misused," she said. And then we started to make our way due southeast, going towards the Heights of Loneliness. On the way, we encountered tougher enemies in the form of the Beakons, Rampages, and even a couple Moais, but they weren't that tough after we leveled up before Dourbridge. And then we finally reached the destination, us then starting our trek at the bottom of the mountain, me immediately noting the absence of Odval and their wild child friend (who I can never pronounce their name at all).
"I wonder where we'll find that old man?" Dillon asked as we then started to climb the mountain, us encountering some more monsters in the form of Hocus Chimaeras, Toxic Zombies, Metal Slime Knights, Grinades, and a couple Stone Golems. And the whole trek, we kept seeing very odd-looking statues that looked very peculiar.
"These statues are getting progressively creepier the further we... go..." Pavo said just as we passed by Mason's gravestone. We then approached it and I read the inscription.
"This is my final resting place... I am Mason, the keeper of these mountains... may my life's work reflect my lost love for all eternity," the inscription said, me then looking at the others with a frown.
"That sounds creepy... so old man Mason kicked the bucket, but where's the Fygg at?" Stella asked in confusion. We then continued to climb up through the caves before then arriving at the staircase to the summit... as well as seeing that there was a man collapsed on the stairs.
"Oh my! Are you okay, mister?" Carly asked as she went to him and he weakly opened his eyes.
"I can see... the angels... special medicine... please..." he said with barely any effort. I immediately got a bit of the medicine in question and stuffed it into his cheeks, him then gasping as he then chewed it and then swallowed, him then opening his eyes with a smile on his face. "Oh my! I'm saved!... Thank you, my friends, I, Christopher Collapsus, am forever in your debt! Here, take these as thanks for rescuing me," he said as he handed our group, get this, 12 different treasure maps! And each one said something different and had different things to note.
"The voiceless beast, the traumatic robot, the bloody knight... what's these for?" I asked, knowing what they were already. Maps to each of the various grotto bosses, all 12 of them.
"They lead to treasure, all over the world. I managed to find the last of these maps here, but I got jumped by something right spooky at the summit. I'll get up and get going shortly before that creep comes back. Don't worry, Christopher Collapsus will make sure to mention you as having saved him in his latest survival book," he said, me smirking at him.
"Thanks," was all I could say before then storing the 12 maps in our hammer-space bag before then going up the staircase to see the marvels of Zere Rocks.
"Oh... my... god..." Veronica gawked when she saw the splendor of the place.
"T-This looks EXACTLY like Zere does! How the... who did this and where can I find him? I must know how a mere mortal could craft something so beautiful!" Pavo gawked at it.
"We should look around, see where we can find some info," Crux said, us then traveling around the place, marveling at all the details, even the citizens and the fact that there was even a fully made Celestrian statue with Pavo's name on it. And then we reached Petra's house, where we were even more impressed at how it was even detailed on the interior to look exactly like it did in the past visit to her place.
"Oh my, even the flappin' interior in this house is finely detailed! What kinda mortal does this stuff and why for?" Stella asked in confusion... and it was then that we saw, get this, a Metal Medley, who looked at us with a smile and a small flutter.
"Oh, hello, visitors," they said, one after another, which made me smile at it.
"Hello there, guys... guy? Anyways, could you tell us how this all happened?" I asked them with a smile.
"Our goo friend, Mason; made this place with blood, sweat, and tears; he spent nearly his entire life working, before kicking the bucket," they said one at a time from top to bottom.
"That's... very confusing..." Carly admitted.
"He was very nice to us; but after he got a shiny fruit, he said before dying that he wanted this place to be protected;... and ever since, that beast has been outside," they said before we then heard a loud pounding sound. "EEP! He's back! Deform and hide!" the trio of stacked Metal Slimes said in fear as they then zipped to three different areas of the house's interior and hid, our group looking confused and scared.
"What was that?" Pavo asked as we then went outside and we saw the literal brick wall that was Garth Goyle, who hissed the moment that he saw us.
"HHHHSSSS! You... are not... Mason... Intruders! I must destroy!" it shouted angrily as I then decided to put my new fisticuffs skill to work, along with a special item I'd snagged after we defeated a Grinade on the way up, that being a Rockbomb Shard.
"Bring it on, Rocky Dennis!" I shouted as I then rushed the monster and punched my hand into the stomach of the giant rock beast, me then gawking at how I'd gotten into the center of the rock creature, me then placing the shard in there and removing my hand... and not a second too soon, or the rock monster would've slashed my arm off! And then, the kicker happened as it then started to reform the hole with some kind of regenerating powers... and then, we gulped, knowing that the shard I'd placed in him was about to go off.
"DUCK AND COVER!" I shouted, us then ducking down just before the most awesome thing happened. The giant gargoyle exploded into a whole mess of shattered pieces of stone which then littered the entire ground... before then vanishing into thin air. And our group then earned enough experience to level up again!
"That was awesome! You blew him up with a Rockbomb Shard! Impressive," Veronica smiled at me.
"I wanted to show off," I smiled.
"You did, and now I want some food as recompense for almost slicing our hand off," he said, me smiling at that... before Carly poked my shoulder and pointed behind us to show that there was a ghost of an old man that was going down a set of stairs next to Petra's house.
"Was that... Mason?" Keira asked, us following after the ghost and then finding him atop a small pedestal in the basement.
"I... apologize for what I've put you travelers through," he said. "I made this place in sadness after having lost my love to another man... I had procured a shining fruit and made a final wish... that my masterpiece be protected... but crivvens, I didn't mean for that monster to be the result of the wish..." he said before then showing the Fygg, it emerging from the spirit. "I thank you for defeating it... now my little friends can live in peace again..." The ghost then started to glow brightly and we saw he had a smile on his bearded face. "Now I have no regrets... I'm coming home, my beloved Petra... I love you... so much..." he said before then disappearing to the afterlife. He also left behind another big hunk of Benevolescence, which we then collected along with the third Fygg. And when we left the basement, Stella looked at the place in awe.
"So he made all this just to impress his love?... But why?! How the flap was this supposed to win her back?... I don't get you mortals. Out of yer trolleys the lot of ya!" Stella spouted out loud as I simply smiled at her.
"People do the craziest things when it comes to love. Back in my world, people would do insane things just to propose to someone. One time, a man had arranged a large amount of flowers in the form of a giant field and in the shape of a phrase. And he then had him and his lover fly in the air on a flying machine, where she saw that the flowers spelled out, "Julie, will you marry me?" And how could she not say yes to that?" I smirked, the group then looking at me with nods.
"He's right. Love is a powerful force, more than many other emotion," Keira smiled before then winking at me, me simply rolling my eyes at her.
"Hey, slow down, not until we get all the Fyggs. Then, maybe we'll talk," I said, that making her then do an air punch.
"YES!" she smirked to herself.
"Hey, if we leave now, we can probably get to another settlement before nightfall. And that settlement would be Bloomingdale. It's where Simona said was home to that impressive boat, right?" Dillon asked, me then smiling.
"Thanks for the save, Dillon. Let's Evac out of here and get going," I said as we then did just that.