Earthbound – Day 14

–Day 14–

So last time we got a little lippy with Mr. Carpainter and he shot lighting at us. This time we’re going to take a slightly different approach and just pretend to go along with his plan. Getting through the swarm of Cultists is a bit easier this time, now that we know who will and will not move for us. Now let’s see what Mr. Carpainter has to say this time.

Apparently there is no right answer to this question. Answering yes just prompts him to gloat about catching me in his trap. Then he once again strikes us with lightning and teleports us outside. Looks like I might actually need to rescue Paula first to deal with him.

We were told previously that Paula is being kept in a mountain cabin. However, she’s not in any of the buildings in town. Thankfully, there aren’t a lot of paths OUT of town either. After heading through the cave at the north side of town, we quickly find the mountain cabin where Paula is being held captive.

Inside, Paula is being held behind metal bars which are locked tight. Paula knew we would be coming for her, and she seems relieved to see us. If we hadn’t shown up soon, she would have started crying.

Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do to get her our right now. Mr. Carpainter has the key, and he’s not going to part with it easily. She does however have something to help us, the Franklin Badge. According to Paula, this will help us deal with his lightning attack.

So after a few words of encouragement, it’s time for us to ONCE AGAIN confront Mr. Carpainter. Hopefully this Franklin Badge will work as advertised and stop us from being teleported away.

As soon as we step outside, we’re stopped dead in our tracks by a familiar fat little kid, Porky. It would seem Porky has actually joined the Happy Happyists and we the one responsible for kidnapping Paula. Of course, the fat coward has no plans to fight us himself. Instead he quickly runs off, leaving a group of Cultists behind to slow us down briefly.

The Cultists might now have held us up for long, but it was long enough for Porky to get away. But let’s forget about him, we need to face off against Mr. Carpainter if we want to free Paula. We once again defy him, saying we won’t join his cult. And once again, he uses his lightning attack on us. This time however, it is reflected back at him instead of teleporting us away.

Now it’s time for the real battle to begin, and just as quickly end. Turns out that Franklin Badge was exactly what we needed for this fight. After he performed his first attack, the badge reflected so much damage back at him that he was turned back to normal almost instantly. Kind of anti-climactic, but I won’t complain. A win is a win.

After coming to his senses, Mr. Carpainter reveals he has been acting weird ever since he got his giant statue. He then apologizes for everything he has done and hands over the key to Paula’s jail. Looks like everything is going to be good now, but I can’t help but wonder about the other statue back in Onett.

Anyway, after leaving his office we find out that nearly all the members of the Happy Happy Cult have left. There are only a small handful of truly dedicated members left, and even they admit they probably won’t stay long. In a way, I’m a bit sad about this, they really did give great experience. I should have level grinded more while I had the chance.

Outside, Porky is waiting for us to apologize as well. He claims he was also being influenced, but somehow I just don’t believe him. Especially when he leaves with a “See you, Suckers!” I swear that kid is going to be big trouble soon.

Back at the mountain cabin, it’s time to finally set Paula free. After saying her thanks, she joins my party along with her teddy bear. She claims to have strong psychic powers which will help, however, she is currently only level 1, and is incredibly weak and easy to kill. The trek back to town might be kind of rough.

We take one step outside and that mysterious photographer shows us AGAIN!! He had better become important to the story somehow. Because the mystery of where he comes from is killing me right now.

Anyway, we equip Paula with everything we can get from the local drug store before heading out. In the end it raised her defense from 2 all the way up to 32 once everything was equipped. That certainly made the trip back to town easier. That Teddy Bear also came in real handy, taking most of the damage that would have otherwise killed Paula.

It also helps that someone has repaired the bridge back to town. That cuts the journey back easily in half. This former Cultist has really turned things around and I gladly accept his apology. Now stay out of trouble.

Back home in Twoson, Paula’s parents are thrilled to have her back, and thank Ness multiple times. But it seems they’ve also already accepted her role as one of my party members. Her mother even gives us special band-aids to help on our journey.

Her and her father have a loving farewell talk, and Paula informs us that there is another friend waiting for us in Threek. So they say their goodbyes and we’re ready to hit the road. Well, not quite yet, there are a few other people that would be happy to see Paula back home safely.

That however is going to have to wait till next time. See you then.