2010-2015 (Big Bang-Heroes of Maple)

October 2011: Maple Alliance (Advance of the Union)

Maple Alliance - October 2011 (Advance of the Union):

(Alliance quest) Knowing that he had probably returned to the Black Wings base in Edelstein, Evan and Mir decided to follow him there.

(A/N: These following quests were part of a KMS event that didn't make it to GMS, despite the dialogue being translated in the game files.)

Lady Syl callled the Dual Blade and told them that she had come to a decision regarding the future of the Dual Blades. She explained that the Dual Blades would join the Alliance under their own distinction, separate from thieves, in order to earn fear and respect through their reputation, as the Dual Blades outnumbered the combined forces of all the other Explorers on Victoria Island. She also hoped to obtian a soverign domain in Victoria Island at the end of the war with the Black Mage.

After having Syl's propsal accepted by Jin, the Dual Blade worked with Dances with Balrog, who convinced the Alliance to accept Lady Syl's terms. Despite the Alliance accepting the Dual Blades, the Cygnus Knights had voted against allowing them to join, with the Knights even sending spies to monitor the Dual Blades. Lady Syl then sent the Dual Blade to threaten Neinheart to stand down, after which they reached an agreement.

While continuing their training, the Cygnus Knight was contacted by Neinheart, who explained that the Empress was on the brink of making an important decision. Before she did, however, she wanted the counsel of each of her knights, and so all the Cygnus Knights had been ordered to return to Ereve immediately.

The Knight reported to Cygnus, who thanked them for returning to see her. She told them she was afraid that despite everything they had done, the Black Mage’s threat continued to grow. She also confessed that she hadn’t been as strong of a leader as Maple World needed. With the Black Wings still holding Edelstein and rumors of Orchid’s return, their enemies continued to grow stronger while the rift between Ereve and the Resistance was wider than ever, with even the Explorers beginning to lose their trust in her.

She had also heard rumors from the Temple of Time that people were calling the Cygnus Knights traitors. Because of this, she was crestfallen that she had failed to earn the trust of Maple World and asked them to go to the Temple of Time in order to meet with one of her agents, Della, and collect her report on why the Cygnus Knights were being called traitors. She told them that once she had heard the source of the rumor, she would decide on the future course of the Cygnus Knights.

After traveling to the Temple of Time, the Knight met with Della, who told them that inside the Gate to the Future, Cygnus had sent the Knights to attack the people of Maple World, resulting in her being known as the Axle of Evil. However, she noted that something seemed off, as not only would Cygnus never betray her people, but Shinsoo’s voice had also seemed strange there as well. Because of this, Della was planning to go back inside to investigate, but told them to give her report to Cygnus. The Knight returned to Ereve and gave Della’s report to Cygnus, who was shocked at the future that awaited her.

After some time, Cygnus asked Neinheart to arrange a royal meeting between herself and Mercedes.

(A/N: It’s not specified whether she meets with Mercedes before or after getting the report from the Temple of Time, but I think it makes more sense for it to be after hearing the rumor because she doesn’t tell the Knight what specifically she’s planning to do in order to regain the trust of the people, meaning that she likely spent some time deliberating and then asked for Mercedes’ counsel on the strongest idea that she came up with.)

At the meeting, Cygnus asked Mercedes for her counsel, not only as a fellow royal, but also as someone who had once faced the Black Mage. She told Mercedes that she had been recently plagued by nightmares, and that she had come to realize that the Cygnus Knights couldn’t defeat the Black Mage alone. However, she also realized that they would be unstoppable if the rest of Maple World stood alongside them. Because of this, she was planning on creating a worldwide alliance and asked Mercedes for her opinion.

Mercedes confessed that it would be difficult to accomplish if the people of Maple World couldn’t look past their differences. However, she told Cygnus that despite it being difficult, it was what Maple World needed. She explained that centuries ago, she had been forced to watch Maple World fall to ruin because its people couldn’t look past their own selfish desires. In the present day, however, she believed that Cygnus could bring about a new era of strength to defeat the Black Mage, and so she supported Cygnus’ decision. Cygnus thanked Mercedes for her insight and invited her to the upcoming conference that she was planning to host.

(A/N: Move to Explorer section BEGIN.)

Around the same time, Teo reached out to the Explorer and told them that long ago, Kyrin had asked him to keep an eye out for any strange pieces of wood adrift. Recently, he had found such a piece of wood while fishing, and as he couldn’t leave, he asked them to take it to Muirhat, a crewmember of the Nautilus, as Muirhat likely wouldn’t let them see Kyrin. (A/N: Not even if you’re a pirate too? That’s a bit sad.)

Sure enough, Muirhat stopped them from seeing Kyrin and demanded to see the ominous relic. After brushing some sea moss off the wood, Muirhat discovered a strange carving and took the Explorer into a private room in order to investigate further. After removing the rest of the moss, several tree-like monsters manifested and began to attack the Explorer, who managed to defeat them.

Muirhat recognized them as Guwaru’s Vestiges and, believing that they had a connection to the Black Mage, asked them to show the relic to Kyrin. Upon examining it, Kyrin immediately recognized the carving as Guwaru’s symbol and told the Explorer that Guwaru was one of the Black Mage’s Commanders, adding that he was also the strangest and most wild of all the Seven Commanders.

As the relic’s untimely appearance gave her a bad feeling, she asked them to bring it to Athena Pierce while she prepared the Nautilus crew for possible attack. Athena was surprised to see the relic and wondered why Guwaru’s mark would appear in present day. Though she hoped that it was merely a coincidence, she also realized that they couldn’t afford to ignore it, and so she decided to purify the relic of its dark aura and told the Explorer to cover their eyes. After a flash of light, a dark spirit was exorcised from the relic, confirming Athena’s suspicions that it was a warning from Guwaru that the Black Mage was returning to Maple World. 

(A/N: Move to Explorer section END.)

Soon after, Cygnus summoned several Knights and told them that, despite how difficult it would be, she strongly believed that forming an alliance would be the best thing for Maple World and asked them to tell Neinheart of her decision. After being informed that Cygnus had made up her mind, Neinheart asked the Knights to invite the other major powers of Maple World to the upcoming conference.

(A/N: In the Alliance prequest for the Cygnus Knights, you’re only allowed to choose one faction to invite between the Resistance, the Explorers, and Aran, while the rest are presumably sent by others. Because of this, I’m assuming that Neinheart chose three knights to send the invitations simultaneously. This lines up as well, because Claudine doesn’t recognize you from your time in Edelstein, and so this likely means that a different Knight gave her the invitation.)

The first Knight was asked to invite the Explorers’ Guild by giving Neinheart’s letter to Athena Pierce. As she had lived through the Black Mage’s tyranny, Neinheart hoped that she would understand the necessity of the conference. In Henesys, Athena thanked them for the invitation and told them that she would see them at the conference.

Meanwhile in Edelstein, Claudine reached out to the Resistance member and told them that Vita had gone missing. As she doubted that someone in her frail condition could have destroyed the cell door, Claudine feared that the Black Wings might have discovered the Secret Plaza. She begged them to go to the Verne Mine in order to see whether Vita had gone there. She also asked them to convince Vita to come back, if possible, believing that Vita would listen to a close friend.

The Resistance member rushed to the Verne Mine, where they found Vita standing at the entrance with a dazed expression. Vita then monotonously declared that all enemies of the Black Wings must be destroyed and summoned Black Wings henchmen to attack the Resistance member. After defeating them, the Resistance member tried to snap Vita out of her daze, but nothing that they said seemed to work.

Just then, Gelimer arrived to see what was causing Vita’s delay. The Resistance member demanded to know what he had done to Vita, to which Gelimer replied that ‘the creature’ had completed its mission and was awaiting its next orders. The Resistance member snapped at Gelimer not to treat Vita like a robot, to which Gelimer clarified that she wasn’t a robot, but rather, a perfect brainwashed slave. He explained that he had called her back, as it had been some time since he had given her a check-up, but he was pleasantly surprised that she had brought the Resistance member along as well.

Though he yearned to use them as his new lab rat, he knew that Hiver wouldn’t allow it. However, he still decided to run one small experiment and told them to take the road behind the mine to his lab, promising to return Vita if they made it. He also warned that the guards would be dangerous and recommended that they bring as many friends as possible for backup.

The Resistance member rushed back to Claudine and explained that not only was Vita innocent, but Gelimer had also been using her for his schemes. Claudine apologized for suspecting Vita, but she told them that it was too dangerous to go after her, since she couldn’t spare any agents to back the Resistance member up. After arguing back and forth, Claudine finally agreed to let them go after Vita, but she warned that no one would be able to rescue them or Vita if things went wrong. Claudine then wondered to herself whether she should have accepted the Cygnus Knights’ help earlier.

Around the same time, a second Knight arrived to deliver the Empress’ invitation to Claudine. They found her in her public guise in Edelstein, but she refused to read the letter, claiming that the Cygnus Knights had nothing to say that she wanted to hear. However, the Knight was persistent and Claudine agreed to read the letter if they did her a favor. She told them to go into the Verne Mine and look for a laboratory there, explaining that they would find a cave hidden behind the mine and told them to listen for a voice.

(A/N: She stops herself halfway while saying the name of who to listen for, but the person is most definitely Vita. It’s not clear whether this is set when Vita first breaks out of her cell or when Gelimer challenges the Resistance to come rescue her, but it makes more sense for Claudine to verify that Vita is alive before the Resistance member goes to rescue her, and so I’m placing it accordingly. Claudine also begins to have her crisis about whether she should have accepted the Cygnus Knights’ help at this point, and so I feel like she would be more likely to read the letter if she were already inclining towards reconciling with the Knights.)

The Knight followed Claudine’s instructions and arrived at Gelimer’s lab, where they heard Vita’s voice. After confirming with Claudine that they had heard a voice, she agreed to read the letter and told them that she would discuss the proposed alliance with the other Resistance leaders.

Meanwhile, the Resistance member entered Gelimer’s lab, where they found Vita locked up, though they were glad to see that she had come back to her senses. Vita admonished them for having come after her, explaining that Gelimer had wanted as many Resistance members to arrive in order to finish them all off at once, which was why he had told them to bring friends. She reminded them that she was Gelimer’s test subject, and that even if she were to escape with them, her presence would only cause more trouble for the Resistance.

The Resistance member told her that they didn’t care about any of that, as the only thing that mattered to them was that she was their friend. They told her not to blame herself for the situation, reminding her that it was all Gelimer’s fault. Vita was touched and called them a good friend, but she explained that she couldn’t go with them, as Gelimer had rigged a bomb in her cage, which would kill her and anyone around her once it detonated. However, she told them that she had a town return scroll that she had hoped to use in order to return back to Edelstein, but as she didn’t want to cause any more trouble for them, she had resolved to stay in the lab and die alone.

Though seeing them made her miss Edelstein and all her friends in the Resistance, Vita knew that she was a danger to everyone around her as long as Gelimer controlled her. The Resistance member pleaded with her that that they could undo the brainwashing, and though Vita conceded that they could try, she believed that it would be too dangerous. She told them that she would be happy as long as she could save them, and that she was counting on them to defeat the Black Wings. She then made the Resistance member promise not to let Gelimer do to anyone what he had done to her, after which she thrust the return scroll upon them, teleporting them away right before her cage exploded and killed her.

The Resistance member returned to the Secret Plaza and sadly told Claudine what had happened. Claudine immediately blamed herself, believing that she should have kept a closer eye on Vita and realized what Gelimer had been up to. She also regretted that she had been too prideful to accept the Cygnus Knights’ help, as she had believed that the Resistance could have taken down the Black Wings on its own, though in the end, Gelimer had still beaten them and Vita had paid the price. She then asked the Resistance member for some time alone to reflect, adding that they likely needed the same.

(A/N: Move to Explorer section BEGIN.)

A few days later, Athena called the Explorer to Henesys and told them about the letter she had received from Ereve. While she was happy to hear the news about a new alliance, she was concerned that it would place restrictions upon the Explorers, believing that it wasn’t the Explorers’ Guild’s place to ask their members to follow those restrictions. However, she added that she also couldn’t stand by and watch Maple World fall to chaos, and so she asked them to send her confirmation of attendance to Cygnus. Cygnus was pleased to hear Athena’s decision and added that she hoped to see them at the conference.

(A/N: There’s a small inconsistency where Athena had already told the Knight that the Explorers would join them. I pass it off as her giving an informal yes to the Knight and then grappling with the issue before sending the Explorer to give her formal reply.)

(A/N: Move to Explorer section END.)

Around this time, a third Knight arrived at Rien, where Neinheart had instructed them to find his sister Lilin, explaining that, in addition to the Explorers and the Resistance, they also needed to invite others who could garner respect for their cause. He believed that the legendary hero Aran could boost their alliance’s legitimacy through her status.

The Knight delivered the letter to Lilin, who was pleased by the news and told them to expect Aran at the conference. She immediately contacted Aran and asked her to return to Rien. There, she excitedly showed Aran the invitation that the Cygnus Knights had given her and explained that it was proof that Ereve had recognized Aran as a true hero. Believing it best that Aran went with someone who recognized her as a hero, Lilin suggested that she ask Athena Pierce to accompany her, as she was a well-respected figure in Maple World.

Aran asked Lilin if she would also come to the conference, but Lilin was unsure about whether she ought to be there. While she debated about going, Athena agreed to accompany Aran and told her that Mercedes would also be there. As Aran had lost her memories, she asked Athena who Mercedes was, to which she merely told Aran that Mercedes was a friend. Soon after, Lilin told Aran that she would come with them as well.

Some time later, Claudine reached out to the Resistance member and told them that she had been thinking about the Black Wings’ motivation for everything that they had done. Though Gelimer presented himself as a regular scientist, she believed that he was hiding a dark secret. As she wanted to know what Gelimer was hoping to gain by experimenting on live humans, she asked the Resistance member to go back to Gelimer’s lab in order to look for clues. There, they found part of his research diary and brought it to Claudine.

After reading it, she realized that Gelimer was trying to make some sort of superhuman by using magic in order to make ordinary people stronger. She then read them a passage from the diary: “Upon completion of the experiment, the subject appeared to be successful. Visually it appeared to be an exact replica of The One. I named it Vita, thinking it would be my greatest achievement. However, after multiple tests, I am now certain the experiment was a failure. It exhibits no extraordinary capabilities. It is, in fact, a quite ordinary human female. The subject will be purged during the next clean cycle. I must go back to formula.”

(A/N: Although it’s not completely clear on what Gelimer’s goals were with Vita, she seems to be a host body for Lotus’ consciousness. Gelimer knows that Lotus’ body is far superior to that of a normal human, since it was created by the Black Mage, and so he seems to be trying to replicate Lotus’ constitution by experimenting on Vita. However, she doesn’t have any powers, which is to be expected, since Lotus’ power came from being a Spirit of Darkness, and later the Wing Master powers that the Black Mage gave him to replace his original spirit powers.

I also have to wonder why Vita was described as an exact replica of Lotus if she was female. If it’s true that she’s a perfect replica aside from gender, it makes more sense that she should look like Lotus’ twin, Orchid. Based on all the inconsistent pronoun usages with Lotus’ storyline, I wonder if he was originally concepted as female before they decided that he would be male.

Regardless, it’s unknown whether these experiments were merely a front to deceive Orchid, or whether they actually had a role in his Xenoroid project. There’s a quest in Xenon’s storyline which suggests that Gelimer had been using alchemy in his Xenoroid research, and since it’s clear that Vita and the other experiments in the Verne Mine had been augmented with magic, I wonder whether he was using Vita and the others as test subjects for him to perfect his alchemy techniques so that he could apply them to his Xenoroids.)

Based on the note, Claudine realized that Gelimer was likely taking orders from someone else. She was also troubled by the reference to ‘The One’ and asked them to go back to the lab in order to find the other parts of the diary. Upon returning to the lab, the Resistance member heard Gelimer talking to Orchid. He was telling her that there was no need to check up on him in person, promising that his research would be finished soon. However, Orchid snapped at him, claiming that Arkarium’s plans were well under way, and that she couldn’t let him beat her and Lotus.

(A/N: This is likely a reference to Arkarium’s plan with the Mystic Gates. The exchange makes it seem as though she and Lotus are planning to do something for the Black Mage, and that they’re competing with Arkarium to finish it. This might be because Nexon hadn’t settled on the whole backstory of the Black Wings. We know for fact that she betrayed the Black Mage after Black Heaven, but we don’t really know whether she had still been affiliated with him prior to that, as it sounds like the Commanders had just left her to do her own thing, as though she were a little kid playing in a sandbox while the adults were doing the real work.)

She reminded Gelimer that he had claimed that he had only been waiting for Vita to finish her mission, to which he explained that there had been complications, and that it wasn’t easy creating a creature as powerful as what she was asking for, though he promised that he would have it ready soon. She told him that he had better be right, as it was the very reason why she had formed the Black Wings in the first place. Gelimer was taken aback at the news, as well as the Resistance member, who realized that Orchid was the founder of the Black Wings. (A/N: This is a continuity error, as Gelimer already knew from the beginning why Orchid had founded the Black Wings.)

Gelimer told her that if she had spent so many years waiting, then a few more days wouldn’t make a difference. He assured her that once he finished, the resulting creature would be more powerful than herself and Lotus put together. Just then, they heard a noise coming from where the Resistance member was hiding, who realized that it was time to leave.

After returning back to the Secret Plaza, they explained the situation to Claudine, who told them that it was huge news, as they now knew that the founder of the Black Wings was also a Commander of the Black Mage. She explained that when the Resistance had first been formed, they had no intention of fighting the Black Mage, but she now realized that to face one was to face the other. Claudine then called the Resistance member to a secret meeting with the other Resistance leaders. She explained that the reason why they were gathered was because the Resistance had been invited to a Continental Conference in Ereve in order to prepare for the Black Mage’ return.

Though many of them were in favor of blowing off the Cygnus Knights, Claudine asked them to remember Vita, as well as the knowledge that the Black Wings founder was a Commander. Elex reminded them that they had previously decided that the so-called founder didn’t exist, but Claudine assured him that Orchid definitely existed, and that she had been proven to be a Commander by the Resistance member’s intel. She explained that the purpose of Gelimer’s experiments was for Orchid to create a superhuman monster, and that it was all for the larger purpose of reviving the Black Mage. She then wondered what could drive someone to such evil, and what it was about the Black Mage that inspired such loyalty.

Brighton commented that it sounded like Claudine believed that they should join the alliance. Claudine told him that it was a difficult decision, but if the Black Mage was involved, they needed all the help that they could get. Elex asked whether they could trust Cygnus, while Brighton asked if the Resistance was really so weak that they needed to ask their enemies for help. Claudine reminded them that they weren’t ready to face the Black Mage, and though they couldn’t trust Cygnus, they had no other choice. She added that she didn’t want another tragedy like Vita’s to befall upon them again.

Belle took Claudine’s side and asked the others whether they hated the Cygnus Knights so much that they couldn’t look past their anger to fight the Black Mage. Elex agreed that though he didn’t like the Knights, they needed to defeat the Black Wings. Checky added that they could always leave the alliance if Ereve turned on them. Brighton begrudgingly agreed, and with a unanimous vote, they agreed to attend the conference.

Claudine then asked the Resistance member to deliver their response to Ereve. Cygnus greeted them in earnest and told them that she was looking forward to their attendance.

(A/N: Move to Xenon section BEGIN.)

Back in Edelstein, Claudine also called the Demon and Xenon separately and informed them of the Continental Conference, which she asked them to attend as members of the Resistance.

(A/N: Move to Xenon section END.)

Meanwhile, Evan and Mir arrived in Edelstein in order to get revenge on Hiver. Mir suggested storming the Verne Mine and attacking all the Black Wings inside, but Evan told him that he didn’t want to attack random people just because they worked for the Black Wings, reminding Mir that they themselves used to be part of the Black Wings until recently.

They decided to go undercover in order to learn Hiver’s location and asked a watchman named Bavan where Hiver was by making up a story that they owed him money. Bavan agreed to contact Hiver in exchange for Nependeath’s Honey from Orbis. After bringing him the honey, Bavan told Evan that he had arranged for Evan to meet Hiver in the Verne Mine.

Inside the mine, however, Black Wings henchmen ambushed them and Evan realized that Bavan and Hiver had set up a trap. After defeating the henchmen, a strange woman arrived and had a stand-off with Evan, though she quickly realized that he was a civilian and disappeared. Evan and Mir also realized that she was likely an enemy of the Black Wings and left to go confront Bavan.

In town, however, they recognized Claudine as the same woman from the mine. After confronting her, she told them to meet her in Edelstein Park if they wanted to question her. There, they both realized that they were on the same side, and so Evan asked if he and Mir could team up with her. However, Claudine told them that she couldn’t trust them yet, as they might be a spy or might be too weak.

In order to have them prove themselves, she told them to take the secret route to Gelimer’s laboratory and bring back Black Wings emblems from his henchmen. After they brought the emblems back, Claudine told them that even though they might have gotten them from their commanders, she felt as though she could trust them, not only because of their actions, but also because of the intelligence that the Resistance had stolen from the Black Wings, which detailed their dealings with the Onyx Dragons. She told them about the upcoming Continental Conference and asked if they wanted to accompany her, to which Evan and Mir happily agreed.

(A/N: Move to Luminous section BEGIN.)

Some time later, Agent N reached out to Luminous and told him that Cygnus had found out that they were working together, and that she wanted to meet with him. Luminous traveled to Ereve to meet with Cygnus, who asked him if he had been surprised by her invitation. He told her that he was surprised that she even knew him in the first place, as few seemed to remember the events of his time. Cygnus explained that her family had always watched and waited, but added that it wasn’t the reason why she had asked him to meet.

She told him that she was planning on forming an alliance in the hopes of uniting the various factions of Maple World, despite their differences. Though there had only been five who had stood against the Black Mage centuries ago, she told him that there were hundreds who stood together in the present day. Luminous was impressed by Cygnus’ resolve and told her that she reminded him of Empress Aria, adding that he wondered what Phantom would think of her. Believing that her cause was noble, he asked her to call upon him whenever she was in need of his power.

(A/N: Move to Luminous section END.)

After receiving unanimous confirmations, the First Continental Conference took place and the Maple Alliance was officially created.