Between being on the road and a certain massive console RPG that released recently, my Final Fantasy IX time has been a tad limited. I imagine people might be getting bored with this slow play of IX, but I'd really like to get through it again. If you're enjoying it at all feel free to send encouragement to keep me going.

If you want to catch up on my prior pieces, here's a link to last week's Issue 13.

Final Fantasy IX (PSP, PS1 Classic)

Last week found me on the Red Rose after getting smacked down by Beatrix again. Here is the first time we get a chance to see the general's true feelings and find out she's not really a monster. I admit freely that Beatrix is one of my favorite characters in this game. She reminds me of Cecil from FFIV, but with more passion. So after a quick spying session the crew warped back to Alexandria and found Old Rusty, as he and Marcus escaped from their bonds. FFIX continues its split storytelling here as we watch Marcus go to rescue Blank in the Evil Forest. It's just a nice touch to see all the stories weaving together.

Once the team is back together, we quickly head to rescue Dagger and fight the annoying pair of Zorn and Thorn. While I find these two irritating, I really love their music. They were a breeze, so with them gone I had Dagger back and was ready to get out of town when Beatrix round three hits. After surviving one more time, she finally had a change of heart and saw the error of her ways. This begins one of my favorite parts of this game, as things swap back and forth between Zidane, Dagger, and Vivi trying to escape and Freya and Beatrix fighting off the enemies Zorn and Thorn keep sending after them. Zidane and friends make it out okay, but end up in a boss fight of their own which was manageable thanks to Vivi's spells. The party then finds themselves working through a story puzzle from the eidolon Ramuh that is based on Final Fantasy II. After finishing that, the crew makes it out of the swampy area just in time to see the Queen launch an assault with the summon Atomos on Lindblum. As Dagger drops to her knees in sorrow over the attack, my adventure for the week ends. It was more substantial than I initially thought, so I'm making better progress than expected.