In the previous part you've seen three different versions of Ahnonay, each with a control center numbered 1, 2 or 3. Each control center contains a metal door that did not open. There's also one remaining cloth to be found. Clearly, there's still more to this Age than what you've seen so far. Yet, it looks like you've been everywhere you can possibly go... Or not?
Remember the Cathedral hallway? It was decorated with the same drawing of four circles all over the place. From this we can theorize that if the control centers use that symbol on the wall, and are numbered from one to three, that there could also be a fourth version of Ahnonay. This idea is far from being far-fetched, so let's entertain it for a while. Besides, you still have to find the last cloth, so why not start looking there?
If there is a fourth version of Ahnonay, than it is taken "out of the loop" somehow and that's why we can't acces it directly. But there is a way to do it indirectly. We need one of the shell cloths to make it work. Why? We can use a shell cloth to link to a place that the shell cloth is no longer in, but was before. By now, you should know that it is the three or four different versions of Ahnonay that change places each time someone uses the linking book on the main island. (Provided the island is empty when that person links away.)
Before you can begin, you must set the Age to the water version of Ahnonay. That is the only version where the following steps will work. That is because you need to be in the version that comes after the fourth version, as you are going to place a cloth-link in a location that comes before the location that you're currently in. (The different versions will always follow the sequence 1234123412...) Also, remember that a link always points to a location or a certain point within the Age, not it's surrounding decor. This principle was also used by the guild of maintainers in Gahreesen. (The way they linked prisoners into the prison.)
What you're going to do requires two people, one will be on the main island to use the linking book there, while the other is in the control center waiting for the other person to use the linking book. After that has happened, the person in the control center touches the cloth, then walks to the large metal door and pulls the switch next to it. All this should be done in exactly that order.
If you're on the UAM-Shard then this step requires only one person: Starting from the main island in the water version of this Age, you need to swim to the small island with the tower. When you're inside the tower pull the switch on the left side of the ladder next to the wheel. The switch does the same as the linking book on the main island, except that it does not link you to the Cathedral. Jump back in the water and swim to the control center behind the distant island with the crack in the wall. Once inside, walk to the other side of the maintanance room and touch the cloth there again. Now walk to the large metal door and pull the switch next to it.
When the previous steps have been completed, the Age should be back to the water version where you started. As you have touched one of the shellcloths while it was in the position where the fourth version of Ahnonay is now, using the shellcloth should link you to the control center of the fourth version of Ahnonay.
What did the switch next to the metal door do? That switch has a function that in itself has nothing to do with the door next to it. It moves the version of Ahnonay that you're currently in, to the default or active position. Which means that a linking book to Ahnonay (like the ones in the Cathedral and the Watcher's Sanctuary) links you to that version of Ahnonay.
The diagram above depicts the situation described in the previous steps. The
orange circle indicates the default link-in point (where all Ahnonay linking books
will link you to). The green dot indicates where the shell cloth is, the red dot
indicates where the cloth will link you to (after having touched that shellcloth
of course...).
A is the moment just before linking away from the main island
B is after the cloth has been touched but before the switch by the door is used
C is after the switch by the door is used
It is time to check on the results of the previous steps. Link to Relto, then use the shellcloth in your Ahnonay book to link into the control center of the fourth version of Ahnonay. When you arrive there look at the symbol on the wal. In the center of it you should see the D'ni number 4. Walk through the corridor to the metal door. As you are now in the fourth version, pulling the switch should make the fourth version the default link-in point for the Age Ahnonay. So, pull the switch and watch what happens. After the usual mechanical sound, the metal door opens!
Walk through the doorway into the room with a large viewer at the end of the walkway. On the viewer is the fourth version of Ahnonay displayed. It was still under construction at the time the D'ni civilization fell. Halfway the walkway is a ladder going down. Use it to get to the lower level of this room. There's only one thing of interest there, it's a chair. But it doesn't look like this chair is just for resting.
Before you go sit in the chair, I would like to point out a glitch in the game that will ruin the party if it happens. Sometimes, at the end of the ride you will fall through the floor causing a panic-link back to Relto. If that happens than you will have to repeat the steps prior to coming here, before you can get here again. But there is a little trick that will prevent it from happening: make sure you have your KI displayed on screen. It doesn't need to be expanded like when reading a message or viewing one of your pictures. It's enough if only the round KI symbol is in the upper left corner of your screen. So activate your KI, if it isn't already. Now you can go sit in the chair and enjoy your ride. The chair lowers into a small transport pod and when it comes to a stop, pull the lever on the right. You will have to use that lever twice more during the ride. At the end of the ride the transport pod stops in front of a red light. Now use the leftmost lever. The chair will be raised and you have arrived at a place that was probably only known to and used by Kadish. If the glitch was to occur, it would happen right here.
You're in a corridor now, at the end is a small room. On the right you'll find a Watcher's Pub shirt, so take it. On the other side of the room is a panel with markings on it like the symbols in the hallway of the Ahnonay Cathedral. This is the final puzzle for this Age. You will have to push the buttons with the symbols on it in the order that they appeared in in the Cathedral hallway.
If I were to number the buttons from one to eight, the buttons need to be pushed in this order: 3, 2, 1, 4, 8, 5, 6, 7. The door next to the panel opens. Enter the room. To your left is a button. Use it and you'll get a view on the real Ahnonay. This is what the linking panel to Ahnonay is actually showing. We can now see that the four versions of Ahnonay are in fact four giant pods that can be rotated.
To your right is another doorway with a shellcloth next to it. Touch the cloth and look through the doorway leading outside. At the end of the walkway is the completed shell symbol. Before you walk into it, look around a little bit more. On the table in the middle of the room is a Bahro stone. This Bahro stone links to the lower Bahro cave underneath the one from Er'cana. That means you have all the pieces of the puzzle now and you can finish both Ahnonay and Er'cana.
Let's finish Ahnonay first. Walk outside over the walkway and walk into the completed shell symbol. You will link to a Bahro cave with a stone wedge floating in the middle of the cave. Touch the symbol on the wall and the stone wedge disintegrates. Walk towards the middle of the cave untill you fall into the stars. You'll be linked to Relto where you can check out your wedges behind the growing tree.
If you're on Deep Island or the UAM-Shard then you'll notice that there is no walkway with a shell symbol. You'll also notice that this room has a timer and a note on one of the shelves. The note is a clue that tells us that there is a 14 and a half minute time delay between the upper bahro cave and the lower cave. That means that you can complete the Er'cana Age without the help of someone else to drop the pellet for you in the upper cave. But where is the shell symbol to obtain the bahro wedge? This version of the game has two Watcher's Pubs, the one that you obtained the Er'cana and Ahnonay linking books from and one that you can acces via the nexus. It's the one from the nexus that you need to go to, it's called the "Great Tree Pub". Link there and head to the room where the Er'cana and Ahnonay linking books were. In the "Great Tree Pub" you'll find only one linking book, the one that links to Ahnonay. Link there and you'll find yourself in another version of the last room in Ahnonay. This room has the walkway with the shell symbol at the end. Walk into the symbol to collect your bahro wedge. .
* End of Part 4 * Next: Er'cana Part 4: Back to where it all started