Part 22: The Goddess's Dream
Update 19: The Goddess’s Dream
Memories
Hey, isn’t this like one of the gateways that lead to Dream Cores …?
Indeed, it looks the same. And in that case, what lies beyond is …
What matters right now is Elvira! This is the right place, yeah?
Yep, the Spirit Pendulum is pointing right toward it. She must be in there!
Well then, let us proceed. To save Elvira …!
Right! Hang in there, Ellie!
A black, endless, expense of nothingness.
The dreams of humans came to me in the dark. I watched over them as they grew to adulthood, and as their god I relieved them from their nightmares. Days turned to years, and years turned to centuries.
What the devil was that …? Elvira’s memories, I think? But, why did we witness her memories … Well, whatever the reason …
Exactly! C’mon, time to wake up our sleeping beauty!
Music: Scooping Up Dreams
I did not anticipate something that would top the Thunderbolt Palace’s theme going in, but the final dungeon track had me by the balls the moment it opened with the piano solo. In addition to just being an objectively very beautiful track between the arrangement and Shimotsuki’s chorus, it perfectly complements the mood of this last mission and the visuals of the Nightmare Muster.
Throughout the Nightmare Muster, you’ll find landmarks from previous locations and gimmicks from previous dungeons.
There are two bosses at each of the objectives outlined in the mini-map. Going to the one to the east first:
It’s one of the elevators from the Thunderbolt Palace. And there’s more where that came from.
We’ll be revisiting this platform in the north of the Wicked Dream later.
Just like in the Snowy Corridor, you have to freeze the water to freeze this mill in place.
Finally, at the top of the hill…
Wild Hail (II)
Elvira’s guardian …! Its goddess is up ahead. Guess we should’ve expected to meet this thing here. Yeah. But … we won’t be beaten here! We’ve got to get to Elvira!
Shameful admission: I dialed down the difficulty because I got pasted on Legendary. It has a knockback skill that’s really devastating on that difficulty, and I just couldn’t recover momentum after 5 of the party went down.
Still, it’s the same Wild Hail you fought back in the Snowy Corridor, just with more HP and higher attack power and higher resistance to debuffs and status effects. Heck, Elvira and her guardians in this dungeon seem to have rather high resistance to debuffs and status effects, even on lower difficulties.
Still, the Wild Hail is the same deal as it was all the way back when. Not much more to show for this fight.
After beating the Wild Hail and activating that switch, half the crystals on the platform back in the Wicked Dream lit up.
And then there’s a door that drops us back off at the Wicked Dream. Now to go west to activate the other switch.
Up ahead is a carbon copy of the altar at the entrance to the Flower Bank Ruins, and you can guess what the gimmick for this zone will be. The landmarks and gimmicks from the old dungeons as displayed in the desolate, corrupted zone of the Nightmare Muster really reinforces what a warped hellscape the dungeon is.
Anyway, you remember how to make the sea level rise and fall and progress through the seabed and the ruins, right? And how to use lightning to open the occasional door? Once you’re at the end of the zone:
Hollow Dragon
Third time’s the charm, right?
No way! What’s the Zmei doing back from the dead?! No … That is not the Zmei. It is merely a shell in the form of my nemesis. You’re right. It doesn’t feel nearly as intimidating as before! Come on, everyone! We can’t let anything get in our way!
Zmei is exactly the same as it was back in the Thunderbolt Palace. With everyone being higher-leveled and better-equipped, this was a cakewalk.
Now let’s fast travel back to the platform where this door just popped up. And turn the difficulty back up a notch.
Elvira’s Memories
Ngh …?! Look out!
Elvira’s guardian …! But, that form … … This thing looks like seriously bad news! Could it have mutated under the manipulation of the Groll?! We don’t have time to worry about that now! This thing is clearly dangerous! This ain’t gonna be an easy fight, that’s for sure! Everyone, give it all you’ve got!
Alright, after great effort, its aura is broken with an additional stack of Wind weakness. So let’s give Alette and Ramizel the spotlight.
That’s a home run hit, alright.
Gotta finish it with style.
That thing must have been guarding this path because Elvira’s up ahead, right? Yeah, no question ‘bout it. Nice to see our goddess is still a little brat.
Ack?! My head …!
It was Rami’s dream. I was instantly drawn to it. And I wanted to meet her. I longed to meet her. I couldn’t stop myself from wishing. So, I created the Dream Core from my own essence, and built a world to bridge the gulf between us …
Was that for real …? Each Dream Core is a piece of Elvira’s essence … Could it be she lost a tremendous amount of power to create an entire world? I cannot begin to fathom the level of power required. It would explain why she gave her all simply filling the Dream Vessels … And what was that about a taboo? Did she do something she wasn’t supposed to do?! We cannot possibly know. For now, we must continue forward. Ellie …! Ramizel …After passing through the door…
Her memories are … flooding in …!
I worked so hard, and at last, I was able to meet Rami. What should I say? Would she resent me for bringing her here? I was filled with doubts, but her smile melted them all away. And I was happy. All I had ever wanted was one brief conversation, but Rami suggested something more: “This world could help so many dreams come true.” So I kept my world alive a little longer, hoping it would give strength to others.
Elvira was really happy to meet you, wasn’t she … It looks that way … Ahh, I don’t understand why she thinks so highly of me. Ramizel, I should tell you that I also find your dream wonderful. … “To be happy with everyone.”
Really? Thanks. But what’s important now … Yeah, let’s go find Elvira!
Let’s bear southeast.
So what you’re supposed to do here is hit the rain Dreamspace Stone to fill this area with water, then freeze it.
That’ll give you clearance to jump up these stairs.
Pressing this switch will make the pathway in the center rotate clockwise until you can proceed to the next area.
Like that.
Eventually, you gotta make it sunny to make this walkway thaw enough to be passable.
Elvira’s Regrets
(Ellie … Please … Tell us what happened to you … ) (We will save you …!)
The world I had created and seeded with life was something beyond my control. I had violated the most sacred of rules: “A god must not exceed their role, for the consequences may turn upon them.” And so it was, the Groll were born, and everyone’s dreams were almost lost. In the end, even I couldn’t resist them.
So much suffering could have been avoided, if only I had been content with solitude …
That was … Elvira’s regrets … I think? She looked like she was in so much pain …
Yes … Exactly! Ramizel? That foolish girl, taking this all out on herself …! Someone needs to give her a good scolding! Should never have met me?! Should never have met any of us?!
Indeed! It is unacceptable for her to ignore our feelings, and wallow in her own self-pity! Ahaha! You’re right, Elvira needs a good telling off from us! Heh, y’mean we’re basically gonna do what we always said we were gonna do! Yes … It appears so.
At the end of that gauntlet with all the weather tools…
Let’s turn the difficulty back up to Legendary! Wait, Legendary?
Restoration
Ellie! Aww, you’re here already .. I was in the middle of something …
Elvira, don’t you want to go back to Roytale? We found a way to save you! Wait, Sophie …! Something is not right!
Huh, so there was one here, too. And that form … Indeed. ‘Tis the same as the guardian we encountered earlier … Ellie … What on earth are you doing here? You all saw it, didn’t you? The Dream Cores came from my power … That’s why I’m taking my power back.
So, I decided to start with the easiest one … right here … Taking power from the Dream Cores means the surrounding lands will cease to exist … Do you understand what you are doing?!
You’re lying! The Elvira we know would never say that! You created Erde Wiege and supported us all this time! I don’t know what you're talking about. Anyways, it’s more fun and satisfying to eat dreams. The Groll … Did the nightmares get to you, too?! Y’know that’s not your real dream, right?! No, you’re wrong. Think about it, isn’t that what dreams really are? They consume other dreams, they take over, and they grow bigger and bigger. And in the end, only one person’s dream remains … That’s enough! How can you say that even after seeing everyone’s dreams?!
Oh, shut up. You are nothing but food.
Hey, can I eat your dreams now? You came all this way to feed them to me, right?
Sophie …? Don’t worry, Elvira. We’ll save you …
You know the real Elvira would never want any of this!
Music: Petrichor
That was a very lucky Pure White Corrosion proc, since 19 Aura damage left Elvira in range for Alette and Ramizel to do this:
Since their weapons were synthesized to enable multiple hits with the regular Attack command and each single hit does 1 Aura damage, the two of them hit just enough times to shave off Elvira’s remaining Aura.
All that was to lead up to this: having Plachta use the Twilight Prism in a Twin Action. Now let’s see just how much damage it can do when the party is specifically built for the sole purpose of having her use this thing:
With an overkill like that, that’s gotta be a wrap, right?
Ramizel, now! I’m on it!
It’s so much trouble to take back power you’ve already let go of once. It just doesn’t quite fit like before … Hey, Rami, you said dreams can be shared, right? Won’t you share your dreams with me? Thanks for the offer, but I’m not interested right now! Aww … What a shame.
Music: Aria
I was trying to play nice but … Oh well! Rami, Sophie, Plachta, Alette, Olias, Diebold, and everyone in Roytale …! I don’t need any of you! You can all just disappear! And then all your hopes and dreams will be mine to consume!
That’s right, our last fight in the LP is the second half of a twofer boss battle with Elvira! And since it’s back to back, your buffs and debuffs will be reset, but hope you aren’t too low on HP and item uses!
And she starts by giving herself a resistance to status effects in addition to 25 Fire Aura, so I’m not going to get much more mileage out of my Flame of the End other than its base 10 Aura damage. But after using it and having Alette use the Block command…
Plachta only recouped 262 MP from the debuffs Rainbow Trial slapped Elvira with at the end of round 1; after having Sophie fire off the opening salvo, it’s imperative I use Sophie and Ramizel’s Dual Trigger on the rear guard to fully restore her MP so she can fire the Twilight Prism off again.
For this final battle, I equipped everyone but Plachta with Destructive Talismans with Destructive Crest XL, which increases guard damage reduction by 25%, and when someone successfully blocks an attack, applies Aura Inhibition and reduces the aura gauge by 3. (See the after-script in the LP’s home page for more details.)
After Elvira fired off her super attack and hit the entire front line, her Aura dropped by 9 and broke. Now to finish this:
I’m so glad the Twilight Prism hits all enemies, because the first action Elvira took this round was to summon two Groll, one immune to physical damage and the other immune to magic damage. If the Twilight Prism was single-target, I’d have had to watch helplessly as the Living Nightmare, which is immune to magic damage, blocked it for Elvira.
Anyway, NOW it’s over. The most
-astic way to finish our last battle. Now to have Ramizel do the honors:
Ramizel!
At last, she’s back to normal!
Ellie? Elvira … Are you okay? I’m … sorry … I … caused so much trouble and … hurt everyone … Ellie … There’s no need to apologize!
… So that all their dreams could come true. Indeed. If it were not for this world of your creation my heart would still be haunted by regret. Heck yeah! If it weren’t for you, all the folk in Roytale might have lost their dreams! If I had not come to this world … If I had never met Sophie or Ramizel …
Indeed; one look at Sophie 1’s final boss reminds the player of the road Plachta might have walked, and very well could have walked otherwise.
Elvira. Don’t reject this world … Don’t reject yourself.
I love this world … I love everyone in this world who follows their dreams. Ellie … I know that you have been working harder than anyone else. And I also know how much you care about everyone. That’s why we all came to save you.
Now, let’s go back to town.
Elvira’s Dream
And that’s all … really true? Yeah … Every last bit of it. This world wasn’t supposed to exist. It was born from the violation of the most sacred of commandments. But, I still brought you all here, and for that … I’m very sorry.
There’s no need to apologize! But, uh … You were kidding about that last part, right? About Erde Wiege disappearing … That can’t possibly be true, can it? As long as this world exists, there will always be Groll. Which means everyone could lose their dreams … I can’t just stand by and let that happen.
… And that’s why you’re going to make this world disappear? But, Miss Elvira, you spent so long turning Erde Wiege into the place it is today … I don’t have any other choice … If I keep this world going, the same thing is bound to happen again …
Um … Without Erde Wiege, what will happen to you? Even though this world will disappear, I will not. Once you’ve all gone home and I’ve made the world vanish … I’ll go back to watching everyone’s dreams. Everything will go back to the way it was before Erde Wiege existed. Does that mean you’ll be all on your own? That’s kind of you to ask, but it’s okay. It’ll be just like the old days …
Huh?! I-I get that you’re upset! I … I know that what I’m trying to do is something unforgivable. You’ve worked really hard to make your dreams come true, and now I’m about to put an end to it all of a sudden … That’s not it! Miss Elvira, you don’t understand at all! We knew this perfect world wouldn’t last forever. We knew the end would come someday. That’s why we’ve all been working our hardest to make our dreams come true! What’s upsetting us is watching you sacrifice YOUR dream, Miss Elvira! My … dream? Didn’t you tell us that your dream is to talk with us about our dreams?
We cannot accept you sacrificing your dream just to save us! Please, Miss Elvira! You must reconsider! …
It’s just like I told you, Ellie. Yeah … Everyone here really is amazing … When it comes to the importance of dreams, the folks here know what’s what. Nobody wants anyone to sacrifice their dream. To watch the Goddess of Dreams offer up her own dreams for the slaughter … is akin to a nightmare for us. We shall not allow it to come to pass. I know there may be no other way, but … I really don’t want you to give up on your dream. I don’t want your dream to end like this. Everyone …
And there’s the thing with Erde Wiege. Pursuing a dream isn’t all sunshine and rainbows; struggle and despair go part and parcel with it. What Elvira tried to do was create a world where everyone could pursue their dreams with no downsides. Here, time is frozen so its inhabitants can have all the time they need to pursue their dreams. Resources are boundless. For a long time, it really did feel like a utopia where its inhabitants could have their cake and eat it too.
But one cannot have light without dark. Struggle and doubt cannot be completely excised from the path to optimism and success. And so the dark side of Erde Wiege materialized as the Groll, an antagonistic force and a corrective of sorts to what everyone had been enjoying. And Elvira is committed to getting rid of the Groll conclusively, even if it means the end of Erde Wiege.
Still, even though this world where everyone chasing their dreams could have their cake and eat it too can no longer be, the game emphatically rejects the notion that Elvira should have to suffer in solitude for an eternity thereafter.
…And Sophie, who knows a thing or two about being left all alone in the world, will step up to the plate.
Yeah … that’s why I’ll make something. Something that means you won’t be alone, even if this world disappears! Something that lets you keep in touch with everyone, and talk to them about their dreams! Could you … really make something like that? Of course! Just leave it to me! Okay …!
Saving Elvira
What could I possibly make … that would keep Elvira from being alone forever …
Plachta? Geez, what’s all the fuss! Sophie … Please look at this. Wait, they’re …
Plachta, did you do something to them? I did not do anything. They simply started glowing …
Huh …?!
The Dream Vessels, they … have combined into one. It’s alright, Plachta. They said they wanted to lend us their power. I see. They spoke to you. Yep! Alright! Time to really get to work!
Truly. She never stops pushing herself … And I am certain that boundless enthusiasm will never fade, no matter how much time passes …
Ouch, but also, it’s not like this matters anymore.
Well, Alchemy level 85 is the absolute minimum Sophie has to hit for you to finish the game; given the sheer volume of crafting I’ve done, I went way over. But first things first: gotta make another Alles Welt. Since the Dream Vision Pendulum has no effect thresholds to care about and just demands that I have an Alles Welt, this is the perfect occasion for auto-synthesis!
Yes. It is perfect. This is precisely the thing for Elvira … Yeah! Let’s go give it to her right away! Let’s!
The zones of the corrupted Dream Cradle’s dimension are still there. At least fast travel just lets me go straight back to Elvira!
Sophie? What is it? What’s wrong? No … Don’t tell me you managed to …?!
Elvira, here. This is for you.
This is the Dream Vision Pendulum. The Dream Vessels pooled their strength together, so they could help you one more time … They did originally receive their power from you, after all. And since this tool holds all of their combined strength, it is sure to become your strength too. … What do you think?
Okay, so that pendulum will guide you to people’s dreams! And it’ll let you do more than just look in on them. You can use it to talk to the dreamer, too … As long as you’ve got that pendulum, you won’t ever be alone again. Wow … You’re right. Thank you, Sophie. With your alchemy, you can even bring joy to a goddess.
Geez, what’re you two being so smug about?
Heehee. Haha! Teehee! … I really do mean it, though. Thank you all so much. I’ll never, ever forget this. Me neither … Let’s both keep working towards our dreams, Elvira.