Part 78

Chapter 65






Porom picks up Float, and Leonora hits L41, which means she finally learns Fira. And to think the twins keep talking about what a great sage Leonora could be. Rydia and Palom learned freaking Blizzaga at the same time Leonora learned Fira.





Alright, we've finally made it to the last floor in this half of the dungeon. We've got something special in store here.



Unfortunately, our current party won't do. Sorry, guys, but this particular scene requires a particular party. This team's had a good run, and I'm sure we'll see these guys again in future parties soon enough.



Look at that, burned through 40 fucking Hi-Potions from post-CPU through the Eidolons.



Ladies and gentlemen, behold our new team.

Cecil and Golbez are both required for this section. Ceodore and Rosa are optional, but recommended. The fifth person can be anyone, but considering the scene that's coming up, I figure Kain would be the most fitting, though it'd be funny to have Cecil, his brother, his wife, his son, and his friend's secretary or his other friend's stalker.





So remember how Dark Kain was his own person? Apparently Dark Cecil decided to chill at the moon for seventeen years after Cecil became a Paladin. Sure, why not?



Who...who are you?
!!!
No!
You!





Huh!?
Cecil!?
I can't believe this!
I knew it!

...Of course Golbez knew we were going to run into Dark Cecil. Of course Ceodore and Rosa say the same fucking thing they've said ten thousand times already.

Sorry, but I have to side with Kain here. What the christ, indeed.





If you have the wrong party, the Dark Knight just acts like a dick and kills everybody instantly, netting a game over. With Cecil and Golbez, the fight continues as normal.

Note that the game doesn't actually tell you this, so you have to kind of dick around with party configurations until you give up and look it up in a FAQ.



So all the Dark Knight does is attack for minimal damage. This isn't a real fight.



Golbez wails on Dark Knight, Rosa casts Blink, and Kain alternates between the two. Ceodore's underleveled and in the back row, so he just buffs and sits back. Cecil is incredibly useless, getting one turn for everyone else's two or three, and hitting for less than two hundred damage.







I...I am the true Cecil!
Grh...waaagh!!!












For terrorizing the entire world!?
I...I am sorry...








OK, this is kind of badass right now, even if it doesn't make any sense.







This man threw me away like trash! He steered the world to its own destruction!
You are not my Cecil!

And this is why we brought Rosa. You see, if Ceodore and Rosa aren't here, Golbez ends up sacrificing himself to save Cecil or whatever. I don't know what happens exactly since I refuse to be a dick and kill off Golbez. But yeah, Golbez can actually die here if you don't have the right party. Permanently. As in, Tellah-level dead. You can't get any deader.



But thanks to Rosa deciding to actually do something cool and help out her brother-in-law beat the shit out of her husband's dark side, Golbez gets to live.







What's your problem, Ceodore!?
Do you remember what Kain taught you?
!!!





Yes! That's it!
Now that's the Red Wings soldier I know!



So Ceodore just got a pep talk from his ghost commanders to get the courage to help his mother and uncle beat up his dad's evil twin.

This sure is a jRPG alright.



Also, Ceodore learned to embrace his parents' genes. Thus Ceodore just completed his character arc in the middle of this thing just because the writers felt this was the best place to do it.

Just roll with it.





Ceodore...
You...you aren't my father! My father is right here!
Ceodore...you, too?

So now the party beats the shit out of the Dark Knight some more, because violence is always the best way to conquer a loved one's inner demons.

A neat note is that Cecil can't be revived. Not that there's any reason to revive him, of course.











Father!
Cecil!






For the rest of the battle, the Prelude plays. I suggest you listen to it, as it's actually a clever use of the theme.




Cecil's cured, which means his stats are recovered. He can already hit three times as hard as he was hitting, which granted still isn't hard, but hey, Back Row and a weak sword.




The Dark Knight now uses Darkness as an attack. A bit painful, but it's nothing scary.








I figured, what the hell, let's do a band for once. 2800 damage may not seem impressive, but the two are hitting for far less in the back row with mediocre weapons and Ceodore underleveled. If the two were in better shape, well, this band could be scary shit for the enemies.



Eventually, the Dark Knight will start to kneel due to low HP, a neat little bonus. It's like they actually put effort into this scene!



What...what does that make me, then!?
You are myself. That is true...the part that has shut itself from the world, once upon a time.
I...I...!
But those days are over. You are no longer alone!



And so Cecil uses the Power of Friendship to ruthlessly murder his dark self.





And so the paladin music plays, as Cecil's back to normal.

Father!
Cecil!



I owe it all to the people who helped me. Biggs...Wedge...Kain...and two others.
Two others?



Ceodore!
Thank you, my son!

Gag.

...



That was what kept me from withering into an empty shell.
Cecil...



To say nothing of you, Kain!



Now, let us make haste. We must stop this moon and ensure the future of our homeland!





Our reward for going through all that is the Excalibur, a nice upgrade and the best current weapon we have. Cecil obviously wants to make some good use out of it.






Oh yeah, there's still the whole Mysterious Girl thing and this whole "plot" thing we still know nothing about.

Cecil has returned to you, I see. But that has changed nothing. The planet has completed its role. Its fate has not changed one bit...just as yours remain unchanged.
Fate is not something set in stone. If you want to change it, all you have to do is believe!

Oh Jesus Christ, Cecil. You're confusing fate with free will. Go back to grunting your dialogue.

There was a time when I hated my role in life. That all ended once I embarked on this journey! That role I hated... It was all just in my own head!
Is that what you've decided? A shame. We haven't given up yet, I'm afraid!
What do you mean, our role!?
Let me ask you this, then.



Seriously. We're halfway through the final dungeon, and we still have no fucking idea what the god damn plot to this game is. What's your motive? Why are you doing the things you do? Why do you want to destroy the planet? Why do you want the crystals? Why am I supposed to give a shit about anything that's going on right now?



AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH

Fair enough. You are free to choose how your death plays out. This is your final decision. I leave it up to you to make.




The good news is that we're through with Part One of the Final Tale. We're halfway done with the final dungeon! I'm almost finally done with this game!



Unfortunately, the worst this game has to offer is still to come.