Part 39: Doomed From The Beginning

Welcome back. Last time on Last Scenario, we followed the passage from Entalar's castle and fought our way through the rather inappropriately-placed Temple of Gaia to get to where the Awakening ceremony was being held. Unfortunately, we were too late. By the time we arrived, the ceremony was in full swing, and Ortas began by killing Alexander before we could do anything. It seemed as though there was nothing we could do to stop Lorenza from performing the Awakening... but just as the ceremony reached its climax, Castor quite literally stabbed Ortas in the back. What the hell is going to happen now? It's time to find out.

Music:



I can't let you do this.
Y-You...
Poor Ortas... seeing your country go up in flames, your loved ones dying in your arms... No one will deny that your people have been treated unjustly. But in spite of everything, you really became a demon. You really sought to destroy us all.



You thought you were using me, but I have known about your plans for a long time. All I did was turn on you before you could turn on me. I was the one using you. And now, it's over.





Did you really think that the Awakening would have turned out in your favor?
I... I had to do something. Maybe, I could've...
It seems even you couldn't stop this disaster from happening. If the Havali are still not ready, then maybe I should prevent the Awakening once and for all.





Music: None





But in a flash, Ethan is there. Where did he come from? Who knows!

Ethan!
Ethan!?
Castor... It's you. So, you killed Ortas?







Music:

And then the screen starts shaking violently. God, this arc really has been all about the earthquakes, hasn't it?

What the...?
Lorenza, run!



Wait! Ethan!



Okay, this has to be the absolute dumbest line in the game. Castor, you just personally killed their leader, not to mention the fact that there's an earthquake happening. How on earth is it a surprise that the crowd is panicking?

Flynn, go check it out.
Yes, sir!





But what about Lorenza!?
She's with Ethan. She'll be fine. Let's go back the way we came from and find a safer place.





Spot the difference!



He survived that? I think I underestimated his stubbornness. Ah... hahaha.



Fade to black...



And the game hands control back to us in the Temple of Gaia. The game won't let us go back to the ceremony chamber, so we have no choice but to head back towards the castle. Oh, and random battles will still occur while we're running.



However, once we reach the room that had the conspicuous boulder, it turns out that it has magically moved to cover the exit we originally came through. Instead, we have to head north, through the exit the boulder was previously blocking.





A scene begins as we enter the corridor.







Hey.
Good to see you both made it out safely. We're all together again now, it seems.
I'm... I'm sorry for causing all this trouble.
Stop it. There's no time for apologies. We all deserve some of the blame here. Do either of you know what's going on down below? People were running all over the place.
No idea. Maybe something went wrong with the Awakening?



Whatever's going on now has nothing to do with the ceremony.
Forget about it. The most important thing right now is to get Lorenza to a safe place.
I'd like to say that it's not our problem and that we should just get out of here, but... I want to at least know what's going on. Maybe that Kingdom guy is trying to pull some trick again.
The people were running back to the city anyway. Let's go there and find out more.



Elsewhere...







Oh. Thiiiis might throw a wrench into things...



All of you who imprisoned me... you never thought I'd come back one day!? Die! All of you, die! Hahaha!







It doesn't matter who she is. This indiscriminate killing is something we can't allow. Before we leave, we'd best put an end to this first.
Who do you think you are? Do you have a death wish? Come on, if you want to die! I am all-powerful!





You are nothing to me!
Helio!
Ugh... She's stronger than I thought. We may have to...







Get up. We're not done for yet.
That's right. We have to give it everything we've got. The pride of the Omega Team depends on it.
If it's the three of us, we can do it.
You think I'm afraid now that there's three of you?



Back with Hilbert...



Welp.



It turns out that Ethan and Lorenza have some sort of cutscene powers, as the passage they came from is completely blocked. We'll just have to go the other way.









The western path spits us out at the top of that one staircase that had rubble blocking it the first time we were here. The rubble is gone now, meaning that the rest of the way back is all stuff we've already seen. I'm just going to skip ahead.







But as we enter the throne room...



Fade to black...

Music:





The battle is not over yet... You intruders... You've ruined everything... I had... such great plans... I will destroy all of you...
Ortas... Just... give up already. You look like you can barely stand.
Never!



You... You people... It's all your fault... I'll never forgive you...



BOSS FIGHT: Ortas

(no music change; To The Bitter End continues playing)



Ugh. This battle is going to end in like one turn, isn't it? Especially since we now have our best party back.



At least, that's what the average player would probably think here before casting Scan. As it turns out, Ortas actually has more HP than Castor did, not to mention comparable stats. Fortunately, Ortas isn't anywhere near as annoying as Castor was.





Ortas's moveset is rather small, though his regular attack hits like a truck. This is his only physical technique, however, so it's probably not worthwhile to bother with P-Shields.





Instead, we'll want M-Shields up for the entirety of this battle, as Ortas has two powerful magical techniques. The first is Eternal Noctum, inflicting heavy dark damage to the entire party.





Ortas's only other technique is Sealing, which also deals a hefty chunk of damage (this shot is with an M-Shield up) while also hitting the target with poison, enfeeble, and silence. But it's no Maelstrom--all three of these statuses can be healed simultaneously with Treatment.



Ortas hits very hard, but in all honesty he's really not all that difficult to take down. But before you do, make absolutely sure to steal from him--he carries the game's first Key Tablet III.



In the end, the fight ends the only way it could.



For once, we don't get a victory fanfare for winning the battle; the music continues playing through the end of the fight and beyond. Our reward for defeating Ortas is the Lightbringer, a sword for Zawu. Despite its name, it deals physical damage and has no element attached to it.





Am I... am I... dying? Why? Why did everything go wrong?



Castor was right. You've become no different from the men you fought against.
No! I am not the same... as them... Our people... deserve to be free... They... should not have to live in fear each day. Everything we had was taken from us... We had to be strong... in order to fight back. Hahh... I only did... what was necessary. I would give anything... anything to return our lives to how they were before.
I know... You fought so hard to forget about your own pain and suffering. But Ortas... No matter how hard you fought, no matter how many died for you...



I feel... so empty... All the fighting... All the hatred... It all seems so unimportant now. After fifteen years of fighting... am I just going to vanish like this, with nothing to show for it?
It's all right now. You don't have to be afraid anymore.
Lorenza... please... Protect our people. I don't care about anything... as long as our people are well.
I promise. I'll do everything I can to live up to my father's name.
Ah... it's so bright. I can hear voices... calling me...



Are... Are we all back in Luminas? I... I can't believe it. Is the war finally over? Where is he? Where is Meodar? I haven't seen him in so long. I... I have to apologize to him.





Music: None





Elsewhere...



A standstill? We're not that lucky. She's got much more energy left than the three of us together. I've never seen anyone this powerful.
Hahh... You are strong, but... You'll need much more than that to defeat me.



Music:





I apologize, Sir. We were unable to stop this woman.
Don't say that. You've done well, you three.
Haha, another one shows up? Where are you all coming from? But one young brat like you won't make a difference.
You talk big, but don't you think you've almost reached your limit?
Ha! What would you know about me? I've ascended far beyond you common people. I have powers you can't even begin to imagine. You're nothing but insects to me!
Those are some strong words... but surely you must've realized it.



Is that what you want? You seem to have some unresolved matters left to take care of. Why throw away your life here? You don't care about us one way or another, do you? There's no reason for either of us to continue this fight.
What do you want from me?
I've heard about you. You're far from a regular Havali. You're something special. I've tried very hard to create someone like you, but none of my specimens were as perfect as you.



Boss!
Hahaha... join your side? Are you kidding? Why would I help you? What would I get in return?
In return, I'll spare your life. Barasur won't be alone anymore by now. He'll be protected by some strong people. You can't defeat them in this state.



Hahahaha... You have a lot of guts, boy. What makes you think I won't turn on you the first chance I get?
Let me ask you instead, what do you have to lose by joining me? Would you be worse off than you are now? I think we will both profit from working together.



Back with Hilbert...

Music: None







Music:

I see... so Ortas is...
The grandmaster is dead!? Don't tell me you people--!
Lesalia, that's enough. Ortas has died because Castor betrayed him... If anyone is to blame, it's me. I was the one who told the boy about his plans.
Stop that. There's no one to blame for his death except himself. We should be glad that it ended before it came to a real war between humans and Havali.
Yes... perhaps you're right. Lorenza... I'm so happy to see you again. You don't know how worried I've been about you. But I see now that my worries were unnecessary. Meodar truly raised you well.
Grandfather...
Elder, we have no time for this right now.



Hmm, yes... We can continue this conversation later. Lorenza, will you come with me?
Of course!
Actually, perhaps it would be better if all of you came along. They need to understand that you are not our enemy.



Some time later...

Music:





That's not true. You did very well. A change like this won't come instantly. The people will need time. But I think that it had a profound effect on them to see you, Meodar's daughter, together with the people, the humans, who have traveled with you and protected you.
Yes... The Havali never truly wished for the annihilation of humans. All they wanted was to live in peace, in their own land. The war affected us all deeply. I really believed that Ortas knew what was best for us, that he was the only one who could help us. But it seems he was just misguided, like all of us were. I'm sorry, Lorenza. If it weren't for me, it wouldn't have come this far.
Forget about it. We shouldn't hold grudges at a time like this.
But... who was it that caused all the panic underground?



What? But that can't be!
It can... She was released from her prison quite recently. But the strange thing is... she has already disappeared from Entalar.
We should immediately order a search of the caverns, just to be safe.
Yes, I will... but I believe we are safe from her for now. She's not the type to hide and lay traps. I don't understand it, though... She surely came here for me.
I assume Castor already left as well.
Yes, his ship is gone. He slipped away during the chaos at the Awakening ceremony.
Hmph. So he abandoned his allies as soon as there was nothing more to gain for him.



But... speaking of the Awakening... What are we going to do about it? We can still do it, if Lorenza agrees to it.
You think we should still go through with it, Lesalia? Indeed, we've had to wait a long time... but Lorenza has to do it. She has the final say.
If we can awaken them all and get them on our side, we'd have a lot more allies.



It's not that simple. It will be hard enough to convince the people who are already awake. For the ones who are sleeping, it will be as if the war has only just happened. We shouldn't awaken them while the other Havali are still in disorder.
She's right... For now, we should focus on restoring order. Lorenza... There is something I need to talk about with you. I've had thoughts about this before, but now I'm fully convinced that you're capable of it. The time would've come sooner or later. I think it's exactly what we need right now.



Music: None

W-What?
Now that Ortas is dead, we need a new leader. I've already proven many times before that I am not suitable for the position. Only you can do it, Lorenza. You are the next in line.
Me...? The new Elder...?



Of course, you don't have to decide right away. I don't want to pressure you. You can all stay here at the castle for as long as you like.
I think that after all that happened, we could all use some rest.



Next time: Wait, Lorenza's not going to leave us, is she...?