Part 40: UPDATE 35: Infernal

Eh, chapter-break updates are really fast to screencap, and unsurprisingly I don't really have anything better to do on Easter Sunday, so here, have another one and let's keep this moving!

Update 35: Infernal



When we last left off, Freddie had just finished killing the Saturos in charge of guarding the Chaos Gate. And took his axe. Meanwhile, Destin and Richard are apparently still squaring off. Both of the generics are dead, but nobody we care about is.

The remaining combatants are distracted by a loud rumbling tremor in the distance! It gets the Lodis fanfare for some reason!

: "I guess they were able to destroy the chaos gate."

: "...There is no reason for us to stay here any longer. Baldwin, withdraw!"



With all prospects for his glamorous vacation in the beautiful Netherworld ruined, Baldwin Lodis-teleports away. I continue to mostly fail to get a proper screenshot of it. It's HARD.

: "You think I'll let you get away!?"

: "Winds that rage over desolate lands of the netherworld, come together as a violent vortex! Infest!"



Looks like someone's been dipping into the hellfruit a little bit himself! Richard, Richard, Richard. Never get high on your own supply.



Then he teleports away too. You can still kind of see a little beam of light there. I tried!

: "Gilbert! Are you alright?"

: "I'm fine... Just caught me off guard, that's all."

: "The knights... of Lodis......"

(Thank you, Destin, for specifying which knights you meant there, I honestly wasn't sure)



Haha I haven't saved since Dardunnelles



MONTAGE TIIIIME



It's hard to convey in still shots, but basically these rich people are sort of slowly closing in on this nun and she's backing away.



But then in comes Odiron and all is forgiven!

(Montage text bolded here to differentiate it from my text)

"Residents of Capitrium were thrown into chaos by the appearance of the denizens of the netherworld...

But the disorder gradually subsided with the return of Archbishop Odiron to the Eastern Orthodox Church.

The Church decided to cease assisting Latium, and promised their cooperation to the Revolutionary Army."

Yeah I guess all it takes is ONE plot to overthrow the church's main figure and suddenly they're all viva la revolucion, go figure

In case it's not clear: Latium is the formal name for the area immediately surrounding the Palatinean capital of Winnea, symbolizing the Central Region analogously to "Alba" for the south and "Wentinus" for the West. It's named not-so-subtly for the Latin name of this region which happens to contain the city of Rome.

"Led by the Berthan Sentinels, they concentrated on the surveillance and defense of the Temple of Berthe, and the search for the denizens of the netherworld."

The game keeps using the awkward phrase "denizens of the netherworld" as a blanket term for demons and all their friends. It probably sounds better in Japanese.



Cut to this lone Valkyrie, possibly injured, trudging through this snowy forest using her spear as a walking-stick.



All of a sudden: DEMONS OUT OF NOWHERE.



She tries her hardest to trudge a little faster as they raise their axes and we have our next freeze-frame.

"Meanwhile, the Revolutionary Army recognized the threat posed by the denizens of the netherworld, and warned Latium of it, in conjunction with the proposal of secession from the Holy Lodis Empire and peace accord with the Revolutionary Army, but..."



You kind of have to admire the balls that must have taken, though. "Heads up, guys, thanks to the combined actions of you, Lodis, and us, there are now demons all the fuck over the country which you run and which we're continually trying to take over. Speaking of, still not too late to switch sides! Eh? Eh???"



AND SO THE FINAL CHAPTER BEGINS



Richard is currently making himself comfortable in King Procus's old conference room, to some new music.



Yeah, apparently this guy's name is Thamuz. He's never really formally introduced. Nice 'stache, though.

: "If Valeria finds out the secret of the ultimate power, they will gain even more power."

oh hey tactics ogre reference

: "The western ruins are our only hope... Have we heard anything from Zeda?"

DUN DUN DUNNNNN

: "She has not appeared since Prince Yumil's disappearance. ...Don't you think it's foolish to rely on Zeda? I don't know her true intentions. She is one of them, after all... She will never agree with us."

: "But, her information was accurate. Chaos gate... Child of the Covenant... We can safely trust her information regarding the ultimate power. Even running the risk of her betraying us, there is nothing else we can do. Now that the chaos gate has been destroyed, we have no other source of information."

: "If you say so, I'll shut up. ...I will follow you. ...You do understand, Richard? We may miss our only chance to reform the Caliginous Order. You will restore the former glory your father established!"

: "I know. ...I know, Thamuz. If not for you, the house of Glendale would have ended with my father's death. ...I cannot thank you enough. To repay your loyalty, and for him, I will..."

I'm not sure exactly what Thamuz is meant to have done (is he Richard's real dad or something???) but we're not given the opportunity to mull it over very long...



...because here come the demons! Every time this conference room is shown you just KNOW someone's going to burst in dramatically.

Speaking of which, they brought someone with them.



Well well well, the tables have certianly turned, have they not?



Cut to Baldwin walking through the throne room.



Suddenly, two Pruflas lookalikes and one Templar approach him... with swords drawn.



The Templar tries to get the drop on him. It doesn't go over so well.

: "What do you think you're doing!? ...?"



Cut to the throne, where Prince Amrius is standing in front of the big chair. He's not feeling talkative, apparently.





Suddenly that Templar gets back up!!!

: "......Ha...haha......"



Richard and Thamuz rush in and get Baldwin's back.

: "Are you alright, Baldwin!? Don't bother trying to reason with them! They... have succumbed."

: "......Succumbed...?"

: "They are lost to the Infernal Aura. They have succumbed to the way of the darkness!"

: "...What? ......That's impossible! They are the Knights Templar. How could their strong will succumb to darkness......"

: "They've been affected by the powerful enchantment of the netherworlders! Its potency is far greater than the fruit of the netherworld! We have underestimated their power..."

: "This is the power of the netherworld... The true power of the Infernal Aura......"

: "Baldwin, get out of here! We cannot afford to lose you. ...Hurry!!"



It may sound like Richard is going to heroically cover Baldwin's retreat here, but what actually happens is that all three of them make a run for it. The possessed Templars don't appear very interested in stopping them.



Aw yeah, this scene was SERIOUSLY missing an evil laugh.

SO, in summary: A good number of the Brigade of Radiant Cross, as well as the Palatinean royal family, have been possessed by demons! Well, Yumil hasn't necessarily been possessed by them, but he's crashing on their couch and out of the picture. At any rate, our enemies have consolidated considerably. This is a problem.



Cut to our conference room. As usual, the attendees are Frederick, Freddie, Hugo, whoever else happens to be plot-important at the moment, and a random Valkyrie. At least Xevec's not here this time.

: "...So the Eastern Orthodox Church cannot join us?"

: "I'm sorry, but it is impossible for us to participate in the revolution. Since everyone here is deeply religious, they are disturbed by the denizens of the netherworld. ...And they also hold suspicions against the Revolutionary Army. We will keep watch over the Temple of Berthe and the chaos gate, and protect this land while you march to Latium... WIll you accept these as the sign of our cooperation? This is all we can do at the moment..."

: "We understand. ...Well, Frederick? We can fight without worrying about our back... The Church hasn't become our enemy. We should be grateful."

: "You're right. What is the status of Latium?"

: "We still haven't received a response on the peace accord from them. Tempers are flaring between Sir Xevec's Southern Tigers and the Central Division near the border, but no major incidents have happened yet."

jeez xevec way to name your division like a college sports team



WHOA

Freddie, something looks different... did you get a haircut or something?

: "Do you have any info on the Radiant Cross?"

: "The Central Division is now under their command. Other than that, everything remains the same. Lodis is busy trying to squash the Bolmaukan uprising."

: "I doubt that Lodis is able to send reinforcements here. ...Very fortunate for us. It appears that there's no intention of accepting the peace proposal. I think this is the perfect opportunity to confront the Central Division, and the Caliginous Order."

: "...Yes. This will be a decisive battle. I wanted to resolve this peacefully, but now... We must not let the Central Division and Lodis wield the power of the netherworld. Their actions are neither holy nor noble. The people will surely side with us..."

At this point, Frederick turns toward the camera to address Freddie. OR... the PLAYER!?!??



: "...the flagbearer of revolution. The outcome, the fate of this kingdom is in your hands. ...Are you willing to take that responsibility?"

: "I'm just an ordinary human. I am neither strong-willed nor gifted with any special ability. But, I won't turn my back, ever again! I'll fight for the revolution... for the good of all people!"

: "...Thank you. I'll be counting on you, Freddie. We will drive back the Brigade of Radiant Cross and begin the march on Latium. General Gallant is our commander."

oh hey, that's new

I thought that new dialogue portrait looked a little higher-ranking than the one before did.



With that, we're back on the world map, at Alba. All of the Eastern Region is still open, unlike the Western Region which is still half closed-off, but we can't actually go there right now because at some point between chapters Gules Hills fell and it's in our way. Probably Xevec's fault.



One thing has changed during the chapter break -- Freddie is now a General, and has received the appropriate character class. He gets Debonair's Sonic Blast attack in the back row, and this will change elements if you give him a different weapon, but I prefer not to use him that way because his new third attack from the front row is much more exciting. Also, he's now a heavy armor user despite the fact that his character model still appears to be wearing the medium Baldr Mail.



Make sure you remember to re-equip him! I cannot stress enough how incredibly outdated the Baldr Sword is by this point.



Due to not meshing right with Sheen's alignment, the Axe of Wyrm goes to Brundlefly, opening up the Aqua Hammer for Pidgey.



Sheen does get a Helm of Thunderclap out of the deal, though, and I passed the Freude Helm along to Europea as well.



Bluemage is just barely able to squeeze some utility out of the Snow Orb; Guy finds the Naga Ring much more helpful (as well as enjoying the refreshing blast of an Ice Bandana upon his brow).



Fine, Doctor Reynolds, you can have the fancy mace, but only because your character kept me from getting a Game Over like four times last mission.



I think that about does it for us this time! NEXT TIME ON OGRE BATTLE: Gules Hills again! But the stakes are HIGHER this time!