Part 16: East Meets West

A short but sweet update. Last time we brushed off Rei's offer to be sent to the pseudo Astral Plane, but now we've got to get a move on.



>Go to the pseudo Astral Plane?
>YES
NO



: I need to stay here so that I can bring you back when you're done. Alright, here we go.



DUNGEON 17 - PSEUDO ASTRAL PLANE
New demons:
Balor Es Doppelganger Throne
Rangda Loki Grendel Ganesha

BGM: Otherworld Dungeon (Astral World)
MUSIC: Chercher (Otherworld Dungeon - Astral World)



...I might've changed my mind about wanting to be in here.

The game sets this up as a solo dungeon, but luckily it's not!



: ...Long time no see...Seems you're having fun in my body...
: You nearly gave me a heart attack, Naoto Shibata. Just running around in my body like some idiot.
: But I fell into Sid's trap and he sealed me here, so there's nothing I could've done. I managed to make it back to the real world by controlling that Takashi punk's corpse, but being stuck in the body of some nobody isn't much better than being here.
: Sid Davis is in here right now, and I want to go settle the score. You want to save your girl from back when you were Naoto, right? You're going to have to get Sid for that. Looks like our goals are the same, so let's team up and defeat him.



So, Kyouji joins us for this dungeon. If I'm honest, he's really not that great. His stats are too balanced to be of a lot of use in either physical or magic attacks, and his MP is far lower than Rei's. This is compounded by the fact that almost all of his skills take at least 20 MP, which means it's very easy to run out of MP. He does have the invaluable skill Sabbath, which allows us to summon demons without using MAG and summon them even in COMP-free zones - which this entire dungeon is.



Devil Summoner isn't too sadistic, so you can easily head back to the real world if you feel the need.



: I can't leave here. If you want to go back then you're on your own.

But the dungeon is pretty short and the demons aren't too tough, so there's no need for me to go back. Let's head out.



: Wait, let me grab my stuff. Over here.



After this short interlude.

BGM: Astral Meeting



: My weapon and equipment's here, so let me just get it.

If you keep forgetting to upgrade your stuff then fear not, because you can "borrow" (steal) Kyouji's stuff for yourself. I grabbed his sword for myself, but everything else was either the same as or weaker than my current set-up.

: I've got my weapon and armor now, so let me put it on and then we can go get Sid.



And now we're actually off. Other than being a COMP-free zone, this dungeon has one very interesting gimmick - it loops. If you head west then you'll eventually be in the east and vice versa. It also has a few warps, but it's nothing to really worry about, especially in comparison to the last few dungeons.



The man-made dungeon's even got some treasure. Very fancy.



The problem of Kyouji's less-than-stellar MP is solved by the inclusion of a heal space about halfway through the dungeon. I got my MAG up to a more reasonable level, so I could use it no problem.

There aren't too many new demons this time around, and since it's a COMP-free zone we can't do any recruiting.



First up is Doppelganger. Early MegaTen titles had the Doppelganger appear as a faceless shadow, but he actually looks like us (er, Kyouji) this time around, down to the same sword. Like almost every appearance, he reflects all physical attacks back our way, which is kinda a big pain when all we have is Kyouji.



Also of note is Rangda. She tends to reflect at least one if not all forms of physical attacks in most of her appearances, but not this time.



Es, along with Doppelganger, only appears in this dungeon. Due to the nature of what it's based off of, I'm going to go ahead and say that was done for symbolic reasons.



The last two to appear were Grendel and Throne (with the first appearance of his wheel of fire design).



After a bit of warping fun, I make it to Sid.

BGM: Conversation



: Now listen to me, Kumiko. I know that you have Azuma's book, so I need you to tell me where it is. I could force myself into your mind, but I like to avoid getting rough with a lady when I can help it.
: Come now, tell me where it is. Your soul will be trapped here unless you tell me.



: ...Hm? Who's there?
: Two Kyouji Kuzunohas? ...No, that's not right. Only one of you is Kuzunoha...
: The other is...Oh, Naoto Shibata, the one who died at the construction site. Yes, I see. So you really did die, Kyouji Kuzunoha. Then Naoto Shibata must have taken residence in your body. That must be why my magic didn't work. I'm going to have to pay you back in full for this little trick you pulled on me.
: That's right, I suppose you being here means you defeated Demiurge? I'm very grateful. He helped me to remove the seals by manipulating the Tendou-gumi and the mayor, but he fulfilled his duty and is of no use to the organization now. You've saved me the work of getting rid of him myself.
: Now then, since you two refused to die, I'll just have to finish what I started.

Boss #19 - SID DAVIS (2ND BATTLE)

BGM: Boss Battle

VS Fiend Sid

Compared to Demiurge, Sid is a huge pushover. He has 1300 less HP, can only hit 2 to 4 times per turn, and has so-so physical and magical attack power.



How well this battle goes depends on his skill Vice Gospel. It'll hit for some damage, but its danger comes from the fact that it will inflict a random ailment. So depending on what you get stuck with, this battle will either be easy or annoying. I tended to get hit with Charm most of the time.



AMAZON: I am a butterfly of the night...A fickle lady.



He can also inflict Mute with his skill Makafuji.



Other than those two attacks, his demon-only attack Magic Bullet makes a return. His last two attacks are the Ice attack Mabufula and the Psionic attack Mahapsy. This was the easiest boss in quite a while.



: Lucky whelp...I'll remember this! I don't have any more time to play with you. Goodbye.

Sid Davis says this line when you beat him in his boss appearance in Soul Hackers, so thank you to Atlus USA for that line's translation!





: You're...Naoto...
: Naoto! You're alive? You're really alive...? So you were alive all this time as that detective Mr. Kuzunoha. When I heard you wouldn't make it, I was crushed...it was only then that I understood my true feelings towards you...
: I need to tell you where I hid the professor's book. You know, that one I checked out when we went to the library.
: ...It's in the Yarai Ginza coin locker. The locker number is...aaah! My body is calling me away!!
: ...The number is...my birthday...





: ...Must've been Sid who called her back. I need to get out of here soon...Oh, but Naoto Shibata, you're not coming back.

What.

: You're in my body and my soul's here now. This is where the body and soul of Devil Summoner Kyouji Kuzunoha are going to come back together. Your role here is over. The rest of this fight is up to me.

Wait, no.

: Farewell, Naoto. Rest in peace ...Later.

No no no.



BGM: Sanzu River

Not this again.





: The soul of Naoto Shibata. It is your time to cross the Sanzu River, as it will be for all who die. Come, Naoto Shibata, and join me on the other side...

Kyouji!



You son of a bitch!

______________

Next update: I'm in hell.