Part 63: Mission 27 (Byston Well Route) - The Overworlders' Aura Power - Part 1
We’ll be starting off with the Byston Well route, where Aesap’s deploying as a solo event unit. Everyone else is fair game, so here’s how we’re going:
Lockon/Michio
Zhang Fei/Sun Shangxiang
Sun Quan/Kenji
Kazuki/Allelujah
Mazinkaiser/Saya
Cao Cao/Tieria
Liu Bei/Canon
Mamoru/Sakura
Shou/Guan Yu
Kurou/Tsubasa
Setsuna/Marvel
Arnie
Tactician: Zhuge Liang
In hindsight, while Arnie has Continuous Action, he would’ve benefitted more from having Marvel allowing him to fly in this mission. Oh, well.
Off we go.
As the Ptolemaios sails through Byston Well, Ennea points out the twinkly stars up in the sky. And that’s even more impressive considering it’s supposed to be daytime! Erebos and Marvel explain that those are actually phosphorescent lights given out by abyssal fish (again, in the sky) – better put, those lights are flickers of vital energy that every creature possesses, a.k.a., Aura Power.
Furthermore, Byston Well is said to be the land in between the earth and the ocean, which is why you see the bottom of the sea up in the sky. Kurou sure didn’t know about any of that, seeing how he’d never been down here before.
As Mamoru wonders how worried the folks left in the Overworld must be over our sudden disappearance, Sima Yi turns to Lux and asks how we managed to find our way back before. Well, that was when the Wings of Rean shined during Aesap’s battle with Sakomizu, which, as Soushi remembers, dropped us at Tatsumiya immediately after Shouko’s Fenrir went off.
Cham wonders if the explosion contributed to opening the Aura Road, and Lux has an hypothesis: it could be that the overlapping surge of emotions at both the surface and Byston Well battles reacted to one another and caused the Aura Road to open. So it’s the old “power of emotions” deal, huh?
Maya likes that idea, figuring Shouko’s wish to defend the island even at the cost of her life beckoned everyone to Tatsumiya. Whatever the case, Zhuge Liang says we still don’t have a clear grasp on how to open the Aura Road, so we should probably try and look for possible options.
Right on cue, Feldt phones over and says we’re getting a message from someone identifying himself as being with the rebel army.
And it’s Amalgan, the leader of the group, and he’s glad to see that, indeed, Lux came through the Aura World as it opened (and he had a feeling she’d still be with the Overworlders). The princess, however, is not at all happy to speak with “rebels who do nothing but disrupt peace and plunge the populace in the ravages of war”. What does he want?!
Amalgan asks that she save her criticisms and extends a request to meet with our folks – he’d like explain his group and their cause to us, and Lux. If we’re on board, he can direct us to their stronghold of Abuta Blas. Sumeragi says we’ll discuss his proposal and will get back to him on that. Amalgan will be waiting a positive answer.
So, what does Lux think? Richard doesn’t believe Amalgan is lying to us but she’s the one with the most insight here. Well, while he IS the leader of the rebels, Lux knows he’s not the kind of man to resort to deception. Fine, she – as Hojo’s crown princess – agrees to meet with him.
And so, later on, Amalgan bids us welcome to their base – he’s glad we accepted their invitation. Our people look around, though, and Arnie notes that this doesn’t really give off that “wartime base” vibe. For instance, Soma spots many kids and elderly up and about, and Saya figures this looks much more like a refugee camp than anything else. As Kiki tells, that’s pretty much what it is: they’ve taken in the people who lived in neighboring villages that the Hojo Army destroyed.
Kiki and Hebi properly introduce themselves as Aura Machine pilots and thank us for the assist during their assault at Hypp Kurene castle – it was thanks to us that the enemy’s big battleship was stranded. Tsubasa points out that we only attacked there to rescue our friends, but the rebels aren’t ones to look a gift horse in the mouth.
Lux demands Amalgan to get to the point, though: what does he want to talk about? When he asks, Zhou Yu confirms that we’re aware of Sakomizu’s plans to expand his rule beyond the land of Herikon and into the surface – which is why he’s making a more aggressive push towards ending the rebellion here.
As Amalgan tells, Shinjiro Sakomizu was once the sole survivor of a Japanese kamikaze unit. While he traversed the Aura Road and wound up here, he has long dreamt of returning to the Overworld. That’s fine, but how does he figure he needs to invade the place as well? Lux explains that he sees the current Japan as a rotted shell of its pre-WWII self, and seeks to conquer and restore it to its true glory.
“Say what?! He can argue about glory and all that, but Japan is now a peaceful nation…!” Aesap tries objecting, but Sumeragi cuts in with a more important question. Is Amalgan suggesting that the Hojo Army still has a way to reach the Overworld and take it over?
That sounds impossible to Erebos without the Wings of Rean shoes, and while Amalgan doesn’t know the particulars, he’s certain Sakomizu must have something up his sleeve. The thought of Aura Machines swarming the Overworld is not one Shou’s happy to relive.
But this brings us to Amalgan’s request: he’d like us to assist him in putting a stop to Sakomizu and his plans (Lux flinches). As Ruri sees it, this was what he was after when contacting us, and Hebi notes that the Hojo Army IS very strong. Having us on their side would certainly ease a lot of minds.
Plus, Kiki points out that while they have their ace Holy Warrior lady, she’s only one person. Marvel didn’t think said Holy Warrior would be in with the rebels but, yup, she’s joined them in their battle to save the people against Sakomizu’s oppression – mind you, she’s out on the field right now.
As Shou wonders who this Holy Warrior flying an overworld machine could be, Lockon and Allelujah aren’t too excited that we’re being called to take part in another world’s civil war. Especially considering what our potential enemy means to Lux.
Cut to Hypp Kurene, Sakomizu’s already received intel that the Overworlders are back and were contacted by the rebels. Codour shakes her fist at Amalgan for shacking up with the Overworld’s armies, and Kotto is worried. As seen with the Holy Warrior lady, such alliances can make for not-insignificant headaches for them.
But they have confirmation that we’re at Abuta Blas, so Murassa is ready to set out and hunt us down as soon as the order is given. And Codour does so immediately – destroy anyone who threatens peace in the land of Herikon!
With that in mind, Sakomizu tells Murassa to take “them” along with her. She’s a bit queasy with that, as those guys are kind of loose-cannons, but Sakomizu says that that’s not really a bad thing when dealing with Overworlders.
Shot Weapon approaches the king and points out that Aesap Suzuki may have resurfaced along with our team. And, in that case, Sakomizu’s dream – the reclamation of Japan – is now closer than ever!
SRW UX - Prologue
: Hm… So you are ill at ease over the idea of working with our rebellion?
: While we did attack the Hojo forces when they invaded the surface, outright interfering in this land’s civil war would just be a base act of aggression.: That may be so… but I get the feeling that the princess sees things as we do.
: Me…?: Yes, you want Sakomizu’s rampage to be stopped.
: …!: The once righteous Holy Warrior that shed his own blood to birth an era of peace has now degenerated into a tyrant, a tormentor of his people…: You wanted Sakomizu to change his ways, which is why you went as far as stealing the Wings of Rean shoes. Or am I wrong?: …: I…
: Lux…
: Alright, old man, let’s not put the princess on the spot. : Here you go, folks: we don’t have a whole lot here, but we can at least give you plenty to eat.
: Aah, don’t need to tell me twice! I’m so hungry, I could eat a Festum whole!: Erm… what food is this?
: That’s frog soup; over here you got lizard roast. 
: L-Lizard…?
: What, you guys don’t want any? It tastes pretty good, I tell ya.
: Never mind what it looks like. It’s its contents that truly matter, and its contents are very fine.
: We’re glad to hear that.: This isn’t high cuisine, we know, but we risked our lives to earn this food. : You’ve risked your lives for this…?
: But why are you fighting this war if it’s making your life so tough?: You’re getting hurt, your blood is being spilled… why do you keep fighting?
: ‘Tis the work of their beliefs, I say.: “Beliefs”?: That which is the unbreakable core of your being, which remains steadfast even in your darkest hour… Such is belief – such is pride.: ‘Tis something any and all humans possess, from the strongest to the feeblest. : …!
: Belief and pride…: Liu Bei, as we fought during the Battle of Red Cliffs, I felt the weight of yours and Sun Quan’s beliefs quite clearly…
: Cao Cao…: …*Lux leaves.*
: Lux…! Where are you going?!: Oh, brother… guess our cooking didn’t fit with the princess’ tastes. 
: No, no, I’m sure that wasn’t what happened.: Your food is truly heartfelt, and it shows in its flavor.
: Heartfelt, hm? Perhaps, perhaps…: (Lux…): …: Is something wrong, Lux? I mean, you left so suddenly…: Aesap… Sorry, I’m just ashamed of myself.: Ashamed…?: All this time, I have thought that the people should be protected, and that it was the king’s duty to do so. : But now I see that I was wrong. The people have beliefs of their own and have been fighting for those! They’re no different from us…!: Lux…: But I didn’t understand any of that. All I did was trumpet my own agenda, looking just to stop my father…!: I could say the same…: The same…?: I've spent my whole life griping about my absent dad, about how crummy society is, just whining without engaging or trying to do anything about it.: But that doesn't help anything, does it?: If you really want to change society, you have to be ready to put your own boots on the ground, side-by-side with others, to do it.: Aesap…*Alarm!*
: …?!: This alarm is…!
: Guys, we’ve trouble on the horizon! The Hojo Army is heading this way!: They’ve finally sniffed us out…!
: What happens now?!: We’ll fight, of course, but can’t you guys please join us for this?!: Leave them, Kiki. This is our problem to deal with.: But general…!: There are wounded, women and children in this fort, though, and we can’t let them simply be killed.: I apologize for asking this of you, Overworlders, but could you escort them away from here?
: …?!
: And what are you going to do?: We’ll hold them off for as long as we can.
: Amalgan, you…: Get going, please. If you leave now, you won’t have to worry about any Hojo pursuers.
: Please wait!: Aesap and I will stay here and fight with the rebels! SRW UX - Rebellion Against Fate
: ?! Lux…!: I am the crown princess of Hojo. And if the king turns to harm his people, then it’s my duty to stop him!: A-Aah… Your Highness!
: Well, alright, then. And the UX’ll be there to back you up…!
: Very much so. We’ll repay our debt to you straight away.: “Debt”…? But we didn’t…: You took a big risk by calling and letting us stay here, so it’s only fair that we answer in kind.: …?!
: That was a pretty great soup you gave us, too.: Hear, hear. And the heavens don’t appreciate folks who don’t give others their due!: Y-You’re…!: Th-Thank you…! Thank you so much!: Alright, troops, get ready to move out! We’ll give those Hojo-Heads a warm welcome!
: Yes, sir!
Mission 27 (Byston Well Route) – The Overworlders’ Aura Power
: These accursed rebels really have allied themselves with the Overworlders!
: Then we need not show them any mercy! All of them’ll die by our hands!: That’s a really big group they sent here…!: I know, it’s great! And they’re gonna learn what happens when you mess with us!
: Lux, are you doing okay there?: Yes, don’t worry. I’ve been undergoing pilot training for a while now. : And, more importantly, I have to speak with those people and convince them to stop this fruitless battle…!*Lux flies a bit forward.*
: I am Lux Sakomizu, daughter of King Sakomizu! Who do I speak to?!: Princess Lux?!: Wasn’t she missing? What is she doing with the rebels?!: I’ll explain everything later, but I ask that you first listen to me. : There are many non-combatants inside this fort, so, please, call back your forces.: With all due respect, Your Highness…: The king has commanded that in the event that we met with the princess, then we were to bring her home… even if it meant beating her into submission. : …!: A major opportunity has been given to us! Glory will be ours!: Tsk, I feared they wouldn’t simply listen to me, but…!: Forget about them, Lux. What we need to worry about now is finding a way through this!: Come, rebels! Your days of rising against your king are over!: Hmph, so much for the negotiations. 
: We are left with no choice. Intercept the enemy forces and hold their advance! Troops, forward!
Kill everything without losing a ship, Aesap, Amalgan or Lux. The plot kicks in when 5 enemy teams have been downed or when Kasumi/Murassa are downed, whereupon the midbosses will both retreat, so if you want the extra cash/exp, go for them first.
It’s been a while since we fought Hojo troops, but they’re pretty much the same: accurate and dodgy-ish, but with absolutely piss for defenses. Keep focus/strike going, spread command auras, and take it to ‘em.
Mind you, our starting area is surrounded on all sides by rivers, so you’ll either want all your guys flying or send them aboard the Ptolemaios and give them a lift across. Split your forces across each bank, but keep a heavier presence on the eastern one – there’s more on the way.
Gim Ginen (Lux Sakomizu)
Pilot Skills:
Aura Power L3
Support Attack L2
Support Defense L2
All Attack L1
Spirit Commands:
Alert
Accelerate
Mech Features:
Sword
Repair Module
Ultra-High-Speed Evasion
10% HP and EN Regen
Squad Bonus: Money and Exp +10% (Money and Exp +20%, 1250 Barrier)
Lux’s voice actress: Yu Shinamura (other roles: Aida in Reconquista in G, young Flit in Gundam AGE, Zelda in Skyward Sword and BotW, and plenty more)
Gim Ginen (Amalgan Ludol/Kiki/Hebi)
Pilot Skills - Amalgan:
Aura Power L5
Support Attack L1
Support Defense L1
All Attack L1
Command L2
Pilot Skills - Kiki:
Aura Power L3
Support Attack L2
Support Defense L2
All Attack L1
Pilot Skills - Hebi:
Aura Power L3
Support Attack L2
Support Defense L2
All Attack L1
Spirit Commands - Amalgan:
Invincible
Focus
Fury
Spirit Commands - Kiki:
Focus
Vigor
Alert
Fighting Spirit
Spirit Commands - Hebi:
Accelerate
Focus
Invincible
Trust
Mech Features:
Sword
Ultra-High-Speed Evasion
10% HP and EN Regen
Resupply Module – Kiki only
Repair Module – Hebi only
Squad Bonus - Amalgan: Accuracy +5, Armor +100 (Accuracy +15, Armor +150, Crit +15, HP +500)
Squad Bonus - Kiki: Melee weapons +100, Exp +10% (Melee weapons +200, Exp +20%, EN +75, Mobility +5)
Squad Bonus - Hebi: Ranged weapons +100, Money +10% (Ranged weapons +200, Money +20%, S in Air, Accuracy +5)
Amalgan’s voice actor: Yutaka Nakano (other roles: Ishikawa in Ghost in the Shell, Bartlow in Tales of Zestiria and several more.)
Kiki’s voice actress: Akeno Watanabe (other roles: Ibis in SRW Alpha/OGs, Sharla/Karna in Xenoblade, Viletta and kid Suzaku in Code Geass, May-yen in Zegapain and many more)
Hebi’s voice actress: Junko Minagawa (other roles: Cornelia in Code Geass, sagitta Weinberg in Sakura Wars, Ryouma in Prince of Tennis and many more)
Squaddies, squaddies, squaddies everywhere. The Gim Ginens are nothing to write home about in terms of power, but their size makes them quite dodgy and the rebel trio have the advantage of actually having a combo attack – that grants more stopping power than most.
Lux is the worst pilot of the bunch, being pretty much a pure support: her main draw is that she has Accelerate and, at level 37, will learn Bless. Bless casters are unusually rare in UX (we’ve yet to get one!), so that’s very good. Adding a barrier on top of a +money bonus makes for a nice squaddie, and you can only get her if you go on this route!
Amalgan, Kiki and Hebi are about on the same “good” tier of stats, with Amalgan being the biggest and more accurate hitter, Hebi being the dodgiest and Kiki being the jack-of-all-trades.
Hebi’s Squad Bonus, Accelerate plus Resupply Module makes her a GREAT squaddie (she’s a perfect fit with Magami, but even non-ranged attackers will love having her around), and she’ll probably get the most use out of the bunch, though Kiki’s also a good fit for EN hungry melee attackers like Kouichi or the SD Gundams. Amalgan, you’ll likely bench unless you want to use that combo attack.
That’s our homework done, so let’s get to it.
SRW UX - Tales of Mirisha ~ The Brave Legend
SRW UX - My Fate: So long as the king continues to oppress his people, we’ll stand and fight against him! We won’t hesitate, even if it means being tarred as rebels!
: Step up, Hebi! We’re gonna pay them back for everything they’ve done thrice over!: That goes without saying, girl… Come on!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAorlY_KtpI
Here’s the Gim Ginen’s best non-combined attack.
SRW UX - My Fate: Come what may, I will put an end to the Hojo Army’s violence!: This blade bears my ideals and my beliefs, and I swear upon them to see it done!
Son of a bitch.
But the enemy drops like flies anyway, which is a problem as I didn’t remember that 5 squads was the cut-off point. Oh, well.
: You are strong, indeed. Then I suppose we must make use of our secret weapon!: What…?!*Flash!*
: Aaack!*Flash!*
: Hrgh… Damn it all! Who was that?!
: New Aura Battlers! Were they the ones who attacked them?!
: H-Hey, Shou! Those Aura Battlers…!
: Everyone be careful! The Aura Power those machines are giving off… there are Overworlders like us piloting those!
: Overworlders?!
: Oho, he can tell that we’re Overworlders? But I guess I shouldn’t be surprised – you are the Holy Warrior who took down Drake’s Army.: Drake’s Army? Do you know about our world?!
: And seeing how Aesap’s there with you, I’m guessing what King Sakomizu’s told us was the truth!: Rouri… Kanamoto?!: What are you two doing in Byston Well?! And with the Hojo Army for that matter?!: That should be pretty obvious! We and King Sakomizu’ll drive the Union off Japan and reclaim our nation!: Our Aura Power’s a whole lot stronger than the other folks around here, which means…!: You stop this idiocy right now! This is war!: Yeah, it is! And the victors define what’s right and what’s wrong – so there’s absolutely nothing to hold us back!: You’re…!: We’re gonna make it all the way to the top! And we’ll destroy any who’d keep us from that… even you, Aesap!
: Their Aura Powers are synchronizing with each other?!*Both jerks run after Aesap!*
: Get a load of this! DOUBLE DISPATCH!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhk8ehfwm1I
: Gwaaaargh!
: Aesap?!: Gch…rgh…: Wow, look at how easy we took out Aesap’s prototype! This power’s awesome!: So this is our Aura Power. And with all this on my hands, I…!: Those Overworlders are surprisingly capable, I see.: Seize the princess and the rebels!
: Hrm… G-get off me!
: Stop them! They’re going to capture Mr. Suzuki and the others!: Troops, rush over there and rescue the Nanajin and Gim Ginens!: Not happening!
: Uwah! W-We can’t get close!: See to the rest of the battle, Overworlders. We’re taking the captives back to the castle!
: AESAP!
: Damn it, they took them right from under our noses!: Bring it! You’re dealing with us now!
: They’re trying to cut us off!
: Hrm… Focus all our attention on just the enemy! We need to deal with them or we’ll get taken out ourselves!
And all our protection targets are gone, leaving only the Ptolemaios to watch over. Kill everything else.
Shinden (Rouri Yahan)
Pilot Skills:
Aura Power L4
Holy Warrior
Support Attack L2
All Attack L2
Mech Features:
Sword
Ultra-High-Speed Evasion
10% HP and EN Regen
All-Canceller
Rouri’s voice actor: Hiroshi Tsuchida (other roles: J.J. Sexton in Gundam Thunderbolt, Ninja Blue in Kakuranger and some more)
Shinden (Kanamoto Heiji)
Pilot Skills:
Aura Power L3
Holy Warrior
Support Attack L2
All Attack L2
Mech Features:
Sword
Ultra-High-Speed Evasion
10% HP and EN Regen
All-Canceller
Kanamoto’s voice actor: Shingo Tanabe (other roles: Eeh, a few small stuff here and there, but nothing really noteworthy.)
Standard Holy Warrior enemies; we’ve dealt with Burn before, and he was way better. Expect limited range on their best attacks, very good evasion and accuracy, but not much in terms of defenses. Kanamoto has better evasion, but Rouri hits harder since he has a stronger Aura Power – pop Strike and something defensive and drop these dickbags quick.
The AI isn’t clever enough to position itself, so you shouldn’t be seeing more Double Dispatches unless you get unlucky.