Part 75: Update LVIII - Here, This Will Explain Everything

Update LVIII - Here, This Will Explain Everything



♪ BGM: Johlar Dungeon - CastleNight.mid ♫

So, last time, a crash cost me a large chunk of time. And then I decided that I was not going to deal with that bullshit again. You might have noticed that something has changed here.







There we go.



Anyway, Jinnai shows up again to be all "cya dopes" and we find ourselves fragmentless.



♪ BGM: Asgar's Castle - blood009.mid ♫

However, we also find ourselves with a full set of vampire equipment, which makes us very defensive. We also take the vampire mage along for the ride, since we're going to need him.



With some of the souls we totally grinded for, we grab the best version of blood sucking to help with replenishing our reserves when the opportunity arises.



Anyway, we're stocked up about as well as our cash reserves allow, and it's time to head to the one place Jinnai could be. I mean, the game doesn't give you any direct hints as to where he is, so I guess the place being kind of obvious makes sense to some degree.



♪ BGM: Place Of The Elras - batwings.mid ♫

Now, when we show up to the Place of the Elras, something is actually there. Warning: Get ready for a motherfucking plot dump.



♪ BGM: Endgame - tension.mid ♫



I will never let go of you again! I will not lose you again! And now, give me your power!





AT LAST! FORGOTTEN ARE THE YEARS OF THIS PITIFUL EXISTENCE! THE POWER IS MINE! HARHARHAR!
I expected nothing less...



It doesn't surprise me that you have run away with the stone fragments.
What was that supposed to mean, you will not lose them again!? You already had them!?
Very well, since you were so devoted to me, I'm not going to let you die in ignorance...
Many years ago, I was slaughtering the warriors of the Clan. Quick and efficiently. One after another. My bloodlust knew no boundaries. The blood splattered the walls by the liters when I conquered their castles. My might was enormous, and the Clan too fat and bloated. Too weak to defend themselves against me! One stone fragment after the other fell into my hands. Until one day...



Those wretched warriors of the Clan are rotting in hell. And so are the damn Elras. Nothing and no one is going to stop me now! My power is immeasurable! I will enslave the entire human race! Oh, yes, they will all serve me... and now, grant me POWER! SOL ET MARU DEBANOR SAI!







Damn it, what's going on? Why is nothing happening!? I recited the spell correctly...

But suddenly, the ground starts shaking!

WHAT!? AAAAHHHHH...



And then...



♪ BGM: Silence ♫





♪ BGM: Place Of The Elras - batwings.mid ♫

Everything changed. Continents sank. Mountains arose. Only because I forgot one thing. Because souls were something I had plenty of! But I didn't know about that. Just like these wretches here...



You wretched traitor!
I'm spitting on you, you son of a bitch!
Just listen to them. Humans are so pathetic.
At least we agree on that...
ASGAR!
Whereas this goon here behind me tried to activate the stone tablet despite not even having the required souls, and therefore causing the stone tablet to shatter for the first time, I had made another grave mistake. After I reassembled the stone fragments once again, it was already too late. But I didn't know that back then. Because this damn stone tablet first needs to be "activated" by an Elras. If that does not happen, apparently, the tablet destroys the world. As ingenious as it is simple. A safety barrier that prevents someone who isn't an Elras from using the stone tablet.



♪ BGM: Silence ♫

Suddenly, a blue flash!

What was that?

Then, we hear a female laugh.

That's...



JAYNA!
Jayna!
Jayna!
Jayna, you cursed bitch!
THE ELRAS WITCH!



It appears that I have been more than missed... even though my name's not Jayna...
Who the hell are you?
You don't see who is behind this body? Well, then it seems I am one step ahead of you, my dear USTRA!

♪ BGM: Throwing Knives - warlord.mid ♫

USTRA?
Oh, damn it, this is getting too much for me...
Jayna is insane...
Well, so you know my little secret. Wouldn't it be fair if you now told me yours? WHO are you?
Oh, Ustra... how long has it been? Your victory over the Elras? When you had imprisoned us in OUR book... and when you then slaughtered the last of our kind?
Ah, Ghadar... I'm not surprised to see you inside the body of a redheaded girl... as far as I'm aware, you always had a weakness for humans like these.
Oh yes... why else do you think all female vampires have red hair if they also had them when they were still alive? Because WE wanted it this way! The spell of vampirism has been shaped by our passion for that.
You perverse creatures! Curse you!
Silence, human! Or else, I will kill you immediately, and you'll miss the best part!
Yes, your destruction, Ustra...
Oh Ghadar, if I remember correctly, it was ME who had destroyed YOU back then... your pathetic mages wanted to stop me by creating this stone tablet...



And thus, it is time. Time for us to finally hear the true story of the stone tablet.

I'm about to carve the last remaining lines into the stone tablet! This will allow us to finally stop Ustra! He has already killed many of us! Even Ghadar, Gorgoth, and Morlon have been defeated...
Excellent! At last, our time for our vengeance has come! Just a few more moments!
Never, you wretched Elras!
What?
Oh no, he's found us!



That's what YOU think! WE see things differently! Run and we will spare you...
You will die now! Just as so many other Elras did before you...





You think that will stop me?





Damned Elras!





ROAAAAAR!





I will stop you!
NOOOOOOOOO!





It's over... you cursed Elras!
And now, I'm going to use this stone tablet to bestow upon myself the power that I deserve!



But at last! How long have I waited for this moment! Never before was I so close to my goal... endless power! The destruction of the Elras! And my rule over this world!
If only I can now decipher this spell... those damn Elras and their weird language. The book was much easier to read... so, what do we have here... SOL ET MARU DEBANOR SAI!
You will never use that spell!
What was that? Who dares?



Damn it, what happened here? It seems we appeared just in time!
You really dare to do this? I have killed dozens of Elras, and you miserable wretches are bothering me at this very moment? The moment of my triumph!? Flee, or this will be your end!
Do not hesitate, Agaleo! Attack!
You pitiful wretches! Die!
Careful, he's attacking!





Curse you!



ATTACK!



ARRRRRRR...





ROAAAAARRRR...



NOW, AGALEO!



AAAAARRRRRGH...
DIE, YOU HELLISH CREATURE!



NOOOOOOOOOO!



We did it! He is dead!
It is over... Ustra is dead! Defeated once and for all!
Aaron... this spell must never be cast... destroy the stone tablet!
...
Aaron! DESTROY THE STONE TABLET!
...NO! The Elras are not defeated yet! This spell will grant us the power to destroy the Elras once and for all!
Are you insane? That is way too dangerous! This spell will destroy humanity!
You don't even know WHAT the spell does! It will give us power!
No, it is going to destroy all of mankind! Be reasonable! Destroy the stone tablet! Now!
I'm afraid you don't see what kind of possibilities this stone tablet offers us. It will give us the power to end this never-ending war against the enemies of mankind once and for all.
You can't do this...
I'm sorry, Agaleo...
What!?



...Aa...ron...
Forgive me, my friend. But this here is more important than your life...



But now, I have to seal the victory for the Clan. Stone tablet, grant me power!



♪ BGM: Place Of The Elras - batwings.mid ♫

...
But you didn't even have enough souls, which caused the stone tablet to shatter for the first time...
HARHAR, in the end, you were destroyed, as well, Ustra...
If only that wretched Clan didn't show up when they did, and if only I didn't use up so much power during the battle against the Elras, we wouldn't be standing here today. Because then, neither you, Ghadar, nor the Clan would still exist. I would have control over the whole world!
WOULD, my dear Ustra. But now, you did reassemble the stone tablet in the end.
For the second time...
What are you talking about?
I don't understand it, either! How were you able to reassemble the stone fragments for the second time now? After all, the Clan would have noticed if you had taken away the stone fragments!
ROAR! SHUT YOUR MOUTH, HUMAN!
I'm starting to understand why our liberation occurred... Ustra, you tried to use the spell! But your ignorance about the activation of the stone tablet instead caused the shattering of the earth. And as fate demanded it, my book that fell down the cliff re-emerged back onto the surface because of the earthquake. Oh, those were loooooong, cold years at the bottom of the lake. Imprisoned inside a book...



♪ BGM: Intro - awakening.mid ♫

We cut back to the scene where Ustra beat up some Elras and one of the Elras punted the spellbook right off the cliff.



But this time, we follow where the book went.



It sits at the bottom of the lake.



We then cut to day, then to night, to day, to night, faster and faster as time goes on.



Then, suddenly, the world starts turning red.



And the ground begins to shake, causing the book to be shot out of the lake...



...and onto the bank.



Then, again, we get a lot of time passing...



...eventually, the water level of the lake rises...



...causing the book to start floating away on it.



Then, it flows along a river, until eventually...



...we arrive at the part of the story we already know.



♪ BGM: Place Of The Elras - batwings.mid ♫

How many years did we have to wait until we've finally gotten free. But one day, the time had come...
I had found the book and brought it to Vincent...
And that fool cast the spell that released Morlon. Inside the body of that Vincent Weynard, Morlon tried to find a way for us to return to our former power. And so, Morlon, in the body of Vincent Weynard, invented a spell that allowed him to create vampire. Oh, yes, vampires... the perfect hosts for our Shadow Wraiths, and the fastest way to collect souls.
So that means Vincent never loved me... it was the Shadow Wraith inside of him!
Love... no one cares about that. I actually think he indulged in his fondness for girls with red hair...
You are all insane! Let me go! I don't have anything to do with you!
Well, not quite... but perhaps, you're interested in the fact that I have saved your life...
No way! I'm capable of saving myself! I don't need some insane creature like you for that!
Oh, I think you do owe me a little bit. After that wretched Clan killed me, I had become a Shadow Wraith. I had already cast that spell of the Elras many days in advance. And it appears that it was certainly worth it. And so I turned into a Shadow Wraith that night. But I first had to get adjusted to that state, which was completely foreign to me at that time, until I was able to look for a new body. After I found this entity called Jinnai, and after I took over his body, I then proceeded to let the Clan taste my vengeance. By that time, they had already distributed the stone fragments to their castles. But that didn't stop me. And so I killed everyone who would stand in my way. Until I had all the stone fragments and reassembled the stone tablet. Only to then make a fatal mistake, which caused the stone tablet to shatter a second time and shift the world. Full of frustration and anger, I was searching for an answer as to what I did wrong. Why the stone fragments were now forever lost in the depths of this world. I was researching for years. The Clan was slowly forgotten, new generations grew up. Even the world shifting I caused slowly but surely turned into a legend. Then the vampires came, as well as the Holy Crusade. I was observing the situation, but I didn't interfere for the moment. Right until that day when I discovered the reason for my failure. Vincent Weynard summoned a rain of blood. A RAIN OF BLOOD! And that's when I realized something. Somebody had found the book. Because I remembered that spell. It was a spell from the book. And if somebody found the book, then it was also likely that the Elras would be released sooner or later. And that's when I realized one thing. The stone tablet must have had some kind of protective mechanism that only an Elras could disable. Since I was now a Shadow Wraith myself, I knew that vampires were the perfect hosts. And so I searched for vampires that were acting suspiciously. Like they are being controlled by an Elras. And during my little personal hunt for the vampires, I one day arrived in the small village Thyrik.
No, I can't believe it...
On a clearing, I discovered a vampire that was about to suck dry a woman...



♪ BGM: Throwing Knives - warlord.mid ♫



Get your hands away from my mommy!!!
Heh heh, what have we here? Another young one that is going to satisfy my thirst!
You sicko! Let go of my mommy and get lost!
HARHAR! So cute. Ahhh... I can already feel her blood pour down into my throat. So warm and sweet...
NEVER! I will protect Mommy!
HARHARHAR! You are truly deliciously amusing. Well, what are you going to do? Cut my throat?
...
Oh my dear child... Come here, I won't hurt you... Be good and come to the nice uncle...



Hm? What's that?
Die!!!



ARRRRRRRRGH...
NO ONE IS GOING TO HURT MY MOMMY!



You're never going to hurt anyone again!
Arr... aaa... rrr...



Mommy...



Mommy, please say something!
Uuuuhhhh... Nyria...
Quick, Mommy, we need to get away from here!
Arrrrr... gargle...
Quick, please hurry, Mommy! Stand up!
Uuuhhh.... Everything hurts...!
Mommy, quick, that guy...



ROAAAA... AAAARRRR...









AAAAAARRRRRR...



♪ BGM: Place Of The Elras - batwings.mid ♫

Where else would the lightning have come from? It was my spell that had annihilated the vampire.
...
All right, so you were looking for a vampire with a Shadow Wraith inside of them. But what does that have to do with us!?
Well, very simple...

But then, another teleporting sound!

As always, too late...



The way I see it, I'm just on time...
Wait a minute, shouldn't he be rotting in his cell?
I have brought a little present for you!

Uh oh.



♪ BGM: Megalomania - Laughter2.mid ♫

Ronak, NOOOOOOOOOO! You son of a bitch! I'll kill you!
You wretched barbarians!
His betrayal to the Elras was a shame... and for you, my dear, I also have something nice...
I'm suspecting the worst...

Double uh oh.



...
You disgusting murderers! How could you do this!?
I knew you would like my present!
ROAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!
You didn't really think that your little prison would be able to stop me? I'm not one of the three leaders of the Elras for nothing! Such a teleporting spell is really useful! I just wanted to spy on you a little... play with you for a bit. And I must say, it was fun for me... of course, I also took out all your other prisoners. Just a little treat for myself...
That's enough! We'll finish you!
All right, my dear Ustra. I think that Gorgoth and I are going to take the stone tablet now, which you have kindly reassembled for us, and you're going to take care of these guys here.
WHAT? HOLD ON!







ROAAAAAAAAAARRRR!
All right, then I'm going to take care of you guys first, and deal with those two damn Elras later. You have fulfilled your purpose.
YOU were the one who put the note inside the magic chamber! Damn it, USTRA!
Of course it was me. After all, it was my spell to begin with that poisoned you in the pyramid. And as smart as I was, I also made you slaughter those foolish temple mages. They were annoying me to death with their endless incompetence. And that was their rightful punishment. As reward, I even graciously gave you the life rune.
From the start, you were only using us!
You were my servants... as a pharaoh, I'm used to having people serve me. You should be grateful for being able to serve me. But that is over now. Prepare yourselves for your end!



And thus, Marlex grants us a small bit of mercy.



We are given a free save - which you damn fucking better not use on the same slot, you idiot...



...and get the menu opened, where we can prepare as much as we can. You can't escape back to the castle or anything, just use items or change equipment. And the moment you leave the menu, it's boss fight time. Note that if you fail to beat Ustra here and realize you're not capable of taking him in your current state (like somebody you might know is about to realize), you will have to go through that entire sequence all over again.



♪ BGM: Endgame Battles - BossBattle.mid ♫

And thus, we find ourselves in the first endgame boss fight. Let's go over our opponent.

Jinnai / Pharaoh Ustra:

Recommended level: 92

HP: 16000
BP: 5000
Attack: 920
Defense: 920
Intelligence: 400
Agility: 450

Behavior List:

- Attack
- Magic Crystals (hits one party member, base damage of 650, inflicts Paralyzed with a base chance of 100%)
- Cold Lightning (hits one party member, base damage of 800)
- Phantom (targets self, raises Agility by a base effect of 10, inflicts Phantom with a base chance of 100%)
- Open Wounds 2 (hits all party members, base damage of 380, inflicts Bleeding with a base chance of 100%)
- Paralyzing Aura (hits all party members, reduces Agility by a base effect of 10, inflicts Paralyzed with a base chance of 50%)
- Wrath of the Gods (hits all party members, base damage of 400)
- Life Leech (hits one party member, absorbs HP, base damage of 500)
- Attack
- Magical Mirror (targets self, raises Agility by a base effect of 10, inflicts Mirror with a base chance of 100%)
- Neutralization (hits all party members, reduces Intelligence by a base effect of 10, removes Regeneration, Mirror and Phantom with a base chance of 100%)
- Neutralization (hits all party members, reduces Intelligence by a base effect of 10, removes Regeneration, Mirror and Phantom with a base chance of 100%)
- Pharaoh's Blessing (targets self, raises Intelligence by a base effect of 10, removes all negative status effects)
- Holy Sand (hits all party members, removes Regeneration, Mirror and Phantom with a base chance of 100%)
- Holy Sand (hits all party members, removes Regeneration, Mirror and Phantom with a base chance of 100%)

- Hidden Ability: Every ten rounds, a white flash happens regardless of Ustra's ability to fight or any stats. It removes Mirror and Phantom from all party members, guaranteed.

So, uh, yeah. Ustra does not fuck around.

And now, well, I have to come clean. I could go through how this fight goes, but the basic gist is that I fucked up. I didn't prepare, and as a result, I got turbofucked. What did I not prepare for? Well, as so many times recently, the answer is status fucking effects. Note Ustra's fixation on Mirror and Phantom. He has spells to cast those effects on himself, and spells to fuck with our ability to use them. You might not remember what these status effects do, but you can probably imagine.



Mirror reflects all skills cast on the affected one. All of them. Fuck you, deal with it.



Phantom makes the one affected dodge all physical attacks. All of them. Fuck you, deal with it.

You might now notice that we have no way of dealing damage to Ustra. Yep, that's it. I spend 15 more minutes fighting this bastard, hoping to find a window where one of the effects wears off and I can deal some damage, but nope, Ustra just constantly reapplied the effects, and I could do nothing but watch. The skills don't take any BP for Ustra to cast, so he can just keep this going indefinitely. There are only a very limited number of things we can do against these status effects - well, actually, there are only two I can think of.

One, what I was attempting to do - hope to get lucky and find an opening you can hit him in. You could maybe attempt to inflict some status effects he's not resistant to to help with this - Sleeping is a good bet.

Two, use an item. Basically, you're using his own trick against him - Holy Sand is an item, after all. Item skills are not reflected by Mirror, so we could use that to cancel his status effects. The problem with that? I don't actually have any of those right now. I think I sold them all. D'oh.

I don't know if having Mirror on my own party members would counteract his Mirror by doing a double reflect, or if it would just fizzle out.



Anyway, I kept the fight going for a long time, but eventually, I just gave up.



Next time: A change in strategy.