Mastema: In all my years of serving the Lord - which is a long time, I assure you - I have never seen as great an abomination as this. Rebellion is to be expected of demons, but now God's closest confidants, the Four Seraphs, have betrayed him! The Lord, as I know him, at least, would never wish the destruction these four intend to wreak, and I say that as the angel in CHARGE of divine wrath! Thus I cast my lot with this young man, Flynn, who reminds me ever so much of some... people I knew once upon a time. Even for one with an eternal life such as I, knowing them was a life-changing experience, and I hope I do them proud here!
Flynn: Egad... Burroughs' power readings are off the scale! There's definitely a very dangerous demon behind that door! And yet I still haven't found Jonathan; where could he be? I was hoping we could persuade him to come back with us, as I have a very strong suspicion that this place won't last very long after we take down the Four Archangels...
High Pixie: Young Lord Flynn, if I may... There seem to be a number of former enemies who wish to join our cause. It is up to you whether you choose to let them through, but I would at least hear them out; they are all quite powerful.
Flynn: Former enemies? Well, I suppose... UWAAH!
'(the GAUNTLET blesses with light once again, even brighter than before! The light coalesces into a brilliant column, out of which emerges IXTAB, ANANTA, BAAL, ANIEL, TENKAI, KOGA SABURO, and LILITH!)
Baal: Gnah hah hah! Revenge has come at last! I forgive you for defeating me, creature, as you have now delivered me straight to my enemy's doorstep!
Anat: Oh, Baal, you do always make a fool of yourself, don't you?
Tenkai: This National Defense Divinity's magnetite now aligns with yours...
'Koga Saburo: I will say I preferred being imprisoned in stone to being under that Tayama's yoke, but I would prefer you as a master to both! KOGA SABURO RETURNS TO THIS WORLD!
Lilith: Hello there, little one. I see that the promise of knowledge and wisdom was enough to lure you to call me back from the Expanse...
Flynn: Oh, no way! No way am I working with you!
Lilith: But do you not feel a bit better about yourself after all I've done? Can you honestly day, at this point, after gaining all the knowledge and wisdom of the world beyond your home that you have, that you'd prefer to still be an East Mikado sheep? Besides, I have a score to settle with that... Gabriel...
Flynn: STOP MAKING SENSE!
Once you've made enough demons, enter the big foreboding door...
Flynn: Eh? It's pitch-dark in here! Hello? Jonathan, is that you?
What seems to be Jonathan's voice calls out to the party. Jonathan explains that since demons are the forms taken by human suffering, and since they are presently tearing the world apart, he intends to eliminate suffering completely so humanity can live in peace as extensions of God. He then takes a turn for the nasty, insulting Flynn's Casualry birth! Isabeau tries to talk some sense into Jonathan, but Jonathan is... Not Himself. The darkness clears, and...
Nebiros: UWAAAAH! WHAT IS THAT THING!?
Lilith: Psh. You were always a pansy, Nebiros...
A colossal demon stands before the party, resembling a twisted mishmash of Jonathan and the Four Seraphs (the five combining into this state is only shown on the Law path). It introduces itself as the Chariot, Merhabah, and obviously, it ain't going down without a fight!
=BOSS: MERKABAH=
Level 99. Null Light, Null Dark
Of the game's two "final" bosses, Merkabah is the "mage;" he prefers not to take you down directly (and indeed his offensive moves do less damage than you'd expect for this point in the game) and instead fights with "tricky" moves like debuffs and instant-kills. Don't let the higher level fool you, though; I actually find him much easier than Beelzebub. Merkabah will be your final boss if you choose the path of Chaos, as well; on Neutral, he is always fought before the other Final Boss.
Flynn: This is the Chariot that holds the Great Spirit of Goodwill? Is Jonathan part of it? Does this mean I'll have to kill him?
Now, onto moves. Merkabah's unique move is his namesake "Chariot," which is Almighty and thus unblockable; however, its power can be decreased with debuffs. This is an Almighty move that hits the entire party and decreases agility, meaning you'll hit less and be hit more often. The damage, as mentioned, isn't actually all that much for a boss of this level.
Mastema: You play with Almighty energy, eh, heretic? Here, have some yourself!
Mastema is awesome; he comes with the heavy Almighty move Megidolaon, and I also gave him several other powerful skills including Glacial Blast. Also in my party now are Baal and Masakado. Back to Merkabah. He has Deadly Wind and Thunder Reign, plus Concentrate to amp them up, so if you can bring someone who drains or repels Elec or Wind you can Bait Merkabah into wasting his press turns. He also has Dekaja, which I think he uses if you go above two buffs on you. So it's best not to do that. I found that attacks which can hit multiple times work great here due to the greater opportunity for Smirks and Critical Hits, and Glacial Blast and Myriad Arrows are the best of these, which you can freely use because the boss has no resistances. With half his health gone, as well, he will ask you why you fight this apparently-losing battle; the correct response is "For the people of Tokyo."
Masakado: You fight very much like that young man I knew so long ago...
Mastema: Hm, does he now? Wait, what is that girl doing?
Flynn: Isabeau, get back; it's not-
(ISABEAU calls down a massive bolt of Ziodyne, frying MERKABAH; the Chariot crumbles away to ash, leaving just his head)
Incubus: MAN that's hot!
Succubus: MAN that's hot!
Whoo! Isabeau'd! That's actually how the battle ended in my play through. But don't get too comfortable...
Azazel: Umm, don't look now, but that head thing's glowing...
The head regenerates into an even more hideous demon; like Mem Aleph, Merkabah is a two-form boss! The new form has more HP and two new exclusive moves. The first is Shall Not Resist, which hits two random targets for minimal Almighty damage, but also decreases their defense. The second is much more deadly. This is Hexagram, this game's answer to Light of Order; it instantly kills anything is strikes and there's no way to dodge it.
Mastema: Urgghhh... he got me... is God really...?
Masakado: GRAAGH! This is only a temporary retreat, beast...
Flynn: It can even take out those two in one shot? What is this thing?
???: Stand tall, friend of justice! The Snake King Ananta shall provide you with reinforcements!
Flynn: Ananta?
Ananta: You who destroyed the minds of my fellows... HAVE AT YOU!
Ananta's also really good; he's got Glacial Blast, Amrita, and Luster Candy. Again, back to Merkabah. You can fight this form the same as you did the previous form; his resistances haven't changed. As well, I don't know if Hexagram can his Flynn or not, at the very least, it never did in my battle with Merkabah. Again, when half his health is depleted, this boss will engage in Boss Banter, in this case, staring directly at Flynn. The correct response is to "quietly accept it."
Flynn: I'm sorry, Jonathan; you're just not very scary.
Ananta: For my fellows, and all those whose wills you intend to destroy... accept the judgment of the Snake King!
(ANANTA summons a massive storm of ice around MEWRKABAH; the Chariot gasps as it is sealed in ice, and Ananta's tail crashes through it, shattering it to pieces)
Merkabah tells the party that humans cannot turn away from God forever, and when that time comes, he will inevitably rise again. The Chariot collapses, and with him, his stronghold.
Flynn: Jonathan... please know peace wherever you are now. I have no regrets for what I have done, and as you chose the path that you felt was right, I should hope you do not, either.
Purgatorium fades away to reveal the Eastern Kingdom of Mikado, exactly as Flynn and Isabeau left it.
'To be continued...
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