Principality: Ahahaha! Rejoice, young one, for in my travels with you I have ascended! Certainly no foul foreign god can stop me now!
Nanashi: Weren't you dressed as a knight just a minute ago?
Principality: I was indeed once a mere Archangel, but in my travels with you I have been promoted a Choir, to Principality!
Character notes: The seventh of the nine Angelic orders. While ordinary Angels watch over individuals and Archangels are warriors, Principalities manage large groups of humans, such as cities and religious groups. He gets quite a variety of moves including Light, healing, and de-buff skills, though he's sadly weak to Gun.
Personality notes: Haughty nobleman type.
Oh yeah, this is a thing that can happen. If you train certain demons to a certain level, usually two of three levels past the point they get their last skill, they "evolve" into a new demon. In particular you can take your Angels from the ninth Choir all the way to the second!
Nanashi: I can see the Shinjuku central district in this distance but we've got a ways to walk. So what do you guys... talk about when you're in my phone, anyway?
Katakirauwa: EATIN' STUFF.
Chupacabra: Like delicious goat!
Spriggan: DERH, WHAT'S ONE PLUS FIFTY-ELEVEN?
Gu Huo Niao: Like, how bad covers her acne. Gross.
Moh Shuvuu: Least I wear pants!
Nanashi: Ugh, forget I ask. Great and noble creatures from myth and legend my ass. Have some new fusions, at least...
Phoenix: Oh my my my, summoned, how quaint. The air around here is filthy; how do you even walk?
Kamapua'a: Ya know not all of us are that sensitive ya lousy bird. Snert snert. Hey, howzit goin'?
Phoenix: Filthy swine...
Character notes: The legendary immortal firebird, likely originating in Egypt or Greece but with similar creatures found worldwide. Phoenixes are famed for the fact that they never truly die - at the end of their lives they immolate themselves and are restored to life as a chick. Fittingly, he's the earliest source of Recarm, the basic revival move.
Personality notes: Snooty upper-crusted who hates breathing the same air as commoners.
Character notes: A piglike demigod of Hawaiian lore, often scene as an incarnation of the fertility god Lono. He's known for his romantic pursuit-turned heated rivalry with Pele. He's a bizarre combination of Phys fighter and healing mage, and is actually the second Avatar; I'd absentmindedly missed fusing the first, Shiisaa. Whoops.
Personality notes: Makes very blunt, insulting statements. Verbal tic: "Snert snert snert."
Pele: Un-gnarly, dude. Contracting HIM?
Halphas: Well you, young lady, are well within your right to sue his porky ass for damages. How about it; my services are only 1,000,000 Macca!
Character notes: The 38th of the demonic nobles of the Goetia, ranked as a Count. He's a giant, pitch-black bird who is typically summoned to aid in the construction of weapons. He's handy to pick up as he gets both Tarukaja and Rakukaja, plus useful Phys moves.
Personality notes: Sleazy lawyer.
Bai Suzhen: Hey bitches, mind if I joint the party? Heard you'd been contracted to that kid with tons of Magnetite!
Gu Huo Niao: My girl Bai! You won't be disappointed; this kid's the most interesting summoner in the city except Flynn himself!
Nanashi: Wait, demons are gossiping about me?
Bifrons: You are surprised, young master? A life lived over millennia as projections of human observation? Certainly gets dull from time to time. You provide us with... interest.
Character notes: The main character of an old Chinese folk story, The Tale of the White Snake. She's a dragon in human form who falls for a human man. Sometimes she's depicted as a tragic heroine, other times as a horrifying villainess. Gets Ice, healing, and buffs.
Personality notes: Girl Posse member #3.
Character notes: Yet another Goetic demon, ranked as an Earl. He can shift shape from human to monster, tutor his summoner in the sciences, and also lights candles on graves for some reason. He gets Fire and healing skills.
Personality notes: Wise Old Retainer.
Nanashi: Alright, we're here. Shinjuku. I've made runs to the Underground District here before; the entrance is right over... huh?
Approaching Shinjuku, what seems to be a small girl suddenly appears, then vanishes. This causes Navarre to reveal he's scared of ghosts. Okay then. Following her, an elegant man in an electronic wheelchair appears.
Nanashi: How's that guy even above ground if his legs don't work? He should stay below!
Fortuna: Careful now... there's something... EXTRAORDINARY about this man's energy signature... I think he might be...
Melchom: I'm getting it too...
The man introduces himself as "Stephen" (RIP Dr. Hawking) and informs Nanashi and Asahi that they must be special indeed if the girl has taken an interest in them. He cautions them that gods, angels, and demons will be quick to tempt ones with destiny so great, but if they mean to walk "the middle path," he will gladly provide assistance. And then just like that, he's gone...
Nanashi: So I'm some kind of chosen one or something? That can't be right; I'm just some orphan from Kinshicho! Though I can't help but think about those... dreams... oh no. OH SHIT!
Suddenly a phone message comes in: the serpent Shesha has been spotted at the Metropolitan Government Building at Shinjuku! All hunters are instructed to head there and chase him off.
Nanashi: God-fucking-dammit that snake's right on top of us! Well, it's my fault it's there to begin with, so this is my mess to clean up!
A new quest, "Repel Shesha," is automatically accepted here. The main entrance to the Shinjuku underground is sealed off, so we'll be entering via the elevator in the back. Don't skimp on demon-collecting, too...
Nozuchi: SCHNUUURRRRRRRRP who does that guy think he is? Some bigger snake moves in and says he's cock of the block? How very SCHNUUUUUURRRRRRRRP inconsiderate!
Character notes: A fat, hairy snake creature known as a spirit of the Earth in Japan. They're wild and fierce, but not evil. Nowadays they're considered to be the same as the infamous cryptic, Tsuchinoko. He gets Physical moves and also resists them, making him a good choice for... what's up next.''
Personality notes: Makes gross slurping noises when talking.
Kwancha: Friend Nozuchi, do not despair! Perhaps some mind-healing meditation will assist?
Character notes: A god of disease in Nepali Hinduism, he works for the goddess of destruction, Kali. While he brings disease, he can also protect against it if properly invoked. He's naturally an ailment specialist.
Personality notes: Super-mellow yoga instructor type.
Ubu: Dada?
Nanashi: Ack! What do you call something that's horrible and adorable at the same time?
Ubu: Me Ubu! You yummy Mag-a-tite man!
Character notes: Half-human baby, half-spider, it's another yokai. They say they're the spirits of abandoned babies, and they attack passerby looking for their mothers. If one gets you, you should throw a shoe over your shoulder, which makes them chase that. Gun specialist.
Personality notes: Cute little baby.
Knocker: Ya know what that big ol' snake needs?
Jack Frost: What-ho?
Knocker: A bonk on the head.
Character notes: Another odd little sprite from England's Cornwall region, this one lives underground and helps miners with their craft by making knocking sounds to alert them to good seams. Never whistle in their presence, though... He gets Rakukaja, Zanma, and Magaon.
Personality notes: Likes bonking people on the head, a la the Puppet Pals from Dexter's Laboratory.
Take the elevator down to witness a ghastly sight. The entire Shinjuku underground has become an abattoir, with bloodstains and corpses strewn everywhere. What few people remain have fallen into despair.
Nanashi: I... did this?
Moh Shuvuu: Way to go, failure-as-a-human!
Melchom: Can it, you urbane girl; we want him to make up for this, remember?
Among those still remaining is the bartender; you can drop off the supplies with him, though that's basically an afterthought now. Hit up the Terminal, too, and when I did this there's a couple things I went back to Ginza to get...
Momunofu: Hey kid. You're finally strong enough for me, eh? I smell angels on you - I better keep you company so they don't work their mojo on ya!
Principality: I assure you, failed god, he is most at home with us...
Character notes: An ancient warrior god found in the legendary history of Japan. He was a subordinate of the heretical god Arahabaki, whose worship was opposed by Jimmu, Japan's founding emperor. He's most notable gameplay-wise for Charge, which multiplies the power of the next Phys or Gun attack by 2.5! Also resists Phys.
Personality notes: Really, really hates angels, as in his prior appearances in my LPs.
Karasu Tengu: Ohoho, so you're Shikome's new meat, eh? I'm going to have a lot of fun with you...
Shikome: Ooooooh, I know, isn't he just... ripe?
Nanashi: Help. Oh, wait, they can't actually hurt me.
Character notes: The middle rank of Tengu, above Koppas but below Kuramas, and also the most malevolent, known for tempting and possessing humans into all sorts of twisted business. As their name implies they have traits of crows - Karasu is "crow" in Japanese. Gets all sorts of skills, including Agilao, Sukukaja, and Mahama.
Personality notes: Tries really hard to be super-evil but isn't very good at it.
These two are Ginza's strongest, and I wasn't strong enough to recruit them back then. Back in Shinjuku, unlock the main entrance and head out the western side to reach the government office. On the surface there's a hole you can fall into to reach another below-ground Power Spot, good for cleaning up Wraithwalls and purple tentacle... things (I really wish they had a proper name) around here.
Dzelarhons: Whoa! You're really taking on Shesha? This is quite the sticky ribbit!
Stonka: MOOOOOOOOOOOVE OUT OF THE WAY, FROG-LADY! IF YOU'RE TOO CHICKEN TO GET THAT SHESHA OUT OF HERE, I'LL KNOCK HIM TO THE MOOOOOOOOOOON!
Nanashi: Ack, enough animal noise puns!
Character notes: A volcano goddess of the Haida, of the American Pacific Northwest; she appears as a frog-woman. Her husband is Kaiti, the god of bears, and it's said she brought the first people to the Northwest Coast via giant canoes. She gets mostly Fire skills as well as Hard Worker, which increases the EXP she gets. In short, she levels up faster.
Personality notes: Makes terrible "ribbit" puns.
Character notes: Better known as the Bulgarian Water Bull, he's known for a ritual wherein the people would kill him to stop him from killing their livestock. In some versions a normal bull was outfitted with steel horns that pierced the Water Bull's superhumanly tough hide; in others a human wore an animal skin to lure it in, then stabbed it. The process repeated every year. The actual name "Stonka" is another one of those "white whales" that has yet to be found in a non-Japanese source.
Personality notes: Makes terrible "moo" puns.
Once you're done exploring and fusing, wear west to reach the government building, to find the great Eternal Serpent coiled around it...
Nanashi: He seems even bigger than before!
Naga:' Ananta Raja, stop this madness! Why is he not listening to me?
Suparna (perched on Kwancha): Can't trust snakes. Told ya so.
We'll have to go up and down a few flights of stairs to get to the main plaza in front of the building. There's treasure to be looted around here as well as decently strong demons to train on or recruit (though my stock was full at this point. Eventually, we meet the great serpent face to face...
BOSS: SNAKE SHESHA
Level 40. Resists everything
You won't be able to do any more than scratch damage to this huge thing no matter how hard you try, so as you might guess, this is another semi-scripted battle like Aniel. Unlike that one, though? It really is possible to lose here, so instead of fighting play defensively. Physical-resistant demons such as Nozuchi, Momunofu and Kamapua'a are a serious boon here, since Shesha's main offensive attack is the Physical Seismic Yawn, which he has a whopping +6 affinity to. He also has moves that do nothing but consume his turns, which you may recall from a... certain very powerful secret boss in IV Vanilla.
Kamapua'a: This is the thing that's going to destroy all Tokyo? That barely hurt. Snert. Heh, that rhymes.
On the second turn two new faces will join the battle. A Power angel sent by Merkabah to eliminate Shesha, and our old buddy Adramelech, here to do the same for Lucifer. Asahi is understandable steamed at seeing her mentors' killer again, but Adramelech insists that the three factions cooperate to destroy the snake.
Nanashi: Goddamn it, why must demons make good points?
Momunofu: Cuz we really do love ya under it all!
Nanashi: Tell that to him!
Adramelech and Power join the fight here, attacking on alternate turns of their own initiative; they're neither party members nor partners, and they do a lot more damage than you can. Shesha will also pick up the move Venomous Flare, which does Fire damage and can inflict Poison, as the fight goes on.
Nozuchi: Ouch. The direct hits I can take, but fire? No SCHNUUUUUUUUUURP thanks!
Kamapua'a: You said it; I can't be roast pork, I got bikini babes to do stuff with!
(Yeah they're weak to Fire; I forgot Shesha had a Fire move)
When about 1000 damage is done, Shesha... coils up and heals back to full!
Nanaashi: Oh sweet God, this thing's literally immortal too?
Fortunately, he doesn't stick around, disappearing through one of his spacial rifts. The battle is still counted as a victory, giving us a bucketload of XP, and another for completing the quest.
Following this, the Power departs, as does Adramelech, who mocks Asahi's desire for revenge on him and says he barely even remembers her.
Nanashi: God... next time I see him he's toast. And that goes for the snake, too!
