Thoth: Everything, eh? I think you're gonna have to be more specific'n that, lest you be here till ya shrivel up like a prune.
Drake: I was just interested in the history of this conflict. Order and Chaos. Why did it get this bad? I mean, Zelenin seemed like a completely different person back there. I remember what that old Dwarf said back in Carina; there was a time before this...
Thoth: Mmm. Well, ya came to the right monkey. As old as we demons can get, I doubt there's many that remember that time left. Me, plus some of them bigshots like Vishnu and Shiva. And the Dwarves, but they'll be around forever. Well, back before recorded history, there was a whole mess of gods. I'd be lyin' if I said our lives were perfect, but for the most part we got along. But some time along the way, something... broke.
Drake: Broke? What was it?
Thoth: ...that is, unfortunately, the one thing these books of mine don't contain. Whatever it was done messed up the entire universe, though. All of us gods got worse, but there was one particular god who went about as bad as possible.
Drake: And who was this god?
Thoth: He's got a few names. God of Order. Lord of the Heavens. Demiurge of All That Exists. He got it into his head that all other demons should bow to him, and all live in perfect, mindless order. Naturally, there were some that didn't take to that kindly. I'm thinking of that strange girl what's been following us around here...
Drake: What about her?
Thoth: I think she ain't no she; in fact, I think she's the Devil himself. Where there's God, there's gotta be a Devil, right? Don't be fooled, though; she's no better than that God. They've been at war ever since, and all us gods have chosen sides. Sometimes they choose human pawns too.
Drake: I'm aware... Does this "broken thing" have anything to do with why I'm stuck in time?
Thoth: Well, Norn 'n' me did a bit of digging on that. Turns out this time loop's more localized that we thought. As in, it only affects you. Everyone else seems like no time has past for them because it hasn't. Somehow, this is only affectin' you, and us 'cause we're in yer DEMONICA and thus on yer person. This sorta thing's really hard to do, especially since Mem Aleph herself seems to be just as stuck as anyone. This'd take somethin' crazy strong. I hate to say it, Drake, but there's nothing universal about this. Someone's just screwin' with you...
Drake: Great. The entire universe is broken, and because of that I have to kill my friends, and on top of that I'm being tortured for whatever reason by something even stronger than Mem Aleph. Anyone have any good news?
Abaddon: I FOUND A NICKEL.
Okay, enough plot for now, time for gameplay. First I get to some fusing and recruiting; Peri joins up as a new healer, and I also create a big-time heavy-hitter through fusion...
Tiamat: AT LAST! I am summoned forth to cleanse the unworthy!
Peri: Umm... c-could you be a b-bit quieter...?
Tiamat's really good, befitting the Mother of Demons. She has attacks of three elements and I also gave her the ability to cure poison. Peri has Diarahan and can cure paralysis.
Horologium demon roundup time! On the first floor, we have Cabracan, who has very good physical skills; Berserker, who's the weakest demon around here but makes something very useful later on; Cherub, who has the extremely deadly Mahamaon, good for wiping out some of the nastier foes on lower floors; and Huoniao, who's not particularly powerful but seems to give a lot of experience for some reason. The first three join up, as does a Nidhoggr found in an enemy scan.
Nidhoggr: FEED ME, SINCLAIR!
Cherub: Uncouth beast! It is anathema to my glorious self to work alongside the likes of you!
Drake: Well, get used to it; I'm nothing if not an equal-opportunity employer.
Cabracan: Iiiiiiiittttseeeeeeeeemmmmmmsssssweeeeeaaaaaretooooobeeeeealliiiiiieeeeeasaaaaaagaaaaaaiiiin.
Maintenance has gotten the elevator moving again.... just in time for Skadi to smash it (this happens on every path, but who does it is different; on the Chaos path it's Israfel, and on the Law path it's Surt)! Mini-boss fight! Honestly, for how hard the bosses can be in this game, the minibosses are a cakewalk. This means that, of course, we have to go around. Fortunately, Skadi dropped a forma that grants the final Gate Search upgrade. There's a hidden door to the right of this area, leading to a dark area with some new enemies, including the top two representatives of the Snake family, Orochi and Ananta. The latter joins the party.
Ananta: This Drake seems a bit tightly-wound. He should learn to let go of his troubles...
Past this way is the elevator. Horologium is the largest sector in the game, and is essentially a giant, multi-floored maze. W're going down to basement 2, where there's a hidden door, past that, another dead Red Shirt, and past that, yet another elevator. Past that, we're in for pain, as we're going to have to cross unavoidable lava tiles to get to, yes, another elevator.
The correct floor to take on this one is three. This is a simple floor; we just walk to the stairwell. Up to Basement 2! There's another stairway here, leading to an optional area that ultimately leads back to the first floor, where we can get a quest from Barong to challenge his nemesis, Rangda! Speaking of, she joins the party, and she's one of the most useful demons around here due to the amazing Debilitate, which drans all stats from the enemy! Other demons around here include Cerberus and Ganesha, who are very strong; Cerberus has the best single-target Phys move in the game, and Ganesha has the best wind attack in the game.
This floor is another conveyor belt maze.
Ame no Uzume: *ulp!*
At the end, we head down to basement 3, then again down to basement 4. Here is an absolutely vicious puzzle that is almost certainly a total Guide Dang It!. We've got to step on one particular teleport spot on the full moon. There's absolutely nothing in this game that so much as hints at this, only mentioning that there's a trick to the warps but never specifying what it is. At the end of this floor... powerful demon detected.
Drake: ...
Who is this mysterious demon? What could possibly be strong enough to create a time-loop this complex? Should Ame no Uzume just take an antacid? Stay tuned to find out!
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