Quesada's Swan

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Aside: For context, I wrote this and the later parts of this playthrough in August.

Breathing deeply.

After a month of putting this off, and eight months of playing through this game, it's time for the final bosses...

Laphicet: "I can feel him...Innominat is just up ahead."

We're now before a set of tall, sloping stairs...yikes, those stairs look extravagant...

Rokurou: "Finally, time to repay my debt."
Velvet: "...you just like saying that, don't you?"
Rokurou: "Auggh! You saw right through me!"
Magilou: "Oh, come on, it wasn't hard. Nobody here is going to do anything for anyone but themselves."
Eleanor: "I can't deny that."
Eizen: "Your wheel is yours alone to hold."
Laphicet: "That...is our creed!"

My god, it's a long way down from here too...

Through the transparent glass floor, we see Innominat and the Shepherd. They've been waiting for us for who knows how long...

I have Velvet slowly walk up the last steps.

Breathing deeply again. This is the end.

---

Velvet's theme plays.

The entire crew walk toward them.

Magilou delivers the first line.

Magilou: "Sorry to keep you waiting, Gentle Shepherd! The Lord of Calamity and friends are here to see you!"
Rokurou: "I can't wait to strike down the world's greatest swordsman."
Eizen: "You picked a fight with the Aifread crew! Now we're here to finish it!"

There's the Shepherd with his long white-gold sword...

Eleanor: "...I follow my own will now. And I'm going to stop you!"

Shepherd: "...In my sword lie the hopes of mankind. The potential for a perfect world." Liar.

With a strike of his sheathed sword, he exudes waves of power!

Shepherd: "Do you really believe that Will without Reason can break it?"

Laphicet: "Your sword is strong. But...it's only a weapon. Just like ours!"

Here we go!

Innominat stares deeply at Laphicet, then he touches his cheek, the place where Laphicet punched him.

Innominat: "Ever since you hit me, I've had this [...] feeling in my chest. But I can't figure out what it is." Revenge, of course.

Laphicet swears to hit him again! Owch! Them's fighting words...

Innominat: "I'm sure I'll feel better after I eat you."

---

Now it's Velvet's turn.

Velvet: "...Arthur. I finally have an answer to your question. 'Why do you think that birds fly?'"

A long pause.

Velvet: "Birds fly because they want to fly. They don't need a reason. Even if their wings may snap and doom them to die. They don't fly for anyone's benefit. They don't fly because they were ordered to."

She steps forward.

Velvet: "Birds fly because they want to fly, and for no other reason!"
Shepherd: "...So that's your answer."
Velvet: "Yes. Because that's who I am."

The Shepherd responds.

Shepherd: "...You were always like this. That sort of foolishness is what creates the daemons, and plunges the world into tragedy and despair."
Velvet: (angry) "Then you drive the daemons out! Isn't that right, Shepherd Artorius!?"
Shepherd: "That has been my plan all along."

The Shepherd unsheathes his sword, and he and Innominat dash away!

The fight begins!

Six-on-two...with Velvet and Rokurou teaming up to fight the Shepherd, and Laphicet with Innominat. Eleanor joins in, as Eizen and Magilou unleash magic on him! That misses...

Velvet: "If you want to kill us, you'd better finish the job! Because if you don't..."

She kicks the Shepherd at his wounded arm!

Velvet: "...I'm going to devour you!"

The fight continues!

---

Now the real fight begins.

I check our final bosses' stats...

One's weak to fire, the other to earth...

I rearrange Velvet's artes first...

Shepherd: "I shall sever all our ties!"
Innominat: "You'll pay for what you did to me!"

The Shepherd unleashes his Mystic Arte on Eleanor: Savage Wolf Fury! Bu zl tbq, gung'f qrsvavgryl Lhev'f ZN ur'f hfvat!!! V pna'g oryvrir vg!!!

The battle continues!

I take on the Shepherd first!

After reviving Eleanor, she assists with taking down the Shepherd!

Now it's Innominat's turn for his Mystic Arte: a Primal Kill!

A few minutes later and another Mystic Arte strike from Innominat, I target Innominat next.

Now that Innominat's health is getting lower, he's resorting to more powerful artes this time like Crown Fire and Meteor Storm!

We're almost finished here...

I use up an Elixir.

I decide to use all of Velvet's therion powers on Innominat at this point.

Innominat is finished!

The lineup is now Magilou, Rokurou, and Velvet, with Eleanor KO'd!

Rokurou deals the final blow to the Shepherd!

---

Shepherd: "Tenacious, you daemons."

Everyone's energy is spent...

The Shepherd and Innominat have another trick up their sleeve...

Innominat sees Laphicet healing Velvet and strikes at him!

Velvet gets between him and Laphicet and the fight continues!

Innominat's about to strike! Velvet's eyes widen...

She shows the comb!

Innominat breaks it!

It's a callback to Innominat breaking Laphicet's compass!

With Velvet literally striking this game's equivalent of God!

Innominat: "Why...do you have my comb?"
Velvet: "That was...the comb Laphi gave me. Not you, Innominat."
Innominat: (shaken?) "Of course... I'm Innominat, now reborn, and you're the Lord of Calamity. Aaah...Artorius, I'm hungry."

Innominat's pupils darken. He's feeling pain from hunger.

Shepherd: "It looks like we won't be able to harvest 'despair' by eating you [Velvet?] anymore." Oh no...

Now the Shepherd gets behind Innominat. They're going to fuse...

Shepherd: (closes his eyes) "Birds must fly, because they possess strong wings. Mankind must be suppressed, because it possesses great sin. Malevolence, tragedy, war, anger, tears, even love must all be suppressed." My god, this man...

Shepherd: "With the grace of my beating wings, I will grant humanity the tranquility it deserves."

He's falling to malevolence...even the Shepherd's not immune.

The Shepherd commands Innominat to eat his "despair" away.

Innominat bites his neck...

Oh my god!

Shepherd: "Nevn Huw Eijam!"

Innominat's fully restored.

What the heck!?

He fused with Innominat! Vzb, gur Furcureq ybbxf n ovg yvxr Lttqenfvyy zrrgf Lhev va uvf svany sbez va juvgr-tbyq nezbe. His right arm's glowing golden, and wielding a large, radiant sword.

Shepherd: "Now! With the full might of my [fusion]... I shall suppress all creation!"