PART ONE: THE CAT BEYOND TIME AND SPACE
Chapter 1: Dawn Rises in Baruoki.
Adopted siblings Aldo and Feinne live in the Present Era of 300AD, having been found in the Moonlight Forest and adopted by the kindly Mayor of Baruoki Village 16 years prior. This era, known as the Miglance Era is one of unrest, with much of the human realm (based largely in the capital city of Unigan in a tense stalemate with the more nature-oriented beastmen.
The humans of this era take for granted the existence of Prisma, elemental magic artifacts that make everyday life comfortable and easy. This Prisma is made up of four magical elements: earth, fire, wind, water.
As the story begins, Aldo woken up by his sister Feinne. They live in the sleepy hamlet of Baruoki Village, far form the mainland and from the central Unigan kingdom. Feinne reminds Aldo that it's the 16th anniversary of their adoption by the Mayor, and she wants to make him a gift - a beautiful new cane.
While helping Feinne, Aldo also runs several errands as part of his new job as part of the Baruoki town guard. While doing these various tasks around town, Aldo is challenged to find their missing pet cat Varuo.
Aldo eventually finds Varuo at the far edge of town, where Varuo is looking a strange, blue space-time portal. Varuo enters it and Aldo gives chase, where the two fall outside of space-time and find themselves at the Gallery of Dreams, a mystical clocktower-like area that can summon allies across space and time (introducing the character-collecting primary gatcha element of the game).
Upon returning to town, Aldo (and Varuo, who has joined the party as a cosmetic party member whose only function is to follow Aldo) finds the town under attack by beastmen, who are searching for Feinne. Among these enemies is a giant beastmen clad in gold armor, Vares, who is revealed to be the right-hand of the warmonger Beast King. Aldo rushes home to learn that Feinne has already been taken, and that the Mayor has been injured in the attack.
Aldo pursues the beastmen to the hills outside Baruoki, where he faces the Beast King in combat. The Beast King mentions wanting Feinne for her special powers, before crushing Aldo. However, a mysterious voice calls out to the fallen Aldo, revealed to be Aldo's sword, which is actually a sentient, ancient sword of great power known as the Ogre Rancorem. The weapon explains that it is filled with the anger of the now-extinct ogre tribe, who were eradicated by the beastmen ages ago. The blade offers to lend Aldo its' power, and Aldo zealously agrees. The blade transforms and is one of imaginable power, and with the Ogre Rancorem, Aldo is able to fight back against the Beast King...
But it isn't enough; Aldo is soon once again defeated and falls to the ground...
Chapter 2: Pursuit: The One Waiting in Moonlight Forest.
Aldo awakens to find that the beastmen and their captive Feinne have fled into the nearby Moonlight Forest. He also finds that the Ogre Rancorem has reverted back into a normal sword, but blindly continues his chase.
In his pursuit, Aldo navigates the dimly-lit Moonlight Forest. He quickly begins making ground against his enemies, but is confronted once more by Vares, allowing the Beast King time to escape with Feinnes. Vares transforms into a monstrous beast, but is ultimately defeated. After being questioned by Aldo, Vares reveals that the Beast King somehow believes Fienne will be the savior of the beastmen. Vares is then able to summon powerful Chimera minions as revenge against Aldo; Aldo recognizes that the Chimera are too powerful for him to face alone, and he flees. The Chimera give chase, and before long he is cornered. Before the Chimera can attack Aldo, however, a strange blue portal opens and pulls him in.
When Aldo emerges from the portal, he finds himself in a high-tech airport floating high amongst the clouds. Confused, he is attacked by a human girl, Amy, who accuses him of being an enemy: dangerous artificial human constructs known as a Synth Humans. The misunderstanding is quickly resolved, however, and Amy is revealed to be a hunter of these Synth Humans, who are in a constant war against the humans of the time...
...which is revealed to be 1100AD (800 years into the future), in an era known the Far Future. Aldo learns that this is an era when much of the planet's surface was destroyed by humanity, forcing humanity to now live on floating islands. She explains of a still-ongoing energy crisis, caused by humanity exhausting the once once-prominent elemental Prisma. However, human was saved by a new, artificial form of energy called Xeno Prisma.
Amy invites Aldo to her home, the capital of humanity: Elizon, the Shining City.
Chapter 3: Elzion: Echoes in the Sky.
Aldo and Amy travel across the flying airport, eventually encountering a pink android girl named Riica, who is under attack by Synth Humans. They rescue her, and she joins the group. Learning that Aldo is from the past, Riica kindly offers to help him find a way home.
The party soon reaches the city of Elzion, which is a massive megapolis encased within a protective bubble. The city has a multitude of corporate skyscrapers, green parks, and schools (including the elite campus known as the IDA School, which plays a part in several of the side campaigns).
Amy takes Aldo and Riica to her father Za'ol, a talented weaponmaster who specializes in antique melee weapons like swords and spears. Za'ol examines Aldo's sword, the Ogre Rancorem, and offers to try and fix it.
Amy also reveals to Za'ol that she has intel from her mission at the airport: the leader of the Synth Humans army, Galliard, is hiding out in the Industrial Ruins west of Elzion. Amy initially decides to investigate alone, but Aldo and Riica are persistent in aiding her.
Soon after leaving Za'ol's weapon store, the trio runs into Amy's friend Sebastia, who reveals that she found a Sound Orb -- one that just so happens to contain a recording of Amy's mother singing. Amy reveals that, on her birthday ten years prior (at the dawn of the Synth Human war) she and her mother were attacked by Synth Humans, leading to Amy's mother's death.
Sebastia is about to give the Sound Orb to Amy, but before she can do so, the Sound Orb is stolen by a mysterious, robed robot. This robot is revealed to be Galliard, who expresses that Synth Humans have an interest in human knickknacks; he admits that he has a collection of other Sound Orbs just like this one at Route 99; as he flees he taunts Amy and challenges her to come find other souvenirs of her dead mother.
Aldo, Amy, and Riica travel to Route 99 and encounter Galliard once more. He reveals a second Sound Orb and plays it, revealing it to be a second orb from Amy's mother. Galliard muses that Synth Humans collect human artifacts because they envy human memories, as Synth Humans are constructs who only have data - data that is easily erased or replaced. Amy and her friends fight Galliard to retrieve the second Sound Orb, only to discover that this Galliard is a fake.
The group takes the two Sound Orbs back to Elzion, where Sebastia pieces them together and Amy learns that they were meant to be her birthday present from her mother. Amy is touched and vows to continue fighting to make the world a better place.
Witnessing these events, Sebastia offers to hack the computers protecting the Industrial Ruins, allowing them the opportunity confront the real Galliard hiding within the ruins.
Chapter 4: Roar in the Ruins: Rise of The Synth Humans.
Aldo and his friends travel to (and into) the Industrial Ruins, where they eventually find Galliard talking to a female-like Synth-Human named Helena. They overhear Galliard discussing the threats of timequakes, once warned against by someone named Professor Chronos. They discuss that the Professor was correct and that space-time is being stretched too thin, and that the world will likely soon end. Helena and Galliard discuss the possible need to work with humanity to stop this from occurring, but Galliard muses that it is too late and the war between humans and Synth-Humans renders them unable to cooperate. He then discovers the heroes, who try to flee.
Galliard quickly catches up to the heroes aboard his motorcycle, forcing the group into battle. They manage to defeat Galliard. As he lies on the ground dying, Galliard explains that the Xeno Prisma used to power Elzion is unstable and will cause a massive timequake that threatens the world. With his final breath, he asks Helena to offer up forgiveness. In response, a distraught Helena refuses to fight the heroes and mourns Galliard's death. Likewise, the heroes refuse to fight her and leave the Industrial Ruins.
Chapter 5: You're Gone?! Our Lost Future.
Aldo, Riica, and Amy return to Elzion, where the citizens celebrate the defeat of Galliard. During this celebration, Za'ol returns the Ogre Rancorem to Aldo. He explains that he could only fix the pommel and restore a very small amount of the blade's trapped energy, which is contained within very powerful magical seals.
Their celebration is soon cut short when the inhabitants of Elzion suddenly begin to fade from existence one-by-one (including Za'ol and Amy), followed by Elzion's buildings and then even Elzion itself...
Aldo helplessly and confusedly watches as the timeline warps and changes around him, and both Elzion and the entire world turn to apocalyptic ruins. Aldo now stands along atop the ruins of a destroyed world.
Suddenly, a mysterious voice states that "history has been rewritten." An enigmatic specter of blue fire, the Phantom, appears to Aldo and explains that the timeline was altered at some point in the past, bringing about this new, apocalyptic future. The Phantom opens a wormhole in time and motivates Aldo to travel back in time to save Elzion and its inhabitants, but warns that in doing so, Aldo may be dooming other possible futures from ever existing. Aldo zealously agrees to save this Far Future and enters the time portal.
...As Aldo travels through time, he witnesses a memory/flashback to when he and Fienne were children. In this memory, while exploring the Moonlight Forest, Fienne meets a kindly beastfolk girl, Altena. Fienne injures her leg, and Altena uses healing magic to heal her leg...
Aldo emerges from the portal at the Zol Plains, a lush valley of dinosaurs and prehistoric flora. Riica emerges just behind him, as she was not erased when the Far Future timeline was erased. Before they can make sense of where they are, the duo is then attacked by a T-Rex, and upon defeating it learns that it had also been attacking a young boy named Veron. Veron invites them back to his village.
Aldo and Riica are both unsure why Riica was able to survive the erasure of her timeline, although Riica does admit that she has enigmatic ghost data in her data banks. Before heading to Veron's village, Aldo examines the repaired Ogre Rancorem sword and finds that Za'ol's repairs have been undone due to the erasure of the future timeline.
Chapter 6: Salamander Encroached Upon from Another World.
The two travel across the Zol Plains and reach Veron's home of Ratel Village. There they are able to make sense of their surroundings and find that they are in the far past of 20,000BC, in an era known as the Antiquity.
This era finds the world freely utilizing magic, with humankind largely led by power-hungry King Palsifal and his masked aide, the future-seeing Oracle. This era also sees a unique blend of magical cities and prehistoric villages. While exploring Ratel Village, they also learn that the era has elemental protectors of the planet / deities known as Eidolons, one Eidolon for each kind of magic element: earth, fire, wind, and water.
Upon catching up with Veron, he explains that he was in the dangerous Zol Plains because he has ill feelings regarding the nearby Nadara Volcano, which has been reacting strange lately. He asks Aldo and Riica to go seek out the Eidolon of Fire, Salamander, at the heart of Nadara Volcano within the eastern Vasu Mountains, and see if Salamander can help.
The heroes traverse the lava-filled volcano and reach its' heart, where they find Salamander -- who has some sinister black smoke coming from it. Riica examines Salamander and recognizes that the black smoke is due to corruption, having turned it in to Dark Salamander. The Eidolon then attacks the heroes, who manage to defeat it. The elemental deity reverts to normal and thanks them, but explains that the evil that corrupted him was only a small amount of the evil's true power, and that a great disaster looms before them. Salamander asks Aldo and Riica to travel to Palsifal Palace, where he detects some sort of disturbance.
The pair descend the mountain and explain things to Veron, who tells them that they will have to cross the vast Lake Tiilen to reach Palsifal Palace.
Chapter 7: Acteul: A Figure on the Water.
Aldo and Riica continue travelling west in the hope of reaching the Palsifal Palace, the capital of the land. En route, the party visits the water city in the middle of Lake Tiilen, Acteul. Hearing of their exploits saving Salamander, Aldo is challenged by the villagers to help solve the mystery of a strange ghost-woman who oddly looks like the late queen of Palsifal. Aldo learns that both the queen and prince of Palsifal died some time ago, and King Palsifal hasn't been the same since.
Upon finding the ghost-woman at Lake Tiilen, they find that it's actually some sort of hologram, which is promptly deactivated by the Oracle of Palsifal Palance. The masked man admits to knowing of the future and warns Aldo not to get in the way of the mysterious plans that he and King Palsifal have put into motion.
Chapter 8: Palsifal Palace: Heed the Wishes of the Oracle.
Aldo and Riica cross the lake and pass along the Derismo Highroad, finally reaching the city of Palsifal Palace. Here, Aldo learns that the city is one of magic, with a great school for teaching magic. Going to the proper palace at the heart of the city, Aldo confronts King Palsifal about his plans, and the future timeline he erased.
King Palsifal is ultimately uncooperative and explains that he can rewrite history and control the future via the mysterious Tower of Time. Aldo learns that the destruction of Elzion he witnessed in the Future Era was actually the result of timeline changes by King Palsifal and the Oracle. Upon the advice of the Oracle (and fearing Aldo's possible interference), King Palsifal orders Aldo captured and thrown into an underground marsh / prison: the Man-Eating Marsh.
Chapter 9: Fear the Man-eating Marsh: Lord of the Abyss.
Now trapped in and underground prison/swamp, Aldo encounters Cyrus, a human-frog samurai from a faraway 'eastern land.' Cyrus blindly attacks Aldo before he can explain himself, but after the battle the two discuss the situation and decide to join forces, as Cyrus wants to help save the future Aldo describes.
They covertly return to Palsifal Palace and meet up with an old friend of Cyrus', Ratchett, who is one of the court magicians of Palsifal. She initially refuses to believe that Cyrus is who he claims to be due to his current frog form, but Cyrus is eventually able to convince her with information only he would know. She agrees to help Aldo reach the Tower of Time so Aldo can undo the timeline changes.
She also notices the Ogre Rancorem sword that Aldo has slung to his waist. She recognizes it as the same sword that King Palsifal wields, only Aldo's is much older. She uses her magic to release a seal on the sword, releasing a small part of its power, resulting in Aldo falling unconscious. In his unconscious state, Aldo and the Ogre Rancorem speak to another - the sword explains that it is the undying anger and desire for revenge of the ogre tribe, who were wiped out by the beastmen. It cryptically explains that the destiny between the Ogre Rancorem and Aldo have been entwined for ages...
Aldo awakens and the heroes are now ready to travel to the Tower of Time to confront King Palsifal and the Oracle.
Chapter 10: Tower of Time: Peering into the Embryo's Dream.
Aldo and his friends travel east along the wild and untamed Keruri Highroad and find the Tower of TIme, which on the outside looks like a high-tech spire. Upon entering it, however, they find it a techno bioorganic structure of mysterious and unknown technology.
They battle through various Synth Human-esque enemies and reach the top of the Tower of Time, where they find a massive chamber. The walls are covered in robotic-looking baby heads, and a central platform is surrounded by shifting images floating in the air. Riica recognizes the tower as a giant quantum computer, the various embryonic heads creating images of possible futures. Aldo demands this computer, known as the Visus Embryo, return the Future Era he saw, but they deny him as an unauthorized user and attack.
After defeating the Visus Embryo, they recognize Aldo as an authorized user and accept his request, reverting the timeline to as it was. The timeline now restored, Aldo investigates the Ogre Rancorem and sees that the part that Amy’s dad had previously repaired is now once again repaired.
Aldo recognizes the danger of the Tower of Time and apologizes to the Visus Embryo, deciding to destroy it. Riica interfaces with the Tower and reformats the CPU, erasing all data and programs and ensuring it cannot be reactivated. He hopes that this will stop King Palsifal’s meddling with history, but Cyrus reminds him that it’s really the Oracle that is pulling the strings.
Just then, the Phantom reappears and thanks Aldo for restoring the timeline; it then admits that by doing so the universe can once again “speed towards destruction.” The Phantom explains that Xeno Prisma amplifies temporal distortions, sending shockwaves throughout spacetime, expanding the universe with each distortion; this constant expansion requires energy to compensate, which will eventually cause the universe to expand to the point of a colossal timequake – the collapse of all of space-time. Because the future with Xeno Prisma had previously been erased, the universe was actually safe from this outcome. But the Phantom, unable to directly interact with the world, was able to manipulate Aldo to restore this future and once again doom all of space-time. He bids Aldo farewell, calling him the “Kit of Chronos.”
A space-time anomaly forms, pulling Aldo, Riica, and Cyrus in. As Aldo travels through time, he witnesses another flashback to his childhood with Feinne.
...A young Feinne and Altena walk the Moonlight Forest, bonding over their shared frustrations with their older brothers. Suddenly, the pair are interrupted and accosted by a group of kids (and a cat) from Buruoki, first cornering Altena for being a beastfolk. Feinne defends Altena, but they turn against Feinne, too. Luckily, Aldo appears and chases them off before things could get physical. He apologetically recommends that Feinne not return to the Moonlight Forest, seemingly ending the friendship between Feinne and Altena...
Chapter 11: Spacetime Rift: Lost in Time.
Aldo, Cyrus, and Riica awaken to find themselves in the strange Spacetime Rift, a floating construct akin to a cobblestone alley lit by streetlamps. Recalling their confrontation with the Phantom, Riica mentions that there is a researcher in the Future era named Professor Chronos, and wonders if Aldo being referred to as the "kit of Chronos" has anything to do with him. They muse if this means that this Professor Chronos is somehow his and Feinne's father.
The Spacetime Rift has a single building, a bar called Time’s Forgotten Stop, and upon entering they meet the kindly mustache'd barkeep, the Master, who explains that he was expecting Aldo, and that this place is a refuge for those who’ve lost their way. Several other patrons explain that lost souls end up here and gradually lose their memory of who they were before and where they came from.
Also also meets several other characters: First, Aldo meets Middalysse, aka Lady Midd, a wise and ancient woman that introduces class changes and other character enhancements that are part of the gacha and level-up mechanics of the game.
He also meets Sidekick Guy, a small lad with a pet slime who can detect the “wavelength of friends,” allowing Aldo to locate potential animal sidekicks.
Next, Aldo meets the small Nameless Girl, who, like the Master, has been expecting him. She explains that she is "the one who charts the course of dimensions traverse." Like most denizens here, she can't remember her past. She stands outside a magical blue door that leads nowhere (called The Dimensional Gate), explaining that she is somehow connected to it via fate. She implores Aldo to use it to help explore the dimensional dungeons beyond, which may help restore her memories. This gameplay mechanic gives Aldo daily dungeons he can rush to gain items and immense experience.
Last, Aldo follows a strange glowing cat into a space-time portal into the Astral Archive, a magical library similar to the Gallery of Dreams. A robed, bearded guru-esque man named the Gallery Master hands Aldo a corrupted tome and explains that these tomes are where the memories of the stars are preserved in book form. By helping fulfill certain requirements and missions, Aldo can help restore these tomes, refill the Astral Archive, and can unlock special talents separate from normal level progression.
A final concept introduced here are time layers - essentially parallel universes where characters and their stories happen differently, making them wholly unique from each other. This allows Aldo to recruit different versions of the same character, which are from other universes, who have unique backstories, looks, and battle abilities.
After learning about the Spacetime Rift and the various new gameplay mechanics, Aldo finds light pillars in the stone square that connect him to the Past of 20000BC, his Present of 300AD, and the Future of 1100AD. The Master explains that they these are connected to distortions in space-time that will allow him to travel through time as he wants. Content that the Future has been restored, Aldo and his friends decide to travel to back to Present Era of 300AD.
Chapter 12: Homecoming and Dark Clouds Gather: Ogre Rancorem Roars.
Upon returning to Baruoki village, Aldo reunited with the Mayor and finds that the war between Miglance and the beastmen is on the verge of escalating into all-out war. Worse yet, there are rumors of a human girl traveling - seemingly by her own will - with the beastmen armies.
Aldo travels through the Karek Swamplands to the capital of the land, Unidan, to seek the council of King Miglance. Upon arriving at Miglance Castle and meeting the king, Aldo learns that the beastmen army is on the move, and that two of the best beastmen scouts, Mobecha and Pepori, have been sighted in the nearby Karek Swamplands. King Miglance prioritizes preparing the defense of the city, while Aldo and friends volunteer to scout out the situation in the swamp.
The sun sets as Aldo and company rush into the swamp, meeting the very unique and un-beastmen like Mobecha and Pepori. They explain that they are friends with Fienne and were sent to help him. They warn Aldo of the Ogre Rancorum and explain its origin: 3,000 years prior, it was wielded by the leader of humanity, the Thunder King, and it was he who wiped out the ogre tribe, not the beastmen as the sword has previously claimed. They explain that the Ogre Rancorem lied to Aldo to gain his trust, and that the blade wishes to destroy all life, and it desires humanity to suffer the most of all. They explain that the sword has been a royal weapon ever since, but for some unknown reason it hates Aldo more than anyone else, and even manipulated its way to Baruoki and to Aldo's side. They warn that while the blade may help Aldo now, it will ultimately betray him.
The Ogre Rancorem finally speaks out, forming a beastly, ogre-like apparition of itself. Furious that its' plan has been revealed, it admits that it has harbored resentment and anger for 3,000 years, scheming to exterminate both humanity and the beastmen. It lashes out at Aldo, reminding him that he only survived the Beast King's assault (in Chapter 1) because of it. Aldo adamantly refuses to be a tool for destruction, so the blade claims to have no further use of Aldo and vows to defeat him. Aldo bravely pushes back, and the blade agrees to continue support Aldo if he can defeat the apparition in combat. When Aldo succeeds, the blade stays true to its word and agrees to put aside its desire for vengeance (for now, anyway). Aldo unlocks more of the swords sealed power, with Mobecha and Pepori cheering him on, even calling him 'brother' - much to Aldo's chagrin.
With the beastmen now attacking Unidan, Aldo returns to the capital city.
Chapter 13: Fight to the Death: Miglance Castle is Burning?!
The heroes return to the city Unigan city, only to find that the beastmen and the Beast King have stormed Miglance castle. Aldo and his friends battle through the castle and encounter the Beast King upon its' topmost tower. There, the Beast King and three of his soldiers have King Miglance cornered against a crumbling precipice. He yells at Aldo, claiming that humans steal the power of Prisma, while the beastmen are descendants of the great elemental spirts and work in harmony with Prima, making the beastmen the true owners of the planet.
As the Beast King prepares to slay King Miglance, Amy appears and rescues the human King, allows Aldo to engage the Beast King in battle. He is defeated, but throws himself over the crumbling precipice, only to transform midair and reappear as a giant flying beast. Riica searches her databanks and confirms that the Beast King has assumed his most combat-optimized form. Aldo and friends engage him in combat again.
Once more he is defeated, and Aldo demands to know where Feinne is. Almsot on cue, a portal of light appears in front of the Beast King, and out comes Altena and Feinne. Feinne is silent and doesn't recognize Aldo, and the Beast King reveals that her consciousness has been sealed by the strongest of beastmen magics. He is amazed by her talents, unsure how she gained her mysterious gifts, but confirms that when she fully awakens her powers she will become the savior of the beastmen; meanwhile, Altena reassures Aldo that they'd never harm Feinne.
Via another flashback, we learn that the Beast King - then known as Guildna - encountered Feinne as a baby in the Moonlight Forest, moments before they were found and adopted by the mayor of Baruoki. Even then he recognized her mysterious dormant powers. Baby Feinne begins glowing, but he realizes others are approaching and flees before he can be seen.
With the current fate of Feinne now known to Aldo, Altena refuses to allow more bloodshed, convincing her brother that they should all depart. The sinister Beast King Guilda, a mind-washed Feinne, and Altena then teleport away and escape.
Back on the precipices of Miglance Castle, the Beast King tells Altena that the future of the beastfolk lie with her awakening Feinne's powers. He then fades away into nothing. Altena, recognizing that there has been much violence for the day, she and Feinne create a light portal and flee into it, but not before she reaffirms that she will use Feinne's powers to make the beastfolk the rulers of the world. Aldo is distraught at having lost Feinne again.
The party meets with King Miglance, who thanks the team for helping turn the tides of the war by defeating the Beast King. He is reminded that he needs to rest and recover from the battle and departs. Having time to regroup, Aldo thanks Amy for her miraculous entrance, and she explains how she got there. She explains that she remembered he came from Baruoki Village in the Miglance period, and uses the same time portal to travel here to aid Aldo.
Before they can celebrate too much, however, a massive time quake occurs. Riica reminds the group that the timequakes are growing stronger and will destroy the universe if left unchecked. Aldo explains to Amy that the Xeno Prisma of her time period are making space-time unstable, and she replies that they should investigate Professor Chronos, a scientist from her time who was the leading expert on Prisma research. Cyrus recognizes the name and muses that the Phantom had mentioned him and hinted that he could be Aldo's father. Amy rejoins the party and they return to the Future.
Chapter 14: Return to Elzion: Reflections of Professor Chronos.
In Elzion, Amy suggests they find one of the researchers who had worked with Professor Chronos 16 years prior. They're led to a former scientist from the Xeno Prisma project, but he can't talk to Aldo because he has an NDA (and he didn't work with the Professor directly).
The man's son suggests Aldo loosen up with a gift of fine beverages - specifically, a legendary drink called Mirth Punch. Cyrus recalls that this drink was mentioned in Ratle. Returning back to the Antiquity age, Aldo and friends climb Nadara Volcano and find a lava pool and a small, dragon-like monster: Lord Ukulele. When Lord Ukulele learns that Aldo wants some of the Mirth Punch, the monster refuses to share and engages Aldo in battle and is quickly overpowered. Aldo obtains the Mirth Punch and returns to the scientist in the Future.
The former scientist is thrilled to have Mirth Punch and immediately begins telling Aldo about the Xeno Prisma project. He explains that about 16 years prior, the professor and his entire family just disappeared and were never seen again. He recommends Aldo go to the Xeno-Domain, a floating research facility high above Elzion, and where the Chronos family lived. He warns that the official investigation into their disappearance didn't turn up any clues, so they shouldn't get their hopes up.
On his way out, Aldo again speaks the former scientist's son, who explains that the Xeno-Domain is abandoned and that the only way to get there is through an old space-elevator: the Babel Elevator. To gain access, however, Aldo will need to seek permission a high-ranking official of Elzion, the Administrator. Knowing that he's high-ranking and unlikely to accept visitors, Riica searches her databanks to learn more about the Administrator, and she recalls that he often plays chess with Sebastia.
The party returns to Sebastia's house and explain the need -- she agrees to make an introduction and gives Aldo a recording to use. Aldo returns to an elevator but it initially denied access to the Administrator's office; he plays Sebastia's recording and the elevator immediately grants Aldo access.
The group travels to the Administrator's Office, which sits high atop Elzion. Within the office is a large, gate-like contraction, and four androids that act as aides to the Administrator. He is initially taken back by Aldo's brash request for information on Professor Chronos, but Amy intervenes and explains that she and Aldo were the ones who defeated Galliard. The Administrator confirms that Professor Chronos, his wife, and his two kids disappeared without a trace 16-years prior. The final project of the Professor was shrouded in secrecy, but rumored to have been the cause of his disappearance. He admits that they never could figure out what happened, and have left his laboratory locked down out of both respect for his memory and out of fear of what he discovered. He agrees to grant Aldo access to the Xeno-Domain if Aldo agrees to share all his findings.
Chapter 15: Call from the Stars: Xeno-Domain.
The heroes to the Project Babel, the high-speed space-elevator that "grants travel between the various geostationary satellites" over Elzion - one of them being Xeno-Domain. The crew watches in awe as the elevator leaves the atmosphere, showing them the beauty and wonders of space. They again resolve to save the of the universe.
Suddenly, several waves of, faceless, Phantom-like apparitions appear and attack the party. When defeated, the enigmatic Phantom appears, telling Aldo that his resistance is meaningless and that they cannot stop the giant timequake that is coming. Aldo refuses to accept such a fatalistic view and reminds the Phantom that they will save the universe. The Phan
Chapter 16: The Truth About Chronos: Family Portrait.
The heroes arrive the orbital satellite, its walls white and pristine in the residential areas, more industrial in others. Various robots - part of the stations automated defense - remain active and rogue, attacking Aldo as he explores.
Various logs detail research projects that were conducted on the station. One mentions research that created the Synth Humanity morality OS, which is hinted at playing a role in the uprising ten years prior. Others detail the research around Xeno Prisma, about how it was discovered 400 years prior; about the eventual involvement of KMS as a company sponsor (whose reputation was in decline for reasons yet-unknown), who brought additional specialists to the project led by the competent and capable manager Solva. Solva, as research continued, reported to KMS that the usage of Xeno Prisma, while promising, had a fatal flaw in that "the quantum acceleration within the ultra-compressed prisma core" caused the timequakes. The initial prototype was so bad that it had to be sealed away in the station's Terminal Core, and she warned against mass producing the later-developed (only slightly-improved) Xeno Prisma. She warned that the project should instead be focusing on the "Geo Project."
The party eventually find the living quarters of Professor Chronos' Research Facility, where he and his family lived on the station.. There they see photos of the professor and his family: his wife and fellow scientist, Madoka, Aldo (then 3 years old), and Feinne (then a newborn). The lights flicker and a holographic image of the professor and Madoka appear.
The hologram of Professor Chronos first explains that Aldo (named Eden at birth) and Feinne (originally named Celine) are indeed his children from this Future era, and he congratulates them on returning home, as the hologram only responds to someone of his family. With corporate backing by the massive and secretive KMS organization, his project studied a substance called Xeno Prisma, a form of Prisma discovered 400 years prior, which artificially amplifies the energy output of normal prisma. Because the planet was facing an energy crisis, he hoped that his project could use Xeno Prisma to solve the growing energy crisis and save mankind.
Professor Chronos and his team eventually discovered that, although Xeno Prisma had potential to be a great power source, it had the unfortunate side effect of destabilizing space-time and caused timequakes. Just like Aldo read in reports scattered around the satellite, the KMS corporation ignored these risks and proceeded with the utilization of new Xeno Prisma-backed power all across the planet.
Recognizing that Xeno Prisma would ultimately destroy the universe, the professor began researching a safer, natural and more efficient Geo Prisma. He created a prototype of this Geo Prisma, called Alpha Geo, and installed it in a newborn Aldo. Three years later, after Feinne was born, she received a more developed and improved version of Alpha Prisma. His goal was for Aldo and Feinne to save the universe from the eventual threat of Xeno Prisma - although he truly hoped that his other project would succeed and there'd be no need for Aldo and Feinne to save the universe. Professor Chronos alludes to this other project, and admits that he has to take responsibility for his work on Xeno Prisma and the damage it has done.
Madoka and Chronos reconfirm their love for their children and wish them long, healthy lives, even after they're gone. They also grant Aldo access to the station's Terminal Core. Riica, Amy, and Cyrus leave the room to give Aldo some time alone, who stands in the dark and takes a moment to stare at the holographic image of his family. They then move onto sealed Terminal Core, where they hope to find more information from Professor Chronos' research notes.
Within the enormous chamber are two floating red orbs. Riica recognizes them as protoype Xeno and Geo Prisma; they are already extremely unstable and beyond repair. They muse over what else Professor Chronos discovered, only to be attacked by a Synth Drone that protects the Terminal Core. Despite beating the drone, the prototype prisma begin glowing and reacting irregularly. Riica recognizes it as a huge surge in energy from another timeplane, causing gravitational waves in the Xeno Prisma that are are leading to temporal distortions that will cause a timequake. Aldo worries that this may be the end, and we cut to Elzion, where all the Xeno Prisma of Elzion has become unstable.
High above the sky, a strange hexagonal-like portal appears in the sky, breaking through space-time in all eras -- above Elzion in the Future, Miglance Castle in the Present, and over Palsifal Palace is the Antiquity era.
Returning to Aldo and his friends at the Terminal Core, we find that the Xeno Prisma has calmed down - at least for now. A Masked Man (who looks awfully like the Oracle met in Antiquity) appears before them as a transparent visage, who explains that the Xeno Prototype is indeed breaking down, resonating with Xeno Prisma in the city, further warping space-time and creating a temporal distortion and rip in space-time - the crimson, hexagonal portal in the sky over every era. This distortion is a gateway connecting to another plane of existence, a placed called the Corridor of Time Layers. He urges Aldo to go there with the Alpha Geo inside his body, and he may be able to dissipate the coming timequake across dimensions and mitigate the damage, saving space-time. As the Masked Man begins to fade, Aldo suspects that the man may be his father, Professor Chronos...
Aldo and his friends return to Elzion and explain things to the Administrator. Initially unsure how they can get to the Corridor of Time Layers due to the warps in spacetime surrounding it - rendering airships unable to assist - the Administrator offers the use of the large portal-like device in his office: the matter transmission engine. No longer in use because they no longer communicate with the surface of the planet, the device is essentially a teleportation device that can beam the party into the space-time distortion and into the Corridor of Time Layers.
As Aldo is about to step into the teleportation device, the Administrator admires his bravery. Aldo reiterates that he is afraid, but that they don't have time to let the fear in, and he bravely resolves to continue fighting to save the universe.
Chapter 17: Cataclysm: Escape the Great Timequake.
The Corridor of Time Layers dungeon is a maze of corridors, often reshuffling and shifting. Various layers also represent the eras encountered in the game: Antiquity, Present, and Future. As Aldo, Riica, Cyrus, and Amy fight through the dungeon, they encounter ghost-like apparition enemies, revealed to be minions of the Phantom, and witness as multiple timeliness overlap, combine, and layer over each other. They ultimately encounter the Time Layer Distortion, a Cthulhu-esque cosmic entity and embodiment of the temporal distortions given physical form. It has multiple barbed arms and a large portal-like mouth, and the party observes that it is likely created by the Xeno Prisma -- defeating it may finally stop the time quakes and save the universe.
Aldo and his friends engage the entity and fight it. As they do damage, it shifts through various time eras, including ones not seen in the game, even shifting into the very beginning of the universe with the Big Bang. They persist, however, and defeat this entity, but the Phantom appears and once again gloats that they are too late. Despite having stopped the Distortion and the time quakes, the Phantom explains that its brethren have begun to flow from the Corridor of Time Layers. They begin to pull a massive floating continent from the Future era into the Corridor of Time Layers portal and deposit it into the Antiquity era; its' destruction would act equivalent to a final timequake - one capable of finally destroying space-time.
The massive island is pulled into the Corridor of Time Layers, sending shockwaves that begin to collide with timequake energy, the combined disasters echoing into the far past and space-time begins tearing apart. However, when all seems lost, the elemental Eidolons of the Antiquity era come together to stop the floating island and the temporal distortion, sacrificing themselves to push back against the massive timequake. As Salamander dies, he tells mankind that the future is now entirely in their hands.
The backdraft from this massive timequake is pushed through the Corridor of Time Layers into the Future era, and the Corridor begins to collapse. Aldo and his friends flee to the Corridor's exit, with Aldo remaining behind to ensure his friends are able to escape.
The fragments of the four eidolons fall through the Antiquity era for the next few days like shooting stars, spreading far over the land as the elemental Prisma eventually seen as a core tenant of life in the Present era (revealing this may have all been preordained to happen). However, not all is safe: a large, blackhole-like Dimension Vortex appears - a pit of infinite chaos - and the Phantom again gloats that while the universe was saved temporarily, spacetime has reached its limit and the flow of time of deteriorating and the Vortex will still swallow the universe, albeit slowly. All the Phantom has to do is now wait out the end of the universe.
Chapter 19: Twilight of the World: The Shores' End.
Five days later, Aldo awakens alone on a small, floating island in the Future era, a place called the Last Island. In a depressive state, he laments that they failed in saving space-time, and it is only because of the Antiquity era's Eidolons that the universe hasn't been completely destroyed just yet.
As he stands on a beach looking at the horizon (a force field keeping the water in place on this flying island), the Gallery Master from the Gallery of Dreams appears, intending to inspire hope in Aldo. He reminds him that the timequake was still stopped, and the damage thus far was kept to a minimum thanks to Aldo and his friends - he should feel proud, as they still have a chance now, he just needs to figure out how to stop the Dimensional Vortex. The Gallery Master also reminds Aldo about what Professor Chronos told him in the hologram in the Xeno-Domain: he, Feinne, and the Geo Prisma are the world's final hope.
Despite the pep talk, Aldo is resolute in his despair: he is alone, unable to do anything. The Gallery Master urges him to hold onto hope, as he is never alone - he still has his friends, he simply has to find them and rally. The Gallery Master disappears, leaving Aldo again standing alone on the lonely shoreline.
Aldo explores the beachfront and fights seaside enemies. In time he reaches a small village on the Last Island. There he learns that the Xeno Prisma all across the planet has begun to become unstable, and that humans will no longer be able to rely on it as a power source. They worry about what the future holds but are grateful to still be alive.
In the island's inn, Aldo stumbles into Amy, Cyrus, and Riica, who have been searching for him since they were separated in the Corridor of Time Layers. Finding him in his depressive state, they reassure Aldo that even though the Dimensional Vortex was created to destroy space-time, there is still time to stop it before it consumes the universe. They rally together, standing on the bonds and strength of their friendship, and Aldo finally finds the spark of hope within him reignite.
Now willing to continue the fight but unsure on how to proceed, Aldo decides to return to the Spacetime Rift and speak to the Master, who hears rumors from across space-time with all the denizens that appear there.
Chapter 20: The Riftbreaker Embarks! Designation: Synth Hydra.
The heroes return to the Spacetime Rift and speak to the Master, who explains that several new light pillars have appeared five days ago. One of them leads to Laula Dome in the Future era, but he warns that the Synth Humans have started showing more aggressive efforts to destroy mankind.
The heroes use the light pillar to travel to Laula Dome, which is a quiet, rural island where humans have escaped to in order to live like others did on the past - they are proud to work with their hands, farming and living in general simplicity. Within the domed village are fields of flowing wheat, but beyond the safety of the dome's barrier is a mysterious flying warshi.
Speaking to the villagers, they learn that the warship is the Riftbreaker: a flying Synth Human "synthship" and time machine that will allow the Synth Humans to travel back in time and crush humans at an earlier point in history. Luckily, the warship is still under construction and not yet operational, so Aldo and his friends decide to find a way aboard. Their solution comes quickly comes from one of the villagers, the Pyrotechnician, who can blast them over in one of his homemade fireworks. He sends Aldo and friends on an errand to collect some supplies, then begins retrofitting his cannon to blast them over to the Riftbreaker.
Because the warship has functional weapons that will easily blast them out of the sky, they recognize they will need help getting past the warship's defenses. They decide to ask Helena for help, hoping that even though the odds are unlikely, there's a chance she could be convinced to help.
They travel to the Industrial Ruins and ask Helena for help. She is skeptical but does recognize that the Synth Human's plans to erase this future is not the correct course, and she agrees to help - but only because it will save the planet. She first demands that Aldo and friends defeat her in combat in order to test their determination. Upon her defeat she joins Aldo and friends and agrees to help them stop the Synth Humans, musing that this is ultimately what Professor Chronos would have wanted.
The group is successfully launched to the airship, Helena helping them sneak past the ship's defenses. There they battle through the airship and learn that the Synth Hydra is a conscious machine, with multiple personalities (thus the "Synth Hydra" moniker) representing the ships giant "Dimension Cannon" and the core airship personality. They defeat the Cannon and then the core personality, who is impressed at the human's for defeating it.
The airship begins losing altitude, and as falls to corrupted earth far below, Helena flies down to try and stop its descent. Initially failing, she sees a glowing vision of Galliard that gives her the strength to slow the Riftbreaker's descent and ultimately save it from destruction.
Some time later, Aldo and his friends work with an organization called "Natural" to fix the Riftbreaker. Helena leads the repairs, and the living ship is inspired by the kindness of Helena and her human allies. It has a change of heart and resolves to aide Aldo and friends in saving the planet, becoming their personal vehicle and time machine, meaning the heroes no longer have to use the pillars of light at the Spacetime Rift to travel through time.
NOTE: With the flying Riftbreaker aiding the heroes, the party now has the ability to explore several new locations and side quests.
Chapter 21: Tower of Stars: Behind the Mask of the Oracle.
The party uses the Riftbreaker to travel through time and return to the Antiquity Era, as it has the earliest access in the timeline to the Dimensional Vortex. However, they find that the Dimensional Vortex is protected by air currents and sort of black miasma that is fatal to both machines and humans. Aldo recommends tracking down the Oracle at Palsifal Palace, as he clearly knew much more than he let on and may know how to stop the Dimensional Vortex.
Arriving at the Palsifal Palace, they learn several key details about the history of King Palsifal, namely that a former court magician was likely responsible for the death of the Queen and their child, and that this magician disappeared shortly after, replaced by the Oracle.
Confronting the Oracle, the party learns that he is Professor Chronos from the Future. He explains that the Xeno and Geo Prisma he was experimenting with, when they reached maximum energy output, created a wormhole leading to the Antiquity era. He then devised a plan to stop the creation of Xeno Prisma and save all of space-time -- but in doing so he would have to manipulate events in the Antiquity Era so that his Far Future never came to be (as his Far Future is responsible for the utilization of the Xeno Prisma). He felt sorrow in this decision, as he knew that erasing his timeline would erase everything he knew and loved from history, but it was necessary to save space-time. He decided to bring his children when he traveled back in time, knowing that they would be separated from their native timeline and would still be able to exist even with the destruction of the future.
He says that he has more to say, but that time is running short. He asks Aldo to meet him at the Tower of Stars. The party travels there, defeats it's guardian giant Earth Golem, and navigates the secret passages and labyrinthian interior of the Tower.
Upon reaching the top floor of the Tower, Aldo and his allies find the Oracle and his robotic aide, Galliard the 2nd. The Oracle admits that the Tower of Time (where the Visus Embryo was) was his time research laboratory, while the Tower of Stars acted as his laboratory for elementals. He explains that he wanted to created a special alloy using both Geo Prisma and the power of the elemental Eidolons. He explains that his research bore little fruit until the Eidolons sacrificed themselves to stop the time quakes, and their remains - the radioactive fragments of elemental energy - gave him the breakthrough he needed. He continues, admitting that the radioactive fragments are so dangerous that he is slowly dying from radiation poisoning, but that they should lose their radioactivity after ~20,000 years and eventually be useful to mankind (which is by the time of the Present Era of 300AD). The Oracle then gives Aldo the fruits of his research: the Geo Metal.
Suddenly, an angry King Palsifal appears, having been listening to the Oracle's confession. Angry that he gave up everything (his "life, marriage, and kingdom") in pursuit of power (due to the Oracle's manipulation), he strikes the Oracle down. The despondent King Palsifal, having given into despair and longing for everyone to feel the pain and despair he feels, transforms uses magic to transform into an armored monster and attacks Aldo and his heroes.
With King Palsifal dead, Aldo rushes to the side of the side of the dying Oracle. The Oracle explains that when he and his children (young Aldo and Fienne) entered the wormhole to travel from the Far Future to the Antiquity, a surge in temporal currents blew into the wormhole and separated him from his children. He explains that he had no way to reopen the wormhole and was trapped in this Era alone, having no idea where his children ended up.
He tells Aldo/Eden how proud he is, and that he wishes they could've met under better circumstances, and that he wishes he could've also seen Feinne/Celine one last time. He apologizes for deceiving Aldo and putting him through so much trouble, but is grateful that Aldo stopped him from erasing his timeline (at the Tower of Time) and saving the millions of lives that would have been erased. He begins to offer help that will help Aldo enter the Dimensional Vortex, but is unable to and passes way.
The Oracle's aide, Galliard the 2nd, then gives the party the info the Oracle was unable to. He gives Aldo a Primeval Gem that should be able to dissipate the dangerous miasma surrounding the Dimensional Vortex, along with a short history lesson. He explains that thousands of years before even the Eidolons came to exist, the forces of Chaos and Order clashed. This clash created a Dimensional Vortex that dispersed Chaos throughout the Universe, while Order coalesced into magical stones like the incredibly rare Primeval Gem.
The party returns to the Riftbreaker and gives the living ship the Primeval Gem, but the Riftbreaker admits that it will take some time to analyze the stone before it can implement the gem's powers into the ship.
Suddenly, the Beast King's minion, Vares, appears, having traveled through time to deliver a message: Feinne's power is growing and nearing its' apex, and soon Feinne will be the savior of beastkind and will destroy the humans forever. He admits to toying with Aldo, taunting him to try and rescue Feinne.
With the Riftbreaker needing time to use the Primeval Gem, and knowing that the Geo Prisma within Feinne was created by Professor Chronos to help humanity, Amy convinces Aldo that now is the time to rescue Feinne once and for all. Riica also muses that the Geo Prisma is likely nano-technology, and that its use (or misuse) could have unknown consequences.
The party travels back to the Present Era and readies to storm the Beast King's Castle.
Chapter 22: Infiltration: The Beast King's Castle! Altena's Tears.
Chapter 23: Storming the Dimensional Vortex! Echoes of the Phantom.
Chapter 24: Chronos' Umbra Falls! Hear the Darkness Roar.
Chapter 25: Time Grieve...Fly! Mourning Kyros.
Chapter 26: Friends: To Another End of Time.
