Crestfallen Studios

Since I already sent off my report I'll just post this except from the end and maybe either of you two can clear this up for me. I plan on replaying the episodes at some point, but not until Ep6 is really released. Anyway:

-I’m still a bit confused by what the voice in the tower said. Why would it lie?
-Who is Sacrifa? Why does he want to go into the tower? Lyrra was there, Midian was there, but what about Sacrifa?
-When did the landorin massacre really take place? How long has this been perpetuating?
-Who is Gaius really?
-I know in the lexus ending rhue flew away, but where did he go that allowed him to live in his mind for the rest of his life?
slasher like you meantioned in your comments.
-Is Rhue Midian?!
-Quick question: If you don’t save lexus from the tomb, then what happens with that part of the ending?
-Why is Strata there at the end?
-What is the whole deal with Trazuin?

-Ryethe

These are guesses:

-Voice in tower mimicked a purpose-like entity... but truly was the PS (or the shadow swords' will)
- Sacrifa's interest could be simply that he knows/loves and works with auras, or potentially a much deeper involvement that escapes you and I.
- We don't know how long ago the landorin masacre took place... we do know that "Rhue" has been Rhue since killing lyrra's brother with Gaius (short time span... couple weeks?)
- Don't know who gaius is... but if the Way is cyclical, one might believe that gaius symbolically represents either kava or kura in a cycle of tracking someone down and exacting justice (on the chick in the play, or this little boy)
- Good question. In the game, only swords or really powerful entities(?) can fly like that. Was Rhue agreeing to inhabit the sword by staying with lexus? verb noticed that the light-like entity you fight in the tower bears the same name as an illuminati blade... are all blades corrupted? Did rhue defeat the sword's will? sigh...
- I think it's safe to assume that rhue is not midian, but a mercenary like Gaius makes him out to be (in the non-lexus ending)
- Kindof unclear about your question regarding the ending. There just is no ending with lexus, traz comits suicide etc...
- Don't know strata's purpose... maybe just finally caught up to Rhue and Gaius...
- And Traziun is still a mystery to me.

Those are my guesses or thoughts at present

I want to know why Rhue sounded so much like 'Midian in the tower' when he caught up to Jeruh in the final cutscene. Probably just a mercinary like you said.

I find it interesting that if you go back to the episode 1 folder you can find an unmasked Scatha that looks alot like an older Serena. Especially since we now know that Serena really had blonde hair. We know that Midian was pushed into the river and that Jeruh took off, so Serena could have lived, just heavily hurt.

Finally, WHY DID WE HAVE TO SAVE?!

This just in! Don't forget about the headhunter that called Rhue 'Midian' in Ep2. Rhue of course doesn't know what he's talking about, but the headhunter calls him that.

-Ryethe

Here's part of the deal with Traziun, anyway.

Traziun's mother is the woman you chased into the "Reflective Sky" dungeon. Shementions a man who's been alive for hundreds of years by a shadow sword. This man is Kalmar (Traziun in E5: "Hello father, you're looking young") She recognized Rhue because it was Rhue who killed her under the influnce of his shadow sword, Phantom Slasher. Traziun found this out, and that's why he destroys Rhue's sword in the normal ending, completing his vengeance.

hmm... that could be some genious insight. I do wonder, however, that she knew rhue "because he had killed her".... no one else seems to remember any details about their death (including who caused it). She did recognize Rhue though... perhaps knowing that he had wanted to kill her.

How was Traziun able to destroy the shadow sword? I agree that the PS is the projection of the sword's guardian-ness... but I'm not sure that I agree that Rhue held a shadow sword. Perhaps the illuminati you fight was either "perfectly just"... or confused. Rhue was unable to hurt some individuals with the sword.

I'm pretty convinced that it was an illuminati blade.

Fwacho has said that there is a Shadow Sword named "Phantom Slasher", and when Traziun breaks the sword, Gaius says "The phantom slasher is no more". It just seems more sensible that he's refering to the sword. And let's not forget the sword possesed Jeruh and was "screaming for blood" or something, and possesed him to massacure all those kids.

On the other hand, I can see how it could be illuminati. That would explain how Gaius can't be hurt by it. The illuminati couldn't hurt Gaius because Gaius has done no wrong, and is the perfect blade of justice (And not Rhue, like I previously theorized). This also explains how Traziun destroyed it. In the sword's eyes, Traziun had done nothing to deserve death, so when Traziun forced the sword to kill him, it is as Gaius said "He made it [the sword] feel regret", destroying the sword. This illuminati theory also explains why Rhue had to attack the shadow sword in E2 (Night Reaper, which Traziun got regardless).

The deal with Jeruh can also be justified, because the other children were being mean and cruel to him, compelling the sword to kill the kids (Midian possibly didn't mock Jeruh, and that's why he's spared). Perhaps the phantom slasher is only called as it is because the people view the PS as evil, and the name was associated with the shadow sword.

This theory also eliminates the possibility of Rhue being the perfect blade, which I had previously held. It's simple: Rhue/Jeruh is Tetzel's instrument of perfect justice, and Gaius is Kalmar's. The blood lyn and guided kinda hate each other, so I suppose they intended them to duke it out. Which they were going to, but "Rhue" (We don't know his original identity, he was probably just a bounty hunter or something) got to Jeruh before Gaius did.

Looking this over, Rhue's sword being an illuminati is probably the more likely story.

And while I'm at it, Dream Estrana confuses me greatly. The most common theory is that it's populated by victims of the sword. I guess this makes the most sense, but some of the implications this carries are kind of strange...

The first thing that bothers me, is that Midian would've had to have been slaine by the sword at one point. This just seems a little awkward. There's really nothing to indicate that Midian was killed at any point. Rhue couldn't have done it, because we've been in control of "Rhue" since his existance began.

This leaves Jeruh, which still seems kind of odd. This ties into the mystery of how people interperate their own existance in The City. Nobody really remembers being killed, (Which I guess explains Jopaga), and nobody remembers when they came. I guess Midian could've been killed by Jeruh at one point, but Jeruh never mentions that at any point. Maybe he doesn't remember? Maybe some of Rhue's memories of giving Serena the locket were Midian's?

Perhaps the neatest tie-in that supports this is Serena. Serena is "The Girl", or the one who took you into her home when you wake up in The City. It's revealed her true hair color is blonde, (The whole choosing hair color in E4 was a nice little diversion) and it's just obvious by how significant she is. She doesn't recognize Midian because he's all grown up, and vise versa. There's a scene in the E6 (I found it in rm2k, never in the actual game), where The Girl watches with depression lovebird Rhe and Lexus in the park.

I think I've narrowed down the solution to the last mystery that has plagued me too: The sword on the mountain in the credits at E5.

It could Kalmar/Lyrra's Ghost Horror. It has blood on it (which wouldn't make sense if it were anybody else's sword), and the force that Rhue had that made it go flying could probably make it go flying up a mountain. In this case, the sword after all the credits that Rhue/Kloe/Nobody sees could be Traziun's Night Reaper.

Or maybe the sword on the mountain IS Traziun's sword. Now that I think back, the blood could just be from killing Kalmar and those blood lyn. The sword after the credits just could be some mysterious one, a plug for a sequel maybe =P. It just doesn't make sense that it would be Ghost horror. Mweh, I like the first theory better.

The wierder part: What happens to those that Rhue kills in Dream Estrana? Or the bigger picture: Why was Sacrifa the only one to die?

-Ryethe

uhm... for the final sword (after the credits), I think it's really important that Rhue (if he's alone) can do two things with it:
-if he defeated the PS without "dying", he just looks at it and walks away
- if he was defeated by the PS during the last plunge, he well do his "evil smile"

I guess it could just be another symbol of the cyclical nature etc...
if Rhue could defeat his previous sword, he'll refuse to take another one, so maybe he can somehow escape the circle and start his very own "way"

I was just looking through these posts....Jeramyu said that there is no evidence that Midian died...The headhunter in Episode 1. Looking for Jeruh...Rhue nearby when he died(killed by Slade)...Headhunter in E2 confusing Rhue with Midian...

So this kinda eliminates the theory about the City being inhabited by victims of the sword. Rhue didn't kill Midian, Slade did. Rhue just absorbed his aura because he was very close at the time of death. (Remember Cade's aura being absorbed? Rhue didn't kill Cade, but he was close by when the aura was seperated from the body.)

As for Berserker's statement....Maybe the PS is now completely in control of Rhue's body (If the PS won)

As for Berserker's statement....Maybe the PS is now completely in control of Rhue's body (If the PS won)

Hmm.. I doubt. After all, he does get destroyed even if you "lose". I think it's just an "incompleete victory", meaning that Rhue defeated his sword but is still ready to take another one in its place...

Meh...I had just replayed part of Chrono Cross when I said that...I don't care if it shows the PS being gone...My paranoia and and distrust in anything without sufficient proof, especially when it concerns The Way, have seen to that.

Another question: if Dream Estrana is populated by those killed by the sword, how did Alan get there? Unless I missed something, I don't remember Alan even getting killed period, let alone by Rhue or a Shadow Sword. He got roughed up by Slade in Ep3, but he was still alive when Rhue left him.