(The chapter opens to show Kana, Kanaya, Shigure, and Lyci walking through the palace of Valla.)
Shigure: We're getting closer... I can feel it. Soon, we'll be at the point of no return. There won't be any going back once we make the final decision to step into the domain of Anankos. I want everyone here to be sure that this is what they want to do. It's not too late to back out or decide that it's too dangerous. I understand completely.
Lyci: We're not going to back out now. We have too much at stake, and it would be pointless of us to leave now. There are a lot of people who are counting on us, and we can't just abandon them because times are getting a little bit tough for us.
Kana: Yeah! We can handle this. We've gotten through too much to back down. Plus, he deserves to be fought after all that he's done to hurt everybody. He's had this coming for a long time, and we're going to have to show him what justice is truly made of!
Kanaya: It seems like we're all in agreement then, and I'm glad to hear it. I didn't want anybody to leave when we're so close to reaching our goal... Besides, if we don't get in there and kill Anankos once and for all, then who else is going to do it? We haven't run into any allies since Lyci's mother needed help, and that was ages ago. Nobody else is going to do this.
Shigure: Well, if we're all in agreement, then I suppose all we can do is press onwards...
Lyci: We still don't know what's going to happen when we kill Anankos. Anything could happen. The unleashed power of a god... It can do a lot of things, and it's impossible to predict what could come next.
Kana: Shigure said that maybe it would reverse the flow of time to before all of this started...
Kanaya: But that's only a theory. We don't have any solid evidence that it's going to turn out like that, and... If it does, we may never see each other again.
Shigure: We don't know what impacts this could have on our memories or the timelines of war... Anything could happen when he dies, and there's no way to guess what it could do to us when we're there to see everything crumble.
Kana: But... Aren't there those stone things? Maybe we can use the stones from the mines of Valla to remain in contact with each other!
Kanaya: Kana's right! If we can travel there to get a few stones, then maybe we would still be able to see each other after all this ended!
Lyci: Who knows if it will turn out like that? Only time will be able to tell, and we won't know until we're living it what could possibly come next. Until then, all we can do is power through and do what we have to in order to get rid of Anankos.
Shigure: If there are no objections to pressing onward, then that's what we'll have to do. Come on. The rest of the fight awaits us.
Kanaya: Ah... Would you look at that? It seems that he knew we would be coming his direction...
Kana: Of course he did... I don't see any familiar faces among these soldiers, but it's still another time that we'll have to fight.
Lyci: Another set of fighters? Of course... Just perfect. Let's go on and take care of them... Does that sound like a good plan, Shigure?
Shigure: I don't see any other options... If we want to find Anankos, we'll have to get rid of those who are defending him. With them in the way, we'll never reach him.
Kana: I'm sure that we can take them on! We've gotten this far, haven't we? We'll be able to take it for a little while longer!
Lyci: I feel the same... I doubt that they're going to be holding back on us, but we can take them!
Kanaya: Do you really think that this is our last chance to back down? After this, we'll be getting into the important fights, or at least that's what Shigure thinks...
Shigure: I'm assuming that this is the case, but there's no way of knowing for sure. For the time being, let's just take care of the fighters in our way. We can think about the consequences when we aren't being surrounded by the forces of Anankos. For now, let's fight!
(The battle begins. Your forces are stationed at the bottom of the map while many clusters of foes are scattered around the map above and diagonal to your units. The enemies tend to be of the same class, and at the center of each cluster is a particularly strong foe of that given class. The objective is to rout the enemy.)
(After the battle, Shigure, Kana, Kanaya, and Lyci stand together once again.)
Shigure: Well, that's it... Look up there. It's a door.
Kana: I bet that door will take us deeper into the palace... Anankos has to be in there, and when we finally take him out, everything will come to an end.
Kanaya: He isn't going to be holding back from here on out no matter what, so we have to be ready when we go in there to face him.
Lyci: I think that we're ready... This is the last time to back away, but I doubt that we're going to be doing anything like that in the first place.
Shigure: Is everyone ready to go through that door and face this? We might not have the chance to back away after this no matter how hard it gets, so... Either we kill Anankos in the coming few fights or die trying. I understand if anyone wishes to back away now. Nobody will judge you for wanting to save your own skin, but... If you're going to leave, now is the time to do so.
Dwyer: We've come this far, haven't we? It would be pointless to turn back now.
Sophie: We have people to save, and I refuse to let them down after all we've done!
Midori: For the sake of my family and everyone else that was lost up to this point, I'm going to make sure that Anankos doesn't cause any other problems!
Asugi: There are a lot of lives on the line here. It would be ridiculous to pull out when we're so close.
Mitama: It would be far from a good thing if we allowed our doubts to get the better of us. We weave a poetic tale here, and ending it now would not flow well.
Hisame: There would be no point to retreat when so many people are relying on our actions.
Caeldori: I believe that this is the least we can do for the souls of our parents after all they did to keep us safe for years on end.
Rhajat: How pointless it would be to retreat... We've done so much, and won't let that go to waste. It would mean we came all this way for nothing.
Selkie: I can't wait to play with these enemies and see what they can do! They won't know what hit them!
Brand: We have more than a right to kill Anankos at this point. No matter what name he's choosing to go by, the fact remains that he killed our parents, and we deserve the chance to take our revenge on him.
Soleil: Imagine how many girls would be impressed with someone who helped to save the world... That's a future I simply can't give up on.
Ophelia: The starstruck Ophelia Dusk dares not to back down from a fight... I am a defender of the innocent who will surely prevail here today!
Nina: We can't just let the world go to hell when there's something that we can do about it. That would be irresponsible of us, wouldn't you say?
Percy: In the name of justice, we must defeat him once and for all! It's the right thing to do!
Velouria: If it'll get things back to normal, then fine. I'm sick of all this, and if killing him will end it, then we have no choice.
Ignatius: I'm not going to lie, I'm kind of scared of what awaits us on the other side of this fight, but... I can't always run from my problems. None of us can fully escape this no matter how hard we try.
Jasper: I think that there really isn't another choice. Anyone with half a brain will know what has to be done, and it would be a bad plan to back off now.
Sumiko: Y-Yeah... I'm no longer as afraid of everything as I once was, and I know that I can't avoid this any longer... We have to get rid of him.
Kiragi: Even if he didn't kill our parents, Thalone is waging war against all the people of this continent. The innocent folks of Pheuyura are counting on us, and I'm not going to be the one to disappoint them.
Tempest: The choice was made for us the instant we set out on this path, and it would be foolish to retreat when we've done so much already.
Galatea: I'm not going to let some twisted god get the better of us. He already took out our parents, and that's enough to get me into action on top of everything else that's already happened leading up to this. This is for the best.
Shiro: Too much has happened for us to back down now. Besides, I'm really going to look forward running him through with my spear.
Luna: His crimes cannot be forgiven. To abandon our cause now would be to allow him to get away with all that he has done, and that simply cannot be allowed to happen.
Timpani: The damage that he's done might not be reversible, but we're still going to do what we can in order to get rid of him!
Forrest: I believe that we are justified in this battle... Nothing could make me abandon our cause after we've come this far.
Owen: If we don't eliminate him now, there won't be a world for us to go back to after this war ends. We simply can't do that.
Siegbert: In the name of our parents' memory, we have to stop him. We will carry on the torch of what they began and finish him off once and for all.
Kana: I'm not going to back away either! Everybody out there is counting on us, and I'm not going to be the one to disappoint them after all that's happened. They might not know that their lives are on the line, but... Still, you get what I mean. We have to save them!
Kanaya: I feel the same way. There's a lot at stake here, and if everybody else is in, I can't leave either. Even if some of you decided to retreat, I would still be here. There's too much for us to do to allow Anankos to end everything!
Lyci: Well, you already know my answer, Shigure... So it seems that nobody took you up on that offer of yours. I suspected that it would turn out like this, and I get the feeling that you did as well.
Shigure: I maintain my statement that it was not a bad idea to check just to be sure... If everyone has made their choice, then it seems that we have no direction to go but forward. Let's go on and make our way toward Anankos. He will fall soon by our shared power, and that is a promise.
Kana: Yeah! We won't let him get away with what he's done, even if we have to face our parents to stop him.
Kanaya: You had better get ready, Thalone, Anankos, or whatever name you want to use... Because it all ends soon.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Updates are cool
-Digital