XP Shell
The XP Shell (XPシェル, ekusu pi sheru?, lit. "XP Shell") is a mysterious structure floating above Archia City, which can be accesed from the topmost floor of the Tower of Origin. The name is a contraction of eXecute Progress Shell, and also serves as a dungeon in Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel. Depending on the actions taken by the player, this could end up being the final dungeon in the game.
Structure
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The XP Shell itself is divided into two main parts or modules: the Wing and the Dome. The Wing is the part housing the control room for the Shell, and the only part that will return to the surface of the Planet upon the successful end of the Planet Regeneration Project, and also forms the majority of Shell's body. Said control room is equipped with gravity regulation devices to protect its passengers from the extreme gravity caused from the shooting of the XP Shell itself, so its the only safe place from when the Shell is shot until it reaches the surface of the Planet.
On the other hand, the Dome is the large sphere located at the very top of the Shell, and it houses the Module Harvestasha for Harvestasha XP, which contains the Master Frame of the Tower of Harvestasha, making it the space where the AI of the same name resides, and also the place from where the Planet can be contacted after the Shell has reached the Planetary Core. However, once the contact has concluded and the Heart of the Land the Shell should be carrying inside itself has been accepted by the Wills of Ar Ciel, the Dome will become an external shell for the Heart so both can become the new Planetary Core. Therefore, the Dome will be left at the Core, and both the Master Frame and Harvestasha XP will be lost in this operation.
History
Backstory
The XP Shell itself is as old as the Planet Regeneration Project, and its one of the most important parts for it: it serves as the bullet that would be shot into the Planetary Core carrying a replacement Heart of the Land for Ar Ciel, which was cracked in the Seven Bloodstains Incident and finally shattered during the Grathnode Inferia.
However, the Shell was never capable of accomplishing its role due to the Tower of Harvestasha being created in an incomplete way, so it was left stationed at the very top of the Tower of Origin, above Archia City, until the day in which it could play its role came...
There once was a brief time in which Richaryosha, during her tenure as Supreme Commander of Clustania, infiltrated into Archia with some of her forces to steal the SH Server and carry it back to Clustania. Unfortunately, the operation ended in failure and most of her squad was annihilated, her being the only survivor. She managed to get up to the XP Shell, where she saw Harvestasha XP functioning, but then she was hit with a Triangular Nuclear Loop blocker, declaring her as dead to Clustania, and was forced to work for Archia under threat of death.
Events During Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel
Virus Deploying
The first time the XP Shell appears during the game is when the Archians are preparing to attack Clustania while Finnel was singing EXEC_FLIP_FUSIONSPHERE/.. Raphael remarked that copies were just that and could never attack the main body. At that moment, both Jack Hamilton and Krusche Elendia arrived and told him that the Clustanians had stopped hacking and their security and networks were free at last, indicating that Harvestasha had just shut down. Raphael replied this was the perfect time to counterattack the enemy by deploying the virus that they both had brought from their homeland of Sol Ciel. Krusche initially hesitated doing this because several of their forces, including Richaryosha, were at Clustania at that moment, to which Raphael replied he didn't care, and that they could just pick her unconscious body when they went to Clustania. Krusche mocked his scary attitude and complied with his orders, temporarily stopping the SH Server and causing all the Reyvateils to be knocked out for various days.
EXEC_Z/. and Harvestasha XP's Awakening
Having chased Raphael from the VR21 chamber at the Eternus Old Galleries, passing through the Archia Think Tank and the Tower of Origin, Aoto and his party finally cornered him in this place while he and Richaryosha were preparing for the execution of the Human Evolution Project, which would kill most of Sol Cluster's Reyvateil population and turn all humans into horrible abominations called Reyvaroids.
Upon entering the Module Harvestasha located at the very center of the Shell, Aoto and Saki remarked it looked very similar to Harvestasha's chamber in the Clustania Executive District, while Cocona corrected them by saying it was identical. Tyria explained it was because Harvestasha lived in this place too, leaving Hikari Gojo surprised. Tyria explained this particular version of Harvestasha was called Harvestasha Module XP, also known as the Master Frame, leaving Gojo to conclude she was the one who Kiraha had shut off. Tyria continued by explaining that the Harvestasha over at Clustania was called Harvestasha Module VISTA, also known as the Sub Frame, who Cocona realized was the one who forced her to deliver the Heart of the Land. Cocona was enraged upon learning she was on Archia's side all the time, and that she had Jacqli dancing in the palm of her hand like a monkey. At the center of the room, Gojo spotted Richa and immediately ran up to her, followed by the rest of the party.
Richa, heartbroken, asked Hikari Gojo why he had come to this place. Gojo told her that she shouldn't sing that Song, but Richa only replied she knew about it, prompting Gojo to ask why she insisted on singing it. Richa told him because she didn't want to lose the place to which she belonged, so she had to make sure to lead this project to success. That's why she would sing to continue living. Gojo couldn't understand why not succeeding in the project's execution would kill her, but he also told her that if she wanted, she could continue living longer, he would even help her to get back on her feet after she left the Think Tank, and protect her from all her enemies. Richa then came out of nowhere and asked Gojo to marry her. This left Gojo shocked, to which Richa added that if he accepted, she would immediately resign from the Think Tank. Gojo told her this wasn't time for joking around, to which Richa replied she wasn't, and added she would abandon this project if Gojo became the place to which she could return. Gojo didn't refuse, but also told her this wasn't the proper place for exchanging such important vows. Richa called him a coward and screamed he didn't follow the course of action she had been predicting him to take. However, before Gojo had a chance to say anything else, Raphael appeared behind her and told Richa this wasn't the time for a lovers' quarrel. Aoto spotted him, but before he had the chance to do anything, Raphael told Richa the stage was set, and that they would become gods as soon as she finished singing. Richa just complied, afraid of dying and disappointed, and despite Gojo's pleas to not do it, she just bid farewell to him while crying, and began singing the song that would put an end to everything: EXEC_Z/.
Instantly, she became entranced by the feelings contained in the song, so she wouldn't respond to anything anyone said to her and the party had to fight her in order to cancel out the song's effect. However, Raphael wasn't going to allow them to do it so easily, and summoned a couple of robots to stop them.
The party finally managed to knock Richa unconscious, cancelling out Z and leaving the Human Evolution Project impossible to accomplish for the moment. Raphael was shocked they could have managed to do this, and before he had a chance to run away, Mute appeared and bear-hugged him, leaving Aoto an opening to shatter the crystal in the back of his neck. Aoto took advantage of the chance and used his weapon to destroy it: as Raphael had abused so much of the crystal's power and had gotten a too deep link to the SH Server to use them, its destruction had the same effects that the stopping of a Nuclear Triangular Loop would have in a Pureblood Reyvateil: he turned into water and died.
Aoto and Mute were left tired because of this, prompting Saki to ask if they were okay. They both answered they were, while Mute asked what had happened to Raphael. Finnel just remarked he had vanished away after the crystal was broken, which left Mute very glad that they had finally gotten rid of him. Hikari Gojo, on other hand, was busy making sure that Richa was okay. Aoto asked about her condition, so Gojo replied her injuries weren't very severe, but still needed treatment, so he would take her back to Archia. After they both left, Tyria called the party's attention to more important matters: Raphael had dropped the Harvestasha boot key he carried around upon dying, and this accidentally had rebooted Harvestasha. Finnel remarked she seemed different from the Harvestasha over at Clustania, which Tyria explained by saying she was more amicable than VISTA. Cocona then stepped in and asked Harvestasha XP if she was the one who sent the message to Jacqli about delivering the Heart of the Land to her. XP was confused about the name, as she didn't knew anyone called Jacqli or something called the Heart of the Land, but she also explained that a long time ago, a Reyvateil called Mir invaded the Third Tower using a secret communication channel she had found in the First Tower of Ar tonelico. Back then, XP had asked Mir to undertake the Planet Regeneration Project, as they both had the means to do so, but XP lacked the knowledge on how to create the most essential part for it: the Autostabilizing Tesseractal Nuclear Loop. Mir told her she had a few ideas of her own on where to find it, so XP asked her to tell her if she discovered anything. This allowed Cocona to finally connect the dots, and told XP the names Tesseractal Nuclear Loop and Heart of the Land meant the same item. XP was surprised to see it actually existed, but unfortunately, she didn't know how to use it. Tyria explained it was because the Planet Regeneration Program hadn't been installed in her yet, and asked her if she could communicate over with Harvestasha VISTA. XP told her she couldn't, and she hadn't received signals from her for a long time. Tyria remarked that VISTA must have shut down entirely, and after seeing Aoto's confused face, she explained that both XP and VISTA were necessary to carry out the Planet Regeneration Project, so they would have to boot VISTA and for that, they would need her boot key. With the conversation with XP finished, the party returned to Archia City.
The Final Journey
After Cocona had sung Hymmeli, the Third Tower was completed, and the party had finished visiting everyone they wanted to see before embarking on their final mission, they returned to Harvestasha XP's Module, and found her accompanied by Harvestasha VISTA. VISTA announced the time for departing had arrived, while XP told them that she would be escorting the party and that she hoped that the party didn't mind her company. Tyria thanked her, while VISTA said goodbye to her predecessor, who told her to take care of the rest of the Tower. VISTA gladly announced she would accomplish the role for which she was created: making sure the XP Shell had its trajectory set to reach the Planetary Core, and that to prepare for this, she would reset to her default settings, thus disappearing to head back to her own Module at Clustania. XP then explained she was the Master Frame, and that her role was connecting Tyria with the Wills of Ar Ciel, or in other words, being the Dive Machine and operator that would allow them to Dive into the Planet's Soulspace. She then explained that if they were successful in performing the connection, Ar Ciel's Soulspace would manifest in the real world, and told the party that once that happened, the rest of convincing the Wills of Ar Ciel to accept the Autostabilizing Tesseractal Nuclear Loop would be left to them. Aoto agreed to do it, and XP asked Cocona to bring the Tesseractal Nuclear Loop before het. Cocona complied and used the same Hymmnos Spell she had used back at Clustania to extract it from her body, which came out enshrouded in its shell and far larger than when she had absorbed it back at Moocheriel, much to the surprise of the party. XP explained that the XP Shell was now ready to contain the Planet's Soulspace, and that the Heart had grown so much because of the feelings that Tyria had created when she sang Cosmoflips.
Harvestasha XP then asked the party if they were ready, to which Aoto answered they were, so she told the party to head to the control room. However, she also warned them that once they entered the room and closed off the door there wouldn't be any way to turn back, to which Aoto replied that they had brought with them the strong feelings they had received from the people, and that they were going into this with no regrets. The rest of the party agreed with this, and each of them voiced their own determination to save Ar Ciel. Tyria then summoned her Linkage armor, and used it to finish up Harvestasha's linking with herself and prepare the XP Shell's course for the Planetary Core.
Once in the control room, the door was sealed off and Tyria began uttering the commands necessary for preparing the XP Shell for launch. She drew the power that Cocona had brought from Metafalica to Kaira, redirected it to the railgun located in the lowermost section of the Tower of Harvestasha and loaded the XP Shell into the rails used by the Granvert Gauge, all while her gigantic form appeared at the side of the Tower and prepared to shoot it. When the preparations were finished, Aoto screamed it was time to go while Tyria gave the final order, which caused her gigantic form to shoot the XP Shell, making them go below the Tower and through the Sea of Death at maximum speed. However, when they had passed the layer of clouds and could see the surface of the Planet, they were horrified: it was no more than a vast, cracked and rocky wasteland through which rivers of lava flowed. A computerized voice then told them to get ready for the landing, while Saki expressed they had finally reached this point while the XP Shell crashed into the lava and began its way to the Planetary Core.
After the landing, they left the control room while Tyria asked if they all had managed to get out of it safely. Aoto answered they were, so then Tyria gave them the summary of their mission: the XP Shell was currently going at around 3200 Stons per second to the Planetary Core, so they would be arriving there in around 10 minutes, but before they arrived, they had to leave the Wing and go to the Dome. Aoto was confused to this, so Tyria explained the Dome was the place they would use to contact the Wills of the Planet, and it was actually XP's Module Harvestasha. But when they were setting off for the Dome, an alarm began echoing, while XP notified them that something was attacking the Shell and its structural integrity was weakening. A moment later, a group of Antibodies appeared before them, so they had to act to not get devoured.
Aoto couldn't believe these things had invaded the XP Shell and were attacking them, while Hikari Gojo noted they seemed to get more aggressive the more they approached to the Core. Tyria told him that was the case, and that they weren't controlled by Ar Ru anymore: they were now being controlled by the Planet's Consensus. Tyria then advised to hurry up, as if the Dome was destroyed, the plan would be done for. However, when they reached the barrier wall that separated the Wing and the Dome, they found it was closed off. Tyria remarked it should be open, but the attack of the Antibodies triggered its emergency lock-down. Cocona asked if there wasn't a way of opening it, to which Tyria replied they could do from the operation room, which was in the opposite side to the door. They finally found the switch to open up the barrier wall, but found it was being guarded by even more Antibodies, so they had to get rid of them in order to operate it. After eliminating the Antibodies, they could finally open up the door and the alarm stopped sounding, but then they were informed by Harvestasha they would be reaching the Core in three minutes, so Tyria told them they had to hurry up.
The party finally managed to get back to the Module Harvestasha, and Aoto asked as soon as they arrived is they were still on time. Harvestasha answered they were, but just barely. Aoto then sarcastically asked if wouldn't have been better to have stayed in the Module from the first place, given all the time and energy they wasted fighting the Antibodies. Harvestasha agreed with him on that, but also told him that his body wouldn't be able to withstand the 200 Gs force that the XP Shell received for its launch, as the Module lacked the gravity controller present in the control room. She just laughed at Aoto's face, and told him to get ready for the Dive. Cocona asked if she really was going to Dive into the Planet, to which she replied she would while Tyria took care of contacting the Wills of Ar Ciel, and that she would take care of the rest once contact had been established, which would allow them to speak with the Planet. When Aoto asked about it, Harvestasha explained that this wasn't like a regular conversation, and that they would have to feel her voice, as the Planet would talk to them using the Dome and they would have to use all their senses to send her their feelings. Aoto couldn't really follow her explanation, so Tyria just told him he would understand when they started the process, and that he should talk to her when he was ready.
Aoto first decided to talk with the others:
He asked Cocona if she was scared, which Cocona turned back to him. Aoto admitted he was nervous due to the magnitude of what they were about to do, and Cocona told him he never changed. She then began reminiscing about when they met back at the Blue Canyon Hamlet: back then she was all alone and Aoto was her only friend, which he remarked was due to her acting like a loner. Cocona replied that was because she felt insecure due to her previous experiences in Sol Cluster and the secret she was keeping, but despite all that, her attitude didn't turn Aoto away. Aoto answered that was because he was so happy at the time to have a friend of his same age, and since Cocona was still under her Tatsumi disguise, he thought they could be good friends as fellow boys. Cocona apologized for disappointing him, to which Aoto replied that he didn't care for gender, as they were still very good friends. Cocona told him he was very straightforward, but that she didn't really mind it, and told him he always cheered her whenever she had a bad day. Cocona then called him her best friend in Sol Cluster, and thanked him for making her long journey worthwhile.
Hikari Gojo asked if he was nervous, which Aoto admitted. Gojo then told him he had changed quite a bit since he met both Aoto and Saki, and that it was a very thrilling experience for him. Aoto apologized for causing him trouble, to which Gojo replied he didn't have any need to so, as his charisma was why he came with him all the way here; and that his habit to dive head-first into danger helped him to achieve his goal of unmasking Archia's conspiracy, and for that, he thanked Aoto. Aoto got all embarrassed for these compliments, while Gojo told him their long journey would finally be closing off soon, and that they should their best to give it a good ending.
As for Saki, Aoto remarked to her that their long journey was finally ending, to which Saki replied that they had gone through a lot of things, but that she always was happy ever since they met each other. Aoto remarked that he couldn't protect her every time she was in danger, and there even were times in which Saki had saved him instead, which made him pretty uncool. Saki didn't think so, as she told Aoto that even when he was hurt or sad, he always tried to protect her. She then called Aoto her true hero and savior.
Finnel got mad at Aoto because he accused her of crying her eyes out, to which he replied that if he hadn't come to see her, she most likely wouuld be doing that. Finnel then called him a idiot and that he always had been mean and nasty to her, to which Aoto replied if it was okay for a servant to insult her master. Finnel told him to knock it off with that game, so Aoto merely said he had never dismissed her, which made Finnel call him a idiot again. They both then began laughing at their own antics, which made Finnel remark they had a lot of fun together, and that thanks to Aoto and the others was that she could do her best. There were some times in which she wished to die, but everyone in the party had saved her from despair, and because of that, she had to repay them by living on strongly. She then assured Aoto that for the sake of everyone on the Planet that she would her best at talking to the Will of Ar Ciel.
Saki Route
Saki also added she was very fortunate to have met him, as he had taught her all sorts of things, and that's why she could keep her hopes of living with him forever. Aoto confessed he felt the same, and told Saki they would finish this and return home safely, together. Saki then assured him that she would talk to Ar Ciel and save this planet.
Finnel Route
Aoto reassured Finnel by telling her that he would stay at her side and protect her always. Finnel told him that despite how much he teased her, she knew he was the nicest man she had ever known, and that she wanted to always stay at his side. She then told him they had to return safely no matter what, so they could share the rest of their lives together and tell him how much she loved him everyday. Aoto told her that would be too much, but Finnel told him she had already decided to do so, so he should get ready for that.
Final Conversation with Tyria
Tyria asked Aoto if he was ready, but since Aoto had forgotten to prepare a few things, he told Tyria that he still needed some time, which made Tyria laugh at him and remark he was very scared. Aoto told her he wasn't, but also asked her why the sudden personality change. Tyria told him she didn't know either why she laughed like that, must likely it was because she felt this was her last chance to do it.
When he was definitively ready, Aoto informed Tyria that they could begin at any time, so she told Harvestasha they would begin Diving into the Planet now. Harvestasha declared the Dive sequence would begin now, but also, that the party could experience a great shock from the point of impact and that when Ar Ciel's feelings were projected into the Dome, something unexpected could get projected too: whatever would appear would be left completely at Ar Cie's mercy. Harvestasha added that all she could do was warning them that this could be dangerous and that they should get ready for the worst possible scenario. She then began booting up the Dive program. Tyria thanked the party for accompanying her all this time, and added that when the Tower failed to be created 700 years ago, she thought this world was done for. However, she continued awaiting amidst despair and spending her strength in keeping the Tower functional for this precise moment. She now was fully confident that the Planet Regeneration Project would end in success this time, as 700 years later, all their feelings and hopes had gathered into this very place.
Tyria Route
Tyria also thanked Aoto for thinking about her, as he was the only person who actually cared for her in such a way. She reassured him that she was born for this moment, and instead of scared, she was glad because she would be able to experience Ar Ciel's revival with someone she loved, and that she never expected for something like this to happen. Aoto assured her that he would always be at her side, and Tyria thanked him for this.
The Final Battle Begins
Harvestasha then announced the Dive program had been booted, the HF Antenna was ready to be extended and that the DH Wave band tuning was completed. She also added they had reached the Planetary Core, and the final countdown would begin shortly. Now the time had finally come...
The party then stood looking at the Heart of the Land while Tyria declared the Dive would begin right now, to then order the HF Antenna located in the Shell to open up, while everyone in the party began asking Ar Ciel to please show Her memories and feelings through the Heart of the Land, which She did: while She began singing a song that reflected Her feelings towards mankind, XaaaCi, the Module Harvestasha and its structures were completely covered in a green and lush grassfield that extended as far as the eye could see with a vast and blue sky right above. However, that didn't last for long: the blue sky soon enough covered with menacing dark gray clouds, the green lands cracked and split, while lava flowed throughout them and thousands of Antibodies began flying from them... it was the memories of the Planet from both the Grathnode Inferia and Moocheriel's activation, all while an enormous Antibody they had never seen before approached them. Everyone remarked on the size of this monster, while Tyria noted it was most likely the Planet's final line of defense, considering its murderous intent. However, its intentions soon became apparent, as it grabbed the Heart of the Land between its extremities and began trying to crush it, so the party had to fight it so the Heart wouldn't end up in pieces and the plan thrown to waste.
After they destroyed the Antibody, it revealed finally something else: it was the pure manifestation of the Planet's Consensus, as Saki and Finnel explained. Tyria added that 700 years ago, the AAA had given Her the name Ciela. Saki then decided she would give Ciela her memories about their journey and the promise that Aoto had made, while Finnel agreed to do the same: how all her friends were nice to her, and how Aoto had protected her. Saki clarified then that they wouldn't attack her: they would use the same Song Magic they used to communicate with Ar Ru. However, Finnel added they couldn't convey their feelings if they were interrupted, so Aoto promised to keep the Antibodies away from them in the meantime, while Hikari Gojo asked them to contrate in their singing and Cocona to leave the monsters to them. They then began their final battle...
After a long and tiring battle, Ciela finally accepted the feelings of the party, and vanished amidst a shower of blinding light. At that moment, Aoto noticed that the Antibodies stopped attacking them, and Harvestasha came in to announce that Ar Ciel had begun fusing with the Heart of the Land. At first, the party couldn't believe they had managed to do this, but after Hikari Gojo told them, they rejoiced at their great success: Ar Ciel was now saved!
However, Tyria told them this was no moment for celebrations, and Harvestasha explained why: the Dome would be left in the Planetary Core, and the Wing would be detached from it in 180 seconds. Aoto didn't really follow, so Tyria explained that aside of leaving the Heart of the Land in the Core, they would leave the Dome as well for it to serve as a shell to it, so it would be detached and only the Wing part of the XP Shell would return to the surface, so that means they would fuse with the Core too if they didn't leave the place at once. Harvestasha then told them to hurry up, while Aoto asked what would happen to her. Harvestasha explained she would remain there, as she had to operate the Dome until the very last moment to make sure the Planet successfully linked with the Heart. At that moment, the countdown for the detachment began being announced, so the other party members told Aoto to hurry up. Aoto thanked Harvestasha for everything she had done, and as they left, she smiled gently to them, knowing she would disappear once her job was finished...
The party then ran through the hallways of the Dome, hearing the countdown, until they reached the hallway that separated both modules. However, at that moment...
Saki Route (Pre-Cosmosphere Lv. 8)
Aoto noticed that Saki seemed to be lagging behind, and when he asked her what happened, Saki told Aoto she would remain there, as the other Wills of the Planet were telling her to go back, as she didn't need to do anything else. Aoto told her she didn't have to go back, to which Saki replied to not worry, and that she would tell the other Wills how wonderful he and the others were. She then told Aoto that he was the person who mader her happy, and that she was willing to go back to the Planet to protect him. However, as she said her goodbyes, Aoto grabbed her by the arm and told her that he needed her at his side, and that he would take back her to the surface. Saki replied she wasn't even human, and that she was just a helpless little girl who didn't even know how longer she would live. Aoto screamed he didn't care about it, and that he just wanted Saki to remain with him. They both embraced each other, while Saki accepted she wanted to be at his side, and when they were
reminded of how little time they had until the modules detached, Aoto patted her head and suggested to hurry up. They managed to get back to the Wing just right before the barrier wall closed off for good.
Saki Route (Post-Cosmosphere Lv. 8)
Aoto noticed that Saki seemed to be acting strange, which was because she had strained her ankle and couldn't continue running, so she asked Aoto to leave her there. Aoto told her that he would carry her, to which Saki refused, as she would weigh him down so much he wouldn't be able to escape. Plus, as she was a Will of Ar Ciel, most likely the rest of the Wills would save her. Aoto called her a dummy, and reminded her she was now a human, and the asked her the reason why she had resigned from being one of the Wills of the Planet. Saki remembered it was because she wanted to be with Aoto. Aoto told her he felt the same, and that their our long life together was just about to begin. And before Saki could continue protesting, Aoto picked her up, vowing to take her back with him to the surface and reminding her he had promised to protect her forever. Saki apologized for being so problematic and for not being able to help wanting to be with Aoto. He set Saki down for a moment and embraced her, but before the romance could develop further, the countdown reminded them that they had to keep going, so Aoto patted her in the head, and after agreeing to hurry, he carried Saki on his back, and they got out from the hallway right as the barrier wall closed up behind them.
Finnel Route
Aoto noticed that Finnel seemed to be lagging behind, and when he asked her what happened, she told Aoto she would remain there, as the Wills of the Planet were calling her to go to their side, and apologized to Aoto as she turned back. Finnel added that he didn't need to worry, and that she would tell the other Wills how awesome he and the others were. She then told Aoto that he was the only person to ever make her happy, and that she would become the Planet itself for the sake of protecting him. However, as she said her goodbyes, Aoto grabbed her by the arm and told her that he needed her at his side, and that he would take back her to the surface. Finnel replied she wasn't even human, and that she didn't even know how longer she would live, as she could die even at that same instant. Aoto screamed he didn't care about it, and that he just wanted Finnel to remain with him. Finnel began crying while she called herself a hopeless girl, and told Aoto she wanted to be at his side. Aoto embraced her, while Finnel told him how much she loved him, and when they were reminded of how little time they had until the modules detached, they both separated as Aoto suggested to hurry up. They managed to get back to the Wing just right before the barrier wall closed off for good.
Tyria Route
Aoto noticed that Tyria seemed to be lagging behind, and when he asked her what happened, Tyria told Aoto she would remain there, as the Wills of the Planet were calling her to go to their side, and apologized to Aoto as she turned back. Tyria added that he didn't need to worry, and that she would tell the other Wills how awesome he and the others were. She then told Aoto that he was the only human to ever make her happy, and that she would become one with the Planet for the sake of protecting him. However, as she said her goodbyes, Aoto grabbed her by the arm and told her that he needed her at his side, and that he would take back her to the surface. Tyria replied she wasn't even human, and that she didn't even know how longer she would live, as she could die even at that same instant. Aoto screamed he didn't care about it, and that he just wanted Tyria to remain with him. Tyria began crying while she called herself a defective Reyvateil, and told Aoto she wanted to be at his side. Aoto embraced her, while Tyria accepted she wanted to be at his side, and when they were reminded of how little time they had until the modules detached, Aoto patted her head and suggested to hurry up. They managed to get back to the Wing just right before the barrier wall closed off for good.
Layout
The XP Shell itself is separated in two parts, the second of which is closed off by a barrier wall during most of the game. The first part is accessed from the Tower of Origin, and contains a relatively small maze filled with treasure chests, and the entrance to the Module Harvestasha where Harvestasha XP is located.
The Shell also doubles as the final dungeon for the True Ending route in Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel, and also marks the point of no return in the game: after the Shell has been shot into the Planetary Core, it's impossible to go anywhere else, reason why the game advises saving in a separate slot after this event. The area opened after said shooting is also home to the final treasure chest in the game. Given this, the player will know if he/she collected all the treasure chests present in the game depending on if the trophy notification pops up after opening it. This area also requires operating a switch to open the gate leading to Module Harvestasha, and has a couple of event battles: one immediately after arriving at the Planetary Core, and other right before operating the switch.
As for monsters, this area is the place with the strongest monsters in the game, which also makes it the perfect place for gaining levels if the player plans to obtain the trophy awarded for getting every party member to level 99. It's also home to the strongest Antibody-class monsters, which have as their rare drop the Ar tornado: a bomb-type item that can't be found anywhere else, and it's also the only form of attack capable of damaging Ar Ru during the second battle with her.
Maps
XP Shell Map 1
XP Shell Map 2
XP Shell Map 3
Treasures
Normal Area
- ?Shiny Clothes?
- ?Mythic Armor?
- ?Maiden Tears?
- ?Ultimate Drill?
- ?Vintage Board?
Area Accessible After Entering the Planetary Core
- Angel Recoverael
Number of Treasure Chests in this Area: 6
Enemies
- Type 2: Annihilation
- S-01
- Furia Model I
- Furia Model I-B
- Furia Model III
- Furia Model III-R
- Doll Model HBL
- Doll Model HBL-S
- Doll Carrier Type H
Number of Random Encounters in this Area: 10
Encounter Probability: Middle