Ayatane Michitaka

"I love that song...it hits me straight through the heart."

- Ayatane

Ayatane Michitaka (アヤタネ・ミチタカ, Ayatane Michitaka), the best friend of Lyner and a Knight of Elemia along with him, is a calm, pacifistic young man who is kind and charming to everyone, prefers to approach and solve all problems with optimism, and is rarely seen without a smile on his face. He also, rather strangely, enjoys doing domestic things such as cooking and cleaning, and dislikes crowds and fighting. Like Lyner, he fights directly under the jurisdiction of Shurelia, but unlike his friend he seems to have deep feelings for Shurelia that border on romantic love, and he constantly worries about her no matter how much he watches over her - he goes so far as to put his life in danger when he, Lyner and Shurelia are facing down the new virus at the beginning of the game, trying to hold the virus off by himself so that Lyner can help Shurelia escape, and later refuses to join the party searching for Misha's song so he can stay behind in Platina and protect Shurelia. However, his motives in getting close to Shurelia may not be as pure as they seem...

Sekai no Owari de Utai Tsuzukeru Shoujo
Not much is known about Ayatane at first; he holds the role of the mysterious, effeminate character for quite a while, the mystery only increasing near the start of Phase 2 when he is shown to be able to destroy a virus simply by raising his arm to point straight forward at it (this scene continues from the beginning of the game, showing Ayatane's viewpoint when he forced Lyner and Shurelia away to confront the new virus alone; it is then later repeated when Ayatane destroys another virus to save Aurica in the Musical Corridor, saying "This is for you, Lyner. It'll be our little secret." before he performs the ability.) The others, especially Radolf, later question him on this ability when they see him use it, but he simply calls it a special occasion that should not be spoken of and the subject is, if with a bit of suspicion, dropped. Despite this suspicion and curiosity, he continues to fight alongside them for a while, then rather suddenly disappears while the party is trying to restore power to parts of Ar Tonelico. Once a certain power cable is restored, he will appear to the party and inform them of his true identity - he is really a virus created by Mir, the Mother Virus, whose true purpose is to get close to Shurelia and then force Mir into possession of her body. He leaves directly after telling them this, leaving Lyner distraught at this betrayal from the person he considered his best friend, and an angered Jack swears never to forgive Ayatane for lying to them all that time, while Radolf gently reminds Lyner they still have a mission to complete and they can't just hang around. Though still upset, Lyner forces it down and the party continues on.

Ayatane is later encountered again when Lyner and the others are rushing to save Shurelia, after Mir has successfully possessed her body. He blocks their way and tells them he cannot allow them to pass for anything; Lyner, still upset over the earlier betrayal, tries to talk Ayatane into letting them by, but Ayatane holds firm to his orders (there is a moment of dialogue here that only serves to reinforce the fact that Lyner still considers Ayatane a friend, despite his betrayal: "So, nothing I can say will change your mind?" "And, nothing I can say will change yours." In his own way, with his reply, Ayatane shows the first signs of regret as to what he is doing, and that he, too, still cares for Lyner.) and they end up fighting. Once defeated, Ayatane says "I didn't want you to see me like this..." and disappears, once more greatly upsetting Lyner, but the party pushes on nevertheless and continues to the top of the tower to save Shurelia.

Surprisingly enough, despite being thought dead, Ayatane appears later at the Crescent Chronicle as Misha is singing the hymn "Chronicle Key" to keep Mir asleep within the tower. He suddenly says from nowhere, "It's wonderful" (in the Japanese version, he sings a modified verse of Chronicle Key) and causes Misha to stop singing in her surprise, dropping down in front of her after explaining, "I love that song...it hits me straight through the heart." There follows a bit of dialogue in which Misha wonders why Ayatane is there, and as he begins to explain why he's not actually dead, the scene fades to black.

Later, after Lyner's battle with the "Child of Light" in Phase 3, Ayatane performs what can be considered his true betrayal - when the Child of Light is about to destroy the party with a large energy blast after being defeated, Ayatane suddenly leaps in front of Lyner to shield him with his own body, taking the hit for him and appearing heavily wounded afterward. Shocked, Lyner asks him why he would do such a thing, and Ayatane explains that despite the purpose he had been created to fulfill, he had truly grown to think of Lyner as a friend, and didn't want anything to happen to him. He says he is certain he will be killed for his betrayal to Mir, and Lyner promptly invites him to fight alongside them and save Mir from her own hatred of humanity; this brings a smile to Ayatane's face, and he comments to Lyner, "In the end, it appears you're not as dumb as I thought." He then has a small monologue that is easily one of the most touching in the game:

"That must be why you have so many friends willing to risk their lives for you. I...want to be one of them. I don't know how many more days...no, how many more seconds I have to live..."

Lyner thanks Ayatane and promises they won't let anyone eliminate him, then asks him if they can be friends again, at which point Ayatane joins the party for the rest of the game.

When the party goes to the Silver Horn, Ayatane will temporarily slip under Mir's control once they enter the Princess Room deep inside - which used to be Mir's prison - and attack the others, summoning a virus only to be promptly knocked unconscious by a lightning strike from Mir. After the virus is defeated, Ayatane will wonder why Mir only knocked him out instead of killing him, and Lyner will suggest that it's because not many parents would actually harm their children; Ayatane seems to accept this, and the party progresses onward to the next room, where Ayatane breaks the seal holding the first song Mir ever crafted to allow it to be downloaded and sung for Mir.

More coming soon...

Sekai ni Hibiku Shoujo-tachi no Metafalica
Coming soon...