ÜLAR is a creature who knows little about the world he lives in. As he tries to satiate his hunger best he can in a world on the brink of Termination, he encounters numerous mysterious characters. Some help him, others harm him, and others have confusing goals of their own.
Story[]
The following content contains spoilers for Mr. Rainer's Solve-It Service.
The start of the game asks the player to input a Username to Login. This is what the game addresses you as, and it tells you that is has established an external connection. As the player proceeds, the system analyzes the surroundings, with a percentage increasing as the game continues.
Here is where Artefacts and Diviners are first mentioned. EINAR is featured in an advertisement for the "newest entry in the Aerial technology series," a Divine Buddy. The HOST of the advertisement also introduces UKU, an acclaimed Allseer from DOME NOI. The HOST asks UKU where The Vanishing will occur again, and UKU states that disturbances in the astral plane point to DOME MÜ, the location of the studio.
A mysterious figure, only shown as "△△△" talks about ECHOLOCATION in the ECHO STUDY CORNER, presumably another program in this studio. A target is found in the system, and a compatibility scan is initiated. Fibers are analyzed and an ECHO is seen crawling inside of the Raincoat hjörian shown on the screen. Some type of spore is seen covering the body of this Hjörian, and its' eyes open as a connection failure is noted and the ECHO falls out of the Hjörian's mouth. The system addresses the hjörian as HEINO and asks for HEINO's well-being. HEINO is told that his new partner will meet them at the Core, and is instructed to leave THE DORM and go to THE ELEVATOR to reach his destination.
At this point, MR RAINER addresses the crowd as AINU friends. He tells them that a stray ECHO has invaded their home as a large worm-like figure is seen wreaking havoc in the area reflected in his eyes. RAINER tells the others to enter SPORE MODE for their own safety. HEINO is prevented from entering the CORE due to an emergency shutdown and appears annoyed. HEINO uses their spore power to cover the floor and the worm-like creature, appearing to destroy it before collapsing. RAINER informs the AINU friends that their PROBLEM has been SOLVED, and instructs everyone to return to THE DORM.
A Raincoat hjörian is seen on the floor, seeming to have come out of this worm creature, and the player is prompted to enter a VALUE RESTORATION PROGRAM. In this minigame, the player's initial VALUE is -1, and the player must go through the tiles to restore the VALUE to 0.
The system informs ÜLAR that a connection to the ECHONET has been successful, who only notes that he is hungry. ÜLAR complains about the voices in his head as a result of the system, and is introduced to MR RAINER who speaks through the system. MR RAINER introduces himself as a personal life coach who will help ÜLAR define himself and achieve his goals. ÜLAR cares not for this, and only asks about food and eating.
The following files are then installed into ÜLAR's system. All files must be fully interacted with in order to proceed.
HIGH PRIORITY
PROBLEM Profile FÖ-A-01
DOME AINU map
AVERAGE PRIORITY
ÜLAR's Public Profile
Taking care of your ECHO
ECHONET: Getting Started
MR RAINER’s Spectacular Partner System
MR RAINER's Ultimate Self-Care Tips
Here, the most important file is the PROBLEM profile. ÜLAR is told that his partner, HEINO, is a Solver veteran who is currently in SPORE MODE. The location for their PROBLEM is in DOME FÖ, and that an ELEVATOR and a CARRIER on the OUTER CIRCLE will be used to arrive at this DOME. In ÜLAR's Public Profile, ÜLAR is informed that a TAG is unique to every raincoat-hjörian. All Hjörians use a different tag on HJÖ.
MR RAINER gives ÜLAR a SOLVE-IT SERVICE STARTER PACK before entering BACKGROUND MODE. This pack contains a RATION CARD, GIFT VOUCHER, and a KUDOS CARD with a balance of 1 KUDOS. From here, MR RAINER goes into BACKGROUND MODE despite ÜLAR's protestations, reassuring ÜLAR that there are many SELF-REFLECTION SESSIONS ahead of them. He also tells ÜLAR to upload his mind to the CLOUD from time to time, a way of telling the player to save their game on occasion.
ÜLAR uses his RATION CARD to obtain SILICA GEL after being forced to wait in line by the other Hjörians. Others make fun of ÜLAR, commenting on how he has zero value and appears to be desperate to get a partner right before The Termination. HEINO exits SPORE MODE, and ÜLAR notes how short he is. HEINO does not speak or look at ÜLAR. ÜLAR tries to use his GIFT VOUCHER, but the DISPENSER is out of GIFTS and tells them to try again tomorrow.
HEINO goes off on his own to the AINU METRO STATION and ÜLAR tries to follow. ÜLAR is pushed by the large crowd, falls, and is promptly stepped on. HEINO uses his telekinetic powers to move those who were stepping on ÜLAR away, and ÜLAR merely comments that this is what (HEINO) gets for going ahead.
Within the Carrier a QS Code is found. QS Codes are explained to show advertisements and information, and as such, it is advised to interact with them when possible. This QS code shows an advertisement for a product called UIBO. ÜLAR laments about how much he doesn't know and about how he is still hungry, and is warned to feed his ECHO by inserting FOOD into his SOUND OUTPUT HOLE. He notes that he feels a little better after eating the SILICA GEL.
HEINO and ÜLAR's carrier stops abruptly, and HEINO quickly exits. ÜLAR asks HEINO why he thinks the roof is leaking to no response. In a moment of extreme hunger, ÜLAR briefly considers eating HEINO to his own terror. ÜLAR tries to calm down as they finally arrive at their destination. They are temporarily granted Level C Access and are allowed to enter THE PARAPLANE.
A salesperson named EINAR waves at ÜLAR, and the ECHO scans them. EINAR offers HEINO a Divine Buddy, who wordlessly refuses using his telekinesis. EINAR then offers a Divine Buddy to ÜLAR, asking if he wants to find the UR Artefact, who can either refuse it or take it.
Refusing: Refusing it changes the prompt to "I'll destroy it without your help."
Accepting: Accepting it changes the prompt to "I'll use anything."
Both changes to the prompt seem to unnerve ÜLAR.
ÜLAR asks HEINO what they're looking for to no response and looks for a suspicious being. He notes that one hjörian has the same TAG as them, and comes to the conclusion that this mysterious being must be an Artefact. Chasing down this creature results in ÜLAR meeting a being known as Reverse ÜLAR, who is shown with his name being an upside down version of ÜLAR. It states that one of the two must be a fake, and tears apart ÜLAR using mysterious strings. Reverse ÜLAR comments that ÜLAR must be an improper raincoat-hjörian that can't even regenerate properly and has the insides of an ECHO.
End of spoilers.
Accepting the Divine Buddy[]
This results in the main branch within the story, in which there are two endings. It is recommended to do these two endings first.
The following content contains spoilers for Right Branch of Mr. Rainer's Solve-It Service.
If the Divine Buddy was accepted, HEINO comes to save ÜLAR. Reverse ÜLAR asks what a Solver is doing there, but HEINO wordlessly uses his telekinesis to incapacitate Reverse ÜLAR. He picks up an injured ÜLAR who begs HEINO to put him down, saying that he can walk without any help. ÜLAR passes out and wakes up inDOME AINU surrounded by spores. Despite being blinded, he can vaguely sense where things are.
MR RAINER begins a SELF-REFLECTION SESSION. MR RAINER explains that HEINO's virtue drains etherium from hjörians, which results in those he uses it on blacking out. That is, unless HEINO uses his own energy.
MR RAINER explains that HEINO found the Artefact that simulated raincoat-hjörian behavior. It handed out malfunctioning Diviner devices to those looking for it, and was able to hide in that way. RAINER also explains that Artefacts can feel physical pain, and ÜLAR realizes that he shouldn't tell anyone he feels pain as well.
RAINER ends the session as ÜLAR realizes how lonely he is. In his isolation, feelings of uselessness weigh heavily on ÜLAR who tries to ignore the parts he's missing. He spends 1 KUDOS on a commercial.
A hjörian named TÕNIS displays a metaslime growing tutorial. It has consumed his workplace, housemates, and he has been forced to film from inside a PSEUDOSPORE. TÕNIS begs for help and asks the Solve-It Service to blow up his place. The commercial cuts as his ECHO presumably dies of starvation, and the commercial informs the viewer that one should film the experience when engaging in potentially hazardous activities.
ÜLAR laments his inability to sporify. A commercial ANNOUNCER asks their viewers if any viewers haven't been able to sporify, suggesting that the reason for such an ailment is that their data is FRAGMENTED. In order to fix this, he recommends that the viewer visit the DEFRAGMENTATION CHAMBER at TAU Research Institute.
MR RAINER surprises ÜLAR with a new system updates, now including Daily Tasks! Every Daily Task completed results in a reward. The Daily Task is to bring one raincoat to a local Wardrobe from Outside. ÜLAR looks for HEINO outside in the Metro, but is unable to find him. He goes to the Dispenser where MYSTERY ITEMS are back in stock. He uses his voucher and acquires one MYSTERY ITEM and SILICA GEL. This Mystery Item is on Weave Type Personalities.
After obtaining this item, ÜLAR laments that there is nothing to do in the facility he's staying at, and feeds his ECHO. He remarks that his head feels lighter, but hunger is still very present. He is given a Scavenger Kit that contains a net, a stick, and emergency ECHO food. The Rain is deafening Outside. ÜLAR finds a raincoat that looks like a large lump of thread and pokes it with a stick, causing it to grow. Unable to fit it into his net, he carries it in his arms.
On his way back to the Dome, ÜLAR hears a familiar sound in the distance. He wants to follow this sound, but the system makes a screeching noise and he returns back, obtaining 1 KUDOS for completing his task.
ÜLAR's application for a DOME TAU PASS is accepted much to his delight. He wonders if this is a prohibited action, but decides it'll be okay since he just needs to get to a DEFRAGMENTATION CHAMBER. On his way to the Elevator, ÜLAR runs into a dead ECHO. He seems disturbed by this, and wants to try and fix it. MR RAINER tells ÜLAR to take it to an ECHO DISPOSAL UNIT as he gives ÜLAR the PROBLEM PROFILE SOO-A-02.
A large number of hjörians have been reported inside of DOME SOO, which lost its protection layer due to an accident. It has high levels of Rain and Red Fog as a result. HEINO is noted to already be on site. ÜLAR disposes of the ECHO, which almost seems to glitch out of existence, and departs to DOME SOO.
DOME SOO is littered with bodies of unknown creatures that ÜLAR is knocked to the ground by. He complains as he walks into a room where HEINO is using his telekinetic powers to deal with the problem. ÜLAR confronts him, complaining that they were supposed to be partners, but HEINO silently uses his telekinetic powers, causing ÜLAR to pass out. ÜLAR complains this is unfair, and wonders how he is supposed to learn when he's not allowed to make mistakes.
The VALUE RESTORATION PROGRAM minigame occurs, and ÜLAR restores his VALUE to zero. He wakes up in DOME SOO, left behind by HEINO, and decides to go to TAU before the next WORK PHASE starts. ÜLAR is told by the system to get on a Carrier to HJÖ#DOME FÖ, and gets to DOME TAU rather quickly. ÜLAR is sent a Visitor Map that he can't read, and runs into LUKA who is there to despiral his thoughts.
The two arrive at their destination, where a TAU EMPLOYEE directs them to the Blooming Field. They are told to leave their personal possessions in a pylon, and ÜLAR discards his Divine Buddy. LUKA enters the Cocoon they are instructed towards with no hestitation, but ÜLAR has a bad feeling about the capsules. He does his best to resist the employee, but is overwhelmed and injected with something that knocks him out.
When ÜLAR awakes next, he is being sewed together by a mysterious raincoat-hjörian while strapped to a table and is knocked out once more. ÜLAR awakes to this same raincoat-hjörian welcoming ÜLAR back to the "Tree of Ignorance," calling him his favorite employee. ÜLAR's eyesight is returned, and the hjörian introduces himself as RENE. RENE comments that ÜLAR didn't have to become a Flower to return, much to the confusion of ÜLAR who is convinced they have the wrong person.
RENE informs ÜLAR that the bandages have been infused with LAAMARI to help him heal faster, and RENE leaves momentarily. ÜLAR calls out for MR RAINER, who doesn't respond. RENE tells ÜLAR to deliver an artificial raincoat called ERIK to DOME MÜ. He gives ÜLAR some bottled etherium and informs ÜLAR that if RENE doesn't deactivate a patch within two shifts; he'll die.
ÜLAR arrives to DOME MÜ with no difficulty, and finds the MÜ Star Factory entrance to be filled with nothing but pylons. Each one has a different constellation. ÜLAR touches one and is immediately transported to a mysterious area without ERIK. Before he can look around, he's given a VOTING PASS and enters a VOTING SHOW.
The prompt is "why are hjörians disappearing?" and the audience is invited into the ECHOCHAMBER to discuss. The VOTING SHOW called "Zombie Factor" begins, and seems to have nothing to do with the prompt. ÜLAR leaves the game, unable to waste time when ERIK is missing. He sees EINAR, wondering if this EINAR is the real thing or not.
EINAR ignores ÜLAR's suspicion, stating that ÜLAR is missing "certainty." He gives ÜLAR a Gyges Umbrella in exchange for nothing. ÜLAR asks him to help him find the exit, and EINAR explains that ÜLAR must reach out to the constellations of entertainment. ÜLAR touches one, and is returned to where he started.
ERIK is nowhere to be found, and ÜLAR hides under the umbrella hoping someone will walk by. He finds someone carrying a box, and is given the option to Approach him or Follow him discreetly. Each option results in a different ending.
Approaching
ÜLAR walks up to the boy and asks if he has seen a grey raincoat-hjörian. The boy, AIK, responds asking what's in it for him should he answer. ÜLAR decides to trade his new Artefact for the information, and finds out that the hjörian had already been taken in by the staff. With the problem at hand solved, ÜLAR decides to go back to TAU.
RENE welcomes back ÜLAR, who passes out upon reentering, seemingly asleep. RENE holds ÜLAR in his arms while noting that there is not a lot of time left.
ÜLAR wakes up in a hammock with an odd creature attached to his hand. RENE asks ÜLAR if he dreamt of anything and brushes off his question as a joke. He decides to cuddle in the hammock with ÜLAR even though it is unnatural for raincoat-hjörians due to their lack of hormones secretions like ifite-based organisms. ÜLAR feels nervous about this comment, but RENE reassures him by saying he doesn't need to worry about anything and should instead focus on rest.
ÜLAR falls asleep again and wakes up. RENE is absent, and has left his sewing kit behind. The window is covered in a slightly slimy semi-transparent grey material, and looks over a field of plants. Unable to leave through the Elevator, ÜLAR goes through the blue door.
He enters a room filled with shelves of neatly arranged junk. RENE appears behind him and calls this area Luminol Hall, his personal Artefact collection. Although they are essentially useless, RENE says that their value is in the eyes of the onlooker. Hearing this, ÜLAR wonders if his VALUE too may be subjective.
ÜLAR has the option to learn about a few Artefacts in this hall. The Benevolent Kaleidoscope, the Lily of Peace, and a Riroid. ÜLAR can also learn about different Artefact classes. RENE gives ÜLAR a fog globe that depicts HJÖ being enveloped in Red Fog when shaken as a welcome-back gift. It used to be a Humo-class N Artefact until customized by RENE. ÜLAR smiles.
ERIK is seen once more in a commercial-type scene. He is now cheerful, and is purposefully infecting himself with a commonly spread ECHONET virus. ERIK asks the audience to stay on the stream to vote for what should happen next. ÜLAR comments on ERIK's newfound stardom to RENE and wonders how easily anyone's personality can be overwritten.
ÜLAR and RENE go towards DOME VI together followed by the hjörians that constantly accompany RENE. RENE calls them the Janitors and calls them his henchman. Although capable of making them himself, these janitors were a gift from the Garden of Brilliance.
RENE explains that DOME VI is divided into The Resort and Idle Grounds. Idle Grounds contain The Steam Shards that keep The Resort that the two are headed towards afloat. The floating around the two are used to purify ether rather than using etheroid. DOME TAU's mission is to reduce the impact raincoat-hjörians leave on the environment, and as such, they try to reduce the exploitation of the etheroids that they use. RENE warns ÜLAR not to fall as they cross the bridge and notes that they will be arriving "somewhere fun."
ÜLAR feels fear as the two walk towards the Dream Cocoons which bear an eerie similarity with the Standby Cocoons at the TAU Research Facility. RENE urges ÜLAR in despite these fears, and the Dream Sequence begins. An odd white creature, presumably an ECHO, is killed by large black spheres as ÜLAR watches hungrily.
The scene cuts to an advertisement for DOME TAU. A raincoat-hjörian tells the audience to "Become a Flower and let your potential bloom!" while holding a black, three-petal flower. ÜLAR, now looking at the field of flowers from the window, repeats this statement to himself. RENE approaches from behind, explaining that The Blooming Field is called The Field of the Undying and is actually a huge Artefact.
RENE and ÜLAR go down to the field, and RENE asks ÜLAR if he wants to taste one. ÜLAR accepts the delicate flower, but is disgusted at how it scraped the inside of his mouth. RENE explains that each flower is a memory storage device that can contain a raincoat's dataset within one petal similarly to the Cloud. Each petal stores the original data for a Flower as the data can get corrupted through the research process, these flowers ensure that an original copy will remain so that an original can be restored.
These flowers however, are capable of withering. Their lives are finite, something RENE regards as melodic. RENE is always working, and ÜLAR realizes how little he truly knows about him. RENE encourages ÜLAR to do his best in the Dream Cocoon in exchange for showing him something fun in the future. A Dream Sequence begins. This particular Dream Sequence tells the story of the Big Raincoat-Hjörian.
ÜLAR wakes up next to a working RENE who explains that he is performing a raincoat transplantation. All memories, body shape, thought processes and sensations, are explained to be stored inside the raincoat's fibers. RENE instructs the Janitors to bring in the hjörian that has come straight from the Unharvested Sea.
Each day, numerous hjörians rise from the sea onto HJÖ with no pain receptors feeding on etherium produced from etheroids. When these hjörians come into contact with a raincoat, they change form and turn into a raincoat-hjörian, an emergent organism. These raincoats do not bond with ECHOES due to the fact they are ifite-based. In contrast, Hjörians are made of small silicone particles. After this explanation, a Dream Sequence begins.
An announcer welcomes ÜLAR to an episode of The Exposure. The announcer asks if ÜLAR is GUILTY or FORGIVEN, and that in order to decide his thread must be exposed. Hands reach out to a bound ÜLAR and plunge into his chest, tugging out his threads. A VALUE RESTORATION PROGRAM begins.
ÜLAR wakes up and is embraced by RENE, his VALUE increases to 1. The two enter The Blooming Field. RENE explains that raincoat-hjörians have fewer senses than Echoes, the most notable one being a sense of pain. Signing the Agreement form causes one to be placed in a Standby cocoon, where one hibernates or immerses themself in a virtual reality until the Tests take place. Patches are used to test the limitations and potentials for raincoat-hjörians, and blurred text implies that they also try to combine raincoat-hjörians with Echoes. RENE tells ÜLAR their time is up and that the Termination will be initialized tomorrow. ÜLAR merely looks at RENE in response, and a Dream Sequence begins.
Two black spheres are seen, both can be clicked on. Either one causes the black to get closer. HEINO is seen standing in the distance, and as the camera gets closer, his eyes are seen as scribbles. These eyes combine with ÜLAR's as he wakes up.
ÜLAR walks past another capsule and tries to avert his eyes from the fact another ÜLAR fell out of the cocoon. He shakes as he puts the ÜLAR back into the cocoon and runs away. ÜLAR tells RENE that he has seen all of the dreams, who smiles and congratulates ÜLAR.
ÜLAR walks back into Luminol Hall and looks at the globe RENE gave him. He wonders why he has been treated so kindly by RENE and tries to ignore the other ÜLAR. He wonders if he should stop thinking enitrely. Interrupting his thoughts, RENE sits down next to ÜLAR and tells him a story about the nation of Humo, saying that the nation was pitiful in the way they achieved eternity.
Suddenly, a black portal appears from an unknown source, spilling out white protrusions that pierce through RENE. RENE melts away as the portal and the protrusions disappear as quickly as they arrived, leaving ÜLAR behind with a melting body. The Janitors arrive to place RENE's disfigured body into a bin.
ÜLAR eats the small piece of RENE's body he was holding in a desperate attempt to hear RENE's kind voice once again. A memory of ÜLAR asking about the Song is replayed as ÜLAR's VALUE returns to 0. A hand gently pats ÜLAR's head, but disappears.
If ÜLAR follows the person, he decides to hide under his umbrella and wait to steal the box while he isn't looking. The person he's following is dragged away by a mysterious smiling figure. ÜLAR wonders if this is the Vanishing. The box is gone and ÜLAR decides to follow the mysterious figure so that he doesn't return to RENE a failure.
The mysterious figure drops the person ÜLAR was following into a large pit, telling him that he'll reunite with his friends shortly. The boy expressionlessly falls into the pit which now appears to be made of some black liquid, which AIK later identifies as rainwater, and disappears. The figure leaves ÜLAR behind through a portal, and ÜLAR is forced to go into the rainwater, and finds himself among numerous other raincoat-hjörians.
ÜLAR picks out one of them and swims towards the surface, and uses his etherium to revive the raincoat-hjörian. ÜLAR sees now that his tag labels him as AIK, who tells ÜLAR the two must start mmoving up so that they can escape through the pores in the ceiling. AIK is forced to use a transformation patch on himself, turning into a spider-like form he notes is optimal for vertical movement.
AIK explains that the suspended threads above them are The Healing Swarm, also known as psyworms and they cover the tunnels near DOME ÖÖKRON. These are the results of raincoat fibers getting soaked by the Rain and mutating over time, and will infest one's fibers trapping someone's mind in a simulated reality. ÜLAR asks who the kidnappers were, and says that he thought it was The Vanishing. AIK complains that ÜLAR is a polyphonist and asks if he ever checks his sources and if he even knows what the Fabric of the Future is about.
The Fabric of the Future is noted to be public entertainment, and AIK gives value to ÜLAR's idea that someone may be using The Vanishing for their own goals. ÜLAR mentions that he's trying to get to AINU due to the malicioous patch. AIK wonders if there are dark patterns at work, and tells ÜLAR he can fix a patch in his vault. AIK returns to his original form and welcomes ÜLAR to The Tunnels.
AIK takes ÜLAR into his vault through a triangle door in the floor. The vault is filled with numerous odd creatures in glass containers that ÜLAR is instructed not to touch. ÜLAR has no gel left and begins to miss when HEINO would knock him out, as that was when he was able to rest. ÜLAR expresses extreme hunger, and the scene cuts to a DAILY LUCK FORECAST. The lucky item of the day is a SOUND STAR.
AIK repeatedly mutters something that ÜLAR mistakes as a melody. ÜLAR is unable to remember what he did while hungry, but it is implied he went after AIK. He is now trapped in a glass container.
AIK releases ÜLAR, telling him to get out while shaking. ÜLAR leaves wordlessly, unable to ask for help about ERIK or get the patch removed. ÜLAR finds HEINO and tries to ask him for help with the patch, but is stopped by the mysterious kidnapper. The kidnapper calls HEINO his partner, and introduces himself as GUNNAR.
GUNNAR says that ÜLAR has been following HEINO since the rampant ECHO appeared, and complains that MR RAINER is merely DOME AINU's mascot. ÜLAR is unable to provide the employee card GUNNAR requests, and realizes he isn't a Solver or a raincoat-hjörian.
Alone and mournful, ÜLAR curls into a ball next to a wall. Someone named OSKAR approaches him and asks if he's okay. ÜLAR isn't, but can't tell anyone he's hungry, hurt, and tired because raincoat-hjörians don't feel those things. ÜLAR expresses fear about dying, and OSKAR offers to help.
OSKAR takes ÜLAR to DOME KRI, and introduces himself as a Guide to everdeath. He explains that DOME KRI is HJÖ's Ascension Temple, and asks what ÜLAR desires most. ÜLAR states he is hungry. OSKAR appears annoyed, but quickly regains a cheerful persona. He takes a needle and thread, stating that it is the Thread of Severance now infused with ÜLAR's desire. OSKAR leaves ÜLAR to follow the red path.
ÜLAR looks around and is consumed by one of the odd things surrounding him. He sees a thread linking him to the top of a staircase and lies at its foot. Three figures surround him and cut the thread. He opens his eyes at the edge of a pit accompanied by OSKAR, who warns him to be careful and reminds ÜLAR they were taking a walk to the center of DOME KRI.
OSKAR states that before them lies the God in the Pit who contains each past resident's IR and their possessions. All their backup data is deleted in the Cloud and ÜLAR is assured that he won't be brough back to life against his will.
ILO's body suddenly falls before ÜLAR, seemingly incapacitated or dead. OSKAR's wherabouts after this point are unknown. ÜLAR is able to inspect ILO's body and begins to loot it. Investigating near the mouth of this body shows that the break threads growing out of its' mouth are moving erratically. He finds a small figure with "The Founder of Life" engraved upon it and takes it. He tries to take the raincoat but is unable to as it clings to the body. ÜLAR tries to take the eyeball but realizes there's no point, and decides to instead pry the ECHO out of the body. The ECHO is not there.
ÜLAR sinks into a puddle of black liquid, presumably rainwater like the black liquid seen before, and is seated next to three other figures. He talks to the one next to it, thinking it's HEINO. He gets no response. All the figures leave him behind on the bench, and he leaves last.
ÜLAR wakes up in an ECHO STUDY CORNER room. ILO tells the audience that he will demonstrate what SILICA GEL is made of and why ECHOES crawl into hjörians so willingly using ÜLAR. ÜLAR does not accept the ECHO, and finds himself in a circle of raincoat-hjörians linking arms and singing. They circle an odd, extremely large figure.
He leaves and crouches, feeling horrified by himself. OSKAR asks ÜLAR how his journey is going, and states that ÜLAR must've realized it by now. He realizes the fear and hatred he felt towards the treatment towards ECHOES wasn't fear for his own life, he descends into the pit and begins eating happily, stating the world is a present waiting to be opened.
This causes a main branch in the story, and results in one ending. It is recommended to play the other branches first.
The following content contains spoilers for Left Branch of Mr. Rainer's Solve-It Service.
If the Divine Buddy was refused, nobody comes to save ÜLAR, who is blinded and unable to move. The player is given two options, to consume or be consumed.
ÜLAR can vaguely sense that there are walls all around him despite being unable to see, and notes that a voice is coming from above. Reverse ÜLAR is heard talking to MR RAINER while laughing, and upon noticing ÜLAR is awake, sends strings into ÜLAR's eyes and mouth. He notes that ÜLAR has no ECHO and has an extremely abnormal body.
Connection is lost, and the player is prompted to enter "The Title of the Song." When the wrong title is entered, a prompt states that "The right words await in the end. Sew them together." Spoilers ahead
Using the italicized segments of the titles for the two standard endings, the Title of the Song is revealed to be "A Bouquet for Ephemerality". Using this, you are able to "reconnect," now in the formerly Reverse ÜLAR now simply ÜLAR. He is also referred to as Diviner ÜLAR in this article for the sake of clarity, but within the game, he is now ÜLAR.
Diviner ÜLAR decides to take ÜLAR's raincoat to determine whether he is an ECHO, and as ÜLAR transforms, Diviner ÜLAR comments on how odd it is that ÜLAR wasn't even an ECHO.
The scene abruptly cuts to ILO talking in an ECHO STUDY CORNER about the "most fundamental concept in biology," evolution. All Echoes are noted to evolve from one little Echo, with the ECHONET determining which type an Echo evolves into.
After this short segment, Diviner ÜLAR is seen dragging around ÜLAR by a thread towards a large group of spheres. The LOCATION is noted as "THE TUNNELS" in the status menu. Diviner ÜLAR finds AIK, and calls him an "infamous weaver" turned hermit. AIK, seemingly annoyed by Diviner ÜLAR, rips off his head after he states that what he has brought is the "catalyst for the end stage of Termination." Diviner ÜLAR states that the coat came from the Garden of Brilliance. AIK agrees to look into this in exchange for a Picture Book sold in DOME ÖÖKRON.
Another abrupt transition leads to a raincoat-hjörian named TOIVO introducing themselves to the audience. He disassembles a weird ECHO found Outside feeding on another ECHO that has two input holes. The player is given an option of parts to cut open for different amounts of credits, and after completing the request, TOIVO ends his stream.
ÜLAR talks to a GATEKEEPER in DOME NOI, and wishes to obtain a pass to DOME ÖÖKRON. He decides to have a win streak at PVP Arena (20 times) to gain this pass, and decides he should be fine thanks to his VICE.
ÜLAR is promptly chopped up and enters a purple area. This area is DOME NOI, the location of the PvP Arena. He reforms and is set to battle numerous hjörians. Among these; SANDER The Shadow, FRANK The Impenetrable Shell, and KLAUS The Runner. ÜLAR easily defeats all of these challengers until GUNNAR The Abyssal appears. GUNNAR quickly defeats ÜLAR who is forced to find another way to obtain a pass.
An episode of ECHO STUDY CORNER begins once more, and ILO asks if the audience knows that Echoes originally used hjörians as temporary hosts and sources of food. Both hjörians and silica gel share the chemical element of silicone, but silica gel are infused with a substance that suppresses Echoes' natural instincts.
Chat messages between AIK and Diviner ÜLAR reveal that ÜLAR's coat is incredibly abnormal. 3% of it is coded in an understandable language, while the rest appears to be entirely gibberish. In addition, the coat rejects patches, doesn't sporify or regenerate, and only appears to carry basic life functions.
ÜLAR enters a green area noted as Massacre Arena, where a HOST describes that a battle between two ECHOES will occur. The first CONTENDER is the Trasher, while the second is The Twister and is sponsored by The Farm. ÜLAR notes that knowing the winner is a mix of luck and understanding ECHOES. Guardians show up, and ÜLAR is forced to leave.
Another episode of ECHO STUDY CORNER begins. ILO discusses AGGRESSION, a driving factor in the Massacre Arena. Echoes do not feel aggression towards their own kind due to being highly social lifeforms that are interconnected, but are injected with a chemical that causes them to perceive other Echoes as enemy predators.
ÜLAR complains about the Guardians showing up, wondering how he will pay AIK now that he cannot use the arenas. AIK sends him a blank file much to his confusion, but he is interrupted by a message from MR RAINER who has located an elusive Artefact that they have been tracking down called Titan Bell. Diviner ÜLAR is told to head to The Titan, and The Myth of Two Titans is seen.
RAINER warns ÜLAR to be careful, and that the "Titan is surrounded by a pool of metaslime, a non-Newtonian substance." If ÜLAR were to stop at all, he would get sucked in. ÜLAR enters the Titan using one of his strings, however, this string is cut and he falls towards long hands that press him down as he cries out for an illegible someone.
Diviner ÜLAR wakes up in a field of black flowers, and is asked by RENE if he dreamt of anything in particular. ÜLAR calls this area the Field of the Undying, and wonders how he arrived there from the Titan. Rene asks why ÜLAR is in a hurry as the Termination has already been initiated. ÜLAR insists on finding the Titan Bell, but Rene interrupts, stating that all that remains is to put an end to their eternity.
RENE states that all the raincoat-hjörian "lives" on HJÖ will reach their final conclusion, and that a new Cycle will never begin. RENE asks to hear ÜLAR's song, but then addresses Mr. Rainer directly to hear the song. ÜLAR's head explodes as black threads poor out of his body. A story tells of people who desired to be so productive that they got rid of death, but also lost the ability to produce their own emotions. They were starving.
RENE entreats protrusions from the sky to eat, and is consumed.
A large group of raincoat-hjörians are seen laying together, one laughs. HEINO's marks of telekinesis are seen surrounding the long tentacle-like things that have seemingly consumed everything, but the strings attack him too. HEINO fights back, trying to destroy the monster, and quickly defeats it.
GUNNAR mocks HEINO for overpreparing and looking upset at how easy the being was to kill. They were unable to stop it from spreading throughout the ECHONET. Despite the success, HEINO is still unhappy with the outcome he obtained, and appears to mourn RENE. The story ends here, with HEINO knelt over RENE's body in a field.
End of spoilers.
Endings[]
An Ode to Ephemerality
The following content contains spoilers for Mr. Rainer's Solve-It Service.
This ending occurs if ÜLAR accepts the Divine Buddy and approaches AIK while looking for ERIK. ÜLAR gives the boy his recently obtained Gyges Umbrella in exchange for information, and discovers that ERIK had been picked up by staff earlier. Relieved, ÜLAR heads back to RENE, and immediately passes out upon re-entering RENE's lab.
End of spoilers.
This section is currently a work in progress.
A Bouquet for All Raincoat-Hjöriankind
Bouquet for Ephemerality
This section is currently a work in progress.
Hidden Route[]
THE FOLLOWING CONTENT CONTAINS SEVERE SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE GAME!
The following content contains spoilers for Mr. Rainer's Solve-It Service.
The Hidden Route becomes available should the player enter in "AIK06135" as their username at the start of the game. This username is seen when AIK mysteriously messages Reverse ÜLAR a blank file.
This route opens with the typical transitional welcome screen seen when entering any of the DOMES. However, this welcome screen shows the symbol for DOME ÖÖKRON, a DOME not seen in the entire rest of the game. AIK is seen wordlessly walking along a white path through a series of mysterious housing units seemingly linked together with black thread with a determined expression on his face. As he continues farther alnog this path, he comes across numerous black spikes littering a white field as he goes towards a cave-like area with a black entrance.
Once AIK enters this area the scenery changes back to the typical red the rest of the game has as black thread emanate from a mysterious source up ahead. He steps closer as runes like those seen when HEINO uses his VIRTUE of telekinesis sprawl across the background. He approaches a figure suspended from the ceiling with black threads. The figure's head is also covered in black threads, and AIK carries a ball of black thread, presumably ÜLAR's raincoat from earlier in the Bouquet for Ephemerality route.
AIK tells the suspended figure that he has brought want that figure has requested, and tells this figure to uphold their end of the deal. He also states that he will retrieve the Overseer's coat, a word used for the creator of the world in the creation myths RENE spoke of. AIK then leaves, but is ambushed by black threads. A "noise" screen is then seen as Diviner ÜLAR receives the blank file from AIK.
In the demo for the game, the route map only had two endpoints. This may hint at the idea that etherane may have originally planned for there to only be two endings.
Unused CGs for the game hint that there may have been scenes where AIK learned more about ÜLAR's raincoat in a draft of the game.
The password at the beginning of the game reads "omegapoint."
