The Ten Wise Men (神の十賢者, Kami no Jikkenja?, lit. God's Ten Sages) are the main antagonists of Star Ocean: The Second Story, its enhanced port, Second Evolution, and its remake, The Second Story R.
They are a group of very infamous Nedian criminals from 3.7 billion years ago who at first seem to wish to conquer the galaxy, but were defeated by the Nedian army and sealed away into a temporal prison, the Eternity Space, until they escaped recently to return to their original conquest of the galaxy, and eventually the universe.
However, in reality, they are actually highly skilled Symbological living weapons created by Dr. Lantis.
Members[]
- Gabriel (Indalecio in the English translation of The Second Story) - The leader of the Ten Wise Men and the and the doomsday weapon of the group. Though he is rather discreet during the game and leaves the other Wise Men to do most of the work, he is the mastermind behind the plan to destroy the universe using the Symbol of Annihilation. He was tenth and final Wise Man to be created.
- Lucifer (Cyril in the English translation of The Second Story) - The military advisor and second-in-command of the Ten Wise Men and the observer of the group, tasked with watching over them, so they don't abandon their defensive mission and stage a rebellion. He was the ninth Wise Man to be created.
- Michael (Decus in the English translation of The Second Story) - The tactical weapon of the group with overwhelming firepower and third to Gabriel and Lucifer, leading the other seven. He was the fourth Wise Man to be created, made to oversee Metatron, Jophiel, and Zaphkiel.
- Haniel (Vesper in the English translation of The Second Story) - The public controller of the group created to oversee Raphael, Camael, and Zadkiel and tasked with using intelligence to prevent uprisings among the populace of Energy Nede. He was the eighth Wise Man to be created.
- Raphael (Jibril in the English translation of The Second Story) - The data analyst of the group who examines intelligence gathered by the other Wise Men in order to formulate strategies. He was the seventh Wise Man to be created.
- Camael (Nicolus in the English translation of The Second Story) - One of the data gathers of the group who uses mind-control techniques in his duties. He's a powerful symbologist gifted in support abilities. He was the sixth Wise Men to be created.
- Zadkiel (Ruprecht in the English translation of The Second Story) - One of the data gathers of the group who uses his innocent, boyish looks to blend in with the general public. He was the fifth Wise Man to be created.
- Metatron (Berle in the English translation of The Second Story) - The special weapon of the group who is designed for base defense. His knight-like body is covered in solid armor, granting protection that makes him nearly indestructible. He was the third Wise Man to be created. He, Zaphkiel, and Jophiel are also the weakest of the Wise Men and the lowest-ranking in their hierarchy.
- Jophiel (Shigeo in the English translation of The Second Story) - The artillery weapon of the group designed for long-range battles. He creates high-powered energy bolts in his body, firing them off at will. He was the second Wise Man to be created. He, Zaphkiel, and Metatron are also the weakest of the Wise Men and the lowest-ranking in their hierarchy.
- Zaphkiel (Marsilio in the English translation of The Second Story) - The melee weapon of the group in the form of a gigantic warrior. Geared for martial-arts combat, he also easily wields a sword the size of his own body. He was the first Wise Man to be created. He, Jophiel, and Metatron are also the weakest of the Wise Men and the lowest-ranking in their hierarchy.
Minions[]
- Lavarre - A Nedian woman and the chief servant of the Ten Wise Men who resides in the Field of Love of Energy Nede. She killed the Spirit of the Spring, the Guardian of the Field of Love, long before Claude, Rena, and their party arrived. She kidnaps a member of the party and holds them ransom to bargain for the Rune Code they've obtained.
- Cynne - A monster who attacks the Expellians on behalf of the Ten Wise Men. It leads the army of monsters in the war against Lacuer, and is fought several times by Claude, Rena, and the party in the story, the last being at Eluria Tower. The monster type Cynne is also appears as different monsters in random battles in the Cave of Trials / Maze of Tribulations.
Story and "The Truth"[]
Four billion years ago, Energy Nede ruled the entire universe with an iron fist. However, other planets decided to revolt when they gained access to some of Nede's technology. To defend themselves, the Nedian Army's Supreme Council asked the renowed Dr. Lantis to create biological weapons that would be able to stop the revolt. Lantis then started the project "Operation Ten Wise Men I" (第一次十賢者防衛計画, [missing rōmaji]?) for this purpose, which used Symbological Force to improve Nedian DNA in order to create humanoid battle units possessing exceptional power. Based on the results of the project, the army would order the creation of a second and third batch of Wise Men.
Some Nedian rebel groups, though, opposed the Operation Ten Wise Men, which resulted in the death of Lantis's daughter and only family, Philia, in one of their attacks. The army restricted access to this information and kept her death to be hidden from Lantis until he completed work on the final Wise Men unit, Gabriel. However, he found out while working on Zadkiel and Camael, and in an act of revolt and sorrow, sealed himself inside his lab and started to tweak the mechanisms of the Ten Wise Men, changing their purpose of the Wise Men from "bring order to the revolting planets" to "destroy the universe."
The Ten Wise Men were unleashed from the lab and started to unleash attacks across the other facilities, killing dozens of Nedian soldiers. After intense fighting, the Nedian Army managed to drive the Ten Wise Men back into the lab. However, upon entering the lab, the army only found a corpse and no sign of the Ten Wise Men. Dr. Lantis ultimately committed suicide, but not without first transferring his consciousness to the still incomplete unit Gabriel, creating an entity named after his daughter, and purposedly trapping the Ten Wise Men inside eternity space, and launching it across the stars along with a Quadratic Sphere.
The weapons remained sealed until the Quadratic Sphere purposedly crashed into Expel in S.D. 366, as it was located the closest to Nede's orbital path. During the events of the game, the Ten Wise Men cause havoc on the planet as they wait for it to crash with Energy Nede's energy shield, as the Quadratic Sphere slowly shifted Expel's orbit. Close to this event, the Ten Wise Men encounter Claude C. Kenny and Rena Lanford at Eluria Tower, who they defeat with ease. As Expel is destroyed with the collision, they teleport everyone in the room to Energy Nede, so as to conclude their plot in their homeland.
Upon returning to Energy Nede, the Ten Wise Men take possession of the Symbol of Annihilation and the fortress of Phynal, which they now use as headquarters. They are faced by the Nedian army, which offers little resistance to their power and obliterates the Pangalactic Federation's battleship Calnus with their new weapon: a conjuction between the Symbol of Annihilation and the Quadratic Sphere.
The Ten Wise Men are eventually defeated by the party, but Gabriel's succeeds in activating the Symbol of Annihilation. However, Nall and Mirage appear and pledge Rena to activate the Symbol of Divinity to counter it. This act doesn't stop the Symbol of Annihilation, but redirects its destructive power to somewhere else; in this case, to Energy Nede itself. Mirage explains that the creation of the Symbol of Annihilation was one of the most horrible sins of the Nedians, and this ultimate sacrifice will ensure the universe is saved. Nall says that Nede's development was far beyond any other civilization, and that the end of the road has come, as they couldn't advance any further; when a civilization refuses to evolve, it loses all reason for its existence.
Before Energy Nede is destroyed, Mirage restores Expel by bringing it back in time moments before its destructing, and teleports Claude and Rena's party to it.
Gallery[]
