"The past"—some wish to forget it, others manage to overcome it, and you, what are you hiding? Being able to close a chapter of your life will grant you peace; keep fighting just like they do.
Returning to our story, our friends have fallen into a deep sleep where torments of the past will be displayed, and they will have to overcome them. We head over to REX, a very peculiar animal who also carries something heavy within his soul.
An immense darkness surrounds our friend REX, who, utterly confused, begins to shout.
REX: GUYS! WHERE ARE YOU?! IS ANYBODY IN THIS PLACE?! Hello?
As our friend begins moving through the area, he sees a blinding light approaching him, dazing him for a few seconds. Suddenly everything clears up, and REX feels trapped inside a box nearly his own size, squirming anxiously as he searches for a way out.
REX: (nervous) No, no, no, it can't be, this box brings back horrible memories. Where am I? Damn it, I feel like I'm suffocating, this space is way too small… I can't breathe (hyperventilating). HELP! GET ME OUT OF HERE!
Suddenly, REX hears a familiar sound and grows even more frantic—a voice that brings back horrific memories, the announcer's voice introducing a fight, his fight.
ANNOUNCER: Ladies and gentlemen, get ready! Tonight we have a special fight: a big Pitbull versus a Doberman! Place your bets with the lovely little devil in the corner, wahahahahahaha!
Cheers of joy echo through the arena alongside jeers chanting his name, tormenting the poor dog; inside his cage, REX trembles nervously, on the verge of tears.
REX: It can't be, this can't be happening to me. DANTE, HELP ME!
The cage begins to open slowly; the door in front of REX rises as a mysterious force shoves him out. Terrified, REX steps out onto the very fighting ring that scarred him. He looks around in sheer horror: standing before him is a monstrous Pitbull that resembles a zombie. He gazes at the spectators, who have no faces—only wide-open mouths screaming for slaughter while clutching money in their hands. Suddenly, the Pitbull leaps to bite REX with its jaw dripping in wounds and blood, but REX can only close his eyes.
A few seconds pass, and REX reopens his eyes to find himself in a forest. Standing in front of him is the same little girl he killed, torn into pieces. Seeing the corpse, REX recoils in horror, only to realize that behind him stands a mob holding torches. Their faces are featureless except for their mouths, which curve into macabre grins. Out of nowhere, they begin chasing REX, who bolts in sheer terror while the crowd screams at him to die, calling him useless and a burden.
REX runs with everything he's got, trips, and tumbles off a cliff, shutting his eyes tight. When he opens them this time, he is standing before his former abuser. Startled and confused, REX stares at him, as the man stands emotionless, simply glaring down. After a few seconds, the man calls out "idiot dog," which triggers a burning rage within REX. He leaps at the man's throat, tackling him to the ground and thrashing him violently. After a few seconds of raw frenzy, REX snaps back to his senses and realizes that before him lies not his abuser, but the mangled bodies of the owners who raised him as a puppy: Mr. STIBEN and Mrs. NANCY. Standing over their broken forms, REX raises his head to the sky and lets out a mournful howl of despair.
Now we shift to a dark place where MALEKIN lies unconscious, slowly waking up. He quickly realizes he is trapped inside a box and kicks the lid open. To his surprise, he is back in the body of a child, staring at the old village where he was exiled to live. MALEKIN's eyes widen as he realizes he is back in this place; panic and fear grip him as those same demons from his past approach him with grotesque grins. Just as they are about to grab him, he shuts his eyes, and upon opening them, he finds himself in an empty desert.
He scans his surroundings searching for anything. Turning to his right about ten meters away, he sees his older brother HERACLES nailed to a massive boulder, bleeding profusely from countless knives impaled into his body. MALEKIN attempts to sprint toward him, but the faster he runs, the less ground he covers; his feet remain glued to the floor. In a flash, MAMMON appears and severs Heracles's head, sending MALEKIN into a scream of pure desperation.
After this, MALEKIN appears in the meeting room of his palace, where on the balcony stands his old comrade ACHAM, staring at him with contempt. Behind the goat ACHAM, a massive explosion erupts. Quickly, MALEKIN runs to see, heading to the balcony where ACHAM stood, and when he looks down, he sees all his people running, engulfed in flames from the blast. ACHAM laughs, mocking MALEKIN, who falls to his knees on the ground weeping helplessly… just like the first time. A scream bursts from MALEKIN, crying out: "NOOOOOOOOO!"
We shift to see QUETZALCOATL, who appears seated on her throne in the temple of the sun god, looking down at the mortal world.
QUETZALCOATL: Does this seem familiar? Where am I?
While QUETZALCOATL admired the view from the temple, the palace door explodes and TEZCATLIPOCA appears, surrounded by black smoke billowing from his eyes and mouth. The smoke creeps throughout the entire palace, leaving QUETZALCOATL terrified as she closes her eyes. Opening them, before her stands her brother with a gaping hole in his chest just like in their final battle in their world, and she watches her brother plummet into the void. She drops to her knees, closes her eyes, and weeps in remorse.
Opening her eyes, she is now in pitch darkness where she hears the voices of her parents berating her for all her misdeeds; the voices of her other siblings also echo, telling her she is useless as a god and that her brother TEZCATLIPOCA is superior. Dazed by all of this, she tries to run, but cannot distance herself from the voices.
After running for a while, she trips, and upon getting up, she sees her brother TEZCATLIPOCA lying on the ground, bloody and dying just like the last time they defeated him, with DANTE repeating the very words that torment her existence—telling her that her life is a lie and that she was merely someone's creation. Standing over him, she stares at her brother's corpse, and as she hears the words "I'm sorry" in her brother's voice, tears stream down her face, though her expression remains blank.
Finally, we see DANTE inside a building—the exact same building that witnessed his descent into madness. He was on a floor filled with office furniture, illuminated only by the moonlight filtering through.
DANTE HERALDI: (in his mind) This place… I know it all too well.
Rain falls outside the building as thunder begins to rumble. A bit nervous, DANTE moves forward through the immense hallway cluttering with furniture, and with every flash of lightning, the office brightens. In the darkness of the room, a voice echoes—the voice of his sworn enemy, MIJAIL.
MIJAIL PETROV: I see you're still alive, you useless fool. You're nothing more than a leech that feeds on everyone else to achieve its goals.
DANTE HERALDI: What on earth are you talking about? Show yourself, you bastard!
MIJAIL PETROV: Yes, I see it in you—the eyes of a killer. You made a tough decision in the past, didn't you?
DANTE HERALDI: (voice trembling) W... What on earth do you mean?
MIJAIL PETROV: The children of Chad.
DANTE HERALDI: (turning pale) You... how do you know about that?
A macabre laughter rings out in the room while DANTE stands deeply shaken.
DANTE HERALDI: I had no choice! I had to do it; millions of lives were at stake!
MIJAIL PETROV: Haha, so you say, but perhaps deep down in your heart you know that's not true. Aside from that, you also left your family to die for your ambitions.
DANTE HERALDI: No! You stole everything I had from me! You have no right to say that, damn you! Show yourself!
The moment thunder cracks and fades, MIJAIL stands barely 5 meters away from DANTE, bringing them face-to-face. Without wasting a second, DANTE reflexively draws a sword from his bag and slices MIJAIL into a thousand pieces. When he turns to look at the body, the room shifts: he was no longer in the office, but in his home, in the kitchen where he last saw his wife. Before him lay his wife and children chopped into pieces, and his son's severed head asks him: "Why?" This causes DANTE to recoil, dropping the sword with a twitching lip as he stares at his blood-soaked hands. Shell-shocked, he clutches his head, collapses to his knees on the floor, and screams in utter despair.
We see these events loop endlessly inside our friends' minds. Now we turn to MAYANTÚ, who stands watch as our friends writhe in the grip of their nightmares.
MAYANTÚ: Umm, I'll let them get used to those dreams for a while; after all, they have to achieve it on their own. They must forgive themselves for the mistakes of the past, but if not, I'll have to help. I'll only give them a few more minutes; maybe they won't need my help.
Minutes pass, and our friends continue fighting through the nightmarish dreams they are having.
MAYANTÚ: Umm, in the end I'll have to help; after all, they're just kids.
MAYANTÚ approaches REX, places his staff on his head, and closes his eyes.
We return to REX's nightmare, which has played out more than a thousand times in his head. Once again, he is howling before the corpses of the owners who raised him as a puppy; suddenly, MAYANTÚ's voice speaks to him.
MAYANTÚ: Dog friend, you have no reason to feel sad; the resentment you feel is normal. You felt betrayed, but it wasn't their fault. In the universe, you will always find bad people and good people; they loved you as much as their destiny allowed them to.
REX listens attentively to the old toad's words and reflects for a moment; then he speaks.
REX: I know, it wasn't their fault, but deep down I blamed them for everything that happened to me. I closed my heart until I met Dante; he taught me many good things and helped me. I know not all humans are bad. I know my past doesn't define me and doesn't dictate who I am now. The harm caused in the past (the little girl's corpse appears) is something I cannot change; now I will simply try to be better.
REX approaches the little girl's corpse and licks it, uttering the words "I am so sorry." After this, the abusive former owner appears before him, and REX looks at him sternly and speaks.
REX: Everything you did to me scarred me deeply, but there is one thing I am grateful to you for: if it weren't for you, I would have never met Dante. That is why… I forgive you, and I forgive myself, because I know everything I suffered wasn't my fault; I was just a scared dog.
A tear falls from REX's eye followed by a blinding light. REX wakes up and sees his friends lying on the ground, while MAYANTÚ is already placing his staff on MALEKIN's head, simply telling REX, "Wait."
Meanwhile, we witness MALEKIN's nightmare, repeating over a thousand times. He is trying to free HERACLES, but he can't, and MAMMON always arrives to decapitate him once more while he falls to his knees weeping. Shortly after, MAYANTÚ appears by his side.
MAYANTÚ: Malekin, why do you cry?
MALEKIN: He… he, he saved me, I owe him everything, and I couldn't save him…
MAYANTÚ: Sometimes life gives us companions who sacrifice their lives to help, and other times it gives us people who betray us, but in your case, that friend gave his life for you, and I am certain you would have done the same. Now I ask you: How would he feel if he knew how you are doing? Do you think he can rest in peace seeing you like this?
MALEKIN, listening to all of this, slowly begins to calm down; the old toad's words were reaching him.
MAYANTÚ: From what I understand, he is a warrior, and warriors have their pride. He died protecting what he loved, and I don't think you should remember him like this. What do you think?… Besides, now you have new friends, don't you?
MALEKIN stands up and wipes away his tears after hearing those words from MAYANTÚ.
MALEKIN: Umm, you're right, old toad. He wouldn't like seeing me like this, and now I have friends who are just as valuable as he was.
MALEKIN raises his head toward the body of HERACLES projected by the dreams and stares at him intently.
MALEKIN: Brother, thank you for watching over me. Now I have new friends, and they are just as strong as you. I won't let your sacrifice be in vain. Thank you for everything.
Right after this, in the blink of an eye, the scene vanishes, and now he stands before ACHAM. MALEKIN looks at him sternly.
MALEKIN: You caused me so much harm, you killed thousands of beings; perhaps they deserved it, but you had no right to do so. Now I see things differently, and thanks to my friends, I don't need you anymore. I don't forgive you, but I want you to know that I no longer need you. Thank you for everything.
As he says this, MALEKIN proudly turns his back on his past, leaving it behind and finally finding peace. The entire nightmare realm crumbles away, and we see him awaken. Next, MAYANTÚ approaches QUETZALCOATL; both REX and MALEKIN wait for MAYANTÚ to finish, and we enter QUETZALCOATL's dream world.
In QUETZALCOATL's dream, we see her standing before her brother's corpse, which repeats the words "I'm sorry" to her. MAYANTÚ appears behind her and speaks.
MAYANTÚ: Umm, I see you don't need me after all.
Upon hearing MAYANTÚ's voice, QUETZALCOATL turns to face him, and with tears in her eyes yet composed, she speaks to him.
QUETZALCOATL: Oh, it's you. Thank you for coming all the way here, but I know my insecurities better than anyone, and despite everything, I am a god. I know this pain better than anyone—the pain of being unappreciated, the jealousy, the envy, and the pain of regret. My feelings are well organized, and I know when to stop, but…
QUETZALCOATL breaks down, falling to her knees and crying while clutching her heart with her hands.
QUETZALCOATL: THAT DOESN'T MEAN I DON'T CARE! I just wanted to keep feeling this pain to remind myself of who I am. Now more than ever, I know I have to keep going because I have people to protect now, and I want to keep moving forward. Thank you, Mayantú, for coming all the way here. I've had enough self-pity now; let's go.
QUETZALCOATL stands up, wipes away her tears, and steps forward holding the old toad's hand; she bids farewell to her brother lying on the ground, saying: "Thank you, brother, for making me stronger."
After this, our friends awaken, and to everyone's surprise—including MAYANTÚ's—DANTE was already awake.
MAYANTÚ: (surprised) Kid, how did you manage to escape that nightmare?
DANTE HERALDI: (grim and somber) I simply accepted it and woke up.
REX: (wagging his tail) You're incredible, buddy! I needed Mr. Toad's help.
MALEKIN: (calm) You're amazing, Dante; it was tough for me, but I accepted my insecurities thanks to Mayantú.
QUETZALCOATL: (looking down) Well done, Dante.
MAYANTÚ stares incredulously at DANTE, who averts his eyes from MAYANTÚ's gaze, but REX breaks the awkward moment and speaks.
REX: Alright, now that we're all here, don't you guys think it'd be best to move forward?
Everyone nods in agreement and proceeds onward. Walking just about 30 meters, they encounter the pyramid and stealthily slip inside through one of the massive windows. Rather than resembling Egyptian pyramids, this structure was built like a mansion, yet inside there was only one massive chamber where their friends ELENA and ISAMU were located.
Reaching the pyramid's window, our friends spot a pile of corpses scattered across the floor, and in the center of the room stands a blood-stained cage holding their friends captive inside. The moment DANTE sees them, he prepares to rush in, but is held back by MAYANTÚ.
MAYANTÚ: Hold on, you crazy kid, look up there.
DANTE and everyone else look toward the top of the pyramid, spotting an enormous bat hanging upside down, devouring corpses; everyone stands in absolute shock, stunned by the immense beast roosting above.
MAYANTÚ: Well, folks, that creature right there is "CAMAZOTZ," the bat god.
All our friends break into a nervous sweat at MAYANTÚ's words, and now a legendary battle approaches. Have our friends regained all their power? Just how powerful will this entity be? Very soon we will find out.