Analysis: Chapter 9
I've mentioned Enoch's "doubts" in several places now without really elaborating. Chapter 9, though this particular Enoch hasn't reached it yet, is vital to his characterization prior.
In it, Enoch must face the doubts that have overpowered him due to being influenced by the effect of vileness. This is represented in the game by a series of battles as he struggles to cope and reassert his priorities. I will break this down by battle.
Tutorial:
The first battle is the tutorial battle that involves keeping the figures of the Grigori away from the Fruits of Wisdom. Now, what could he doubt about this? The answer is simple. In Heaven, Enoch had the unique experience of having lived on Earth. The Fruits of Wisdom, according to angelic guide Lucifel, are occasionally given to humanity to give them a bit of a push, but for the most part they're on their own. Enoch would know better than anyone up there how hard it was to live on Earth back in those days. It's no surprise that he harbors a bit of sympathy for Semyaza's decision to steal some and bring them to Earth.
Martyrs:
The second battle is against two of the "martyr" enemies, one of two human enemy types that can be fought, the other having not yet appeared. This is the root of where I got the "empathetic" line in his Meridian app. He has a lot of difficulty dehumanizing them. Even though they're near-identical and wearing face-concealing masks, Enoch still harbors a doubt over this deep enough to manifest in the vileness. He's aware they're only fighting for what they believe in, just like him. Not to mention, by the game's mechanics, these masks break off before they're killed, so Enoch will see at least their eyes before they die. In addition, if one pays close enough attention to the line of souls being fed into the depths of The Darkness in chapter 8, or if one finds the third or fourth Prophecy of Ishtar, it will be revealed that the souls of those who die in the tower are drawn into The Darkness instead of being called to Heaven for judgment.
So this leads to a very frightening question for Enoch should he be aware of this through the prophecies (this one has found both of the ones in question): Does his holy weapon ensure they go to Heaven? Or is he sending these men to The Darkness?
The battles from here out show visible manifestations of his guilt. In this particular case, these martyrs are unarmed, when none are so in the field. One could argue that this is so you can't "cheat" and have a weapon in these fights, but it wouldn't be so hard to simply program a pair of armed martyrs to never fall unconscious. He can't focus on the stolen weapons here, only the men he is forced to kill.
Sariel:
The third battle is against Sariel. In chapter 4, Sariel's floor consists of small hub areas connected by sprawling playgrounds for the Nephilim that Sariel has fathered. Sariel may be shown as a bit of a sex maniac who has a tendency to view love as a source of power, but it's clear he's a responsible father. The Nephilim are granted distractions from their pain, and those in groups are supervised by their mothers (note that Sariel's Beloved only appear where there is a group of Nephilim, not just one). The gates leading out of the playgrounds take the shape of gigantic Nephilim waiting to devour. This way, those that do go looking for oblivion have a chance of simply winding up outside the playground, where they can be safely returned.
In addition, Sariel shows a genuine desire during the battle with him to protect his people, the followers that live with him and his lovers, where the other fallen angels shown so far have only seemed to be acting in their own interests. When he is defeated, he and the Beloved spirits express real sorrow at being separated, despite Lucifel and Michael saying (likely mistaken by bias) they were bound there against their wills.
Essentially, Enoch wiped out three huge playgrounds full of women and children. Regardless of his guides' biased words, he can see it as it was. Perhaps he even knew what he was getting into as he was traveling through it. His dedication to his task kept him going.
During the battle itself, Sariel taunted him constantly. This may have made it easier for Enoch to fight him, if he kept letting Sariel provoke him. In this revisit to it, however, Sariel is remarkably quiet, a testament to his place as victim in Enoch's mind.
Armaros:
If I have to tell you why Armaros is included in reflections of his doubts, then, well, I'm just going to assume you haven't reached chapter 7 yet or have never played the game. In this game full of showing rather than telling, this is something you're explicitly told.
Enoch and Armaros were friends back in Heaven.
With Enoch in a new, unfamiliar place and Armaros curious about humanity, it's pretty clear the two bonded over learning about one another's respective planes of birth. Sparring matches are implied in a blurb relating to Armaros. These two spent a lot of time together.
While the specific memories themselves may have been dulled by Enoch's countless years, it's highly doubtful that Enoch has truly forgotten Armaros, despite Michael's concern that he might have. And Enoch's doubts could only be intensified when he encounters Armaros's child, the Water Nephilim. Unlike the Fire Nephilim that the basic Nephilim born of other Watchers would become when they devoured one another, the Water Nephilim inherited his father's gentle nature. He loves humans and is at peace with himself and the world around him.
Would such a creature deserve the oblivion that would follow his father's death or imprisonment? (this is the reasoning for my choice of canon point, this would be the point in the level where his doubts are strongest)
And Armaros greets him with an only mildly-hostile dance show (the backup dancers attack Enoch, but aren't particularly aggressive about getting to him). He is clearly reluctant to fight. When Enoch is in need of rescue, it's Armaros that saves him, even if Enoch could only catch glimpses of it.
So it's Armaros's revisit battle that has the least subtle signs of guilt. Whereas the real Armaros was very quiet throughout the battle, making it easier for Enoch to depersonalize it, the battle in chapter 9 features a very vocal Armaros. Is each cry a plea to stop? Are they reminders that he lost his voice when he fell and he fell because of Enoch?
Regardless, this battle weighs particularly heavily on him.
Chapter Remainder:
In fact, facing these battles doesn't help him much. This isn't doubt he can shrug off. It takes hearing about how Nanna/Ishtar overcame her own fear and doubts and took up the task of leading the Freemen.
And her prayer of conviction to him (her prayers seem to be able to pierce the veil), her promise that she will destroy the tower, galvanizes him. He couldn't well sit around and let her do the work he set out to do while he wallowed in his guilt and grief. The entire Earth was at stake!
With his priorities set straight, Enoch purges the vileness from him. After fighting his own dark representation, he is able to return. Perhaps not with doubts cleared as Lucifel may claim, but with conviction restored.
In it, Enoch must face the doubts that have overpowered him due to being influenced by the effect of vileness. This is represented in the game by a series of battles as he struggles to cope and reassert his priorities. I will break this down by battle.
Tutorial:
The first battle is the tutorial battle that involves keeping the figures of the Grigori away from the Fruits of Wisdom. Now, what could he doubt about this? The answer is simple. In Heaven, Enoch had the unique experience of having lived on Earth. The Fruits of Wisdom, according to angelic guide Lucifel, are occasionally given to humanity to give them a bit of a push, but for the most part they're on their own. Enoch would know better than anyone up there how hard it was to live on Earth back in those days. It's no surprise that he harbors a bit of sympathy for Semyaza's decision to steal some and bring them to Earth.
Martyrs:
The second battle is against two of the "martyr" enemies, one of two human enemy types that can be fought, the other having not yet appeared. This is the root of where I got the "empathetic" line in his Meridian app. He has a lot of difficulty dehumanizing them. Even though they're near-identical and wearing face-concealing masks, Enoch still harbors a doubt over this deep enough to manifest in the vileness. He's aware they're only fighting for what they believe in, just like him. Not to mention, by the game's mechanics, these masks break off before they're killed, so Enoch will see at least their eyes before they die. In addition, if one pays close enough attention to the line of souls being fed into the depths of The Darkness in chapter 8, or if one finds the third or fourth Prophecy of Ishtar, it will be revealed that the souls of those who die in the tower are drawn into The Darkness instead of being called to Heaven for judgment.
So this leads to a very frightening question for Enoch should he be aware of this through the prophecies (this one has found both of the ones in question): Does his holy weapon ensure they go to Heaven? Or is he sending these men to The Darkness?
The battles from here out show visible manifestations of his guilt. In this particular case, these martyrs are unarmed, when none are so in the field. One could argue that this is so you can't "cheat" and have a weapon in these fights, but it wouldn't be so hard to simply program a pair of armed martyrs to never fall unconscious. He can't focus on the stolen weapons here, only the men he is forced to kill.
Sariel:
The third battle is against Sariel. In chapter 4, Sariel's floor consists of small hub areas connected by sprawling playgrounds for the Nephilim that Sariel has fathered. Sariel may be shown as a bit of a sex maniac who has a tendency to view love as a source of power, but it's clear he's a responsible father. The Nephilim are granted distractions from their pain, and those in groups are supervised by their mothers (note that Sariel's Beloved only appear where there is a group of Nephilim, not just one). The gates leading out of the playgrounds take the shape of gigantic Nephilim waiting to devour. This way, those that do go looking for oblivion have a chance of simply winding up outside the playground, where they can be safely returned.
In addition, Sariel shows a genuine desire during the battle with him to protect his people, the followers that live with him and his lovers, where the other fallen angels shown so far have only seemed to be acting in their own interests. When he is defeated, he and the Beloved spirits express real sorrow at being separated, despite Lucifel and Michael saying (likely mistaken by bias) they were bound there against their wills.
Essentially, Enoch wiped out three huge playgrounds full of women and children. Regardless of his guides' biased words, he can see it as it was. Perhaps he even knew what he was getting into as he was traveling through it. His dedication to his task kept him going.
During the battle itself, Sariel taunted him constantly. This may have made it easier for Enoch to fight him, if he kept letting Sariel provoke him. In this revisit to it, however, Sariel is remarkably quiet, a testament to his place as victim in Enoch's mind.
Armaros:
If I have to tell you why Armaros is included in reflections of his doubts, then, well, I'm just going to assume you haven't reached chapter 7 yet or have never played the game. In this game full of showing rather than telling, this is something you're explicitly told.
Enoch and Armaros were friends back in Heaven.
With Enoch in a new, unfamiliar place and Armaros curious about humanity, it's pretty clear the two bonded over learning about one another's respective planes of birth. Sparring matches are implied in a blurb relating to Armaros. These two spent a lot of time together.
While the specific memories themselves may have been dulled by Enoch's countless years, it's highly doubtful that Enoch has truly forgotten Armaros, despite Michael's concern that he might have. And Enoch's doubts could only be intensified when he encounters Armaros's child, the Water Nephilim. Unlike the Fire Nephilim that the basic Nephilim born of other Watchers would become when they devoured one another, the Water Nephilim inherited his father's gentle nature. He loves humans and is at peace with himself and the world around him.
Would such a creature deserve the oblivion that would follow his father's death or imprisonment? (this is the reasoning for my choice of canon point, this would be the point in the level where his doubts are strongest)
And Armaros greets him with an only mildly-hostile dance show (the backup dancers attack Enoch, but aren't particularly aggressive about getting to him). He is clearly reluctant to fight. When Enoch is in need of rescue, it's Armaros that saves him, even if Enoch could only catch glimpses of it.
So it's Armaros's revisit battle that has the least subtle signs of guilt. Whereas the real Armaros was very quiet throughout the battle, making it easier for Enoch to depersonalize it, the battle in chapter 9 features a very vocal Armaros. Is each cry a plea to stop? Are they reminders that he lost his voice when he fell and he fell because of Enoch?
Regardless, this battle weighs particularly heavily on him.
Chapter Remainder:
In fact, facing these battles doesn't help him much. This isn't doubt he can shrug off. It takes hearing about how Nanna/Ishtar overcame her own fear and doubts and took up the task of leading the Freemen.
And her prayer of conviction to him (her prayers seem to be able to pierce the veil), her promise that she will destroy the tower, galvanizes him. He couldn't well sit around and let her do the work he set out to do while he wallowed in his guilt and grief. The entire Earth was at stake!
With his priorities set straight, Enoch purges the vileness from him. After fighting his own dark representation, he is able to return. Perhaps not with doubts cleared as Lucifel may claim, but with conviction restored.