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Real-life References/Myths
- The Quantum Mind hypothesis proposes that classical mechanics cannot explain consciousness.
- Epignetics is the study of heritable changes in gene expression that do not involve changes to the DNA sequence.
Path Summary (D's Force Quit Box)
- The three of them remember everything, and with that knowledge, the code: the items in the twins' possession.
- They input the codes: "BROOCH" and "MUSIC BOX".
Path Summary (Quantum Computer)
- Q inputs the startup code for the Quantum Computer - 38080832.
- He also inputs the code on his head - 61404091.
- He reveals that he is a robot, and that all of his processing and memories are stored within the quantum computer. As a result of this, he can "jump" to other histories, as the quantum computer stores data about all possible histories. He surmises that the human brain may be a form of quantum computer as well.
- The group returns to the Force Quit box, with the clue "A mother's mementos." However, they don't have the items they need.
- Zero appears on the monitor and knocks them out once again.
Path Summary (C's Force Quit Box)
- Carlos gets a flash of inspiration, recalling the password: VIVE HODIE (Zero's words to Akane and Junpei).
- The box opens, revealing a message: "to execute the Force Quit program, the central control computer must be booted."
- Akane asks Carlos if he shifted, and he begins to remember doing so.
- Afterward, Carlos taunts Junpei before punching him and forcing himself on Akane; Junpei attacks him and he flees. Junpei pursues him to the reactor control room.
- Carlos taunts Junpei further and gets pummeled. They eventually return to the lounge, Carlos heavily bruised but seemingly reaching a truce.
- Zero knocks them out again... or so it seems.
- The teams gather in the lounge; they remember everything from the other timelines, having used the same card trick Diana did, as well as the morphogenetic field, to retain their memories. (Eric and Mira don't, not being espers, but Q filled them in).
- (Carlos's actions earlier were a ruse - while atop Akane, he told her to retrieve the cards to prevent the injection.)
- Delta appears before them, carrying the shotgun, and claims he has the power to "Mind Hack" - essentially, to read minds. He proves it by aiming at Phi, who is covertly making a move for the Force Quit box. He explains that he allowed them to keep their memories (doing nothing to stop their plan to thwart the injections) so that they could play the "Final Game".
- He also explains his motive in setting up the Decision Game, and that doing so would complete several objectives. First, so he and Phi would be born in their "current forms". The transporter sent them back in time to 1904, where they arrived in a German research facility. At some point Phi was duplicated again, her double appearing in 2008; this accounts for their massive age difference (Delta being over 120 years old at this point). He explains that Sigma and Diana's exposure to danger in this way was because of "epigenetics" - environmental factors activating select genes - the ones that give them their Esper abilities - and ensuring they would be passed on to their children. The riddle in Team D's lounge was a clue to this: "When a curious hate oozes calamity" -> "What you choose can materialize us".
- Phi attacks Delta in a rage, knocking him to the ground. Eric capitalizes by grabbing the shotgun. Using this to her advantage, Phi tosses her brooch to Diana, telling her to activate the Force Quit box, which she does.
- However, it does not "quit" the game in the way they expected - instead, a ten-minute countdown to an explosion begins. Delta simply laughs as they now have no way out. However, he says he will tell them "two good things".
- First, Delta reveals that Gab is behind the counter, dead by his hand. Second, he reveals that Mind Hack grants him another ability - to briefly control one's actions. Proving this, he causes Eric to fire the gun, mortally wounding himself. (It's also implied that he's used this to control characters at several points - Diana pushing the yellow button in the Decontamination room, for example).
- The final decision game begins - the teams can either stay and wait to die, or SHIFT out to save themselves.
- Akane deduces that having several espers in close vicinity like this, as well as the imminent danger, may allow them all to shift out and save themselves - even Eric and Mira. However, doing so would effectively be "killing" the other selves they switch places with.
Path Summary: "Payoff 2"
- They ultimately decide to shift out to a point where all of them are still alive and none of them are in any danger from the facility - in other words, the timeline where they won the coin toss and were let free. They all awake outside DCOM, retaining all memories of the potential timelines.
- Delta appears before them, telling his story about the "snail" again.
- Junpei threatens to call the police, which Delta claims is fruitless as he hasn't killed anyone in this timeline and, in fact, only knows of the ordeals they went through because he can read minds. All evidence of the Decision Game has already been removed and taken from the facility too; essentially, they have nothing on him and no way to prove his intentions.
- Delta gloats a bit, saying that by doing this, they've chosen the ending they want - a history where humanity goes extinct in a nuclear war set off by a fanatic. Carlos vows to stop that from happening, as do the others.
- Delta simply laughs, saying that one of his goals in all of this was to get them in that frame of mind, and that by doing everything he did, he has created a future where humanity will be saved.
- With the words "I will give you one last choice", he tosses Carlos a pistol and lays it bare - kill Delta, or let him go. He promises not to use Mind Hack to alter the outcome.
- Carlos aims the gun at Delta, but it's left ambiguous whether he fires it or not.
- CQD END 2
