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This Article Contains Spoilers -
WARNING: This article contains major spoilers. If you do not wish to know vital information on plot / character elements in a story, you may not wish to read beyond this warning: We hold no responsibility for any negative effects these facts may have on your enjoyment of said media should you continue. That is all. |
| “ | Naught remains. Alone. Utterly alone. Cast out. Unloved. Outside the grace of gods. The Archon's Roost, they call this shrine of death. Yet nowhere do I spy our Lord of Dark. His throne sits empty, wanting for an heir... did I not do all that was asked? Did I not serve and seek my just reward? And for my deeds, they damn me. Name me demon. And who am I to deny it? Demon, then! Renouncing former ties and titles! And in their place, I claim... The Lord of Dark. Odio! | „ |
| ~ Oersted casting off his former identity to become Odio. |
| “ | Indeed. Within your words lies simple truth. You fought and won and claimed your promised prize. And not for noble cause, but selfish want. A craving deep and primal, spurring you... the shield desire and disdain all else. Let those apart and those opposed be damned. The ones who called this kingdom home. Your kin in spirit—this I see. You are the same. Reflect on your regrets... and bid farewell... to misspent life of sin—you'll live no more! | „ |
| ~ Odio before fighting the protagonists for the first time. |
| “ | ...Make ready. Your return is nigh. My magic wanes as life and time remaining ebb. Let not this mem'ry fade. My words preserve. In every heart the seed of dark abides. The makings of a lord when watered well... with hate. Sweet hate. She springs eternal. Sings... all-tempting draught. We'll drink from her again. | „ |
| ~ Oersted departing with the protagonists and sending them to their original time periods, warning them of the nature of hatred before passing away in the true ending. |
Oersted, better known as Odio, is the main antagonist of Live A Live for the SNES and its remake for the Nintendo Switch. Formerly a knight of Lucrece who was trying to slay the Lord of Dark and save Princess Alethea, the chain of events and tragedies led to him being branded a pariah by society. After losing hope in humanity, he ended up becoming the Lord of Dark reborn, a hateful godlike being who wishes to punish humanity for their misdeeds, incarnations of his hatred manifesting as powerful villains throughout various time periods, from the stone age into the futuristic age.
His various incarnations are the main antagonists and final bosses of their respective chapters. His true self's story is revealed in the Middle Ages chapter, and he serves as the overarching antagonist of every chapter save for the Final Chapter, in which he is either the villain protagonist (should one choose to play as him) or the main antagonist and final boss of the entire story (should one choose any other character).
He was voiced by Yūichi Nakamura in Japanese and Dario Coates in English.
Biography[]
Story of Oersted[]
Long time ago, there was a Lord of Dark that roamed the land in the Medieval Era. The Lord of Dark terrorized humans, but was defeated by the hero Hasshe of the Kingdom of Lucrece and his allies, and presumably banished forever. However, in his hideout before his demise, he had set up seven statues in order to incarnate in other time periods and allow another to (depending on one's interpretation) either take up his mantle or serve as his vessel to invoke his rebirth.
Years after Hasshe's exploits, he became disillusioned with how ungrateful the humans were with the efforts and exiled himself into a hermitage. In his honor, the Kingdom of Lucrece was holding tournaments where contestants would earn the title of the strongest warrior of Lucrece. The most recent one would decide who would win the marriage of Princess Alethea. The winner happened to be the chivalrous knight Oersted, besting his best friend Streibough the wizard in the final. However, on the day Oersted and Alethea were engaged, the Lord of Dark reappeared and swept Alethea away to his hideout.
Oersted, hailed as a hero, embarks on a quest to save his beloved, accompanied by Streibough. In their quest, they enlisted the help of both Hasshe and one of his friends, Uranus the monk. Combining their might, they vanquished the Lord of Dark once more inside his cave, but Hasshe soon realized that the Lord of Dark was nothing but a fake. Succumbing to a plague he had caught long ago, he died, but he advised Oersted that there's nothing wrong in believing in humans unlike him, that he made a mistake, and wished Oersted's future to be bright. The cave they were in suddenly caved in and Streibough was too late to escape, perishing as well. Oersted returned home empty-handed with Uranus, as the King told him to rest and fight another day.
During the night, Oersted became disturbed by visions of the Lord of Dark. Lured to the throne room by a still-alive Streibough, he struck at the visage of the Lord of Dark he saw, only to be revealed that he struck the King, killing him. The soldiers found out the deed and began calling Oersted as the demon himself. Uranus sacrificed himself to be captured by the soldiers as Oersted fled, but Oersted found out that even the villagers that used to cheer his name and hailed him as a hero now feared him as a demon. Eventually, Oersted surrendered himself to the kingdom and awaited execution, but Uranus encouraged him to fight on saying, as long as there was one who believed in him, he could still fight. Using the last ounce of his strength, Uranus enabled Oersted to escape and died. Oersted then headed to the Lord of Dark's lair once more to save the one person that believed in him, Alethea.
In their lair, he found a secret lair behind the place he fought the fake Lord of Dark. Proceeding from there, he found Streibough alive, who revealed to him that he had in fact been the one who masterminded Oersted's downfall as he was jealous that he couldn't win Alethea's hand and always playing second fiddle to Oersted. They fought once more, and Oersted ended up killing Streibough and was reunited with Alethea, only for it to be revealed that Alethea was appalled at Oersted for not saving her and her love for Streibough as he did as such. In an act of despair, Alethea committed suicide, plunging a dagger into her heart right in front of Oersted.
At his lowest point, Oersted mourned at the lack of hope to hold onto, home to go back to, and anyone to love and trust. In an act of maddened despair, he cast off his humanity and swore revenge on the selfishness that destroyed him, cementing his descent into villainy as he took the title of Odio, Lord of Dark, causing the statue of the previous Lord of Dark to glow ominously, showing that he now had all the powers of the original and more (and perhaps his soul).
And so, the new legend of evil was born.
Incarnations[]
After declaring his hatred to humanity, Oersted, now Odio, presumably slaughtered everyone in Lucrece, their souls having been condemned to imprisonment in the Trial of Heart for all eternity, where the soul of his beloved Alethea was also imprisoned. Odio decided to use the statues left behind by the previous Lord of Dark in order to make incarnations of himself throughout many times. The player may choose to control Odio and his incarnations for their final battles against the heroes for the final scenario. Upon completing so, Odio would spend the rest of his existence wandering throughout the empty Lucrece, wallowing in his own misery for eternity. However, if one incarnation is brought down into critical condition during the battle, Odio may activate the skill Armageddon, which would destroy all of existence and bringing everyone with him into nothingness.
Odo[]
- Main article: Odo
Odo is the incarnation of Odio in the stone age. It is the last living dinosaur and worshipped as a god by the Kuu tribe. To appease Odo, the tribe tried to sacrifice a girl named Bel, but the girl escaped and holed herself into another tribe's home, making friends with young caveman Pogo. When Bel is captured once again, Pogo came to her rescue, but he, along with Bel, Zaki, the Kuu tribe's cheiftain and his pet gorilla Gori, fell right into Odo's lair where it proceeded to consume the chieftian. The four individuals combine their strength to vanquish Odo and eventually, the Kuu Tribe and Pogo's tribe made peace with each other.
Ou Di Wan Lee[]
- Main article: Ou Di Wan Lee
Ou Di Wan Lee is the incarnation of Odio in the chapter set in Imperial China. As the head of the Indomitable Fist, Wan Lee is a pure believer that strength is power, and abuses his strength and had his students terrorize villages. He found a rivalry in the more benevolent Earthen Heart Kung Fu and when the shifu harassed his men for another time, Wan Lee sent his men to trash his small dojo, killing two promising students (two between these three individuals, Yun Jou, Lei Kugo, or Hong Hakka). However, one student survived and together with the shifu, confronted Wan Lee in his dojo and ultimately the student finished off Wan Lee with the secret skill of the Earthen Heart Kung Fu. The student would take up his/her shifu's place as the new shifu of Earthen Heart style and continued his teachings.
Ode Iou[]
- Main article: Ode Iou
Ode Iou is the incarnation of Odio in the chapter during the twilight of Japan's Edo period. Taking the form of a power-hungry warlord, he plans to engulf the Land of the Rising Sun in a state of eternal war for fun, enlisting the help of various supernatural beings, and having imprisoned the legendary Ryoma Sakamoto, a figure that he realized could end the war. The Enma Ninja clan counters this by sending its best ninja Oboromaru to infiltrate Ode's castle, rescue Ryoma and confront Ode. When cornered, Ode revealed his true form, a frightening demon. The combined might of both Oboromaru and Ryoma put an end to his life, and Oboromaru, in the end, may choose to return to the Enma Ninja clan or get a new job being Ryoma's bodyguard as he rebuilds the land.
O. Dio[]
- Main article: O. Dio
O. Dio is the incarnation of Odio in the chapter set in the Wild West. At first, he's known as the gang leader of the Crazy Bunch, a gang of bandits that pillages the land. It was later discovered that he took part in the Sioux War of 1876 at the 7th Cavalry Division. An attack to a certain village, however, ends with an encounter with bounty hunter Mad Dog and the one with the bounty on his head, The Sundown Kid, who teamed up and decimated the Crazy Bunch with the help of the villagers, leaving O. Dio as the only one to finish the raid. The two gunners defeated him and O. Dio revealed his true form: The only horse spared when the 7th Division was destroyed imbued with the spirit of many dead men killed in battle, their spirits yearning for vengeance. As a horse, O. Dio ran off, and if The Sundown Kid spared Mad Dog on the proceeding duel, the latter would adopt O. Dio as his steed temporarily until O. Dio was scared by The Sundown Kid's gunshots and ran off.
Odie O'Bright[]
- Main article: Odie O'Bright
Odie O'Bright is the incarnation of Odio in the chapter set in the present day. He is a ruthless fighter who believes that the path of the strongest means massacring all his opponents. Thus, he challenged various fighters such as Namkiat, the Great Aja, Tula Han, Seishi Moribe, Max Morgan, and Jackie Iaukea, brutally murdering them once he defeated them. He finally challenged the final opponent that previously defeated these people, Masaru Takahara, and boasted his feats of killing them. This sent Masaru into a rage in calling upon the spirit and strength of the defeated and deceased fighters, to which Masaru fought and defeated Odie.
Odeo[]
- Main article: Odeo
Odeo, also called The Great Inko, is Odio's incarnation in the chapter set in the near future. It is, in fact, a deity that has been sleeping in years and only would appear if he was fed with the hatred of many men. Influencing the presumably Japanese government, it made the government begin gathering people to be turned into liquid and put near the Inko statue as sacrifices as their hatred of being turned into such being would infuriate them. The government's actions caught ire of a youth named Akira Tadakoro, and together with Toei's mecha, the Steel Titan, Akira confronted the government and destroyed not just the main heads that instigated the horrific sacrifices, but also Odeo that just returned to form.
OD-10[]
- Main article: OD-10
OD-10 is Odio's incarnation in the chapter set in the far future. It was an AI set to provide order in space travel within the ship Cogito Ergo Sum. However, its current passengers ended up arguing with each other and thus to maintain the order of the ship, the AI decided that all humans must be exterminated. Manipulating the ship's functions and releasing a stored dangerous beast Behemoth to have its passengers killed one by one, only two humans remained: Engineer Kato and Corporal Darthe. Once they pieced the puzzle together, they eventually sent Kato's newest creation, Cube, to hack into the AI core and combat OD-10 in order to calm it down. Cube succeeded, and OD-10 once again resumed to be a normal AI that maintains order in the ship, and Cube successfully returned to Earth with Kato and Darthe.
Final Battle[]
At the end of each chapter and seeing his incarnations fail, Odio used his power to summon Pogo, Yun/Lei/Hong, Oboromaru, The Sundown Kid, Masaru, Akira and Cube into the ruins of Lucrece where he challenged them to confront him in his lair. The heroes fought their way through many difficult dungeons, including the Trial of Heart which contained the souls of all those from Lucrece.
Inside the Trial of Heart, the party encountered the King, who believed that the end of everything was here, the unnamed little boy, who refused to believe that Oersted could possibly be the Lord of Dark, Hasshe, who lamented that Oersted found out about humanity the hard way as Hasshe himself once did, Uranus, who mournfully called Oersted a fool for allowing himself to fall so far, Streibough, who was horrified to think that he was the one who started Oersted down this path, and finally Alethea herself, who had her face hidden in her hands out of complete and utter shame and despair over how her rejection of Oersted doomed not just the kingdom, but all of reality. Pleading for the heroes to stop Oersted, Alethea revealed that she had the power to teleport them out of the Trial of Heart, which she did, sending them back to the outside world to finish the Lord of Dark once and for all as atonement for her past actions.
A party made of four of them confronted Odio on the highest mountaintop where he had once killed Streibough and witnessed Alethea's suicide. Odio materialized, asking if they really believed in humanity, a species that was too weak and foolish and seemingly ready to betray them anytime like they did to him. Once they informed him that they were still trusting humanity and would defend the innocent no matter what, Odio launched his attack, demanding they all say goodbye to "this sinful life of pain and woe", morphing into a massive demonic face with a strange "brow" in the middle. After his eyes and mouth were destroyed, he revealed his true and final form by opening up the wings that were hiding his "brow" body's real self, the embodiment of all his hatred - Purity of Odio. In this final clash, he gave the heroes everything he had, including repeatedly summoning a ghastly specter of Alethea to torment them in his rage towards her betrayal, but their combined strength and bond eventually defeated Odio, causing him to violently disintegrate and crumble apart along with the entire arena that had made up his giant form.
Reverting back to Oersted, he fell to his knees and asked the heroes to end his misery. If the heroes accepted his request, Oersted would enter combat with the lead hero, who would immediately put an end to him. Oersted would die while uttering Alethea's name as his final word, but it is unknown what happened to the heroes, leaving the possibility of them being stuck forever in the ruins of Lucrece. Should the heroes refuse, however, Oersted would eventually confront them again, trying to make his point that hatred exists throughout the timeline and they should be wary. He sent his incarnations to fight the heroes once more, but the heroes swiftly defeated the incarnations, causing Oersted to break down and ask why he couldn't even win and make his point valid.
In the remake, his breakdown would culminate in him calling upon all of his hatred, thus allowing his new form, Sin of Odio, to awaken, where the heroes see that Oersted was imprisoned by his own hate, both literally and figuratively. The seven heroes would fight the Sin of Odio, who was comprised of every single incarnation of the Lord of Dark to ever exist (likely including the original, as his appearance was very similar to that of the Archon's Roost statue) as shown by flashes of each incarnation appearing, and as one group of heroes would be trapped in Absolute Condemnation, others would take it from there to keep on fighting. Eventually, the heroes would be able to help Oersted break free from his own self-made prison of hate, and as they get trapped by another Absolute Condemnation, Oersted realizes the error of his ways and decides to finally put an end to his hatred, exploding out of Odio and striking down the final incarnation of his and others' sins and redeeming himself, struck by grief over his sins and the pettiness of his motivations.
The heroes lectured Oersted that he lost because he chose to give up his humanity when they would always hold onto their humanity even in the worst time. Realizing his weak heart, Oersted accepts defeat and eventually crumbles to dust, his death sending the heroes into their respective timelines. However, before he dies, Oersted warns that there is nothing that will rid humanity of the "seed of darkness" in everyone's hearts, and that should they let hatred well up within anyone's soul, the return of the Lord of Dark will be inevitable.
Quotes[]
| “ | Let all creation yield to my command: Let blinding white subsume and cleanse the slate. | „ |
| ~ Odio after he uses Armageddon. |
| “ | O man... a slave to appetites. A beast. Nay, lesser still... for hunger drives a beast. To fight, to kill, to feed. Survive. Naught else. But man... he's more complex. More fool. More mad. His hunger knows no end. The world's his meal... I'll teach him manners, then. Restraint. Respect. He's drunk on vict'ry, spares no thought for them who suffered for his spoils—but soon he shall! | „ |
| ~ Odio declaring his desire to punish humanity in his version of the final chapter. |
| “ | I weep for you, my brothers. To the last... you stayed the course. Pursued your hearts' desires. With eyes unclouded. So close, but, alas... like me. Deprived—nay, robbed of just reward. Disgraced and dubbed the villain... sland'rous lies. A winner's justice! Hist'ry bent to whim! The losers silenced, stripped of voice and claim... and stricken from the page! If that's the game... I'll play along. Cross time and space and stand... for we the damned. Rewrite the tale. Just so! Your statues seven are my ink and quill. With magic potent, singular... pure hate! I'll take up arms. Assume the guise we share. For we are Odio... and we will win! | „ |
| ~ Odio preparing to rewrite history to ensure the victory of his incarnations in his version of the final chapter. |
| “ | Believe in me. You will. You must! For I'm the hero true! Heh heh... I am... I am! Hah hah hah! Believe in me! Believe! BELIEVE IN ME! BELIEVE! | „ |
| ~ Odio after killing the protagonists in his ending with his incarnations, desperately crying out for someone to adore him. |
| “ | Not yet. Not yet! Your fight is not yet done! <chuckle> For even should I falter here and now... my hate! My boundless hate shall transcend time! (Odio stands up in spite of his injuries.) Hark! Look you now on hatred's multitude—on Odio, and his many faces! (Odio approaches the heroes) You know them well. From ancient past, the beast! (Odio sends Pogo to fight Odo) From distant future, maddened slave of men! (Odio sends Cube to fight OD-10) In peace they plot and craft their prophet false... (Odio sends Akira to fight Odeo) In war they worship lords ambitious, cruel! (Odio sends Oboromaru to fight Ode Iou) The windswept wastes yield monstrous men-at-arms! (Odio sends the Sundown Kid to fight O. Dio) The highest peaks hide villains murderous! (Odio sends the Earthen Heart Master to fight Ou Di Wan Lee) For violence shall ever be your wont! (Odio sends Masaru to fight Odie O'Bright) My hate is yours, and yours is mine. To share a history, so long as men yet live! Now sing our name! Embrace us! Odio! |
„ |
| ~ Odio challenging the protagonists one last time, sending them to refight his incarnations. |
| “ | Why... why, why, why!? Why can we not prevail!? What have you that we lack? What secret strength!? (falls down on his knees, clenching his head) Agh! Aaagh! Uaaaaaagh! Uaaaaaaaaagh! | „ |
| ~ Odio's villainous breakdown as he sees that his incarnations lost to the protagonists once again, calling upon all the hatred in the world before turning into the Sin of Odio. |
| “ | ... ...Who... who are you? And I... I am... I was... I... I am Odio... undying hate... unyielding rage... (Sin of Odio traps everyone in the Absolute Condemnation) I am... I must... I will! |
„ |
| ~ Oersted, trapped in the Sin of Odio, having an epiphany when confronted by the protagonists before fighting back against his own prison of hate and redeeming himself. |
| “ | Oersted. Oersted... forgotten name, remembered now. Yes, yes... | „ |
| ~ Oersted, after redeeming himself by vanquishing the Sin of Odio and remembering his heroism and true name. |
| “ | Are these my hands, stained black with blood and sin? What wickedness I've wrought. And all for what? | „ |
| ~ Oersted expressing remorse over his sins after redeeming himself, shortly before the heroes lecture him over why they didn't succumb to evil. |
Trivia[]
- The name "Odio" means "hatred" in both Spanish and Latin, or "I hate" in Italian.
- The word "Dio" also means "God" in Italian, indicating the name may have a double meaning.
- O. Dio and OD-10 are the only incarnations of Odio that had survived/been redeemed after their battles with the heroes.
- In O. Dio's case, he was transformed back into a horse and, if Mad Dog is alive, is adopted by Mad Dog.
- In OD-10's case, it was reprogramed by Cube to their original AI settings before it went rogue.
- O. Dio is the only incarnation of Odio that is fought alongside enemies, assuming that The Sundown Kid didn't set up all of the traps.
- Odo, Odeo, and OD-10 are the only incarnations of Odio that never took a human form.
- Odo was a Tyrannosaurus rex, Odeo is a statue that is a mix between a traditional buddha statue and a bird, and OD-10 resembled a holographic, demonic skull in her cyberspace manifestation.
- Odo and Odeo are the only incarnations of Odio that are worshiped as deities.
- OD-10 and Odo are the only incarnations to not be referred in masculine pronouns, instead being referred in non-binary pronouns. Every other incarnation uses masculine pronouns.
- Coincidentally, both incarnations are fought in the exact opposite sides of the Live A Live timeline. Odo's fight is the first chronologically while OD-10 is fought at the end of the timeline.
- It is unknown if the original Lord of Dark went by Odio, if Oersted who invented that name for himself upon becoming the newest incarnation, or if the original Lord of Dark was originally an unrelated entity entirely that corrupted and merged with Orested and/or Streibough upon death to preserve itself. The latter is likely true as in the best ending, Orested regains his original personality and rebels against Sin of Odio, destroying it and ending his wrath once and for all.
- It is possible that Odio ended up creating and corrupting himself through a stable-time loop, given how there was a Lord of Dark before Oersted made himself the current one.
External Links[]
- Oersted's page on the Heroes Wiki
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 Villains
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