Okay, I decided to use my three Zemurian Ore weapons on Rean, Crow (since I figure he'll be required for at least part of this last dungeon), and Laura. Now it's time to begin the operation. We get quick looks at characters all over the continent and the movements for Operation Jormungandr and Operation Mille Mirage as everything prepares to go down. I like how we get quick artwork images for a bunch of characters from past games, including Kevin, Ries, and Anelace. This is a sizable stretch of time where I don't even need to touch the controller!
Finally we cut back to the Courageous II as it's time for Operation Shining Steel to begin infiltrating the Salt Pales. We can pick any of the five teams to start, but once we do, we have to see it through to completion, so no switching on the fly like other split party dungeons. We also get some remote Brave Orders depending on which team we're controlling. I decide to work my way from least favorite to favorite, so it's Angie's team first. The weird thing is that even for characters I've had in my party before now, their equipment and orbment setup is predetermined and locked, which is a bummer.
The individual area of each Salt Pale is pretty short. At the end of Angie's group's area, we encounter an Aion which Roselia says was created because of the unusual spirit vein activity, but that's where we stop for now. Next up is Duvalie's team. It's kind of weird having Xeno, Leo, Ines, and Ennea as playable characters! I do enjoy all the banter between the groups as we progress. At the end, Duvalie's group encounters something that looks like a Black Workshop creation, except it's made from organic materials. Next up is Aurelia's group. It's so wild having playable Victor and Vita. They also find an Aion at the end of their route. I love how Toval is freaked out by how unbothered everyone else is at the prospect of fighting it.
Next up is Lloyd and the SSS, and they get the Dark Dragon, nice. Finally, it's Estelle and crew. They wind up with the Aion from Hamel, fittingly enough. Renne mentions this fight can serve as revenge for what happened to Pater-Mater, which I guess is more Azure spoilers! I was kinda wondering what happened to that thing!
