The Three Wise Men

The Three Wise Men
Also known as	Shekinah
Origin	Abrahamic Mythology
First Appearance	Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey / Redux
Alignment(s)	Law
Transforms into	Shekinah

"Here in this blasted land of ruin, what will you find? A light illuminating the way to the future? The fires of destruction? Or perhaps...?"

—Left Voice, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey

The Three Wise Men are mysterious beings from Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey.

History

In Christian tradition, the Magi, also referred to as the Three Wise Men, are a group of distinguished foreigners who are said to have visited Jesus after his birth, bearing gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense.

Appearances

• Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey / Redux: Major Characters

Profile

Personality

Just like most other godly beings associated with the Great Will, the Wise Men present themselves as the vehicle for humanity's salvation, but are actually manipulative, cruel and arrogant. Despite their manipulations, after their true form's defeat, she does lament for failing to stop humanity from destroying the world, implying that unlike most of the Great Will, the Wise Men might genuinely consider their actions as salvation instead of for delighting in the suffering that takes place. They are allies of the protagonist in a Law Route and are mostly passive, but become hostile entities in any of the New Alignment Routes (including New Law).

Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey

The Three Wise Men were a group of omnipotent beings who took the form of a council of three men. Mastema is depicted as their servant, though amoral and capable of manipulation and deception in hopes of attaining his goals above those of the Wise Men. Demeter is another one of their servants, although unlike Mastema, she legitimately considers their actions as being for the greater good.

They were first met in the Investigative Team's entrance into the Schwarzwelt, they come into contact with the protagonist in the catastrophe that causes three of the ships of the team, the Elve, the Gigantic and the Blue Jet, to be scattered and lost. The Wise Men deem him as interesting and tells him that he will create an uncertain future from that point on. Before they part, they wipe out his memories of this encounter, and to the rest of his crewmates, the protagonist was in cardiopulmonary arrest during his meeting with the Wise Men.

When the Red Sprite is on its way leaving the Schwarzwelt after killing Ouroboros Maia, the Wise Men intercepts it and calls the protagonist, Jimenez and Zelenin into their room, enlisting them to "change the fate of mankind" and mocking humanity for their arrogance of destroying the Schwarzwelt with their technology and comparing them to "apes." They also show them a vision of what will happen if humanity were to attempt the destruction of the Schwarzwelt to prove their point - that the nuclear missiles will do nothing and it will take over the earth. They then tell the protagonist to find the Exotic Matter of the three other Schwarzwelt Mothers and forcefully strand the Red Sprite in Sector Fornax, but not before making their presence known to the Red Sprite.

After Maya's defeat, they explain the history of the Schwarzwelt: the world was once populated by an advanced civilization not so different from humanity before its members fell victim to their own corrupted desires which generated the Schwarzwelt and brought about their own extinction. After their explanation, the three announce their final plan: to unite souls of all beings with the "spiritually enlighted." In such a world, those of firm wills would live and rule over the world while those with corruptible weak hearts would all perish. All life would be without desire or deep emotion for the sake of peace. Louisa Ferre appears and interrupts them, mocking their project as a lifeless, motionless world in which nothing dies and nothing is born, then makes a speech that advocates for Chaos.

In Strange Journey Redux, New Law Route

Should the Law Path be chosen, the Three Wise Men appear a final time to bestow the protagonist and Zelenin with the Clement Bell Rare Forma. Mem Aleph mentions in the Law path that the Three Wise Men have some form of obligation to her, but by aiding the forces of Law against her means they have forgotten it.

In Redux, they take a more important role if the player goes for the New Law/Neutral/Chaos routes. After accepting Alex's request to change the future, Demeter snatches all of the protagonist's Fruits which Alex had stolen earlier in the Womb of Grief (along with the player's fruits), claiming that it belongs to the "three spirits" and teleports away, just after thanking him and Zelenin in New Law, mocking him and Jimenez about killing Mem Aleph in New Chaos or outright calling the protagonist a fool in New Neutral. After the initial shock, Louisa Ferre appears, informing the protagonist that the "three spirits" are in fact the Three Wise Men, that Demeter was their servant all along and that they took advantage of the protagonist to collect the pieces of their power for them. She then reveals that they have retreated to the Empyrean Ascent, and encourages the player to stop them.

When finally confronted, they act somewhat differently depending on the alignment: in New Law they at first congratulate them - until they realize both the protagonist and Zelenin are going against them, which leads to them reacting with contempt, referring to them as foolish apes. In New Neutral they offer mercy at first, only to soon drop it- as they realize the player is facing them at all costs. Finally, they show total spite and disgust in New Chaos, referring to Jimenez and the protagonist as the two demons that remain. In all New routes, after a brief exchange, they merge with the cosmic fruit, becoming Shekinah, their true form. They also mention in all New routes that the "vile Mem Aleph" stole the source of their power, the cosmic fruit, implying that their "alliance" with Mem Aleph was forced.