"Change of heart" branch feels weirdly pointless

[Holger]

This is my second playthrough.

In the first playthrough I didn't encounter the "change of heart" event. I really liked the experience and was intrigued until the end of the storyline.

Now in the second playthrough this "change of heart" happened and everything feels weirdly pointless now.
Why do I still have to investigate ancient sites, when the Empress could just tell me everything? Why can I not just ask the Empress about all the historic facts that I still don't know? Why does't the Empress have a clear agenda and send me to some location?
What is the protagonist's motivation now? Why do they even cooperate? Doesn't the protagonist hate the Empress and what she did in the past - and would want to get rid of her as soon as possible? Why would an Empress go on adventures, let alone with a person far below her status?
Maybe I don't understand everything yet - but it feels like a massive plothole and I would like to jump directly to the end and start a new playthrough.

(Feels a bit like a murder mystery game where after 10 hours the killer confesses everything and provides ample evidence, but you still have to do 5 hours of fingerprinting and talking with suspects, until you are allowed to do your final accusation.)

[OdanUrr]

How do you even talk to the Empress? I don't think I found her in my 1st playthrough.

[Holger]

Originally posted by OdanUrr:

How do you even talk to the Empress? I don't think I found her in my 1st playthrough.

After you visited the Whithering Palace, talk to Orioi. Tell her what you saw there. Convince her to follow you to the Whithering Palace.

[OdanUrr]

Originally posted by Holger:

Originally posted by OdanUrr:

How do you even talk to the Empress? I don't think I found her in my 1st playthrough.

After you visited the Whithering Palace, talk to Orioi. Tell her what you saw there. Convince her to follow you to the Whithering Palace.

Thanks for the tip!

[Annoyone]

This thread is so old, it could itself be subject to archeology, but for anyone ever stumbling upon this path (as I have) and not liking it: Just go back to your boss Myria on Iox and she can reverse it (ordering the empress Enki to let Six at the controls again).

[JCRAYAS]

fdgh

[Messias]

I'll try to give my perspective on your questions. The empire is just a small part of the Nebula's history. Enkei does tell you some stuff quite bluntly, like for example the fact that she was the one who felled Iox (and why). However, by the time you meet her, you're probably already plunging into much deeper and older parts of the Nebula's history, which she herself has no idea about. She even says that she has no idea how to read/write Ancient because she had scribes to do that for her. She is not a scholar, and like most people in the current time period, she never cared much about history. About why she follows Aliya: although the personality of the robot has changed, it is still bound by the same constraints as before (like the ethical core).

[kangirigungi]

Enkei is a ♥♥♥♥ and I really hate travelling with her despite all the useful information she gives me. The fact that she acts just like Six most of the time, but with somewhat different dialogue is an obvious limitation of the game mechanics. In this regard, I recommend reading the books, in which her storyline is presented in a more logical, and also more satisfying, way.