IN THE FLESH is the last of the two main missions of the GLUTTONY layer, and the climax of Act I.
The terrain you traverse is made up of flesh, bones, acid, and other bodily substances, similar to 3-1: BELLY OF THE BEAST. Being the climax of Act I, you get introduced to, and face off with Gabriel.
An assortment of rooms takes up the first half of the stage, some of which require platforming to get past.
The first room is tall and rectangular, the notches in the fleshy walls allow you to get to the top. A walkway follows, barely wide enough to cross, this is also where Gabriel can be first heard.
The next room features a body of acid, five moving platforms, and a large, mouth-like gate in the middle, with a small gap that slowly shifts from side to side.
After that, falling down a deep hole, you'll be greeted with four stone hands, and a short, narrow sliding section, ending in one last door and a terminal.
The Heart Chamber[]
An octagonal pillar made of flesh and bone, with a big eye in the center, right in front of a huge heart. Approaching the chamber will reveal Gabriel, beginning the bossfight (for more in-depth information about the fight itself, refer to this page).
Once defeated, Gabriel will retreat, destroying the large eye, and therefore opening the exit.
Epilogue[]
After the level is completed, a cutscene will play after it, marking the conclusion of Act I. A full transcript is located below.
Disgrace. Humiliation. Unseemly and unwelcome at the feet of The Council. Their eyes ablaze with bitter resentment, glaring through Gabriel's wounds of body and soul, bore outward for all to see.
"Has this one abandoned the way of our creator?" "It is unworthy of its Holy Light." "The Father's Light is indomitable." "This one sees fit to squander it."
Their words resonated in Gabriel's limbs, coursing through as lightning upon wire, a searing hiss that would strike lessers deaf and blind. The Holy Light within him, an unstoppable force of divine fury. Insurmountable for mere Objects. This he knew.
"Holy Council, my devotion to our creator is absolute. I have never strayed from the will of The Father, but a machine-"
"You dare imply the might of The Father could be shaken by mere objects?"
"Your treachery will not be tolerated. As punishment, The Father's Light shall be severed from your body. You have 24 hours before the last of it's embers die out."
"And you with them." "Prove your loyalty." "Unmake your mistakes."
As the Light was ripped from his being, Gabriel's screams were silenced in the hiss of gospel in praise of God. A boiling anguish to which even the fires of Hell could not compare. Through the blaze of torment a single burning hatred was forged anew.
If the machines seek blood, he would give it freely;
and with such fury, even metal will bleed.
Ranking Requirements[]
Rank
Kills
Time
Style
S
0
4:30
2,000
A
N/A
5:20
1,500
B
N/A
6:40
1,000
C
N/A
10:00
500
Secrets[]
Challenge Help
Once the first half of Gabriel's health bar is depleted, he will transition into Phase 2 by falling until he hits a solid surface. To complete the challenge, this must happen above the pit present around the arena. Take down his health as low as you can without going into Phase 2, and lure him above the pit. You can use the heart as a makeshift wall-to-wall jump-off to remain mid-air.
Granted you can consistently dodge Gabriel's attacks, and you can attempt to lure him as many times as you wish, as the pit cannot kill you, and at worst will take you down to 1 hp.
Trivia[]
The name of this level is a reference to the two songs of the same name from the 1979 album The Wall by Pink Floyd, as well as the fleshy and organic level of the same name in Blood, the fleshy and organic nature of this level itself, and the player finally meeting Gabriel, previously only present in art, books, and the consequences of his actions, in the flesh.
This is the first level to feature voice acting in the whole game.
It is impossible to achieve any kill rank except S. Since the level has no killable enemies, 0 is the highest number of kills the player can get.
The music building up to the fight with Gabriel that plays when he first narrates to the player is an adaptation of Johann Sebastian Bach's Ich ruf zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ, BWV 639; German for I Call to You, Lord Jesus Christ.
If you start the fight with Gabriel, die, and then enter the arena without going far enough to trigger Gabriel to spawn and look back at the void outside the hallway you spawn in, you can see the starting elevator in the distance because the rest of the level has been unloaded.
If you jump out of the arena without triggering Gabriel's fight, you will respawn in the middle of the arena without causing Gabriel to spawn. To trigger the fight to start, simply move back toward the hallway you spawn in.
If you travel far enough back, you will land in an area that is outside the arena's normal boundaries, where a black wall is put up once Gabriel spawns. Falling into this area will cause you to respawn in the flesh hallway without taking damage, displaying the message "Whoops, sorry about that."
The eye in the heart chamber follows Gabriel, unlike the other eyes in the layer that follow V1 instead.
This is one of only three levels without an exit room and instead a single pit that the player jumps down to finish the level; the others being the Intro and [5-4: LEVIATHAN].
