Professor Layton and The Unwound Future - Plot

Plot

As Layton (Yo Oizumi) and Luke (Maki Horikita) are invited to witness a demonstration of a time machine built by Dr. Alain Stahngun, the experiment goes awry, causing the disappearance of Stahngun and the prime minister, Bill Hawks. A week later, as numerous scientists have been reported missing, Layton and Luke receive a letter purporting to be from Luke ten years in the future, leading the two to a quaint clock shop in the London back alleys. Inside, the old couple show the two another time machine in the guise of a giant clock, and they find themselves in a drastically-changed quasi-steam punk London ten years from their present, where they meet the Future Luke. He explains that in this future, Layton has become the head of a mafia-like mob known as the Family and taken control of London, and decides to assist him. After briefly returning to the past to look up some files pertaining to an accident which claimed the life of his girlfriend, Claire (Yoshino Kimura), ten years ago, Layton and Luke return to the future London, inadvertently bringing Flora, Inspector Chelmey and his assistant Barton with him. As the group investigates the whereabouts of Future Layton, Luke is reminded that he will soon be moving with his parents.

Arriving at the tower, the group learn that the Future Layton is Dr. Stahngun, whose true identity is Dimitri Allen (Takaya Kamikawa). He reveals to have taken Bill hostage, revealing that they, along with Claire whom he also had feelings for, were working on a time machine ten years ago, but Bill's desire for money led to the accident that claimed Claire's life. This led to Dimitri's dedication to build a working time machine and return to the past so he can save Claire's life. He attempts to trap Layton, but this is foiled by the fact that Layton had gained the assistance of Don Paolo, who also had feelings for Claire. Together they infiltrate Dimitri's base of operations to free the other scientists, where Layton encounters Claire's near-identical sister, Celeste, who assists them. As everyone gathers at the Thames Arms restaurant, where Dimitri is also waiting for them, Layton manages to deduce that they are not actually in the future, but in a pseudo-replica of London build underground. He also deduces that Dimitri is but a pawn compared to the true mastermind, who is revealed to be the Future Luke, whose true identity is Clive (Shun Oguri), a boy who sought revenge against Dimitri and Bill and London in general as the explosion that killed Claire also took his parents away from him.

Kidnapping Flora, Clive escapes to his moving fortress, the true purpose behind kidnapping the scientists, which he brings to the surface to attack London. With help from Don Paolo, Layton and Luke manage to board the fortress and free Flora, later joined by Celeste. After deducing that they need to reverse the flow of power from the generator, they discover Bill is attached to the generator, wired to a bomb. With thanks to Claire's old watch, they manage to reroute the bomb, free Bill and reverse the power flow of the fortress, causing it to collapse. After using Don Paolo's modified Laytonmobile to get everyone to the ground, where Chelmey manages to evacuate the underground citizens, Layton returns to help Celeste rescue Clive from the fortress before it falls down into the fake London and explodes.

As everyone safely regroups, Clive is put under arrest but promises to atone for his crimes, thanking Layton for comforting him as he did the day his parents were killed. It is then revealed that Celeste is actually Claire herself, who was teleported ten years into the future during the accident. However, her presence had become unstable and would soon send her back in time to the moment of her death, leading Dimitri to try to find a way to save her but to no avail. Accepting her fate, Claire has a tearful final reunion with Layton before bidding farewell disappearing back to her time. After the incident, Layton bids farewell to Luke as he boards a ship to his new home. Some time later, Layton receives a letter from Luke, inviting him to investigate another puzzling situation with him.