Arknights story · Dorothy's Vision
DV-4 Empty Alley
Ho'olheyak shows up at the bar to stop the former scientist from revealing too much. The Doctor and the Rhodes Islanders give chase, but find themselves once again waylaid by power armor. Back at the test site, Silence and Elena dig into the experiment data and find its goals increasingly suspicious.
2 scenes, 496 lines
1. Before Operation
298 lines
Burp...
What's the matter?
He's shivering. Must be the air conditioning in the bar.
Have another drink, it'll warm you up.
Er, no...
Oh, I forgot. Your tastes have changed.
Your favorite drink was Siestan Iced Tea, back when you could still hold a scalpel. Strong enough to make you forget Loken Williams's abuse.
Now, he has a hundred and twenty-two years left on his prison term, while you... you're free.
Free... you're talking to me about free?
I've been uploading my biometric data on a monthly basis, just like you told me...
Shh.
Let's not talk about work here.
We come to the bar to relax, don't we?
Or would you rather drink with these two? One whose face shows no expression, the other whose face can't be seen at all... than with your old friend?
Old friend? Hah, that's rich.
The reason I've become this, it's all because...
Here's to freedom.
......
They left me no choice, Saria.
—!
You're on your own.
The man picks up the glass and gulps down its contents.
He stares into space with a particular expression. It is hard to say whether it's one of anger, or one of despair.
A moment later, he falls from his chair.
His legs spasm as though shocked by electricity, while his left hand grasps at his right arm.
His fingers dig deep into his own flesh, as though trying to rip out the electronics that have caused him so much grief, along with his past sins.
Oh my god. What happened to him?
Call an ambulance!
—
Is he sick?
Something in the drink?
Epilepsy.
Blood test shows abnormal chemical composition.
That injection I gave him will help. He'll live.
That drink...
You drank the rest?
As you just saw.
......
He did one final operation on himself before he left Loken Watertank.
You knew it all along.
I should have removed the variable myself. One tooth wouldn't have affected his work.
But I didn't.
I believe we in Columbia should have the freedom to embrace death.
On it.
What are you...?
We have a problem and we need to deal with it.
Sir, the new test results are out!
Let's hope it justifies this commotion.
......
Sixty-seven percent?
W-We tried our best.
What about the retests?
H-Here they are.
Get me all the numbers.
Yes... sir.
......
Sir...
I'll be damned, the old goat wasn't playing.
It's all up to Ho'olheyak now... she'd better take care of Saria.
I'm honored that the former head of Rhine's Defense Section thinks I'm a problem.
Who are you?
We've never met, Director Saria.
But I've heard of you.
One of the co-founders of Rhine Lab, graduate of the Trimounts Institute of Technology, who left academia after earning her PhD in biomedical engineering to become the head of the Defense Section.
Everyone associates Rhine Lab with Kristen Wright, but few have heard of you.
Have you never resented that, after all these years?
I know.
You think yourself a firefighter, but what you really love is the feeling of charging into a fire, am I right?
You like fighting.
That doesn't mean you're a warrior. You have no thirst for challenge and destruction.
That's why you never fit in with the scientific community.
Five years ago, you received a grafted plant from Muelsyse, who taught the vines to dance.
You accepted the gift. Thereafter, you were in your office by seven every morning, trimming the sprouts that had grown overeager.
You've been spying on Rhine Lab?
Maybe I just heard some office gossip.
Then maybe you missed the part where Muelsyse turned the offices of three directors into Sargon rainforests.
Or how much trouble it caused Defense.
Hm?
I don't shy away from a fight.
You're too curious for a mercenary.
Hey, they're fighting!
Are they drunk? Where's a bouncer when you need one?
......
Are you the bouncer? Get them out of here!
Shit! The ceiling's coming down! Go! Go!
Are you okay, Doctor?
I'm fine.
I'm more worried about the informant.
Go help Saria, Mechanist.
So eager to stop the fight...
Won't you stay a while longer?
There aren't many in Columbia who could take a hit from you and stay standing.
With skills like yours, there aren't many who could afford your fee.
This doesn't have much to do with Volvort Kochinski. And your style isn't military.
You're eager to kill the trail of the silver reagent.
Your employer could be Ferdinand, or it could be...
Too many questions to let you go.
Saria!
Saria takes note of her position and that of her colleague. The enemy's path of retreat is cut off.
There is no need to drag this out. She unleashes her Arts without hesitation.
An enamel wall appears out of thin air, and Saria takes aim at Ho'olheyak's vitals.
Looks like the time for talk is over.
You're not dodging?
Don't need to. I'm not in the habit of taking long shots.
Saria's fingers should have found her opponent's abdomen.
But she does not feel the warm touch of soft flesh.
There is no sign of pain on Ho'olheyak's face.
She leans forward, her lips nearly touching Saria's ear.
You hurt my friend the moment you showed up. Doesn't exactly put me in a chatting mood.
Hehe... I have a job to do, after all.
One last parting word for you.
Don't be too eager to make an enemy of me.
Don't be too eager to make an enemy of anyone.
......
She got away? Why... is there a hole in the wall?
That was me.
Did her Arts misdirect you?
It was some technique, but not Originium Arts.
She changed the air composition around her, interfering with my Arts, and causing my attack to miss its target.
I've never seen anything like it before.
Muelsyse...
Could she keep a caster from getting at water molecules?
Muelsyse's disappearance may be her work too.
Maybe.
I've thought about it. Heating air in a specific direction is pretty mundane. It wouldn't have been enough to disable Muelsyse.
Doctor, I propose we go after her.
Whether it's the intel she has access to, or the strange techniques she uses...
This Liberi is extremely dangerous.
Officer? Where are you going?
I didn't know I had to report my every move to you.
Records show you took the key to a vehicle...
Just borrowing an asset.
By all means, report it to your miserable director.
Officer...
What is it? I don't have all day.
Mary Banner. You grew up in the town of Steelham, north of Trimounts. Sonny Romano was your neighbor and middle school classmate.
You've been investigating me?
Romano was registered as Infected four years ago. He ended his internship at a law firm and returned to Steelham. His insurance payments stopped six months later.
His name resurfaced on the crew manifest for this Pioneer Team, three years and seventeen days later.
Where was he during that time?
How would I know?
Preventing problems before they occur is part of our job.
If you thought you could scare me by raffling off some old records, think again.
It took me five years to get to where I am now. Did you think I don't know how to deal with some corporate worms?
Ahem. I have never doubted your ability.
Then don't make me feed you to the tuskbeasts.
Maybe you don't believe it, but I just wanted to give you some friendly advice.
You remind me of my former supervisor at times. I had a lot of respect for her, but she allowed her personal sentiments to destroy her future.
I don't want to see you repeat her mistakes.
Ha... sentiments?
Maybe this could save some people...
But it can't save one out to get herself killed.
......
This is an emergency communication.
Paging Director Clooney.
Log 17. Location, zone 9 corridor.
No change observed in target's position from the previous log.
Base particle structure is stable.
—
Still no signal. Can't get anything out.
(We can't tolerate any more delays. The plan needs adjustment...)
(I have to get these reports to the boss once we have comms back.)
...Elena?
*cough* *cough*
What are you doing here?
I... I just wanted to move a little, catch my breath.
I understand that you harbor certain feelings towards the Pioneers... but it's better to stick together.
The last attack was ten minutes ago, not far from here.
Getting separated would be dangerous, if those things appear again.
Alright, I'll go back.
I don't know what you're talking about.
The Pioneers are not in the most stable condition. Angering them will put Joyce in danger.
I understand why you didn't want to tell the truth in front of them.
But it's just the two of us here.
You wanted to ask about the experiments?
You're not a project member. You'll need to request permission from the company...
Stop dodging the question.
......
I know you're hiding a lot from me.
I'm not angry. We're friends, and we're colleagues. Rhine Lab has strict rules on confidentiality, and all of us are used to hiding our opinions, rules or no rules.
Olivia, I'm not...
You're not doing it on purpose.
I know. How could I not?
There aren't many Infected in the company. When you first came and greeted me at lunch... an Energy Section colleague pulled you aside and whispered to you that I was Infected.
You met with me anyway.
I don't care about those stones on your body. Who doesn't have a flaw or two? Not the ones gossiping behind your back, at the very least.
Even afterwards... I never cared about the stones in my own body!
That's the Elena Urbica I know.
I...
You knew something was not right with the experiments here.
You knew what those silver things were.
They're endangering our lives, and those of many innocents outside.
The Elena I know would not let something like this happen.
What made you keep quiet?
Did Ferdinand...
Olivia... this is my job.
Just like Helen and so many other researchers who work for Rhine Lab... this is where my dreams can come true.
You said you were once thankful to Director Parvis and Rhine Lab. I...
Recite the star chart.
I don't want to see your physics test scores. Full marks or zero, they don't matter.
You're an Urbica. Studying such uselss things insults the name.
You disappoint me, Astgenne.
This is all you have to show for a month's work?
......
You have talent. But so does everyone else in Columbian science.
You have determination, but it has yet to be tested.
You're diligent, but there's no direction to guide your hard work.
The world is waiting for you to change it. Every chance you waste is potentially a massive loss for yourself, and the era you're living in.
I chose you from thousands of candidates. You had better not prove me wrong.
Ferdinand is the goal I strive for.
What did he promise you? Your own project if you help Director Franks complete this experiment? Or...
Olivia... you're like my sister, treating me like a little kid sitting around waiting for candy.
I know you have a lot of misconceptions about Director Clooney. Your investigations over the years have caused him a lot of trouble.
But none of that matters, it's not my place to defend him.
But he could have refused Rhodes Island's intervention. And yours.
He wants to change Rhine Lab, change Columbia... and I believe all he needs is a chance.
Did those things catch up to us?
It's the Pioneer Team!
Stay back!
The captain was right... we're just lab beasts to you...
You've got it all wrong...
Still trying to trick us?
I won't fall for that again! Everything you did for us, it's all fake!
Calm down, er... Myers, was it?
Myers, if you won't listen to us, maybe you'll listen to Sonny.
I don't... I don't want to die here...
There's no end to this damned corridor... it bears down on you and chokes you out. It's like the walls in the Infected containment zones.
Let us go... please... I'm begging you...
I... I'll kill her if you don't!
......
Joyce!
How could this be...?
No, let Joyce go... don't hurt her!
The tracks show she passed through here.
Can you tell which way she went?
The alley up ahead.
Let's go.
Wait.
We have unanswered questions.
Did you learn anything new, Doctor?
Did we win that fight?
I'm not concerned about the outcome of a single battle.
...I get what the Doctor is saying.
That Liberi isn't strong enough to beat us.
But she's not so weak that she couldn't hold out for a few minutes.
She could have gotten away before Mechanist arrived.
Seems like she was waiting for Mechanist and I to arrive.
Seems like she intended to leave a message behind.
She's luring us into the alley.
Should we still go?
Yes.
We're ready.
On it.
They'll be coming, right?
I know Saria. She'll come, even if she knows it's exactly what I want.
I'm still a little uneasy... that power armor...
Are you sure we don't need permission from Ferdinand?
We could always go back to plan A, if you want.
You mean... never mind, forget that I said anything.
I hear footsteps.
Alert the recon team. Begin the operation.
What about us?
We're out.
2. After Operation
198 linesThe cramped space is filled with black, which blocks out light, air and sound.
The mouth cannot scream.
The scorching heat of Originium blocks the windpipe, preventing even a whisper from escaping.
There is no fighting.
Cold hard steel clamps down on the limbs, preventing any attempt at movement, never mind resistance.
If only tears would flow from the eyes. Mother always said tears were powerful weapons.
But the eyes are not cooperating.
They have seen too many mountains fall and too many rivers dry up over the centuries. They have seen too many loved ones die.
They have become dry, like the land after a nomadic city has passed through.
All six power armors disabled.
Is that the last one?
—
It's headed your way, Doctor!
—
I'll take care of it.
You did not see how Saria moved. All you know is that she was standing in front of you before you knew it.
You know she never carries a Rhine-made shield on the streets of Columbia.
She turns herself into a shield.
The enamel barrier growing from her crossed forearms blocks the power armor's attack.
Pest.
You hear Saria mutter under her breath.
That is how she views such rogue Columbian technology.
Her expression tells you what her next move is.
Saria wastes no time dealing with pests.
Her hand closes upon the chest of the power armor, where a dark hole would soon appear.
The power armor would be destroyed, or more aptly, die.
A thought comes to your mind.
Saria, no!
She may or may not have heard more than the first syllable, but she does, in fact, stop.
It is the result of trust that you have accumulated over the course of many battles.
Her fist only scrapes the core, but the shockwave is enough to shatter the power armor's outer shell.
You see something amongst the flying metal shards that looks different.
It looks like... strands of hair.
Doctor! Look ou—
It's...
The power armor tips over.
As it further disintegrates, you see more hair, then a speck of skin, then an eye.
The eye is looking at you.
You see many emotions flash across it: anger, fear, bewilderment...
As the shell falls away completely, you realize it is begging for help.
You extend your hand.
Hello, Muelsyse.
What's happening, Myers?
I... I don't know, sir...
Let Doc Moore go.
Doc...
......
I can't.
Disobeying a direct order?
Why are you on their side, sir?
Didn't you say we needed to harden our hearts and do what we had to do? Didn't you say we were just their test subjects?
This was all your idea. I... I liked Doc Moore.
I never thought you'd be the one to turn against me first.
Sam, maybe, or somebody else... but you, Myers, you always listened to me.
To a fault, you said.
I listened to my boss at the plant and ended up with Oripathy. Then I started listening to you when I got here.
You're all smart, got an education. Figured I couldn't go wrong listening to you.
But now... we're all gonna die.
The whitecoats are gonna kill us, Sonny! They think they got it all under control!
......
Search her if you don't believe me. I'm damned sure she's got a voice recorder on her. She's here to log us, and the silver monsters.
Dr. Urbica, if you know a way out of this, it's time to get talking.
Elena...
Olivia, I may not have told you the details of the experiment...
But I'll never lie to you.
I never lied to you either, Sonny, Myers.
I... I don't know how to deal with them.
I studied them and recorded their behavior because I wanted to solve the problem we're facing... like I said, it's part of my job.
Ha... haha....
The Pioneer stares at Ptilopsis. Suddenly, he raises his hand.
Silence lets out a mute cry. Her drone rams the Pioneer, sensing its master's will.
But all he did was take something from Ptilopsis's hand.
It was the treatment band that he put on her only a few hours ago.
......
What... what have I done...?
Doc Moore...
You regret it, huh? The kindness you showed me?
Someone like me doesn't deserve kindness.
The doctor returns to the side of her friends, still quiet, beautiful, pristine.
But there is no way out. This lab is a tomb, built specially for them.
There is no hope. The band is like a handcuff the company has shackled them with.
They will never find freedom, unless...
The Pioneer stuffs the medical wristband into his mouth.
Myers!
S-Sir...
What are you doing! Spit it out, now!
The band...
It contains multiple doses of painkillers.
His heart can't possibly take it. It'll kill him!
I've seen guys swallow these...
They're all dead!
The dead are the lucky ones...
Spit it out, damn you!
I'll hold his jaw. Sock him in the stomach, Sam!
*cough* *cough*
One more time! I see the treatment band!
Olivia, let's help—
...Olivia?
...Joyce.
She's awake?!
Dark? But all the lights are on.
Joyce... are your eyes okay?
Can you hear us?
She can't.
What's going on?
I don't know, but none of that sounds like Joyce.
Her condition...
I know her. She's never sounded like this, before or after the operation.
You're right.
You're surprised. You don't know what's happening to her.
That means the situation has long gone out of your control.
Elena... it's time to talk about these experiments.
Did Dorothy...?
I don't want to see anyone get hurt because of our work. Especially not Joyce.
Maybe you're right. We should have worked together to solve the problem.
It's ok, Elena. No need to hesitate anymore.
I invited all of you here. You have the right to know the truth, both Dr. Silence, and my Pioneer friends.
You were... spying on us?
I was concerned.
Someone needs to close the doors while you stop to talk.
You stopped the silver monsters?
Don't call them that, Sonny.
They can hear you.
......
Elena, my dear assistant, there's one more thing that I require of you.
Bring them to me.
What you don't feel comfortable explaining, I can.
And you know my lab is the safest.
No hostiles left outside.
They all followed Mr. Sonny and Dr. Silence.
Communications are still out.
Looks like jamming across all standard frequencies. Mechanist might have been able to do something about it...
Who's there?
Mr. Sonny?
Freeze.
Looks like you've got a decent memory.
Why... why are you here?
Where is he?
He... you mean Mr. Sonny?
Tell him to show himself and stop hiding behind a child like a coward!
Er, I'm a grown man...
Just barely.
Out with it, boy. Where are they?
The Pioneers are in a building nearby...
Do you know your ears twitch when you're embarrassed?
Er... huh?
Just kidding.
But you're a little too trusting, aren't you?
This will go a lot easier if you tell me everything you know.
Otherwise, since you're the one who fixed the power supply, I can arrest you for obstruction of justice.
If I can't catch the real perp, I guess you'll have to do.
Then what are you waiting for? Start talking.
I'm not sure if you'll believe me...
We were attacked by a bunch of silver shapeshifters, the likes of which we've never seen before.
So, she's inside.
Yes. This is Dorothy's lab, and the heart of the complex.
You sure?
What's the matter, Sonny?
Nothing.
It's wicked stressful, getting so close to the truth.
Remember what I said, Sam. Be ready.
Yes, sir.
Can you open the door, Dr. Urbica?
Of course.
(Elena.)
(Huh?)
(Something feels off with the Pioneers.)
(But we've come this far.)
(You convinced me that we're all here to solve the same problem, Olivia.)
(I'm not so sure anymore...)
Clock's ticking, Doctor.
Same here.
Come in, please.
Elena's hand never touched the scanner.
But the doors of the lab open to the true master of the house.
Hello, everyone.
I'm the Director of Rhine Lab's Originium Art Section, and the overseer of Test Site 359.
Welcome, all, to my laboratory.
So we're here at last...
Sam. Get her!