Arknights story · Exodus from the Pale Sea
EP-8 I Come, I Conquer, I Define
Javier proves to Juana that he can lead the crew towards a different future. Forced into desperate straits in his fight against Anastasio, Thorns leaps into the gushing steam.
2 scenes, 353 lines
1. Before Operation
127 lines
Whoa, I really did it! I actually took them out! ...Need any help, Weedy?
No, I'm done here too—as long as you don't crash the ship again!
Wait, Elysium... where did all that blood come from?! ...Did those bone fragments hit you?
Blood?
Eh, it's fine. Happy to take one for a friend. If Thorns knows what he wants, then what can I do but support him?
Well, at least let me wrap you up a little... And what exactly does Thorns want, again? Did he say?
Ah... he can tell you himself when the time's right!
Ah, Isidro. So you wish to atone for your sins, to rescind the impact you've had on the innocent, to send them merrily back to their old lives.
Is this an expression of your resolve? A reflection of your conscience?
When they realize the end is near, many sinners turn to sobbing appeals for the friends whom they have implicated.
Alas, that does not mean they have truly repented.
How does one who knows naught of their own desire demonstrate the ability to suppress such desire, and to atone for the sins thereof?
No. It's you who need to suppress your own desire. You who needs to demonstrate that ability.
...Naturally. I have always said that desire cannot truly be killed. Even now, the desire to feed upon the lives of others lives on within me, and I must suppress it.
I will cut off my flesh with my own hand and dispose of it.
I will demonstrate that I can suppress my thirst for it, if only briefly.
Isidro can see the grotesque scars under Anastasio's collar, marks of flesh that has grown back after being cut away.
You said desire grows endlessly, dragging more and more people into the abyss.
How many have you judged and killed with that pretext? Why do you think that you, and you alone, can suppress your own desires?
Because death is liberation.
Before being corrupted by desire, you had lived an honest life, performed honest deeds.
As such, you have the right to be liberated from that corruption. By death.
But my life was a mistake from the beginning. My very existence a sin.
Were I to die, my pathetic existence would have held no meaning other than sacrilege.
Therefore, I must atone. I must atone for as long as I can, until I am consumed by desire.
Anastasio pressed the nails on his left hand against his own chest until they pierce the skin. Only pain can calm him down now.
You mentioned the meaning of your existence.
Are you really unworthy to die, Anastasio, or do you just want to live too much?
You keep talking about your desire to feed on others. But isn't your most fundamental desire to keep on living?
Be it self-harm or the judgment of others, aren't you just trying to make sure that your so-called sinful self can live on with peace of mind?
Anastasio's assault had slowed while listening to Isidro's confession; now, it intensifies again.
Each time Isidro parries an attack, strands of Corazonix float up from his arm from the impact.
If you shall not confess, you shall die.
Look out!
Chupamedias! Cojones! Finshit!
Don't you have an Iberia to save instead of coming after us?
All for a damned compass nobody cares about!
All I ever wanted was enough money so I wouldn't have to do this stuff! You think I like living like this?! I hate it as much as you do!
Why do you have to come after me?
You have no right to judge me... None!
Pascuala... Pascuala!
Stop! They're not fighting back anymore!
*Pant* *Pant* I...
Stop! We... need to...
We... need to... move...
Oh... Teach...
No! Teach! Hang in there...
If you pass out now, I'm leaving you out the next time I buy a round of saltfin garum for everyone!
Now... you're starting to talk like Elysium...
Really? Was it funny? Do you feel any better?
Let's find a place... to hide...
Teach...
Teach!!
Pascuala frantically digs through her pockets.
She has many pockets. Very little in them belongs to her; most was stolen.
Finally, she finds a few herbs. She chews them into small pieces, then puts them into Teach's mouth with a trembling hand.
The last thing Teach did before she passed out was protect Pascuala's head with her arms.
Pascuala presses her cheeks against Teach's arm, trying to feel her body temperature.
She has lost so many things, but right now, this warmth belongs to her.
This is the last time we'll cross blades, Juana.
Only one of us is leaving here alive.
I'm their leader. If you're angry at their betrayal, take it out on me!
And then what?
If I die, let my crewmates go.
I swear on my life that they won't have a new leader, that they'll live their new lives however they want.
Javier... you...
Juana responds with an even more ferocious flurry. The helm wheel brushes across Javier's back. He grits his teeth and swings his blade.
It finds Juana's forearm, cutting almost to the bone.
And if I kill you, I'll take your head and earn the bounty!
I'll share the money with everyone, so they'll all live better lives—
Haah—!
A violent jolt sends Javier stumbling backwards. Juana leaps, and the helm wheel falls upon him, sending blood and salt flying.
Javier swings his fists wildly at Juana, his weapon broken.
Hrrh... Hrrh...
Javier struggles to lift the heavy wheel off himself, but a punch from Juana sends him back into the pool of blood.
Hrgh...
His breathing is thick and heavy. He tries to lift himself up again, only to once again meet Juana's fist. His vision grows red with blood.
Ugh...
There is no strength left in him. He flails around in the blood pool, struggling in vain to stand up.
But the crushing weight of the helm wheel suffocates him, dislocating his arms and legs.
He can no longer even raise his head.
Hrrh...
You win... Juana... Kill me.
When I die... spare the crew... I'm the one who incited them.
Kill me... end this.
Javier gazes into Juana's eyes. He has never done so from so close, close enough to see his own reflection in them.
He suddenly feels like he still has something to say.
That day... when you passed by my window... I was trying to bake bread for the first time... it didn't work out... it was black all over...
I wasted precious food... no one would eat it... except you...
You passed by the window and picked it up... you put it in your mouth with a big smile...
You finished the whole plate...
And I was thinking at that time... that I'd give anything... to see that smile again...
Anything...
Javier closes his eyes and waits for the inevitable. The helm wheel will find his neck, and then everything will be over.
Congratulations, Javi.
*Cough*... *Cough*...
You won your duel with the previous leader.
Now stand up and get back to your crew.
......
Javier musters the last bit of strength he has, trying to stand.
But the floor is wet and sticky with blood. It is all he can do to crawl forward, little by little.
Then the sailors come, one after another, lifting their new leader from the blood, the one who fought with them to the bitter end.
The blood they shed in the deadly struggle mingles on the ground. They put their shoulders together.
The Corazonix on Isidro's right arm pulses. He swings his sword behind him and dodges towards the right.
Anastasio follows closely, his blade pointed at Isidro's throat.
Isidro knew that the boiling steam would gush out from a hole in the ship, stopping Anastasio's pursuit.
Isidro takes his stance again. He sees how Anastasio's sword-holding hand is scalded by the steam, yet it doesn't tremble in the slightest.
......
The burns do not faze Anastasio. He thirsts for pain.
Isidro thrusts into the steam. Anastasio's sword falls from his hand with a clang.
But his handcannon is now pressed upon Isidro's brow.
......
Anastasio is silent. He will not say another word until he has pulled the trigger.
Isidro is forced back to the edge of the ship. There is nothing behind him but empty air.
Once, you were just a pitiful child struggling to survive.
But now, you've become a killer who's drowned his hands in blood on your so-called path of atonement.
You're the only one who deserves death here.
Isidro leaps.
The sound of the handcannon's shot echoes through the hollow bones of the valley.
Isidro sees Anastasio put the handcannon back on his belt, then close his eyes as though he had just been born again.
Isidro turns his head—the bottomless pit is right below him. The heat gushing within the bones resonates with the Corazonix on his arm. He knows the steam is about to swallow him.
At the end, he looks towards the sky.
Across the towering bones, through the heat wave of the steam, he can see clouds and sky, just like the azure ocean and white waves from the stories.
The ocean he had wanted to see with his own eyes.
Isidro falls towards the steam vent.
2. After Operation
226 linesI found them! Over here! They're here!
Raise your shields! Form up! Don't let her get away!
...Tch.
All this, just for little ol' me? Besides, why do you think I'm trying to get away?
This is not the first time the Inquisition has tried to take Pascuala's life. But this is the last time she's running.
—Bring it on!
You wanna kill me? Go ahead and try!
But she is no warrior. It is all she can do to dodge the attacks of two warrior priests.
Soon, even that is becoming difficult.
Shield-wielding clerics block the way in front of her. Behind her is Teach, too weak to even stand.
*Cough*... What a shame...
What I wouldn't give to hear those guys squabbling again...
Guess that's too much to ask...
...It's just Anastasio over there now.
Stop, Elysium! You can't steer and use high-powered Arts at the same time!
Elysium!
I have to find him.
Sure, he's lived through way more lab explosions than he had any right to, but he's still flesh and blood. Even saltfins have to avoid those steam jets. If...
We have to find him!
At long last, you have ended his suffering and brought salvation to the souls of those he tried to drag into the abyss along with him.
Timidly, hesitantly, Anastasio presses the tip of the sword against his own throat.
...No. You are not yet worthy to die. Freeing one poor soul who failed to recognize his desires to the last is not enough to atone for your sins.
Reality lies before you, Anastasio. You have yet to eradicate the blight of desire plaguing this land. You are not worthy to...
......
Señor Alguacil! Are you alright?
...I am fine.
Regroup, slay the remaining bandits, and capture both ships.
I will take Juana myself.
Señor, you promised to pay the bandits...
They sought a reward from me like ravenous tuskbeasts, the saliva dribbling down their chins.
Did you truly think they could live honest lives in Aarón, after being paid for such work?
False kindness is but the worst cruelty.
...As you say, Señor Alguacil.
Anastasio can hear the soul-wrenching cries and wailing.
He knows he should board the ship, kill Juana, and end the struggle.
But he does not move.
He feels an emptiness, but does not know what is missing. It is as if Isidro had taken part of him with him.
He turns around to look at the vent Isidro had fallen into, but only the gushing steam answers him.
White steam bursts into red mist. Anastasio turns around to leave.
In the next instant, a flash of light cuts the steam open.
Isidro emerges from it. The Corazonix that had covered his entire body parts ways to reveal his golden eyes.
Anastasio sees something familiar in them. They are the eyes of one who thirsts to kill another, just like his own.
Many people have told me many things about Iberia and the ocean my entire life.
Some say the sea is Iberia's treasure, some its bane. Others say it is the final destination of the Iberians, their grave...
Some have told me it was people like me who destroyed Iberia. Others that its revival depends on people like me.
Some have advised me to stay away from the ocean and live a normal life. Others tell me I can never truly escape it, for it is my only home.
You've talked a lot about my desires.
I admit it. I want to go out to sea.
I want to see it for myself and conquer it.
Then, I will define what Iberia means to me.
As he says these words, Isidro's sword finds Anastasio's neck.
Anastasio feels both relief and fear at the blood flowing from it.
His deepest sins flow out of him along with his blood. He is pure again.
Yet he frantically tries to stop the bleeding.
He is pure again. Meaning he can live again. As long as he stops the bleeding...
But only the blood will atone him.
Anastasio realizes his own paradox.
He stops his motion and falls from the ship and into the gap between the bones.
I want to go out to sea. I WILL go out to sea.
No one can stop me.
Put down your weapons and let go of the wheel!
*Cough* Delay them, Leaf! Do whatever you have to! Buy as much time as you can!
Can you hang in there, Elysium?
*Cough* Yeah... for a little while...
Attack!
......
Thorns!
You're okay!
Dios mío, I can't believe I can see you again!
D-Don't ever do that again! Did you break your arms? Hmm? Legs? Strange. Everything seems fine. Is your head screwed on straight? Well, I guess it was never really screwed on straight to begin with...
...How on Terra are Weedy and I supposed to write our post-action reports?!
......
Whatever, just take this bottle of seasickness medicine.
More stuff? How much have you given me on this trip? Besides, isn't it a little late for this?
Oh, this one's different. It's extra-strong. It'll come in handy.
Throw the old one overboard.
If the little one fidgets, tie her up.
We need to learn how she stole the compass right from under our noses, and whether she had someone on the inside working with her.
......
Don't move! I'll bandage your wounds now.
......
Not one step forward!
You bastards! Your leader promised a reward! Why are you attacking us?
It is also the Alguacil who has sentenced you to death.
Vete a la mierda! Everything you people say is finshit!
Your leader is dead! Everyone saw him fall from the ship!
We can still carry out his will.
How?! Surrender, and we all go back to town in one piece! Don't, and we all die here!
......
We just want to live normal lives! Would you rather die than trust us?
Fine then, just try us!
The surviving pirates raise their swords with their leader's cry.
Not one warrior priest dares step forward.
Out of the way, jóvenes. I'll have the helm.
I said I would take you all out of this reef.
No, I'll do it.
You're hurt. Besides, I have the compass.
...You do?
My arm is the compass. I'll explain later. Basically, I can predict when and where each and every jet of steam is going to gush out.
We'll make it.
Excelente. Then we sail.
Where are you going, Señora Juana?
I can't very well let Javier and the others die here.
They've already raised their sails. Looks like they're leaving.
Everybody who can move, to your stations!
Is the Inquisition just going to watch?
Move your asses and help!
Follow La Conquista if you want to live!
We'll all make it out of Skeletal Reef in one piece!
Those on the salt ship breathe a sigh of relief when the last jet of steam can no longer reach them.
Some sit on the deck, some lie down, all exhausted.
Finally able to relax, Juana starts stomping around the deck.
Finding a spot that sounds hollow, she picks up a cutlass and pries open the planks, revealing a crate of rum.
Aha! Naturally, no one else would ever find MY rum.
We're not far from the sea, Javi!
It will be hard for the salt ship to turn back if it goes any further. Get some rest here. Isidro and I will draw a map of the reef's steam vents so you can sail your way back.
......
One moment.
What is it?
I don't wanna force anyone into a life they don't want... If anyone wants to go with you, I won't stop them.
Whoever wants to go out to sea with Señora Juana—this is your last chance!
If you do, get aboard La Conquista!
The rest are coming back to town with me!
Going out to sea? You're still thinking about that? With no supplies, and a skeleton crew?
What about food and water? Materials for repairs? Medicine? Weapons? This is loco!
Why even bother at this point? She's out of her mind... sailing to their deaths...
Are they really going out to sea? Now?
......
Er, Javier? I...
Like I said, it's your choice. I won't say anything.
I don't want to live a life I don't want. So I won't force you to either.
Choose. The sun's about to set.
The crowd grows quiet and parts into two groups. A few follow Juana towards the edge of the deck, but turn around quickly.
Hey, hermano!
Listen, I've got a little package in my drawer. There's a pocketwatch inside, some money, and a letter. Can you take the letter to Abi in town?
If you do, the money's all yours. Just make sure she gets the letter, okay? Tell her to wait, because I'll be back with a big pile of coin.
You said... Ami?
Abi! The redhead!
Red Ami... gotcha..
You're not coming? Don't you wanna see the sea?
I... I'm just too tired... My back's bad these days too. Can't even sleep in a hammock...
The bed we had back in town... it felt so good...
Guess this is it then.
......
Adios!
Juana leaps upon La Conquista, followed by the sailors who elected to go with her.
Javier takes another swig of rum.
...Adios.
The two ships ride with the wind, sailing across the Salt Flat at a leisurely pace.
Take care of Teach.
She's not so young anymore, and might need to lie down for a few days, but she should be fine.
You're not going with Señora Juana?
Nah, why the heck would I do that?
I'd rather have a good life, with a lot of money. Going out to sea sounds pretty rough if you ask me.
But you had their back this whole time. I was sure...
Because Juana promised me a lot of money. A LOT of money!
Which will help me meet new people, and find ways to make even more money!
...Wait!
Save your breath. I'm just a dirty little thief, after all.
You won't change my mind with a few words.
Thanks, Pelirrojito.
Pascuala pats the salt off herself and jumps on the rope net linking the two ships.
Hasta la vista, baby!
Maybe I'll be rich the next time we meet!
Elysium!
......
Elysium?
I was talking to Señora Juana and Thorns. They want to go out to sea, but the ship has taken a beating.
So I'm going to stay here a while and help with repairs. Getting to work with the frame of a genuine Golden Age battleship, plus a bionic transmission system designed by Señora Juana herself based on saltfin biology... It's fascinating.
Besides, I want to see if my research will be of use on this ship.
How about you report back to Rhodes Island first? I'll be back once I'm done here.
Will you be okay by yourself?
Well, we're short on food, water, and comfortable bedding. Plus the only way to bathe is to wipe yourself off with salt... But nothing a dedicated researcher can't handle.
A small price to pay for the chance to study such a fascinating subject. Besides, I have Leaf with me.
Alright, I hope you find what you're looking for here.
I'll get on with my blueprints, then. See you at Rhodes Island!
You too!
My goodness... Look at what they did to my ship...
Don't say that! Weedy worked so hard to patch it up! You'll make me cry...
...You really don't know when to stop talking, do you?
What's this now? Concerned for me?
We've had brushes with death together, ate dried saltfin together, even slept under the same blanket. The least I could do is bid you farewell before you go.
Buen camino, señora.
If we meet again, I'd love to hear all the stories of your adventures on the high seas.
Not a problem.
Walking around the deck, Elysium sees that Teach is finally beginning to regain consciousness.
Are you awake, Señora Teach?
I'm going back to town with Javier's group. I came to say goodbye.
Haha... thanks...
You know, I've come to admire you a lot, señora... You remind me of my own captain.
May safe winds take you out to sea, that you may find the battles against wind and wave that you seek.
Thanks, chaval...
Oh, one more thing. Peludita asked me to give you these herbs. Works best when boiled, she said, but can also be chewed and swallowed directly if water is in short supply.
Gracias...
Elysium continues to stride the deck, until he has no more goodbyes left to say.
He walks up to the rope net linking the two ships, and sees a figure standing at the bow of La Conquista.
His old buddy.
......
He waves at Isidro from a distance.
Adios, amigo.
The salt ship sails off slowly. On the deck, all is quiet, as the crew watches the people they know gradually became smaller.
A few rush up to the edge, as though they had changed their minds and wanted to jump across to the other ship, but are forced to stop as the distance between them grows.
They each watch the other go further and further away.
Look, Javier! The mast of La Conquista!
......
Ha... hahaha...
Atop the mast, Juana lifts the hems of her dress, as if stepping atop the setting sun.
The fading light adorns her dress with a golden glow.
Wind lifts white grains of salt from the ground like blowing snow.
All eyes are fixated upon her dance, both on this ship and the other.
They look up in silence. The ships sail in opposite directions, with only a few eyes glancing at the sea of white salt before them, and the sunset growing closer or further.
Away they go, until the figures on the other ship have become as small as grains of salt.