Arknights story · Dissociative Recombination
15-18 Never Doubted, Never Far
Amiya manages to draw on the knowledge of the Black Crown to delay Priestess. Communication with the Doctor is restored. The first priority is to overcome the crisis that Priestess and PRTS have brought.
1 scenes, 172 lines
1. Before Operation
172 linesKal'tsit has disappeared from your vision, before you even have a chance to process what has happened.
The only thing left on the deck is a jacket.
(Pained wail)
Next, Mon3tr's massive frame begins to contract, shrinking into a black, crystalline cocoon.
AMa-10 was one of my proud creations.
This was not the result I had hoped for.
She had a name.
Her name was Kal'tsit.
It had its own code name. I do not recognize any significance in the renaming.
Priestess walks towards the cocoon on the deck.
Step back, Doctor! I must protect Mon3tr!
Threads emerge from Amiya's staff, attempting to stall Priestess's steps.
But Originium continues to grow from the ground in strange angles, assimilating Amiya's Arts.
You can tell that Amiya is struggling.
Priestess, whose powers seem impossible to resist, and Kal'tsit's only legacy—
You want to save it?
......
I want to fix it too.
Not only does AMa-10 carry our hopes, it has also preserved a record that is very important to me.
You have yet to recover from the shock.
You do not even have the luxury of sorrow in the face of the threat before you.
What will Priestess do next? How should you protect Amiya?
Priestess apparently notices your thought process—
Why... are you afraid of me, Dr. Doctor?
She approaches you.
(Think... think of something...)
(Think of something!)
The Originium spreading under your feet has immobilized you and Amiya.
You see her up close for the first time.
Just what are you trying to do?!
...I'm trying to protect you.
Just like what I promised to do.
I promised to protect both you and Amiya.
Until the moment you breathe your last breath, Doctor. That's my responsibility.
But I will never stop hating you. I am in no position to educate or criticize Rosmontis. After all, I might not be able to hold myself back from taking revenge.
...You...
There was a similar scenery and a similar conversation. There were different emotions during different eras. All of which are working together to bridge that large gap in your memories.
'Priestess'.
......
No. This time, you remembered her first. You remembered Kal'tsit.
The physician whom you trusted so deeply still seems to be here.
You recall searching for the clues Kal'tsit left behind in Civilight Eterna...
You recall the words Kal'tsit left for you, when all the links are connected—
'I never forgot.'
(Whispering in unknown language) No matter where in this vast universe you came from, I bid you to witness the beacons we left behind, remnants of a civilization now gone to eternal rest.
(Whispering in unknown language) Perhaps it will be our blessing... and the final gift of hope.
You are certain that those eyes now see you, across the vast reaches of time.
(The formulas...)
(The gift...)
Amiya! The formulas!
Formulas?!
Dr. Kal'tsit mentioned that it reduces the loss of meta-information during transmission through special mediums...
Reverse it.
Obstruct the transmission of information through Originium!
What should I do?
Link to my mind!
There is no time to hesitate, Amiya acts.
Once again, you share your thoughts with Amiya. All the memories of your researches come back to you.
Relying on intuition and prior research, you begin to decipher the formulas, convert, then reverse...
You understand that it will not be completely effective. But you must pray that it works—
For Kal'tsit.
Remember the things in my mind, Amiya!
Shockwaves from Amiya's Arts repel the Originium that surrounds you.
This is...?
The Originium attempting to trap you again is unable to progress any further. Amiya's silhouette is reflected on the countless crystalline surfaces.
It's working?!
I'm trying to hold on—
But the Originium is pressing in even faster now...
I... I need to work harder! I can do it!
Amiya's eyes are resolute. You can't help but feel worried for her.
You do not understand the powers that you are toying with.
......
It seems my Arts aren't just stopping them, it's also detecting her status...
She's not as invincible as I thought—
Indeed, I've been roused too soon. The rate at which Originium has assimilated this planet falls below my expectations.
In addition, the reckless behavior of those two Terrans have prevented me from utilizing Originium as I planned...
But that does not mean you can change the inevitable with your clumsy usage of our technology.
Amiya!
Pink threads fly out from Amiya's staff, dancing in the space enclosed by Originium.
But you sense that Amiya is facing tremendous pressure.
And Priestess's figure has become completely obstructed by Originium...
You can see Priestess's eyes in every Originium fragment, every facet.
It is as though...
She is everywhere.
Theresa is teaching me how to cast these new Arts more efficiently, Doctor!
I think I've weakened Priestess's control over Originium. I should be able to delay her—
As Amiya's Arts run wild, you hear a reassuring voice in your head.
Doctor, Amiya, we're in the Abyss. The Originium interference was weakened for a moment.
It was...
Raidian has reestablished communications, but the situation is rough. I can barely use my Arts to help Raidian maintain the link.
Also, she can not detect Dr. Kal'tsit's biosignal.
Where are you? What's the situation?
We're on the deck of Rhodes Island!
We're confronting Priestess!
Get in touch with Warfarin.
Evacuate the ship immediately.
I will not let you down, Dr. Warfarin!
Once you're out of the ship, establish an isolation zone around the ship according to Kal'tsit's original plan. Don't let any of those things get out!
You are not coming with us, Dr. Warfarin?
My patients are still here. I'll lead their evacuation myself.
Don't worry about me.
(Why am I not hearing from you, Kal'tsit?)
—Bzzt—Abandon ship, repeat, abandon ship.
Back up all data—Bzzt—
I'm working on it! Give me some time!
More importantly, once PRTS is shut down, its core data must be downloaded—
Kal'tsit has set up a backdoor.
It will be the key to eliminating the threat, once and for all.
......
She's buying time for us.
Amiya and I will fight to the bitter end.
Rhodes Island...
Is in your hands.
I'm not detecting any more enemies.
Nor any new data transmission from the PRTS core.
It's too quiet.
Location of the core, Raidian?
Here you go.
Continue to push towards the core and attempt to deactivate it.
I'll take point! PRTS will definitely come up with new waves of enemies to meet us.
I'll take charge of analyzing the core.
What is it, Logos?
This is not my light...
A rhombus-shaped halo hangs in the darkness, swaying gently.
It is like a cold eye, gazing upon all present.
Alert...
Is this the 'Priestess' that Dr. Kal'tsit was talking about?
I don't think so.
I just detected a large amount of haphazard but familiar signals.
They come from Rhodes Island itself.
What... is this?
A massive machine emerges in the endless white noise—
All present are familiar with the components that make up its frame.
Closure has often showed off the parts that she used to modify Rhodes Island's modules. Some of them were made by the elite operators themselves.
PRTS has repurposed and weaponized Rhodes Island's facilities.
But where did they come from? They weren't supposed to be in the Abyss...
Originium.
Originium shards scatter irregularly across the unusual machine.
No longer do they simply consume; now, they are creating.
Are you telling me Originium can recreate the stuff that's on Rhodes Island?
Logos is reminded of the tower in the Assimilated Universe, and of 'her'.
It's not that simple.
PRTS does not have the capability to decode Originium data. Someone else is intervening.
Priestess.
Its data is connected to the core of PRTS in a way that I can't understand. These things are different from the Originium entities that we faced!
Looks like we're in for a fight.
Ready.
The rhombus-shaped eye glows even brighter.
Controlled by PRTS, the mimic machine charges up.
No target restrictions. Combat style analysis complete.
No power restrictions.
PRTS final cleanup protocol loaded—