Section 26 Node 4 Super Recollection Quest (4/4)

There! We're almost to the last core!

Just so you're aware, we've been getting an endless string of identical warnings for a while now!

Capture Francis Drake at all costs. Capture Francis Drake at all costs.

How can such a machine make a mistake like this!?

It just goes to show that computer bugs can strike anywhere.

All right, that's as close as I can get!

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Let's go, Master!

I can sense even stronger energy coming from that core compared to the others.

Watch your ste Wait! Servant readings incoming!

You're...

Drake... Francis Drake...

This is the true face of Poseidon: a factory ship designed to renovate planetary environments.

His primary objective was the renovation and oversight of marine environments.

Though of course, as you can see, he's now nothing more than the Great Pit's guard.

That said, he still had some semblance of sanity remaining. Right up until Drake took one of his cores.

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How good to see you again, Master of Proper Human History.

...Chiron.

Oh, I'm surprised to see you're still alive, Jason. Well, no matter.

The fact remains, I am the last soldier tasked with defending the Sea of Atlantis.

Achilles really handed your horse ass to you, didn't he? From what I hear, not even dying was enough to stop him giving you a hard time.

Indeed, it was quite the embarrassing spectacle.

Regardless, this is still the last bastion between you and Olympus. Neither of us have the luxury of turning back now, even if we wished to.

And while we're on the subject...

Let us not forget that I killed Achilles, and you lot killed Odysseus.

So what, you're saying we're even now?

Hardly.

I'm saying that any chance we may have had for a peaceful reconciliation is long gone.

I am Chiron.

I swore to my comrade Odysseus that I would defend Atlantis with my life.

Now come at me, if you dare!

Well said! Then let's settle this once and for all!

...Good luck, you two!

Jason!?

I'm rooting for you! That'll have to be enough!

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...

Right. Sorry about that, Captain Jason! I understand the situation now! Don't worry, we can handle this!

Between Master Fujimaru and myself...

...we're ready and willing to bring this Atlantis campaign to an end!

Have at you!

Rebooting... Impossible. Target elimination... Impossible.

Logic unit... Inoperable. Weapon control systems... Ninety-nine percent destroyed.

Rebooting... Rebooting... Rebooting... SYSTEM ERROR Rebooting... ERROR. System purge... Impossible.

Backup systems... Inoperable. Francis Drake... Lost.

Emotion unit moral/ethical safeguards inoperable. Sending distress signal to Olympus... ERROR. Damage sustained to all units... Over ninety percent.

Unit connection system error. CPU overload-induced freezing... Six hundred eighteen seconds. Time to complete system failure... One hundred seconds.

...D... D-d... Damn you, Chaldea. Damn you, humans. Damn you, Proper Human History...!

Body...destroyed... Time to...total shutdown... No... Gods can't die... Gods can't die! Gods can't die!

That's one hell of a conniption. But it looks like it's almost over.

Searching memory unit...

So this is it...

But...how did I lose? No... How did you all win?

You should never have even had a chance... We outmatched you in every possible sense...

Not just in numbers. I'm certain we were far stronger than you...

True, I get where you're coming from.

I can't speak for the other times, but while Heracles might have taken the Cerberi on his own this time...

...the rest of the Servants never could have beaten them without ganging up and fighting them all at once.

Even Achilles wasn't at his best, thanks to his heel being shot.

I'd say Orion was the closest thing we had to a decent fighter.

That only makes the question more urgent. How did you do it?

That's the thing, Chiron. There is no clear answer to that question.

All we had going for us was our will to succeed.

We were determined to win no matter what, and we swore to keep on going even when things seemed hopeless.

You lot, on the other hand, had everything going for you.

It was almost like you'd been preparing for a wholly different enemy to show up at some point.

And above all, you had the peace of mind of knowing you were on the side of the gods.

From where I stand, I'd say that was your side's biggest failing.

Hmm. I'm not sure I buy that...but I suppose it is one way of thinking about the issue.

I see you're still just as much of a sore loser as ever!

Hurry! We just got a transmission from Nemo!

That was a great frontline operation. Well done, all of you.

But I'm afraid the celebrations will have to wait.

As I suspected, Poseidon's whole body is starting to break down now that his cores have all been destroyed.

So you need to get back to the Storm Border as soon as possible. I'll hold back and wait for you as long as I can.

U-understood! Let's hurry, Master!

You too, Jason!

Hm? Oh, no thanks. I'm good here. Besides, I'm exhausted.

...

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...Yeah, I'm sure. The next time you summon me, make sure it's nooothing like this whole mess!

Ugh, I'm seriously exhausted! I'm never doing this kind of thing ever again!

Go on, get out of here! Let me get some rest already!

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What?

...Can you let go of me now? Besides, you have a boat to catch.

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Will you stop it already? I've heard more than enough praise for one materialization. Go on, shoo.

JasoMaster?

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... ...

Ugh... I seriously thought I was done for.

...Heh.

I never would have guessed that you were even closer to death than I am.

How did you fool everyone?

Some stupid woman sent me a useless Mystic Code that's only good for making you look like something you're not.

...Well, I guess it did turn out to be more useful than I expected.

Is that what you used when you were devising your plan of attack?

Sure was. I bet it made me look like a real accomplished tactician to them, too.

They had no idea I was actually sweating bullets the entire time.

...I see. Fascinating.

I never knew that heroes who refuse to rely on the gods require such desperate measures to maintain their reputation.

Ugh, just shut up and die already, would you?

No... While death would certainly be a merciful release from this pain, I've already suffered enough defeat.

So I think it would be much more interesting for you to teach me, your ostensible teacher in Proper Human History, a few things before we disappear.

Ha. And here I thought you didn't have a sense of humor.

I still have trouble conceiving of a world devoid of gods.

Are humans truly able to survive in such a world?

Sure they are. You yourself taught them a whole bunch of things about living life without any gods.

...Not that I remembered more than half of them back when I was alive.

It seems our ways of life are just too different.

You can say that again.

That said...it looks like neither of us will die with any regrets. Don't you think?

Yes...you may...be right.

You know...now that you mention it...

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