Arise, Treading Through Flames

Do you feel joy?

Is it a good feeling?

You are so close to victory, so why are your expressions so heavy?

Victory is close at hand... is it not?

...Ugh.

Her Arts have been dispelled... We can talk again.

Don't be rash, Amiya. We're also...

Are you planning to banish me from this body?

Feel free.

Who the hell are you mocking?

O Lord of Fiends, why do you not speak?

Come and chase me out of her body. You——

You can do it, no?

......

What difference is there between judging her and judging me? Are these crimes not all my fault?

Lord of Fiends? Answer me.

You're not wrong, Kashchey.

If she was completely unwilling... you wouldn't have been able to do those things.

......

Those thoughts that belong to you... Regardless if they have been twisted, they all originated from... Talulah herself.

You!

Are you planning on harming Miss Talulah's body?!

What are you doing?! Put that sword down!

Have you ever seen someone cut his throat in front of you, 'sister'?

Not even a Draco's body can withstand the sharpness of this sword.

I cannot do what she does not wish to do.

So, can Talulah continue to live?

Don't even think about it!

The despair within her heart, the unescapable shame. Are they strong enough, powerful enough that she would want to——

——

End it all?

Kashchey! Everything you've done to Talulah is unforgivable!

Regardless if you're just her shadow, an obstacle to her awakening, or another side of her... No matter how many wrongs Talulah has committed, you're definitely not in the right.

I am merely 'educating' her.

My failure stems from my enduring persistence. When you encounter a person without persistence, you will come to realize how much is contained within the word 'suffering'.

Just like how those Ursus warriors unfortunate enough to become her sacrifices are relegated to nothing more than the solid road beneath her feet.

These poor, pitiful Infected that should have exerted their value... They're all wasted now.

Even I myself am just part of the road she steps upon. If I had succeeded in killing you, 'sister'... It'd be a lot simpler.

You could say that we are the Black Snake. You could also say that I am Talulah.

Ch'en Hui-chieh, oh Hui-chieh. Talulah and I are just one of the many types of father-daughter pairs.

Perhaps Wei Yenwu is similar to me.

You have the nerve to say that?! After sacrificing your own 'daughter'? He's nothing like you!

N-No... You mustn't——

Too late, Lord of Fiends. I will not let you reveal my secrets.

Kashchey, you were planning to kill Miss Ch'en so that you could kill off Talulah once and for all!

And now, you can't do it anymore. We've aroused her memories and caused them to echo within her mind for long enough. She can no longer bear it.

Miss Talulah! Please remember... Please recall who you are!

No matter what kind of sacrifice it may be, if it was you... You would sacrifice yourself first for the sake of others, right?

Think about FrostNova, about Faust... Think about all the warriors who believe in you. Think about yourself!

Are you really just going to let us take your life like this...! You could never accept your death while having your body manipulated like this!

Even if you were to feel remorse, even if you felt sinful, you should do so as yourself... And not as the carrier of a curse, the victim of an ancient evil!

Even if you wanted to die, you should die as Talulah! Die as the Talulah who wanted to change the snowfields, the Talulah who wished to change the fate of the Infected!

Miss Talulah, I know!

I know that you weren't seeking achievement nor glory when you began fighting for the Infected... It's fine even if you failed! You did so because you believed it was the correct thing to do!

That's why, no matter what kind of people we are facing, no matter what world we face... We will always strive to move forward, never stopping until we can finally rest!

Aren't you that kind of person... Aren't the people you know all like that?

Talulah, are you content being a puppet of this snake?

Will you let it end like this? Is this really the Talulah I know?

Are you really worthy of being called the leader of the Infected?!

Hng!

Could it be... Miss Talulah...!

Enough. You can stop here. I'm no longer you, Kashchey. I'm different from you... I'm not another Black Snake.

I might be a Kashchey... But I'm definitely not another Black Snake.

Your curse must end here today.

...My hatred has killed far too many. Don't even think about using hatred to incite me any further.

Heh. Kashchey, that hatred and history you've carried with you for countless years... It will all end with me.

You may be the seed, the vines, the towering tree... It doesn't matter, Kashchey.

I am fire.

'I taught you all of this?' No, Kashchey. This world, that snowfield, those people chasing after the sunlight... You will never understand the things they taught me.

The people who could direct my power are already there. Even if you made me lose them... You can never control my emotions ever again.

My fire will burn through you and me alike.

You... you! You dare oppose me? How could you——

...Why would I ever let you escape from my fangs?

Are you angry not because your plans have failed, but because you're not able to control her anymore?

Control? She is me... I am her!

Of course, Kashchey... How could a daughter of Draco be as dark as a worm like you!

M-Miss Ch'en? You mustn't let the Phidian operators hear that!

Ah. I once had a snake boss who was incapable of telling a lie... never mind.

Kashchey, there's only one reason you failed. You're not worthy.

You're not worthy of possessing my sister's body. You're not worthy of starting a war. In fact, you're not worthy of the experience you've talked so much about.

So get the hell out of Talulah's body right now!

Before I leave this body... Do you really think that you can stop the core city?

——No!

As long as I end this life here, everything will continue moving forward. How can you possibly stop Ursus——

...Could it be she's not your...

You're still tracing my emotions? Mongrel Lord of Fiends... Even if it's the truth, you don't have the right to speak it!

...Hah.

Hmph. You're not wrong, however.

Fine.

There will always be another Chernobog and another conscious puppet. There will definitely be another Talulah.

I admit defeat. Go ahead and celebrate your victory to your hearts' content.

It doesn't matter... Nothing matters anymore. Remember this, Talulah.

'I will be there even at the edge of the world.'

...Is it over?

......

Don't move!

We cannot be sure if this... if this is just another trick of that old snake. I don't know if Talulah really managed to purge him from her mind, or if she's really feeling regret over her actions...

Besides, it's not over... We still have to stop this city.

You better gimme that thing if you wanna stop this city, bunny!

What...? W? Where did you come from...?

The key! Hurry, before it's too late! We're all dead meat if this giant hunk of scrap doesn't stop soon!

I... I cannot trust an enemy. An enemy who's killed my Rhodes Island friends.

How can I make you trust me then? How about this, just read my heart. Normally I'd blow the hell out of anyone who tried, but I'm willing to make an exception here.

Besides... It doesn't really matter if you don't trust me, rabbit. I don't trust you either. But I don't think Theresa's successor would make a stupid mistake at a time like this.

!

Just hand it over. You can kill me after the city stops moving. Not that I'd just stand there and let you do it, but I'll give you a shot.

That's a special, limited-time offer! I don't go around giving out kill-me passes to just anyone!

I can't trust a murderer either.

Then you probably don't trust yourself, hmm?

True enough.

W, tell me one more thing I can trust.

Ah? You, that...

Oh.

Amiya, for this land to... fall into peaceful slumber.

......

Bunny, no... Amiya!

Let me do something for the Speaker, just this once! Let me help the ones who aren't dead yet!

Just this once!

I know. W, I'll trust you just this once.

...So that this land may fall into peaceful slumber.

It's up to you, W.

...Thank you.

Old man, I know your last wish. I'll stop this goddamned city right now...

......? Where do you input commands?

Wait, this key... what? This key is...

(Ursine) Warning. Insufficient Clearance. This key can only be used for startup.

What the hell does it mean 'insufficient clearance'?

...What did you say?

Listen to me. This thing might be a key... but... it's useless. It doesn't have clearance. If even the mayor doesn't have clearance, who the hell can stop this machine?!

So, from start to end, everyone was... deceived?

But the core of a nomadic city must have an emergency brake key! Unless... unless the key has already been burnt away...

...No. That can't be right. Misha...?!

No. No...

Not so.

The key is with me.

Wha?!

Dragon lady...

Oh. Huh, so are you gonna give it to me or not?

If you really have to see that evil scheme of yours through——

Catch.

Eyy, got it.

The real you... you're pretty straightforward. I might even like you.

Glib-tongued Sarkaz...

Just press it onto the control panel, you'll know what to do.

I know the command.

Hold on tight, Amiya. I don't know how hard this brake goes!

Let's see, what was it... Umm, (Ursine) To feed the people?

Yeah... that's it.

Where did you get that key from?

Heh... It was hanging on the wall in the brake control room. Anyone can use it as long as you know the command. It's just nobody thought of it...

...No one thought of such a ludicrous development and cruel deception.

To divert the guerrillas, to fool the L.G.D.... These keys were just a lie to trick them.

I made use of their unfamiliarity with the larger nomadic cities. I exploited the trust Skullshatterer and Patriot had for me, even though... that was the last time they trusted me.

(Ursine) To feed the people.

That wasn't as rough as I thought it would be. Good thing we stopped it in time.

Phew.

...Dragon lady, I can't believe you didn't destroy the key.

......

Hey, you playing dumb?

——She didn't want to.

Kashchey must have tried every possibility at tempting her into destroying that key, but he couldn't.

Because... There must have been that little bit of conscience that he couldn't shake or erase with his Arts.

Or maybe she never considered it. Even if she thought to destroy everyone in a fit of rage, I don't think she would've ever gone through with it.

At the very least, she wanted the Infected to be able to go on living.

...Stand up.

......

Come on. You've disappointed everyone enough already. Stand up, Talulah!

Stand up, Talulah!

What is this? Didn't you say it yourself? That you understood best whether you were being genuine or not, whether your words were coming from your heart or if you were just borrowing someone else's mouth.

You said this corrupt world was your enemy. Do you understand what that means, Talulah?

No, you should know better than me!

For the Infected——No, to break down the high wall that separates the Infected and non-Infected, to put an end to the ugly murders and wicked slavery.

You who have fought alongside the Infected for so many years would have to know better than me!

You know we can't win against the world.

You don't have a ghost of a chance... They will oppress you, slander you, drown you, abandon you, deceive you!

As long as you dare to stand out, they will drag you into the filthiest places and use the foulest methods to deal with you!

You will be knocked down if you make even a single mistake, yet your enemies are endless. You choose to move forward, to oppose them, to devote your life, but your enemies are immortal.

There's only one possible ending. You will be knocked down, you will be destroyed, even if you took just a single misstep!

A single misstep would become an excuse for them to hurt you... a perfectly justifiable one.

They would pounce onto you like beasts on the scent of blood, tearing at your flesh, ripping at your tongue and eyes as they howl insults at your dignity!

But no one is perfect. You will be knocked down. You will fall to the ground.

...Even so, you cannot. You understand better than me that you cannot fall, Talulah...!

Even if they are all staring at you! Even if they are all aiming at your weak points, even if they are planning to tear away your facade.

Even if they want to drag you out to laugh and mock at, to insult you and call you an overambitious, immature fool...

You cannot fall.

...We've grown completely unrecognizable to each other in the time we spent living in different cities. The past will not return.

We both have our own undertakings.

Right now, mine is still incomplete... so is yours.

The road is still long.

Because we still have things we need to do. It will be so, until the day we are done.

You should understand better than me.

Talulah, your road is just as long.

Wow, that was cool.

(Glares at W.)

Hm? Eh? Fine...

......

When did your claws get so sharp?

Alina should've been here to see this.

You're finally willing to talk.

——Before that, I need to arrest you.

Who will be judging me?

For now, no one. Ursus and Lungmen... do not have the authority to judge you.

I am not yet so pitiful that I would need my sister's protection as I struggle in shame.

That's not it, Talulah. Right now, there isn't a place in the world just and capable enough to judge you.

There isn't even a place capable of judging the Infected.

Is that your ideal?

...To build a place just good enough to judge everyone, no matter who they are, where they are from or whether or not they are Infected?

That's not an ideal. That's my job.

......

Long time no see.

Long time no see, sister.

Looks like I saved you.

I won't just give up without a fight. Even now.

I don't dare to die yet.

You can... make amends.

Nothing I can do will make up for it. In the course of a single winter, I've destroyed countless people. I am in no position to make amends.

It's just... I can't die yet.

I can't do that. It's all over if I die. If I die, that means they've won. That means the names that only I remember will die along with me.

You will continue living?

——

Perhaps I don't deserve to. However, I don't deserve to die here either. I don't deserve such an easy death.

——The world will never again be as it was. What's happened has happened. What hasn't happened yet will continue to happen. The falling rain will wet the earth, but the dead will not return.

...I will continue living. I will live until I have the right to die for them.

......

When we were young, we once played a game. Face, 3 points. Chest, 5 points. Waist, 2 points.

I don't know why Wei Yenwu taught us that game. I think it's useful, though.

It's because I was bullied by the other kids in school.

You were protecting Beatrix. So you got beaten up badly.

You weren't the one who did it.

I can subdue you in two moves now.

...Just try it. You've become very competitive.

Put the sword down. You look silly holding it.

Let's all do that, then. By the way, are you using that Chi Xiao to fulfill your dream of being an adventurer?

'Good food, great wine and amazing scenery; Pretty women, good manners and great company.' Isn't it like those weird novels you used to read?

Hey! Shut up...!

Don't tell me you're still into those?

...I'll beat you so bad you won't be able to spill anymore.

Hmph.

Anyway, thank you.

Thank her, not me.

You should be thanking that brave little rabbit and all the Infected who fought alongside her.

She was the one who braved your fire and flames to get all the way here. Amiya is the one who really saved you.

Before that... Let's settle things between us.

There are barely any left.

No, Talulah. The future stretches far ahead.

Ah, they...

It's okay, little bunny. Everybody has a past that needs to be shattered.

Miss W, I have to ask... Why do you know the brake command for the core city?

A girl has her ways, yeah? I'm gonna pass on answering that one. You'd probably kill me.

But since you trusted me just now, maybe I can make an exception... If you promise not to get mad.

You're talking about Misha.

No, it was Alex. Skullshatterer. Yeah.

His father told him about it before he died. He wasn't a dumb man. He knew pretty much what Reunion was planning to do.

But he couldn't do anything about it. Just like how he couldn't stop Ursus from killing his friends, and how he couldn't keep his kids alive. Hah.

At the time, none of us got it. I really only figured it out just now... That liar Kashchey really had us all fooled.

Me, old man Patriot, FrostNova, Faust, Mephisto, Skullshatterer, Crownslayer, all of us were fooled.

Misha didn't need to die. I got her killed back there to keep Chernobog in place. Then when I couldn't stop Chernobog, I really regretted that one.

I thought my dumb bullshit was gonna get everyone killed. Thankfully that dragon lady still had a little bit of conscience left in her.

I screwed up. Right, I won't ask for forgiveness or anything. At the time, I didn't think I was doing anything wrong. If everyone used common sense, the world would've died a long time ago.

But Misha is gone. We will never be able to make up for that mistake.

W, none of this will ever happen again. I won't let you.

Either you promise me, or we'll imprison you at Rhodes Island.

Even if it was to save a lot of people... a single life is still a life.

Well...

Oh, looks like Talulah's all out of power. Those Arts she was forcing out of her can't be good for her body.

Oh. She fell down.

Hey, rabbit.

Hm?

I don't know if I've ever said this before. Hmm, how should I put it?

Little bunny, you're a lot like her.

...What?

Bye, Amiya.

Hehe, I really really hope that you never have to meet anybody like me ever again. So let's make this the last time we meet, bunnygirl.

Ah, W!

It stopped... Chernobog's stopped moving!

Well done! Well done, Rhodes Island!

The enemies are retreating...? They're routing!

Should we chase after 'em?

It's a mass rout——

!

They feel it. They've been abandoned!

We've won!

We... we did it!

Hahahahaha! The Infected did it together! Just like that! This is all thanks to you! Rhodes Island!

Ah!

Hooray! Little kitten! You're amazing! We did it!

Hooray! The feline of Rhodes Island!

Ah... Haha... Haha...

We arrived just in time. Amiya's done it. But...

Oh, Doctor!

It's really good to... see you...

Shit!