At the bottom of the Soul Tree’s canyon, The Century Corps are preparing for the final assault on Rahihi’s fortress
Centus: Alright, the plan is that the main force of us are going to directly strike at Rahihi, while the unit reserve is going to be fighting enemies throughout the fortress, putting a dent in the forces of Rahihi.
Olivia: That sounds good to me
Lilac: I approve of that tactic
Centus: Unit reserve?
Iehn: Acknowledged commander
Tranjoh: You can count on it
Kutok: We need to scale the canyon to strike back at Rahihi
Uruo: It’s going to be anything but easy
Nest: We’re fucking doing this
Boone: Damn right
Mygin: We’re going to go down in history, one way or the other
Olivia: Uruo, would you like to lead the charge?
Uruo: I would love that opportunity
Begin Mission: Fight For The Future
Select your party (Hadane and Oiyrr are not available for this mission), unit reserve is not available for this mission
Begin approaching Rahihi’s fortress
When the Party is 25% up the way to Rahihi’s fortress, some members of the Sinners Sextant fly down to join Rahihi’s goons on the incline up to the fortress
Yoni: We might have forgotten to account for the other force we’ll have to fight
Centus: You’re saying we’re likely going to fight against Ayev?
Yoni: It’s not just likely, it’s certain
Continue up towards Rahihi’s fortress
When the party is 50% up the way to Rahihi’s fortress
Ba-Bayost: This reminds me of the time me and some adventurers took on the bridge of demons
Mygin: The bridge of demons?
Ba-Bayost: A bridge with a bunch of demons on it
Uruo: If you don’t consider Rahihi’s loyalists humans, this could be the Incline of Demons
Resume up towards Rahihi’s fortress
When the party is 75% up the way to Rahihi’s fortress
Oseci: A lot of people are going to finally feel free after today
Uruo: I get it, you’re finally going to get what you’ve been seeking
Boone: We’re about to make this valley a safer place for everyone, it’s something you want regardless of a desire to get revenge
Oseci: Damn straight
Resume up towards Rahihi’s fortress
When the party finally gets there, they need to break through the defense at the entrance
Aiden: I think I have an idea, similar to the one from before
Aiden sends out various reticles on parts of the fortress’s walls and defenses
Nest: Let’s smash through this roadblock
Breach the walls of the fortress
When the fortress walls are 25% breached
Aiden: Alright, I’ll refresh the set
Aiden sends out another set of reticles to continue destroying the fortress walls
Continue to breach the walls of the fortress
When the fortress walls are 50% breached
Uruo: You would think a warlord like my “father” would have better defenses, especially against something like Aiden’s reticles
Aiden: Hey, you just play the game and if you win, you win
Lilac: Let’s just continue to break through
Aiden resets the reticles on the fortress walls
Cotninue to breach the walls of the fortress
When the fortress walls are 75% breached, a large dragon flies down near the party
Hoard: I said we needed a dragon
Nest: Oh, we should step aside
The entire Century Corps moves away from the wall to watch the Dragon work
Aiden: I’ll let it take the reigns
Aiden sends out a flurry of fire reticles and the walls and defenses of the fortress as the Dragon unleashes a wave of it’s fire on the walls, destroying a large section of the walls, allowing the party easy access into the fortress
Hoard: Thanks Dragon friend
The dragon flies up into the sky
Centus: Alright, the main force will advance to the Throne Room, unit reserve, I need our backs covered
Iehn: You can count on us Centus
Larkin: Make sure you come back when we win
Iehn: Don’t worry Larkin, we got this
Tranjoh: Alright guys, let’s make our own mark
Iehn and Tranjoh lead the unit reserve against the Sinners Sextant and Rahihi’s goons that begin pouring out of the walls
Uruo: I know this fortress and the way to the throne room, follow me
Kutok: Stealing my shtick huh
Uruo: Oh you
Kutok: Nah I’m fine with it, lead us on the way
Approach the Throne Room
When the party is 10% of the way to the Throne Room
Kutok: I have to say, I thought this place would be more extravagant
Uruo: It was, I wonder what happened to this place
Kutok: Maybe your father decided extravagance was unimportant
Uruo: That doesn’t sound like him
Centus: I think that Witch person might have something to do with it
Uruo: What do you mean by that?
Centus: I’m going to cut open that mask
Continue approaching the Throne Room
When the party is 20% of the way to the Throne Room
Mygin: What are we going to do with this place after we win
Hoard: Uh, we’re gonna destroy it, the symbol of Rahihi’s power will be destroyed along with his rule
Mygin: Hmm, I can get behind that
Uruo: I’m surprised you are on board with the destruction of this place, aren’t you the history guy, wouldn’t you want to preserve this place?
Mygin: History is one thing, and that thing is written by the victors, we don’t need this object staining the valley anymore, when we destroy it, we can pave the way for the future that every innocent soul in the valley wants to make for themselves. We can put this in the past and only remember Rahihi in texts about the monster he was, the villain of the story.
Uruo: That is incredibly profound Mygin
Mygin: I may be knowledgeable about the past, but the future is the important part, it’s how the tapestry of history keeps expanding
Continue the approach to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 30% of the way to the Throne Room
Lilac: Rahihi must have expected an assault like this, or why else are there so many minions in this hallway
Yoni: I don’t think this was him
Centus: Ah, you think it was Ayev
Yoni: I don’t doubt it
Nest: I wonder why Ayev worked for a lowly warlord in the first place, aside from the promise of “hunting the Century Corps”
Yoni: No Nest, that’s exactly why they did it
Nest: Ayev really would work at a place that’s below their station to get back at us
Yoni: I believe that’s precisely it. They didn’t turn around after their old squad asked them to return, so I don’t think they can be swayed off of this course
Boone: I wonder if Ayev would stop if they found another reason to live?
Nest: Do you believe you would be as consumed with revenge as Ayev if you didn’t figure out, your purpose after your family
Boone: I think I was more consumed
Resume approaching Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 40% of the way to Rahihi’s Throne Room
Oseci: I wonder how large the ego of someone who presumes to rule over an entire valley must be, it must be a ravenous beast that begs to be fed every single day
Centus: I’ve worked for countless tyrants and warlords, they have massive, insatiable egos that are fed by conquest and celebration.
Olivia: Optica’s real full of herself and ruled the entire White World as her personal dominion. I think that control probably got to her head
Hoard: Another reason this place must be destroyed, preferably by my draconic friends and family
Resume approaching Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 50% of the way there, two familiar figures and a large group of Sinners Sextant block their path
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Ayev: This is as far as you’ll go, I’m done letting you just hand failure and failure to me
Centus: Come to stand your ground during the final battle
Ayev: We’re not going to let you near the Warlord, that was our order and we won’t fail it
Kiko: Before you try any of that “join the right side” nonsense, the answer is no, we will not falter
Yoni: I don’t think everyone in your ranks shares that sentiment
Kiko: Shut up, we’re going to bury you in the hallways
Larkin: Someone really took the end of Department Lame really poorly
Kiko: They were my friends and colleagues for years you fucking asshole
Ayev: Your pursuit of justice, it’s all a mirage, all a facade, just so you can hurt people.
Centus: I took up this new life to help people, instead of hurt, you remember that Ayev
Ayev: No, you’re a traitor to our kind
Uruo: Are you going to stand aside, or are we going to need to break through
Ayev: You already know the answer
Fight against Ayev and Kiko
When Ayev and Kiko are at 90%
Yoni: It is honestly impressive how you still have these people living like this
Nest: Me personally, if I was a member of Sinners Sextant I would have also defected
Ayev: They defected because of the honeyed lies you put in their ears, those traitors will be buried in the rubble along with the rest of your guild
Yoni: Maybe fighting for a future where they are respected was something that was important to them, but that’s absolutely ridiculous to think about. Afterall, getting revenge for your obviously evil bosses being thwarted is a totally normal thing to want.
Ayev: Ghice and Keighan are both gone an-
Yoni: And you’re a massive piece of shit, and they were too, probably
Centus: Can attest to that
Ayev: The ones you killed are the ones whose legacies I always try to aspire to.
Resume against Ayev and Kiko
When Ayev and Kiko are at 80%
Oseci: I used to be part of a band of warriors as well. That area you set up your base used to be home to us, The Wardens. When The Wardens were destroyed, I kept my purpose and fought for justice, as a wayward mercenary group only trying to avenge failed plots and legacies, I don’t see what purpose you have
Kiko: Our purpose is to destroy the Century Corps and everything they stand for, I thought we made that clear. The world we seek is one where the Century Corps are no longer in it.
Larkin: I shouldn’t be surprised that a wackjob who worked for wackjob incorporated is looking for revenge because we disbanded the wackjob club
Kiko: You don’t think you’d want revenge if we destroyed the wackjob guild? That’s your life and your purpose.
Larkin: If that were to happen, I would form a new guild with a new purpose, and continue to fight against evil. Avenging my old life would be part of the defense against evil.
Kiko: Again, why do you insist on defending against evil so much
Larkin: It’s something called helping the innocent
Kiko: Our organization was going to help the innocent by finding the Adamite Key and revealing the secrets of immortality
Larkin: You were going to have a select few or just make yourselves immortal, the whole purpose of defending the innocent is defending ordinary people who can’t punch above their weight, but that seems to be a concept lost on you.
Kiko: Only those worthy of Department X should have been privy to it’s triumph, that’s just the way it is
Larkin: Then I’m afraid empathy is also a concept lost on you
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they are both at 70%
Ayev: I wonder why some of you even fight with the guild, especially you Centus
Centus: You already know why, you already know that I’ve given up my life supporting tyrants and just being the wayward butcher. I am now mortal and I want whatever time I have left in this world to mean something. And I mean, really mean something. I don’t want to fight petty wars for petty nations and leaders, I want to make a difference and make up for my past mistakes. The life of the immortal soldier is one that I’m putting in the past. I am of the mortals now, I'm going to make the most of what I have left.
Ayev: You really think you can leave all of that in the past? The immortal Centus, the butcher of armies and warlord. History’s first murderer, it’s most reviled serial killer. What gives you the right to just put all that behind you, to act like you're better than me, better than us. Do you really have the hubris to believe that just because you fight with a new army, for a new ruler, that you’ve changed, you’re more of a good person. The truth is you will never be a saint, you are always the barbarian, the first of us and the worst of us.
Centus: Part of that may be true, when you’re immortal and have fought for so long, that in the end every life you’ve taken along the way means nothing to me, that I’ll never be saintly. The goal isn’t to erase all the pain I’ve caused, it’s to make it up for it with the time I have. I will never be clean, but I can make the world a better place
Ayev: You disgust me, you traitor
Centus: The imprisonment of that group of people under that city was wrong yes, but we put the past behind us and moved towards the future, you’re fighting a war that ended years ago
Ayev: I’m going to finish it, it’s never over as long as I breathe.
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they are both at 60%
Kiko: By fighting for “what you believe in”, do you truly believe you can make the world a better place, do you really think that you can make wrongs into rights, do you really think that you can improve things for the future, for those who come after you?
Larkin: That’s a stupid question
Lilac: We wouldn’t be doing it if it wasn’t possible, the Century Corps is a testament to fighting for the future, against those who would jeopardize it
Olivia: You only stand before us now because we’ve fought for the future, we’ll do so again, time after time.
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they are both at 50%
Ayev: I call Centus a traitor plenty, but Yoni, you are also a traitor
Yoni: You believe me to be a traitor for not siding with my sister?
Ayev: I thought the purpose of family was to stand with them
Yoni: I stood with my real family, Lorenza was a psychopath and you knew that. You reflected on once again being an accessory to genocide.
Ayev: I’m just saying, you still betrayed your family
Yoni: I remember you actually deserting your post to Lorenza after the Chalice’s Destruction, where’s your loyalty Ayev, why didn’t you stand for your employer
Ayev: She wasn’t going to give us anything from behind her cell
Yoni: Ah I see, you’re a coward, afraid to make a real stand, you attach yourself to greater powers to hide yourself and act as grunt work, when it’s time for you to actually step up, you just stand aside and run away, to try and live another day and get revenge
Ayev: …
Yoni: You let everyone else tell you to leave, you let everyone else put themselves on the line for you, when are you going to step up? Oh right, you never will. Your preaching of loyalty, it’s all for nought as you simply are too afraid of not living to see another day.
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they both are at 40%
Kiko: Why do you try to decry our desire for revenge as unjust? You sought revenge for Sien’s death, as a guild, that’s what eventually led to this
Acantha separates herself from Lilac to appear as a phantasmal figure
Acantha: That may have been true, but in the end, Zenial sacrificed himself as a redeeming act, to stop me. Despite the fact he could have easily held onto resentment, he could have made it impossible for the heroes to succeed. He instead chose to leave it behind and help save the city, and to defeat me. You know nothing of putting that aside
Kiko: AND WHY WOULD I?
Larkin: When Acantha revealed herself as part of Lilac, we could have struck out against them, decrying them as evil or pawns of a greater threat. We instead chose to work together
Lilac: Towards the future, that’s our goal. It’s something you can’t ever fathom
Kiko: THE FUTURE I FOUGHT FOR IS RUINED.
Larkin: Then why don’t you fight for a new future?
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they both are at 30%
Kiko: Ayev, I don’t think we should continue fighting
Ayev: No Kiko, we’re going to push on until we’re finished, we have a job to do
Kiko: Fair, we’re getting our revenge today
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they both are at 20%
Boone: Being an angel of vengeance, isn’t the life I thought it would be
Nest: Would you say that you’re ready to embrace a new purpose
Boone: One day I long for the simple pleasures of having a family again, one I can care for. That’s all irrelevant unless we move forward here
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they both are at 10%
Ayev: I’m not ready for this to be the end, I need to fight to see another day, I need to be victorious
Kiko: It won’t be the end, I have faith our mission is just, the Century Corps will eventually fail and fall
Lilac: I believe you’re both wrong and our collective wills are stronger than your own wills, you both are weak of mind and of spirit
Resume against Kiko and Ayev
When they are defeated, Kiko and Ayev collapse onto the ground
Aiden: Ah, I’ve got them in my sights
Olivia: Me too
Ayev: Do what you want, I’m not moving an inch
Lilac: Like we said, you don’t have the will to stand your ground
Olivia launches a powerful light attack at Kiko and Ayev which launches them through the walls into the canyon bellow
Larkin: I wonder if they survived that?
Centus: It doesn’t matter, keep moving
Resume to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 60% to Rahihi’s Throne Room
Mygin: The dark shadow that hangs over the valley is about to be exorcized
Uruo: Father, we’ve defeated your goons, we’re not stopping until you’re next
Resume to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 70% to Rahihi’s Throne Room
Aiden: What is this guild’s purpose after defeating Rahihi, and I don’t mean the guys that came here, I mean the ones that were here
Lilac: We keep fighting for the future, and I think we can combine our forces permanently
Acantha: Do you think I can get my old grandmaster position back?
Centus: Unlikely
Resume to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 80% to Rahihi’s Throne Room
Kutok: The Century Corps is probably the best possible group of people aligned to fight for the future. We all joined this guild for some reason, whether we had no other choice or on our own will, we stand together and came together to know each other more, we made friendships and some of us made families. I joined because I had a debt of my own to pay off, like Centus did, but I stayed because of what I now believe in
Centus: I see, affirming what you believe in right before the final confrontation against the warlord
Kutok: Heh, you know what they say, speak now or forever hold your peace. I just love everyone here.
Resume to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party is 90% to Rahihi’s Throne Room, they can feel a dark shadow from the outside as various hollows appear in their path
Nest: Looks like The Buzzard has appeared here
Lilac: Well we need to depose Rahihi faster so we can get to him
Uruo: His days are numbered
Resume to Rahihi’s Throne Room
When the party has reached Rahihi’s Throne Room, Uruo uses one of his Ice Emblems to freeze the door and then shatter it. The party comes face to face with Rahihi, sitting on his throne, with Vakakoya by his side
Vakakoya: Brother
Uruo: We are not brothers
Rahihi: So son, you and your costumed friends playing as adventurers have come to dethrone me, shake my grasp on this valley, the one I rule as it’s true king.
Uruo: Just because you presume power from a specter, doesn’t mean you are a king. You’re a violent power obsessed maniac pretending to be a king. Me, I’m not pretending to be a hero.
Vakakoya: You are pretending you aren’t one of us, aren’t part of this lineage
Uruo: This lineage of yours, is a legacy that should be broken.
Mygin: History won’t remember you as the decadent prince you think you are
Rahihi: Your friends think you can depose me, like I’ll let that happen
Rahihi charges his scepter, preparing for battle
Rahihi: You will see why I rule as king, this power is righteous, like I am.
Uruo: Just because you decree something doesn’t make it true
Oseci: We’re going to take you down, and that’s a decree we will make true
Fight against Rahihi and Vakakoya
When they both are at 90%
Vakakoya: The prince is the right hand of the king, we are the rule that keeps the order of the valley what it’s meant to be, why do you try to deny that this is the right path?
Uruo: Can you really look at everything that the people of the valley suffer through under your watch and say it is the right path. The way I see it, you are making their lives worse by making the choices for them
Rahihi: This insolent attitude is why I cast you from my light
Uruo: You didn’t cast me from your light, you freed from your darkness
Resume against Rahihi and Vakakoya
When they both are at 75%
Oseci: I find it weird that I’m finally on the other side. I watched Rahihi’s forces march into the secret garden and destroy The Wardens, now I’m here destroying everything Rahihi stands for in his Throne Room.
Rahihi: You can’t destroy everything I stand for, when I stand for everything you wish to achieve
Oseci: It’s just a big fancy throne that doesn’t mean anything, since you are not a king
Resume against Rahihi and Vakakoya
When they both are at 60%
Lilac: Freeing the valley from your destructive regime is something I’m going to cherish for a long time, this is our home, one that isn’t yours to shape and defile
Rahihi: I’ve been doing so forever, the King’s Scepter is the symbol of this will, the shaping of minds and armies
Lilac: Your lone will isn’t stronger than our collective power, our collective voices
Vakakoya: The only thing that is collective about you is the fact you are all collectively traitors and snakes, liars who hide in the grass and strike when it’s convenient for you.
Lilac: The only lie here is that you believe yourself to be decadent rulers who rule by someone sort of right you claim to have
Uruo: I will shatter this lie
Resume against Rahihi and Vakakoya
When they both are at 45%
Mygin: The rule of tyranny perpetuated over the valley is about to be truly history, not part of the present or future, one day to be a forgotten ember of the past once enough time has passed.
Rahihi: My rule will never be forgotten
Mygin: Once you are deposed and the symbol of power destroyed, generations will grow up not knowing your rule, when someone asks about Rahihi, it will be because they don’t remember you, not because of any real decadent or great legacy you leave behind
Resume against Rahihi and Vakakoya
When they both are at 30%
Vakakoya: You will not shatter this lineage, one day I will be king, replacing my father, as prince I am the next in line
Uruo: You are not in line for power, I will ice your ambitions
Vakakoya: You wouldn’t dare
Uruo sends of his Ice Emblems onto Vakakoya which freezes him solid, taking him out of the fight, the focus now being on Rahihi
Rahihi: The penalty for this transgression against the prince will be death
Uruo: I believe that is a punishment only reserved for those who have earned it, like yourself
Centus: As someone who has fought for tyrants in the past, I can’t see how Rahihi ever thought he was worthy enough to call himself a king
Oseci: The fraudulent pretender to a dynasty that was never real
Resume against Rahihi
When he is at 15%
Rahihi: This throne will be my defining legacy, no one will fill it like I have
Uruo: No one will want to fill an empty vessel that is fundamentally purposeless
Lilac: Let’s break it apart, right now
Oseci: I’m down
Mygin: Let’s turn that thing to rubble
Hoard: I love destroying stuff
Aiden: Say less
Aiden puts five reticles on the Throne, which Lilac, Oseci, Mygin, Hoard and Uruo all attack, shattering the throne
Rahihi: How dare you destroy my place of power?
Lilac: The only power here is the power to feel powerful
Resume against Rahihi
When he is finally defeated, he sees the weight of the fight, Vakakoya is frozen and his throne is destroyed. He falls over in the defeat
Rahihi: How dare you shatter the throne of the king, but my will is strong, I will seek revenge
Uruo: Your will is weak, to think I ever tolerated you
Uruo picks up the King’s Scepter and shatters it with an ice spell
Olivia: And there goes all legitimacy he thought he could have had
Rahihi is speechless, almost mourning the destruction of the scepter, as he cannot bring himself to move. However, a scorching lava leg attempts to kick Uruo, but Centus parries the unexpected attack with their sword. Witch reveals herself to the party
Witch: It is me, his final lieutenant
Centus: Enough of this masquerade
Centus rushes over to Witch and cuts open their mask, before the lava leg kicks them into the wall
Larkin: What does this exactly change?
The cut mask falls off, revealing the figure known as Pandora
Centus: I figured I couldn’t be mistaken
Pandora: Oh Centus, how astute you are
Centus: I thought I had killed you, explain how you live today?
Mygin: Who is this?
Olivia: I am confused
Pandora: I am Pandora, created by Earth to hold evil.
Lilac: So the Earth really is alive
Pandora: She slumbers right now, but I’m going to call her forward to consciousness
Nest: Why would you do that?
Pandora: I believe the Earth needs to be awoken to begin a new age, much like the first.
Rahihi is still looking at the ground, with Uruo paying close heed
Pandora: All that soul energy collection I authorized when I pretended to be Rahihi’s lieutenant was for my own purpose. In addition to that, the Sinners Sextant had previously been in my employ, so I hired them on behalf of Rahihi. I had been the true power behind the puppet
Rahihi tries to say something, but cannot
Uruo: So you used that man to your own ends?
Pandora: As we speak, everyone who truly works for me is shipping the Soul Energy out of the valley towards my secret base.
Centus: Ah Pandora, you remain fundamentally misguided in your purpose
Pandora: Oh Centus, you thought you killed me, but I survived. I have the strongest will in history, I will see this done.
Centus: I cut you down in the Garden long ago, the fact you stand now is a grand error
Pandora: Call it what you want but I think you have bigger problems
Pandora points towards the roof, which the Buzzard rips through and enters the Throne Room with some hollows
Pandora: You have fun with that
Pandora escapes The Throne Room to head to the roof.
Nest: Look who’s here
The Buzzard: Everyone is here this time, how lovely. I thought I should dine on the other group of your friends, but oh Nest and Boone are here, I need to set things straight. I am the darkness at the core of all things, you can’t just walk up and beat me without a punishment worse than death.
Boone: I think you shouldn’t be allowed to slaughter many innocents without a grand punishment in return. Guess that I’m a regular person with a soul and not the “darkness at the core of all things”
The Buzzard: Glad to know a-
Nest: Well, Mr. “Darkness at the core of all things”, what if I were to posit a reason for why we were able to do that
The Buzzard: I’m listening
Nest: Come closer
As The Buzzard comes closer to the ground, Uruo jumps up and freezes his wings with an Ice Emblem. The Hollows begin ciricling.
Boone: Larkin, NOW
Larkin: Alright, I’ve got it
Larkin takes out the “Symbiosis Breaker” device
The Buzzard: NO, DON’T YOU DARE
Larkin smashes the device into The Buzzard, splitting apart with a great force of light, soul energy and aether that destroys all the Hollows in the room, letting Malice trickle away from the host of it
Malice: What a crafty trick
The face of the host previously wrapped in darkness falls away, as the Soul Falcon comes out of Nest’s armor. Those who recognize the face are shocked and appalled.
Nest: No…it can’t be.
The familiar face tries to step out of the pool of Darkness
Malice: That face you see, it’s real, he serves me!!
Falconer: I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry
Nest: You……how could you….
Nest looks at the host of The Buzzard, Falconer, now separate from Malice as Malice hangs over the shadow of Falconer.