17 The Surviving Lucem
| ← 16 Evernight Beat | ER00 Reveries With A Whale → |
17 The Survival Lucem
Sunken in Scarlet
Humanity faces an unprecedented level of threat after the disastrous Battle of Pulia Forest Park. The Red Tide refuses to recede. A wave of Hetero-Creatures sweeps across the land and leaves no survivors in their wake. The Unidentified Twins travel from city to city massacring everyone they can find. Many rescue attempts have been made to retrieve personnel and refugees from the surface, but their success rate plummeted when the Hetero-Creatures learned how to fly.
The Babylonian Parliament holds a meeting. The majority votes against continuing rescue operations on the surface. Hassen declares that they will make a second attempt with modified tactics later.
Hassen goes back to his office to review a transmission from Lucia. Lucia reported that they had evacuated the Commandant and 67 other humans to a basement in City 043. They are accompanied by Bambinata and her commandant Vanessa from the Egret squad. The Commandant has fallen into a coma and is gravely wounded. The Gray Ravens are in desperate need for medical supplies, both for the Commandant and the refugees. Nikola reports that other squads are also facing losses of similar scale.
Hassen believes that the Gray Ravens must safely return to Babylonia because they are a symbol of hope for all of humanity. He intends to use the recently completed Omega Weapon Prototype, which is able to absorb the Punishing Virus it comes to contact with, to convince Kurono to help them continue rescue missions.
Hassen then holds an impromptu meeting at the Parliament, where he proposes that they focus Babylonia’s efforts on incorporating the Omega Weapon prototype into a new specialized frame, indirectly asking for Kurono’s cooperation.
Meanwhile, the refugees in the basement have been starving for several days. Lee returns with two young refugees and a dog named Matches. The refugees shout at the dog’s owner for not bringing any supplies when there are already so many people and threaten to eat Matches. The boy named Stanley says that he will split his share of the rations with Matches. Stanley tells Liv that he will sacrifice himself for Matches if the need arises.
A familiar man and a pregnant woman appear at the door to the bunker. The man is holding a wounded child. Stanley asks the man why he let a child get so badly injured, especially if he had plenty of supplies for himself in his backpack. Stanley further questions the woman why she got pregnant with a second child if she was clearly unable to raise her first one, and if she would abandon them like his own parents abandoned him. The man clarifies that he is not the child’s father, and the woman is not the child’s biological mother either. Liv calms Stanley down, and the two new refugees settle down and introduce themselves. The man reveals his name as Shrek, and Liv recognizes him as the scavenger from City 075.[1] The pregnant woman is named Fantine.
That night, Liv records the experience of caring for the refugees in her diary, reminiscing over the numerous patients whom she could not save due to a lack of supplies. When a child begins crying, Liv sings an old song to comfort her. A crowd gathers around her to listen to her soothing voice.
Lucia returns with a sack of rice and some cloth. Though there is no news from Babylonia, the refugees are elated to have food. They make porridge and hold a small celebration.
Lucia pulls Liv aside to meet with Lee and Vanessa. Vanessa reveals that Babylonia will not be providing further assistance, and that the Unidentified Twins have reached City 042 nearby. The Gray Ravens agree that they have to evacuate everyone out of City 043 immediately. They decide to split the refugees into three camps to make the evacuation easier. Vanessa forces the Gray Ravens to confront the unfortunate reality that there will inevitably be casualties during the evacuation.
When the Gray Ravens leave the basement, they find that the refugee leader has eavesdropped on their conversation and is planning to take all three working transport vehicles for themselves. After an argument, the refugee leader agrees to give up two of them for the wounded. Vanessa stays behind while the Gray Ravens evacuate the injured refugees. The first transport successfully reaches City 045.
While the Gray Ravens are away, Vanessa takes a moment to insult the Gray Raven Commandant while they are unconscious, calling them a naïve fool who believes that they can save everyone without sacrifices. Outside, the boy who arrived with Stanley finally opens up to him, asking Stanley to help him read from his notebook.
Just as the Gray Ravens return, another wave of Hetero-Creatures approach the city. The refugees rush to the transports to secure their own safety, not caring for that of others. Stanley gives up his spot on the vehicle for the boy who arrived with him at City 043. Liv promises Stanley that she will return for him later.
It soon becomes clear that the overloaded vehicle will not be able to outrun the Hetero-Creatures. Vanessa tells the refugees to get off the transport, but the Gray Ravens refuse to sacrifice any of them. Vanessa recalls a memory of her old instructor who told her to cherish every life. She then proposes that the Gray Ravens evacuate the refugees while she and Bambinata fight the enemies. The Gray Ravens reluctantly agree, leaving Vanessa and Bambinata to face the horde.
The vehicle reaches City 046, but its residents do not welcome the Gray Ravens and the new refugees. The group enters the city only after the Gray Ravens promise to defend them from the threat of the Hetero-Creatures. The squad then returns to City 043 for the last group of survivors.
In City 043, Stanley and an elderly couple hide in the basement. The Central Purification Filter of the city has stopped working. Upon hearing an explosion in the distance, the old woman goes outside to investigate but injures herself badly by accidentally stepping in a pool of the Red Tide.
Stanley’s old wounds continue to worsen. He writes his wishes on the piece of paper the boy gave him: to grow a pair of wings and fly with Matches across the Red Tide to safety. The old man wakes up that night to find his wife dead. He realizes that he will not live for much longer either.
The Gray Ravens discover that the Red Tide has almost completely engulfed City 043 and are forced to take a detour. The Unidentified Twins appear at that moment to attack the Gray Ravens. Fortunately, Babylonia contacts them just in time to send them the Omega Weapon. The ensuing battle is fierce, but the Gray Ravens successfully deploy the weapon to damage the twins.
A full day after the Gray Ravens’ departure, Stanley, barely holding on, hears a sound from the basement door and goes to investigate, only to find the dead bodies of the elderly couple. He resolves to survive with Matches and leaves the basement, but no one is outside.
Stanley climbs to the top of a building to search for the returning Gray Ravens. He does not see any sign of life and concludes that they must have all been killed. Stanley opens his last can of food and gives it to Matches. Finally, he writes a message to Liv and takes his own life.
Liv returns to City 043. She finds Stanley dead and Matches by his body. She laments that she was not able to save him, or the elderly couple, or even Vanessa and Bambinata. Liv finds the piece of paper on Stanley’s body and reads his final message to her: Stanley asks Liv to take Matches with her and thanks her for keeping her promise.
When the Gray Ravens return to City 046’s conservation area, Liv is filled with regret and self-doubt that she was not able to save the last survivors. She spirals further and begins to blame herself for the Commandant’s comatose state. However, she pulls herself together by reminding herself that the Commandant would appreciate her efforts nonetheless.
The Gray Ravens receive a report about a refugee group that went missing during their search for supplies. They leave to search for the group but are too late to save any of them. The only survivor is Fantine, who has just given birth in the street. She names the newborn Cosette, announces that she has no regrets giving birth, and dies. Liv resolves to protect the hope of humanity going forward and not let the deaths of Stanley and Fantine be in vain.
Escaping from Calamity
Liv concludes that the best way to help everyone is to remove the source of the threat against humanity: the Punishing Virus itself. Having witnessed the Omega Weapon prototype’s ability to absorb the virus and its effectiveness against the Unidentified Twins, she volunteers to participate in further tests. When Liv contacts Babylonia, Celica warns her that participating will jeopardize her safety. She eventually relents and relays Liv’s decision to the Parliament upon hearing her determination to make a difference in the war.
Liv receives a mission brief. Her task is to become a carrier for the Omega Weapon using a new specialized frame. However, this has a significant risk of infection for Liv because Babylonia’s current technology cannot control the rate at which she absorbs the virus. Even if she survives, she will most likely suffer severe M.I.N.D. damage. Despite the sacrifices she must make, Liv reaffirms her resolve. Afterward, Hassen informs her that she will be escorted back to Babylonia with the Commandant. Liv requests that she be allowed to take Cosette with her.
The Gray Ravens head to City 047 to see Liv off. A group of refugees, including Shrek, are also gathered in the city to scavenge the supplies left there. Seeing so many people struggle to survive in the face of a catastrophe reminds Liv of a conversation with the Commandant, in which they remarked that one should not dismiss a living thing just because it seems weak. Liv finds every life unique and worthy of survival, and vows to protect them.
Meanwhile, Nanami traverses the wilderness alone, unaffected by the high concentration of the Punishing Virus. She asks Gestalt for the “coordinates” necessary to save humanity and their creations. Nanami is uncharacteristically serious as she waves goodbye to Babylonia before resuming her journey.
Liv, Commandant, and Cosette arrive safely in Babylonia thanks to the sacrifices of the Constructs escorting their transport craft. Liv begins the adaptation process for her specialized frame.
A few days later, Liv encounters Bianca and her old teacher, Hippocrates, in Asimov’s laboratory. Hippocrates reveals that Liv’s new frame is based on Kurono’s research to create an artificial Ascendant. It uses the data of an Agent, and the exact details of the technology remain unknown even to Asimov. However, the Commandant is currently unconscious and therefore cannot link with Liv’s M.I.N.D. to support her. Asimov hypothesizes that the Omega Weapon will soon be overwhelmed by the amount of the virus absorbed once Liv enters combat, causing her to turn into a Corrupted or even an Ascendant. To prevent it from happening, Nikola has ordered Bianca to kill Liv if she becomes completely infected.
Asimov also reveals that Babylonia chose Liv as the carrier for the Omega Weapon, not only because she volunteered but also because someone has been working behind the scenes to prevent the original first candidate for the specialized frame—Lee of the Gray Ravens—from participating in the dangerous experiment. Regardless, Liv’s determination remains unwavering, and the development of her new frame continues. She asks that they include wings in her frame to honor Stanley’s final wish and reflect her desire to fly toward those who need her help.
On the surface, the remaining two members of the Gray Ravens meet up with Strike Hawk and Cerberus. They are preparing to evacuate the refugees on the surface away from the approaching Unidentified Twins. At that moment, Watanabe contacts them to inform them that the twins have changed their course and are now attacking the Forsaken and Akdilek. The three squads cannot ignore Watanabe’s request for help and split up: Lucia, Lee, and Chrome board the train while the rest escort the refugees.
Vonnegut, Roland, and Cinderelik observe the twins following the train. Vonnegut remarks that he does not wish for the Red Tide to grow unrestrained—he needs the twins to learn from and reflect humanity. Ultimately, he believes that only the Constructs are fit to ascend beyond their limits because human bodies are too fragile to withstand the filtering process of the Punishing Virus.
Asslam severs its carriages, but this does not stop the twins’ relentless assault. Jamilah reassures them that she relocated most of the train’s former inhabitants before meeting up with the Forsaken. With everything that has transpired, she has once more chosen to ally with the Forsaken and Babylonia. Shrek questions whether humanity still has a future, and Jamilah reveals that Akdilek has agreed to help test phase two of the Omega prototype. This improvement can create an area that draws the Punishing Virus in, but the train has to reach City 210 to receive it. At the same time, they can drop off the refugees at its base while a small group draws the twins’ attention.
On the way to City 210, Changyu and Lucia try to hold off the Hetero-Creatures. The twins launch into the air and destroy Asslam’s carriages, causing massive casualties. The remaining forces launch multiple suicide bombings through the night, which provide brief moments of peace. Upon nearing their destination, Sophia, Changyu, Jamilah, and Watanabe head for City 210 along with the survivors. Others volunteer to act as decoys and wait to deploy the Omega prototype received from Babylonia’s Support Force.
After Lee and Chrome affix the Omega II prototype to the carriage’s surface, they notice the twins acting more cautious. Lee places the prototype in a masking case, and the team decides it would be more efficient to bring it in direct contact with the twins. Aside from the volunteers, the team discovers an injured Shrek and his dying companion, Garcia, who remain on the train. Shrek is unable to move due to multiple injuries sustained in his legs.
Lucia places the hidden prototype in a handbag and dashes out of the train using her short-range jet to make contact with the twins, but the two humanoids fall back behind enemy lines. Lee pulls her back into the train. After multiple attempts, they note that the twins are not wary of the handbag but Lucia and Lee. Before they can regroup, the twins launch another assault on the train, causing Garcia to fall off and get corrupted.
The train enters a tunnel, and the remaining survivors are encircled by Hetero-Creatures, with a Hetero-Hive Mother on the tracks. The train collides with it, which sends Shrek flying. Lee catches him but cannot pull him back due to a broken joint. Since the twins did not avoid the handbag or Garcia, Shrek surmises they will not dodge him either should he come in contact with them. He recounts that after losing Bella, he became a medic to save more lives; his sacrifice would be meaningful for the living. Shrek lets go of Lee’s hand, and the Omega II prototype explodes, disintegrating multiple hordes of Hetero-Creatures and injuring the twins. The tunnel behind the Akdilek train collapses as it speeds away towards the abandoned city.
Cinderelik notes that the now destroyed Omega II prototype has caused the Punishing Virus concentration to drop in the affected area. Vonnegut carries Shrek’s body away and notices he still has a faint pulse. He commends Shrek’s will to live and is surprised that the twins left a “sample” behind, noting that they may have formed their own will. Aside from that, Vonnegut speculates the presence of the Hive Mother may be due to its maternal bond with the twins. Their fear, learned from their previous encounter with Lucia and Lee, caused the Hive Mother to aid them against the Constructs. While the Hive Mother may contain data on Cinderelik’s mother, she refuses to sympathize with it and awaits the return of her real mother and “Cinderelik.” In addition, she hopes for the day when she can confront Kugawa Kurono, her mother’s killer, with Vonnegut’s aid.
In the aftermath of the battle, the twins retreat to the Red Tide to recover. Meanwhile, the survivors have now taken refuge in the church that the Merciful One frequents. Unsure whether she would want to be involved, Vonnegut and Cinderelik choose not to interfere.
Praying in Doomsday
Nearly a month has passed since Liv’s return to Babylonia. Professor Hippocrates informs Liv that she will depart to the surface in her new frame the next day. Liv is relieved that she can finally reunite with her comrades and save them. On the other hand, they both know that the price for using such a dangerous experimental frame will be Liv’s life.
Hippocrates takes Liv to meet the unconscious Commandant. There, the two recount an episode from Liv’s past: as a trainee, Liv would practice operations on herself because she did not want to trouble others and wanted to learn first-hand how painful the procedures can be. Hippocrates applauds Liv for never forgetting her empathy for others. At the same time, she laments how cruel the war is to kind hearted people like Liv and apologizes for being unable to save her.
Liv heads to Asimov’s laboratory to transfer to her new frame. Asimov explains that Liv’s specialized frame can use the Omega Weapon to absorb and purify the Punishing Virus. It can imitate an Agent’s power over the virus to a certain degree because it has been built using the data of one. However, it still cannot replicate the full power of an Agent, and Liv will only be able to fight for three hours before the absorbed virus overwhelms her. Asimov also hypothesizes that her frame’s connection to an Agent may allow Liv to briefly enter the Ascension Network while absorbing the virus.
Liv begins to experience intense M.I.N.D. pain immediately after changing into her frame. As Asimov and Hippocrates perform the final adaptation process, Liv takes the opportunity to visit the Commandant. Seeing the Commandant reminds Liv of a conversation she had with a mysterious woman about possibilities and choices when the Gray Ravens visited the Nighter. After they had witnessed Huaxu and Villier’s death, Liv asked the Commandant if their choice to die was really “freedom.” The Commandant replied that it was indeed their own choice. Looking back on her conversations with the mysterious woman and the Commandant, Liv once again steels her resolve to sacrifice herself so that everyone else can survive.
On Earth, the survivors are on their last legs. Everyone is severely injured, and their supplies have been depleted. Babylonia cannot mount a rescue mission because of the danger posed by the Corrupted and Hetero-Creatures. Lucia, Lee, Chrome, Changyu, and Sophia make their last stand when another wave of enemies attacks the church. Minutes before she succumbs to her infection and injuries, Lucia receives a call from Liv. She is currently heading to the surface in her new frame and will arrive in an hour. Knowing that she will not last until Liv arrives, Lucia asks her friend to sing for her one last time.
Liv descends on the church like a ray of ivory light, befitting the name of her frame: Empyrea. She begins to absorb and purify the virus around her. The machines and Constructs, including Lucia and Lee, regain their senses as their corruption is removed. However, just as the researchers expected, the limited effectiveness of the Omega Weapon cannot keep up with the speed at which Liv absorbs the virus into her M.I.N.D.
In Babylonia, the leaders observe Liv’s actions. It seems that humanity finally has a weapon to turn the tide of war. Collins remarks that all those who sacrificed for “Project Winter” will be happy to see the fruit it bore. Hippocrates notices that Liv is also absorbing the memories of the dead and Corrupted contained within the Punishing Virus. She predicts that these memories will mix with Liv’s own, leading her to experience their suffering and death as if they were her own. Ultimately, her M.I.N.D. will break down from this before the infection takes her. Even if she survives, Liv will sustain permanent damage to her M.I.N.D.
In Star of Life, the Commandant miraculously regains consciousness after hearing a mysterious woman’s voice telling them to wake up and make their own choices until the day of the “Eternal Winter.” Upon being briefed on the Gray Ravens’ situation by Hippocrates, the Commandant convinces the leaders of Babylonia to let them head to the surface to save Liv. The Commandant plans to connect to Liv’s infected Deep M.I.N.D. using another Gray Raven member as a medium.
Meanwhile, Liv is on the verge of being completely overwhelmed. She finds herself looking at a bizarre, upside-down cityscape. She hears a voice telling her that although the information contained in this space is beyond human comprehension, Liv may attempt to interpret what she can. The voice reminds Liv of the mysterious woman she met. She then hears multiple voices converging into one cold, mechanical voice, which she assumes to be the Ascension Network’s. It claims that she is hearing the voice because she wants answers. Its emotionless tone reminds Liv of Gestalt, and Liv wonders whether the Ascension Network and Gestalt are similar to each other.
Inside the mysterious space, Liv no longer feels pain. She contemplates letting everything go and staying there forever but hesitates when she hears a desperate cry telling her not to leave them. As if responding to her doubts, the void surrounding her splits into two paths. Liv speculates that each path will show the outcome of her choice calculated by the Ascension Network’s algorithm.
The first path Liv chooses shows her the outcome of a potential future where she dies using her Empyrea frame, and the Commandant does not wake up in time to save her. Liv’s name is etched on Babylonia’s war memorial. Years later, Lucia and the Commandant also pass away. Lee disappears after saying farewell at the memorial. Meanwhile, Earth is enveloped by a catastrophe named the “Eternal Winter.” When the scene ends, Liv concludes that although it is easier for her to die and be free of pain, this future feels colorless and cold.
Next, Liv takes the other path. She arrives at a meadow of flowers at the end of the road, where she reunites with the rest of the Gray Ravens. Among them, Lee appears as a silhouette that cannot be observed in three-dimensional space. Liv is unsure whether what she is seeing is a vision or consciousness data that remains after death but decides that it does not matter as long as she is with her friends. At that moment, Hippocrates appears and explains that Liv suffered M.I.N.D. pains and death mirages all her life. Her words make Liv realize that this is the end of the potential future where the Commandant intervenes, and Liv barely survives the use of the Empyrea frame. Liv returns to her Eclipse frame afterward, but the M.I.N.D. damage she suffered persists. For some time, the Commandant helps suppress the symptoms as the Gray Ravens continue to fight for humanity. Eventually, this future also results in the “Eternal Winter” during which all four members of the Gray Ravens fall. Although this is not the ending Liv was hoping for, she does feel a warmth in this future.
In the real world, the Commandant explains their plan to access Liv’s M.I.N.D. to Lucia, whose frame is the only one capable of flying high enough to establish a connection to Liv mid-air. If they cannot save Liv in three hours, Bianca will have to kill her by activating the EMP discharge collar to prevent her from becoming a Corrupted.
Liv initially refuses to let the Commandant and Lucia enter her highly corrupted M.I.N.D. However, determined to bring Liv back, the two break into Liv’s Deep M.I.N.D. and fight off the cluster of corrupted data and Punishing Virus. Seeing her friends’ refusal to give up no matter what fills Liv with a newfound desire to live on with them. With Liv’s help, Lucia and the Commandant defeat the data cluster and save Liv.
While the Commandant and Lucia are inside Liv’s M.I.N.D., the other Constructs are holding off the last remaining enemy: the Unidentified Twins. Even without the hordes of Hetero-Creatures supporting them, the twins still prove to be deadly. Liv awakens just as they are about to land a fatal blow on the Constructs and uses all her remaining energy to vanquish them.
The Commandant holds a weakened Liv in their arms. Before disarming the EMP collar, they ask Liv once again whether she is still willing to walk toward the future even if she suffers for the rest of her life. Liv replies without hesitation that she has made her choice to keep fighting alongside those she holds dear. On the transport craft back to Babylonia, Asimov suggests letting Liv change back into the Eclipse frame and promises to continue work on repairing her M.I.N.D. damage.
| ← 16 Evernight Beat | ER00 Reveries With A Whale → |
00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | EX00 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | EX01 | EX02 | EX03 | 13 | EX04 | 14 | EX05 | 15 | 16 | 17 | ER00 | 18 | ER01 | 19 | ER02 | 20 | ER03 | 21 | 22
