EX05 Inscription of Labyrinth
| ← 14 Imprisoned Sight | 15 The Last Spark → |
EX05 Inscription of Labyrinth
Main Story
During the emergency evacuation for Operation Red Tide, No. 21’s careless driving causes the Cerberus Squad to crash their folding truck. Vera receives an incoming call from Nikola. The Support Force arrives to recycle the crashed vehicle and a transport craft takes the Cerberus Squad back to Babylonia.
A few days after the emergency evacuation, a woman named Rebecca is having a conversation with Collins in his office. He asks her to be the face of the operation and to act as a middleman between Kurono and the Parliament. In addition, she would be required to scour inside the Commandant’s brain for hidden secrets.
Collins’ observation of the Commandant has shown signs of a corrupted mind beacon, suggesting an inability to control this condition. Collins proclaims that the Commandant’s corrupted mind beacon and the chain reaction memory replays might be exactly what he is looking for in his quest for a new era of research.
After preparing for their mission, the Cerberus Squad arrives in an abandoned residential area from the late Golden Age. Their objective is to investigate the abnormal M.I.N.D. fluctuations in the area and find the missing Luna. Noctis and No. 21 set up the node device that enhances remote connections. Once the nodes are running, they report in and wait for the exact coordinates from Murray.
Inside a glass chamber, the Gray Raven Commandant drifts in and out of consciousness. They recall resting in the infirmary after Operation Red Tide when two Special Forces members had brought them a transfer note. Hassen previously told the Commandant that collaborating with Kurono would be the only way to ensure their freedom. Although Hassen is reluctant to involve the Commandant in the search for Luna, he sees this as the first step to strike back at Kurono.
Rebecca’s voice brings the Commandant back to the present. She reminds them of the mission and allows them to remotely connect with the deployed team. The device detects a familiar M.I.N.D. signal. The Commandant’s vision clears to see two unfamiliar Constructs in front of them. They had synced up with Vera, much to her and the rest of the Cerberus Squad’s displeasure. After introductions, they confirm their assignment to search for Luna and proceed as the sun rises.
Through the fog, No. 21 fires a beam from her laser cannon. She claims to have sensed “eyes” which turn out to be a tree. Entering the town, No. 21 spies more dolls in the window of a nearby shop. She decapitates the doll but Vera dismisses her suspicions.
After checking the map, the squad realizes they have reached their destination—the hospital. A brief recon of the area turns nothing up.
The Commandant’s vision goes black and the scene in front of them shifts as they experience symptoms of memory replay. Questioning Vera reveals that she had not experienced the same apparition.
As they are pondering the absence of the Corrupted, red dots light up the screen of the terminal. The Cerberus Squad tracks the signal to the hospital entrance and engages with a horde of Corrupted Medic Bots.
Noctis finds a message leading them along. Vera declares it to be unrelated to the mission, but agrees to send a reluctant No. 21 with the Commandant to look for this mystery third party while she and Noctis continue the original mission. After a turbulent connection switch to No. 21’s M.I.N.D., they set out to track the mysterious third party.
They pass by the precinct Noctis mentioned. No. 21 gets startled by a child’s laughter and hands on the window while inspecting a car. She fires her laser cannon at it, but nothing is inside the car. The Commandant is surprised that, unlike Vera, No. 21 can see the apparitions.
As they head back in the direction of the hospital, No. 21 begins to experience a strange feeling in her head. The Commandant loses their connection to her M.I.N.D. and wakes up back in the glass chamber. Rebecca’s hologram informs the Commandant both Kurono and Cerberus have lost No. 21’s connection. She would have to abandon No. 21 but the Commandant convinces her otherwise when they explain the strange apparitions that only they and No. 21 could see.
It takes the Commandant much effort to connect with No. 21 again. They find her terrified and wounded, but take the time to soothe her so she doesn’t reject the M.I.N.D. connection.
Signs of battle line the hospital reception and there is a high level of abnormal M.I.N.D. fluctuation. The Commandant concludes that Luna had been here. These apparitions were shadows of the past activated by objects or locations. The question is, who wanted the Commandant to experience them?
They follow the shadow of the young girl to a house. No. 21 solves the door puzzle and enters. A frame catches the Commandant’s attention. There is a picture of two young girls they recognize.
It becomes clear that they are watching Luna’s memories unfold. The Commandant falls into the current of memories. As the light comes close to disappearing, No. 21 cuts her hand. The pain drags the Commandant back to reality.
Moving through the house, No. 21 searches for clues, fighting the Corrupted along the way. The more clues she comes across, the more visions she experiences as the scene shifts between the past and the present. No. 21 watches Lucia and Luna prepare for a party. From outside, their mother urges them to hide upstairs. The girls take refuge in their bedroom as Lucia checks on her mother through the window. She watches the Corrupted crush her father while her mother dies attempting to barricade the gate with her body.
To calm her sister, Lucia explains that everything is part of a horror movie the town is making. Luna is also part of the movie and needs to hide while Lucia distracts the monsters. Time passes and Luna grows tired of hiding. She leaves the basement to find her sister getting attacked by the monsters. Luna rushes to save Lucia and the Corrupted sets its sights on her. As it leaps towards her, the memory ends, and No. 21 returns to the present to hear a loud bang at the door. She finds Vera and Noctis outside.
The Cerberus Squad follows the final message, eager to meet the clown behind this elaborate game of hide-and-seek. Their trek brings them to a woodland trail where they hear the faint sound of voices. They find Roland engaged in battle with a metal monstrosity called Voodoo.
Vera makes the call to retreat but before they can do that, Voodoo spots No. 21. The squad has no choice but to fight.
Voodoo reveals that she has already corrupted No. 21’s M.I.N.D. The Commandant realizes that No. 21 had been hacked from the moment they arrived in the town. The Commandant leaves the battle to Vera and Noctis. They enter No. 21’s M.I.N.D. to bring her back.
Inside the M.I.N.D. space, No. 21 continues to observe Luna’s memories. The voice of a fake Commandant demeans her and spurs her on in continuous battle. No. 21 sees through the illusion and regains her senses. She joins her squad in the battle against Voodoo. Victory is within the Cerberus Squad’s grasp, but Roland activates an attack that immobilizes them.
Voodoo agrees to take Roland to Mr. Vonnegut after the satisfactory performance he put on. After she leaves, Roland directs his gaze at No. 21. He senses that she is connected to the Gray Raven Commandant, saying that he would love to see the Commandant’s face once they find out the truth.
Kurono reinforcements arrive and Roland is forced to leave. Vera breaks free from the magnetic restraint device and explains that it had been a trick as she goes to free Noctis and No. 21. The leading Kurono Construct explains that the Cerberus Squad’s mission has been terminated. At first, Vera is unwilling to cooperate but changes her mind without warning. The other squad members do not question her.
The Commandant is removed from the M.I.N.D. connection and finds themself back in the glass chamber. Kurono’s true mission becomes clear to them. They were not looking to find Luna, but to gather evidence from her memories.
The Operation Leader back at the World Government Operation Logistics Center brings Nikola the storage module he’d been looking for. He instructs the Operation Leader to send the address to the Cerberus Squad’s channel. They both pretend the conversation had never happened.
Hidden Story
Roland’s body is unresponsive. He struggles to crawl out of the underground waterway before succumbing to the darkness. A voice in the darkness jolts his memories—his body had given in after the effort he had spent escaping and searching for Luna.
He attempts to repair what little he can of his frame before he sees her again. Through his daze, he spots a vague light slowly moving towards him. When Roland opens his eyes again, he finds himself in a makeshift tent. He can move his body and quickly realizes his frame has been restructured.
Outside the tent, Roland finds a hooded woman sitting by the campfire. He recognizes her as the person he had seen with Alpha before—“The Merciful One”, an agent who grants suitable people with unfinished business a second chance.
Roland expresses his gratitude. He opens up and tells her all about Alpha, Luna, and how the Ascendants fell apart.
Lamia returns while they are drinking tea. She is startled by the sight of Roland and attempts to flee but stops at The Merciful One’s command. After learning that Roland and Lamia are acquainted, The Merciful One leaves them to talk as the sun rises.
Roland asks Lamia why she ran from him. Lamia is too scared to admit that she had abandoned the Ascendants to save herself. Instead, she lies that it had been hard to find him in the chaos. Voodoo had been chasing her and only left her alone after she had come across The Merciful One’s camp.
Lamia suggests they split up to search for Luna. However, Roland dismisses the idea, saying they would not make much progress alone. Before they set out, Roland asks Lamia about The Merciful One. He has been curious about her ever since the incident with Shome, but Lamia is just as clueless.
In the shadows, Vonnegut instructs Cinderelik to stick to the plan. She heads to the other end of the ruins to remind Voodoo to focus on the mission. Voodoo prepares to set out.
Roland has a conversation with his more honest self “Roland?”, who asks if his new body has changed him. “Roland?” reminds him that just because The Merciful One had granted him this new life did not mean that Roland had no control over his decisions.
Roland and Lamia head out after daybreak. They come across wandering Corrupted along their route and discover they cannot control them. Roland finds it even stranger that despite changing their route multiple times, the Corrupted still managed to find them. Someone must be controlling them, though their goal is unclear.
Roland and Lamia wipe out the Corrupted with ease. The pair decide to trace their origin. They come across a Babylonia transport aircraft carrying the Cerberus Squad. Roland sends Lamia to eavesdrop and she reports that the Cerberus Squad is working with the Gray Raven Commandant to find Luna. Roland would have to be one step ahead of them.
As they make their way through the quiet town, Roland realizes that Luna has been there. The Corrupted appear, and Roland instructs Lamia to go into the town while he engages them.
Roland has another conversation with “Roland?” Even after the “The Mandhasti Real Park” events Roland has not changed—he still needs a lighthouse to rely on. Roland refocuses his attention and follows the instructions of a message painted on the wall.
He arrives at what used to be Luna’s home and lends Lamia a hand in fighting off the pursuing Corrupted. Lamia informs Roland that she has seen one of the Cerberus members in the area. She had attempted to contact him but a Jitterbomb had exploded, plunging her into a group of Corrupted Constructs.
Roland orders Lamia to find a seat to enjoy the show. He enters the house but does not find much. Babylonia and the mysterious party’s interest in this town puzzles him. Before Roland can agonize over his identity again, Lamia hurries to tell him that No. 21 is approaching the house. Roland decides to set up a puzzle on the door as a distraction and leaves Lamia to keep watch. She is forced to flee and abandon Roland once again when Voodoo attacks her.
From his hiding place, Roland watches in confusion as No. 21 rushes through the house. He quickly realizes that her M.I.N.D. is connected to the Gray Raven Commandant’s and she can see things he cannot.
For the final act, Roland decides to force whoever is behind the scenes to reveal themselves. Cinderelik appears at the window. She invites Roland to come to the “Final Hell.”
Roland follows traces of the Punishing Virus to a cliff. He finds Cinderelik waiting for him there. She commands Voodoo to attack Roland. Voodoo sets down the conditions of the fight: If Roland wins, he will be allowed to meet “Mister.” If he loses, then “Loki” will tear him apart. Upon the arrival of the Cerberus Squad, Voodoo targets No. 21 instead.
After the fight, Roland immobilizes the Cerberus Squad. He approaches an exhausted Voodoo and asks her to take him to this “Mister” she keeps talking about but she takes off, saying that Roland would change his mind once he met him.
Rolands makes his way out of town and finds Cinderelik waiting for him. She takes him to meet Vonnegut who asks Roland to work for him in exchange for information about Luna. Though initially hesitant, “Roland?” persuades Roland to use Vonnegut to get what he truly wants.
Rather than asking for something in return, Roland offers to help Vonnegut freely for the time being. He would require his help later. Vonnegut agrees to these terms and Roland takes a step towards his unknown new path.
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