After returning to meet Aeldys at Dunnage, they made their final plans. They sailed the Floating Hangman to the islands near Ondra’s Mortar, to meet up with however many Principi ships Aeldys could rally to the effort. But soon another obstacle emerged. The RDC fleet. Not only would they not help, but they were actively blockading access. It seemed that they would prefer the end of the world to allowing another faction to enter Ukaizo.
The initial volleys were brutal, as all sides knew there would be no quarter.
The RDC ships were large and well armed and organized compared to the motley Prinicipi, and they had a lot of early success. But soon help arrived… in the form of Rathun Longboats!
Sapphire as well began to school the RDC in the wisdom of attacking a fleet with a resident archmage.
Before long the RDC adjusted tactics… charging in close hoping to leverage their superior numbers in boarding action. But there the pirates were at their finest, to say nothing of the unfortunate RDC marines attempting to engage Grim and his crew.
Just as the battle seemed won, and the remnants of the RDC fleet began limping away, a new threat appeared. High in the sky, from the direction of Ondra’s Mortar came an enormous metallic construct. The Guardian of Ukaizo had arrived, and it tore through Principi ships with abandon, seemingly impervious to cannon fire.
But when all seemed lost they spotted a huge shadow surging past beneath their ships….
And then the great sea dragon, Scyorielaphas, Guardian of the Isles – whom Grim had freed from beneath Neketaka – surged out of the water and slammed into the metallic beast.
And Grim heard its voice in his head, “Go now, Grim one. Complete your task. I will deal with the upstart. Consider my debt repaid.”
As they approached Ondra’s Mortar the surging storms seemed utterly impassible. What could possibly survive the constant churn of wind, wave, and arcane lightning?
But as the Floating Hangman drew near the storm pulled back – as if repelled by the tattered ship’s very existence. And a corridor of eerily calm seas opened up to allow their passage.
Soon they could see the battered port of ancient Ukaizo through the rain ahead.
Okaizo was not yet ready to submit to their presence, as its great guardian golems still barred entry into the city.
Further inside they found a massive tower, at the top of which was an arcane device summoning and maintaining the unnatural storms masking and barring access to Ukaizo. Sapphire deactivated it, so that their Principi allies could follow.
But when they descended back down from the tower they found the Principi were not the only party waiting to rush in. The last remnants of the RDC’s elite guard, commanded by Hazanui Karu herself, awaited them. Grim stared at her incredulously.
“Even now, with the literal Cycle of Life at stake, you want to battle over the dying scraps rather than defend your world?!?!” he asked.
“You can no more stop the Bright God than can I,” she replied, “and I must ensure that when he is done *Rauati* controls the secrets buried here in the aftermath“
“So be it”, was Grim’s only answer.
Afterwards, as Grim stood over the defeated Hazanui, he could only shake his head in frustration at her sheer inability to comprehend cooperation in the name of pragmatic self-interest.
As they approached the city center and the Wheel Grim was called before Berath once more. And this time, rather than appearing as a towering projection, she chose to appear as a simple warrior. At his scale, at his size. She warned him that Eothas had at this point absorbed so much power that he was beyond the point where a mortal could hope to combat him. Their only hope lay in convincing him. If not to abandon his course entirely, then at least to better prepare them all for the consequences. She made no effort to convince Grim of her own preferences. She simply told him, “Do what you must, and may we all find our way”. He simply nodded as she returned him to the mortal realm.
As they approached an overlook looking down on Ukaizo and the Wheel, Eothas’ titanic form turned towards them. As Berath had warned, he could not be swayed from his path. He was insistent that current balance of power could not be allowed to continue. Mortals must be free to determine their own fates, and it was up to the Gods to find their own places in a world where they were no longer required.
Grim asked him directly, “And how long do we have before the cycle breaks entirely. Before there are no souls remaining to quicken new births?”
“A FEW DECADES, A CENTURY AT MOST”, came the reply.
“And you’re just going to smash it down and leave us to pick up the pieces? One more God who leaves destruction in his wake and demands mortals deal with the consequences? How are you any better than the others?” asked Star.
“I AM SORRY CHILD, BUT THERE IS NO OTHER WAY”
“Yes there is!“, she insisted. “You have within you the knowledge and memories of thousands of years of sages and mages, animancers and priests. The collected learning of a millenia. Stolen from us as you break the cycle! Give it back when you are through, rather than scattering it to the void! Let us start from there instead of re-learning all that has been lost!”
The God was silent for a long time, and then answered slowly.
“YOU ARE CORRECT LITTLE ONE. MUCH HAS BEEN STOLEN FROM YOU. RETURNING TO YOU THAT WHICH WAS ALREADY YOURS… YES. THAT IS ONLY FITTING. USE IT WELL. BUILD SOMETHING MORE THAN WHAT WAS.”
“And we’ll do it on our own!”, Grim spat, “No more Gods herding us like cattle!“
“INDEED” came the reply, and then the titan turned away.
They watched in stunned fascination as he tore down the Great Wheel of Ukaizo. Shredded its massive couplings, stomped on the remains of the original mortal forms of the gods still fused to its base.
And then, his massive body having absorbed all the punishment it could take, he let go. Allowing himself to disintegrate back into his primal essence. But as he did so, they could see spirits flowing out in all directions. As promised – scholars and poets, scientists and wizards – all set loose to find mortals with which to bond. They would still have to begin anew. They would still have to find a way to construct their own replacement for the original Cycle of Life and Death that the Engwithians had destroyed to become Gods. But at least now they had a fighting chance. If any of them could stop fighting long enough to seize it…
But that was largely out of their hands. They were not scientists and politicians. They did not lead guilds or conquer kingdoms. All they could do now is hope. Hope that the world could seize the chance they had given it.
So they celebrated the end of their quest. Resolved to forge their own path in this new world, find their own adventures. They were done with serving the Gods.
And then they set forth. Off to new horizons!
Author’s Notes:
That’s the first time I’ve ever completed the game all the way to the end. Not sure I like that in the end you can’t actually stop Eothas, you can just influence how he leaves things in doing so. But I can see why it works that way. In a more “Swords and Sorcery” sort of genre you really don’t get to outright defy the Gods as a mortal. The best you can do is occasionally surprise them while playing at their own game. Supposedly if you kept your options open with the Titan of Wael there’s a way to actually kill him – but I just don’t see Grim or the other going for the choices necessary to allow that. To Grim’s mind the *last* thing they needed was *another* crazed God mucking about.
Will take a little break now, monkey around with rendering styles, and then next on the docket is diving into the old “Victorian magic vs steampunk” game Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magic Obscura.
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