Part 9: The True Side of the Buried Remains (DX)
Part XX: The True Side of the Buried Remains (DX)Original Update
The Apprentice's Investigation
Yes…
Then… The cause of the drought was nearby the whole time?
This is hard to believe…
Is it possible to get to where the device is? There's no doubt a path exists… The problem is the entrance. Where's the entrance? The Ruins of Frozen Time. What? No way… There's an enormous gate there. It has to be opened first. How would we open it? Opening a locked door is the same, no matter what the size of the door. You use a key, or destroy it. Can we really destroy it?? I've already tried, and no, we can't.
I'll pretend I didn't hear that… Sounds like the only way is to find the key, then.
Automatons?
If you're curious, it's a singing type of automaton, a different model from myself. I… What? Automatons can sing? After examining the automaton left at the factory gate, there’s no mistake. My apprentice’s investigation backs it up too. …Ayesha’s investigation? Judging by the area surrounding the gate, including the one left, a total of 6 singing automatons exist. So the gate will open if we gather all 6? The resonance generated by the sounds made by all 6 will open the gates. But it's not like it's easy to find the automatons! There was one in Faav Village… The one they called a goddess. And then there's still 4 left. There's nobody who'd collect things like that, either… Wait…
Music: Bursting March
What's wrong? Ahhh!! There IS someone! Someone's who's really into that kinda stuff! Huh? Who? Albert! He paid Katla an exorbitant sum for the automaton she had for sale… and on top of that, we’ve already turned over three more automatons to him! So that’s four with Albert alone, one more already at the Ruins of Frozen Time… which leaves the last one at Faav Village. Speaking of Faav Village, my apprentice wants a word with you two about her findings. She’s waiting for you outside your ship. Ayesha… Lotte, let’s go!
In Faav Village? Ayesha sure does a lot of work… Escha is amazing too, but I’d expect no less from Keith’s right hand… We need to work harder too. I wonder if I’ll ever become like Ayesha or Escha… I’m getting worried. Willpower is your only redeeming feature, you’ll do fine. Master Wilbell! That’s not helping at all!
Faav Village is in a region controlled by the Lord of Water, but do you know of an automaton enshrined there? Ah… Yeah! That’s the “automaton that guards the altar of the goddess”. Although the villagers call her a goddess too…
A goddess blessed by the Lord of Water… Did you find any more details? Unfortunately, that’s all I found. The legend itself has been long lost. But if we think of that automaton as a key to a device from the past age, you can look at it this way… In the past, the Lord of Water protected this land… … Speaking of Ayesha and Escha, there’s something I want to ask Escha. Stera, do you want to drop by her shop? Sure! …Thank you for telling us about the legend of the goddess, Ayesha.
The Alchemists of Dusk
Hmm, I can’t say I’m not homesick, but I want to do what I can right now, to the best of my abilities. Also, it’s not like I can never go back… Don’t you agree, Shallie? Yes… That’s right. I feel very similarly. To tell the truth, when I first arrived here, I wanted to complete my goal as quickly as possible, and go home.
…You’re both strong. I talk big, but I’ve never really gone far from home… If the time comes when I need to do that, I wonder if I could still manage to do my best in a faraway place? Shallie, you can’t call someone strong just because they’re working in a place far from home. That’s right, Lotte. You just happened to need to work in Stellard this time… You’re plenty strong, too. I think so, too. Both of you Shallies are really strong… If Colseit was about to be consumed by the Dusk… I would probably feel the same way as you. I’ve been watching you this whole time. I can see why you have the strength to protect Stellard… You know, I actually think I’ve learned to be stronger from you two. Escha… This is a little embarrassing… Ehe. …
Us, you, Logy, Keith, and… Ah, Escha! Keith has just wrapped up his analysis on the seed from Geosis. R-really?! Yeah! He wants you, Logy, Stera and Lotte to meet him at the City Water Source. He’ll tell you all about his findings there. W-we’ll head over right away! Yes, I can’t wait! I’ll go get Logy!
Investigations
…However, the essence of the ancient civilization is compacted into this small object. Wait, really!? It doesn’t look like that at all… Yeah, not at all…!
You say it’s not a normal seed? I’m interested to know more. Components, structure… I researched it from all possible points of view, but much of it evades my understanding. However, if it’s true that the Geosis Controller gave this to you, it cannot be unrelated to those functions.
The environment of the land… What effects could it have? That’s the part I couldn’t decipher. Considering the function of Geosis, it could rapidly exhaust nutrients in the land… The risks are high. Exactly. However, if we build a hypothesis assuming that it retains its original use… But Flameu said that this seed was “new life”! That’s why it…! Listen to the end before making objections. What was the original goal of Geosis? Think about it. To revive a barren land… Right? Oh, then that means…! That could be a possibility… We don’t understand the inside completely, so it’s only a possibility, though. But if this seed is a key to stopping the advance of the Dusk, it would be wonderful. …I’ll return this for now. It seems to be personally important to you. Oh, yes. But are you done with it? You might figure out more if you checked it out more… I completed all of the investigations I could. Just wait for the results of the analysis. …I found a rather interesting research subject here. I haven’t spent such a fulfilling time in quite a while. Keith, could I borrow Stera for a while? I found something during my investigation that would be of interest to her. Very well. Tell her the things she needs to hear.
So, Keith and I felt it wouldn’t be enough to investigate water in the Stellard region alone. To get the full picture, I also went beyond that to investigate neighboring areas’ water situations. …And that’s why I surveyed the area to the southwest of Stellard, but I found out something kind of interesting. What!? By the southwest, do you mean the Dusk Sea!? Yeah. I also investigated the village past it. …Ayesha, you’ve done some crazy things since a long time ago, but it sounds like you’ve gotten worse. Huh? Isn’t this normal? Anyway, about the terrain around here…
Yeah, I went there. They seemed to be having trouble, but everyone was still living there. I see, that’s a relief… That’s great, Stera. Yes… It’s okay. I know there’s a way to help them. Anyway… Do you remember how we found water underground to the north of Stellard? I looked underground in the other areas to the southwest. Not only did I find groundwater, but I also was able to track a stream that led me all the way back to this region.
…Or more like everything from the eastern continent to Stellard… The Lord of Water is in the eastern continent. This must be related! I think so, Bell. You’re the one who taught me that spirits are related to this world, after all. Hehe, pretty much! … So the waterway sourced from here crosses the Dusk Sea, and continues past it? To my village, as well… Yeah. At one time in the past, water flowed into the Dusk Sea, then branched into various directions from there. This is just a guess, but I think the Dusk Sea was originally some sort of lake. A very big one. …Without a map from the past, or a detailed geographical survey, we won’t know for sure, though. Even if the Dusk Sea dried up, the waterways underground still remain. That’s great! Yes! I can proudly return to the village now… But I feel like there’s still more that we can do! Considering all this, if we can do something about the water source here, everything will be solved! I don’t know about everything, but… If it goes well, it could give us a chance to do something about the Dusk. Ayesha, you’ve really been influenced by your master. You were way more easygoing before. Hey, don’t say that, Bell. I’ve grown too, you know! Still though, this is something… to think there could be this water source coursing underground, all the way from Lugion Village back to Stellard. I'm not even sure if my father knows about that. Still though, if the situation worsens, Lugion Village might not even have that. So we oughta see what else is buried under the Ruins of Frozen Time. Well, we only have two more automatons left to recover… and one of them is in Faav Village!
The village goddess (DX)
But… Can we really take it? No, we can’t! You can’t just take it on your own.
Waaah! I told you… Can you leave this to me? I’ll try talking to them. Ayesha…! That reminds me, you were investigating the automaton in this village… Yup. That’s why I think they’ll let us borrow it if I talk to them… W-will they really let us borrow it that easily…?
You know more about our village’s legend than I myself do… So this is an automaton, and the goddess needs her automaton at her altar? I won’t argue with that. It’s yours. They let us borrow it! Ayesha… You must be trusted deeply by the villagers. I don’t know if it’s trust… W-what did you say to them? That the “goddess blessed by the Lord of Water” requires this automaton from this altar. And that the goddess would surely bless the village as a result… …See? They understood, just like I said. Whaaat…? That doesn’t seem right…
Y-yeah… But Ayesha really is amazing, in many ways… It’s not easy to get someone to part with something so valuable to them. And for the last automaton with Al… that’s exactly what we’ll have to do, right? Oh! Y-yeah… I’m bracing myself!
She might not seem as lovely as Odelia, but she's a very, very special treasure to me… Don't worry, it's just a quick check!
Hmm… Wow! She sang! Isn't she wonderful? I get to hear her lovely singing voice once in a while… There's no mistaking it. Albert… We have to borrow this! Okay, I don't min-… What? We're done here. We should get looking somewhere else. W-wait a minute! Why?! Why are you taking her away! Sorry, Al… This is an emergency. We'll return her later. We'll be using it for its original purpose… You don't need to apologize. You already have Odelia, why would you take Odetta too?! It's awful! Odetta? Did you name this automaton yourself, Al…?
Ancient song (DX)
Yes, most likely. Let's go. I want to start the experiments. I wonder what will happen… I probably shouldn't be, but, I'm really excited!
Wait a minute…! I'm going, too! Al? Why? Because I'm worried about my Odetta, that's why! …I see no harm in it. You may come.
That's the last one…! Ahh… Don't treat Odetta so roughly… You aren't doing anything dangerous that could harm her, right?? …It should start now. That is… If my theory is correct.
Music: Automata Song
…Ahh… Wow, they're really singing! I didn't know it'd come together in an actual song when all of them are together! So this is the “Altar of the Goddess”… But then, who’s the “goddess”…? You’ll find out when you enter. Lotte…! The Gate!
What…? What is this?! Let's go. The truth is in there. I-I didn't think Odetta had so much power… I really do love you, Odetta. What about him? Leave him. He won't be any use inside anyway. It's not that dangerous out here, so he should be fine. …I guess so…
This is a large-scale teleportation device. We'll have to return to the ship to make it through. Let's go. Geofront… could it be like Geosis…? Odetta!!!
Kortes?
I was just thinking about how our ship is able to travel underground like this. It's really amazing! Where's this coming from all of a sudden? …Well… There's nothing in Lugion Village. It's like time itself has frozen in place there. Yet, we have a ship like this. Don't you think that's strange? What's wrong with that? Even Stellard doesn't have a ship like this. I just thought it's strange how we were able to build it. It must have been destiny for someone in the village to travel to a far off land. You're saying this ship was built by destiny? That's ridiculous. Well, I guess I can't rule that out for sure, after seeing this. If we're able to build a ship like this, maybe our homeland isn't so backwards after all… (But if that's true, is it really okay that I'm using it? Or maybe…)
The world beneath
Music: In the Old Road
A mere shadow of the past civilization, I'm afraid. It's an example of the arrogance of mankind. Um... Do you not like people, Keith? Why do you ask? Whenever you mention things, you always seem like you feel that way… Human history is a record of the same errors over and over again. We're capable of learning, and thought, and yet everyone keeps making the same mistakes. You'll learn that after you've been around for a while, whether you want to or not. And it'll disgust you. And yet, you don't quit being an alchemist or seeking the truth… I wish to know the truth of this world… Not humanity. The truth… Of the world… Have you had enough pointless, idle chatter? We should keep moving.
I know nobody has lived down here for centuries, but still, this place sure has seen better days… I don’t think we can get past that debris up ahead, for now. But there’s an open pathway to our right…
This is… Another transportation device. Now if it takes us where I think it will…
Evergreen garden
Music: Primordial
Aaah! What was that?! What is this place…? It doesn't look like the surface, but there're so many plants… We've been teleported to another area by a device left in the ruins… It's an underground herbal garden. Herbal garden? These are all herbs? Not all of them, exactly… Though there are signs of artificial cultivation. So you said we were teleported, but… Where are we? By the coordinates, we're to the southeast of Faav Village on the eastern continent. We came this far in just an instant?! The water is so pretty… I didn't know something like this could exist… This region isn't the only area places like this exist. Yes. They're at many important locations. Plants were important for discovering the source of life. The source of life? Alchemy was created to pursue these things. I didn't know… Plants require earth, water, and the appropriate atmosphere. Water, air, and earth? What are things like that called again? The four elements? I see… Plants would represent all of them. No, they represent all of them… Fire is heat, and heat drives all life forms. Ugh, this is too hard. I don't get it.
Ohh, good answer Lotte! That makes it way easier to understand. Heh… I guess. I didn't really get the complicated stuff… Facilities like this are said to raise exceptional plants. Exceptional…? Then is the Heaven's Vine one of them…?! Wow… If that's true, alchemy is a truly wonderful, mysterious power. Wonderful?! Hah! Don't make me laugh. Ancient, powerful alchemy was forbidden. There's quite a bit of evidence. Forbidden power…?
Up ahead! Is this… A laboratory?
Ancient library (DX)
Yes, sir. This is a research center like the ones in other regions, and these documents are research data. There's control data that appears to be for water purification devices tied to various regions… As well as data about the manufacture of artificial life forms. Artificial… Lifeforms? I knew it… Part of the reason why the ocean in this region is now called the Dusk Sea. …As well as the deeds of humanity to fulfill such an end… I don’t understand… Take a careful look around this room. And think about what we’ve been discussing as of late. Even you will start to understand. What we’ve been discussing… So… a “goddess”… Controllers… and here, water purification devices and artificial lifeforms… And for all of these things, the common thread is ancient alchemy…
Anyway, there’s clearly more to this facility than this garden and this library. Let’s press onward.
Truth (DX)
…This is…!
According to records, this is an artificial lifeform, made to control this facility… It’s a “component”. A component…!? But that’s… No matter how I look at her, this is Linca… She’s human! …You already know of “administrators”, right? People like Flameu, who became part of the ancient facilities to control them? Yes… Ever since a certain era, suitable people were included in facilities as “controllers”. A certain era…? This person seems to be from an era even further in the past.
Fully controlling complicated ancient facilities such as Geosis requires a being on the level of an administrator. Such complicated control requires intelligence… Thus administrators needed to be real human beings. That was after technology advanced, however… These ruins seem to be older. The structure is far more simple. Thus even an artificial lifeform could control it. Perhaps they didn’t have the technology to use a real human yet… Artificial… Humans? Even we don’t have that technology yet… And even if it was possible, the ethicality is… This specimen is the result. It works on the technical and structural side, thus a personality was unnecessary. You know that creatures such as Slags and Homunculi were manufactured before reaching this point as well, yes? Then, Homura is…
… Homhom… …Anyway, this specimen was sufficient for the time. Even now, it still functions, and controls the facility. Don’t use words like “manufactured” and “functions”! She’s… She’s human.
T-then, the Lincas are all... We’ll speak of that later. This is all still a simple deduction. I always thought… That alchemy is something to make people’s lives, and the world a better place… Me too… I thought that if I studied alchemy more, I could stop the drought, and help everyone… It’s helping us get by now, isn’t it? …Up to this point.
No. We’ll… We’ll keep moving forward! Now, as for what this individual was controlling… The purification device here turned sea water and other sources into fresh water before distributing it. Huh? “Sea” water? Fresh water? Water from sources in this area, and water from the Dusk Sea… All water is brought here and then purified. T-that’s crazy. Exactly… The actions of humans are always reckless. …Settlements like Stellard that are ground level, with plentiful water, have relay versions of this device. That’s why, even as the Dusk progressed, villages like Lugion downstream still had water supplied to them. Your village likely has a relay device as well, Stera.
There seems to be a problem with this device. It’s using much more sea water than the natural cycle can replenish. This fault comes from people thinking that sea water is limitless. In other words, when this device’s intake exceeded the supply of water, it started emitting contamination. Um, what do you mean? You’re saying that… The device started to break down? But the time when this device started to emit contamination, and the time when the droughts started, are different. So, they kept it going as it was spewing pollutants. About that matter… Mind if I take over? What is it? It’s all coming together now. The memories of the Lord of Water…
Yeah. I saw them when I formed the contract. Keith, please believe her! I was there too…! I never said I didn’t believe her. That’s why I’m here listening. Then… Anyway. I’ll listen. …To protect this land, the Lord of Water poured her own power into the water and land itself. However, the water management device created by humans wouldn’t stop, and steadily drained the water and land.
That’s why even when the device started failing, the water supply was fine as long as the Lord of Water could hold on. That’s an obvious conclusion. Humans never care to know about what’s keeping them alive. It’s possible that by that time, nobody even knew about the underground facility, let alone manage it. …What’s the point in such a device continuing to operate? It only makes the sins of humanity grow heavier. Unfortunately, you’re right. That’s why the Lord of Water grew more and more disappointed in humans. Finally, she stopped being concerned with them entirely. … …That’s the end of my story. I hope it helps. Of course it does, Bell… Isn’t that right, Keith? Hah… I never expected to gain information like this. …Are you still saying you don’t believe in magic? That doesn’t matter. I’ve told you what needs to be said. What a simple minded girl, as usual. This world isn’t blemished by the deeds of humans alone… The truth is far deeper. That’s all I have to say. Right back at you. You’re a stubborn old man, as usual. Master… Well then… As for you two… Now that you’ve had time to reason through this, what will you do?
If we don’t, the damage will just get worse, right? And what would you do if that completely stopped the distribution of water? What? This thing continues to take in what little water remains. If you leave it, the water will go dry eventually, and it will keep spitting out pollutants. But not right away. If you stop it, the natural cycle might help it recover eventually. But the chances are low. Also, even if it did, it would take an unbelievable amount of time for the water sources to go back to normal. At that time… I’m unsure if humanity would be able to survive. …But… We might have to accept that as a result. Yeah… Though, nature is pretty resilient, I’m sure it’ll bounce back quickly. The Lord of Water lent Master her strength, and these plants are doing so well, too…! Even if it’s not within our lifetimes, I think nature would return to life. Think deeply about it. You’re the ones who will make the decision. …Lotte, let’s go back to Stellard first… We can’t decide this on your own. Yeah… We need to talk with Raoul and Mr. Perriend and have everyone decide.
A Course for Humanity
Keith and Logy… And Solle? …What could they be talking about? …That’s true. The cause of the Dusk is not a natural phenomenon. I believe that’s become quite obvious. This is all the result of the deeds of humans… Furthermore, humans refuse to learn from their past mistakes. But we’ve learned the legacy of the past, in other words alchemy, and can use it to prolong our existence. For better or worse. If we depend on the culture of the past, humanity has no means to survive at a fundamental level. That’s why we must learn the truths of the past civilization, and realize their mistakes. I agree with your assertions. However, these intellectual relics should be shared among all, not destroyed… I kind of understand how he feels… It’s true that there are no small number of people who abuse alchemy. It would be better to keep such things out of their reach, given the option. I realize my method is hasty, but there are far too many villains who exploit knowledge for their own filthy desires. If you mean the leaking of information, that could be a problem with Central’s own administrative abilities. But this isn’t something for an individual to decide… Then who will correct such deficiencies in the system? The one upside is that to use advanced ancient alchemy, considerable talent and knowledge is needed. Unfortunately, with greater talent comes greater ambitions. And if there is a defect in the organization of Central itself, the control of knowledge would… Considering the innate nature of humans, someone wicked would certainly appear. I see humans as fundamentally depraved. But we can’t discard the possibility that those on the side of good would defuse such situations. I can’t say much on that subject, but considering past precedents…
They’re all unexpectedly argumentative…
We’ve arrived back in Stellard! Can you lot pick this back up somewhere else? Very well. …I’ve much to think about…
Drought is only one part of the phenomenon known as the Dusk… I told you this before. After investigating various ruins… I determined that the legacy of alchemy culture exhausted the planet itself. The symptoms are occurring in all regions, to a greater or lesser extent. This is a rather vague way of expressing it, but… This is likely the anger of the planet toward the sins of humanity. Simply culling the human species would not solve the problem. This has happened many times in history, after all.
Exactly. If water dries up, and the land becomes barren, all creatures would die. But… Colseit is a city that grew from a land with nothing. The apple orchard is growing just fine…! A few other lands like that exist. Most of them have ancient underground devices to grow plants efficiently… Plants growing abundantly is evidence of a stable absorption and return cycle to the earth in that place. Or… I can’t say whether or not that will serve the role of reviving the power of the land. I wouldn’t hold high hopes…
I believe the water source of Stellard is one example of such a device allowing the land to survive for longer. Does that mean all the keys lie underground here? Until I confirm it with my own eyes, it’s simply an inference. But… The people in the past didn’t just sit around waiting for their ruin, right? Didn’t they try all kinds of things to bring life back to the land, and water? In the end, it was only a stopgap measure… It was just an effort to preserve the environment for humans. Indeed. As long as we rely on the legacy of the past, we cannot stop the Dusk. We can only delay its advance. But nature and spirits in this world should be stronger than humans. Even Flameu was searching for an answer… …In the past, countless spirits inhabited this planet, but now they mostly just exist in legend. Still, we can’t give up. I want to believe that alchemy can be used for good, too!
That’s why we wanted to give it a try. To see exactly what truth we could find through our actions… And speaking of actions… you two are about to take an action whose consequences will reverberate throughout this city and region. You would be well-advised to seek input before you follow through on your decision. Lots of it.