Riviera: The Promised Land Part #35

Part 35: Finale, Part 4

Aaaarrrgh! How...how is this possible?! I have the power of Seth! You should not have the strength to defy me! You cannot!

You could have all the power in the universe and it wouldn't matter. To me, you're still just another demon to be put down.

I am a Grim Angel. Created to fight a battle that the gods themselves couldn't win. If anyone is strong enough to oppose you, it's me. And if anyone should know that, it's you.

...

Asgard may have given me my Diviner, but Riviera gave me friends, happiness, and the will to do what's right! That is worth fighting for, more than any dead gods!

This world doesn't need an absolute god! And it doesn't need the Retribution!

I...was...too weak. I see now, your true power...the strength of your will. My existence was brief. Perhaps...it was never meant to be at all.

Heh...

...

Peace out...homeboy...

Did we win?

Yeah.

...it doesn't feel like it.

No.

What's happening?!

The maze is falling apart!

Everybody run!

There's nowhere to run to!

(Is this really it? After all this, we're just going to die here?)

Keep moving! There has to be an exit somewhere!

(I just had a horrible thought. What if this was all part of the gods' plan? What if we're just puppets in their show? Do we really have any control over-)

Damn it, Rose! We don't have time for an existential crisis right now!

(YOU'RE ONE TO TALK)

Wh...what? Where am I? What happened?

Ein...

Ursula?

You are victorious, and your journey is at an end. Riviera is saved.

...for real this time?

Yes. Now that Seth has been vanquished, the Retribution can no longer take place. Even if the other Magi decide to act, even if Riviera's destruction was truly the will of the gods, there is nothing they can do anymore.

Thank you...

Are you alright? You sound...weaker, somehow.

I am. Yggdrasil and the Maze of Shadows, or rather Seth and I...we are connected. Opposites, but connected nonetheless. Neither of us can exist without the other. With Seth gone, I too am beginning to wane.

You're going to die?

Yes. But don't worry. The Accursed are dead, and without them, demons can no longer invade this land. And as I have said, the Retribution is now impossible, thanks to your efforts. Riviera has no need of me anymore.

In that case, there's something I want to say.

Yes?

Thank you. You changed the course of my life, and...I think it was for the better. I'm sure now that I would have regretted it if I'd stayed on with Ledah and Hector. I guess I might have resented you for it at first, but now I know that what you did was right. So...thank you.

...

You're welcome. But you should really have saved the thanks until later. I have a gift for you.

A gift?

Of sorts. Truth be told, I have been placed under some pressure. She is very determined to see you again, and I was threatened with all manner of horrible fates if I did not comply.

Not that I'm not going to die anyway, but I'd prefer to fade away peacefully rather than...enduring what she had in mind.

You mean...?

Consider this my expression of gratitude. Farewell, saviour of Riviera. You have my blessing.