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But that's good news for us, since they're all sealed off to prevent dust and corrosion, and there's no smart locks on anything...

Even I'd find it pretty tough to learn to hack on the spot.

Lemme see...

The storm's moving faster than the plate, so just reversing's a no-go. Turning—turning's the best way out.

But trying to change direction when the plate's already so close to the Catastrophe... No, I can't worry about that!

Where's the backup navigational system...

Here it is!

First open the lock... Great, I'm in.

Then...

Tippi takes a deep breath, and hopes she remembers the steps right.

Pull the lever all the way down!

Bang—

Tippi is thrown against a wall by a huge force. The entire engine layer shakes, with all sorts of strange mechanical noises ringing throughout the tiny space—

That was the plate's 'waist' jerking around, with every segment of the treads below now trying to respond to the change.

The steel giant under her feet is now fighting its own immense and unstoppable inertia by steering sideways, trying to avoid the storm right up ahead—

Tippi feels her teeth ache.

She does not know if it will manage to turn in time, or how long it will take.

All she can do is pray.

Even a little shift will do. We'll have a tiny, tiny chance as long as we don't hit the storm's core.

It has to work, it HAS to work!

I have to... see her one more time.

Meow—

Miss.Christine shakes her tails, jumping in front of the little Liberi to smell the changes in her mood.

A brief relief after achieving her goal, along with confusion and pain from a friend's betrayal... But why is there also a hint of suppressed madness?

No. That smell does not belong to the girl.

Miss.Christine jerks her head up, looking towards a place she cannot see. A companion who has been with her the whole time.

Lucian feels sympathy towards the other person, which means he is currently experiencing twice the pain.

Miss.Christine is somewhat displeased.

She cannot help but recall the night when the Crimson Troupe was destroyed, as Lucian sang under name Blood Diamond—

It is no good omen.

How are you so calm, Lucian?

Are you disappointed? Unmoved by what I've done?

A mannequin pounces on him. While it is an inanimate object, Lucian feels a strong depressive aura that suddenly turns into elation and ecstasy...

As Lucian touches the mannequin, the emotions turn into energy, forcing him backwards.

...Dalton.

There is no doubt these are the feelings Dalton had right before his final rehearsal.

Why don't you fight back? Do you have that little interest in me, babe?

But ever since you played the part of the Messenger and spoke those lines about fate, I haven't been able to take my eyes off you!

...Michael.

The mannequin passes on Moira's emotions and she turns into Michael. The excessive yet artificial man who always wore his heart on his sleeve.

What kind of emotions are you hiding inside yourself?

You let me feel fear, and danger, so much danger...

...Shelly.

Shelly. In the final moments of her life, the neurotic coordinator was completely wrecked by her own fear.

Turning emotions into tangible energy, and any object that passes through your hands becomes a medium to release it...

...So these are your Originium Arts.

I see why he chose you. Why he led you to become what you are now.

A prop master, strings, puppets... all images born just for the stage. When you forget your self, a person becomes a play.

Come, join in our performance, Lucian.

If you're right, and that man roused my abilities, then as his real student, you will make the best dance partner!

Moira laughs and cries loudly... a thousand expressions flash across her face, filling the prop room with a suffocating energy—

There is nowhere for Lucian to run.

Fine.

What?

Moira, I will sing for you... as you wish.

The Blood Diamond's song is a kind of misfortune, for both himself and the audience.

It will rip my throat apart, sending pain straight into your ears... And you will either die, or spend the rest of your life with its melody reverberating in your mind.

If you willingly ignore the truth in your hands, if you're satisfied by such falsehoods, if you can only approach him by destroying yourself...

Then allow me to relieve your pain, and enter the stage once more.

Moira hears a song.

The emotions within flood into her, overwhelming even the song itself. She does not understand what Lucian is singing about, she only feels...

Joy, fear, doubt, rage, hatred, and sorrow—a hundred times stronger than her own...

Before she is completely washed away by the emotions, she cannot help but think—

What sort of experiences must one go through to understand such revelations—or was he simply forced to learn it all within the despair of having nothing at all—

Troupe Leader, Whiteflower is still waiting for us for the curtain call. Why have we come here?

This is just a river... There's nothing here this time of night...

I'm afraid Whiteflower will be upset by tonight's sparse audience.

For this river here is the final stage.

Tell them, Playwright. What does the revised ending look like?

I...

The 'magician's assistant' and the 'lucky audience member' who both died on stage are stuffed into prop boxes and thrown into the river. Once the dust settles, they will wake up and emerge from the river under the stars...

They used their story deaths to distance themselves from their prison of nightmares.

That's... Blood Diamond and Abyss?

Wait, didn't they return to the castle already? Why would they be here...

Are they... running away?

It seems our travel plans have been interrupted, Abyss.

What... how?

The 'magician's assistant' and 'lucky audience member' came back to life... now this is true magic.

With this crowd looking on, it would seem he's a fan of this new improvised ending.

Let's go back, he's waiting for us.

Go back?

We can still run, Lucian.

Come with me. The river's wide enough, and he's far enough away...

If you choose to flee now, he'll let you go. But fear will seep into your bones, and torment you for the rest of your life.

I'll go back to him, learn all his skills, uncover all his secrets, and then destroy it all.

For such is my wretched fate.

Fate? Are you sure it's not just proof that you've become entranced with the Troupe, with him, once more?

If this is the pain and despair he has given me...

Then I will become his fate.

Somehow, you always understand him and his twisted aesthetics.

Yet you never listen to me... or maybe you never really wanted to escape. You've spent far too long trapped in this nightmare.

Fine then. I hope the Crimson Troupe's Blood Diamond will grant a former 'friend' one last favor—

Don't chase me. Don't come after me.

Let us part here, friend... We will meet again once this all falls to ruin.

At some point, the black creature appears inside the prop room, nimbly avoiding Moira's body as she goes over to Lucian.

With his knees bent halfway, and surrounded by mannequin parts scattered all over the ground, for once, Lucian doesn't perform the gesture of a proper gentleman's salute to her.

The lady is even more displeased by his actions.

You haven't sung in a long time, Lucian.

Apologies, Miss.Christine. Did you hurry here as soon as you could?

(Flicks tails without comment)