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The rubble separates them from the Steam Knight... and someone else.

Siege immediately reacts.

Allerdale!

Forgive me...

Her lips move slightly.

Siege knows Allerdale called to her.

Was it 'Vina'? Or 'Your Highness'?

Siege does not know.

She may never know.

The sound is drowned by the rubble.

The door is shut.

Alright, come now, my nightmare...

My hope.

(Heavy gushing)

One scene floats to the surface of the Steam Knight's tumultuous memories.

A girl sheds tears for him before he stands up.

Pah—

Son of a—

There's nowhere to run!

Last smoke grenade. We still have a chance.

You've done enough, mercenary.

Surrender, and they might let you live.

No way. How many more years would I have to work?

Enough.

End this.

Were you the ones manipulating Allerdale?

No, it's not you. The cowardly dukes wouldn't dare show their faces here.

Allerdale has failed. Alexandrina has the Sighs of Kings.

What a boring conclusion.

You know what?

You will do.

You will pay for all that you've done!

Act 4 —————— Finale

Stop, traitor!

Nothing can stop me. You must pay for your crimes.

You will die with me!

The death of the flesh does not daunt me. Countless eyes will bear witness.

Brave children, you will carry the torch.

You will remember my virtues, and take this hard-earned peace into tomorrow.

The end.

That was wonderful, Lady Golding. A great success.

The product of a year of everyone's hard work.

I wish we were in more peaceful times. That way, Heidi could have been here to see it.

It's times like these that we need a play like this.

Look how happy the kids are—

Hey, Leo! Don't run with the props!

Get back here!

Get back here!

Run, run! I'll come for you! Great Victoria will come for you!

Hie over the valleys and over the rivers, rumble-ye-rumble...

Crush them! Squeeze the blood from them!

Die! You'll all die! I'll catch you and kill you!

Squeeze it out!

Surrender, Sarkaz!

Surrender!

Or not, because I'll catch you!

Stop! You're ruining Lady Golding's handmade 'steam armor'!

They...

Don't be angry, Lady Golding. They're just playing a game.

A game...?

Yes. The play has ended.

'Squeeze the blood from them'?

It's... the Sarkaz...

She sees before her eyes the red that filled the bookstore.

She does not even have the strength to vomit.

It's normal.

We're in a war, after all.

The Sarkaz have been arresting people left and right, often in violent ways. The children see them, and emulate their behavior.

Do you know, Molly...?

Many remnants of Gaul harbor fear of the Steam Knights.

Those who were part of the war will never forget the sound of steam gushing outside their window that night.

But I had hoped that the Steam Knights would be more than just a weapon of death to the children.

I had hoped that there would be beautiful hope in their hearts when they play the Steam Knight.

I thought this was a war I could win.

Golding's gaze follows the children.

The foam-made steam armor falls to the ground. She tries to pick it up, but pulls back sharply, as though she's been burned.

I thought I was teaching the children...

Now, I realize that they were the ones teaching me a lesson.

This, here, is the ending. The true ending.

Before the wheels of time...

What we do may be utterly meaningless.

The lessons of the books are distant, blurred.

But no one can avoid being shaped by the times.

If they belong to blood, violence and war...

Then, our children will belong to blood, violence and war.

This is unavoidable.

What... what should I...

How could I dream of fighting it?

The Year 1098

1:03 P.M. \ Overcast

Palace of Westhaleg, Londinium

Even before Londinium was a nomadic city, the Palace of Westhaleg stood here.

Its name was originally plain Westhaleg. The Draco royal family convened its ministers here in this palace, and used their beloved gold and ruby to decorate the outer walls.

Said decorations went up in flames during the Great Fire three hundred years ago. Still, the building's skeleton remained, and it bore witness to the first Aslan king's coronation.

Thereafter, Westhaleg formally became the Palace of Westhaleg, to commemorate the age of peace and prosperity founded by the Draco and Aslan kings in joint.

Twenty-six years ago, the last Aslan king was captured in the same place by Parliament's standing forces.

And now, this is no longer the building where the Victorian Parliament assembles.

Sat at the conference table is but one person, not Draco, nor Aslan, but Sarkaz.

...still no sign of movement from the Duke of Gododdin... ever since the Viscount's life was attempted, our activity in the demesne has been greatly restricted...

...lavish salons held every night at the Duke of Normandy's residence, but the flow of raw steel is extremely suspect, and all intelligence personnel have turned up empty-handed...