Transcript for 5.21: Second Citadel--The Fall (Part 2)

Okay, I think I got all that. I just have one question. Yet? Who the hell are any of these people again?

Sorry, this story is just a little hard to follow when I only know Damian and Sir Mark. And maybe I saw Mark's brother, what's his name? One time? Maybe?

Well, I was going to hell of a lot of friends, doesn't she?

No. No, I guess I can't.

Alright, so Silver Shore is falling to pieces. You told me that Lord Arum, Mark, and those two friends of Ola-la's Angelo and Aley. They've all escaped Silver Shore through the mirrored planes, and a few days later near the lake of tranquility, Damian, Mark's brother, and Damn it, what's her name?

Right, Rilla. Rilla. What was Mark's brother's name again? Who knows? Uh, okay. Well, those three tangled with the monster sent it and found out the monsters of spies and are ready to go to war whenever the second Citadel makes a move. And got their hands on St. Damien's spear. Did I miss anything?

You're right, then. We are further along than I thought. One of the Saints' relics down and two to go. Does the universe know a Ferdinand slingshot is?

You know, a whole lot of it. It sounds like Hell, it's not like it would solve all our problems anyway. It's like Damien said before he got his hands on that spear, even if we get all these relics, what the hell are we supposed to do with them?

Yeah, that which ghost Caroline was talking to said something similar, but it was spending all its magic on Oula.

Then you think we should just kill them? Another massacre on land in the waves in the sky, but taking down machines instead of monsters?

If I'm not convinced it's because I've never seen a war in my lifetime that was ended by killing a bunch of people. Humans and monsters in the north have been doing that forever, and it hasn't moved the needle either way. Best case scenario, if the Saints' relics really are enough to take out the arrow planes and everything else, the invaders just send more arrow planes. Maybe now, maybe a thousand years from now, but they'll send them, alright? And what the hell are we supposed to do then?

So we just keep handing these weapons down generation to generation and hope nobody uses them for the wrong reasons in between? Break glass in case of off-world invaders? Or accidentally blows up an entire kingdom like what happened in the first Citadel? This universe can clearly protect itself when it gets the chance. That barrier around Silver Shore, the one from the Crystal Baby thing, Tristan and Gala had were trying to destroy. That kept the invaders away for a long time. What we need is something like that.

Too big and ask, huh? Even for the universe?

Huh? Oh, me. Oh, of course I mean you. Who else could I mean?

I certainly know the feeling, yes. I threw mine out years ago, but you look nervous, Brent Elfon.

What are you not, my friend? I'm sure we will be successful in our endeavor to take St. Aaron's hammer.

We've discussed this extensively.

Would you rather we kill humans by the dozen, by the hundreds?

As I've said, there exists a theory within the Temple of Tranquility's teaching.

Even so, from a flawed premise we can, at times, find sound reasoning. Great minds, the temple of tranquility, have at times opposed the citadel's endless war, even if those minds were often exiled for doing so. Sounds familiar. But the theory, again, is this. If both sides of a war were to come upon weapons so terrible that each could mean the complete destruction of the other, these sides might enter a sort of eternal stalemate. Neither side can act without the other ensuring their destruction, and so neither side will act in order to preserve themselves. Thus, with the saints' relics in hand, we might be able to persuade the invaders from over the world's edge that to attack us would be there undoing, and so they will refuse to attack.

Well, it wouldn't.

Oh, I'm not certain.

I don't know. All right. Is that what you want to hear? I don't know. But we are all in agreement that something must be done. Yes? And quickly? Right. Yeah. Because we all agree that a weapon as powerful as St. Aaron's hammer. If the second citadel were to understand its power and attempt to use it, which does sound like epsilon, it could be catastrophic, particularly for monster kind. It is better in our hands than theirs. Are we in agreement? Sure. I guess so. Then we must take the hammer for ourselves. Once we have it? Well, as Telfron so clearly put it, forever is forever. We will have plenty of time to decide what should be done with it. But unless anyone has a more sound idea, I think we should put the topic to rest for now. If we have decided to act, we must act. hesitation even justified hesitation can only lead us to defeat.

Okay. And now, for the problem before us, Saint Aaron's hammer is stored in the secret passage where leading to the Queen's hidden chambers within the Citadel Spire. We must find our way into the Spire and into that passage, procure the hammer and then escape undetected. Does anyone have any ideas as to how we might go about that?

To do exactly what we're doing, you mean? The irony is not lost on us, friend, to tell, friend. information. Before anything else, we must gather information. There must be some reason that the guard has been redoubled this day. If there is something special about today in particular, we may be able to use that strangeness to our advantage. Security is most secure when it's following its most practiced patterns, after all. Any change in the norm may present an opening we can take advantage of.

Risk is inevitable in this endeavor, I'm afraid. Let's draw closer and see if we can learn anything we can use.

And let's hide ourselves in those bushes, and you've had color of the wall, and learn what we may.

We say quiet first of all. If you've hit maybe too late for that, my Rilla, but my bow is no use in such close quarters and St. Damien's spear would surely kill him.

But are you all right? You seem terribly injured, my love.

I'm afraid not, Angela.

and if push comes to shove, I'm sure we will. But only if there is truly no other course of action. One cannot be a pacifist only when it is convenient. One's values are truly tested when they become difficult to uphold.

Perhaps you're right. Even if this theory were to work and in the interest of self-preservation, the off-worlders do not attack us. That can only by time. What of the next generation, once we are dead and gone, how will we ensure that they understand the severity, the importance of protecting these relics, but only using them if there is absolutely no other choice? Just holding these weapons seems like an incredible risk.

The protective field over Silvershore was destroyed in much the same way. The jellyfish elder knew of it, but the workers at wayward east pressed did not, and so they did not protect it properly. The invaders from over the edge of the world have waited many centuries to take this universe, I suspect.

And so, if we merely delay their assault, they will simply take our descendants instead of ourselves. I can hardly think of that as victory.

Lord Arun, is there something you wanted to say to us?

No. No, I hardly think we are above that. Perhaps there are things I should tell you as well, Lord Ahram. Tamian, if not now, then when, my Rilla. It seems our time in this universe may nearly be at it end.

Please do, and Lord Haram know that I will not be upset with you, no matter what you have to say. It is too great a relief to see you well again.

I thank you, Lord Arum. But I do not think you have anything to apologize for.

It may yet. I don't know what story it will pin in my hands, and increasingly I believe that I'm not fully aware of the story that has brought it here today. But I know that I hardly trust myself with this spear. Such terrible power. It is a terrible thing to have such terrible power, particularly when one does not understand it. I think if I could hide it away again, I would. And so I am not angry with you for not telling me earlier, Lord Aaron. I am only honored that you feel you can tell me now.

I am concerned, yes, but not angry. the essential language and an equal symmetrical relationship by a who cares you must have been so afraid of being alone and you didn't even tell us that sounds so hard indeed I wish only that I could help you in some way that you love us so much that you stay with us despite knowing the heartache that is inevitable in your future

No. Nothing is simple. And so, perhaps I should speak my heart as well, my Rilla?

Arum has been brave, and so I think I must as well.

Lord Arum, before we met you all those years ago, Rilla and I had made a sort of promise to one another. We were engaged to be married.

You knew and you don't mind.

Oh, she is certainly for it. She agreed when I asked her after all, and I... Damien?

What?

How long have you felt this way?

I see. And even after all this time, you never, after all the times we discussed it. Damien. Honey, suckle.

I think you should. I... I can reach no words from where I stand at present.

Yes. Yes, I think you're right. And I can only imagine one course that I might regret. I suppose I can't blame you for hiding your feelings, my Rilla. I don't know that I would have responded very well to them at any point in the past.

wounded perhaps, but not fatally so. I might have guessed it to be frank, your reticence to discuss it, but well I suppose I didn't want to see it. And now on the potential eve of the end of everything, I suppose the truth must come out, mustn't it? There really isn't any other way. There are many ways we do not fit the three of us, but I find perhaps it is the darkness of these times, but I find that does not make me despair. It only makes me determined to build a way a new way perhaps to interlock the three of us together. A commitment of love is deeply powerful as marriage.

You've only, you've only there were such a way.

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It's just that I barely know these people, and now I'm kind of all up in the personal business, so... You'll meet them soon enough.

No, not to be a bummer or anything, but... Not really. Maybe if we can't think of anything better, but that would be pretty bad. Hard to get too excited about mutually assured destruction, especially given what we've seen from the people over the world's edge. Hard to believe they'll give up, no matter how many arrow planes we threaten to destroy, especially since the battlefield is our home, not theirs. We have everything to lose here. What's the universe think about that?

Cool. Super helpful. What about Mark and the one armed swordsman, Oleg? Did they manage to get their hands on St. Aaron's hammer?

The Citadel's fire. Look, my friends! The second Citadel is... Collapsing. No.

The temple! The barracks! By many homes but all these years! Gone!

Well, why is it a deal?

The second Citadel. Belle? It's gone?

You can't believe it. I never would have thought. I can't believe it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just thinking What am I saying? No, I'm not all right. That's two homes down now. I knew I knew that those invaders wanted to destroy everything. But nothing prepares you emotionally for when they actually do it.

That's why I'm thinking now. But Mark and Alley got the hammer at least, right?

Two relics down. And all of those right, we have a lead on the third, but no matter how powerful they are, fighting back against these people might be the wrong move. They can always send more arrow planes and who knows what kind of damage will do to our own universe if we use the relics wrong. The hammer destroyed the first that it had left or all, so we need a way to keep them out. Somehow. The Ghost Witch that Caroline talks to Sylvia of Hyburna. She said that the universe was spending so much magical energy on Ola that it couldn't protect itself. Is that right?

And so if the universe had more magic to spend, it could get rid of the invaders and keep them away on its own.

Nothing's going to happen to Oola, not if I have anything to say about it. But she can't be the only thing the universe is spending its magic on. Those relics, for example, if they're that destructive, wouldn't they be packing a lot of power of their own?

Well, would it work?

So it's a maybe, but given how rough everything's looking, I'll take a maybe. If you saw that, you must be able to get around the universe pretty quick, right? Think you can deliver a few messages from me?

It'll help Caroline.

All right. I want you to get to that other group, Mark and the Frog guy and all of them, and tell them to meet us at the center of the universe.

Then I want you to do the same for the Queen and Absalon. Tell them to bring what's left of the night too.

Hopefully. Based on what you said about that pig senator, moving the Citadel's army should move the monster army too. We're looking to make a mess as big a mess as we can manage. I think it's our only shot.

And it's my head, sure. You can get in line with everyone else who wants to take it. But you should probably move quick. I get the impression we're running out of time.

It's a long shot, Lamar. But when a long shot's the only shot you got, you take it every time.

I've got the watch for tonight Ola. Get some rest. I'm thinking you'll need a lot of it to get through what's coming next.