As they make their way out of the Bastion, Edith leans against Cree for support with one arm over his shoulders and her other arm wrapped around her stomach. She's still trembling and her movements remain slowed, but feeling that the heartbeat of her baby is back gives her the strength to move forward.
They make it over the hill with Nisha and Naomi following, when they see that outside the Bastion, a crowd is starting to form. The chaos in the Bastion seems to be drawing in outside attention. They scan their eyes over the crowd in search of familiar faces.
Mixed in with the onlookers, Edith spots Colin with J and Latanya. She tries moving towards him on her own but Cree has to stay at her side or else she may fall. They had to wait for her EPC to recover at least ten percent of energy before starting to make their way out, but even now she remains moderately unstable.
Cree helps her navigate through the crowd while also looking through the faces with narrowed eyes, but he stops as they reach Colin.
Edith lets him go and stumbles into Colin's arms, and he holds on tight to her and despite being an SRL, he's trembling at just seeing her again, safe and sound. The sight makes Cree smile, but his focus remains divided between them and the crowd.
"...Doll, you're okay," Colin shudders with an absent chuckle as she rests her head on his shoulder in the embrace.
She smiles feebly with a sporadic nod. "I'm..." she takes a deep breath as she is still finding her voice. "...I'm alright," she says absently. Her mind is still so focused on recovering that there's not much room for clear thought.
As she leans back, she shudders and holds her stomach tighter. Colin reinforces his hold on her and looks her over, about to ask what's wrong when he sees the bloodstain on her stomach.
He freezes and searches her eyes. "...Doll...?"
Nisha pats him on the back. "Don't worry. The baby's fine," she says to save Edith from having to spend anymore emotional energy on explaining. "There was an incident with The Envoy, but it's all good now."
Concern fills Colin's eyes. "Oscar... hurt you?" he asks carefully, but Edith just lowers her head more and tenses in his arms. "Sorry. You just focus on recovering," he gently rubs her back and she nods.
"Okay..." she looks up at him and tilts her head. "...Where are your wires?"
Colin lets out a sheepish chuckle and scratches the back of his head. "Well..."
While they're talking, Cree keeps looking over the crowd. More and more worry grows on his face each time he turns, when he finally looks to Colin again. "Where's Regan?" he asks, when the chattering of the crowd falls silent and everyone turns their attention onto the bridge of Espheral.
Following their gaze, they see the army from Mortal marching forward, when they stop and part for Peace and Data to pass with Corbin fighting against them and metal cuffs restraining her wrists behind her back.
Data looks over the crowd and spots her friends, when she sees Cree and shows him a small nod that makes him smile and return the gesture.
Peace and Data pull Corbin aside, and stepping up in the center of the parted army is Regan with his head high but his shoulders slouched. His eyes look tired as he casts his gaze out over the crowd and doesn't stop searching until he finds Cree, when he smiles wearily.
The crowd is silent as they watch Regan intently, and he sees the expectancy in each and every one of their gazes. Apprehension lingers in the air with every passing moment. But with it is also a sense of hope. A small sense, but it's hope nonetheless.
They all remember Regan as the man who inspired them to stand up against the Imperium with his words alone, and now here he is, standing strong while Anneliese Corbin wilts in shame.
With a deep breath, he starts to speak. "For her crimes against not only the continent of Eutria, but the world; Anneliese Corbin will be put on trial by the Sage Council upon my return to Utopia," he states, seeing out of the corner of his eye as Corbin fights some more against Peace's grip, but she's not getting anywhere.
"But one thing is for certain," he continues. "On this day, her title of 'Director' is revoked and her experiments will no longer harm the people who once believed her to be a savior. But... that leaves the Imperium in need of a new Director..." he looks away and even from the crowd, Cree can see how his shoulders tense.
Regan takes another deep breath, exhaling the tension and anxiety he feels with every word he says. "It... has been brought to my attention that given my bloodline that ties me to Ophelia Dev'mar Angevell – the original founder of the Dev'al Ordon – the role should rightfully fall upon me," he sighs. "But this isn't about Ophelia. This isn't about the Dev'al Ordon, the Dominion, or even the Imperium," his face hardens a bit as he looks over the crowd.
"This is about us. Humanity. We keep trying to find solutions to all of life's problems, but what we fail to realize is that we are the problem," he states. "It doesn't matter how we look - if we have pointed ears or cat tails. It doesn't matter if we were born or made. It doesn't matter if we can cast spells or turn into a monkey on a whim," his eyes flash to Edith, Colin, Naomi, Nisha and J. "Because, at our core, we are all human. We all think. We all feel. We all act on what we believe is 'right' or 'wrong.' We all love and hate."
"And yet, we are different. To some, this is a strength. To others, a weakness. It's in our differences that people see flaws. But only in each other. Because another part of being human is that we can never admit to our own mistakes. Our own failures. We carry on with trying to be 'perfect' but the moment we're not, it's someone else's fault," he says sharply and his hands tighten into fists at his sides.
"We are all human. And we are all flawed," he states. "But what we need to realize is that our flaws are just a part of who we are. We can strive to better ourselves, but that should be all we try to do. It's when we perceive the 'flaws' of others and try to force our solutions onto people who are happy as they are that the true problems arise," he looks down.
"The Dev'al Ordon tried forcing people to conform to their way of life. Because of this, the Order fell. The Dominion tried forcing humanity to evolve by turning them into SRL, and because of this, they were destroyed by their own creation," he looks to Corbin. "And now, all that remains is the Imperium that tried forcing its people to wage a war against themselves..." he sighs as he looks away.
"A war that I knowingly took part in waging," he says. "I used my words to turn Eutria against Anneliese Corbin simply because I saw her vision for the future as 'flawed.' I claim to advocate for peace while encouraging the fighting of a home that isn't even my own."
"I am not perfect, because perfect doesn't exist," he says as he looks over the crowd again. "I admit to my mistake and stand here now to atone for it. It was my own flaw to not see the bigger picture back then. I know my own flaws, but that is only for me to determine and the same goes for every person on this planet," he narrows his eyes.
"We need to stop deciding what each other's flaws are. We need to stop mistaking 'differences' for 'flaws,'" he stands taller. "Many would consider it a flaw that I am in love with a man," he states and flashes a smile to Cree, who smiles back. "Many would consider it a flaw that I call SRLs friends when to many, they are nothing but machines," he looks to Edith and Colin.
"But I don't consider these things to be anything to feel shame for. If anything, I take pride in what makes me different. I take pride in the differences of others. So trying to force conformity upon the world just takes away all that makes life beautiful. 'Conformity' is not the same as 'equality.' Trying to force humanity into something it's not simply to fix their 'flaws' is where the conglomerate failed."
He takes another deep breath against his heartbeat drumming in his chest. "With the barriers down, we are free. Free to live side by side. And free to fight each other all the same. Free to love. Free to hate. But I believe that if we just stop for a moment and think about the real problem, then we can adapt," he asserts.
"Because the problem isn't our differences. It's ourselves. It's humanity itself. We can try to be perfect. Try to do the 'right' thing. But in the end, we are still human. And it is in our nature to be flawed. It's in our nature to let our pride get in the way of realizing that we are the problem. And there is no solution other than to accept our own flaws and overcome them for ourselves," he says.
"The conglomerate had the capacity to be the order that the world needed, but once they realized the potential in magic, in technology, they started their experiments. They wanted to change the world. But these experiments went too far," he takes a firm step forward.
"We went too far."
"We are all mortal. Trying to fix that will only lead us down the same path as the Dominion. As the Dev'al Ordon. Part of life is knowing that we will die one day. We can't escape this, we can only try to make the lives we live worthwhile. We have to embrace our differences. We have to love. We have to stop trying to fix the world when it is impossible to 'fix' the nature of humanity. Simply accepting what we are down to our cores will be the first step in making true progress towards something better."
He looks across the crowd and ultimately sets his gaze upon his friends. "We all live our lives one day at a time. Death isn't the end, it's simply a part of life. Part of our story. It's only the end if you make it the end – and only the start if you make it the start," he smiles.
"So why not make it the start of the world instead?"
He holds his head higher. "Corruption tainted the Imperium and it's only a matter of time before it is destroyed just like the Dominion and Dev'al Ordon. This considered, I have made my decision," he says with another glance to Corbin that he immediately returns to his friends.
"I accept the title of Director."
He sees Cree's eyes widen with concern that he tries to cover, but Regan keeps going. "And as Director, I hereby declare that the Imperium – the last remaining branch of the conglomerate that has controlled our world – be disbanded."
He sees Corbin fight some more but Peace keeps her under control.
Regan smiles again. "There is no point in waiting for more bloodshed to bring the end of the corruption. So the continents may learn to do as Utopia did. They learned how to take care of themselves and their own people. Yes, there are still problems. And yes, there are still wars and hate among their people, but that is just a part of life. We can't 'solve' hatred, we can only strive to overcome it," he explains.
"So that's what I will do," he says. "I will take on the task of helping the world learn to govern themselves as Utopia has. But," he glances at Cree once more. "But my top priority will be to live. To be there for the people I love – for my family. The man I love and our daughter," his eyes light up.
"Because, at the end of the day, I am still human," he says and looks across the crowd again. "So I won't try to be perfect. I will simply be me," he shrugs. "And I will be proud of that."
"So let's stop trying to 'fix' each other. And instead, work towards achieving a better future for ourselves," he states firmly. "A future free of control."
As he finishes, the crowd begins to cheer which makes him feel a little choked up.
But after just a moment of celebration, Naomi winces and holds her head. Nisha rests her hand on her shoulder and watches her in question and worry.
"Naomi? Are you okay?"
She's unable to answer before she's forced into her own mind to see a series of images.
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She sees a man.
The Envoy.
He's in front of a massive device that she takes a moment to realize what it is.
A nuke.
He presses a button, when everything goes white.
And then there will be nothing.
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She's pulled out of it with a gasp to see that the crowd now falls silent at the sound of static and feedback on the screen of every phone in the crowd. From the speakers of the Bastion. Anything that picks up the powerful signal.
It's everywhere. Every city on every continent hears it.
Regan stops smiling and looks around, when the static cuts out and a voice replaces it.
The voice of The Envoy.
"After everything the Imperium had worked towards, giving up now would be giving up on humanity's only chance at truly achieving unity," he says, getting Edith to tense and shakily step out of Colin's arms.
Cree sees the worry spread across Regan's face as they both realize the broadcast is coming from the device they had helped create during their time with the Old-World Coalition. The Beacon.
He starts phasing his way through the crowd, passing through the people like air until he finally reaches Regan's side and grabs his hand to reassure him as The Envoy keeps speaking.
"I didn't want to have to do this, but if the Imperium is disbanded and Anneliese Corbin is removed from the throne, then it seems no one else will. Humanity is broken and with the barriers down, the division will only spread further and further until downfall is inevitable," he states.
"But I am prepared to make the sacrifice that it seems no one else has the courage to. With the barriers out of the way, the world is ready to be united. But only after it is cleansed of the division. The conglomerate failed when they tried improving humanity with magic and technology."
Edith starts slowly shaking her head as she also starts making her way forward through the crowd to reach Regan and Cree and Colin follows.
"In front of me is a nuke," The Envoy states. "With it, I will wipe out what remains of the world so that in the future, humanity may have a fresh start. A new world where the continents are already united and without the conglomerate's influence."
Edith starts pushing her way through the crowd frantically as her heart beats faster and faster with her fear rising to the surface.
"I take no pleasure in this. But this is what the world needs. We can't grow after so much corruption has poisoned our minds. The next generation of humanity will have the chance to succeed where we have failed."
"...I hope you all can understand and accept that this is what must be done." The broadcast cuts out.
Peace feels Corbin freeze in her grasp and looks over to see terror on the woman's face. She just absently shakes her head with her only eye fixated unblinking on one of the speakers.
"...What's that idiot thinking...?" Corbin shudders under her breath.
Without a second thought, Data snaps her hand up to her earpiece.
"Malachi?" she asks shakily.
"Already on our way to Utopia," Malachi states from the other side. "Not that it'll make much of a difference if the whole world's gonna die," he says grimly. Data can hear Reela crying in the background.
Edith reaches Regan and Cree with Colin following close behind.
"What do we do?" she asks breathlessly and holds her stomach tighter, dropping to her knees as she takes deep breaths.
Cree looks down with a growl as he stiffly shakes his head. "He's at the power plant in Riven..." he states. "There... there's no time to get there before he sets that thing off..."
"Not necessarily," comes the voice of Regan's sister. They all turn around to see as Jules appears in a violet flash from a magic rune and she rushes up to the group. "I've been in touch with Giovanni, Connor and Lucian. They watched The Envoy enter and apparently that fucking madman burned all the hazmat suits so he couldn't be followed, otherwise they could've stopped him," she explains.
"So what do we do?" Regan asks with a shaking voice.
Jules sighs. "Well... we can't enter, but..." she looks to Edith and Colin. "An SRL could."
Colin doesn't give Edith a chance to speak before nodding and stepping forward. "I'll do it. Regan, Cree, get Edith and the others to safety and I'll return when I can," he states, but Edith shakes her head violently and tries to stand up, but drops back to her knees.
"No! Colin—"
"There's no time to debate this, Edith," he states. "The Envoy already hurt you and the baby once. I won't take that chance again. Please, Edith. Please don't fight me on this..." he begs and sees the anger flare up in Edith's eyes, but Jules speaks again before she can protest any further.
"Come on, Colin. We don't have much time. Connor and Lucian can get you inside but after that, it's all on you," she states and her hands glow violet as she casts another teleportation rune at her feet with her Summoning Magic.
Colin steps into the rune and it glows brighter around him and Jules.
Edith watches the light grow almost blinding as Jules prepares to take them across the far distance but she can't look away as tears fill her eyes, blurring the light as it casts across her face.
Regan and Cree step back and as they do, Cree reaches out to bring Edith with them, but he doesn't have time to catch her before she sprints off the ground and shoves Colin out of the way, entering the rune the moment before it vanishes in a blinding flash.
She doesn't care about anything right now aside from the knowledge that her son is about to pull the kill switch for humanity.
She promised to always protect him.
Now she's the only one who can stop him from causing the end of the world.