Stranded
now in Nosgoth's nightmarish future, Raziel enters the ruined
Pillars clearing and sees the devastation wrought by Kain's
fateful decision a century ago. Toppled columns litter the clearing,
their sheared-off stumps protruding crookedly, like broken teeth.
Raziel stands in stunned silence for a moment as he surveys
this apocalyptic scene.
Raziel
V.O.
These were the Pillars so familiar to my blighted eyes.
But now that I had begun to learn their true significance, I
regarded the Pillars' destruction with a new, enlightened sense
of horror.
And I questioned now whether Kain's simple refusal - his mere
ambition - could truly have caused such devastation.
I felt that some darker influence was at work here.
In
the gloom, Raziel sees the specter of Ariel drifting restlessly
among the toppled Pillars.
Raziel:
V.O.
As I approached, I discerned the spirit of Ariel - bound
here now for more than a century.
As
Raziel approaches, he hears Ariel lamenting to herself, unaware
of his presence.
Ariel:
Forever
am I bound, hope abandoned, my spirit tethered to this place...
What destroyed the Circle could not touch me. For I was newly
dead, and beyond harm's reach.
I alone was spared the descent into madness, and Kain alone
was spared the pain of death.
When Nupraptor's poison seized Kain even in the safety of the
womb, much more than just his destiny was lost. All of Nosgoth
lost Balance.
Consider us now... both of us less than we once were.
I, pure but insubstantial; and Kain, terribly real, but corrupted.
Raziel
interrupts Ariel's reverie, and she turns in alarm.
Raziel:
You
imprisonment here has deranged you, spirit.
You fixate on Kain because you believe he is the tether that
binds you here. But we both know he is not the author of your
agony.
The Pillars were subverted by dark forces, invited by the Guardians
themselves.
The more I learn of your Circle, the more I see a tangle of
nested manipulations.
Ariel
responds angrily -
Ariel:
Kain
handed them their victory.
They sought to topple the Pillars, and he was their willing
instrument.
Raziel
interrupts, challenging her.
Raziel:
Or
was he their unwilling pawn?
Would it blunt your wrath to know that Kain's dilemma was calculated
to bring the Pillars down, regardless of the choice he made?
And that the devastation would have been even greater had he
chosen the path you would prescribe for him?
Ariel:
You
are a subtle, deceitful creature.
But your clever arguments do not absolve Kain.
He must die for the Pillars to be restored; there is no other
way.
Raziel:
Then
consider this more ominous possibility - what if Kain's death
does not restore the Pillars?
Consider that it may simply be too late. That this world may
be beyond redemption.
And that you may be bound here eternally.
Distraught,
Ariel flees into the spirit realm, unaware that Raziel is able
to follow. Raziel shifts into spectral and startles her as she
cowers behind the Balance Pillar.
Cornered and miserable, Ariel implores Raziel -
Ariel:
Why
do you hound me, demon?
You can see that I am captive here. Show me some mercy.
Raziel:
Like
the mercy you showed your fellow Guardians when you set Kain
on them?
Or the mercy you showed Kain when you kept him ignorant of his
destiny while you used him as the scourge of the Circle?
Or perhaps like the mercy you showed your beloved Nupraptor
when you made him Kain's first kill?
Ariel:
You
are cruel. Why do you torment me?
Weary
of this, Raziel relents -
Raziel:
I'm
merely looking for answers, Ariel.
Very well - I'll leave you in peace.
But know this - about you, and this purgatory from which you
long to escape...
... you're merely at the threshold.
