Anjo Nala: Vertin?
The bullet flies from the barrel, trailing a long, white streak through the air.
It pierces the wind-up toy in Ptolemy's hand—the tool of Nala's subjugation, that thing that she had so desperately sought, so desperately run away from, is destroyed.
Its power is lost. Its controlling force vanquished by the bullet.
Ptolemy: H-How dare you!
Vertin: pant
Nala releases her throat.
Ptolemy glares furiously at the broken wind-up toy, then shifts his gaze toward them.
Ptolemy: Looks like negotiation's off the table, Timekeeper.
Ptolemy: I suppose I'll have to turn to violence.
Ptolemy: Soldiers, kill them all. Spare no one but Kimberly.
Ptolemy: She's the only one the admiral needs.
Nala looks over her shoulder at Ptolemy, her face twisted in rage, her bloodied claw poised to strike.
Blood. His blood. She craves it.
Anjo Nala: I'll kill every last one of you!
COMBAT
The battle quickly becomes a massacre.
Zeno Soldier: Damn it! What kind of monster is she?!
Zeno Soldier: Sir!
Ptolemy: Maintain formation and fall back. Keep firing!
Ptolemy's troops are only equipped with standard military gear.
No devices to capture arcanists, no heavy firepower.
Anjo Nala: Go to hell!
Anger is pain, and she needs to release it.
They'll pay for her tears in blood.
Zeno Soldier: She's ... She's totally insane!
Kimberly grabs a rifle and smashes the stock into a fallen soldier's face.
Anjo Nala: Why?!
First claws, then teeth.
Tearing, biting.
Slashing stomachs, ripping out throats.
Like a wildcat pouncing on a sparrow.
The Zeno soldiers fought bravely. Had they not been enemies, they might have made excellent allies.
Their loyalty to each other outweighed their fear of the enemy.
Ptolemy: Retreat!
A small trickle of blood runs down her cheek.
She walks mercilessly through the courtyard of the Veterans' Residence, avenging all she has suffered.
The enemy starts to retreat, or rather, flee with the "dignity" of a soldier.
Vertin: ...
The air is filled with a bitter scent.
Anjo Nala: I-I am not a lamb for the slaughter!
The rain comes suddenly, washing away the blood spilled in the courtyard.
It's over. They're gone. She collapses.
Anjo Nala: whimper It hurts.
Pain.
Like thorns in her heart.
Vertin: Everything will be fine, Kimberly.
She's crying. The wind-up toy lies nearby, shattered like her spirit.
Anjo Nala: Vertin ...
She spreads her hands and gazes blankly at the sky.
Vertin: I'm here. It's okay. You're going to be alright.
The marigolds in the courtyard are stained with blood.
The place is a mess. Mamãe Mariana's cat's den has been blown to pieces.
Perhaps she'll make a new one.
Vertin: You're no longer bound by anyone.
Vertin: No contract, no seal.
Vertin: The wind-up toy's been destroyed.
Vertin: It's been shattered into pieces. You're free, Kimberly. You don't have to take orders from anyone anymore.
Anjo Nala: Kimberly doesn't have to take orders?
Anjo Nala: Nala doesn't have to take orders.
She repeats her words as if she's drowning, and they're the only pieces of driftwood to cling to.
Vertin: Come.
The rain subsides.
And the sun shines again.
Vertin: If you've got nowhere else to go, you can come to the Foundation with me if you like.
Vertin: I'll let them know you risked your life to protect me from the Zeno rebels. Anyway, the choice is yours.
Nala breathes heavily.
Anjo Nala: I ... I can choose?
Her confusion matches her pain.
Vertin: Yes, whatever you want.
Vertin: No one can control you anymore. You belong to no master; only yourself.
Anjo Nala: Belong to myself.
She looks down. She's covered in blood, like a newborn baby.
Anjo Nala: Like when my sister died, the first time I left home?
Anjo Nala: Like when I fled to São Paulo during the war.
Anjo Nala: Like the old days at Heartfelt Home.
Anjo Nala: ...
Real, yet distant memories.
To her, it's as if those times have been rolled in the sweet nectar of happiness.
For a moment, she almost forgets why she's been running all this time.
Vertin: Yes, no longer reliant on or under the control of anyone.
Vertin: Just think about who you are, what you want.
Vertin: And enjoy your new life, Nala, starting today.
A familiar silhouette streaks across the sky.
Lilya: Captain!
Lilya descends, bearing bad news.