Their uniform is the same, but the Sarkaz of Sudean are like children compared to these.
Siege
They're different.
Self-Salvation Corps Fighter
What should we do? Keep making circles in the streets?
Siege
You used to sit in front of a desk, didn't you?
Self-Salvation Corps Fighter
Huh? Yes, I was an accountant... why?
Siege
How did you travel? By car?
Self-Salvation Corps Fighter
Er, yes...
Siege
Do you know how wide a Londinium alley is? How long it takes to run from one end of Wellington to the other? How many sewer entrances there are on each block?
Good morning, Lady Allerdale. Everything is in order.
Allerdale
The steam armor... why have you taken it out?
Allerdale
It's too big to take with us.
Ailshie
...Is that so?
Ailshie
Has Her Highness Alexandrina left?
Allerdale
Yes, she has her own mission.
Ailshie
Your injuries...
Allerdale
Are fine, thanks to Her Highness.
Ailshie
I haven't seen you smile like this in a long time.
Allerdale
Am I being too calm before the storm?
Allerdale
It does bring back long-forgotten feelings to stand with Her Highness and the others.
Allerdale
It's been some time since I encountered someone I could trust.
Ailshie
Her Highness Alexandrina saved this armor for you. I may be a lowly servant, but I feel a sense of gratitude.
Ailshie
It's the pride of Cumberland.
Allerdale
Pride...
Ailshie
The armor and your honored ancestors... I remember how you used to talk to them.
Allerdale
Children like to wallow in fantasy.
Allerdale
But I learned, twenty-six years ago, that it's no hero, just a broken hunk of metal.
Allerdale
We've all changed, yet the armor seems frozen in time.
Allerdale
Do you... like Her Highness Alexandrina?
Ailshie
Her Highness is very kind. I've seen how she treats her fellows, eating the same food and sleeping in the same room.
Ailshie
She's not like most nobles. She doesn't see them as her servants, nor will she abandon them.
Allerdale
Victoria is fortunate.
Allerdale
The heart of Her Highness is strong. Years of exile have not undermined her dignity and integrity.
Ailshie
You said Victoria. What about yourself, my lady? What do you think of Her Highness?
Allerdale
......
Allerdale
I hope she has a bright future.
Ailshie
So you...?
Allerdale
I got a letter last night. Two in the same day.
Allerdale
She's... impatient.
Ailshie
But you've reunited with Her Highness!
Ailshie
Do you remember how Her Highness came here with the Sighs of Kings, twenty-six years ago? It must've been a sign, and its portents might come true very soon!
Ailshie
We've waited for so long, Miss. You could...
'Allerdale Cumberland.
You will meet Vina again, someday.'
Allerdale
He...
Allerdale
......
Allerdale
I've long since given up waiting, Ailshie.
Allerdale
How long has it been since Jim left?
Ailshie
He returned home to County Peninsula the year after the incident.
Allerdale
...Twenty-five years. We haven't had a gardener for a quarter century.
Allerdale
I used to love the bushes that grew there. They tripped me from time to time, but the tiny golden flowers that bloomed from them were so beautiful.
Allerdale
The first batch all died the winter after Jim left.
Allerdale
Mother sent people all around and learned that it was the noblest breed from Minos. The money it took to buy those seeds would have fed an ordinary family of Londiniers for half a decade.
Ailshie
Your garden remains beautiful, even without that particular kind of bush.
Allerdale
I tried, Ailshie. We all tried. You toiled tirelessly, summer and winter, in order to keep the garden in good shape.
Allerdale
But without those seeds, our garden would never return to its former glory.
Allerdale
I sent her a letter the fifth New Year's Day after Dad died.
Allerdale
Her reply included the seeds that House Cumberland could no longer afford.
Allerdale
......
Allerdale
Ailshie... we've always been living like this.
Ailshie
If the Duke was here...
Allerdale
...She always had tricks up her sleeve.
Ailshie
No, my lady, I meant your father.
Allerdale
Father... father.
Allerdale
I can hardly recall his voice now.
Allerdale
Perhaps it's only in this garden that I... that I remember how he held my hand, taught my how to swing a sword, knocked me down, then picked me back up and sat me on his shoulder...
Allerdale
......
Allerdale
I wanted to preserve them, many years ago, Ailshie. I tried everything I could. The garden, the armor... and the shadow of my father.
Allerdale
But there is nothing worth less than 'want'.
Allerdale
I remember how I wanted to become a Steam Knight when I was little.
Allerdale
......
Allerdale
Ailshie. Sometimes... just sometimes, I think...
Allerdale
Growing up is such a cruel thing, isn't it?
Allerdale
With the exception of a lucky few, we all become tired and unremarkable adults.
Allerdale
Always treading carefully, not daring to speak our minds, grasping at straws when the waves are rough, and never letting go of the ones we find.
Allerdale
What did you want to be when you were little, Ailshie? Not the servant of a fallen house, surely?
Ailshie
No, it's an honor to be by your side...
Allerdale
I want the truth.
Ailshie
Well... I suppose... I listened to a lot of bard's tales when I was little.
Allerdale
Ah. Ailshie the Bard.
Ailshie
Please don't tease me.
Allerdale
Growing up means toppling, crushing, turning to dust the possibilities that we thought were within our reach when we were little.
Allerdale
And here we are.
Allerdale
Can I preserve House Cumberland's glory? It passed beyond my reach a long time ago.
Allerdale
I, Allerdale, am who I am now.
Ailshie
...But even you cannot say who Allerdale will be, can you?
Allerdale
Will be...?
Ailshie
I'm old, Miss. I couldn't squeeze a tune out of an instrument, even if I had the chance.
Ailshie
But you promised me.
Ailshie
Maybe you thought it was just a childish fancy.
Ailshie
But I've always believed that you could do it.
Ailshie
To be a Steam Knight greater than Charles Lynch, greater than any of your ancestors.
Ailshie
You'll do it for me, won't you?
Allerdale
Enough, Ailshie! She wouldn't permit...
Ailshie
Then what do you want to do?
Ailshie
I'm behind you, no matter your choice.
Allerdale
I—
Ailshie
Take your time. You always make the right decision.
Ailshie
Miss... permit me walk around this garden, one last time.
Ailshie
It's most dear to me... even if it's just a shadow of its former self.
Allerdale wants to say something, but does not open her mouth.
She watches someone, with whom she has spent virtually every day of her entire life, walk towards the center of the garden. They have been through the worst of times together, and have been transformed them in ways they could not have imagined.
Allerdale realizes that she has not seen Ailshie smile like this for years.
She feels a sense of tranquility, one that she has not felt in ages.
If there is still a chance—
Suddenly, Allerdale's attention is drawn to a speck of orange in the distance.
It rapidly draws near, and she feels the temperature around her rise.
