#final quest

CUTSCENE: SINGULARITY - GATHER COMPANIONS

Aloy: All right, people. I need you up in the Control Room right away [...] Okay, everyone. We all know what’s at stake - Beta. GAIA. Not to mention life on Earth. Now it might seem like the Zeniths are invincible, but they’re not. We’ve got what it takes to break into their base and defeat them. We even have one of them on our side. Tilda, show us the base.

Tilda: It is constructed atop the ruins of an ancient military facility on an island to the southwest. I can get us inside - to this location - undetected. 

Sylens: How, exactly?

Tilda: You’ll know when you need to. Once inside, our goal will be this structure, the launch tower. GAIA and Beta are being held at the top. But along the way, we will face overwhelming resistance. Most importantly, from Gerard, Erik, and the others, but also-

Sylens: Once I take away their shields, we should be able to deal with them. But it will be easier to deploy the device if someone else is carrying it. I’ll need a strong back.

Erend: Carry stuff? Yeah, I can do that!

Tilda: Even if your device works, there will still be Specter drones - scores of them.

Sylens: If only we had an army to fight them.

Aloy: I’ve got that under control… You’ll know when you need to. All right. We’ll meet up again just before we go in. Where’s the best place to rendezvous?

Tilda: On the coast, just across from the island. Once there, I’ll show you the way.

Aloy: Okay. I’ll let you know when I arrive at the rendezvous point, and then you can join me. In the meantime, do whatever you need to prepare. Understood?

Companions leave; Alva and Kotallo lag behind, while Tilda does not move.

Aloy: [to Alva and Kotallo] You two. A minute?

Aloy looks at Tilda, who then leaves.

Aloy: Tilda helped me get in touch with Beta, and she told me something important. There’s an installation inside the base, it’s called a ‘regulator.’ Here. Once we’re inside, I need you two to split off from everyone else and destroy it. So you’ll have to bring explosives. This will help stop the drones. Everything depends on it. You with me? After that I want you to find a way to infiltrate the Zenith network.

Alva: How?

Aloy: Go over all the data that Beta left behind. She knew how to do it, I’m sure of that. 

Alva: All right. But, why? What am I trying to do?

Aloy: Find information about the Zeniths - anything Tilda’s not telling us. [Looks at Kotallo] Sylens is right about one thing - there’s no way we can take her on her word.

Alva: I’ll do my best.

Aloy: [to Kotallo] Keep her safe, okay?

Kotallo: On my life.

CUTSCENE: CAMPFIRE

Aloy: Okay, everyone. I’m at the rendezvous point. It’s time to rescue Beta and GAIA.

Zo: Understood, Aloy. We’re on our way.

-

Aloy: Where are the others?

Sylens: Not far behind.

Erend: Egghead here couldn’t stand traveling with the pack.

Tilda: Are we all here? Then let’s begin.

Aloy: A tunnel?

Tilda: An ancient escape route from the ruins on the island. When I realized it ran all the way across the water… I thought it might prove useful to come and go undetected. So I concealed it from the others. Opens door. Shall we?

Alva: I wish there was a less… pungent way to get way inside the base.

Kotallo: Agreed.

-

Tilda: There’s the launch tower. That plain offers little cover, so the only viable path is through there. There will be Specters guarding it. And many more can be deployed from those hangars.

Aloy: All right. Alva, Kotallo - get to it.

Tilda: Where are they going?

Aloy: Somewhere important… Erend, you’re with me. You guys [Zo, Regalla, and Sylens] - take the high ground in case we need covering fire.

Sylens: Tactically sound, I suppose. What will she do?

Tilda: There’s a sensor node nearby. If I hack into it, I should be able to scramble the network and keep you undetected - but not for long.

Sylens: Then we should proceed.

Aloy [to Tilda]: One more thing. Open up the channel to Beta, audio only.

Beta: Aloy?

Aloy: We’re here, and we’re coming for you. You know what to do, right?

Beta: As long as you hold up your end.

Aloy: We will. See you soon.

Beta: Be careful.

Aloy [to Erend]: Let’s go.

BETWEEN CUTSCENES

Tilda: Get to the launch tower as quickly as possible. I’ll do my best to conceal our intrusion.

CUTSCENE: PLAIN OF SPECTERS

Aloy: Alva and Kotallo did their job. Now it’s Beta’s turn.

Erend: Uh… Aloy… I think we’re in trouble.

Sylens: Whatever you plan to do to stop those Specters, you’d better do it now.

Aloy: I’m not doing anything. Beta will. She just needs a little time…

Sylens: Time that we don’t have.

Aloy: Come on, Beta… come on, come on, come on…

Erend: What is that?

Aloy: Our army.

Erend: I think you got their attention!

Tilda (over Focus): Very clever. You had Beta inject HEPHAESTUS into the base’s printer matrix…

Sylens (over Focus): …which is faster and more powerful than any Cauldron.

Aloy: And now it can crank out machines to its heart’s content.

Aloy: Come on. Let’s get to the launch tower before this whole place becomes a warzone.

CUTSCENE: ZENITH ATTACK

Gerard: Ah. Now we know who’s been causing all the fuss… Tilda’s little pet.

Aloy: Syelns - Zeniths inbound. Can we drop their shields, please?

Sylens: I’m powering it up… Stay still!

Gerard: This is pointless. You can’t hurt us. Face it - you’re worms that oozed through the cracks into our basement.

Aloy: Sylens…

Sylens: One moment more…

Gerard: But I might just spare you if you give up Tilda. I think it’s safe to say she’s forfeited her share of our operation - permanently.

Sylens: Ah. There.

Gerard: No? Nothing? Fine. All right, people - light ‘em up!

Sylens tosses device.

Erik: Are we supposed to be scared?

Bring in da beasties.

Tilda (just arriving): We can’t let Gerard escape. It won’t take long before he preps the shuttle for launch. Then he’ll be able to take Beta and GAIA into orbit and onto the Odyssey, beyond our reach.

Erend (motions to beasties): We gotta go through there?

Sylens: I fail to see another option.

Erend: Then we’ll carve a path. Ready?

Tilda [to Aloy]: Get to the top and secure GAIA. I’ll stop Gerard.

AFTER FIGHTING ERIK

Aloy: What was that?

Tilda: Aloy - Gerard just activated the self-destruct failsafe on the printing matrix. He’s taking control of a number of systems…

Aloy: Including the lift?

Tilda: I’m afraid so. He’s restricted its access to the top. You’ll have to climb from there. I have to go - I almost have him.

Aloy: Erend, is everybody all right down there?

Erend: Mostly. We’re cleaning up the last few Specters.

Aloy: What about the Zeniths?

Erend: Dead, I think. Zo told me you got Erik. Good work.

Aloy: Yeah. Thanks. [to herself] I guess only Tilda and Gerard are left, then.

Alva: Aloy, you there? Listen - I got into the network, but only for a minute before I was shut out. I found a bunch of flight plans and trajectories. As if the Zeniths were planning to leave Earth.

Aloy: That doesn’t make any sense…

Alva: I know! But there’s more. The files I found have a lot of references to something called ‘nemesis.’ Whatever it is, the Zeniths are afraid of it.

Aloy: Alva? Alva? [to herself] What’s going on here? Maybe Beta can help me figure it out. If she’s okay…

RESCUING BETA

Aloy: Are you okay? Look, I know you’ve been through a lot, but you have to help me access the Zenith network. I need to see their files - anything referring to the word ‘nemesis.’’

Beta: Okay - over there… System’s are down all over the base. I should be able to take advantage of… yes - ‘nemesis.’ Here. There’s something in deep space. It’s following the Zeniths to Earth.

Aloy: Look - ‘escape vectors.’ Alva tried to warn me about this. The Zeniths aren’t planning to stay here.

Beta: It’s a machine of some kind. Or a swarm of them. The energy readings are… astronomical. Aloy - I don’t think a natural disaster destroyed the Zenith’s colony on Sirius. This thing did.

Aloy: Earth isn’t a new home for them. It’s a way station. They’re on the run.

TILDA

Tilda blasts Gerard through the door, then kills him with a second shot.

Tilda: I see you’ve been busy.

Aloy: And you’ve been lying. Nemesis - what is it?

Tilda: It is us. The minds of Far Zenith. Or failed copies of them, anyway. Back on Sirius some of my peers weren't satisfied with physical immortality. They wanted digital transcendence - a way to upload their minds into any form, organic or mechanical. Nemesis was a failed experiment to that effect, abandoned - but never erased. An immense database of our memories, emotions, and prejudices, left to fester.

Aloy: And it destroyed your colony?

Tilda: We didn’t realize it had gained sentience until it broke containment. It had everything it needed from our memories. Security protocols. System specs. Override codes. It hacked everything before we knew what hit us. Then it took over our printing facilities, allowing it to gain any machine form it needed to wipe us out.

Aloy: But why?

Tilda: Imagine being trapped alone for decades, with only the twisted echoes of megalomaniacs for company. It hates us for abandoning it to that prison. And now that it’s free, it will do anything to destroy us - including denying us a safe harbor on Earth.

Beta: The extinction signal that woke HADES. You didn’t send it. Nemesis did.

Tilda: Finally you understand. And when that failed it launched from Sirius to finish the job itself. Which is why we must flee to a random planet circling a random star - somewhere it can never find us.

Aloy: With GAIA. So you can build yourself a new world.

Tilda: That’s the plan. Even now. Earth is finished, Aloy. Nemesis will scour it of life to deny its creators a viable home. But Elisabet’s dream won’t die. You’ll come with me to the stars. And with GAIA, we’ll create a new world, together, where that monstrosity can never find us.

Aloy: What? No.

Tilda: I loved Elisabet, more than you could ever know. And I let her stay behind to die with the rest of humanity - a mistake I have regretted for a thousand years. Now, she stands before me again. Not some inferior copy… but her best possible self. So I’m not asking - you’re coming with me. It may seem harsh now, but you’ll forgive me in a few centuries.

Aloy: You can’t force me, Tilda. Your shield is gone.

Tilda: I have something better. Specter Prime - to me!

Aloy [to Beta]: Take cover! Get to the door!

Tilda: Submit, Aloy. You can’t win.

Aloy: I’ve heard that before.

AFTER DEFEATING TILDA:

Aloy [to herself/Tilda]: It’s over. Why couldn’t you just let me choose?

Examine Tilda’s painting back at the base with the Focus after the final battle:  Special thanks to  @marmotinmx for pointing this out!

Description: WOMAN READING A LETTER A holographic replica of a painting from Tilda’s mansion. Collected by Tilda.