Nautika's Diary: Everyone else concluded that Áddjá never really returned from Antarctica, but there were times when I still saw him—moments where he became himself again.
Nautika's Diary: Only Friele and I were there to see it. In those times, Áddjá told us about everything he discovered on his journey.
Rolf: It's a miracle, Nautika.
Rolf: It defies everything we know—doesn't match any known form, substance, element ... It's the missing puzzle piece.
Rolf: You see, Nautika? No trip is ever wasted. She tested us there ... and now, I have no doubt.
That was one of the last times she saw her grandfather—in any real sense. His expression was so clear.
She clutches tightly at his sleeve. Together, they crack open the stone to glimpse what lies within.
The old man removes his glasses, wiping tears away with childlike wonder.
Rolf: ...
Rolf: Nautika, what do you think?
Nautika: It's beautiful, Áddjá.
Rolf: Yes, more than anything I've ever seen ...
Rolf: Breathtaking. So very ... beyond this world.
Rolf: But it's just one piece of the puzzle, Nautika.
Rolf: ...
Rolf: I'll never be able to return there, mu ráhkis.
At these words, Nautika looks over her grandfather in astonishment.
This isn't some pessimistic fear. She's certain that in this moment he has foreseen his own end, much like the premonitions he had before leaving for Antarctica.
Nautika: No ... Áddjá, no, don't say that.
Nautika: You haven't cracked it yet. The journey has to have meant something; there's so much more to do ...
Rolf: You're right ...
Rolf: But that's not what I want, Nautika.
Rolf: What I want ... is to see with my own eyes what that time really looked like.
Rolf: Nautika, my little treasure, I pray that you see it one day. The Mother Spirit has always smiled upon you.
Nautika's Diary: I prayed for the Mother Spirit's grace to fall upon Áddjá; it seemed to me that despite all that had happened, he had nearly grasped the key to the mystery.
Nautika's Diary: After all, he'd been touched by the Mother Spirit's light, hadn't he? That's why we got to see that precious little stone.
Nautika's Diary: I had to believe it with all my heart ... but after that day, the Áddjá that I loved was gone, and I could only cling to the memory of this final night when his mind was clear.
Nautika's Diary: That's what kept me going as I pushed past every obstacle that stood in my way.
Rolf: Nautika ... Nautika!
Rolf: Ráhkis, we've all been fooled! Every one of us, for generations ...
Nautika: No, Áddjá ... that's not true.
Nautika: Look at this. See? You're the one who brought it back!
It was on that final night of lucidity that he solemnly threaded the stone onto a pendant and placed it around his granddaughter's neck.
Nautika: It's a relic from the "Blank Era," you said so yourself ...
Nautika: So, I'm going to Antarctica. I'll solve this mystery—for both of us!
Her grandfather gazes at the stone with wonder but no sense of recognition, his mental torment overwhelming the last light of wisdom in his eyes.
His skin clings to his bones, as if the soul that should have filled his flesh has already withdrawn and dissipated.
Then from those hollow eyes, tears begin to fall.
Rolf: No, Nautika, please ... my little treasure.
Rolf: Don't go.
Rolf: Everything there ... It was all ...
Nautika: Áddjá ...
Nautika's Diary: Even if I thought for a thousand years, I never would've imagined a day when Áddjá would abandon everything that mattered most to him.
Nautika's Diary: Even so, I will pursue the unknown no matter where it takes me.
Nautika's Diary: I'll search for the truth. And if I find it—if I bring it back—will it be enough to wake him?
Nautika's Diary: Everything there ... is not ...
Rolf: Just empty tales.
Nautika: ...
All she can do is sigh.
Nautika: No need to think about it anymore ... Just rest, Áddjá.
Those final words seem to pierce straight through her soul. In that instant, she is wrenched out of childhood forever.
Just as her grandfather had once done for her, she reaches out and touches his icy forehead.
Nautika: Rest now. That's right ... just rest. I'll take it from here.
Nautika: A second journey doesn't mean ...
Nautika: Doesn't mean the first one failed.
Nautika: It doesn't mean that at all ...
Nautika: Well ...
The sharp polar winds steal heat. Steal strength. Steal lives. The lives of everyone she had ever known and loved. Now they threaten to steal her last flickers of hope.
Nautika: Friele ... Aase ...
Nautika: Koht ...
Nautika: I-It's not my fault ... It WASN'T my fault ...
Nautika: R-Right, Máhtu? It wasn't my fault, right?
Nautika: But ... they followed ME! sniff I was the one who planned this whole thing!
In these final moments, she argues with herself.
Nautika: But ... Yes, Áddjá found the stone, and I used it to lead them here ...
Nautika: But we all wanted this! We are the Mother Spirit's children! Who wouldn't want to witness a miracle? It was our life's dream!
Nautika: But they're gone ... hm ... Th-They died, terrified and lost ...
Nautika: Is that all their lives were worth?
Nautika: All of it ... W-Wasn't it all of our faults?
The snow rises over her knees. Each step is labored.
Nautika: No. Think about it, Nautika. From your very first expedition, all you've done is fail.
Nautika: After that, all hope fizzled out. All you have left is stupid guts.
The snow swallows her eyes. The world goes dark.
GAMEPLAY
Nautika: But ...
Nautika: I don't know how to stop ...
Nautika: I just ... sniffle ... never learned how to.
Tears stream.
Black tears. They trail down her cheeks, her neck, her body.
A searing pain follows. She knows this agony well.
Nautika: Aah ... wailing
Nautika: I have to keep going ... I have to ...
She reaches into the void ahead as thick, black sludge surges up to claim her. She is on the brink of annihilation, her soul like a dying candle in the night.
Nautika: It's ... a gate.
Nautika: It's my fault ... No, I can't stay here—
Nautika: Aah ...
Nautika: sobbing
Nautika: Mother Spirit ... Tell me I'm still on the right path.
Nautika: Hear my prayer!
Her voice fades. Then—light. It falls upon her at the last moment.
Her body is already gone. Soon, her soul will be too. All that remains is a wisp of consciousness—if it can even still be called "Nautika." The light shines around her.
And in its glow, she finally sees where she is.
A pulsing stomach filled with viscous black fluid. Countless souls have been digested here.
She is simply one more.