Id ActionId NextActionId Type IsBlock IsEnd BeginAnim EndAnim BeginDelay EndDelay Params[1] Params[2] Params[3] Params[4] Params[5] Params[6] Params[7] Params[8] Params[9] Params[10] Params[11] Params[12] Params[13] Params[14] Params[15] Params[16] Params[17] Params[18] Params[19] Params[20] Params[21] Params[22] Params[23] Params[24] Params[25] 1 1 101 AniZhuanchangEnd Assets/Product/Texture/Image/BgStory/Bgstory211.png 2 2 401 1 142 3 3 301 DialogEnable Your seat to which you've just fastened the seatbelt buckle shakes with a light jolt once again. 4 4 301 As the transport craft dives through the atmosphere, the sonic boom burrows into your ears and is there to stay. 5 5 502 RImgBg1DisableSlow 6 6 101 RImgBg2Enable Assets/Product/Texture/Image/BgStory/Bgstory100.png 7 7 301 You look up at the electronic screen in the cabin. As the Mach number keeps dropping, the coordinates shown on the radar continue changing as the light dot on the radar moves along. 8 8 301 Seeing the latitude change by the minute, you can't help but feel slightly unsettled. 9 9 301 As a commandant of the Task Force, you wouldn't say you're the most experienced of them all, but you take pride in being a true globetrotter. 10 10 301 Still, where you're headed probably remains unchartered territory even to Babylonia's most experienced of generals. 11 11 301 When the transport craft has crossed the line that Claudius Ptolemaeus has drawn, you know that you've entered the region on the planet least visited by humans. 12 12 301 Antarctica— 13 13 301 The last continent humans discovered, a pure white land of snow and ice. 14 14 301 By the end of the Golden Age—which marked the pinnacle of human civilization—humans still hadn't yet uncovered all the secrets this continent harbored. When the Punishing Virus hit, this land—located all the way at the southernmost tip of the world—was pushed as far away as possible. 15 15 301 And you just never thought you'd ever have a chance to come to Antarctica and see what the place is like. 16 16 301 Until... 17 17 502 RImgBg1DisableSlow 18 18 101 RImgBg2Enable Assets/Product/Texture/Image/BgStory/Bgstory211.png 19 19 401 1 208 20 20 201 1 500533 5 21 21 301 1 Bianca Commandant, what's the matter? 1 22 22 301 Noticing that you seem to be deep in thought, the blonde Construct next to you turns to speak to you. 23 23 202 1 1 24 24 301 There is not a single mirror in the transport craft's cabin for you to see your own face at the moment. 25 25 301 You do feel a little different from usual, and it probably has something to do with the fact it's Bianca that you're on the mission with. 26 26 301 You don't feel edgy, though—in fact, you actually feel excited about where you're headed. 27 27 201 1 500533 5 28 28 301 1 Adjusting your breathing, you turn around to look at Bianca. 29 29 301 She still has the same awe-inspiring air about her as always, but you can tell that she's genuinely concerned about you. 30 30 302 I'm fine, Bianca. 31 31 31 301 DialogDisable Bianca Let me right away know if anything bothers you physically so we can take care of you with what we have here in the transport craft while we still can. 1 32 32 302 I'm fine. I was just going through the mission in my head. 33 33 33 302 Do you mind walking me through the mission again very quickly, Bianca? 34 34 34 204 1 1 35 35 301 DialogEnable Bianca Of course, Commandant. 1 36 36 401 2 897 37 37 301 Bianca nods and calls up the holographic screen from her portal-projecting terminal. 38 38 204 1 39 39 301 Bianca Seven days ago, Babylonia's WGAA received a mysterious communication from the ground. 1 40 40 301 Bianca And at about exactly the same time, one of WGAA's Archaeological Teams—which apparently enjoys a very special status—stationed in Antarctica fell out of communication with Babylonia. 1 41 41 301 Bianca For the time being, they believe that an unknown harmonic is responsible for the incident. 1 42 42 301 Bianca And combining the incident with the message from the call, the Parliament believes that the polar expedition sending the message is likely to have either defected or gone missing. 1 43 43 301 Bianca Given that Babylonia doesn't have a search team permanently stationed in Antarctica, they decided to put the Purifying Force on the investigation mission for efficiency's sake. 1 44 44 301 Bianca That's the mission in a nutshell. The command center also provided us with a list of the people on the expedition along with their backgrounds. Should I go over them for you, too? 1 45 45 302 That's fine. I can do that myself. 46 46 46 301 Bianca's calm yet gentle voice soothes you and puts your mind at ease. 47 47 202 1 1 48 48 301 Receiving the terminal from Bianca, you start going over the details about the mission. 49 49 301 You've never seen any of the names or faces on the screen. 50 50 301 Which makes perfect sense, though—because you weren't even aware of the existence of the expedition until you were put on the mission. 51 51 301 The majority of the continent remains free of the Punishing Virus because human civilization hasn't yet reached that far. 52 52 301 While Antarctica often comes across as a barren land, it is, in fact, anything but—in addition to the abundance of petroleum and minerals it hoards, the amount of krill and freshwater reserve from there have over the years been helping Babylonia thrive. 53 53 301 Save for the extreme climate in the region, Antarctica makes for a good candidate as a base from which humanity can fight the Punishing Virus. 54 54 301 Which is precisely why the Parliament takes the incident as seriously as it does, to the extent that they decided to put Bianca—the Purifying Force's captain—on the mission. 55 55 301 There is, however, something you don't quite get... 56 56 302 Why am I put on this mission, though? 57 57 57 201 1 500533 8 58 58 301 1 Bianca It is true that they rarely put a commandant on a mission along with the Purifying Force... 1 59 59 204 1 60 60 301 Bianca Except, as far as this particular mission goes, they think your unique ability to act according to the situation will come in handy in terms of helping us look into the situation, since they haven't really judged the expedition as a target to "purify." 1 61 61 301 Bianca And even if we come across a fight we can't avoid, I'm 100% confident that I'll be able to keep you safe in this new frame, Commandant, since most of the Constructs on the expedition aren't made to fight. 1 62 62 301 Bianca But what makes you more qualified for this role than anyone else, Commandant, is all the experience you have under your belt from the ARU incident. 1 63 63 301 Stopping for a second, Bianca adds a last sentence. 64 64 204 1 8 65 65 301 Bianca Altogether, I believe these are reasons enough for the command center to approve my request for assistance. 1 66 66 204 1 67 67 302 ...? 68 68 68 302 Seems like there is more to it than meets the eye here... 69 C'mon, Bianca. Just tell me why already... 69 69 69 204 1 8 70 70 301 Bianca ... 1 71 71 301 Hearing what you said, Bianca closes her eyes and falls silent for a few moments. 72 72 204 1 73 73 301 Bianca And you'd be right... There is more to it than meets the eye here, indeed. There are personal considerations to my decision, too. 1 74 74 302 Personal considerations? 75 75 75 204 1 8 76 76 301 Bianca ... 1 77 77 301 Your question incurs further silence. 78 78 204 1 79 79 301 Bianca ...If this bothers you so much, Commandant, I'll try my best to explain my reasoning to you. 1 80 80 301 Bianca speaks in the same tone she did when she was walking you through the mission, but you know Bianca means what she said just now. 81 81 302 Don't worry. You can do that whenever you're ready to. 82 I'm all ears, though, if you don't mind. 84 82 82 301 Curiosity almost got the best of you, but you decided to respect Bianca's decision. 83 83 92 301 You don't think you should force her to speak when she doesn't want to. 84 84 301 While Bianca doesn't exactly seem like she wants to talk at the moment, you decide to press on. 85 85 301 You want to find out why she decided to work with you, considering that you'll be going through the rest of the mission together. 86 86 204 1 8 87 87 301 Bianca Uhm... 1 88 88 301 Bianca Please allow me a few moments to organize my thoughts. 1 89 89 301 Closing her eyes, Bianca starts forming a response with a frown on her face. 90 90 302 We can totally do this at a different time if you need time to think it through. 91 91 91 301 It doesn't seem like a good idea to press on, and you think you should just give her the benefit of the doubt. 92 92 301 Bianca isn't just some random Construct—you've stared death countless times in the eye with her to know that she's someone you can trust unconditionally. 93 93 204 1 1 94 94 301 Bianca Thank you, Commandant. 1 95 95 301 Bianca Let's just do this at a different time, then... And I'm sure it'll happen in no time. 1 96 96 302 Of course. I'll be all ears when you're ready. 97 97 97 301 Seeing her smile, you know that you've made the right choice. 98 98 204 1 4 99 99 301 Bianca Hmm, seems like I've made the right choice there. 1 100 100 204 1 1 101 101 301 Bianca Now, at the risk of sounding extremely unappreciative... 1 102 102 204 1 8 103 103 301 Bianca I really thought we were off to a good start with you around, but... 1 104 104 204 1 105 105 301 Bianca turns around to look out the thick window over on the other side. 106 106 301 The dark drapes that are the skies hang right outside the window, beyond which a tsunami of snowflakes is lashing mercilessly on the tempered glass. 107 107 301 The winds deal one heavy blow after another on the fuselage. You now see what's responsible for the jolts you've been feeling from time to time now. 108 108 204 1 5 109 109 301 Bianca Look at that. Seems like we're in for a surprise, huh... 1 110 110 301 You learned about Antarctica's extreme, ever-changing weather back in Military Geography at F.O.S. 111 111 301 You never understood why a section of the course was dedicated to addressing Antarctica, given how low the density of the Punishing Virus is in the region. Looking back now, you see you couldn't be more wrong. 112 112 302 And I suppose there is no turning back, no? 113 113 113 301 Bianca Correct. A mission assigned to the Purifying Force cannot be revoked unless force majeure is encountered. 1 114 114 301 Bianca But given the weather, it's impossible for us to land where we originally planned to. 1 115 115 302 We need to do a forced landing here. 116 116 116 302 We're counting on ourselves for the rest of the way. 117 117 117 301 As you speak, you point at the polar vehicle that came with the transport craft. Bianca nods in agreement. 118 118 204 1 119 119 301 Bianca Understood. Our first task will be to reach the nearest research station, then. 1 120 120 301 Shaky, the transport craft slowly touches down on an icy surface. 121 121 301 The safety buckle unlocks. You stand up for some long-overdue stretch. 122 122 301 After ensuring that nothing is out of the ordinary with her frame, Bianca saunters over with her hand on the longsword by her waist. 123 123 301 Bianca This is definitely a lot worse than I imagined... 1 124 124 301 Bianca I can send in a withdrawal request for you and have the transport craft take you back to Babylonia, Commandant, if you deem the situation to be overly risky. 1 125 125 302 Think I can't catch up to you, huh? 126 126 126 204 1 7 127 127 301 Bianca No, I'm just... 1 128 128 302 You hand-picked me yourself, Bianca. 129 129 129 301 Your words catch Bianca by surprise. 130 130 204 1 2 131 131 301 She lowers her head—and when she raises her head to look at you again, she has a confident smile on her face. 132 132 204 1 4 133 133 301 Bianca Of course, Commandant. Apologies for the faux pas just now. 1 134 134 204 1 2 135 135 301 Bianca Considering what you and I have been through together, this snow is hardly worth mentioning. 1 136 136 301 AniZhuanchangBegin Bianca Let's go, Commandant. 1 137 137 202 1 1 138 138 101 Assets/Product/Texture/Image/BgStory/Bgstory103.png 139 139 401 1 36 140 140 401 2 648 141 141 401 2 968 142 142 501 1000 Assets/Product/Effect/Prefab/FxUi/FxUiStoryNew/FxUiStorySnowNew.prefab 2 143 143 301 AniZhuanchangEnd With her reassuring words, the cabin's door clicks open. 144 144 301 With the bone-chilling wind comes the ice shards that cut at you like invisible daggers. 145 145 301 To your surprise, however, you feel no pain, nor do you feel the subzero cold in the air. 146 146 301 You look at Bianca as her golden hair dances around her slim body to the icy wind. 147 147 301 1 AniZhuanchangBegin This land of permafrost is one of the Earth's final destinations, and you're now taking your very first step on it.