Previously on "The Outpost"...
So wonderful to finally meet you.
- I'm sorry. Who are you? - I don't love her.
- No, go back to your wife, Lord Tobin. - I don't love her.
This is not how I imagined my life to turn out!
You still have enough men to make a mark.
I think I know how to find Yavalla.
These people, they're being drawn somewhere.
Into the mountains like they're on a pilgrimage?
No ignition necessary. Just throw it at Yavalla.
Oh, and chop off her head whilst you're at it.
Hopefully one of these will work
before Zed and his gang figure out how to kill my mother.
An antidote. We have to go save my mother!
That's the ancient Blackblood temple.
Hail, Wren, daughter of Yavalla.
Uh...
Your mum's got a lot more friends than she used to.
They aren't friends, Munt. They're under her control.
She's in there.
Well, this looks safe, doesn't it?
No. But it can't be any more dangerous than it already is out here.
Janzo, that old man, that looks like...
Captain Orlick. He was one of the first.
Doesn't have much longer, I imagine.
Wren.
Step inside.
The High Priestess will see you.
Alone.
Janzo and Munt can wait here.
They won't be touched.
Wren, we're in this together.
It's the best hope we have at saving her.
You take the second one.
Remember, you don't have to inject it all to kill a kinj.
- Daughter. - Mother.
You have come at last.
I have so longed for you to be one with us.
You, above all others,
you truly deserve the peace,
the strength of Unity that only we know.
I don't know how much of this is you
and how much of it is the kinj, but I...
It is all me, I can assure you.
I have become what I was destined to be.
The Bringer of Peace, as you can see.
- At what cost? - Cost?
The innocent people you control.
They've lost all ability to choose for themselves.
Their choice is to be United,
to be devoid of all conflict.
To lose themselves to paradise,
and thereby find themselves more whole than ever before.
No one chooses this paradise
unless they have a kinj forced upon them.
No one? I certainly did.
No, you didn't know the kinj would do this before you took it on.
I knew as surely as one can before experiencing.
Wren, I chose this for the good of all.
Well, they're all dying.
Every living thing dies.
But in Unity, each one dies on paradise.
And I am made the stronger for it,
more able to carry on my mission.
- A mission of death? - Of life eternal.
If... if I unite with you, I'll die in only weeks.
You're willing to let that happen?
You will be with me forever,
living on in me eternally,
having become one with a god.
What?
Is it not obvious, my daughter?
I am a god.
- Thank you. - Mm-hmm.
What's going on in that head of yours, Tobin?
- You don't want to know. - I'll be the judge of that.
You're thinking of her.
I can say, having finally met Rosmund,
I can certainly see the attraction.
She's beautiful, charming, well-spoken.
So, tell me, which of her qualities is it
that you find most appealing?
Please, Falista, let's not do this.
Well, it seems the choice is between talk of your former lover
or no talk at all, and I've grown weary of the silence, Tobin.
Sorry. Do you want to talk about the weather?
Certainly.
It's been nothing but unseasonable gloom since we left Aegisford.
How long should I expect it to last?
Oh, there's a break in the clouds.
Haven't seen that smile in some time.
You think we may see some sunshine after all?
Well, there's nothing so changeable as the weather, eh?
- She made me feel useful. - What?
You asked what I liked about being with Rosmund.
Being with her gave me purpose.
Made me feel like I was making my mark on the world, you know?
As you still are.
Now more than ever.
There.
Yavalla's following is a lot bigger.
- It continues to grow. - Where is she?
Probably in that temple there where they're all facing.
- Gods, it's Janzo and Munt. - What are they doing here?
Are they turned?
I don't think so. They look too uncomfortable.
- I'm going to help... - Wait.
They're clearly waiting for someone inside that temple.
So?
We don't want to ruin a plan that might be working.
And what about this scenario makes you think it can end well?
Janzo's there. How many times have you told me
he's the smartest human you know?
As uncomfortable as he looks,
he's making no attempts to escape.
Must have something up his sleeve.
Let's just give it a moment.
I don't like this, Janzo.
Why are they all looking at us like that?
'Cause we're outsiders, Munt. We're not part of the hive.
But statistically speaking, a fair number of them
must have already had their kinjes split since we've arrived.
No doubt they're trying to pass on their extra one to us.
Yavalla mustn't be allowing them then.
Huh.
Do you suppose it's like, you know, holding it in when you gotta go?
I don't know, Munt. Yes, I suppose so.
Ooh.
Sorry, Captain.
- I hate that feeling. - Munt.
- I do. - There is no hate
in the paradise we share.
What's taking Wren so long, Janzo?
She's just gotta stick her mum with that needle, right?
We have to wait for the right moment.
We might not get to try this twice.
Oh.
Wren, do you not see? There is nothing to fear,
nothing to lose, only eternity to gain.
- I want to believe you, Mother. - You can believe me.
How could I want anything but what's best for you?
Come to me.
Please. We will be closer than we have ever been.
You will see.
Oh.
Janzo!
- No! - Janzo!
- What are you doing? - I'm saving you.
I did it. I injected her.
Uh-oh.
Oh, foolish child.
You really think an alchemist remedy is a match for me?
It only works on her offspring kinj.
- Wren, have you understood nothing? - I understand enough.
Whatever peace or paradise this is, it's not right.
I want no part of it.
That is unfortunate.
But take comfort, my dear,
your days of disappointing your mother...
are at an end.
Wren!
Mother, please!
Wren? Wren, your wrist.
- Oh, Mother. - Daughter.
All is forgiven.
I'm glad it was with you.
I shared my last gift.
You see, he is still with us.
Yes, I feel his presence.
We were wrong, Janzo. We were so wrong.
A mind expanding in ways we never could have imagined.
Not only peace, but knowledge.
Its potential is limitless. You must experience this for yourself.
No, thank you.
Oh, you don't have to be brave, Janzo.
- No. - You don't have to fight it anymore.
You can be united with more intelligence and more strength
than you've ever known.
You can be at one with me.
But, Wren, this isn't you.
It's still me, Janzo. I'm still Wren.
He has the other syringe.
He wants to take you from the United.
Don't you see, Janzo? I want to be here.
Join us.
Munt.
Run, Janzo!
- Wren, you would kill me? - Of course not.
Drop the syringe, Janzo.
Munt!
This is good, Janzo.
You should try it.
Drop it.
- Janzo! - Let him go.
He won't get far.
Please don't kill me! No!
No! Please don't kill me!
No. Stop!
Stand back! Stay away!
Stay away! Stay away!
Back! Stand back!
Please, no!
Talon!
- Where's Munt? - He and Wren were infected by Yavalla.
There's too many of them!
They're not gonna stop until we're infected.
Let's go!
Keep going! I'll be right behind you!
Zed, what are you doing?
My incendiary device.
Let's go.
I think we lost them.
There's Yavalla's eye in the sky.
We have to hide or she'll just keep sending more.
Over here.
Talon?
So, what now?
A new wall built half a league from the main,
would incorporate over 330 acres of farmland
currently abandoned because of the epidemic.
And that would allow us to replenish our food stores
under Outpost protection.
A new wall? Isn't that a massive undertaking?
- Yes, it is. - Do we have the resources?
Well, we can use the rocks from the quarry
the Blackbloods forced us to reopen.
And do our people have strength of will
after everything they've been through?
Most of them are skin and bone, their spirits threadbare.
It's times like these people long for a purpose more than ever.
I'm impressed. We'll draw up plans immediately.
Garret, thank you for your help.
Especially since I didn't ask for any of this.
It's all right. I mean, I should be fighting alongside Talon and Zed,
but since I can't, I decided to focus on being a help to you.
Well, your contribution is much appreciated.
And what about you?
How are you faring?
I'm fine.
Gwynn,
you've been through a lot the past few weeks.
Used by the Priestess, literally killed
and brought back to life, and then...
Losing Tobin. Yes.
It'll make for a rather riveting diary entry, won't it?
You know, the strangest thing of all is how much I found myself missing it.
It's not strange. You were betrothed to him.
No, not Tobin.
The United.
I can't explain it. It really was a kind of paradise.
Gwynn, it... It would have killed you.
I know.
I knew it at the time and still wouldn't have left it
had I been given the chance.
It's a frightening thought, isn't it?
Yes.
Well, I know what it's like
to be lost in something that is insidious
- and intoxicating. - Oh, Garret.
I never thought I'd be able to fully forgive you
after what you did under the Prime Order's control.
But now I've experienced something similar myself, I... I feel...
You don't have to say any more.
I understand.
Gwynn, I'm... I'm with Talon now.
I know.
I just wanted a hug from an old friend.
I am happy for you and Talon.
There's no two people I'd rather see happy.
Forgive me, Your Majesty,
but Lord Tobin has returned with his army.
They've brought food from Aegisford.
People of Gallwood Outpost,
though my beloved home has been taken by the infected,
my army was able to successfully raid the Aegisford store houses,
securing a bulk of their reserves for you.
Your days of starvation are past.
May Gallwood Outpost forever stand as a refuge of hope
against the outside world!
Why in the gods did you and Wren think
it was a good idea to take on Yavalla yourselves?
We found some long-extinct Ficter's sap
left behind on the map from the meld box.
Turned out to rid one of her followers at the Outpost
of his kinj without killing him,
so we thought it was a way to stop Yavalla without killing her.
Even if the chance was slim,
I couldn't begrudge my Wren trying.
I gather it didn't work?
Unfortunately not.
It seems it only works on her followers,
not Yavalla's original kinj.
Like Zed's kinj does.
Talon.
We have to go back for Wren and Munt.
Wren and Munt are gone.
Only hope of saving them now is burning Yavalla to an ash.
I'm sorry, are we forgetting something, Mister Fire-happy? Huh?
How about the part where I already made you an incendiary device,
and then you just went off and wasted it again?
Oh, yes. To save your life. You're welcome.
Yes, and it was quite an essential part of your plan, wasn't it,
seeing as stabbing a woman through the heart has proven ineffectual?
What's your plan of action now, huh?
Can't you just make us another one?
Make another one? Make another incendiary device out here?
Sure, sure. What do you want me to do?
Just... just pyrolize some willow branches, do you?
Or make a clay pot? I know. How about I just go and...
Go and boil down some of the salt from the hot springs we passed?
Or how about I just fractionate
some of this bat guano that we're sitting in, huh?
Can you actually do that?
My genius even surprises me sometimes.
It's really quite bloody simple, isn't it?
All I have to do is just grind it all up
to a two-three-fifteen weight ratio
and then insert a fuse made out of tree bark
and lace it with fruit sugar.
I don't understand why you're so upset.
We risked life and limb and more than a few close calls with infected
to bring food to your starving subjects.
Rosmund, I did this for you.
For me?
Or for your and Falista's own glory?
- What? - You left with an army,
an army that was pledged to me,
with no word of an explanation.
Your return was equally unannounced,
making me look like a desperate and ignorant leader
fortunate enough to have such bold and mighty allies
like the Baron and Baroness.
Clearly, Falista's positioned you and herself
as the great saviors of this Outpost.
Rosmund, you're being paranoid.
I don't think I am.
Look, Tobin, in the last few weeks,
you and I have both gone to paradise and hell and back.
I don't know about you, but it's left me with no patience for games.
All I crave is plain speaking and the actions to back it up,
though something tells me I'm...
lecturing the wrong half of your Barony about this.
Please, stop bringing Falista into this.
I'm not the one that brought her into this.
Rosmund, you want plain-speaking? Here it is.
I love you.
I am loyal to you and only you.
I want nothing more than your happiness and safety.
In return for your provisions, Lord Aegisford,
I'd like to give you a gift.
Your wife should have your mother's ring.
Please give it to her with my thanks.
I trust you can see yourself out.
There is a common enemy out there.
Yavalla will enslave us all and send us to an early grave
if we do not learn how to stand together.
I need every able-bodied, uninfected man we can get.
How did they bring Rosmund back from death?
She's the woman that you used to call Two.
Look at her.
Captive. Just an ordinary woman. She is not a god.
I shall keep an eye out on this Two.
She may prove useful.
Thank you for seeing me, Your Majesty.
Did you like the ring?
Ring?
Never mind.
I wanted to thank you personally
for your efforts on behalf of my people.
It's Lord Tobin who deserves your thanks.
I was merely along for the ride.
Well, I doubt that.
My adopted father once told me
that a good man aspiring to be great
must choose his wife carefully.
Lord Tobin's clearly done that with you.
Well, I'm glad you and I both see Lord Tobin the same way... a good man.
Which is why the request I've come to make shouldn't be too difficult for you.
Yes?
I understand your Chief Advisor was killed
during the Prime Order attack on the Outpost.
That's correct. She was an uncommonly shrewd woman.
My condolences. And she hasn't yet been replaced?
- No. - Well...
I'm sure both you and I agree that Lord Tobin
would be the obvious choice for the job.
- Baroness... - Please, call me Falista.
I don't think that's a good idea.
Appointing Lord Tobin as Chief Advisor
or calling me by my given name?
- Neither. Both. - Why, Your Majesty?
He has proven himself on the battlefield
and he has shown his loyalty to you in countless ways.
- Do you not trust him? - Oh, I trust him completely.
- Then what is it then? - To be quite frank, Baroness, it's you.
- Me? - Why are you doing this for him?
Is it not so you can have more influence?
Strengthen your connection to royalty?
Oh, are you not aware, Your Majesty?
- I am royal myself. - Oh?
My father's great-uncle's cousin was Kelton the Green,
nephew to Rayner of Ostrib,
whose great-grandson was Ranulf, your father.
So, you and I are cousins in one way or another.
Fascinating.
I've had it all documented by the chronologists, of course.
- Well, I'm sure you do. - It's not as if I go around
making a point of it to everyone.
No, just those you wish to threaten.
Not at all, Your Majesty.
I love Tobin. I want him to be happy.
And he is happiest when he has an important job to do.
Besides, I would have thought
you'd have been above such pettiness
and would choose the right man for the job.
- Pettiness? - Yes.
You can't handle the man you still love
working long hours in close quarters
knowing you can't have him.
Knowing he's married to me.
Honestly, I can't understand why you would want that,
given we both know which of us the man prefers.
- Ow! What was that? - You all right?
- Well, what do you mean? - The pain. That... that was unbearable.
Thank you for the wine, Your Majesty.
I do hope you give my request the consideration it deserves.
There.
Finished.
So we're going to burn Yavalla to death with a pumpkin?
Will it work as well as the others?
Can't guarantee that, can I, Zed?
One has a laboratory full of carefully curated tools and supplies for a reason.
However, being the Janzo that I am,
yes, it should supply no shortage of flame and heat for us.
Good work, Janzo.
You're welcome?
In addition to screening the new arrivals,
we're also inspecting the residents.
And since Janzo discovered Yavalla's use of livestock,
we're inspecting the animals as well.
We're taking measures to control the rodent population,
and we even have a team watching for birds.
That's very good.
I suspect the longer the Outpost remains free of the United,
the more of a target it'll become.
Pray that Zed and Talon are successful on their mission.
You sound doubtful.
Well, Yavalla grows stronger with every mind that's added to hers.
By now she could be truly unstoppable.
I didn't mean to make you worry for Talon.
No, no. If anyone can stop the unstoppable, it's... it's Talon.
I just... I just wish I was out there with her, that's all.
Well, she'll find a way. She always does.
- Yeah. - And for now it's useful having you here.
Get off of me!
Rosmund, back from the dead.
Back from the dead.
You cannot escape your destiny.
You will rejoin me before long.
I should never have let you get that close to the uninspected.
Are you sure you're all right?
Yes. Thanks to your quick action.
It sickens me, having to kill them every time.
They're innocent.
Garret, I need to appoint a new Chief Advisor.
What do you think of Tobin for the job?
He's loyal, a natural leader.
I think he's an excellent choice.
Yes, he is.
But he's also your former betrothed.
I don't want my personal feelings getting in the way
of any important decisions in either direction.
Sometimes what's best for you personally
is what's best for the Realm.
Good night, my daughter.
Now's our chance.
Stay here.
We'll get you when it's safe.
Talon, Zed, I missed you.
Welcome back.
Ugh. Your need for conflict appears endless.
When will you stop fighting,
embrace the peace we are all meant for?
The peace you offer is death.
So we brought you some peace of our own.
Oh, Zed.
Have you not learned?
Your weapons are ineffective on me.
We'll see about that.
Enjoy paradise, Priestess.
It looks like they've lost their connection to her.
- Cut off her head! - I can't see her head.
Aim it high!
- You think it worked? - It had to.
You came back?
Yes.
I'm ready to join you in the United.
No, you're not. You still think I need saving.
What do you mean?
Is that the syringe of Ficter's sap in you hand or not?
You mean too much to me, Wren.
- How can I not want to save you? - Save me from what, Janzo?
Enlightenment?
I want to be with you, but you must join me here.
Then if that's the only way to be with you, I'll do it.
Really?
Really.
I'm so happy you're choosing this, Janzo.
- Hmm. - You won't regret it.
Janzo?
- Janzo? - The syringe you destroyed
was the empty one that you used on Yavalla.
I just filled it back up with mashed berries and pine sap.
- Janzo? - Wren?
Oh.
- You're you again? - Mm-hmm.
Mm, mm.
We've got to go.
Munt? Munt, I had to choose Wren.
I promise we'll save you.
- Did it work? - I think so.
- Is she... - The Ficter's sap worked.
Gods above.
You cannot kill a god.
They refuse to unite with us in paradise.
Kill them all.
Defend our Unity.
Kill the deniers.
Here we go.
Munt.
- Don't make me kill you. - Munt!
This way! This way! There's a back way out!
Come on.
Munt.
I'm sorry, brother.
I'll keep to my word, I promise!
It's in times like these when even the smallest of measures
can mean the difference between salvation and extinction.
It's more important than ever that as your queen,
I have a trusted advisor by my side.
A bold military leader in his own right,
selfless and loyal,
I am confident that he will lead us
from the mere salvation of survival
to a bastion of strength and defiance
against the forces that threaten our world.
I present to you my new Chief Advisor...
Captain Garret Spears.
I'm sorry, Tobin. You're ten times the man he is.
Who is Spears anyway? No lineage, no title.
Seems being Rosmund's childhood sweetheart was his top qualification.
Spears is more than qualified.
- He's a good man. - And you're an even better one.
- You deserved that position. - Rosmund owes me nothing.
I serve at her command.
Maybe if you talk to Spears himself...
Enough!
Stop fixing this! Stop handling me!
I took this sort of manipulation from Gertrusha
from when I was a kid to I'd long past outgrown it.
And then I had that Blackblood,
that witch, in my head
controlling my every move.
Falista, I'm not sure how much more I can take.
I'm sorry.
I wasn't trying to be controlling.
I just... I just want what's best for you.
I know.
And I'm sorry I shouted.
But if I'm to make my mark in this world,
it can't be by your hand, Falista.
It has to be on my own terms.
The traitors have severed my daughter from our Unity.
They have stolen her away.
They have tried once more to kill your god.
As you have seen,
I cannot die.
Gallwood Outpost is now the greatest threat to peace in our world.
We must prepare to show them
the power of the United.
Yavalla, praised be she.
Synced and corrected by Octavia - www.addic7ed.com -