Quiahuitl's Story: Finale

VS ??: Together

Mar 02, 2023

Open on Grand Festival Hub

Epcoatl is on screen.

Epcoatl: Hmm, where’s the best place to disappear to? It’d have to be a place where nobody who’d recognize me would care. One of the Mondragean city states or somewhere in Hirzen perhaps?

Fintan and Aris walk by.

Aris: Greetings Lord Epcoatl.

Epcoatl: Greetings to you as well, but now isn’t the time. And I’m well aware that the reason why has become a driving force for the rumor mill.

Fintan: But things are always more complex than rumor makes them sound. Not that we’re here to pry.

Fintan and Aris walk past Epcoatl.

Epcoatl: Wait.

Fintan and Aris turn around.

Epcoatl: Fintan, I’ve heard you and Aodh are together again. This isn’t my place to ask with how impersonal our relationship is. But with what happened between you, how could you take him back?

Fintan: You’re right, it doesn’t make sense. His immaturity destabilized my reign as much as if not more than my enemies did, and he had every warning about what the consequences of his actions would be.

Fintan: Yet, after everything we’ve been through… The world doesn’t always make sense. There are some ties you can’t sever, no matter how much pain you give and take. You have to accept that pain, it’s what it means to be connected to someone.

Aris: I have something to add as well, since it’s clear why you asked that question. Whatever the true story is with what’s happened between you and Quiahuitl, be honest with her. Don’t leave things unsaid.

Aris: That was my greatest mistake. I let my own lord fall into madness because I didn’t speak against him, even though it was my duty to keep him on the right path. If you care for Quiahuitl, don’t let your story become like mine.

Epcoatl: Thank you. Please, continue on your way. I need time to think.

Fintan and Aris walk away.

Epcoatl: (Do I still care for Quiahuitl? She’s already crossed several lines, all while I nodded my head and hoped it’d be the last time. Maybe I could have done things differently, but it would have never been a problem if she could just be content for once.)

Kazuko runs on screen.

Kazuko: Epcoatl! Epcoatl!

Epcoatl: I heard you the first time, and again you forget my title. What is it?

Kazuko: You were right, one of the merchants did have the mushrooms the poison used on Quiahuitl was made from. He said one of her attendants asked him to gather them before going to the Grand Festival, he thought they were for medicine.

Epcoatl: Did you ask if this attendant had any identifying features?

Kazuko: Well the merchant said she had a Xoletlan accent. That’s one of the cities of the empire, right?

Epcoatl: (It was an attendant with a Xoletlan accent who kept trying to get me to leave Quiahuitl’s side while she was recovering. And now I’m not there…)

Epcoatl: We need to hurry!

Epcoatl runs off-screen.

Transition to Quiahuitl’s Ship

Quiahuitl and the attendant on screen.

Attendant: My lady, it is nearly time for the grand finals.

Quiahuitl: I see. And no word from Epcoatl?

Attendant: None.

Quiahuitl: I’ll look for him myself after the tournament.

Quiahuitl walks past the attendant. The attendant takes out a knife and stabs Quiahuitl.

Assassin: The king of the dead welcomes you to his kingdom.

Quiahuitl knocks the assassin back.

Quiahuitl: (No! I can’t die here. Not without making things right with Epcoatl. I need to survive.)

The assassin walks forward. Quiahuitl attempts to perform one of her attacks and fails, holding herself in pain.

Transition to Grand Festival Hub

Race Start

You’re controlling Epcoatl now, and you don’t have time to play around with his moves. A timer is ticking down, and you need to reach the end of the platforming section before time runs out, or you’ll be forced to start over. There’s even a tense, stressful remix of the usual exploration theme playing. Thankfully Epcoatl is a moveset clone of Quiahuitl, so you don’t have to learn a whole new character.

There’s a variety of obstacles between Epcoatl and Quiahuitl, but you have some room for error, it won’t be game over if you need to redo a jump. Around the halfway point the path starts forcing you onto the roofs of stalls and the likes, if you miss a jump you’ll have to take a lower and slower route with more obstacles. Try to avoid that if you can.

It’s not too difficult, but the sudden introduction of the timer will make it feel harder than it really is in the moment. Once you get to the end you can enjoy your liberation from racing against the clock, but don’t take it easy just yet.

Race Finish

Transition to Quiahuitl’s Ship

The assassin is right in front of Quiahuitl, knife raised.

Epcoatl runs in from off-screen and attacks the assassin, the attack is parried. Kazuko and a Xilian Soldier follow behind.

Epcoatl: Get her to safety. I’ll handle this assassin.

Battle Start

Now it’s time to go into the one key difference between Quiahuitl and Epcoatl gameplay wise. Epcoatl does not have the rally mechanics that Quiahuitl does, his ball projectiles will always have the same strength. So instead of going for complex set ups you’re better off just trying to get it to connect.

This fight is extremely straightforward. The stage is essentially a small box, and the assassin is limited to a few knife moves lifted from Kazuko. A quick bit of all out aggression should resolve this swiftly.

Battle End

Epcoatl and the assassin are alone. The assassin is clearly exhausted.

Epcoatl: Who sent you?

Assassin: Wouldn’t you like to know?

The assassin stabs herself and dies.

Transition to Quiahuitl’s Chamber

Quiahuitl is in bed. Epcoatl, Kazuko, a soldier, and druid stand by it.

Epcoatl: … and so I don’t think that assassin is going to be a problem again. More importantly, how are you?

Druid: The foreigner and I see no signs of poison within the huey chihuatlatoani, aside from the lingering side effects of the assassin’s last attempt, which have only made the recent injuries even worse. Still, her life is not in danger.

Druid: I imagine this will be ignored once again, but I must say it. Do not fight in the tournament. You need to recover, not fight.

Quiahuitl: It’s hard to argue with a stab wound. Send out word of what happened and my inability to compete until I recover.

Epcoatl: You’re actually resting?

Quiahuitl: You were right, I need to value my own health more. I don’t want to make you worry either.

Quiahuitl: Now that I think about it, how did you know I was in danger? And why is she here?

Kazuko: Epcoatl asked me to help him track down whoever poisoned you, and we found out just in time.

Epcoatl: I have my suspicions for who sent that assassin, but let’s save that for later. Their time will come.

Quiahuitl: I see, I think I know who you mean.

Quiahuitl: Kazuko, I insist on giving you some sort of reward for your aid. For now though, I’d prefer to be alone with Epcoatl.

The others leave the room.

Epcoatl: You’re probably wondering why I came running back after everything that happened. I wanted to identify the poisoner because letting someone like that run loose is dangerous, but I thought they wouldn’t be able to strike at you again.

Epcoatl: Then when I realized the assassin already had a way past any guard, I ran here without thinking. I think I was terrified more than anything else.

Quiahuitl: Epcoatl, I didn’t think of the empire when I was stabbed. I thought that I had to survive to make things right with you.

Quiahuitl: Maybe I’ve dedicated too much of myself to the empire. It won’t fall apart if we spend more time with each other. Please, stay with me.

Epcoatl: As you wish. I’ll always choose you over anyone else.

Transition to Burned Grove

The stage is set on a small pyramid in a grove, fighters can duke it out on the pyramid’s flat top, or go down the steps to the forest floor, where you’ll quickly run into the trees that serve as the stage’s walls.

In the background are burnt trees, giving the stage its name. A statue of a female talpman stands in the background on the top of the pyramid.

Text appears on screen: ‘After the Grand Festival.’

Quiahuitl is at the left most part of the stage.

Exploration Start

The festival might be over, but there’s one last thing to settle. You’re also back to controlling Quiahuitl. Walk up the pyramid and listen in on some people along the way.

Kazuko: Wow, there’s so many trees here. The islands my tribe stops by have some, but it’s not this dense.

Quiahuitl: The forest and the empire are one and the same, it should be impressive. You said you wanted passage here, but what are you planning now that you’ve arrived?

Kazuko: I’ll stick around for a while and see what the empire is like, and maybe go explore some other places before I go back to my tribe. There’s a lot more to the world than I realized.

Tired Druid: We’ve been getting more visitors since the grand festival. I suppose this place’s relevance to imperial propaganda at least keeps the funding coming.

Curious Revolving Sea Merchant: Wow, this place looks exactly like the illusion of it from the tournament. Well other way around makes more sense. I knew it’d be worth the trip.

At the top of the pyramid you’ll see Epcoatl, approach him to begin the ending.

Exploration End

Epcoatl: Are you sure you’re ready for this?

Quiahuitl: I’ve had enough time to heal. Now let’s settle this. I want a genuine fight after you held back all those years ago. Don’t hide your strength.

Epcoatl: Very well.

Battle Start

This is effectively a mirror match, since as mentioned earlier the presence/absence of the rally mechanic is the only difference between Quiahuitl and Epcoatl. Quiahuitl needs to put in more work to have her projectiles match Epcoatl’s in strength, but she also has the potential to do even more damage with a good rally.

The stage covers not just the top of the pyramid but the stairs leading down on both sides as well, so remember what you learned about fighting on slopes last chapter. And while we’re talking about previous chapters, now is a good time to think about what other opponents did that frustrated you, because they should work against Epcoatl.

Going for close quarters combat is the safer/simpler option here since Epcoatl needs less set up for his projectiles, and that speed/ease of use makes it easy for him to win out in projectile wars. But if you can get a good rally going and have the ball hit, the damage should shift the momentum in your favor. For that reason it’s better to stick with Fourfold Strike.

Epcoatl’s status as a moveset clone carries over with his own super moves. You won’t need to worry about the balls bouncing around after his version of Rubber Rain, but he’s still putting four projectiles on the screen at once. His version of Fourfold Strike is equal in strength to Quiahuitl’s, but if you can bank your version off a slope or the like it will surpass his.

Consider this a test of how well you’ve learned to use Quiahuitl. A solid understanding of her strengths and weaknesses will reward with you an assured victory here.

Battle End

Quiahuitl: This felt nostalgic. I never noticed it, but I missed when things were simpler. Just the two of us, like this.

Epcoatl: So do I.

Quiahuitl: I keep thinking over everything that happened at the Grand Festival. Eventually this empire will either move on without me at its head or collapse. I want it to outlive me.

Quiahuitl: For that to happen, it needs to be something that people want to continue. I need to think about the legacy I leave behind, not just the power I hold in life. That’s the only way we can stand strong in the face of immortals.

Epcoatl: That’s going to require many changes to our plans, but I’m happy to do that. No point in dwelling on the past when we can build the future.

Quiahuitl: Are you sure you’re content with that?

Epcoatl: Yes. Building a future together is all I’ve wanted, no matter how much power over the world we have.

Quiahuitl: And what I’ve wanted is to rule with you by my side. I regret losing sight of that.

Epcoatl: Then I’ll make sure you don’t forget it again.

Quiahuitl and Epcoatl descend the pyramid together.

STORY END

Note from the Author: Did this chapter catch you by surprise? If so I hope it did in a good way. I was hesitant to have Quiahuitl ultimately drop out of the tournament, but it makes the story more unique. Sometimes being a bit hesitant to do an idea is all the more reason to carry it out.

Optional Discussion Prompt: Who do you think is the mastermind behind the attempted assassinations of Quiahuitl? I didn’t say it outright, but I tried to sprinkle in some implications and hints in earlier chapters that reveal the answer. Now it’s time to see if I did a good job of hinting at it.

The Warthog Report

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