It reminds me of something, but I just can't put my finger on it. I feel an uncontrollable urge to raise my hands, though.
The shadow's being cast by those garbage bags.
Pretty convincing, if I have to say so myself.
It's the theater's fire exit.
It's a fire alarm and smoke detector.
It's a closed garbage bin.
It's filled with a bunch of dry rags, newspapers, and a half-empty oil can. Can anybody say "extreme fire hazard"?
It's filled with a bunch of dry rags, newspapers, and a half-empty oil can.
When's the last time somebody picked up the garbage? Smells like mouldy caramel popcorn and Bingo! Cherry Cola. Disgusting.
It's a mountain of garbage.
For such a small guy, he sure makes a big racket.
It's constable Guybrush. I shouldn't leave him here.
I wound the monkey up real good, so he'll be dancing for a while.
It's a perfect fit. I'm so clever, I could just die.
It's Cortez.
They must be really paranoid about fires in this place.
I think I got the little guy right where I want him.
All right, somebody's coming!
This would probably work a lot better if I opened the can first.
There's no doorknob. It's impossible to open it from this side.
I ain't scared of no guy who don't have the guts to show himself, ah-huh.
Hell's blazes, we got us a fire!
All right there, mister! Just don't you fire that gun now, y'hear? I am sorry I chased ya earlier.
Now where is that voice comin' from? Show yourself!
Freddie'll do the monkey for ya, right now, if that's what you want, ah-huh. He'll do the monkey until you asks him to stop, I reckon, ah-huh. Ah-huh! Huh!
This is probably as good a place as any. At least there's no one around to see. Except rats.
What for? What are you doing?
Stand back, serita.
To see what?
Why, Alice, I'm sending you through the looking-glass!
What...what is that? Please tell me it's a hologram.
It's a mirror, to reflect your dreams.
But I don't see anything. Just...light.
Oh, you have to step through.
Step through that? Oh no. I don't think so.
This is the moment of decision, April. All time, past and present, revolves around this moment. The destiny of worlds is in your hands.
But you must make the choice on your own. La vida es corta...you must decide how to live it best.
I'm not doing it.
Very well. Go. I'll wait here for a while, and perhaps you will change your mind and come back before it is too late?
All right, I'll do it.
I'm not sure what I should do.
I understand. It's a difficult decision, because whatever you do, your life will change forever. So take your time, think about it. Don't rush into a decision you're not ready to make.
Vamos. Enter the light.
Don't say that. It sounds too ominous. Just...tell me what's going to happen.
You're about to take the first step on the longest journey of your life.
I must be insane to do this.
Yes, it's pretty much a given.
But don't worry. I'll be waiting, right here.
No way.
I'm a patient man, and so I'll wait a while, but don't test me.
I'm not sure.
You have to make a decision sooner or later. And sooner would be very much preferred.
Are you ready to step through the looking-glass?
Oh, I almost forgot.
When you're ready to come back, pay a visit to a friend of mine called Westhouse. Brian Westhouse.
Vaya con dios, child. And may the Balance protect you.
Cortez? Oh God, it's real! It's all true. I saw it. I saw the other world. Arcadia. Either I'm going crazy, or you were right about everything.
Let's hope for the latter, eh, mi Amiga? So I gather your trip was a success?
Success? My whole world has been turned topsy-turvy, so I don't think success is the right word... Nothing about it makes sense. The fact is, I don't believe in magic.
The sun doesn't need you to believe in it to rise in the morning, serita. You have seen the truth with your own two eyes. I can do nothing more to convince you. It is up to you, now.
Well, do I have a choice? I have to believe at least some of it. My life wouldn't make much sense otherwise.
You are a true skeptic, April. Esta bien...we need your kind to balance the hopeless romantics like myself.
What happens now?
The Minstrum told you about the Balance? About Stark, and Arcadia?
A man named Tobias...he was called the Vestrum, I think. Vestrum Tobias.
Ah, so Tobias made Vestrum? Que bien. Good. I knew he would go far when I first met him, years ago. He was just an Istrum, then, a student of the Balance. But he was smart, and resourceful.
So you know what is going on with the Balance?
Tobias told me that the...Guardian? That the Guardian was missing, and that the Balance was failing. He said this would bring chaos into both worlds.
As we're already seeing -- your dreams, your nightmares, they are a part of this. You sense Chaos more keenly than most others, but even they are beginning to notice that things are not as they should be.
Like last night.
What about last night?
What you saw...you were not alone this time, there were others, and they saw the same thing. Not nightmares anymore. Real. The first sign of the damage Chaos can do. The Divide is being breached.
It is not yet time for the worlds to be united. A breach could prove catastrophical.
Who are you really, Cortez?
Excuse me?
People knew you, over there in Arcadia. Tobias -- he didn't know you by your real name, but he did know you. And Mr Westhouse, he knew you too, as Chavez. But several hundred years ago.
Ah. So my secrets are being revealed, are they?
I wouldn't say that, because you're still a mystery to me. More so.
Good. You see, serita, mystery is important. To know everything, to know the whole truth, is dull. There is no magic in that. Magic is not knowing, magic is wondering about what and how and where.
I'd settle for the truth, just to be able to know you. Because, honestly -- and I don't mean this in a bad way -- you scare me, Cortez. I'm afraid of you.
And you're not the only one, mi Amiga. I'm sorry, but whatever it is about me that mystifies you, it will have to stay a secret. There are...there are things even you should not know.
Gee, thanks. That really helped.
Perdoname. Perhaps later, when we are certain of what the future holds? Si, I think I can promise you that, serita Ryan. Later. But for now, we must speak of more important matters.
You helped me back, didn't you?
To Shift? Si. The power is yours, yes? But for now, you need me to focus your powers, to call forth the dreams.
Dreams?
Yes. To travel from one world to the next, you must pass through the world of dreams. It's the only way. You are capable of opening a Shift on your own, but you might not be able to.
What do you mean?
The power -- the magic -- is within you. And when you sleep, sometimes you open the portal without even being aware of it. But when you're awake, it's more difficult. With practice, you will do it.
I don't think I want to do it.
You must. The worlds depend on it.
We must work together, April. I can't do it alone, and neither can you.
So what do I do?
But what exactly is it that we have to do?
Four things. We must find the lost Guardian. We must locate the gateway to his realm, and the disc that is the key to his tower. And we must do what we can to curtail, and defeat, the Vanguard.
How are we going to find the Guardian?
The moment he surrendered his throne and left his realm, he stepped back into our world. This world. Stark. This is where he was born, and so this is where he must return to.
But he could be anywhere, right?
This city has power, April. Not magic, but the opposite of magic. And it draws people to it like flies to an open fire. All the pieces of the puzzle come together here. You, me, the Vanguard, the Guardian...
I can guarantee you that he's here. But where, exactly, I don't know. I think maybe the Vanguard do. I think they may have him.
If they have him, how are we going to get him back? And why do they need him? Why do we need him?
He left his realm, but he's the last Guardian, and only he can open the doorway back to his realm to let his successor through. The Vanguard knows this, but what they don't know -- yet -- is how to get there.
Who'd know about the gateway to the Guardian's realm?
That, I don't know. That knowledge wouldn't be here, in Stark. You must go to Arcadia, study the books, talk with the Minstrum and others who might know. But not yet. First, we must finish our mission here.
How are we supposed to fight this Chaos you keep talking about?
You're the key, April. You have the power to Shift, yes, but there's more to you than that. You are a child of the Balance, and you...no, that will have to wait...
By just being alive, you counter Chaos. Without you, last night might have turned out much worse. That tiny breach might have been permanent.
I didn't do anything.
Then imagine the power you wield when you do do something. Trust me on this, Amiga. It's instinctive to you, to fight Chaos. You see it so clearly, and you will know what to do.
You're most needed in Arcadia, where Chaos is a part of reality. The tidal wave will hit there first, and unless it's subdued before it hits Stark full force, we'll never stand a chance.
So you will have to travel to Arcadia...after we are done here.
How do we defeat the Vanguard?
The Vanguard are strong here, and growing stronger. Even in Arcadia, they're gaining a foothold, and with the Tyren on a leash... The future looks quite bleak.
How do you know so much about what's going on in Arcadia?
Voices whisper in my ear, serita. Voices that I trust.
You're saying the Vanguard are strong here... How come I haven't heard about them?
They don't go by that name here. Did you ever hear of the Church of Voltec?
Sure. They're...oh. That's the Vanguard?
Si.
Then they are big. Very big. But why do they...why assume a different name here?
In Arcadia, they flaunt their philosophy. They preach the destruction of the Balance under the pretense of returning humankind to the "glories of the past".
Here, they cannot do that. So they have integrated themselves slowly but surely into society under the subterfuge of New Age religion. And they've built a financial empire to match governments.
They have that much money?
The Vanguard own multinational companies. They own planets, April. They own armies. All they need is the Balance, and they will own everything. The twin worlds will be at their mercy.
So we basically don't stand a chance, do we? Against an enemy like that?
If we hold at bay the forces of Chaos, and if we ensure the natural continuation of the Guardian's role within the Balance, then they will have lost.
Okay, so that's it? Kick some Vanguard ass, find the Guardian, locate the entrance to his realm and a ten-thousand year old disc and four dragon eye jewels...
It's impossible, Cortez. I can't do these things. I'm eighteen. I'm an artist...no, not even that. I'm nobody. You can't place all these responsibilities on my shoulders. I can't carry that much.
I will help you, April. Others, too. You're not alone.
Well, I feel very alone. And I can't even tell anybody about this. Yeah, hi, how are you, I'm the chosen one, care to help me save the world from evil and chaos?
There is no "chosen one", April. There are only those who would, and those who wouldn't. You have a choice between the two.
You said I had powers, that I wasn't like everybody else.
True, but you still have a choice. Prophecies can never unravel the will of a single human. You are one of many possible paths. But, unfortunately, most of the alternative paths have been blocked by...
The world does depend on you. But you have not been "chosen". You choose for yourself what you are and what you will be.
Where is the key to the Guardian's realm?
In Arcadia. The key contains two parts. One is the disc itself, the other is the four jewels -- the Eyes of the Dragons -- that gives the disc the properties of the Balance, and makes it complete.
Where is the disc?
The disc was left in the care of the Sentinel, ten thousand years ago. In the beginning, it was kept in the open, displayed for all to see. But not anymore, not since thieves tried to make away with it.
They will know where it is. Ask Tobias...Vestrum Tobias.
Where are the four jewels?
Ah, the Eyes of the Dragons... They are kept by the four Dragons themselves, two in Arcadia, and two in Stark. The White Dragon has one, as does the Old One. These you must find yourself.
I'll help you with the others.
...and, oh, April -- make sure you do battle with the physical manifestations of Chaos along the way, because, hey, that's your destiny.
...circumstances beyond our control.
What happens if I choose "no, no way"?
But I can't do it! I'm not who you think I am. I'm not your savior, I don't have any magic powers, I'm just this girl, I'm just...me.
The choice is yours, April. As always, the choice is yours.
For what it's worth...perhaps not. Still, you need to come to the decision on your own.
Then the choice will have to be "yes, let's save the world".
Where do we start?
Here. In Newport. We must find out about the Vanguard. Their headquarters are in this city, but where? Do they have the Guardian under lock and key? What are their weaknesses?
Once we've done that, you must travel to Arcadia -- I cannot go there, and besides, I have things to take care of here.
Right. Except...where the hell do I go to find out about the Vanguard? The library? The net?
Valuable information is hard to find. Remember the painting I showed you yesterday?
Sure.
The artist, a boy named Warren -- I told you about him, yes? Warren is involved in a lot of activities that, uhm, aren't exactly legal. He has connections. He can point us in the right direction.
All right. Okay. Where do I find him?
My friend, Father Raul, at the Hope Street Cathedral...he's had some contact with the boy lately. Ask him.
Wait -- did you say Hope Street?
Yes.
As in the most dangerous neighborhood in Newport?
Is it? I don't usually follow the civic affairs of this city. I remember Hope Street when they first built it. A clean neighborhood.
That must've been a very long time ago.
Still, I'm sure you'll be safe. You're a girl, no? A self-respecting gentleman would never harm a girl.
It's the "self-respecting gentleman" part I'm concerned about. Still...I can handle myself. Father Raul, was it? At the Hope Street Cathedral?
Yes. He will lead you in the right direction, help you find Warren Hughes.
When you're done tomorrow, we will meet up at the cathedral, late in the afternoon. I need to speak with Raul as well.
Okay. Good. It's a plan, then?
Enjoy yourself tonight, April. Who knows what the future may hold? Good night.
I'm not a fortune teller, nor am I a Venar. What will happen? Something else. That's all I can tell you. Something else.
But I'm sure it won't be anything good, not unless you agree to help.
It's not much of a choice, is it?
