We see a very faded montage of images violently flash across the screen. Warriors running through fields of the fallen. Warships rocking and on fire amid the sea. Immense walls crumbling beneath a flurry of indistinct dark figures. A towering castle crumbling onto its defenders. These flashes of red light Syne's face as he watches. And then he wakes up. (*Here's a side note to destroy all the intended mystery and shock of the scene: Syne is observing the Battle of Tarikun. They are not images from his memory, of course; they are from Kydran's.)

Syne gets up, a bit groggy from the fighting, and walks onto the deck of the Eastern Wake to have a look around.

• The largest thing around is Epsilon, the massive hulk slowing as the convoy approaches the nearby shore of sandstone. The TW fleet surrounds them, some of the boats are towing their damaged sister ships.

• Cade, piloting the Eastern Wake as the fleet nears the harbor, talks with Syne about what they'll blow up next. Syne does a little blowing up at Cade right there, uncharacteristically hotheaded, and asserts that they should just get back to their normal lives.

• Epsilon docks at its harbor, which is on the other side of the western ridge which separates Pylos Labs from the ocean.

Once they dock, the party is allowed access to Epsilon to search for Dell. No one else seems to care that he's lost. Ko, however, stays behind.

• Everyone starts combing through the enormous floating mining facility to look for Dell. There are Pylos guards here and there that prevent access to "vital" areas, and they explain that those areas have already been searched and secured.

• Cade volunteers to act as "home base" at Epsilon's entrance to check in with the others. (*Really, he still holds a small grudge against the Antarean.) (Though most of the party looks for Dell, the player controls only Syne. The search finally ends only when the player tells Cade that they're giving up.)

• Dell cannot be found.

Brooke goes to check in on the reclusive Ko, and Cade avoids Syne (who is a mystery to him) for the time being (leads to "a" section below). This leaves Syne, Enna, and Rush to travel with Rheya up the mountain corridor back to the Labs (leads to "b" section below).

• Brooke meets Ko on the Eastern Wake, where Cade occupies his time with repair work.

  • Ko is neither mute nor in despair, but Brooke can pick up his hesitance about something. He shrugs it off as seasickness "or something."

  • So Brooke does the only other thing she can think of: talk about herself. She presents Ko with her dilemma. The ore is just meters away, locked in the virtually impenetrable Epsilon. She can't figure out whether or not it would be in everyone's best interest for her to try to take back to ore. This is not her decision, she settles, and resolves that she must return to her father and let the Protean council decide.

  • Ko finds his voice, pointing out that there's no obvious way to get back across the ocean, and it is very doubtful that Kydran would take her in Epsilon.

  • Cade speaks from his spot on the hull, telling Brooke that he had heard rumors of secret Korran ships that could cross the Great Ocean without being swept away by the current. He mentions that "his" town, Port Korra, has some very old boats that no one ever uses, and gives Brooke general directions.

• Syne, Enna, Rush, and Rheya come to a large corridor carved through the mountains. She explains that it was built for Epsilon's shipment to be transferred, and thus the Labs would have access to a very potent source of magic energy. The transfer should occur soon, she says.

  • They arrive at the Labs, where many techno-wizards and Pylos staff are indeed getting ready for "the Transfer."

    • Dantalian can be found running around, delivering messages. He complains about not having Hyde around, and leaves the group wondering where Hyde ended up.

    • Rheya goes off on her own to find her fellow wizards to see if they need help with the transfer.

  • The party proceeds to the lookout tower, where they find Kydran and Miriel. Rush is very quiet during the scene, Enna is frustrated, and Syne is disillusioned. The conversation begins with Kydran giving them his wholehearted thanks; Tyrus was a danger to people everywhere, with the power he had. Syne responds quickly: why should he believe Kydran won't represent a danger with that same power? Miriel defends TW technology in the name of research. Kydran quiets her, and for a moment seems eerily contemplative.

    • Kydran wants to be "honest" with everyone. He acknowledges he did some very bad things ... the worst being the Battle of Tarikun (this gets a harrumph from Rush). He reasons that he had discovered means of possibly making it up to everyone; Pylos, and the fusion of Antarean magic language with magic power (from the ore). He intends to use this power, not to destroy the world and start over, as Tyrus wanted to, but to help heal the wounds he had caused (*In his highly abstract speech, however, it's not very evident that we should be taking him literally ... even though that's exactly what he means).

    • Enna continues to disbelieve Kydran. She falls back to point out the environmental damage Pylos apparently did to the Titan Continent. As Syne (to his own surprise) starts in to defend Kydran's intentions, Kydran himself admits that his means haven't been the ideal, but he maintains that his ends will truly justify it.

    • Syne pleads to Enna for her understanding, but she is very confused at this point. She has no faith in her convictions, at this point, and consequently no faith in her relationship with Syne. The only thing stopping her from running out of the lookout tower is an entering Dantalian.

  • Dantalian comes bearing the news that Dell has been found.

Syne, Rheya, Enna, and Rush return to Epsilon, finding Brooke and Cade already en route.

• A guard reports they found Dell halfway down an escape chute. Syne goes to the shivering Antarean, who is covered with a blanket. Dell seems somewhat broken, ashamed at himself, and muttering he "couldn't fly up to get out." When Syne removes the blanket, he discovers that Dell's wings have been cut off.

• Rheya is the first to rush forward to support Dell, in an uncharacteristic show of compassion. She demands to know who did this to him. The answer, though, doesn't come from Dell.

• Ko finally rejoins the group and speaks up. He confesses; he was the one who cut off Dell's wings when he was aboard Epsilon with Tyrus.

  • Most people are quite startled at this revealed truth, but Brooke understands, in a way. She too looked up to Tyrus, and can understand his influence over the boy. Ko shrugs, in the sad indifference of someone who's willing to take what's coming to them. Dell brings some wry humor back, in his way, and gets everyone to move on; what's done is done, so there's no reason for everyone to dwell on it--this is between him and Ko.

• Brooke backs the Antarean, and moves forward. She announces her intentions to travel to Port Korra, in order to search for a way home. Rush, ever dutiful, offers his protection for the princess. Rheya suggest to Dell that he go as well; he seems very curious about the prospect of learning about his ancestry on the Ruin Continent. Ko, however, doesn't want to go back home....

• ....Enna does, and offers to bring Ko with her to Trosene if Cade will give them a ride in the Eastern Wake. Both of them agree to go. This leaves Syne and Rheya, both of whom are expected back to help with the Transfer as Pylos employees.

Much doubt now exists in Syne's mind, and he tries to think of what to do next. He decides to stick with Pylos, now thinking it will bring about the most good. He starts back down the corridor by himself. A few people exchange glances, and then Rush runs after him.

• He stops Syne, almost forcibly. Syne doesn't understand; he knows what he wants to do. Rush quarrels with him; "no, you don't." Rush points out that Syne would be working for the very abstract ideal of Pylos without really understanding. It's okay to be uncertain about your own thoughts, the older man explains, as long as you're willing to try to understand them. He makes a suggestion; since Syne has been adventuring all over the Titan Continent and not found any definite answers, maybe he should consider coming with Rush and Brooke to the Ruin Continent. Dell is searching for answers to the same sort of questions, and it might help if they looked together.

• Syne thinks, very frustrated with himself, and finally feels that Rush is right. He'd only be regressing back to his Pylos lacky version of himself. He thanks Rush for the "fatherly advice." Rush doesn't say anything to that.

• Syne returns to the group, announce that he'll be going with Rush, Brooke, and Dell to find a way to the Ruin Continent. He turns to Rheya, regretting that he'll be unable to express his apologies to Pylos by helping, but he isn't going to stay with them. Rheya smiles cryptically and answers, "neither am I."