Curse

The Shandia villagers are in an uproar after Noland decapitated the giant snake they worshipped as a god. They scream in terror and anger, shouting, "HE KILLED OUR GOD!" and demanding retribution: "SLIT YOUR THROAT! SPILL YOUR BLOOD ON THE ALTAR!" They beg for forgiveness from the slain beast, crying, "FORGIVE US, LORD KASHI!" and "LORD KASHI!" They threaten Noland, "DO IT OR YOU'LL CURSE THE REST OF US VILLAGERS!" and urge each other to "OFFER MORE SACRIFICES TO GOD! BEFORE WE PROVOKE HIS WRATH!" Noland stands calmly with his sword drawn, facing the massive severed head of the snake as blood pools around it. The villagers continue to panic, "WE NEED BLOOD!" "HOW DARE THAT MAN!" "AHH! WHAT DO WE DO NOW? THOSE WERE PANTORI'S LAST INSTRUCTIONS FOR US BUT WE FAILED...!" Noland's crew watches from a distance, sweating nervously. One says, "This is exactly why you don't get involved in the natives' rituals..." Another asks, "They're shouting deicide! Just what's going on...!?" A third complains, "Admiral... Why you gotta be like that!?" and another concludes, "Oh crap, looks like he did something to cause a panic."

The villagers call upon their greatest warrior to intervene, shouting, "GREAT WARRIOR KALGARA! PLEASE!" "KILL HIM TO CALM GOD'S FURY!" "KILL HIM!" "KALGARA!" Kalgara leaps down from the top of the massive stone altar, his spear ready. He glares furiously at Noland, who stares back with a serious expression. Kalgara lunges, thrusting his spear at Noland, who blocks the heavy blow with his sword. The impact creates a shockwave. Kalgara roars, "I DON'T CARE WHERE THE HELL YOU'RE FROM! YOU MUST BE PURGED!" Noland calmly introduces himself while holding off the attack, "I'm an explorer from the Lvneel kingdom of North Bl..." Nearby, Mousse, the intended sacrifice, watches the clash in shock, tears streaming down her face.

Kalgara and Noland are locked in a fierce clash, Kalgara's spear pressing hard against Noland's sword. Kalgara questions Noland's actions, shouting, "PURGING EVEN THE TINIEST... BUT IMPORTANT STEPS OF PROGRESS!?" Noland retorts, questioning the Shandia's way of life, "IS THAT HOW YOUR PEOPLE HAVE BEEN LIVING...!?" Kalgara pushes forward with immense strength, forcing Noland back as he yells, "ATONE YOUR SINS TO THE GODS!" Noland stands his ground, his sword sparking against the spear, and fires back, "YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO TALK HERE!"

The battle between Kalgara and Noland continues fiercely in the pouring rain, thunder rumbling overhead. Noland's crew watches in awe from afar. One remarks, "HE'S FIGHTING EVENLY WITH KALGARA!" while another wonders, "WHAT'S WITH THAT MAN...!?" Mousse stands nearby, trembling and clutching her hands as she watches the fight. While parrying Kalgara's relentless strikes, Noland turns his attention to Mousse and tells her, "Take that knife and end your life. The village sacrifice should not be so desperately clinging onto her life as to even shed tears!" Mousse is stunned by his words, gasping, "WHA-" Noland deflects another heavy blow from Kalgara, the impact ringing out. Noland then shouts at Kalgara, "DON'T BE STU-" but Kalgara interrupts him with a furious roar, his face contorted in rage, "HAVE YOU NO SHAME!?"

Noland swiftly counters Kalgara's attack, striking him hard in the chest with the hilt of his sword. The blow knocks Kalgara backward as Noland commands, "STOP THAT AT ONCE!" Kalgara looks stunned, blood dripping from his mouth, while Noland glares at him with intense anger. Mousse, overwhelmed by the situation, collapses to the ground with a cry, "Aghh!" "FALL!" Kalgara recovers and thrusts his spear at Noland again. In a shocking move, Noland doesn't dodge; instead, he catches the spearhead with his bare hand, letting the blade pierce through his palm and into his shoulder to stop the attack completely. Mousse watches in horror, gasping, "...Ahh!"

Noland begins to speak, his voice steady despite his injury. "For centuries, We have strictly maintained the law forbidding all outsiders to this island." His crew watches anxiously, calling out, "My men...!" "ADMIRAL!" "A..." Kalgara, still holding the spear embedded in Noland's shoulder, yells furiously, "100 OF YOU AND YOUR MENS' LIVES WILL BE OFFERED TO THE GODS!" Noland replies calmly, "Your death alone will not be enough! For the crime of trespassing and deicide... Don't you underestimate us warriors of Shandora." Noland then raises his voice, his face filled with righteous anger, "THIS WHOLE RITUAL IS AN INSULT TOWARDS US!" He continues, questioning their beliefs, "All this talk about life, sacrifice, and blood... Do you really think a god takes joy in such things?"

Mousse listens with tears in her eyes as Noland continues his impassioned speech. "For all the researchers and explorers... I will not allow rituals that make a mockery of the achievements of great men in ages past." His crew is moved by his words, murmuring, "Admiral..." "What...!?" Noland shouts, "THIS IS AN INSULT! WHO BRAVED THE UNKNOWN SEAS FOR THE SAKE OF HUMANITY'S HAPPINESS..." He then makes a bold declaration, "The 'evil spirit' that has cursed your village... I will exorcise it! If I fail, you may do whatever you wish to my men and I." He asks Kalgara, "Give me time..." Kalgara listens silently, his expression unreadable. Noland finishes his argument, "AND TO DARE ASSUME THAT A GOD WOULD VICIOUSLY SEEK THE BLOOD AND LIVES OF HUMANS... IS THIS NOT AN INSULT TO YOUR GOD AS WELL!?"

Mousse looks on, surprised by Noland's conviction. Kalgara scoffs at the proposal, "How inane... You will die here and now! Otherwise, you'd only run away!" Noland's crew is outraged by the accusation. "Do you think you're god or something!?" "Ridiculous!" "What!?" Noland stands firm, pulling his sword back, and declares loudly, "SWEAR TO ME THAT YOU WILL NEVER AGAIN CONDUCT SUCH A VILE RITUAL! I will not run. I promise you, That I will deliver your village from tragedy, so in return..." He sets a condition, "You have until tomorrow evening before they are sacrificed." Kalgara agrees, "That's fine with me." The Shandia Chief, watching from above, makes the final decision, "Let him try... In the meanwhile, detain his men."

Noland's crew has been locked inside a large wooden cage in the village. They shiver in the cold rain. "We'll catch a cold out here for god's sake..." "Please!" "Heeeyyy! Give us some change of clothes!" "ACCHOO!" Inside the cage, the men discuss their dire situation. "It's not a matter of believing in the admiral. If the Kona tree isn't on this island, then we're all-" "Then believe that the tree exists on this island...!" "Don't be like that. Believe in our admiral." "We're all gonna die tomorrow night." "Ughh, what a turn of events..." They then notice Mousse, who is also locked in the cage with them. One of the men scolds the others, "Quiet! She was gonna be killed just a moment ago. Have some more tact, you idiots..." Another agrees, "Am I right, guys?" They look at Mousse sympathetically. "If she were born back in our kingdom, she might've been able to marry a noble with her looks." "It's a shame you were born here on this sheltered island." "Hey, girl! Your fate is also damn pitiful." Mousse sits silently, listening to them.

One of the crew members explains Noland's background to Mousse. "He's a pretty famous explorer back in our kingdom, But he's also a botanist." Mousse asks, "That man? Who was that man...?" The crew member elaborates, "There've been quite a lot of botanist-explorers who've achieved great things. Their work is quite important for a country's advancement. To discover and research new species of plants. He explores unknown lands in this world," He continues, "He just can't stand by and allow things like that ritual of yours to continue..." Another crew member chimes in, "But he's too nice for his own good..." Mousse listens intently. The crew tries to stay positive, laughing. "Not a chance! Now shut up and sleep!" "But what if!? What if!?" "I'm sure he'll manage somehow." "Well, when push comes to shove, I'm starvin'..." "He is trustworthy, though."

Inside a large building, the Shandia elders are furiously arguing with the Chief about his decision. "THEY'VE BROKEN OUR IRON-CLAD LAW TO ALLOW NO INTRUDERS ON OUR ISLAND!" "WHY DID YOU NOT LET KALGARA KILL HIM THEN AND THERE!?" "CHIEF!" They express their fears, "THEY'LL SURELY BRING FORTH AN EVEN GREATER CALAMITY!" "HE KILLED LORD KASHI!" The elders continue to protest, "BY IGNORING THE LAST WISHES OF THE PANTORI, THE LONE MAN WHO COULD COMMUNICATE WITH THE GODS!?" "DO YOU REALLY THINK WE WILL BE SAFE," "WHAT COULD A HUMAN POSSIBLY DO ABOUT SUPERNATURAL MATTERS!? OUR VILLAGE HAS BEEN CURSED BY EVIL SPIRITS!" "DON'T BE ABSURD!" The Chief remains calm and replies, "He says he can save our village... There's no harm in waiting a single day. We will see for certain tomorrow."

Kalgara speaks up, his face stern. "I will not hesitate to take his head in an instant, Whether or not the time limit is up....If I sense that he poses even the slightest threat to our village," One of the elders urges him, "SAY SOMETHING! KALGARA!" The Chief explains his reasoning, "I CAN HEAR THE WORDS OF A MAN DETERMINED TO RISK HIS LIFE. THAT IS ALL." Kalgara reluctantly accepts, "But at the very least......As you wish. Our pantori is dead... And I do not possess the power to hear the gods' voices." Kalgara turns and walks out of the building. Outside, a young boy named Seto is sitting on a barrel, watching him leave. "Seto..." "Hmph!" "Kalgara!"

Seto calls out to Kalgara, "Great warrior Kalgara..." Kalgara stops and looks back, "What!?" Seto asks, "You were awake?" Kalgara replies, "I got better..." Kalgara thinks back to Noland's words, pondering the meaning of "'Progress?'" Seto looks at him curiously, "Just what is," Meanwhile, deep in the massive forest, Noland is shown smiling, sweat on his face. He says to himself, "In a forest this big, It'd have been strange for it not to exist... I found it! The Kona tree!"

A caption reads "The next day". Noland's crew is shown sleeping soundly inside the wooden cage, snoring loudly. "ZZZ..." Suddenly, a violent earthquake strikes. The crew wakes up in a panic. "An earth-quake!?" "I-IT'S HERE!" Mousse also wakes up, startled. "Ahh-" The entire village shakes violently, buildings crumbling and the ground cracking. The villagers run in terror, screaming, "G-GOD'S WRATH HAS COME!" "LORD KASHI'S CURSE!" "AGHHH!"

The earthquake continues to tear the village apart. Noland's crew clings to the bars of their cage, terrified. "GYAAA!" "HEY! GET US OUTTA HERE!" "A... AN EARTH-QUAKE!?" Mousse looks around in fear. The villagers are in full panic mode. "WE'VE NOW PROVOKED GOD'S WRATH!" "ON TOP OF THE EVIL SPIRITS' CURSE," "I KNEW IT...! THIS IS ALL THEIR FAULT! IT'S BECAUSE THEY'VE COME TO OUR ISLAND!" "THIS IS... FAR GREATER THAN THE USUAL ONES!" "Protect the sick!" The ground splits open with a deafening roar. Kalgara grits his teeth in anger, thinking, "I KNEW I SHOULDN'T HAVE LET HIM LIVE!" The Chief looks on with deep concern.

Out at sea, Noland's ship is tossed violently by the turbulent waves caused by the earthquake. Back at the village, the crew looks out from their cage, worried. "Admiraaal!" "I wonder if the admiral's alright..." The villagers point towards the forest in shock. "Look, the ground split." A massive, deep fissure has opened up in the middle of the forest, swallowing trees and tearing the land apart. "ALL SINKING..." "WHAT A MESS... THE FOREST GROUNDS HERE ARE..." "IT LOOKS AS IF THE ENTIRE ISLAND IS ABOUT TO RIP APART...!" Noland is seen standing near the edge of the massive chasm, looking down into it.

Noland stands at the edge of the newly formed chasm. From the depths of the fissure, another giant snake, identical to the one Noland killed, slithers up onto the surface. It looks at Noland. Kalgara arrives on the scene, laughing mockingly at Noland's predicament. "Ahahahaha! Serves you right!" Kalgara taunts him, "IS NO FEARSOME EXISTENCE... SINCE HE... CAN'T EVEN KILL... A SINGLE HUMAN BEING..." Noland pants heavily, looking exhausted. Kalgara continues, "HUFF... HUFF... IF THAT'S THE CASE... THEN GOD... It seems god has already delivered divine retribution upon you..."

Kalgara glares at Noland, his spear ready. "Allowing the man who killed Lord Kashi to live will bring forth a great tragedy upon my village. The earthquake just now was proof. To kill you....What've you come here for? Stubborn heathen." Noland, ignoring Kalgara's threats, says urgently, "I HAVE TO... HURRY BACK TO THE VILLAGE...!" Kalgara replies coldly, "I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOUR FACE. SORRY TO SAY, BUT... MIND GETTING LOST FOR ME...?" Noland yells back, "SILENCE!" Noland then looks at the giant snake and realizes something. "THE ONE THAT DOESN'T... EVEN LOOK LIKE IT'S WORTH EATING... LORD KASHI...? OHH... YOU MEAN THAT SNAKE..." Noland glares fiercely, "UNTIL YOUR LAST BREATH..." Kalgara smiles a menacing, bloodthirsty smile. "INTERESTING... I'LL WATCH YOU SQUIRM..."

No description for this page.