Arknights' Lock of Heaven

"Everything happened too fast!"

"Did you lie to us from the very beginning?"

“Do you know? Amiya, Mephistopheles, that child, when she first came to our camp, was just a pitiful child who loved to sing.”

"But right there in those ruins, you saw what Talulah turned him into."

Faced with Frostnova's tearful question, Rhodes Island could only remain silent.

"My brothers and sisters, countless ordinary people and infected people who have died, will never come back..."

"Why..."

Amiya gritted her teeth, determined not to back down. She had to bear all the regret, resentment, and anger emanating from Frostnova.

"This shouldn't have happened..."

“My compatriots, my brothers and sisters…”

The cold air had solidified into a physical form, and Greythroat could even hear Huang's gritted teeth as he struggled to stay afloat.

"Amiya."

"Did you hear that, Amiya?"

Froststar softly called Amiya's name.

Her path has come to an end.

Lungmen will not punish Talulah; only Rhodes Island, which shares the same belief, can correct this mistake.

"I am here, Miss Frostnova."

Amiya probably understood what she meant.

"Did my chill cool your body? Did death frighten you?"

"You won't do that, and you can't do that."

"Can't you read minds? Little rabbit, then read them now. Read my anger, read this heart that has been burning with bitterness and turmoil in my chest for over a decade, yet it hasn't given up beating!"

"This is because of the unjustly killed relatives, because of the corrupt Ursus, because of the infected compatriots, because of the people of Ursus who still refuse to stop, refuse to die. How much anger is in their hearts?!"

"..."

"Do you hate her, Miss Frostnova?"

"Ah."

“I have never hated her, even though she was the one who caused all of this.”

What good is hatred to me?

"I am filled with anger right now."

"And you, Amiya? Don't you feel any anger?"

"Can't you understand why you didn't have relatives who died from Oripathy, or friends who died because of the indifference of this land?"

Have you ever lost someone you depended on for survival, someone who gave you the motivation to live?

Amiya fell silent.

"They merely proclaim a certain idea, merely acquire a certain technology, merely organize a few teams..."

"Will this be enough to defeat Talulah, and the cruel Ursus behind her?"

"It's time to wake up from daydreaming."

“I understand, Miss Frostnova,” Amiya said, looking at Frostnova and rising to her feet. “What just flooded my mind, I now understand what it is…”

It is expectation.

What propels Rhodes Island forward? What drives you to fight on?

It is because one is powerless that one places expectations on others without authorization.

The surrounding cold air grew stronger and stronger, and even Huang had to abandon his back and try his best to resist the front.

"Cough, cough... Even I can't defeat her, how can you face her? How can you lead countless infected people to fight against this vicious world?"

"Miss Frostnova, thank you."

Looking at Amiya's youthful face, a hint of disappointment flashed across Frostnova's pale face.

"You're wasting my time."

What unrealistic expectations are I having?

That ring, perhaps, is just similar.

Even the big bear beside Xia Yu gave up struggling, its eyes filled with tears as it looked at Froststar.

“No, Miss Frostnova, I know what I have to do,” Amiya shook her head. “I can’t really read minds, and reading minds doesn’t mean I can understand a person better than anyone else.”

"I just can't refuse, and don't want to refuse, your feelings."

"I can feel the anger in your chest."

“I can feel the burning anger, and I know what I have to do, so I won’t refuse you.”

"Why are you crying?" Frostnova asked, looking at Amiya's pale face.

"I……"

"No, wipe it clean! You can't shed tears in front of the enemy!"

"Tell me your answer!"

“If fighting is necessary,” Amiya looked around and then at her companions, “then fight to the very end.”

"Right now, we are fighting, a life-or-death battle."

“Yes, you want to fight with the desire to live or die,” Frostnova said with a smile. “If your will can overcome me, then so be it.”

"I will join Rhodes Island to fight against the common enemy of the infected."

But everyone present knew that this was impossible.

Because Frostnova is about to die.

“I hope you will keep your promise,” Amiya said, her spirits lifting at the words.

"Of course, I will keep my promise."

For the first time, a hearty smile appeared on Froststar's pale face.

“And also, Miss Frostnova,” Amiya said solemnly, “the Infected don’t need anyone to lead them. We are fighting for the same belief, not for any one person.”

"Never."

“That’s right, that’s it,” Frostnova’s eyes blazed with fire. “The corrupt should be excised. Defeat me, defeat Talulah!”

"who are you?"

“It can be anyone,” Amiya answered loudly.

"What are we fighting for?"

For everyone!

"Okay, cough cough, that's all, thank you, Amiya."

"Come on, defeat me, and show me hope!"

-

The frigid currents created by Froststar, which squeezed life from the land, filled the entire region.

Even the Guard Bureau, located on the ruins several floors away, was forced to evacuate.

"I won't let you pass," Huang said weakly, kneeling on the ground. The heat he managed to generate was instantly swallowed up by the omnipresent cold.

Greythroat had already fallen, but he was still struggling to reach for his crossbow.

Frostnova didn't even glance at her. So what if she got the crossbow? Could her already frostbitten fingers still pull the trigger?

She has only one goal.

Amiya.

"Don't you usually dote on Amiya?" The Doctor watched quietly from beside Xia Yu. "You're just going to watch like this?"

“Aren’t you the same?” Xia Yu said, shaking the big bear beside her while maintaining the temperature around her. “She’s very sensible. With her here, Amiya and the others will be fine.”

"But you, Amiya is so dependent on you, calling you 'Doctor' all the time, so close that even Kal'tsit is jealous, and you're just sitting here watching, just like me?"

"I'm a non-combatant," the Doctor said in a soft, matter-of-fact voice. "But, Kal'tsit, who always has a cold face, would be jealous? Really?"

"you guess?"

"..."

Frostnova ultimately did not reach Amiya.

“It’s a fake after all,” she said, taking out a broken amulet. “It could keep me alive, but it couldn’t even last through a single battle.”

Deep down, she knew this was true, but her abilities were simply limited.