Causes of death are many and varied.
Old age. Illness. Suicide.
But out of that long, morbid list,
there's one end that people fear above all others.
Death by fire.
This place.
Am I in an Adolla Link?
What is Captain Burns doing here?
He's spent his life serving the great Sun God, Sol.
Let us grant him the joy
of returning to the divine flame.
"The joy of returning to the flame?"
What does that mean?
Akitaru Obi...
shall receive an insect.
Lieutenant. What do we need to do?
The Army will be sending troops here soon.
So, we need to leave and find a place to lay low.
I just so happen to know of an excellent spot for that.
Hm.
Then show us the way.
Once we're there, we can start gathering intel and—
We don't have that much time!
Hm?
What makes you say that?
An Adolla Link...
with Captain Burns.
- Seems like
we can still use most of the stuff here.
We'll need to get some new uniforms
and a few supplies.
Oh, and a new Matchbox.
How's life treating you, since you quit the army?
About the same as before, I'd say.
Ya know, I guess you and I,
we've never really talked about your private life.
Any family or anything?
Well, growing up, it was always just me
and my old man,
but he died last year.
Raised by your dad, huh?
What about a girlfriend?
A girlfriend, sir?
Should I have asked about a boyfriend instead?
You know, there's no judgment here.
I don't have either.
Because of the job,
death's possible at any time.
That serves to discourage relationships.
It's a real bummer when you put it that way.
Are you positive you wanna be in the Eighth?
To be quite honest,
I didn't think it would be this unorthodox.
Am I allowed to quit?
Hmm. No way.
The Eighth was formed to investigate other units.
That's not the most popular position to be in.
Which means it's perfect for someone without a family,
like me.
Just to be clear,
it's possible we could wind up at odds with the Empire.
Anyone that joins us
has to put value on their own life.
We need strong people,
who know every single person is important in their own way.
Hm.
I'm excited to see Company Eight grow.
And what we'll achieve.
You'll be king of the company,
or maybe "father" is a better word.
Talk about pressure.
You're right, though.
I'm at the age where a lot of people
already have kids.
Well, Captain Obi,
you have my support.
I'll do all that I can...
to help the Eighth thrive as a family.
This is our castle, now.
This is where we'll save all of humanity!
Lieutenant! - Hm?
The Matchbox is ready to roll!
Give the word, and we can go.
Good.
We may not be able to come back for a while.
No matter what it takes,
we'll get Captain Obi out of there.
- Sir!
Hm?
So how is he?
Been behaving himself?
Well, he's "behaving."
But he's been doing that the entire time.
Excuse me!
Can I have some water, please?
Ugh.
You know this isn't a bar, right?
You get water at mealtime only!
That means I'll die of dehydration.
Only because you won't stop exercising.
So that's on you.
I've got nothing else to do,
so until you let me out,
I'm gonna keep at it until I'm totally shredded!
I'll be way stronger than before!
I wish I knew what was going on.
How the Eighth's doing?
I'm counting on you, Hinawa.
Now, the news.
Captain Akitaru Obi
of Special Fire Force Company Eight
has been arrested for false imprisonment
of Shinra Kusakabe,
a holder of the holy flame known as an "Adolla Burst."
Can you believe they'd do something like that
to a guy with the holy flame?
And by a Special Fire Force Captain, at that.
- It's believed that... - The world's a scary place.
Company Eight have taken Kusakabe
and are on the run.
At present, the Imperial Army considers all members
of Company Eight to be suspects,
- and a manhunt is underway.
So, it turns out that Company Eight
are just a bunch of criminals?
You know it's a lie. - Huh?
Things are starting to get really weird.
Fifth Angels Three on the scene!
- Requiem complete. - The end.
Fire's broken out in Torigoe!
What are our orders, Princess?
Deploy the gravel troop immediately, of course!
Yes, ma'am!
The Eighth disappears,
and their sector quickly erupts into chaos.
Gravel company,
always causing trouble.
Given their history of prying into our affairs,
I'd think you'd be happy they're gone.
I'm not.
It means there's less gravel to kick around.
To be perfectly frank, I'm rather concerned, Princess.
You've been assisting the Eighth
from the shadows, have you not?
Seeing as they have now been
branded as traitors to the empire,
the situation is quite different.
I beg you, Princess,
you must cease giving them your aid.
Hey Beni, I just got a nice, fresh, catch,
so how about popping in for a cold drink?
Beni?
I wonder what's with him?
He lose his shirt gambling again?
Hear about the Eighth, Waka?
Yeah, I know.
- It's the very thing
you were afraid of.
The empire has united, but not in a good way.
Any word from Company Eight?
Not yet.
Probably don't want us to get caught up in it.
The empire has turned into a crossfire of enemies,
you won't know who to trust.
Reporting in, sir!
Still no sign of Company Eight members!
That so? Keep talking to the locals!
Somebody here knows something!
They may be driving around in their Matchbox!
It stands out.
Whatever it takes, we'll find them!
Yes, sir!
The Matchbox has been hidden, sir.
They'll be looking everywhere.
It's just a matter of time before they find us.
- Hm?
What's the matter?
You finally figure out we're in big trouble?
Regretting it now, huh?
I followed the crowd only because of my own
strongly held personal convictions.
Your expression is scary.
You folks may be pros when it comes to fire issues,
but if we're talking about running from the law,
you're complete amateurs.
No one asked for your opinion.
Besides, you're a Haijima man,
- not some outlaw.
I remember a conversation I had with Obi.
Basically, he wanted to know if I was on the Eighth's side,
or Haijima's.
I really didn't have a clear answer on that one.
Huh? Truth is,
I'm on neither's.
In fact, I've been working with a partner outside the system.
So, I've actually built up
quite a bit of experience being an outlaw.
Hey, guys. 'Sup?
- Joker?
So you've finally come over to my side.
Huh, Devil?
Some heroes chose to fight in the light of day,
but us?
We prefer striking out from the shadows.
We're like, dark heroes.
If you don't want to get busted,
then you'd better come with me.
I'll show you how to shake those clowns off your tail.
Wait! You want us to trust you?
Why would we ever do that?
I thought you people didn't have much time.
But, hey, if you wanna wind up in prison,
then you do you.
Hm.
Gotta say you're looking pretty rough.
For me, I consider darkness to be my home sweet home.
Of course I'd wanna wear my most comfortable clothes.
You mind telling us where it is we're going?
I was beginning to wonder
if the Eighth was ever gonna come play in the shadows.
Honestly, it was getting lonely over here.
So I'm glad you jumped over to the other side of the law.
And now, we're gonna teach you baby outlaws
how to walk the path of darkness.
So, tell me.
The circle of light.
Or the circle of darkness.
Which will it be?
You kids don't have much of a choice, do you?
Hm?
Oh, great,
an abandoned sewer.
Why would you choose to hide out here, of all places?
We do have air conditioning at the base,
so it's not stinky?
A door marked "Secret Base"
isn't suspicious at all.
That sign's our little joke
for a long-forgotten spot.
You have Cerberus?
- Uh, no? - I see.
Others do come here,
although it is quite rare to see them.
Just folks who don't belong topside, anymore.
This is the Castle Keep. Please come in.
Guess I shouldn't be surprised
at all the weird stuff in here.
Ooh, what's this?
With everything that's going on,
I get why you're so wary.
For what it's worth,
Joker and I fully trust everyone in the Eighth
and consider all of you comrades.
So.
I suppose we should talk about what to do next.
- First, let's— - Save Captain Obi!
- As soon as possible! - They're killing him, sir!
- Calm down now.
But they're right,
we need to find a way to rescue him.
If Shinra's vision is correct, then we don't have much time.
However, we can't do much without knowing
where he's currently being held.
If you're wondering where Captain Obi is,
Joker's got some good news.
I was able to figure out where he is.
The Empire's most heinous criminals
and ideological offenders call it home.
The Fuchu Penitentiary.
God.
Holy Sol.
When I was in that place...
I discovered a being that I could not doubt.
If you did not earnestly obey,
I was planning on brainwashing you.
I'm impressed that you converted and accepted us.
Both as a citizen and a priest of the empire,
it's been what some call
my duty to serve the Holy Sol faith.
But in that moment,
through the Adolla Link,
a seed of doubt in my faith was planted.
I felt God through the Evangelist.
That's why I'm following her path.
With the Evangelist included in the Temple,
it becomes the one, true Holy Sol Faith.
Not from a sense of duty,
but because I saw a God worthy of true belief
from the depths of my heart.
I can read minds.
And your words carry no lies so therefore,
for the sake of evangelism,
you will disregard the path of humanity?
Walking God's path is the holy duty of a priest.
As for spontaneous human combustion,
it is but one trial bestowed upon humanity
in order for us to reach the sun.
By overcoming our trials,
we shall become a sun and be transformed into flame.
Yes.
And Akitaru Obi has the absolute right
to know the joy of that process.
Consider it done.
Good luck.
We'll back you up ASAP.
Right!
We'll need all the luck we can get,
going into the belly of the beast.
They're gonna put in Insect in the captain.
- We're moving out, too! Yes, sir!
One gold, two gold, three gold.
Four gold, five gold.
Six-legged gold.
Goldfish.
Gold brick.
Gold digger.
Gold mine.
Gold rush.
Gold bug.
Hm. This luster,
this facial expression.
It seems this insect is the right one.
What do you want, White Clad?
There is nothing that cannot be moved by money.
In both the psychological and the physical sense,
gold is able to destroy any number of people.
But I do not vanquish anyone with it.
Why?
So that I may bring upon them despair.
Jackpot.
I am a Destroyer.
My name is Gold.
I couldn't care less what your name is, lady!
Hurry up and let me out of here.
I cannot be bought with money,
so don't try.
Obviously, because I am Gold.
But you know this already.
Yes, I shall soon set you free.
Mindless, though,
for you leave here as an Infernal.
Thank you, Vulcan.
It's because of you we've got this equipment
on such short notice.
No trouble at all, I'm your engineer!
I've got it covered!
It must be nice to only ever
have to travel with a single sword.
Excalibur weighs more than you know.
Huh.
- Is there something spooky? - Well?
Just a dragon child.
I will let it go for now.
- Don't scare us like that.
Aah!
Being a dragon slayer is a knight's true glory.
Where art thou, O dragons?
Oh-oh!
Don't fall back.
It's not our fault if you get
left behind again, idiot!
This trip is gonna take a while,
know of any shortcuts?
The transport that Joker and I use to get around
is just a little bit farther.
Using a Nether-specific vehicle
will get us to Fuchu the quickest.
That's how you always popped up in unexpected places,
you were traveling through the Nether.
It's safest to continue on foot.
Wait, you still don't trust Joker?
I mean, I do understand your hesitation,
but if you trust me, trust him, too.
That guy is Tokyo's super cool, dark hero.
This is weird.
Still can't believe I'm teaming up with you.
Well, I've been cheering you on ever since the Rookie Games,
right from the very start.
This was always bound to happen.
Honestly, took longer than I expected.
This doesn't mean I trust you yet!
Good.
People, the empire, the world.
You shouldn't trust any of them too easily.
Then why are you helping out Company Eight?
Well, that's complicated, but the simple reason?
Let's just call it the instinct of somebody
who lives in the shadows.
My gut's telling me we can't afford to lose him here.
What it all boils down to,
is the Empire needs Obi.
When someone who has embraced deep darkness for a long time
takes a look,
they can see the truth without even trying.
Real light stands out like the sun against the night.
And you see that with him?
But I don't see it with the Holy Sol Temple or "God."
That said, Captain Obi isn't
the only bright light I've found.
You're one, too,
if you haven't figured that out yet.
Powerful enemies are waiting at the prison.
Leonard Burns chief among them.
Plus, we'll have to deal with
those Destroyers who killed Hague.
The Pillars have those Guardians
who protect them, right?
So, I'll protect you.
Don't worry, I'll be fine!
I got stronger in Asakusa.
I can take on heavy hitters
like you and Captain Burns, no problem!
Oh-ho,
sounds like you think you can fight Benimaru, too!
Uh, except for him.
Huh.
There.
Make enough noise so your Captain hears.
Already planning on it!
It's time,
now we may be able to enjoy ourselves.
Seems it is someone quite powerful.
The misguided are here.
Time to go play hero.
I'm not playing.
'Cause I am the real deal.
After calamity there is regeneration.
Destruction is not the end.
Before God, the logic of humanity
is no more than the flagrant whims of ego!
Next time: "Incarnation of Flame."
Return to the great flame of fire. Látom.