02x02 - Flames of Madness

[bunniefuu]

So this is our pick for the nude calendar.

Look at that provocative expression. Way to go, Shinra.

It wasn't deliberate, sir. I was just

nervous about taking my picture naked.

Well, back to business. You're going to get

your sit down with Captain Agu of the fourth.

If you're right about what you saw,

he may be able to help you

understand a doula or find out the identity of the evangelist.

He agreed to meet tomorrow. It probably

would have been harder to arrange,

but the captain's granddaughter, Lieutenant Asako, helped make it happen for you.

She plans to accompany you, by the way.

Are you familiar with the fourth?

I know a few of the people there.

I was trained at the Fourth Academy.

It is the only one in the force after all.

By the way, why does the fourth handle training?

The Fire Defense Agency commands the fourth and regular firefighters.

It's in charge of the academy, too,

and it uses the fourth to manage it.

So you say that you saw Captain

Agu while you were having an Adolla link.

It could be that he agreed to see

you because he's interested in your adolla burst.

Whatever his motives may be, this meeting

should be in our favor. Best of luck. Shinra.

The boy with the flame of salvation.

Sure takes me back.

Please excuse us.

We hate to interrupt your training.. Instructor, Pon.

It's been a while, Kusakabe. Forgive me.

I should call you Lieutenant Pon now.

I thought they flushed you down to the eighth.

The cesspool where the force sends all its crap.

Oh, Roach. They'd love to flush you somewhere,

but you just crawl back up the pipes, huh?

You watch your damn mouth, Mother k*ller.

Now, guess Company doesn't teach this, but if you grab someone carelessly,

you get joint locked and thrown.

It's just common sense at the eighth.

Are you trying to start insulting punk?

Just be glad I didn't break the wusses arm.

Coming down, guys. Karen's the one who started it.

Kusakabe. You haven't changed a bit.

Oh, good. You caught me off guard, that's all.

That sounds like something you'd say.

Sorry, sir. Please use your words. It's

really hard to guess what you mean from context.

That's the instructor Pon. I remember. You

actually know quite a few people here, don't you?

This is my buddy, Ogun. He was at the top of our class.

Scenery here. Didn't have any friends, so Arthur

and I decided to let him run with us.

You know that Arthur and I aren't friends, right?

Same goes for you.

Lieutenant Pan said

he can take a minute to show us to the captain.

I'd appreciate that, sir. You can actually understand him.

So tell me, Lieutenant Asako, what business

do you and the Eighth have with Captain Argo?

I wanted to ask my grandfather about the scar

on his face and about why he changed after getting it.

The captain's a great man and a great leader.

He was the first ever regular firefighter

to be promoted into the ranks of the fire force.

He's earned the full respect of all of us here at the fourth.

That still holds true even now. Here's his office.

He wants to see you alone, Kusakabe.

Do you know why.. I told

him that you wanted to talk about a dollar bursts.

And since that isn't a subject I know much about,

I think it's best if I stay

out of the way for now. I'll talk to him later.

Well, in that case, here goes.

Excuse me, sir.

Captain Agu. Thanks for meeting me, sir.

Name's Shinra Kusakabe. I'm a second class

fighter soldier here from Company eight.

I've been expecting you. Let's get right to the point.

I'd like to see your flames.

Actually, I'd like to feel their heat.

Oh, that didn't startle you, did it?

Of course it did. Forgive me. I should have spoken more carefully.

The last thing I want is to make you uncomfortable.

So why don't I try that again?

I want you to burn me without holding back.

Whoa. Go on. Just do it. Just do it.

Do it. Do it. You want me to burn you? Yes.

Burn me with all your strength.

What's wrong? He's begging you to burn him. So do it.

Burn him. Burn him. Burn him to death.

I know your flames are bursting to get out.

k*ll that horrible demon, wipe it from the face of the earth.

No way. That demon was Mom. And I would never hurt her.

Then what's to become of the bloodlust

you've been building up for the last years?

It won't just disappear, you know?

Ugly devil. The mother k*ller. Creepy.

You held back. Let those little turds say whatever they wanted.

You told yourself k*lling the demon would make it all worth it.

Your rage would have a place to go.

You were wrong. But if you want relief,

then all you have to do is start burning.

Say to the world. You're right. I am every bit

the devil you said I was.

Give up on the hero thing. This world

was built on a stinking bed of lies. Heroes aren't real. Yeah.

He's the one you really want to burn, huh?

I mean, he hid everything from you.

That wasn't his call to make.

So burn. Release your flames and you'll feel much better.

Be free. Let go of all of

that anger. Sister. Burn it all.

Drown your pain in a sea of fire.

Hold on. There's no way you're their sister.

Tell me who you are. Really?

That must have been an Abdullah link, right?

I wonder if it might have been

triggered by your proximity to me.

And you saw a mysterious woman who resembled someone you know.

I just wish I could meet this angel for myself.

I want you to burn me even more now.

I wanted to ask, have you ever had Nadela link?

If that's what you want to call it,

then yes. It was a magnificent experience.

Captain Burns had one too. He said

he paid for it with his right eye.

What price did you pay? Does it have to do with your scar?

Until that day, I had spent my life

working hard and doing my damnedest to

protect all the people I could.

But then, around two years ago, my way of thinking was changed.

The Great Fire was ravenous. It swallowed

up the whole city, taking countless lives.

It forced me to recognize that I'd

failed many more people than I'd saved.

In that moment, I felt a hope

that was much like despair, a sense of liberation.

It was like everything had been saved.

And a doula link. Is that what such a baptism is called?

What I saw there was not the sunlight

I've been told to Revere by the temple.

It was the blessed light of God.

I believe that divine realm to be the very salvation of mankind.

His glamoc is my stigmata. It's the truth carved into my being,

the scar that opened my eyes.

Forgive me, but I must ask again.

Please. Kusakabe, send me a light with your holy flames.

Let me see that divine realm again.

Hold on just a minute. Captain Agu.

Are you seriously saying you think that unearthly hellscape is actually holy?

Whether that realm is considered sacred or profane means nothing to me.

The gods and devils mortals imagine unto

themselves are mere imitations of a doula,

be it heaven or hell, it was the truth.

I only wish I could share that truth

so that the world could be enlightened.

I didn't feel anything like salvation when I had my doula links.

Are you holding a doula birth? So

it may well feel mundane to you.

However, I am but a human being.

I'm as human as you are.

The mascots.

Shinra Kusakabe, prepare to die. Are you serious right now?

You can't really be that upset just

because I flipped you on your back.

This is your chance. If that twerp

wants a fight to the death, then give him one.

What's come over you three? You finally

have a target for your rage? Shinra. So let it out. Burn him.

Burn them all. I should burn everything.

What did you just say? That's what I'm talking about.

I'll burn it all down. Do it. So this is your verse.

I love it. I love it. Oh.

It seems like our crewmen have lost their minds.

Kusakabe is acting strange, too. It's almost

like the four of them have been possessed. Mother, k*ller.

Devil, You're a devil. They said all

that crap even. They do nothing.

Or maybe I'm the one who knew nothing. Like it matters.

All of you can drop dead.

You need to start behaving yourselves.

I just wanted to use some company for soldiers to..

Get under Shinra's skin, but it looks

like the first pillar's beaten me to it.

Wait. The first pillar. Hey, Amaya, did

you actually just say the first pillar? Under his skin.

Well, how do you mean? Is she using

an adult link to contact him or what?

You've got to tell me. Shut up.

Sharon. If you're going to be this annoying,

you may as well just die.

Come on. Just tell me if she came through an adult link.

Of course it was dumb. Are you stupid?

We know where the first pillar is.

And since we know she's there, she

obviously didn't come here in person.

She's using an adult link to possess Shinra.

His hate and anger caught her attention,

so she mixed it with her own.

Now she's got him in perfect sync with her craziness.

Against them, we have that old elite fireman,

captain and his buff slinging lieutenant.

Know what? I'd like to take..

This out of my office. I'd like

to avoid burning down my fire station. Type one fire axes.

It feels like I'm up against a beast in human clothing.

There's no need to hold back anymore.

Let's k*ll them. Whoever gets in our way. Who is this..

Girl? How can she feel so much hatred? It's overpowering.

What are you doing? Captain,

you should have been able to avoid that. It's good.

Even knowing that it'll k*ll

me if I bask in its warmth for too long.

I want more. Yes, I do.

Something's wrong with him. Pull it together,

sir. He really could k*ll you. k*ll me? No. I need to stick

around for the sake of the fourth.

That's incredible in its own right.

Even with me boosting his heat resistance,

the captain won't last much longer. Just dodge.

I know those flame spears. This guy

thinks he can visit my company and trash the place.

I can't even take my eyes off him for a minute.

You made it just in time. Ogun and Arthur.

My captain, thought the electricity user we fought

in the Nether might try to come after Shinra.

So he asked me to follow Shinra here and play bodyguard.

Something's not right. Is that really you?

Shinra? What happened? Is that woman from

the nether making you do this? No, wait.

I'm sensing yet another presence inside you. Burn. You. Burn you.

You look hideous, as usual. Time for a devil hunt.

Slow down. Step one is to try

and bring him back to his senses.

That's easy to say, but where do we start?

If it wasn't a downlink that caused

Kusakabe to start acting this way,

then perhaps we should break that link.

Hang back, sir. You're like a moth to his flames.

You to stop him before he can cause more damage.

I'll back you.. Up. He's coming. Oh.

He's that fast? No, wait. I couldn't see.

No. I used my muscle enhancing whistle to increase your durability.

Yeah, well, it hurt like hell anyway. Hey, no, no fair.

So that's what it's like to get hit by the rapid.

I saw it coming, but my body couldn't keep up.

Just att*ck him. I'll keep you buffed and healed. Okay.

Let's fight him as a party. I'll t*nk you DPS I pond.

The bard shall inspire you with my magic flute I..

Oquendo aria will avenge my village..

I am the shield of masochism forged by the dwarves.

What is this? Let's go, Knight King. I'll slay this demon myself.

Wait, what was that? You're acting weird.

Is he being controlled like Calvin and the others?

He's fine. In fact, this is what we want.

Is he pretending to be a knight again?

Yeah. He looks mad dumb right now.

I mean, I've never seen him look quite this dumb before.

He must be going pretty deep. Wonder what could have triggered this.

Take me to a dollar four shield. He'll. He. Damn it, Arthur.

What do you think you're doing with my captain?

Don't worry. The shield held true.

I've never been used like this before.

Please stop enjoying that, sir.

Tell me, Shinra, what happened to becoming a hero?

I b*rned that worthless idea into ashes and set myself free.

Well, that doesn't sound like you. Makes

me wonder if it's you who's talking.

What am I to glean from that smile? Shinra.

Are you simply excited to reveal your true nature,

or is it a sign that you need the night King's aid?

I know just what you want. I know where Mommy is.

I know how you can find her.

You're getting three chances. The first three

times you assail me, I'll let you go.

The fourth time, I'll slay you. So come to your senses before.

Hey, are you even listening to me? Only get four chances.

That makes one. You've always become a real

powerhouse when you get into your role play.

Do you know why you're the way that you are?

It's how I was brought up. I was

born and raised a king of knights.

Does that mean you're a blueblood? Seriously,

what kind of household did you grow up in?

A blueblood. Uh, if royal blood is blue, then yes.

As for the household I was raised in, well.

Though the fire was put out in

the early hours of yesterday morning.

The restaurant in question was already in debt

on account of a high profile.

Looks like they're talking about us on the news.

What are we going to do? Let

your dad know that dinner's ready, Arthur.

Roger that. Hey, Dad. It's time for our last supper.

Mom says all are pinched. Pennies went up in smoke.

Is there something on your mind, Arthur?

Why were you staring into your hat? Can you see something inside?

You always ask.. Me the funniest questions. You know that?

Of course you can. You can check

out the whole star studded sky with this

hat. It can show you anything.

You liar. It's pitch black. I can't

see a thing inside this hat. You sure about that?

Uh, I see a castle. It's your castle.

A castle, huh? That's awesome. You've got lots of soldiers, too.

Hey, what are you two doing in here? Uh.

Come on, Sir Arthur, We have a royal ball to attend.

Mhm. Mhm.

King. Ever since that day, I've been the night king.

It sounds like your parents just took

off. I think they abandoned you.

You have one chance left. Will you forsake your dream and perish?

Why would I ever want to be a hero?

Really will have to cut him down soon.

Lest he should k*ll me. Heroes aren't

just cooler than knights. They're also way stronger.

I can see why a fool like you would think that.

You guys know we're training to be fire soldiers,

right? So not knights or heroes.

I'll expose your true nature one of these days.

Devil, I have to be a hero.

Understand? I made my family a promise.

You're serious? It seems we have one thing in common.

I used to respect you for keeping your oath, at least.

But now you're nothing but a devil.

I don't care if it helps me k*ll the demon that got my mom.

Then of course, I'll be a devil.

Except that demon was your mother, right? Right.

Good point. Mom's long gone, and so's

the demon I wanted to k*ll.

Yeah. So instead, I've decided I'll just burn everything.

How does that make sense? I don't

get this at all. What about your brother's show?

Shut the hell up. Piss off, bastard.

I've been holding in all this bloodlust for the last years.

It's time I let it out. I'm sick of playing nice.

I would have torched the stupid world.

Get in my way and I'll k*ll you.

Knight Kick Block. Knight punch. When it was knight versus Hero,

there was never a clear cut winner. But your weak devil. Yeah.

Ted, I wanted to avenge my mom,

but it turns out that would mean k*lling her.

And I'd never do that. But if I didn't have anyone to k*ll,

then what am I supposed to live for?

You'll live to protect people. That's what

fire soldiers and knights do. It's what heroes do.

You can try to..

Protect people, but they'll all die eventually. I say just k*ll them.

Things are simpler that way. Know what I..

Mean? Now let's hear it. Are you

a hero or a devil? Get up and answer me.

Decide what you want to be. And if

you give me the wrong answer. You'll die.

That's right. Burn them to death.

Am I a hero or a devil? Dear Mitch.

I never thought I'd have to answer

such a stupid question. Seriously? A hero.

I am a hero. Get out of me and don't come back.

I'm fine. At least I had more fun than I thought I would.

Wait a second. You are telling me that you

knew how to find my mother earlier?

Does that mean she's still out there somewhere,

or were you just making stuff up? That's a good..

Question. But seeing as you rejected me.

Come back. Oh, by the way, we've had Omea show you,

and now it looks like a new pillar is about to be born.

A new pillar. You mean someone who hasn't a dollar? First.

If I'm able to sense that a new pillar is coming,

you can bet that the evangelist knows too.

The fire force were the white clad.

Which of you will reach it first? I wonder.

The mysterious girl who possessed Shinra predicted

the appearance of another Adolla burst.

It seems likely that this new pillar

will be a school girl known as the Fireground Thief.

Wait, but she's a delinquent. I can get

you out of here safely if you want.

But only if you make it worth my while.

Understand next time on Fire Force Season two Episode.

A new flashpoint. Return to the great flame of fire. LatAm.