Story
The act at a glance
(Idea) Both rites need the player. Ondine's chorus needs a flawless mirrored voice to sing its last note; Iver's cut needs hands that can hold two different shapes without drifting. That is the even pair (Story Bible section 3): the one thing each side has always wanted from the protagonist. Neither rite can finish without the player, so both camps wait at the Pane's rim until the player arrives, and the player's choice decides the act. When the player refuses a side, that side tries to finish anyway, which is why the player has to fight it.
| Chapter | Scenes | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. The Summons | 4.1–4.2 | Corran | Both sides send for the player. Aske says she will keep a fire at the rim. |
| B. The Inner Shardfield | 4.3–4.5 | The Shardfield, inner ring | The walk in. Warps flare as both rites strain the Pane. |
| C. Two Rites | 4.6–4.10 | The Heart Pane: the two camps | Ondine and Iver each make their case. Lio wants the Mending. |
| D. The Night and the Dawn | 4.11–4.13 | Aske's fire; the Pane at dawn | The companions speak. The First Pair glyph shows in the Pane. The choice. |
| E. The Finale | 4.14–4.18 | The Pane's surface (battle arena) | The two-phase finale, played differently on each path. |
| F. Epilogues | 4.19–4.20 | Epilogue cards; the farm at Sallowbank | What each outcome does to Sallowbank, Twinhold, Lanternfall and the companions. Home. |
The three paths, chosen in scene 4.13:
| Path | act4.path | The player | Outcome (act4.outcome) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Help Ondine | 1 | Sings the chorus's last note; stops Iver. | Mended: the Pane is re-stilled; warps close over the seasons; asymmetric magic ends for good. |
| Help Iver | 2 | Breaks the chorus; draws the last cut with Iver. | Shattered: the Pane breaks; every glyph is freed; warps open everywhere; no one can be un-taught again. |
| Stop both | 3 | Breaks the chorus; stops Iver; holds the Pane with a composite drawn from both sides. | Held: the Pane stands, cracked; the warps neither close nor spread; both sides go on arguing. |