Recap / Fate/Grand Order S3 E2: Götterdämmerung

You can be lost, you can worry. But do not stop, advance. To the front, to the left, or the right, you can advance as you wish. You can even advance backwards. Just do not stop. Do not retreat. Do not return. If you are alive, advance. Wherever the living advance, there lies the destination of the Human Order. The possibility is never zero. Anything can be done. You shattered the light bands that incinerated the world, didn't you?

So in this way, even the demonic sword which incinerates the world can be stopped. That is who we are. That is our history. That is mankind, which will find a way in the end...

—Napoleon

Full title: "Lostbelt No. 2 - The Eternal Icy Fire Century, Götterdämmerung [The Good Fellow of Everlasting Flame]".

Upon defeating Kadoc Zemlupus and destroying his Lostbelt, Chaldea receives a transmission instructing them to find the Beldanders, who belong to the "Wandering Sea" organisation: one of the three pillars of Magus society and the most elusive, as they have long sequestered themselves on a floating island where they devoutly study the Age of Gods in the North Sea. Needing to make repairs for the Shadow Border, Chaldea has no other choice but to take the land route through the Scandinavian peninsula, even though the entirety of the region has become a Lostbelt, since the sea route is too dangerous for the Border without repairs.

Unfortunately, as they make their way there, they find themselves pursued by an enemy thought to be left behind in Russia: Kirei Kotomine, with a shiny new rocket launcher courtesy of Koyanskaya. As he bombards Chaldea's carrier, Kadoc manages to slip out and is promptly taken by Kotomine to another Lostbelt.

With nothing they can do about that chain of events, Chaldea arrives in Sweden, finding a Lostbelt where the events of Ragnarok have created a world in which humanity is mere cattle to feed the Jötunn that rule the Earth.

Watch the trailer here.

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Tropes:

• Almost Dead Guy:
  • Sherlock is nearly killed due to Sigurd not only cutting off his arm but placing a death rune on him. da Vinci states the only reason he survived is because she's supplying him with magical energy but Sherlock states that even moving could kill him.
  • The real Sigurd manages to fight against Surtr thanks to Scáthach-Skaði, buts its only for a few minutes, and he goes out with Brynhild in one final attack to destroy Surtr once and for all.
• Anti-Villain: Scathach-Skadi is a benevolent goddess who simply wants to ensure the denizens of her Lostbelt are able to survive and prosper after the failed Ragnarok, with even her morally dubious actions done in the attempt to preserve the greatest amount of life due to the scant natural resources left in her world. She doesn't hesitate to ally with Chaldea and burn through a good chunk of her own power to stop Surtr from finishing off the Lostbelt and possibly the rest of the world outside of it. Before the final fight, she makes it clear she takes no pleasure in killing Chaldea, but she will fight to preserve this world that everyone, even Odin and the Counter Force, abandoned, even if that means she must bear the sin of condemning countless lives in Proper Human History. Even when defeated, she accepts her loss and does her best to prepare her humans for the end.
• An Arm and a Leg: Sherlock loses his arm to the masked Saber, and would've been killed had it not been Goredolf giving the Saber the Paper Moon.
• Beyond the Impossible:
  • The masked Saber tears apart the Shadow Border's defenses like they were nothing, even though da Vinci and Sherlock made sure that they'd warded and strengthen its hull with the highest grade tech and materials.
  • Said masked Saber, who they identify as Sigurd, seemingly pulls another one later when he dodges Brynhild's Noble Phantasm, something that shocks everyone because not only does it become more powerful the more the target reminds Brynhild of Sigurd, against Sigurd himself it should be impossible to avoid it since it was the very thing that killed him in life. Sigurd then clarifies however that the reason it's possible is because he's not really Sigurd or even a "hero" by Brynhild's standards, but rather the Giant Surtr possessing Sigurd's body and Spirit Origin.
• Big Damn Heroes: Just before Surtr plunges his sword into the Earth, Sitonai summons a shadow of Heracles who is able to stop Surtr's sword.
• Captured on Purpose: Napoleon comes up with a plan to get himself and Chaldea captured and thrown into the dungeon, since he knows Skaði would rather love than kill them.
• Central Theme: Love, regardless of how healthy it is. Both Ophelia and the Lostbelt's natives were raised in abusive environments with their notions of familial love making them unable to tell the abuse apart from real love. And on the other hand, Sigurd and Brynhildr's romance gets very stabby but it's still presented as healthy because it's mutual, consensual and balanced. Furthermore, love is the central motivation for Skadi, Napoleon, Surtr, Brynhildr, Ophelia and the Valkyries' actions throughout the chapter, with the latter actively discussing the concept of love and how it applies to themselves.
• Chekhov's Gun: After Surtr possessing Sigurd steals the Paper Moon, Skaði allows him to keep it on him. This spells trouble when Surtr regains his real body, making a point to take the Paper Moon with him. Da Vinci states that normally the worse Surtr could do is destroy the Lostbelt but with the Paper Moon it's likely his attacks can reach the rest of the world.
• Climax Boss: Surtr, now freed thanks to Chaldea, takes Scáthach-Skaði crown as the Scandinavian Lostbelt King and restarts Ragnarok, and becomes such a threat that all of the forces in the Lostbelt unite to bring him down. He's still only an obstacle to destroy the Tree of Emptiness.
• Condescending Compassion: Skaði does love humanity, considering them her children but she believes humanity is weak thus the gods must do everything for them.
• Conditioned to Accept Horror: If you thought the Yaga were bad about this, get a load of this Lostbelt. The people here have not only accepted their inevitable deaths, but they honestly regard it as just a mild inconvenience. The idea of growing old, having grandchildren, and exploring the world is something that never crosses their minds, and Gerda struggles to comprehend it when Chaldea asks her to imagine. The ending reveals even the concept of sadness has long since been lost to them, as Gerda cannot understand why she's crying despite not being in physical pain.
  Goredolf: What's wrong with you!? What's wrong with ALL of you!? How can you be happy about a life doomed to be cut short!? How are you not angry!? Or even afraid!?
• Cock Fight: The reveal that Surtr has been possessing Sigurd for most of the Lostbelt as well as the fact that he also loves Ophelia retroactively makes Surtr and Napoleon's interactions this. In fact, Surtr noticeably gets aggravated whenever Napoleon flirts with Ophelia.
• Crapsaccharine World: Because Scáthach-Skaði is using her powers to keep Surtr at bay, to deal with of the lesser Jötunn's wrath, she uses human adults as a food source for the monstrous giants. It works, but it has side-effect of causing the kids to fend for themselves, completely incapable of understanding "growing up" or "Spring". Goredolf is so frustrated by this Lostbelt, he states the Russian Lostbelt was better as at least the Yaga could grow old instead of having all their lives being cut at 25. As it turns out, the reason she couldn't do anything more about the lesser Jötunn was because of Surtr, the Jötunns' "king," as the inheritor of the Primordial Jötunn Ymir's wrath, and with him dead near the end of the story, it allows her complete control over her race. Too bad this is just as bad for the Proper Human History.
• Damsel out of Distress: When Brynhild entered the Lostbelt, her Valkyrie sisters put her to sleep and put her in the same predicament she had in the original legends, sleeping inside a castle surrounded by imperishable flames. With a little tinkering from Sitonai, she wakes up, but instead of being rescued by the members of Chaldea, her first appearance includes whacking and destroying a Quixotic Tree Seed that Napoleon accidentally threw to her quarters and calmly walks out of the flame to introduce herself, unlike in the original legends where Sigurd had to carry her out of the castle as well.
• Deliberate Values Dissonance: Gerda has no idea why the protagonist, Mash and Goredolf are disturbed that no one lives past 25 and that if you don't have a child by 15, you die as that's how life always been for her.
• Dissonant Serenity: People in the Lostbelt are required to sacrifice themselves to the giants roaming outside at 25 (if they have children) or 15 (if they don't), yet are entirely alright with it due to their reverence of Scathach-Skadi.
• Don't Make Me Destroy You:
  • Scathach-Skadi warns Chaldea not to give her reason to go from choosing to "love" them to "kill" them.
  • When Brynhild meets the mass-produced Valkyries, she begs for them to stand down as she doesn't want to kill them, seeing them as her sisters.
• Doppelgänger Gets Same Sentiment: Ortlinde, Hildr and Thrúd are from this Lostbelt while Brynhild is from Proper Human History but the three Lostbelt Valkyries and Brynhild consider each other sisters and would much rather not fight each other.
• Everyone Can See It: Plenty of people can tell that Ophelia's in love with Kirschtaria.
• Eye Scream: It's revealed that Surtr's unique circumstances for being summoned as Ophelia's Saber are due to how their connection has been forged by her Mystic Eye, and it still remains even after she's used all her Command Seals. The only way to sever it is to sever her own connection to her Mystic Eye, which causes her eye to start to bleed and, due to how Mystic Eyes are not just a physical but a mental connection as well, causes a magic blowback.
• Final Boss: Ophelia's Tree of Emptiness, "Sombrero", as it needs to be taken down to destroy the Lostbelt.
• Fire Is Masculine: The second Lostbelt invokes this trope for its subtitle as it refers to Napoléon Bonaparte as "The Good Fellow of Everlasting Flame". This version of Napoleon is less a version who sticks to historical fidelity and more a creation spawned by human belief and stories as a Servant. As such, he's incredibly Hot-Blooded and passionate, with the narration comparing him to a human inferno in his introduction. This stands in marked contrast to the other male character associated with flame, the fire giant Surtr. His inherently destructive nature compels him to use his flames for only destruction and becomes obsessed with burning down everything for the sake of his love. Both characters wish to romantically court the female Crypter Ophelia, with Napoleon's fire through his cannons inspiring her to stand up for herself after his Heroic Sacrifice while Surtr's fire is overbearing and oppressive, trying to trap her into going along with his whims as he destroys the world.
• Foreshadowing:
  • Caenis and Kirschtaria make several notes about the Greek Lostbelt regarding Artemis, Poseidon, and the local Tree of Emptiness Atlas. The context for all of the references will become clear once the player enters Atlantis and Olympus.
  • Caenis comments that Koyanskaya's awfully smug for assuming that all Lostbelts would automatically help her, foreshadowing how Koyanskaya ends up jumping out of the frying pan into the fire for the next two Lostbelts by getting on the bad side of their rulers.
• From the Mouths of Babes: Gerda and the other children in her village aren't shy about calling Goredolf fat to his face or pointing out Mash's chest size.
• Hailfire Peaks: The result of a failed Ragnarok created a world where winter never ends like the Russian Lostbelt, albeit not as cold. There is also flying fire, thanks to the eternal flames of Muspelheim burning as well, which also creates the aurora borealis in the sky. There are rare sections where the heat and cold cancel each other perfectly, revealing Scandinavia's natural climate. It's revealed the flames exist to continue Surtr's mission to burn the entire world down after he was sealed away, and the snow was conjured up by Skaði to counter it.
• Happily Married: Once Sigurd regains control of his body, we see Sigurd and Brynhild be absolutely adorable together.
• Heroic Sacrifice:
  • To eventually defeat Surtr, Napoléon chooses Explosive Overclocking his Noble Phantasm and destroys the former's head, at the expense of his existence while also cancelling Surtr's mind control of Ophelia.
  • To weaken Surtr, Ophelia severs her Mystic Eye using her Sirius Light which causes a magic backlash that fatal wounds her.
• High Fantasy: Giants, valkyries, mysterious castles, noble knights, troubled villages, magic swords, and maidens in need of rescuing abound in this Lostbelt. It would be a fairly straightforward example if not for how it ends.
• His Name Is...: Holmes gets interrupted twice before he can reveal his theory about Surtr being responsible for the flames covering the land.
• Honor Before Reason: Chaldea points out that Skaði's decision to fight Chaldea after they had mostly recovered from fighting Surtr when she was still exhausted made no sense. Mash even points out she could have used the death runes on them. Skaði just states as the mother of Scandinavia, she had the responsibility to fix the damage Surtr caused, repair the villages he destroyed and heal those he wounds thus she couldn't recover in time and she refused to use the death runes.
• Human Sacrifice: What this race of humans have become, all adults being fed to the Jötunn. With Surtr dead, they could've escaped that, but alas, they had to vanish to save humanity.
• I Will Find You: The real Sigurd vows to find Brynhild as the two of them fade away, with Brynhild smiling for real.
• Jerkass to One: Napoleon notices that despite Skaði saying she's ruthless to her enemies, she's mostly bluffing as he once continuously shot at her with his cannon and she had no trouble considering him her child. The one person she legitimately hates is Surtr.
• Killed Off for Real: Ophelia dies from using her Sirius Light to sever ties with Surtr, while Bryn's healing runes can only give her a span of minutes to say a few final words to Mash before dying.
• Knight of Cerebus: Napoleon is an inversion, the story gains some much needed levity when he joins the story. A great example is when the heroes encounter Ophelia for the first. What was a tense conversation between Ophelia and Mash about how they wish they could be friends but can't now is derailed when Napoleon claims Ophelia is his fiance.
• Love at First Sight: Napoleon fell for Ophelia when he snuck into Skaði's castle and proposed to her right there and then.
• Martyrdom Culture: Humans in this Lostbelt seeing dying at age 25 as a proof of Skadi's love as it allows them to enter Valhalla which only the greatest warriors could enter before. When the protagonist, Mash and Napoleon fight some of the mass-produced Valkyries who were able to sacrifice some people, everyone begs them to stop including the people that were going to be sacrificed.
• Meaningful Name: Even though less astronomically knowledgeable people might giggle at the Tree of Emptiness being named "Sombrero", it's actually referring to the Sombrero Galaxy, rather than the Mexican hat.
• Medieval Stasis: An even worse example than Lostbelt 1, Anastasia. Due to a botched Ragnarök, humanity hasn't advanced at all since the Norse's Age of Gods was supposed to end in 1000 B.C. due to Skaði's My Beloved Smother tendencies essentially turning humanity into livestock that can't survive outside of the villages she created. Late in the Lostbelt, she explains that the reason it's like this is because due to Ragnarok, the world can't sustain more than that number of humans, hence why the number must be kept at a certain level, and why only the belts between the frozen and fiery parts of the Lostbelt, and the one hundred villages, are able to support life.
• My Beloved Smother: Skaði sees herself as the mother of Scandinavia to the point that she refuses to let any life die at all. But combined with her Condescending Compassion, Skaði has essentially turned humanity into livestock who can't survive outside of the villages she made, spending their short lives protected from everything. Even the reveal that she's doing this due to a lack of resources, she's created a Martyrdom Culture so humanity won't be sad but at the price of ensuring humanity can never advance thus forever dependent on her.
• Necessarily Evil: Skadi reveals the reason for her tight control over humanity and their population is because the failed Ragnarok not only nearly eradicated humanity but also severely limited the natural resources the reason Skadi keeps the population at 10,000 is because that's all she can support while still being unable to control the Jötunn.
• Never Learned to Read: Villagers can barely count to thirty, let alone read or write.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
  • When the protagonist makes a provisional contract with Napoleon, Sitonai tries to also make a connection with the protagonist that causes the protagonist to lose understanding of themselves. If it wasn't for Dantes appearing to help them, their very soul could have been damaged.
  • When Brynhild resists Ophelia's Mystic Eye reversing her activation of Odin's Rune and reveals how she did it, Surtr copies her when Sigurd's Spirit Origin is damaged to prevent Ophelia from stopping him from breaking free.
• Nothing Is Scarier: While traveling through Void Space to pass through the storm wall of the Scandinavian Lostbelt, Goredolf orders an emergency exit when the sensors ping something is following them and getting closer, despite the fact that there shouldn't be anything in Void Space aside from themselves to their knowledge and with few exceptions nothing alive without similar technology to Chaldea should be able to survive in there. Goredolf dreads it might be Koyanskaya, while Holmes can only off the top of his head assume it's something similar to Musashi. Mash, however, senses it doesn't feel malevolent but rather warm and comforting.
• The Only One Allowed To Kill You: Surtr protects Napoleon from an attack from Caenis, saying Napoleon is his quarry.
• Out-of-Character Alert: Brynhild realizes that Surtr/Fake Sigurd is telling the truth that he isn't Sigurd when he starts using fire as Sigurd told her, he would never use the fire runes as he feels humans should always fear fire.
• Recurring Element: Most of the sections come in two or three parts sharing the same title.
• Recycled In Space: A stagnant, dying humanity trapped in walled villages to keep them safe from the giants roaming outside? It's Attack on Titan, but in SCANDINAVIA. Bonus points since the Attack on Titan takes a lot of inspiration from Norse mythology.
• Replacement Goldfish: Napoleon asks Ophelia to be his new Josephine and then promptly walks himself back upon hearing how creepy he sounds.
• Sinister Surveillance: Skaði reveals that all snow that covers the Lostbelt is part of her thus she can hear and see everything in it.
• Squashed Flat: The end result of anyone who gets sent out of their village at the appointed time, as Gerda rather cheerfully puts it.
• Story Branching: While resting for the night, you can either choose to go up to the roof or stay in the Shadow Border to sleep. These two options grant special dialogue with Brynhild and Napoleon respectively. Brynhild discusses the curse Odin placed upon her as well as her legend that forces her to kill the ones she loves, while Napoleon reveals that he's not the historical Napoleon but the idol created by his Cult of Personality.
• Technicolor Fire: The fire that ravages the world is a bright blue.
• Teen Pregnancy: In this Lostbelt, you either have a child by fifteen to live a decade longer or you get tossed out to die by giant.
• There Are No Adults: Any adults become sacrifices for the Jötunn, resulting in a society where children more or less fend for themselves as they grow up. Gerda even states elderly are legends.
• Touch of Death: Among the Primordial Runes, there is a death rune that will cause death on any living thing it is cast on. While Heroic Spirits aren't immune to it's effects, they are more resistant.
• Trash Talk: Napoleon and Surtr cannot stop throwing shade at each other as they keep getting into fights.
• Wacky Marriage Proposal: Apparently when Napoleon broke into Skaði's castle the first time, he met Ophelia and proposed right there and then. He considers it legal since she never said no to Ophelia's annoyance.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: Scáthach-Skaði rules both the Jötunn and humans, as she believes she is the mother of Northern Europe. However, the Jötunn need to eat humans to survive. To solve this problem, anyone who reaches the age of 25 will be taken by the Valkyrie to be fed to the Jötunn, along with any women who don't have a child by age 15. This is later elaborated as keeping the Jötunn pacified as Skadi cannot take full control of them as long as she fights back against Surtur's flames and seal, and the human population must be kept below a threshold lest her powers weaken via the decline of mystery. Once Surtr is defeated, Skaði can now take full control of her Jötunn-kin and allow humans to live long healthy lives. Unfortunately, it's this Hope Spot that convinces her to actually fight back against Chaldea, since now she has an actual reason to believe her world has a future.
• You Are Number 6: Downplayed as everyone has their own name but Gerda reveals that each village is given a number.

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I don't really understand what you're talking about, and I think I wasn't given a proper answer yet,
but... It's lovely, isn't it? I'll grow older, and I can't do anything about it.
To my surprise, I couldn't imagine it, not even vaguely, in my head, so this is my first time.

—Gerda (From "Maiden of a Flower Patio")