Desperation

**Desperation** is an animated short that released on the official AFK Arena Youtube channel on December 1, 2020. It serves as a sequel to A Memory of Lucretia, depicting the events that transpire after Lucretia and Owain arrive at the village.

## Description

*Justice shall be delivered, even when it would cost his own flesh and blood. Vengeance shall be exacted, even when it meant forfeiting her humanity. And so former lovers collided, to the bitter end.*

## Transcript

[*Open on a shot of Owain, regaining consciousness in the dirt. Zoom out to reveal Owain in the center of a circle of runestones, a large area of lit candles in front of him and an altar looming above.*]

**Owain:** Mama?

[*Shift to a crowd of villagers. One of them is holding a struggling Lucretia back.*]

**Lucretia:** Let him go! Take me instead!

[*Lucretia breaks free but is instantly pulled back.*]

**Lucretia:** Owain! Don't look back!

**Villager:** Quiet!

**Elderly Villager:** You should be proud. He was chosen.

[*A villager utters an incantation and a dark purple mass begins to materialize in the altar. The runestones around Owain activate and his eyes are overtaken by a purple glow as he rises into the air in front of the mass.*]

[*Shift to a broken statue of Dura looming above the villagers. Lightning begins to flicker across the sky, bolts strike a couple villagers.*]

**Elderly Villager:** The celestials! They are coming!

[*A massive bolt of lightning strikes the ground. Villagers scatter in the chaos as Lucretia is shoved to the ground. The bolt of lightning fades to reveal Zaphrael.*]

[*Cut to Owain. The mass reaches out to him with its shadowy tendrils.*]

[*Cut back to Lucretia.*]

**Lucretia:** Zaphrael?

[*Lucretia runs over to Zaphrael as he forms a bolt of lightning in his hand. She stops in front of him.*]

**Lucretia:** Zaphrael! Save him!

**Zaphrael:** Lucretia?

**Lucretia:** Please! He's your son.

[*Zaphrael looks over to Owain, whose eyes have turned black under the perversive influence of the shadowy mass. He looks back to Lucretia.*]

**Zaphrael:** The gods have spoken.

[*Zaphrael's eyes begin to flicker with the glow of the lightning bolt as he readies it.*]

**Lucretia:** No. Owain!

[*Lucretia runs towards Owain and the bolt flies past her, striking Owain's possessed form.*]

**Lucretia:** No!!!

[*Lightning ripples across Owain and the mass and they explode, leaving nothing but Owain's amulet behind.*]

[*As Zaphrael walks away, Lucretia crawls over to the amulet and grips it.*]

**Owain:** [Echoed voiceover, indicating a flashback] I will always protect you, mama.

**Hypogean:** [Whispering] The gods are blind.

[*Cut to the vague shape of a person, sculpted of shadow.*]

**Hypogean:** [Distorted] They took your son. Nothing left but pain. We know you-

**Lucretia:** Silence! Just take me!

[*Purple tendrils begin to slither out of the amulet in Lucretia's hands. They crawl up her form and merge with her.*]

[*Cut to Zaphrael, staring up at the broken statue of Dura. The now corrupted Lucretia bursts out of the fog and slams into him. The two begin fighting in a clash of justice and vengeance.*]

[*The scene fades to black.*]

[*Trans. to the aftermath of the fight. Zaphrael is heavily injured by Lucretia's sword, Dark Star.*]

**Lucretia:** The gods are not blind. They just don't care.

[*Zaphrael stands, readying an array of lightning bolts behind him. End on Zaphrael and Lucretia facing each other, about to fight again.*]

## Gallery

### Behind the Scenes Video

The Making of Desperation - Behind the Scenes - AFK Arena
## Trivia

* Lucretia and Zaphrael were designed to have different styles to heighten the sense of conflict in the short.
	+ Zaphrael design consists of straight lines while Lucretia's is curved.
* The amulet serves as an item of inheritance.
	+ It was first used by Zaphrael to inscribe prayers, imbuing it with divinity.
	+ Zaphrael passed it on to Lucretia, who passed it on to Owain, providing it with a touch of human nature.
	+ Lucretia's sword, Dark Star, burst out of this amulet. This added a piece of evil to it.
* Desperation was created in a month and a half.
* The altar was placed at the end of a cliff to symbolize how close it is to the abyss.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 - Brunch Studio Website
2. ↑ - Desperation Behind the Scenes (03:06)
3. ↑ - Desperation Behind the Scenes (03:45)
4. ↑ - Desperation Behind the Scenes (04:43)
5. ↑ - Desperation Behind the Scenes (05:21)