Extinction Ending/Lore

[QueenCorgi]

     So I'm a little confused about the lore aspect of the ending, specifically about The One Who Waits. Feel free to give your views and points! This will be long as I'm pulling all my info from the Explorer notes, specifically The One Who Waits. While I did read Helena's, Mei's, and Diana's, I may have missed/misunderstood some notes so feel free to bring them up to correct me anywhere!

    Anyway, so based on Mei and Helena's notes we know where Helena's actions lead her and she, supposedly, was freed from the system as a formless being. I can see the connection from this to The One Who Waits in the ending, I mean she even looks like Helena, but what I'm confused about despite that fact is how the two would be the same to begin with. Helena started on the Island ARK and ascended through to Scorched Earth and Aberration, then finally Extinction. It's noted among her's and Mei's notes that Extinction was already run down and overgrown, teeming with aggressive creatures of craft and corruption. However, TOWW speaks of the Sanctuary in it's glory days, specifically in Note 2--"This city has been empty for so long, far longer than it was full. Yet its prime was truly wondrous, short lived though it was..."

   TOWW goes on to warn you of the city units--the enforcers, defense, and scout, saying they're feral. They tried to speak to them in an attempt to gain control before survivors ascended elsewhere to Earth. In Note 3 they state they thought they'd be familiar to the units, but claimed that not even the System could control them anymore. Continuing on in Note 6, they speak of death as a "toothless creature long past its prime" and later go on to describe how they are the one who brings survivors back to life, however they state that every time one returns from death it takes resources; energy from the System. They know that once the Reseed Protocol has taken place, everyone will lose the ability to revive themselves.

  In Note 11, they speak of Elders. They mention that they are the youngest of their kind and their Elders have long since gone. A crucial detail to me is that they say specifically that all the knowledge and information from the Universe is what led the Elders to build the System. They continue talking about guiding you through battles and speak as though they know all about the workings and origins of the enemies on Extinction. While it's not far off that Helena could have pieced that kind of info together herself, it still raises questions. Note 14 is a hard hitter. While they describe element in its refined form they do state in the second paragraph that it took a long time to notice any changes, even saying "-far after the great cataclysm and the rise of my elders. By then its roots had reached the far corners of the garden, and still it spread...". We know this is talking on the corruption on Earth as they call Earth the "Garden" in previous notes. It's clear in Helena's notes that she had arrived with her small group well after the rise of corruption.  Note 24 mentions a gift, specifically the Mek. This note keeps tipping me back to the suppose fact that Helena really is TOWW as the note described the Mek as "a weapon of heroes--wielded by few and forged by one." It continued on the read that it took 4 pilots when it was originally crafted, but because TOWW made alterations to it only one pilot is needed.

All of this is what leads me to believe that Helena and The One Who Waits are separate entities. The latter knows multitudes more information of the System, the ARKS, and of Earth's prime and downfall, things that Helena only knew bits and pieces of. However, there were some notes that do contradict my opinion so I'll summarize them below.

• Note 6-- "--I thrashed and cried for help until I stumbled upon her, one who could be those hands. One who could give that person [Mei] more than I ever could." They were able to pull Diana back from death, resurrecting her on Extinction in the hopes she would be able to aid Mei
• Note 16--Speaking of how destructive element was, they state how they saw firsthand how is poisons someone, in such case of Rockwell who went way above the limits of mad with element.
• Note 27--Talks more on death in the beginning and how they were unable to bring back the ones who lost before. It also states more in vague reference of Rockwell "...[They didn't suffer]. Not like him, he who thought down was up and descended a ladder into madness...He brought that fate upon himself..."
• Note 28-- "My elders had lost their identities before I came to be." This could be the winning point that Helena is TOWW as we see in Mei's notes that Helena's body turned to light and "ascended". Also stated here "No one else will rise to these heights from the tomb of man." We know in Mei's notes that Helena was insistent upon going to lay in the tomb.

I could just be stubborn, but I do think we're (or really just me) missing a gap of information. I suppose that the prism could have given her information, but her visions from it make no sense to me that she would gain all that insight. To me her ending notes read that she had just escaped the System, not become the only homo deus with infinite knowledge of the whole things pulling the strings. I really just wanted to discuss this because I do tend to misunderstand things I read no matter how many times I read it until someone points out the real meanings. Also, please don't respond passive aggressively, I'll cry.

[Leonhardt]

Helena ascended and became a Homo Deus, and is the one that talks to you in the end cutscene, but is not TOWW.

TOWW is a Homo Deus, but one of the youngest ones, possibly one of the last generation of humans to ascend, possibly after the ARK system was already in place and being tended by Homo Deus "Elders" and is not as ingrained into the system as them, giving him a bit more freedom.

Regarding the note about the Mek, it's actually talking about the Mega Mek (Wielded by a few = 4 pilots in tandem during combination. Santiago's notes actually detail the creation of the Meks, he originally made them to be single pilot, but added the Combination ability towards the end of their development to fight the King Titan.)

 

I'm interested to see what WC intends to do with the cliffhanger they had at the end of the cutscene

Spoiler

Aberration crashes to earth, presumably along with all the Element and Corruption, potentially screwing with the Reseed Protocol as it'll just reintroduce a massive amount of Element after the purge. Rockwell is also alive, and roars as his corrupted purple Obelisk lights up. Dealing with that is gonna be fun.

 

[RipRavage]

4 hours ago, Leonhardt said:

Helena ascended and became a Homo Deus, and is the one that talks to you in the end cutscene, but is not TOWW.

TOWW is a Homo Deus, but one of the youngest ones, possibly one of the last generation of humans to ascend, possibly after the ARK system was already in place and being tended by Homo Deus "Elders" and is not as ingrained into the system as them, giving him a bit more freedom.

Regarding the note about the Mek, it's actually talking about the Mega Mek (Wielded by a few = 4 pilots in tandem during combination. Santiago's notes actually detail the creation of the Meks, he originally made them to be single pilot, but added the Combination ability towards the end of their development to fight the King Titan.)

 

I'm interested to see what WC intends to do with the cliffhanger they had at the end of the cutscene

  Reveal hidden contents

Aberration crashes to earth, presumably along with all the Element and Corruption, potentially screwing with the Reseed Protocol as it'll just reintroduce a massive amount of Element after the purge. Rockwell is also alive, and roars as his corrupted purple Obelisk lights up. Dealing with that is gonna be fun.

 

Wait, I'm confused, didn't

Spoiler

Helena become the MOMI?

 

[QueenCorgi]

5 hours ago, RipRavage said:

Helena ascended and became a Homo Deus, and is the one that talks to you in the end cutscene, but is not TOWW.

TOWW is a Homo Deus, but one of the youngest ones, possibly one of the last generation of humans to ascend, possibly after the ARK system was already in place and being tended by Homo Deus "Elders" and is not as ingrained into the system as them, giving him a bit more freedom.

To me that doesn't make much sense when you read TOWW' notes 27 and 30. Both mention how they're specifically waiting, wanting, to see the Reseed Protocol begin and see the sun again. The ending cutscene fits with these notes as the Homo Deus we see being TOWW, especially since they explain the Reseed Protocol in detail and make a comment on the beauty and sunrise, all with great enthusiasm. I get that the visible head looks like Helena's, but I honestly think it was either a move to be seen as a familiar entity to you or WC just putting a generic model on there so we could see a face instead of the Homo Deus glass window face.

Also, thank you for correcting me on the Mega Mek, I honestly keep forgetting the 'Mega' part every time I talk about it being used against the King Titan. Just my verbal laziness really.

@RipRavage I'm not sure what would point to her becoming that. I don't remember it being mentioned in any notes, especially since Diana (note 28) took some physical and mental damage from controlling most of it with Mei when they were fighting against the King.

 

[Fried]

I think Helena and TOWW are one in the same. We never hear about anyone hearing a voice in their head until after Helena ascends. Mei mentions that the voice seems “familiar”. The first thing TOWW guides Diana towards after the MEK is to save Mei. Plus the whole sunset thing with the cutscene as well. Lastly, TOWW does mention they are the last of their kind and that they are the youngest of their kind “by far”, they just know so much because they must’ve been shown the whole history of the Earth. In Helena’s notes she talks about her dreams and how she saw the element taking hold of the earth’s core. So I think after ascending she learned everything there is to know, and then for who knows how long began to try to resurrect ppl. So when we speak to TOWW, Helena, she’s been a Homo Deus for ages.