| “ | Indra: I still want my body back, asshole. Amashilama: What makes you think you deserve it? Leaving Samara like that... how could you? Indra: ... the hell? ... you remember that? Amashilama: I have more than just your body now. The truth, I can hardly stand being you. As a point of fact: I expect killing you to be most therapeutic! |
„ |
| ~ Amashilama when confronted about her possession of Indra's body. |
| “ | Amashilama: This portal leads to A'ansur, the mother world. Once I've obtained the remaining Siuna, we will destroy it. Indra: And in the process, destroy this world, too. Amashilama: A matter of semantics. I will return it to its original form. It will become part of the pure realm of ideas once again. |
„ |
| ~ Amashilama explains her plans for A'ansur and Kiengir. |
Amashilama is the main antagonist of the indie video game Axiom Verge 2.
She was originally a woman of the Sagiga, an alien race that inhabited the world of Kiengir and was led by an advanced AI called the Lamassu. At an early stage, she questioned the Lamassu's war against another alien race, the Udug, along with its teachings about a celestial hierarchy with the world of A'ansur at the top. Nonetheless, she decided to join the war by converting herself into a sentient tool bound to a specific person; she did not do this of genuine interest in the war however, but solely to extend her own lifespan. In this state, Amashilama was radicalized into believing that to "liberate" Kiengir, she must destroy A'ansur no matter the consequences.
History[]
Background[]
According to clay tablets scattered throughout the in-game map, Amashilama was once a Sagiga woman named Elutil. She lived at a time when the species was led by a highly advanced AI called the Lamassu. The Lamassu had greatly uplifted the humanoid species and came to be worshipped as a god. Thus, almost no Sagiga questioned its orders to wage war against an interdimensional species called the Udug.
The Udug's technological superiority forced the Sagiga to enter an arms race, which culminated in the creation of beings called Arms. These were Sagiga converted into intangible, nanotechnological servants that are bound to a physical Wielder. Elutil accepted an offer from the authorities to become one such Arm. By her own admission though, this was not because she genuinely cared about the war but because she wanted to extend her own lifespan, as she (mistaken[1]) did not believe in an afterlife.
As part of the conversion process, Elutil was renamed Amashilama after an old goddess and paired with Mageshgetil, a scholar who was similarly critical of the Lamassu and the Udug war. The two apparently spent much time together thinking about the true nature of the multiverse. They both strongly opposed the Lamassu's orders for the Sagiga and teachings about a celestial hierarchy with the highly advanced world of A'ansur at the top. They came to the conclusion that A'ansur was a shackle to Kiengir that effectively put the Sagiga under a form of servitude, and that to "liberate" Kiengir, they would have to destroy A'ansur.
The war with the Udug ended with the latter suddenly retreating. The threat over, the Lamassu soon ordered the Sagiga to destroy most of their technology and to kill all Wielders along with their Arms, using bombs powerful enough to warp spacetime. Only a small group, led by Mageshgetil and Amashilama, protested against this mass suicide and the belief in an AI's supposed wisdom. The remaining, defiant Sagiga stayed on Kiengir until they had to leave in order to escape the arrival of some entity called a Pattermind. Their Arms were left behind in urns, one of which contained Amashilama.
Axiom Verge 2[]
An unspecified amount of time later, Indra Chaudhari, CEO of the Globe 3 conglomerate, arrives on Kiengir after she was lured there by messages about her missing daughter Samara. She soon hears a voice calling for her help and ventures down through a facility where she falls in lethally cold water. She finds the source of the voice – a red urn behind some grating – but drowns before she can reach it.
Indra soon awakens on an altar. The being from the urn reveals herself as a mirage and introduces herself as Amashilama. Amashilama explains that although Indra never touched her urn, she was close enough for Amashilama to be able to rebuild her body through nanotechnology. Indra is horrified to learn that Amashilama also integrated herself into Indra's body, turning the latter into a Wielder. Amashilama proceeds to guide Indra through Kiengir, encouraging her to find more scattered Arms. One such Arm Indra comes across is Damu, who was converted as a child and can transfer her consciousness into a small drone. When Indra encounters the Lamassu, Amashilama appears as a mirage again and begs Indra not to listen to the machine, calling it "broken".
Indra later comes across a machine that Amashilama claims can give her the ability to split her consciousness between her own body and Damu's drone form. When Indra goes into drone form to use it, her unconscious body suddenly rises. Amashilama, now in complete possession of Indra's body, reveals that she has been deceiving her and leaves the conscious Indra behind as a drone.
Indra acquires a bipedal replacement body, though it looks even less humanoid than the alien Sagiga do. She manages to confront Amashilama again and demands that the latter give Indra's original body back, but Amashilama refuses and tries to kill her. Both soon find out that they will simply be revived at the nearest altar if killed, so Amashilama runs off and briefly mentions a "Siuna".
Indra speaks with the Lamassu again, who defines Siuna as war machines that can be piloted by Arms with no need for a human wielder. The Lamassu explains Amashilama's plans: she will acquire a Siuna of her own, take a portal to A'ansur, and use a legion of Arms to destroy that world along with all universes below it. Indra finds one Siuna just as Amashilama abandons Indra's original body to possess it. The original Indra begs the robotic one to stop Amashilama before slumping to the ground, seemingly dead.
The robotic Indra finds a portal to A'ansur and gets ready to destroy it using a powerful breach bomb. Before she can arm the bomb though, Amashilama appears and jams the controls. The two engage in a battle that ends with Amashilama trapping the robotic Indra in a force field. Suddenly, the original Indra runs in and attacks Amashilama, giving her robotic copy time to arm the bomb and escape. The explosion completely destroys Amashilama along with the portal and the original Indra.
Personality[]
Amashilama's personality is generally hateful. In her writings, she expresses frustration over Kiengir's status as a world subordinate to A'ansur, in a more radical tone than Mageshgetil even though both had similar opinions.
Amashilama does not seem to care about the fact that her fellow Arm Damu was converted as a mere child, only thinking in terms of his practical usefulness. She also shows no remorse over stealing Indra Chaudhari's body, and by the end of the game, has become apathetic to the enormous damage A'ansur's destruction would cause for the multiverse. When confronted with the fact that Kiengir would just be erased, she simply rationalizes it by claiming that returning to the "pure realm of ideas" would be better for the world.
Amashilama also had a brother named Ludari however, whom she did care about. In her letters to him, she asked about his economic situation and whether their mother has returned from a long absence.
Powers and abilities[]
As an Arm, Amashilama is intangible and has no powers aside from talking to her current Wielder. She is skilled at manipulation however, as shown during the first half of the game where she successfully guides Indra into aiding her. If the Wielder goes unconscious for some reason though, Amashilama becomes capable of completely possessing that person and can even see their memories.
In the Siuna Amashilama steals near the end of the game, she becomes highly durable and gains a variety of powers such as electrical attacks, lasers and the creation of force fields.
Quotes[]
By Amashilama[]
| “ | Amashilama: You found my urn. I was able to... rebuild you. Indra: Just what ... what the hell are you? Amashilama: I am an Arm. An intelligent collection of machines. And a part of you, now. Indra: Oh. Sh*t. Amashilama: My name is Amashilama. It is an honor to have a new Wielder. |
„ |
| ~ Amashilama introducing herself after reviving Indra. |
| “ | Lamassu: Welcome, Wielder. They call me the Lamassu. [...] Amashilama: Do not listen to it, Indra. It is broken. It is why the machines here are so hostile. |
„ |
| ~ Amashilama "warning" Indra about the Lamassu. |
| “ | Amashilama (through Indra's voice): Finally, I breathe again. Indra (as a drone): That... doesn't sound like something I would say. Amashilama: Indeed, you are no longer in control of this body. I am sorry to have deceived you. But now I must go. |
„ |
| ~ Amashilama after stealing Indra's body. |
| “ | Amashilama: You're just going to keep coming back, aren't you? Indra: You say that like I was given a choice. Amashilama: I'm not finished yet. Once I have the Siuna, I will end you for good. |
„ |
| ~ Indra and Amashilama during their first battle. |
| “ | GaSp* YOU! How - ? *ChOkE* | „ |
| ~ Amashilama's last words as the original Indra restrains her. |
Notes[]
| “ | Over the years it has become clear to me that the supposed celestial hierarchy represented by the Lamassu is a farce. A'ansur, which it explains as our mother, is a shackle, or rather a giant stone that we are shackled to, dragging us into the depths. There is no Irkalla. After death there is nothing. Not even blackness. | „ |
| ~ Amashilama to Ludari, "Becoming an Arm". |
| “ | I have been thinking of this, brother, and I am troubled. How far does the lie extend? The heavens, the abyss, the garden of the gods, are they real? Why does no one question? | „ |
| ~ Amashilama to Ludari, "The Student". |
About Amashilama[]
| “ | An intelligent entity that has healed you and now lives inside your head. | „ |
| ~ Amashilama's inventory description. |
| “ | Lamassu: In the past Amashilama was one of the more troublesome Arms. After the Wielders defeated the Udug, it was necessary to restore and rebuild society to how it was prior to their introduction. Though most Wielders complied faithfully, Amashilama and her Wielder resisted, creating a new conflict. Indra: By "complied faithfully", do you by any chance mean they killed themselves? Lamassu: Destroyed is perhaps more apt, as nothing less than a storm bomb can completely dismantle the Arms' nanotech. Indra: So you asked Amashilama to nuke herself and she declined. Can't say I blame her. |
„ |
| ~ Indra and Lamassu on Amashilama. |
Trivia[]
- Amashilama is the only character in the game whose dialogue text is colored red.
- The music for the final battle with Amashilama is a remix of "Amnesia", the theme of the Ukkin-Na area in Axiom Verge.
References[]
- ↑ The fates of Elizabeth Hammond, Samara Chaudhari and eventually Indra Chaudhari herself confirm that an afterlife exists in the Axiom Verge canon.
External Links[]
- Amashilama on the Axiom Verge Wiki