The Four Survivors (Spoilers?)

I postulate that each former city had a survivor, with the sacrifice of a lover. This has obtained them a kind of immortality, at a price. The evidence proceeds as follows:

The Manager of the Royal Bethlehem is almost certainly a Polythreme native, which has been hinted to have been the first city. He lost his lover, who seems to be the original clay man, and is basically immortal, a glamour (broken when handing him a stone tentacle key) makes him appear younger. This love story led to the First Cities fall.

We know the Duchess is a daughter of the Pharaoh, and her lost love the Cantigaster. However, we can postulate she is somehow immortal, connected to the Hesperdarian Cider. We can postulate that by the fact that the cider is a beverage, a joint effort of Wines and Apples, and Wines has the closest ties to the Second City through his creation of the Vake.

Feducci is clearly immortal, as explicitly stated by the dueling storyline. We know he is from the Elder Continent, home of the Third City. This means he is either Snuffer Immortal, or, some other kind of immortality connected to the Elder Continent. I propose this could mean that he reached the Mountain of Youth. In addition, he is a member of the Dilmun Club, which is implied to seek immortality by their lapel pin sharing the symbol of the Hesperdarian Cider. His lost love is currently unkown.

Finally, the Gracious Widow is clearly a survivor of the Oriental Fourth City. I propose that this city is Xanadu, as more eloquently discussed in the Previous Cities thread. However, I further postulate that her widower, stated to be eve more ferocious, was Genghis or Kublah Khan. She is kept immortal through the use of the Brandy. The Brandy must be steadily taken, though. One dose is not enough to keep her immortal. In addition, it preserves her youth, unlike the Cider.

Together, these four unite the Gates of the Garden, and Falling Cities. Simply by the existence of four immortals tied to the four cities, such a line of reasoning is possible. So what do you think, everyone?

Addendum: Perhaps, the Bazaar moves to the most ready supply of love stories. Each survivor was the catalyst of the Bazaars movement to their city. The Manager brought it to Tyre to bring his love to life, the Duchess to save her lover, Feducci, unknown, the Widow, to continue her lovers legacy, and the Empress to save her Consort. The “price that is known” is the city itself, while the “price that is not known” is the eventual shallow half-life of the lover. The King with One Hundred Hearts, the Cantigaster, Feduccis and the Widows, and eventually the Empress’s Consort. In addition, the survivors are all in apparent positions of Royalty, allowing them to sell their cities. The Duchess was a princess, the Empress an Empress, Feducci is called an “Exiled Prince”, and the Manager and Widow the anomalies. However, the Manager was the King (With One-Hundred Hearts’s) Consort, and the Widow the Consort of Khan.
edited by DukeLawliet on 3/27/2012

[quote=DukeLawliet]Finally, the Gracious Widow is clearly a survivor of the Oriental Fourth City. I propose that this city is Xanadu, as more eloquently discussed in the Previous Cities thread. However, I further postulate that her widower, stated to be eve more ferocious, was Genghis or Kublah Khan. She is kept immortal through the use of the Brandy. The Brandy must be steadily taken, though. One dose is not enough to keep her immortal. In addition, it preserves her youth, unlike the Cider.

Together, these four unite the Gates of the Garden, and Falling Cities. Simply by the existence of four immortals tied to the four cities, such a line of reasoning is possible. So what do you think, everyone?[/quote]
Very inlighting, makes you wonder who will survive the fifth city. The Traitor empress and her consort? The amused lordship? our player characters? Do only lovers survive? This gives us more questions then answers.

I do not think those listed are the ONLY survivors, simply the most prominent ones. One of the relickers appears to be from the first city, and then there’s the widow’s people, as well as folks from the elder continent. It’s likely that a good number of people survive, but the reason we see so few from the first and second cities is simply because of how long it’s been.

I was personally under the impression that Feducci [color=#ffffff]was a devil due to him being the Helmsman on the ship that took The Regretful Soldier captive when his regiment invaded Hell.[/color]

Did I read that wrong?
edited by WintersNight on 3/28/2012

Please whitetext your spoilers good sir. Personally, I believe

[color=#ffffff]that Feducci is from the Presbyter, where men never die. It is why he has you hunt Snuffers, why (as my sources tell me) that the Big Rat calls him the Presbyter’s dog, and why the Devoted Intriguer has you spy on him. He does talk to a devil in that conversation, and I suspect the Hell and the Elder Continent might be making an alliance. That would explain his presence on the Brass Trireme. [/color]

Speculation of course.

[quote=WintersNight]I was personally under the impression that Feducci was a devil due to him being the Helmsman on the ship that took The Regretful Soldier captive when his regiment invaded Hell.

Did I read that wrong?[/quote]
You did, but you were meant to. It’s one of the best bits of misdirection in the game, right up there with the Duchess [color=rgb(255, 255, 255)]not[/color] actually being a cat.

Er, and I’m foggy on the details (need to go reread and map out the other threads along these lines), but aren’t[color=#ffffff] His Amused Lordship and the Once Dashing Smuggler from different cities [/color]as well?

~MF
A Lady puzzled

I believe the Once-Dashing Smuggler is from the orient/fourth city, right?

I’ve gotta say, I’ve been playing this game for over a year now, but the story lines have started to make so much more sense after becoming active on these boards for only a month.

Is there one big collected thread that i can go read to catch up on all the theories?
edited by WintersNight on 3/28/2012

[quote=WintersNight]I’ve gotta say, I’ve been playing this game for over a year now, but the story lines have started to make so much more sense after becoming active on these boards for only a month.

Is there one big collected thread that i can go read to catch up on all the theories?
edited by WintersNight on 3/28/2012[/quote]

There are a few threads floating around, this one here is about the fallen cities and the clues related to them. Back a few pages (4 or 5) there’s a summary post. I know there are several more “theory” threads floating around about Mr. Eaten, Jack, the museum…

~MF
A Lady reading

I would not be in the least surprised if the Duchess’ dealing with the Bazaar has left her with catlike attributes, just as it[color=rgb(255, 255, 255)] made her husband… what he is[/color], and how their own dealing let the Empress and her Consort sickly and wan at best, if not positively alien, and [color=rgb(255, 255, 255)]made their children a legion of monsters[/color].

I think it’s meant more as a deliberate deception on her part, but your theory is also interesting.

Makes you wonder what price the Gracious Widow paid. Mabye she can only survive in darkness. Also what about the capivating princees? Shes no monster as far as i can tell.

Not to look at, but everyone who gets close to her dies, and her passion for red honey isn’t fit to be talked about. As for the Widow, well, we shall see if we ever get a glimpse of her.