Ophelia

Composite image of Ophelia.

"The Rusalka claims she journeyed into the Breach in search of a Patternmind. What did she find there?"

Description

Ophelia is the Rusalka who originally came up with the plan to create a clone of Trace in order to combat Athetos. She has a benevolent demeanor, apologizing to Trace when Elsenova, in her anger, used the nanogates to kill Trace for not agreeing to kill Athetos. When Trace nearly succumbs to Athetos' pathogen, Ophelia is somehow able to cure Trace. At the start of the game, Ophelia is inert and inactive due to lack of repairs. However, Trace is able to awaken her at Elsenova's suggestion by activating the Remote Drones.

Unlike Elsenova, Ophelia can speak in plain, unbroken English. Although she, being a Rusalka, is considered a war machine, she seems to be more akin to a combat medic than a soldier. She is most likely the outsider being discussed in The Outsider (Note) and Reply: The Outsider (Note). This is further supported by the fact that Ophelia is the only Rusalka with a non-Slavic name (the name Ophelia originates from Shakespeare's Hamlet), as well as the only Rusalka depicted facing fully front, as opposed to in profile.

Location

Ophelia's head can be seen in mid to upper left portions of Ukkin-Na. However, her body is located in the lower right portion of Edin.

Etymology

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, Ophelia is a young woman who ultimately goes mad and drowns herself. This is probably related to the Rusalki being "water machines", as well as the Notes that imply Ophelia speaks Early Modern English. Shakespeare chose that name because in Ancient Greek οφέλη (o-phe-læ) means "a great benevolent act" or "gift" (like Theodora), but sounds close to οφειλή (o-phe-læ), which means "a great debt (or sin) to pay for". The pair of words, almost homophones (only one emphasis away), make Ophelia great as a literary name, describing the dual nature of a character. The good and evil counterparts were too poetic for Shakespeare to ignore, and the same could be said for the creator of Axiom Verge, since it shows Ophelia (as a Rusalka) is questionable in nature.

Additional Images

Speculation

It is likely Ophelia was once Indra from Axiom Verge 2, due to her strikingly similar appearance to the Rusalka, along with other in-game clues. After Indra travels to Kiengir, she has her body stolen by the Arm Amashilama and her mind put into her Remote Drone. Though she attempts to gain her original body back, she isn't able to, and her body is eventually destroyed. Indra ultimately accepts this, and admits she does not feel like the original Indra, but rather something different. She is able to obtain a humanoid form which, as seen in the ending credits, bears a striking resemblance to Ophelia with the forward facing position, chin shape, and expression.

After the main events of the game, in the ending cutscene, Indra teams up with Drushka and makes a plan to head upstream to A'ansur, which they require a Patternmind for. This lines up with how the Rusalki travelled through the Breach and Ophelia's usage of a Scry- previously described by Elizabeth Hammond as a device being able to track a Pattermind- in order to locate Trace. Additionally, Drushka's appearance, as well as how it changes throughout the game, bears a resemblance to the mechanical appearance of Indra's drone body and seems to be unlike that of a human.

Trivia

• Ophelia's wild hair could possibly be a reference to Sir John Everett Millais' Ophelia oil painting, depicting Shakespeare's Ophelia attempting to drown herself in the water, though it could also be reminiscent of Indra's hair style. (See speculation for more details.)