Elsenova

"Is she a malevolent force of untold evil or a misunderstood force of good? The truth may not even matter; alone in a hostile alien world, she is your only ally."

Description

Elsenova is the first Rusalka the player meets, and is Trace's only companion through the early stages of the game. She appears friendly toward Trace and willing to help him discover his purpose on Sudra. When first meeting her, she is in a dilapidated state with notable weathering on her head and a missing bottom jaw. After enabling the repair drones, however, she is restored and her eyes open. In her room, the track "Rusalka" plays.

She speaks in broken English, often omitting articles in a manner that implies a Slavic origin. Though she is initially immobile, she is somehow able to watch Trace anywhere he goes, shown to be the use of nanogates in Trace's body, the red "essence" that appears after he dies.

Location

Elsenova's physical head can be seen in the middle portion of Absu. Upon first entering the room and coming in close proximity with her, the player can trigger several dialogue cutscenes in which she interacts with Trace.

Story Points (Spoilers!)

Warning! This section contains spoilers.

Elsenova initially tells Trace she doesn't know why he is on Sudra or how he got there. However, this is only partially true. The Rusalki don't know how the original Trace arrived on Sudra, but they did make this particular clone of Trace that is controlled by the player through the events played out in Axiom Verge. Elsenova is actually carrying out a plan contrived with Ophelia, in the hopes of stopping Athetos from wiping out the remaining inhabitants of Sudra. (It seems that the real objective is actually disabling the breach attractor and escape Sudra. What the Rusalki want beyond freedom from their current imprisonment is unknown.) Elsenova despises Athetos and is intent on destroying him, and Ophelia convinced her that a clone of the original Trace would be able to help them do so.

Gallery

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  Elsenova as she appeared in an earlier build of the game.
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  Elsenova's body seen before the fight with Athetos.