“'Nonsense,' said the wise people. 'We will brew you a magic potion, and then you will live forever. You will always be our Queen.'
”
So that is what they did. But, sometimes, when she was alone, the Queen cried, because although she was mother to the world, it was not enough.
Empress Tihana (unknown – c. March 1937 AD or later, depending on player action)—known also by names such as Tihanu, Tin Hinan, the Woman in Grey, the Great Queen, the Great Mother, the Ashen Mother, among others—was the Empress of the Other World Empire, and is often described and treated as if she were a god.[2][1] [9] It is known that she was complicit, albeit reluctantly, in the torture of tens of thousands of human beings to produce the Vitae that sustained her life and powered her civilization.[9] She is the main antagonist of Amnesia: Rebirth, and is voiced by British actress Rachel Atkins.[8]
History[]
Early life[]
It is unknown when exactly Tihana was born to Empress Atua, only that she was on the throne by the 4th Century AD, although it very possible that Tihana was born and inherited the throne much earlier than that.[5] Which means that Tihana was at least 1,500 years old in 1937. It appears is that she was her mother's only child and was born with a degenerative illness, one that degraded bones and sinew over time.[10]
Revival and accession[]
At some point, seemingly when Tihana had reached maturity, the affliction began killing her slowly. Atua instructed the alchemists to do whatever was necessary to keep her daughter alive, decreeing that she must survive to continue the dynasty.[10] Temaku and other alchemists followed Atua's orders and "fought to keep the life in her."[10] This medical effort is only fragmentarily described, but it included surgical procedures on Tihana, namely some kind of "spinal repair" and eventually the injection of Vitae's somatically restorative properties to allow her to live in spite of her condition.[11][10] It is also implied that Empress Atua donated some sort of vital organ to her daughter, as she died immediately after they stabilized Tihana's illness.[10]
After her mother’s death, Tihana "took up the orb from her lifeless brow" and succeeded her as empress, becoming the seventh ruler of her dynasty.[10][7] During her coronation, she walked out of her tower at the head of a procession, bare-headed and bare-handed, dressed only in a simple robe.[12] She walked among her subjects as they cried out her name "'Tihana, Blessed Tihana,'" with many crying out in joy and weeping openly, with them crowding the streets and alleys of the city to view their new sovereign; furthermore, Temaku and the other alchemists followed Tihana, carrying a litter bearing seven orbs.[12]
Some time after her coronation, it is possible that she desired to marry in order to have a child, but decided that none of the princely candidates measured up.[13] However, this is information from a fairy tale inspired by the actual events, and so was likely written centuries later with information passed down through those centuries, which makes it rather unreliable.[13] However, it is recorded that Tihana underwent various medical studies and fertility treatments, both to investigate her now-stabilized affliction and in an attempt to help her have a child.[11][14]
Struggle for fertility[]
Temaku's subordinate alchemist Atharu tested samples from Tihana and from the deceased Atua, thereby establishing that both had the same disease, though Atharu noted it "did not manifest in the forebears" —possibly meaning that the disease was not present in the bloodline up till Atua, or that it was present but asymptomatically in the royal ancestors.[14] Atharu discovered that while they had stabilized Tihana's disease through the use of vitae, it was only able to repair and halt the affliction for a time, as if it was discontinued the affliction would bounce back with a vigour, requiring consistent doses to keep the Empress alive. Temaku then ordered Atharu to conduct further examinations of the effects of different dosages, different areas of injection, and timing, but what came of these later investigations is not known.[14]
Atharu was also directed to examine the changes in the Empress's disease from before the treatment and after to see how it affected her fertility.[11] She discovered that despite Tihana's illness, her reproductive organs were still working until the "spinal repair."[11][14] However, in spite of the incredible properties of vitae in mending tissues, the reproductive organs withered away rather than reconstruct.[11] This confused Atharu, who wondered whether or not the illness had permanently affected the reproductive organs.[11][14] She asked Temaku if she should send up a report to the Empress, but he replied that it would be "unnecessary," which Atharu agreed with, calling the fertility investigation a trivial matter only of "alchemical interest" due to Tihana's immortality.[11]
However, Tihana's thoughts on the matter differed greatly from those of her alchemists, as she desired above all else to have a child, not for politics or for securing a future with an heir, but for herself.[15] However, since the disease was stabilized and now that she had "forever," Tihana contemplated ending the sessions of fertility treatments, which had a long shot of success, and instead focusing on ruling the empire and providing for her people.[15] Which it appears she eventually did, turning all her attention to the empire.
A resplendent reign[]
It appears that Tihana's rule was largely prosperous, with her regime overseeing numerous inventions and innovations that helped increase the power of the empire as well as greatly increase living standards for the citizenry as well.[9] As head of government in addition to being head of state, with her having the final say when it came to major decisions for her empire, which she sent out to a council to implement.[9] Very little is known about her day-to day-rule, but there appears to have been some political strife with Septarch Ilyander and the Enkindled Fortress, who dispatched messengers to the Outer Isles despite a previous warning, this led to some kind of military expedition as a show of force, the outcome of which is unknown.[9]
One of the most important advancements was the industrialization of Vitae production.[16] Tihana's regime allowed Ayandra the Apostate, a political exile from the Enkindled Fortress, asylum in her realm.[17] Ayandra proved his worth by proposing a decoction of the amnesiac [[Amnesia potion}|Elixir of Emmerysh]] be administered to the subjects of Vitae extraction, which proved to be a breakthrough since the "stock" now experience less fatigue during torture sessions, allowing more Vitae to be extracted than normal.[17] This triumph impressed Temaku, who took Ayandra under his wing until the latter was discovered to have committed previous crimes, which led to Tihana's regime banishing the Apostate beyond return.[17] Temaku and his alchemists worked on further improving the process, at first creating torture pods that tortured victims but fed them the amnesia potion to refresh them. After this breakthrough Suvar and Atharu worked on revising the memory-view capsules to provide someone's happiest memories and thus lead to a greater response to the pain, one that would provide more extractable Vitae.[18][19][16] Soon Atharu and the alchemists had yet another breakthrough in the process, with a cycle of pain, amnesia, and hope instituted to maximize the response to the torture and thus the Vitae yield.[17][16][9]
However, the public opinion of the process was apparently unpopular enough to be a political problem, which led Temaku to instruct Atharu and the others to reduce the cycle of pain, although it is possible Tihana herself ordered Temaku to do this.[19] In any case, these innovations greatly expanded the empire's power. It appears that Tihana's constant use of Vitae for centuries had a side affect of requiring greater and greater quantities of it to both keep her alive and also to fuel her powers, which eventually required a gargantuan supply.[20] It seems that her physical body was eventually rendered immobile, becoming almost plant-like, but Tihana was able to project her form into the world, where she appeared as a ghostly blue specter; however, she was unable to physically interact with the world in this state.
Tihana, Who is Eternal, yet Mother to Nothing at All[]
Despite the attempts to sanitize the process for public opinion, the mass extraction of Vitae caused unrest among Tihana's people, and the discontent was such that it eventually spread to the ranks of her alchemists, two such examples are Kita and Taina. A group of rebels under Kita's leadership conspired to kill Tihana and end the industrialized torture factories, via the injection of the Shadow's red flesh into the extraction system.[21][22][23][24] Although they managed to infest a quarter of the system with this substance and cause the collapse of the Great Gate,[21] they ultimately failed to kill her.[21][24] These acts of rebellion unintentionally caused their world to face utter destruction, destroying their civilization, killing nearly every citizen, and turning most of the alchemists into floating wraiths of nightmare.[21] Even after this cataclysmic sabotage, Tihana managed to survive with only one of her four Vitae pipelines destroyed, now presiding over a dead civilization.
It is unknown when exactly the destruction occurred, only that it happened between the 4th Century and May 1839.[5][25] Due to the ancient nature of the structures they built as well as the human cults that worshipped them, as well as the fact that human stories about the Otherworlders have long degraded to mythological stories, it is likely that the destruction happened much closer to the 4th Century than the 19th.<[5][25]
Before the events of Amnesia: Rebirth[]
It is unknown how Tihana spent the time in-between the destruction of her world and the events of Amnesia: Rebirth. However, it is possible she occasionally used her spectral form to offer aid to human travellers with whom roused her sympathies.[4]
Events of Amnesia: Rebirth[]
After Cassandra's crew reached the oasis in March 1937, Tihana saw Tasi and detected her yet-to-be-born daughter in her womb. Noticing that the crew would die, Empress brought them to her imperial Tower in Other World.[26][27] She tried to bargain for Tasi's child in exchange for saving the group.[28] After Tasi refused the Empress implored them to drink from the fountain in the temple, claiming it would restore them.[27] This lie was what caused the crew to be infested with the contamination that would eventually turn them into harvesters.[26]
Whether the Empress knew this in advance was unclear, but she did admit the initial purpose was to make Tasi more compliant and controllable. The Empress begged Tasi to remain and leave her child in her care, as a child was the only thing she had been longing for for thousands of years. She claimed that she could start giving Amari vitae as well and thus save her life, and if Tasi left with the child, Amari would die of the same neurological condition as Alys.
The Empress's fate is tied to the player's decision: she either continues her rule in the Other World, with or without Amari, or dies to the Shadow.[29]
Information[]
As an enemy[]
Should Tasi choose not to surrender Amari, the Empress will act as the game's final enemy encounter. She attacks similarly to a Wraith, in that she attacks by ensnaring Tasi in her Ankhari stone's light, which jumpstarts the Harvester corruption and relies mostly on sight and sound to locate Tasi; however, since she is immobile, she is not a difficult encounter as long as the player stays out of the stone's light and keeps Amari from crying. In addition, if Tasi makes it out of the throne room into one of the side chambers or the portal chamber, the Empress is powerless to prevent her from acting. However, this isn't entirely true. If Tasi stands in the portal chamber for awhile, tentacles will leave holes in the walls; allowing Tihana's light to shine through. As well, if Tasi stands facing the door, Tihana will use her powers to force the doors open allowing her light to go through.
Description[]
Appearance[]
Due to the progression of her illness and the countless centuries of vitae life support, the Empress exists in a very mutated, yet still recognizably humanoid form, her face is bifurcated, and all of her limbs bar her left arm end in plant-like roots that are connected to the devices that connect to the multiple tubes injecting vitae into her physical form.
When projecting herself in a spectral form, Tihana appears as a ghostly blue-skinned woman wearing robes, a drab brown cowl and a decorative web-like headpiece obscuring her eyes. It is unclear whether or not this was her appearance prior to the onset of her illness.
Personality[]
The subjects of the Empire generally referred to the Empress with reverence, commonly ending their data tablet records with the words "so recorded, in Her name eternal". Whether or not this reverence was more of an official way to end government documents or if it was mostly for her as a person is unclear. However, the Empress appeared to have been a benevolent and dutiful ruler, putting the needs of her people before her own desires.[15] Like the vast majority of her society, she appeared to find no personal pleasure in the torture of humans for the purpose of vitae extraction, but accepted it as a necessary evil.
The most clearly defined aspect of Tihana's personality is her great yearning for a child of her own, which was denied her as a result of her illness (or its treatment); this would later grow into an obsession. By her own admission, she mutated the crew of the Cassandra into Harvesters solely in order to bring Tasi under her control and “convince” her to give up her child; this shows that she was not above resorting to underhanded tactics if she deemed it necessary, although she seemed regretful to do so, and she did try to reason with Tasi beforehand. Indeed, much of her interactions with Tasi appear to be motivated by a genuine concern for Amari's wellbeing.
Trivia[]
- She is the seventh ruler of Ur-naya's dynasty.[7]
- Her title "Eternal" is most likely a reference to her prolonged life through the extraction of vitae from her victims.
- Her other title "Last" reflects her status as Empress, regardless of the player's final choice. If the player doesn't kill her, she will live indefinitely in her world, without any threat to her existing rule. If the player chooses to kill her, the bloodline comes to an end since there is no heir. Hence, she becomes the last Empress ever to rule.
- She was the only Otherworldy person alive during the events of Amnesia: Rebirth, aside from Kita. The rest met are Ghouls, Wraiths, and the victims of vitae extraction. Her situation is similar to Toussaint Beaufoy, Karl Springer and Henri Clément from Amnesia: The Bunker, who are the last survivors during the game.
- She seems to be unaware of the fact that destruction of her civilization had been the unintended result of Kita's assassination plan and that he was still alive within capital city. She was also unaware of the theft of a meager portion of her vitae supply. If she aware of all this things, she may have tried to order harvesters to eliminate Kita. But it's also possible she didn't know about Kita or couldn't exert enough power.
- Tasi and the Empress are foils for one another. Tasi and the Empress will go to many lengths to protect Amari. However, the Empress will go as far as torturing people forever in order to sustain Amari's life.
- In the bad ending, the sketchbook shows Amari playing with toys; Tasi, as a harvester, watches her from afar. The Dark World is shown with a beautiful environment that is a large contrast from the appearance of the game. Whether this is Tihana's influence or just a sketch that isn't factual is unknown.
- Many parellels can be drawn between Empress Tihana and Alexander of Brennenburg, the main antagonist of Amnesia: The Dark Descent. Both characters are the main antagonists in their respective games; both are from the same exact dimension, the Other World. Both are forced into interacting with Earth's dimension in order to gain what they want, and therefore have manipulated the people of Earth - especially the main protagonists - to get closer to their goals. They both heavily needed vitae (and by extension, the torture of others) for their own survival, and both can die from The Shadow in determinant, optional endings.
Quotes[]
- Main article: Empress Tihana/Dialogue
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Tin Hinan Note (1) (Rebirth)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Tihanu Note (Rebirth)
- ↑ Kel Hanan Note (Rebirth)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Ashen Mother Text (Rebirth)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Daniel's Diary: 17th of May 1839, first entry (TDD)
- ↑ Daniel's Diary: 17th May 1839- 4th Century (TDD) – "The crudely carved passage confused me. It looked much older than the 4th century structure we had expected."
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Bloodline List (Rebirth)
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Amnesia: Rebirth – English credits:
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Political Letter: Foreign Affairs and Matters of Stock (Rebirth)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 Cylinder: Accession (Rebirth)
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 Fertility Investigation (Rebirth)
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Cylinder: The Coronation (Rebirth)
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Book Fragment (Rebirth)
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Medical Investigation (Rebirth)
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Cylinder: Patient's Thoughts (Rebirth)
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Cylinder: Breakthrough (Rebirth)
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 Note on the Apostate (Rebirth)
- ↑ Note on Memory Process- Cycle of Replenishing (Rebirth)
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Note on Memory Process- Public Opinion (Rebirth)
- ↑ Note on Vitae Flow (Rebirth)
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 21.3 Cylinder: The Fall (Rebirth)
- ↑ Cylinder: The Flesh (Rebirth)
- ↑ Cylinder: The Formula (Rebirth)
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Cylinder: Last Hope (Rebirth)
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Herbert’s Final Note (Rebirth)
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Realisation flashback (Rebirth)
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 The Fountain flashback (Rebirth)
- ↑ Negotiations flashback (Rebirth)
- ↑ Amnesia: Rebirth/Endings
[]
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||