Princess of VERS (火星のプリンセス Kasei no Purinsesu?, Princess of Mars) is the first episode of ALDNOAH.ZERO, it first aired in Japan on July 5, 2014.
Synopsis
Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia wants to see Earth for the first time and plans a goodwill visit. However, Count Cruhteo doesn't seem to be sharing the same feelings about Earth. Does this mean that there will not be peace between Earth and Mars [1].
Plot
Act One
Princess Asseylum talks about Earth, the birthplace of humanity, and shows her dress off to her close friend, Slaine Troyard, who was born on Earth.
She asks him various questions about the planet, such as the color of water and the air. Giving a thorough explanation of Asseylum as to why the ocean and sky look blue despite being transparent, Slaine begins to look nervous. Asseylum is amazed that Earth has so much water and air that it bends light.
A man walks into the room, and Slaine promises to finish the "lessons on Earth" tomorrow. Zooming out, they are all in a massive ship orbiting the planet Earth below.
In Japan. Inaho Kaizuka cooks a meal. At the same time, the news report states that the goodwill visit of Asseylum Vers Allusia, Princess Royal of the Vers Empire, is a mere three days away. But while there is a growing sentiment worldwide to welcome her, tensions are also rising.
Expert opinion is divided on the subject of this royal visit, whose aim is the easing of interplanetary tensions between Mars and Earth. His sister, Warrant Officer Yuki Kaizuka, walks into the kitchen and yawns Inaho good morning. Inaho asks her if she prefers a rolled omelet or scrambled eggs. At the same time, the report continues on the television, she wanted an omelet, but Inaho already made them scrambled. Inaho has already eaten.
Today is Yuki's shift as a drill instructor. She is shocked that she is late, wondering why he didn't wake him up. Inaho proceeds to leave for school, telling Yuki to put the dirty dishes in the sink.
On the bus, Nina and Inko read about the Solar System's history. The discovery of an artifact belonging to an ancient Martian civilization, the development of the Hyper Gate on the Moon by Apollo 17, paved the way for the human colonization and development of Mars. However, this resulted in the appearance of the Vers Empire, who claimed ownership of the Martian relics and Aldnoah, their ancient technology, and proved to be the source of a long-standing conflict.
Inaho gets on the bus and wishes his friends good morning. His friends ask why Yuki isn't with him, he replies is its because she overslept but he believes if she shows some spirit, she should make it in time for drills. He sits down between Okisuke and Calm. Calm calls Yuki "Goddess of Tuesdays", Inaho jokingly calls her Penivia, Calm is confused. Penivia is the goddess of laziness. The bus enters a tunnel. Okisuke, playing his hand-held, says that folks who plan to go onto college don't need to worry about drills. Calm says Okojo (Okisuke's nickname) flunked midterms. However, Okisuke retorts that Calm got a C-minus on their last maneuvers. Inko turns over to the boys sitting at the back of the bus, saying she's been taking notes on every little thing and that she will take back her crown as the top student of the class. Nina says Inko is sure psyched to take down Inaho. Exiting the tunnel. Calm says even in Shinawara, once one leaves the city proper things are still being rebuilt. Okisuke says
It has been 15 years since "Heavens Fall", an event in which the "Martian jerk bastards" went really crazy. Calm says Japan's in way better shape than where he and Nina came from. Inko rubs Nina's head and reassures her friends that the Earth has a cooperative policy with Mars and a goodwill ambassador is coming, Princess Asseylum, to which Calm fails to pronounce her name. Okisuke jokes that he will flunk because of that.
Arriving at the school in the rebuilt city of Awara, now Shinawara (新芦原市 Shin-awara?, lit. New Awara), the students learn how to pilot KG-6 Sleipnir while the history lesson broadcasts. Yuki finally arrives at the school, greeted by Lt. Koichiro Marito, who places a flask of alcohol on her head.
Yuki previously asked him to refrain from drinking on military drill days. Still, Koichiro reminds her that it is merely a game and not to get too into it. However, they are doing live-fire exercises today, as Yuki retorts. Commanded by Lt. Marito, Yuki goes to act as a spotter for Squad B's turn, she continues to remind him not to drink.
Later, at a bar, the Lieutenant has a drink with Dr.
Soma Yagarai. Lt. Marito says he can't do his job without drinking. Dr. Yagarai reminds Lt. Marito that the work he is doing is essential, but Lt. Marito complains that what he's doing is teaching students to kill. Lt. Marito then tells Dr. Yagarai about a covered-up incident 15 years ago at Tanegashima where his unit was powerless against the Martian Kataphrakt. Nobody believes his story. He rhetorically asks Dr. Yagarai what to suggest to make up for all the lies they've told the students.Act Two
Back in Earth's orbit, Slaine says farewell to Princess Asseylum as she is to go down to Earth and carry out her goodwill mission. She assures Slaine that the many facts he has imparted to her are sure to prove useful. Slaine worries about it being dangerous, but Princess Asseylum says that they cannot go on in fear.
Right now, someone must take that first step towards Earth and Mars, reaching a compromise. Slaine takes off a necklace he is wearing and tells her that it's an old Earth charm that wards off evil spirits, he gives it to her despite being all he has of his father. Still, he assures her that Father would want her to have it, the charm is a thank you for saving him and his father when they were at death's door five years ago.
Count Cruhteo comes in to inform the Princess that her shuttle has arrived. Right after the Princess and Eddelrittuo leave, Count Cruhteo hits Slaine's head with his cane. He tells him to know his place, derogatorily calling him a "Terran". He leaves, and Slaine obeys.
In the elevator, the Princess asks Eddelrittuo if she doesn't think much of Slaine. The Princess says that if they return far enough, they are descendants of emigrants who stuck out from that blue world.
Eddelrittuo says that they became a new race distinct from the old humanity they left on Earth when Emperor Vers inherited the authority of Aldnoah. And that as one that embodies the power of the gods, she should not say such things.
The Princess's wish is to establish friendly relations with their distant home. Regardless of how they found themselves there, she is visiting Earth as a show of amity and their well-wishes.
Count Cruhteo receives a message from Saazbaum Castle. Count Cruhteo has missed his final opportunity to dissuade Princess Asseylum from the foreign trip. Count Saazbaum believes he shouldn't be concerned because if something were to happen to her. The 37 Clans in orbit would not take it sitting down, even the people of Earth know that.
Count Saazbaum postulates that if their intent along was to provoke a fight, it would be a blessing for the Orbital Knights in its own way. Count Cruhteo is aggravated by Count Saazbaum's suggestion. Count Saazbaum states the Orbital Knights have dwelt in their castles since the time of their fathers... Dreaming of the day, they would reach out and touch that blue radiance.
Back in Shinawara, two civilians drive a truck. All these years of lying low are about to pay off as one of them says. The Princess arrives in a white limousine escorted by black cars and police motorcycles. The people of Earth are in awe and take out their phones to take pictures of her.
Inaho, Okisuke, and Calm arrive to watch from the bridge above the road. Calm says that watching it on TV would've been just as good. But Okisuke pulls out his binoculars believes that as this is supposed to be a goodwill visit. They need to join in and add to the noise, to make her feel welcome.
As Calm rhetorically asks Okisuke when he switched sides and became a Mars sympathizer, a civilian leaning against a wall pulls out his phone to talk to the other two civilians in the truck.
Okisuke explains that she is a Princess and that she is cute. Okisuke tries to zoom in on the limousine, but he can't see her. It is 200m thick bulletproof tinted glass, specs pretty typical for VIP cars these days, as Calm explains. Okisuke expected her to wave to the crowd. Disappointed, Okisuke asks why they are even there. Calm retorts that it was Okisuke's idea. Inaho sees that eggs are on sale on his phone, leading his friends to complain that he is always lost in his own little world.
Inko suddenly arrives to see the parade. She was busy with the Student Council business. Inko was helping to direct traffic at the request of the security detail. As the students talk, the civilian points his phone at the passing limousine carrying the Princess.
The truck opens, and missiles launch out of it. As Inko tries to get the others to help out like her, Inaho sees a missile reflection and calmly tells his friends to get out of there immediately.
A missile hits several of the escort vehicles, but the limousine escapes undamaged. Just when they thought everything was fine, two missiles hit it at once. The Princess crawls out of the limo and sees one more missile trying to finish her off. The limousine bursts into flames.
The act of terrorism is played up by the Count Saazbaum's propaganda to the Orbital Knights. Claiming Princess Asseylum's heartfelt wish for peace has been mercilessly crushed by a violent act of the "treacherous Terrans".
He believes that as subjects of the Vers Empire, they must resolutely bring down the hammer of righteousness in response to the atrocity committed by "Old Humanity".
The grand task that has spanned generations, the Earthfall Operation, will now be carried out. Count Cruhteo arrives on the bridge of his Landing Castle, which targets Japan.
Slaine watches the screen on the floor as the Landing Castle approaches the Earth.
Of the 37 Landing Castles remaining in orbit, the United Forces of Earth have confirmation of 19 coming down. The ASIMOV system projects that the landing points are New Orleans, Beijing, Mozambique, and Tokyo. It is believed one Landing Castle will come down somewhere within 20km of Ichigaya or Chiyoda Ward.
One UFE soldier criticizes the Vers Imperial Forces' tactics for not having command structure while listening to Yuki's current situation. Lt. Marito enters the room, he states that the Vers Imperial Forces don't need a command structure.
Each of the 37 different knights leads 37 distinct military forces. Yuki asks if they are unilaterally breaking the ceasefire. Still, Lt. Marito knows that they've been fighting up in the wreckage of the moon. A war to live to fight another day. Meanwhile, various Orbital Knights activate their Kataphrakts.
In New Orleans at 20:05 CDT, the Landing Castle targeting that city descends and causes mass destruction, a child looks up at the sky and points to the "shooting stars" to his sister, he makes a wish for world peace on the stars that are in fact debris from the drops.Stats
Characters
| Appearance | Character |
|---|---|
| 1 | Asseylum Vers Allusia |
| 2 | Slaine Troyard |
| 3 | Cruhteo |
| 4 | Inaho Kaizuka |
| 5 | Yuki Kaizuka |
| 6 | Rayregalia Vers Rayvers |
| 7 | Nina Klein |
| 8 | Inko Amifumi |
| 9 | Okisuke Mikuni |
| 10 | Calm Craftman |
| 11 | Koichiro Marito |
| 12 | Soma Yagarai |
| 13 | Eddelrittuo |
| 14 | Saazbaum |
| 15 | Femieanne |
| 16 | Vlad |
Mecha
| Appearance | Mecha |
|---|---|
| 1 | Landing Castle |
| 2 | KG-6 Sleipnir |
| 3 | Deucalion |
| 4 | Hellas |
| 5 | Nilokeras |
| 6 | Argyre |
Quotes
| “ | And so, the discovery of an artifact belonging to an ancient Martian civilization, the Hyper Gate, on the Moon by Apollo 17, paved the way for the human colonization and development of Mars. However, this resulted in the appearance of the Vers Empire, which claimed ownership of the Martian relics and Aldnoah, their ancient technology and proved to be the source of a long-standing conflict. | ” |
—Inko Amifumi revising for History on the bus. | ||
| “ | Inaho: My sister overslept. Well if she shows some spirit she should make it in time for drills.
Calm: How could yoy shirk your duty to escort our Goddess of Tuesdays? Inaho: Maybe she's Penivia Calm: Who's that? Inaho: The goddess of laziness. |
” |
—Inaho Kaizuka tells the others that Yuki Kaizuka will be late | ||
| “ | In 1999, the Vers Empire finally declared war against the UE.
As a result of the fierce back and forth fighting on the Moon's surface, the Hyper Gate went out of control and destroyed the Moon itself. The astronomical body that had been Earth's satellite for 4.5 billion years was pulverized into countless boulders and now continues on in its orbit as the Satellite Belt. As a result of this event, Earth suffered catastrophic damage. Meteor impacts, gravity wave-induced crustal deformation, earthquakes, tsunami, abnormal weather... Scars left by the catastrophe that followed on in the wake of the Moon's breakup, left by the catastrophe that followed on in the wake of the Moon's breakup, Heavens Fall, are still fresh all around the world. Soldiers of the Vers Imperial Army whose path home to Mars was cut off by the destruction of the Hyper Gate took up residence in the Satellite Belt, and even with travel between Earth and Mars now possible without the Hyper Gate... |
” |
—Narrator | ||
| “ | When a teacher smells of alcohol, students lose respect for him. | ” |
—Warrant Officer Kaizuka scolds Lt. Koichiro Marito | ||
| “ | The KG-6 Sleipnir. The Kataphrakt developed by the UE to prepare for the coming Martian threat.
A manned humanoid weapon. Military training is now part of their required curriculum. They fire off that 75mm cannon like it's some game, and you guys tell 'em they can defend the ol'homeland. Pumping those kids' heads full of this stupid crap, you call this a job? Get real. |
” |
—Lt. Marito to Soma Yagarai | ||
| “ | 15 years ago, the top brass hushed up what happened in Tanegashima. Nobody believes me when I tell them now.
But even if no one else remembers, I do. |
” |
—Lt. Marito | ||
| “ | I shall deliver your and your father's prayer of peace to that blue world. Thank you, Slaine. | ” |
—Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia to Slaine Troyard | ||
| “ | Know your place, scum. While I appreciate all you have done to dissuade Her Highness from her folly,
When a dog soils the carpet, its master is responsible. That is your only warning, Terran. |
” |
—Count Cruhteo to Slaine | ||
Songs
- aLIEz (ED)