Some new things have happened in the new update and I would like to discuss them and share my thoughts. I have been having that one thought coursing though my mind since way back: the encounter with Phaseman. First, it was just a small thought but as we advance further through the plot, there is more food for that thought until I can't ignore it further.
So, what is the connection between Bag and Zhamla? Obviously, they do have some kind of connection since before the encounter Phaseman recognized Bag as being associated with Zhamla and since he was constructed for the pure purpose of destroying him, he attacked. It seems the player character just happens to be there as he is not the Phaseman's true target. So, perhaps Zhamla possessed Bag in the past. Yet, we now encountered Zhamla on the point of being able to finish his album and... no sight of "young Bag".
Well, that thought I was talking about was... what if Bag
is Zhamla? So far we cannot explain or prove it, as we have no knowledge as to how sentient artifacts actually come to be. We meet a bunch of other artifacts throughout the game, including the ones that we meet a thousand years ago, so they existed before and continue to exist. So, if artifacts were, in fact, previously people, why would that be so? Well, the only explanation I can find is the Goddess, which we also know not enough about (yep, her secrets are yet to be revealed). It may be a reward for those who have achieved great deeds, destined to live forever and be collected after having devoted one's life to Grindea's cause. Or it may be punishment for going against her will. In any case, somehow the artifacts must be serving the Goddess, serving a purpose in Grindea's plans only she knows of. What purpose does Bag serve? Will he disappear like the Cursed Priestess after serving her purpose to the Goddess? (I know she's not an artifact, but maybe the Goddess handles priests differently from collectors)
When thinking about all that, I made a small list of pros, cons and neutral things regarding the B=Z (Bag equals Zhamla) theory.
- The first neutral thing is the encounter with Phaseman. Phaseman's text only says that the "sentient container" is "associated" with Zhamla Meer, so that doesn't get us far.
- The second neutral thing is Bag becoming emotional when meeting Zhamla in Part 2 of Tai Ming. When does Bag ever get emotional? Never. Bag is Bag. Always making fun of stuff and having no worries whatsoever. But that might just mean that Zhamla meets Bag later. Furthermore, why doesn't Bag react this way in Part 1 of Tai Ming? So, that too doesn't help us here.
- The first argument against this theory is "Why the hell doesn't Bag just mention that?". Yes, why indeed. Could be some condition of the Goddess. Could be that he himself doesn't remember it that clearly. Could be that he doesn't want to scare the protagonist(s) away, revealing himself as the one who cause the Cataclysm. Maybe there are reasons, maybe there aren't.
- Another thing speaking against it is his reaction to Tessen. Even if she shouldn't be the Cursed Priestess (which he might not have recognized because of her age), when seeing little Tess in Tai Ming 1, who he supposedly loves so much (regardless if it's as a sister or else - they're technically not related, so it may be either), he should be overjoyed or oversaddened - one of those. SOME reaction should surely be there, if he was Zhamla, but alas, there isn't.
- Lastly, why doesn't he know, how the damn door with the emblems work? If he has also lived in Tai Ming, surely he should know the same story of the door's origin as Tessen does. But nope, Bag has no clue. So either he isn't Zhamla, or collectors get a different education from priests. One doesn't have to be very bright to become a great collector, after all. (*glances at Teddy's avatar*
) In that case it would slightly support the theory by Bag now knowing the story, thus not being present at the time the story Tessen told happened, thus not being older than Tai Ming.
But now to the Pros.
- Like Zhamla Bag regards everyone as weak first (even the player in the beginning). He constantly makes fun of everyone, seems to be smart(-ass) and witty. And Bag respects strength, as he despite making fun of Luke, does it in a way that shows a liking.
- Another pro I noticed by using the translation tool. With the last update a pretty much core text was changed within a the first dialogue after character creation. Formerly, when Dad explained who Bag is after giving him to his son/daughter, he said Bag was passed down from generation to generation. Now, however, it states that he was "within their family" for a very long time. He refers to Bag as an actual person, not an object that is passed down. So, either Bag
was a person, or it's just that common relation, where people view for example their pets as family members - that may also be the case with Bag.
- The third pro is noticeable throughout the second part of Tai Ming. When dealing with Zhamla, there are certainly some weird reactions from Bag which have never occurred before. Bag clearly remembers Zhamla, if not vice versa. At one point Zhamla's appearance gives Bag pause and Bag was never really at a loss of words before. It's evident Bag feels uncomfortable around Zhamla for some reason. But being Bag, he swallows his thoughts and emotions.
- And lastly there is a certain dialogue between Bag and Tessen, that has some very strong clues. Remember the place when Zhamla and Tessen have an argument? Zhamla storms out while the player comes in and Tess starts to complain about Zhamla's behavior. Three vital things happen during this dialogue.
One: Bag gets serious. Bag was never serious before, regarding the squabbles of mortals from a distance and amusing himself over their stupidity. But not here. Here Bag actually gets serious and deep. He has some convictions here and talks of things he believes in, in a way he never did before.
Two: Bag defends Zhamla's behavior. To the eye of the observer (us), to Faita, to Tessen, to all witnesses of Zhamla's arrogance, to everyone but Sizou and Zhamla, it's evident that Zhamla is wrong and making a huge mistake. Why the hell would Bag want to defend that? Shouldn't he be on the player's side by now? Throughout the game Bag shows a good sense of justice, but here he defends Zhamla for being an asshole? That sure is very out of the ordinary.
Three: The most uncommon and strongest thing of all that happens in the dialogue, is when Bag states "Those of us who find their true calling...".
Us. He says 'us'. Not 'those', or not 'those people', no, he
includes himself into those finding their true calling. For a brief moment he dives into his memories and feelings, remembering what it was like to be human (or a titan, but that's another theory
) and speaks his peace as if he was saying it a thousand years ago.
He defends Zhamla's deeds despite being fully aware of where it leads, speaks with a determination of someone who knows what the truth of things is and counts himself to those, fully devoting themselves to collecting and thus to Grindea. Bag may very well be defending himself and the things he has done as Zhamla, the things he has done "all the way to the end".
And then, if it's true, the bitter irony of Tessen saying "...you don't know Zhamla at all!", with Bag probably thinking "If only I could tell you, sister.", while saying "...".
I sure hope that hunt for the human card was worth it. It must have had some purpose, at least, if the Goddess allowed him to become an artifact after that. What are those secrets, dear Grindea, I wonder?
Lastly a fun thought: If Bag is only a part of Zhamla's soul with the other artifacts being the other parts, then the player is collecting Zhamla. And as far as I remember some of the devs stating "zhamla meer" means "collect more" in swedish. And what a symbol for eternal collecting is better than a bottomless bag, eh? I wonder when and why he got that green patch on him.