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I had kinda wondered what this was myself, and there's a lot of implications we get from the dialogue of other students and between Jiao and Iris that point it in certain directions.
I'm sure there's an internal explanation for it, but I don't think there's anything in game that directly addresses it, and honestly, I think holding back on what exactly Iris said or did is probably the smart play. That entire sequence made me so unbelievably uncomfortable in the way that good, immersive fiction should. I didn't know what happened exactly, but we get a lot of hints that could be either a singular incident or incidents over a short span of time, and we also know Jiao's been through and put up with a lot because she loves Iris, so your mind creates these scenarios that really paint a pretty depressing picture.
"Dumpster Jiao" has so many implications that it's really terrifying in and of itself, and near the end of Chapter 1 when she screams about being called that "with her mouth wide open" it just paints such unsettling imagery.
So yeah, I dunno if there's an actual answer, or that I'd even want it, because my mind did all the work for me in making that situation seem as dire as I think it was meant to.
What was the goal of the Occupants? Was it just a try to communicate like in "The arrival"? This cryptic dialogues in the last communion didn't explain it for me quite well
Why is Iris alive in the epilogues of epitaphs endigs? And who is the shell we are playing as in those epilogues?
Did both of Iris parents have immunity or was it only the mother? Did Iris go to meet her mother at some point or was it just imagination or some kind of metaphor?
Who the ♥♥♥♥ is Mauve really?
The game was amazing, but i'm just too stupid for it, especially for the last part.
Ok so, from my understanding (and this is a very vague theory i dont even fully believe myself, but i see it as an option)
The occupants seem to be a race of deep space aliens, they come from somewhere very empty, so it seems they feel quite "lonely" or "empty" as well, they dont communicate verbally, but it seems they can take on "memories" made by sentient beings (like humans) as information, to "fill themselves up", to be less empty, and to keep said "memories" safe, instead of being destroyed with us once the earth inevitably returns to dust (that is why they also made like a barrier around the earth, to safeguard it from the sun exploding eventually, it kinda looks like a secretary with the earth inside)
i think Iris and maybe, her bloodline (so, her mom), due to their strong memories, and chance, kinda resonated with the occupants, and they kinda forged a contract with them, which gave them immunity and from their memories alone is from where secretary developed, as a means to communicate verbally and understand each other better, i dont think they wanted humanity dead either, it was just their chemical composition being lethal to us, and only iris' blood being compatible or chosen to be saved, maybe genetically altered, not fully human anymore
in the ending, what i believe is happening is not really iris or the og sisters being alive, its just them being "freed" from the 1000 year "curse", and the shell you play as is just a child/daughter/protegee of either Blue or Principal, a new generation that is free from the curse entirely
Only Iris's mom seems to had immunity, her dad commited suicide once he got too tired, and well, did iris and her mom meet? Im frankly not sure, if im honest, that whole sequence felt very dreamlike, we dont really know the fate of her mom that clearly
I feel like theres many interpretations, maybe those are the memories stored inside the occupant being able to interact with each other and getting a resolution, even when the real people are dead, maybe its just a metaphor, maybe they all happened, or maybe only iris and her mom happened and it was in the past, we really cant be sure, just gotta think about it
and mauve was just a really angry individual i guess, she was the guard that saw over watcher for a long time, i feel like that experienced shaped her, and ended up making her rather cold and bitter, thats why she both helps you in the story and tries to stop you as well (for good reason in her part, since not letting her survive is necesary to have a decent ending...)
If i can add, i really like the phrase "no one is beyond forgiveness" that was used for Principal, i think that is true, however, the game is not a silly "revenge bad" straightforward plot, to be forgiven you also need to accept that forgiveness, principal wanted to be forgiven by her mom Iris, that is really all she wanted, and a lesson the game kinda teaches you regardless is that, with the red guard and mauve still having power, it doesnt matter if you "forgive them" by not turning the lights off for them, they didnt ask for forgiveness, it is a cruel fate but that outcome will not be different if they are allowed to keep existing, with their guns and their ideals still implanted so strongly in them.
Wondo covered your questions pretty thoroughly, and I agree with their answers for the most part. I just wanted to add a couple things. Firstly, I believe Mauve is the Observer Shell. Observer Shell burned the library for Knower, and then went on to become Knower's right hand and was entrusted with guarding Watcher.
The Observer Shell is someone that Watcher tries to engage with a few times, but she always brushes Watcher off. Observer Shell also says she'll do anything for Knower, which is interesting because she's a Blue Shell... Perhaps she simply doesn't like Watcher or resents her because she wasn't assigned to Knower. Observer Shell/Mauve is also pretty calm in the Occupant attack, and is described in the ending as an "agent of change", so maybe she just likes things in chaos. In any case, it seems like Mauve was always a little off.
The other thing I wanted to add was regarding who you play as in the ending; Judging by the voice, I believe you are playing as a Jiao-type. Unless I'm mistaken, you can't access either of the true endings if you turn off the lights for the Jiaos. This doesn't really change anything, she's still part of the next generation/a protege or whatever, but I found it interesting since it implies a kind of coexistence or equality between the Jiaos and the Irises. There's also something poetic about Jiaos and Irises still trying to understand each other.
Also, I don't think you're stupid at all; much of the game requires you to actively engage and think about its narrative to really understand what's going on, which many stories don't ask you to do. The fact that you're asking questions would probably make the writers happy, because it means you're trying to understand the story.
The opening scene doesn't make sense?
We learn from one of Youngest's monologues that she never heard from Iris again. She sent sisters on the train to Iris as a way to prove that she had grown up and become a capable mother herself, but never heard a response. The whole "Allmother selects the best / is fighting Occupants / is exploring the surface" was a lie.
When Watcher gets of the train, we see Iris repeating words we hear the Keepers speak. She says that "now is Mother's time" which... is not a reasonable response to what is happening.
So...
Why is Iris communing/praying in a train station?
What happened to all the sisters sent over?
What was Iris doing for 1000 years of however long?
Is Iris simply insane at that point?
As an opening scene hook it's great, but when I was thinking back on it later... Not very satisfying.
In general there's almost nothing concrete about the Other Side, which turns out to refer just to the other side of the ship. I think it's this way because of narrative reasons, to keep the mysterious tone of the story, and also time and budgetary constraints. It's clear to me that something is going on there pre and post Occupant Event, at least in concept. We can see that the room the train arrives in has a little shrine, which I sort of interpreted as Iris' Mother's. Presumably Iris has 99% lost it and she just ends up murdering whoever takes the trip as "tribute". After her death, it's never specified what exactly are the Principal and Jiaos doing there.
Regarding Jiao's portrait, I kinda imagined it could've been a manifestation of the third (yellow) artifact, which we never get the name of I think. But I'm probably incorrect.
Some stuff that's still not clear to me:
1. Is Knower the Eldest? They are all supposed to have died, hence the tombs behind the waterfall. But then I think someone refers to her as the Eldest?
2. During Iris' death scene, who are the black figures? I think this scene is mostly symbolism, since you escape by doing the jump, indicating that you're inside a memory/communion. But then again the black figures appear in some other memories, most notably during the one where the Occupant grants power or synchronizes with Iris. In that memory Iris is represented as a glowing figure surrounded by the black ones.
3. Who was the obscured being Iris was talking to in one of the earliest memories, the one where she's sitting in the roof's floor? Watcher or Secretary remark that the information is missing.
We find out during one of the communions towards the end that the Keepers expect Iris to pay a price as her half of the bargain, and that price seems to be letting them "play" with the various clones of Iris, who they see as extensions of her and so included in the deal. What *exactly* that means isn't clear, beyond a lot of them ending up badly injured or dead, and the only times we actually see the Other Side are in flashbacks that are at least moderately unreliable so it's difficult to say anything specific.
We also know that Iris seems to commune with the Keepers in some way, and that it leaves her confused after. It's also not clear exactly what this entails, beyond Iris not enjoying it, to put it mildly.
So, ultimately we don't have clear answers, especially as we know that all but one of the Keepers left before the events of the game, but from the little pieces we get it feels kinda like Iris is trapped in an abusive relationship with them.
Good answer. I don't think we see the Other Side in flashbacks though? Do you mean the scenes of Iris living with the 50? I'm pretty sure those happen in The Orchard. Or do you mean the ones showing Iris being chosen and then using the artifacts to kill the other humans, I guess those could be it although the environments are quite ambiguous in those from what I remember.
Regarding Iris communing with the Keepers, it's implied they get something like pleasure by looking at her memories (and dreams as mentioned by Secretary). It's their way of being intimate with other beings, which is hinted at when Youngest unknowingly equates communions with sex.