Episode 117: Fontaine Research Institute of Kinetic Energy

It’s no wonder people shorten the name of the Fontaine Research Institute of Kinetic Energy; even the map can hardly fit the name! In the immortal words of Chandler Bing, “Could that BE any bigger?”

If you’re interested in learning more about the Institute’s founder, Alain Guillotin, or Rene & Jakob’s BFF Elynas, check out our past episodes: The Narzissenkreuz Saga (S4 E65) and The Melusines and Zaddy Elynas (S4 E79).

Arkhium is the yellow-green crystal you find underground in Fontaine. It’s used as an energy source and is extremely explosive. Along with its ability to float heavy objects, this is exactly why the first Institute’s home was blown to bits, leaving us with floating cubes in the sky.

RIP Carter, or Carl as we like to call him. He was the sickly assistant to Alain back in the day, and his goop was used to further the creations of the Narzissenkreuz Ordo.

Salsa is everything. Feens’ favorite Fontainian NPC tells us that the Institute is thinking about conducting tours of the ruins to make some extra cash. Since her parents work over at the Institute, we’re sure she can get us a discount.

What would an episode about Fontaine’s history be if we didn’t mention the Narzissenkreuz folks? Our four orphan children and their keepers play an integral part in the lore of Fontaine.

How exactly does a high-altitude area flood WITHOUT the lower lands also getting flooded? Tif just won’t let this go – even though the game would like you to suspend disbelief and just accept it. Or maybe Fontaine really does exist inside a glass trifle dish after all.

Edwin Eastinghouse loves him some Arkhium. Even after blowing up an entire piece of the map, he still continued to use it in his research – both in his secret laboratory and once imprisoned in Meropide.

While in Meropide, good ol’ Edwin takes an interest in his former assistant’s work on the Wingalet (Wriothesley’s airship). And he’s not the only one interested in Jurieu – his assistant Lourvine also seems to fancy him.

After Edwin blew up the place, two others stepped in to run the Institute – Raimondo Havenport and Choiseul. Raimondo is a senior technician at the Institute, and Choiseul is an administrative officer with a very bad haircut.

Those big water cubes floating in the sky have an official name – the Allogravity-Condensed Water Bodies. The result of Edwin’s explosion, these cubes are proof that Arkhium can cause massive densities to float. Let’s just hope no one is underneath them if the Arkhium fails one day.

Why blow up the Institute once with Arkhium when you can do it twice! Nacker picked up Edwin’s research after the explosion and caused a smaller one himself when he tried to reactivate an experimental field generator up on one of the water cubes.

The second, much smaller explosion is seen in the background while Raimondo and Choiseul take a photo with Traveler and Paimon after naming them the Honorary Senior Researcher and the Assistant to the Honorary Senior Researcher.

The esteemed research institute, once known for creating all the Mekas in Fontaine, is also the driving force behind Fonta. That’s right – the soda. Does this improve the lives of the Fontainian people like some of their other projects? They’d like to think so.

When you use Nahida’s mind-reading ability on Augustus Lovelace, a researcher currently in Sumeru, you learn he’s a bit antsy for his coworker and friend Xavier to join him. He also tells us how Xavier could have “accomplished great things” when “more fields of research were accepted,” helping fuel Bee’s “Xavier is Dottore” theory.

Here are some helpful links if you’re unfamiliar with the pop culture references we mentioned during the episode. Bee serenades us with “Defying Gravity” (move over, Ariana!), Feens tells us about Astronomer’s temporary spokesperson, Tif likens Paimon to Dwight Schrute from The Office, we sing about some Fanta of our own, and we laugh at both Katya’s and Winona’s impressions of Björk.

Thank you to fellow travelers Araiguma & Azirim for writing in. We truly appreciate your questions and comments! If you’d like to send us mail via the Komaniya Express, reach out on our Instagram, X/Twitter, or email. We’d love to hear from you! And Kirara could use the work.