For roughly two hours, Clemont sent the distress signal, desperate to reach the Mossdeep or any other ship closer to Titanic than the Varpathion. The Olympic, who was making a return journey to Olivine City from Wyndon, was 500 miles away. There was a miscommunication between Clemont and the wireless operator on another ship, the Frankfurt, but even so, it was 150 miles away. When asking the Varpathion how much longer they would be, their operator replied, "Another 2 hours."
Again and again, Clemont sent the signal with his headphones covering the screams and cries coming from outside. At around 2:00 A.M., the Marconi transmitter's power began to go out. Jack stood behind Clemont, looking at the power meter. Slowly but surely, the meter plummeted until hardly any volts were left in the machine. Jack sighed and put his hand on Clemont's shoulder.
"The power's going, Clemont," Jack said.
Clemont continued sending messages, ignoring his co-worker.
"Clemont, we have to go. There's nothing more we can do," Jack said.
"No, I can't stop now," Clemont said. "There might be other ships, or the one nearby might have just woken up their operator."
Clemont kept going until he felt a hand on his other shoulder. He turned his head and saw Captain Drake standing next to him. He looked at Clemont with a sad smile, sympathetic for Clemont's persistence.
"It's time to go, Clemont," Captain Drake said softly.
"But, Captain -" Clemont protested.
"You've done your duty. You can do no more. Abandon your post. That's an order," Captain Drake said before putting his other hand on Jack's shoulder. "It's everyone for himself, now. Look after yourselves. I release you both. God bless you."
Captain Drake patted Clemont and Jack's shoulders and walked away. Jack watched the captain, disheartened that things had gone to the point that it was every man for himself. Clemont also watched Captain Drake walk away until his face grew grave, and he went back to sending messages, determined to keep going until the power was completely out.
But as Clemont sent his messages, a stoker named Trent Lane snuck into the Marconi Room with his eyes on Clemont and Jack's lifebelts lying on a chair beside the wireless operators. Jack saw Trent from the corner of his eye and tackled him just as Trent grabbed Clemont's life belt. Clemont noticed Trent stealing his lifebelt and stood up to yank it from his grasp.
"Give me a chance to live, you dastards!" Trent shouted.
"Not at the expense of our chances," Jack said.
Trent tightened his grip on Clemont's lifebelt as he wrestled with Clement and Jack. Details are vague, but Clemont found some object lying on his desk and hit Trent in the head with it. He struck him about two or three times before Trent finally dropped the lifebelt and fell on his side. Clemont then took a step to go back to sending messages until he saw the meter show that the power was completely gone. Clemont put on his lifebelt with a sigh, accepting he was finished. Jack was relieved that Clemont gave in as he also put on his own lifebelt.
"There's probably not many lifeboats left, I wager," Clemont said.
"We better hurry. This place is probably not far away from going under," Jack said. "I'm gonna look for boats on the starboard side."
"I guess I'll try my luck on the port side then," Clemont said. "Godspeed, Jack."
"Godspeed, Clemont," Jack said.
Clemont and Jack shook hands, giving each other sad smiles before splitting up. Jack stopped and looked at Trent Lane. He hoped Trent might recover in time to have a chance to survive despite trying to steal his friend's lifebelt. However, whether Trent recovered or not, Jack never saw him, Captain Drake, or Clemont again.
Several minutes before Clemont and Jack abandoned their post, Goh, Gary, and Chloe made it up to the Boat Deck. Thanks to Serena's directions, they quickly got up to the top of the aft staircase with a handful of fellow third class passengers following them. When they went outside on the port side, they found all but Collapsible D and B gone.
Goh, Gary, and Chloe raced toward Collapsible D with Goh and Chloe holding hands. Around this time, the band was still playing, going through every song they had practiced for the voyage. They had just finished playing a piece from the play Don Juan when Goh, Gary, and Chloe passed by, with Gary bumping into Pierre with his shoulder. Gary looked back and smirked as he continued running.
"Music to drown by. Now I know I'm in first class," Gary said with a chuckle.
Pierre scoffed and turned to Nando.
"What's the use? Nobody is listening to us," Pierre said.
"Well, they don't listen to us at dinner either. Do they?" Nando said. "Come on, lads. Let's keep playing. Keep ourselves warm. Orpheus next."
The rest of the band looked at each other before reluctantly raising their bows. They stood still for a beat before playing a faster and more upbeat tune. Meanwhile, Goh, Gary, and Chloe squeezed their way to the forward side of the deck and to the front of the crowd surrounding Collapsible D just as Siebold and the crew finished attaching the lifeboats to the falls. They stepped up to get on, but two crewmen grabbed Goh and Gary by the arms and pushed them back. By the time Chloe noticed, she was already on the boat.
"Hey, let them go. That's my husband and our friend," she said.
"Women and children only, madam," one of the sailors said.
"Only? You only have two boats left!" Gary shouted.
"You have your lifebelts on. That's plenty of a chance to live. Now, back away," the second sailor said.
The sailors shoved Goh and Gary back and spread their arms to keep them and other men away while the other sailors helped more women and children into the boat. Chloe took a couple steps to get out of the boat, only for another sailor to push her back.
"Let me off. I'm not leaving my husband behind," Chloe cried.
"We're not leaving any women or children to die, madam. You're just gonna have to wait and reunite with your husband when help comes," the sailor said.
Years later, Chloe learned how the crew didn't fill up the boats to their capacity and loathed that particular sailor for not letting Goh and Gary in. She continued trying to get out with her arms stretched toward Goh, but the sailor was too strong. Goh looked at Gary, who nodded and looked back at Chloe.
"It's alright, Chloe. We'll get on the next one," he said.
"How do you know?" Chloe asked, tearing up. "How do you know they'll let men in the last boat?"
"There are more men than women here, so they'll have to let men in at some point, and we'll be ready when they do," Goh said. "We're going to see each other again with Ash and Serena. Just you wait."
"Don't worry, Chloe. I'll make sure we get on a boat. Goh and I are sticking together," Gary said, smirking.
Chloe hesitated, still not wanting to leave Goh's side. Then she whimpered as she reluctantly accepted there was no other alternative.
"Please, bring him back to me, Gary," Chloe said.
"You can count on me," Gary said.
Chloe felt somewhat better with Gary's promise, but being away from Goh still broke her heart. Eventually, the crew deemed Collapsible D full at 23 passengers, when really they were 24 short of the lifeboat's capacity. One of the crewmen on the boat lightly pushed Chloe to sit down, but her eyes were still on Goh. At Siebold's command, the crew began lowering the boat away. Goh and Gary smiled as they watched the boat be lowered until it was out of sight. Goh's face fell, and he turned to Gary.
"Do you really think they'll let men in the last boats?" He asked.
"If they don't, we're just going to have to take advantage of our lifebelts and swim so that we're close to the lifeboats," Gary said. "There's got to be someone among these pig-headed twits with a big enough heart to let men into the boats."
Goh grew uneasy, hoping for a better answer. Then Siebold and the remaining crew on the port side forced the passengers to stay back before setting up oars again to get ready to bring Collapsible B down from the roof. Goh and Gary ensured they were at the front of the crowd surrounding the oars, mentally praying that the crew would let them get on.
Meanwhile, the band finished playing Orpheus. They looked ahead to see Collapsible D being lowered and the crew getting ready to bring down Collapsible B. Any passengers who weren't waiting for the boat were running away from the water getting closer to the forward side of the Boat Deck. One man was trying to create a raft using folded teak deck chairs from the first class promenade on A Deck, but the chairs would not stay together. Nando sighed and turned to his fellow musicians.
"Gentlemen, this is the end. We've done our duty. We can go now," he said
"Yes, I suppose we have," Jimmy said before walking to Nando to shake his hand. "Good luck, Nando."
"Goodbye, Jimmy," Nando said.
"Farewell, old chap," Jeremy said.
"Best of luck, fellas," Piers said.
"Godspeed," Leo said.
After shaking hands and patting each other's shoulders or backs, Jimmy, Piers, Jeremy, and Leo began heading aft with their instruments to stay on the ship as long as possible. Nando, however, stayed behind. He looked around at the people rushing to the stern in fright, and he was saddened, knowing that, like him, close to no one still on the ship would last the night.
At that moment, Nando decided to play one more song for everyone not getting on the last of the boats, including himself and his fellow bandmates. He lifted his violin to his chin and began playing a sad tune. Jimmy, Piers, Jeremy, and Leo stopped and turned to Nando, recognizing the song. Knowing its meaning, they went back to their positions alongside Nando and, with melancholic faces, joined him in playing the song.
Nearer, My God, to Thee is a 19th-century Christian hymn that retells the story of Jacob's dream in Genesis 28:11–12. It's a very popular Christian funeral hymn whose positive descriptions of heaven play a big part in that. I cannot say who among the people who lost their lives are in heaven right now, for only God knows our hearts. We can only hope that most, if not all, are with the Lord right now. And yet, many who heard the band were comforted, for while no one sang the song, they knew the lyrics.
Nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
E'en though it be a cross that raiseth me,
still all my song shall be,
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,
darkness be over me, my rest a stone;
yet in my dreams I'd be
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
There let the way appear, steps unto heaven;
all that thou sendest me, in mercy given;
angels to beckon me
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Then, with my waking thoughts bright with thy praise,
out of my stony griefs Bethel I'll raise;
so by my woes to be
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Or if, on joyful wing cleaving the sky,
sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I fly,
still all my song shall be,
nearer, my God, to thee;
nearer, my God, to thee, nearer to thee!
Around the same time the band played the song, many passengers, who were still inside the ship, accepted their doom. Not only did Lusamine and Mohn presumably go back to the cabin, but one of the third class passengers, Raoul Contesta, was in the third class promenade and realized too late that the ship was going down. He said to his fellow passengers, "Goodbye, friends. I'm too old to fight the freezing water." He then proceeded to the smoking room and sat on a chair, awaiting his last call. A woman named Ellen also came to terms with what was happening and so played on the piano with her daughter, Mary, on her knee until the water claimed them both. Another first class passenger from Sootopolis City in the Hoenn region named Juan, who helped people get into lifeboats, stayed inside with his butler, Sebastian. With a bottle of brandy to ease the agony of the cold water, Juan and Sebastian were dressed in their best and prepared to go down as gentlemen. The last anyone saw them, Juan asked a steward to tell his wife that he went down bravely and honorably.
All of these stories are just some of the ones that we know. I do not doubt that there are other stories of how people accepted they were not leaving the ship alive that will never be told. All the same, those who believed and heard the band play Nearer, My God, to Thee must've felt less afraid, for the song reminded them of the eternal joy and comfort to come after death.
Nando, Jimmy, Piers, Jeremy, and Leo held on to the last note for four beats. They looked ahead again to see the water reaching the front of the Boat Deck. Nando turned to his bandmates again with a brave face.
"Gentlemen, it has been a privilege playing with you tonight."
Ash and Serena took the narrow staircase next to the first class dining saloon, leading them to a pantry up on A Deck. They exited the pantry and raced in the direction of the aft side of the deck, hand in hand. Ash led Serena down the hall through the aft first class entrance and into the first class smoking room. As they entered the smoking room, they noticed a couple of first class men playing cards together or solitaire by themselves until the water took them.
Ash and Serena were close to the exit on the other side when Serena stopped in her tracks. Timothy was sitting in a chair in front of the fireplace with his arms folded. His lifebelt was lying on a table next to him, and he stared at the fire in shock. Serena walked over to Timothy, catching his attention.
"Won't you make a try for it, Mr. Durbin?" Serena asked.
Timothy's mouth quivered, and he stood up to face Serena.
"Oh, Serena. I'm sorry I couldn't build you a better ship," he said.
Timothy noticed Ash standing behind her and the broken cuffs on his wrists. The edges of Timothy's mouth curled slightly, feeling somewhat comforted that Serena succeeded in her rescue attempt.
"You two are going to stay together to the very end, aren't you?" he said.
"Yes, we are," Serena said.
"Then listen to me very carefully because if you do everything I say, you might have a smidge of a chance," Timothy said. "The boats have rowed away from the ship because there will be suction when Titanic plunges. The crew will have to wait until it's safe to attempt to rescue anyone still alive. It will be completely dark, and those in the water will be freezing. Many will succumb to the cold before the officers decide it's safe to look for survivors."
"So, what do we do?" Ash asked.
"Stay on the ship as long as you can," Timothy said. "If possible, run to the stern so you can be on the ship to the very end. When you're in the water, kick as hard as you can so the suction might not drag you down with the ship. After that, find anything that floats to get out of the water quickly. The more energy you use, the higher your chances of freezing to death. If you succeed, then you're in God's hands as to whether you will be rescued in time if help comes at all."
"Are you saying the boats might not come back in time?" Serena asked.
"I'm afraid so," Timothy said. "From what I've witnessed, there's no telling if the crew have the caliber to try to save more lives than they already have in the boats. Also, we're talking about them finding you amongst countless people in total darkness. Even if all of the boats were to come back and they can get people out of the water without capsizing, you could be in a spot where they'll have filled up the boats before they get to you."
"And…and how long would the boats have to save us after the ship has completely sunk?" Ash asked.
"Maybe 15 minutes," Timothy said.
Ash and Serena looked at each other, growing uneasy.
"Do you think we can do it, Mr. Durbin?" Serena asked.
For a couple of seconds, Timothy made no reaction. Then, his mouth quivered again, and he put his hand on Serena's cheek.
"Oh, Serena. Sweet, sweet Serena. I'm afraid I've made it sound easier than it will be," Timothy said. "The truth is there's a good chance nothing I've instructed will be possible for you two. The bow is getting heavier with water by the minute. It may go down so fast that the stern will be at an angle too difficult for you to get to the very end of the ship. Many will crowd the aft deck when the ship approaches its final plunge, meaning you might end up in the water sooner than ideal. The suction can easily pull you down and separate you two, and you will not likely find each other again. Finally, there's no telling if there will be anything big enough for one person, much less two, that you can get on to stay out of the water long enough to be rescued. As God is my witness, I want nothing more than to have something other than the lifeboats to secure everyone's survival. As it stands, it's almost certain that no matter how far you go, you will both die."
Serena could see in Timothy's eyes that it broke his heart to say this. She and Ash knew the odds were against them, but Timothy's words made the reality of the situation hit hard. Timothy turned to his lifebelt on the table and sighed before he picked it up and held it up to Serena.
"I wish I had two to give you," he said.
"That's okay. We'll keep going to the very end, lifebelt or no lifebelt," Ash said.
"I'll hold you to that, Ash," Timothy said. "Good luck to both of you."
"And to you," Serena said.
She wanted to say something else to Timothy: perhaps ask him to come with her and Ash or to convince him that he wasn't to blame for the ship sinking, but Serena couldn't think of anything. Time was running out, and Timothy knew he had no chance. Holding back her tears, Serena hugged Timothy as tight as possible. Timothy paused before he hugged her back with a tear running down his cheek. When they parted, Timothy and Ash nodded to each other before Ash took Serena's hand, and they began running to the revolving door.
Serena looked back as she and Ash exited the smoking room. The last thing she saw of Master Shipbuilder Timothy Durbin was him looking at his pocket watch and adjusting the clock on top of the fireplace.