Kindness can have consequences too
Aka; the beautiful parallers of three characters in 2.5 (or Chapter II: Act VII)
So, I know that 2.5 (better known as Phrolova Quest) was a bit long ago, but I've recently caught up and I just have to nerd about storytelling (or rather themes) that were happening there :3
First of all, we have our main character of this quest: Phrolova.
The Fractsidus showed me a way forward. Even if they have their own motives, even if we're only using each other… I care not. If they can help me take this step, then another step may follow. And another. No matter how steep the price, I'll pay it, step by step, until I reach the end I seek. - Phrolova
Phrolova's ultimate goal is to bring Great Beyond into reality so that her family (the villagers from her town) can be alive again. It is a selfless goal and she doesn't care what happens to her (or that her & Fractsidus are only using each other, with no emotional connection involved), as long as her goal is achieved. However, she also doesn't care about what she has to do, in the name of that goal (aka: working for Fractsidus), which means doing dirty work and hurting plenty of innocent people (the best example being her actions in Jinzhou, from which plenty of soldiers either died or got injured).
Next we have: Fenrico.
("Unity is the sole deliverance from the Divine Ordeal." That's why Fenrico fought to keep Ragunna from falling into discord.The record says darkness has long shackled the Ragunnesi's subconscious. Only by defeating this Harbinger, descending into the depths of darkness, and bringing back all trapped souls can the Dark Tide be resisted…So that's why he's after the Gem and the Beyond. He intends to use them to house the Ragunnesi's subconscious and fend off the Dark Tide.) - Rover's conclusion after investigating a file
Fenrico's goal was to save Ragunnesi from Dark Tide, which is why he was trying to use Leviathan's power and yet, it inevitably ended up with him being possesed by It, brainwashing many people and Acolytes (which gave Leviathan even more power) and with Fenrico's new role as a Harbinger of Dark Tide.
And last but not least: Rover.
When you established the Black Shores to unite Solaris, the Tethys System already existed. Later, you discovered it relied on emotions from the Lament to fuel its calculations. Without them, it cannot function. Using the Lament against itself is like walking on a Möbius loop with no end in sight. We have tried for millenia to break this cycle without success. And then… you left the Black Shores to look for other solutions. - The Shorekeeper (about Rover), Chapter I: Act VIII
I didn't care. As long as we were both happy when we crossed blades, I was happy. But now, Rover wants to leave… and even abandon (his/her) memories? Doing all of this for what? A so-called better outcome? Haha, for the Black Shores, a better future must mean saving Solaris. I don't care about that at all. Why? Why do I have to lose my only beloved playmate, my most cherished opponent! Here at the Black Shores, (he/she)'s the most trapped one… by far. - past! Camellya; Camellya's Companion Story (Forking Paths Among the Stars)
Rover's goal is to save Solaris (and whole humanity), which is why they had sacrificed their memories and identity (and emotional connection they had with people at that time) to find a way to achieve this goal. Yet, not only no solution was found yet (as far as we know), but also the people who Rover had forgotten are understandably (emotionally) hurt by their decision.
To sum up: Those three characters all share a theme of trying to save someone (Phrolova- her family; Fenrico- Ragunnesi; Rover- Solaris & humanity, and Phrolova, with their promise of visiting her again), and yet their actions having consequences and/or ending up in failure.