Hellboy II: The Golden Army - Zinco Epilogue

Nuada kills his father Balor to obtain the second piece of the crown that commands the Golden Army. Balor had made peace with humanity after the ancient war, but Nuada disagreed with the truce and wanted to restart the war between humans and magical creatures. To complete the crown and awaken the Golden Army, Nuada needed all three pieces, and he was willing to kill his own father to get what he wanted.

The bedtime story at the beginning reveals that Nuada left in exile after disagreeing with his father's decision to make peace with humans.

Nuala kills herself to prevent Nuada from killing Hellboy. After Hellboy defeats Nuada and spares his life, Nuada makes a final desperate attempt to stab Hellboy. Because Nuala and Nuada share a magical bond as twins, she can feel his movements and thoughts. She jumps in front of the spear, taking the blow herself and dying in Abe Sapien's arms.

The twins' magical bond was established earlier, showing they share wounds and thoughts across distance.

Hellboy can command the Golden Army because he is part of Hell's royal lineage. The crown can only be worn by someone of royal blood, and although Hellboy is a demon, he descends from the royal family of Hell. This makes him eligible to challenge Nuada for command of the army, which is why Nuada is forced to accept Hellboy's challenge to a duel.

The opening bedtime story establishes that only someone of royal blood can wear the crown.

Abe Sapien and Nuala fall in love during the mission. Abe finds Nuala at the troll market and is drawn to her both by destiny and attraction. They share a telepathic connection through their bond with the crown pieces. At the end, when Nuala sacrifices herself to stop Nuada, Abe mediumsically shares his feelings with her right before she dies, expressing his love telepathically.

The story establishes that Abe is drawn to Nuala when he finds her at the troll market.

Liz uses her pyrokinesis to melt the crown after Nuada's defeat in order to permanently deactivate the Golden Army. Even though the army has awakened, destroying the crown removes the command structure that controls it. By melting the crown, Liz ensures the Golden Army can never be used again, ending the threat forever.

The crown was established as the only way to command the Golden Army.

Nuada abducts Nuala to get the final piece of the crown. Nuala escaped with the third and final piece when Nuada killed their father. He tracks her to the B.P.R.D. through their magical twin bond, battles Hellboy, and then takes Nuala as a bargaining chip, offering to return her in exchange for the crown piece that Hellboy's team possesses.

The bond between the twins was established when Nuada used it to locate Nuala at B.P.R.D. headquarters.

The Angel of Death warns that Hellboy's life could doom humanity if he continues to live, but Liz pleads for mercy. The Angel then removes the spear shard from Hellboy's chest and tells him that purpose gives him a reason to live, specifically, that he will have a child. This promise of fatherhood gives Hellboy something to live for, and the Angel allows him to survive.

The warning about Hellboy's life dooming humanity connects to his demonic heritage and the Ogdru Jahad threat.

The Golden Army was created by Balor, king of the elves, during an ancient war between humans and magical creatures. A goblin blacksmith built an indestructible mechanical army for Balor, and it devastated humanity. When Balor regretted the destruction, he made a truce with humans and split the crown that commands the army into three pieces. His son Prince Nuada disagreed with the peace and went into exile, eventually returning to reclaim the crown and restart the war.

The film opens with a Christmas 1955 bedtime story that explains the entire backstory.

Nuada wants to wage war against humans because he believes the truce his father made was a mistake. As a prince of the elves, Nuada witnessed the devastation humans caused to magical creatures and felt they deserved revenge. He saw the truce as a betrayal of their kind and spent his exile planning to reclaim the crown and unleash the Golden Army to finish what they started.

The opening story shows Nuada leaving in anger after his father decided to make peace with humans.

Hellboy resigns from the B.P.R.D. along with Liz, Abe, and Krauss after the Golden Army crisis is resolved. The group decides to leave their institutional roles behind to pursue new lives. Hellboy specifically looks forward to his future with Liz and their unborn child, choosing to focus on building a life outside of government service.

The film's hopeful ending emphasizes starting anew and embracing the future.

In the final scene, Liz raises two fingers in a playful gesture while Hellboy smiles. This is a reference to Hellboy's signature two-finger salute (he typically greets people by extending two fingers in a demonic hand gesture). The moment symbolizes their intimate connection and hints at their future together, with the playful gesture representing hope for their coming child and a new chapter in their lives.

Hellboy's two-finger salute has been his signature throughout both films.

Abe Sapien discovers Liz is pregnant when he senses it while in her presence. During the chaos after the auction, Abe is able to detect the life growing within Liz, though she initially insists the news stay between them. This discovery adds to the stakes of the mission, as the team now knows Hellboy has more to live for than ever before.

The pregnancy was foreshadowed early in the film and becomes crucial to the Angel of Death's decision.