MT-8 Pilgrimage

Over here, Doctor.

Squeeze in a bit, so this dessert cart's in front.

Finally, a chance to catch my breath.

You must be here for the ceremony, seniora!

W-Would you like to try my ice cream?

I-It's not a flavor you can get anywhere else in Laterano—

(I can take her out. Nobody would notice.)

Wow. That's really good...

It's got my answer for me, confessor.

Dadadeedeeda, I'm called Idida.

You named yourself after the dessert cart's music?

Don't be silly! I customized it to sound like my name!

Wow! I've never heard a confessional speak like that before!

It's the latest model.

Were you helping cover for us just now, Idida?

Yep... Because all of Laterano needs to change!

That's what you think too, right?!

...

W-Was I just imagining things? You're the first person to say my sugar-free carbonated-water-flavored ice cream was tasty, seniora!

(Well, that explains why it's so refreshing.)

Mamma and Tata were right, this is a rocky road I walk... But I've finally found a little bit of success!

Mind... explaining a bit more?

'Desserts connect every Lateran'—but if you eat too much sugar, not only are you gonna get bad teeth, even your halo will start getting cavities!

Tata's a dentist. Every time he says that, people think he's just trying to get more business for his clinic.

But right now, my halo, err, kinda feels like the rotten tooth I just lost. It's making me feel... not so good...

I believe it's the Lord giving me a revelation!

So I'm gonna practice what I preach! I'll change Laterano's eating habits, and rebuild our connections with the power of sugar-free ice cream!

...

Mind if we take a walk together? I'd like to hear more about this... connection between halos and tooth decay.

O-Okay!

(We should be able to avoid the guys chasing us with this kid around. You need to get in touch with Exusiai ASAP, Doctor.)

Hey there, Leader!

Sounds like you were able to loosen that comms control thingy, since we're having a long-distance call and all.

Ugh. Yeah, I figured as much.

These guys have nearly all the non-Sankta holed up in the Shrine of Nurtury. They want to put on an even bigger Nativity.

First time around, an arborbeast got a halo. This time, they want to give everyone halos...

I dunno how they're gonna do it, but this kind of change is a bit too quick and crazy.

The way you explained it, Leader, whatever happens in this dream will eventually become reality?

Ugh. Yeah, I figured as much.

The way you explained it, Leader, this big, ugly building really is poking up out of Laterano's streets, and it's spewing out haloed monsters to chase people around?

Sounds like reality's a lot scarier than the dream...

...

Man, this is WAY too complicated for me. Just tell me: what's the worst thing that might happen?

Whew, yeah, that's a REALLY big deal!

Well, no matter the situation, I can still find the jerk behind all this and free everyone from 'fake Laterano', right?

Got it! Leave Laterano's troubles to a Lateran like me!

Oops, gotta keep my voice down. The grand Nativity's about to start, and it wasn't easy finding a chance to sneak in, heheh.

Say, how did the two of us meet again?

One of Sora's releases? Texas's birthday party? That time Penguin Logistics crashed into the Lungmen office while cracking down on the Bloodhammer gang?

Oh, or was it that time I was planning on stealing a few sick old racing beasts when I ran into you on your way to buy their freedom?

Must've been... what, five years ago now?

Well, here's to yet another beautiful partnership, Leader.

Everyone is in position, Reverend Patrizion.

Next, we will coordinate with the shrine patrol to clear the surrounding streets, lock down the intersections, and ensure nobody is wandering about.

Gratias.

Every gun-knight gathered together, our ammunition allocations and fire restrictions fully lifted... There's never been so big an event in the history of our order, has there?

The Nativity is of great significance to Laterano.

The black snow on the ice of Sami, the hole in the sky above Leithanien, even the raging tides that dash against the coast, are all in alignment with the true calamity that has been prophesied.

Imagine how terrifying such a disaster would be.

When that time comes, two-hundred-odd gun-knights taking to the field would be like a child throwing stones into the sea.

I fear our holy city, which has stood tall for millennia, will fade away.

...

The Pontifica Cohors and the Notarial Hall are still pursuing Lemuel and her co-conspirators.

There is something else you must know... The nurturer who was guiding Mostima and Fiammetta was just attacked.

—!

Would you like to go and check the scene, Reverend?

...

...No.

My post... is here.

The time has come.

All our Liberi brethren, please go to the Hall of Enlightenment.

...

...

...

The time has come.

Over here, please. Once the other races have been bestowed their halos, the Matriarch shall mend the broken halos and wings of the fallen angels, so that we may all regain empathy with our people.

It has begun, Matriarch.

I thank you all. You have forsaken nearly all rest since the establishment of this shrine.

There have been many mishaps since the last Nativity. We must advance our plans. This shrine's mission must be seen to completion as quickly as possible.

To this day, we have walked the same path, Matriarch. This is something we realized long ago.

Oh, yes, there was one other thing on my mind. Today's ceremony is all about bestowing halos on the non-Sankta rather than a birth, so why are we still using the name 'Nativity'?

Is there a better term for it?

...

Henceforth, all who are sheltered by the holy city shall share one destiny, entwined into a singular whole. Can this be called anything but the rebirth of Laterano?

——!

That strange couple at the door...

Looks like they're deciding where to go to dinner using a roulette wheel. Interesting idea, isn't it?

Mhm. So they're the ones...

...who wish to adopt you.

But why won't they come in and tell me that themselves...?

Oh, I get it. They don't want to put too much pressure on me.

Now why do you think that?

Because they're pretending to fiddle with their guns while actually looking our way.

Haha, nothing ever gets past you, does it? Yes, I reached out to them before they came here.

Your parents were in that caravan raid... and the Notarial Hall's been trying to arrange things with a few families for the better part of a year now, but nobody's bitten yet.

You're the strongest child I've ever met, En, but you've still got a long way to go, and we can't let a kid live all by herself.

I know, seniora.

I'm not annoyed or anything, it's just... If I'm going to accept the kindness of others, I'm going to have to be a good kid myself! It's really, really important!

Well, the long and short of it is, they wanted me to tell you that they really like you.

I also think they're really... Can I have a week, no, three days? I'll think things over.

Once I make a decision, I won't go back on it!

Is this the one that feels right for you?

Mhm.

Whoa, a sniper rifle. If it was me, I would never choose that one...

No, when it's my turn in a few years, I'll pick lots and lots and lots of guns!

Haha, sounds good.

Well, I have to remind you that this fellow's been sitting here a few years now. Never been picked. Best think it over.

Hmm... It's really quiet.

No, no, what I meant was, this sort of gun's different from the others. Truth be told, it's not very suited to you lively Sanktas.

When you're on the battlefield, you won't get many chances to fire it. You'll have to make every shot count.

Whether you're trying to protect something or destroy it, you'll need to have a sharper eye, a sharper mind, and take on more risks and costs...

Because you can pull the trigger, or let it go, but you can't afford to hesitate.

...

This is the one, Master Pag. Please guide me through selecting the other parts.

Nice!

You don't need to worry about it not having the chance to fire, Master Pag. You could smack people real hard with a gun this big, and my sis is super strong!

—!

Through the spiritual light, even the darkest stain can be cleansed. With a pious heart, even a savage monster can wade out of the mud.

—Hah—

Put that down, Captain. I've got you in my sights.

You're unstable, I can sense it. Calm down. That thing's affecting your mind. It's evoking your disappointment in Laterano.

I know you submitted your resignation before we left... But even if you're determined to return to the wilderness, right now, you're still one of us.

Think about the fried cheese we ate before we left, okay? Think about that fowlbeast hat Fiammetta got you, the soft and downy one.

My disappointment in Laterano... No, no... Far from it! He showed me how Laterano can save everyone.

None of us know if what you're seeing is the truth of reality, or illusions and lies. Mostima will be here soon. She has a way to get that thing off you.

We can start looking into its secrets afterwards. Alright?

There is no 'afterwards'! It's fading away! I must hold onto it... You know it's no illusion, Lemuen! It's certainly not lies!

You saw those people locked in stasis, outside of time, down in the underground palace. Those who do not die yet do not live.

You heard what that mad Sarkaz said to his shadow: 'The future shall have no secrets.'

So you should understand. What we've found is the key to time itself. What I saw was a revelation. A future where even the most savage of monsters can be saved...

Your Arts are running haywire, Andoain. That thing's eating away at you—

If that future exists, I must find the path that leads to it.

I won't let go! I need to know more!

Dammit! Look out, Lemuen!

Haah—

Keph, Matriarch of the Shrine of Nurtury... Hit.

Compared to the ones in the vast lands, the statues oft seen in Laterano are the more incomprehensible, Cardinal.

Paradise has shaped our faith, so peculiar that it has become somewhat distorted.

The souls of the living praying for survival, as they traverse Catastrophe and suffering... such is the most basic face of faith.

Keph... If she really is a horrible monster, then it's unlikely a bullet will do any real damage.

But at the very least, it'll let the people in the shrine see what's so unnatural about her, and create an opportunity for you... El.

The rest, I leave to you!

...

Senior Amos?

Seniora Lemuen... my location has been compromised.

I'll come back you up right away.

N-No need.

The shrine patrol is already here, a-and the gun-knights, too... There's a lot of them!

I'll hold down the street corner. Get yourself out of the building before they surround the place.

What about you?

It's too late for me.

They've started firing. Looks like our deduction was right. This cannot be a place just for birthing babies...

Anyway, did you take care of the target?

Yes. Got her in one.

That's good, that's good, haha. At least this way, I managed to save a few people, stop a few things that needed to be stopped. Can't be useless forever now, can I?

Well then, vale. Go do what you need to do, Seniora Lemuen.

...

Actually, I've got a question I wanted to ask you... Funny, it's only once you can't hear it that I finally dare to ask it.

Was I really that useless?

...

I never thought about it before. Even though it took nearly all I had just to become a small-time investigator for the Seventh Tribunal, and I never got a promotion during my decade or so there...

It seems us Laterans never doubt ourselves on that front. It's like we naturally have a hundred million ways to keep ourselves happy and satisfied.

I know someone who made sticks for lollipops. He'd take several types of paper tape and twist them together into rainbow-colored sticks... Made nearly no money out of it. He did it simply because he knew children loved them.

But ever since I found out Aurela had been banished from Laterano, and there was nothing I could do about it, I haven't been able to feel even a microsecond of satisfaction with myself.

'You're completely useless, Amos.' That's all I could think... Like how you can never forget the taste of the very first terrible dessert you ever ate, haha.

...

I thought that maybe, with a few more years, I could use my seniority to muddle my way to the Legati and go on a trip to Bolívar.

I couldn't save her in the name of Laterano. Not even I can forgive her for what she did. I just want to see her again, and apologize for that argument we had.

After so many long years of waiting, I finally got my chance, but... it was all just a dream...

...

A dream's fine, too.

If it's all a dream, then I don't have to worry about anything. Maybe getting shot here doesn't mean anything in reality!

When I was younger, I got fifth place at the Seventh Tribunal new joiner shooting competition, you know!

I even met Aurela that day at the range...

It's a shame we weren't able to save each other.

I'd say that, at the very least, you're a great investigator, Amos.

Oh, you were still on the line, Lemuen...

...

It's time to wake up.

...

Is the funeral complete, Andoain?

It is.

The Hall of Enlightenment is this way. You seem to be going the wrong way.

Am I?

The Nativity has begun, and the Matriarch is waiting for you. Where are you planning to go right now?

Your emotions are... rather unstable.

No. I've never felt more clear-headed. I'm not going the wrong way, either.

—

I ask that you accompany me to see the Matriarch, Andoain.

...

Looks like we arrived right on time.

Mostima, Fiammetta, you...

What, am I supposed to be like the other Liberi, pushed back into the herd by the guards, no matter how I protest?

Or should I be really looking forward to seeing if my halo gets to be a square or a circle?

Speaking of, I'm curious how they're going to mend the fallen angels' halos...

Mostima!

Sorry, got sidetracked. You owe us an explanation, Andoain.

Gathering up all the non-Sankta, forcing changes on their bodies... I thought this sort of stuff only happened in those shady Columbian tech companies full of mad scientists.

Is this what you meant when you said it was 'about the future, about a possibility for Laterano'?

Is this what the Matriarch promised you?

...

I have strayed from my path. That, I cannot deny.

Laterano wove a beautiful dream for us all. I was trapped too deep, and took too long to awaken.

Still talking nonsense even now?

The other guards will be here soon.

Dammit. Do you think we can get close to the Matriarch if we use him as a hostage, Mostima?

Maybe? She does trust him a lot. I'd be a little worried if we left it all up to El.

...

I can sense... a multitude of emotions, growing by the second. The number of people with empathy in this shrine is increasing...

The Nativity has begun. It's no use, even if you subdue the Matriarch right now.

We must go do what we still can.

I'll think of what to do about this ceremony that should not exist.

But it's likely to lead to great chaos... It should buy you the time to evacuate our people.

...

...

What's your plan?

Why do you think we'll trust you, Andoain? Seriously, a babbling lunatic who already betrayed his friend once, saving everyone?

You don't need to trust me.

Pity will not save the people. I don't have that kind of power.

All someone who has walked the wrong path of obsession can do is to save himself.

Wait, Andoain. Take this.

A bomb?

El gave it to us to draw the guards' attention.

But if you really are going to stop this ceremony that shouldn't exist, like you said...

You'll need it more than us.

You okay with letting him go?

He's reliable when he sticks to a handful of words instead of a full-on parable.

True, true.

The situation's too damned weird. Not like we have any better options at the moment.

There's a whole lot of people coming this way. Probably chasing Andoain.

Help buy him some breathing room. I'll get even with him after this is all over.

Insignificant trifles and grandiose feats are but a hair's breadth from one another. You have labored for many years over this grueling journey of yours. You should not let such a meaningless difference stay your steps.

I will need you to lift your spirits, for aside from caring for this mother and child, there are more deeds that must be done.

I should be doing more... I must do more!

But how do I shake the pillars of this shrine? How do I erase a miracle that has already occurred?

The Shrine of Nurtury... This towering edifice was not built in a day. It began as a simple, ordinary nursery.

Our nursery...

Did we start with the blueprints of such an imposing shrine? No. We merely wished for a safe, comfortable room for that mother...

And yet, its frenzied evolution led to what it is now.

That is how a future where all are saved can sprout from our faith.

This was the very first nursery in the Shrine of Nurtury. This was the starting point of this grandiose building.

This is where you and I placed our faith.

And so, Keph, I'll tear my faith apart.

I was never alone as I sought a way through this trail of thorns, was I?

(Cheerful chirp)

I understand that you are no longer sad and suffering, my child. But do you not sense danger, even as this room is about to explode?

Or... are you simply uninterested in this as well?

Does Laterano no longer need us to feel fear?

(Puzzled chirp)

If we cannot feel fondness, fear or torment for all that life has to offer, how can we speak of revering it?

I should have asked you this, my child.

But it was I who brought you here. You could even say you were born in answer to my vision.

This is our penance. A lesson for the both of us.

That gunshot—

I am so very glad to hear the sound of your gun this time around, Lemuen.

Was this realm a dream, or an obsession?

Once, you had a flock of brothers and sisters following behind you. They were rejected, harmed, insulted, desecrated. They named you Guide, and walked the long path with you.

Yet here in this Laterano, which you believed equal and selfless, you forgot them. And so I ask...

How should this community you long for be shaped?

How should this holy city you yearn for be rebuilt?

What path is it you walk, Andoain? To what answers does it lead?

...

If this is a dream, then I shall wake. If this is obsession, then I shall shatter it.

Let us only speak of redemption after that.

—!

Are you alright, Matriarch?

Hngh...

The ceremony has been interrupted. The entire Shrine is shaking, and that explosion just now...

Is an evacuation underway?

Y-Yes... There is a Liberi wearing a Pontifica Cohors uniform and a fallen angel leading our people to safety.

Only half of the non-Sankta have successfully acquired halos. I will ask the patrol to have them reconvene right away—

Let them leave.

Forcing them to stay will only harm them irreparably.

The shrine is collapsing, Matriarch...

No. What is collapsing is not only the shrine, but also the answer we sought with it.

Gather the other nurturers. Everyone must leave at once.

I will have the guards escort you out.

...

Hey hey hey, over here!

You're not getting away that easily!

I've been hanging onto this window for two hours already! If you don't get off that stage, my arms are gonna fall off!

...

I did figure you weren't as pretty as you looked early on, but my imagination never prepared me for this. Not even Ancient Forge had anything as crazy-looking as you!

Well, at least I don't have to worry about ripping your arm off!

My friends had to bust their butts to give me this chance...

So get out of there already! You have no right to hide away in a dream! You have no right to hide... in our Laterano!!

Urgh...

*sobs* Senior Nurturer...

A-Are you hurt?

Don't move. It was hard enough getting you bandaged up.

Patia?

You were pretty much half-dead by the time we got to the Shrine of Nurtury. We only had time to get you and these kids searching for you out of there.

Don't cry, Giselle, Romya... It was all just a nightmare. We're finally awake.

A nightmare? Wounds in nightmares don't follow you to real life.

Where are the other brothers and sisters?

Keeping watch nearby. Guess you finally got your memories back. What, want to hear them call you 'Guide' again?

Sorry, Patia.

It's clear you were just trying to wake a man who had lost his way again.

Why did you abandon the Pathfinders, Andoain?

We rested in the wilds for a bit after leaving Sanctilaminium Ambrosii. According to our original plan, we would've passed the Iberian border soon after, back to the land where you came from.

We even made contact with the Inquisition, but then you disappeared, all of a sudden.

That was when the dream began for me.

What do you mean?

It's just an idea, one without any evidence behind it.

It told me to turn away, to cast aside all my plans and return to Laterano.

So you're saying you never actually met that blind lady, and you didn't go back to Laterano with her for that baby's sake. Like you were... enticed by something?

Nugae. This is starting to sound like something a crackpot charlatan would say.

...

I know this is hard to understand. Even I don't fully get it—

I'll say. There's way too much 'hard to understand' stuff at play here.

You, and that shrine! You wanted to plop halos on everyone's heads and turn us all into freaks who can't even decide what emotions to feel!

Whatever, you managed to wake yourself up in the end. If you hadn't made such a ruckus by blowing up the Nativity, all of Laterano would probably still be dreaming.

With the boundary between the two sides so blurred, his deeds in the dream should be taken into full account during adjudication.

Executor Federico of the Notarial Hall. I have read your file, Andoain Agathangelos.

Aga... Is that your surname, Andoain?

...

After the chaos you caused during the first Summit of Nations, the Curia banished you from Laterano. Now you have returned in secret, and were involved in plotting the so-called 'Nativity' ceremony.

You are partially responsible for the current turmoil troubling the city, and must accept a joint investigation by the First, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Tribunals.

...

Hey, can't you see he's hurt real bad?

Besides, I'm sure you've got more important things to worry about right now!

You need a hand, executor? Get us into the city and we'll help you fight.

And you are...?

Th-That—

What is it, Nueda?

Look over there!

You've awakened, child.

You are gravely wounded. Only by accompanying me... will you stay lucid during the Transfiguration. While it was you... who caused its interruption... we will not abandon you.

Much as we once leaned on one another to traverse the devastation of Catastrophe.

The Transfiguration...?

Do you mean that dream?

I'm definitely awake, though... Why do you have a—*cough*—halo on your head? What kind of... monster... are you...?

All Sanktas have halos, child.

So that we could forget from whence we came, so that we could embrace our new lives, we named ourselves thusly. Thankfully, the passage of thousands of years has reshaped your appearances and ways of life.

Perhaps you can follow those tome-bound accounts and call me... 'Saint'.

...

Of course, my flesh and spirit both have long become one with the soil beneath Laterano's white walls.

What you see now is simply a snippet of code from His boundless program, a specter bearing countless memories.

As He sees it, the path of the Sankta began with the 'Saints', and so it should continue with the 'Saints', who should lead you beyond calamity and into the future.

Err... I don't get a word of what you're saying.

Where exactly are you taking me?

It is not a question of you and I, child... but of all Laterans.

Across millennia has He granted revelation to His chosen few, so that they may question, analyze and deduce, so that they may point Laterano in the right direction.

But it would prove far too slow a process this time.

He has never been this restless and uneasy. The master of all things has awoken. Threats nip at our heels. He must carry out His original duty.

...Because in this calculated future, there is no place for the Sankta.

There is only time for Him to directly impose what He has sensed on every one of us, to force the only solution He knows into being—

An even more cohesive community of 'Sankta'. Laterano as it should be.

Geh... Listening to all this makes my head feel like it's about to pop...

Heaven's sake, all this He Him His stuff... Who are you even talking about?

We are on our way to meet Him. The foundation of faith. The prime mover.

Even the deepest nightmare pales in comparison to cruel reality, child.

And with the collapse of the Transfiguration, I fear His actions have been noticed. There is not much time. Perhaps He and I... no, perhaps we still have time to ensure the future of the Sankta.

A march? A migration? Or perhaps a pilgrimage?

A grand procession of newborn 'Sanktas', traversing the streets of the Holy City with a vigor the Sankta have not had in centuries... How should we describe such a sight?

—!

What do you see, Aurela?

There's halos on the... street lamps? And the trees, the dessert carts, the confessionals... Am I hallucinating, or is my scope fogged up?

That is no hallucination.

The Shrine of Nurtury still exists in reality. These iridescent projections originate from it.

Where the pilgrims go, the projections follow. Where they fall, even inorganic matter will sprout halos.

These projections are like a form of unliving 'executor', redefining 'Sankta' in the name of the Law all over.

All this time, we're told that whosoever stains the purity of the Sankta shall be mercilessly cast out by the Law, and now it turns out the purest Sankta He so favors are actually streetlights and trees?!

Hah... Haha! Can't believe I'm starting to think my Fall was a good thing.

If that gaggle wants to redefine 'Sankta' into something nobody can understand, I have half a mind to leave them be.

...

Don't worry, executor. There's still some of them I want to kill. I agreed to help you fight, and I'll have that fight no matter what.

It seems like they really do want to remodel the entire city.

If their aim is to remodel the city via those projections, then forming a mass of people is a highly inefficient method.

Yet they still choose to gather together, even after the dream's collapse... Perhaps spreading those projections around isn't the only way they have.

They must have an additional method in mind. In order to use it, they must reach a common endpoint.

*cough* *cough*—

If their aim is to turn all of Laterano on its head, then I might know where they're headed.

The Basilica.

I had a discussion with Pope Yvangelista XI there once, and I was able to glimpse certain entities, to realize some truths.

...

You do not need to doubt me, Senior—

I do not. Your file was signed and sealed by the Pope himself.

I will bring you there, Andoain.

Hold on, Federico—

The whole city's gone mad, and nobody knows what the hell's going on. Why should we trust you?

Hey, that's my line!

If what you are concerned about is who shall hold authority in this situation... Considering nearly all present have violated the Law to some degree, as an executor, I have the right to press you all into my temporary control.

If it is the current calamity that is causing you to panic and deprive yourselves of sound judgment or action...

I, Federico Giallo, am the first Saint from outside the ranks of the popes.

I do not believe this title has any special meaning, but if you require a reason, then there is none better.

...

...

The procession will pass through here first as they move from the Shrine of Nurtury to the Basilica.

Keph—or rather, the monster—has unusually strong empathy. Even the bell of the Tower of Revelations can do nothing about her influence towards you.

Patia, take the other Pathfinders and these errari away from here. Go in the opposite direction.

You staying by yourself?

Trust in me, my brothers and sisters. This is the path I must walk.

At least change out of those clothes, you look godawful. Or do you like walking around with blood all over your robe?

...I don't own many outfits, and I don't know where my old cassock's gone.

Here.

This... You kept it, all this time?

Not like it took up much bag space. I... I don't know. I just felt like... this wasn't something I should throw away. Go on, take it.

...

Thank you, Patia, for all these many years.

However, we must try to find shelter for these children who have just escaped the dream...

...

Arturia, you and Andoain will require special supervision. I will keep the two of you within my sight at all times.

I haven't even said anything, Your Beatitude.

M-Maybe you can leave the children to me?

I may not be a Sankta, or a Lateran, but I am... rather experienced in looking after children.

Very well. Move out.

Hrrm... The foundation of the Sankta? The Sankta's future?

Do you not trust my words?

Why should I?

You have no reason to, true.

Much as how when we first gained the name 'Sankta', we could never have imagined our community would become one of explosions and desserts after all these years.

Halos, empathy, guns, walls of purest white... Do you believe the Law innate, child? Do you believe the Sankta have always been unique in these ways?

Why would I doubt it?

You love it... as do I.

Faith is shaped by the experiences of countless generations, the ravages of time, and the footprints of the teeming masses. It should not, must not, be swayed again by the first of the faithful.

But once more do the people face down the crossroads of destiny. I have no choice but to do this.

...

We have not sown lies, my child. We have merely hidden some truths, then allowed the rest to become inspirational tales and parables of saints.

These texts tell of how the devils' arrival left all things desolate, and how none saw the light of the sun. But for the Sankta, they had radiance bestowed upon them by the Law.

But the angels were born from devils, child, and as for this so-called 'bestowment'...

It was naught but a chance encounter.

...

In that age, the King sent out his warriors to seek a new beginning for their people.

In that age, monsters that crawled the earth longed for a 'homeland', and so were named 'Teekaz', a race yet young.

In that age, Hegemons who could command raging flames, blinding thunderbolts, wild winds, and frigid snow descended upon the land alongside their myriad servants, here to seize the Teekaz's precious home.

The flames they threw could melt the skulls of Wendigos, the howling gales they summoned could shatter the wings of Gargoyles. Even if Vampires sucked them dry, they would be reborn from eggs of fire.

Wow, that's like... that would be like...

Man, might be because I'm dead tired, but I can't get my imagination working at all.

I shall share the portion of the truth hidden from you, child.

Once we arrive at the Basilica, the past will be made clear, and all shall know it!

It is then that the term 'Sankta' shall be redefined.

...

The King's might could not slow the decline of the Teekaz. His weary gaze scanned the land for countless days and countless nights, before finally falling upon the ancient silver mounts.

And so, his warriors set forth, seeking out these never-before-seen argent mountains beneath the earth. With the language conferred onto them by the King, they would conquer them, and command them to rout the foes of the Teekaz.

To grant the Teekaz the chance to truly become 'those with a homeland'.

Before they left, the King took the blood of a burdenbeast, and anointed the head of every warrior with a crimson circle, symbolizing the mission they all shouldered together.

The warriors strode across the land, crossing the most barren of wastes, where not even the hardiest of plants could take root, where not even the most tenacious of beasts could survive.

But with their twisted limbs did they aid one another. Not even the weakest of their number would be abandoned before they breathed their last.

For the King had taught them this: 'Kin shall not eat kin. Kin shall aid kin.'

Wha?

Finally, after many days and nights, numbered beyond reckoning, they arrived at the edge of a great rift in the earth...

And then, they saw...

The fragments of the ring pulsed faintly with light. At first, they thought it was fire, but they sensed no heat, and it seemed untangible.

In that age, the warriors of the Teekaz knew they had found the slumbering silver mounts.

In that age, the warriors encircled the ring. They attempted to call out to it, to appease it, to command it, to persuade it...

They cried out until they could cry out no more, their throats hoarse and bleeding, but to no avail. The ring remained silent.

They were trapped in that wasteland, with no way forward and no way back. Time passed, until an ordinary Teekaz could not stand it any longer, and stood up.

She looked at her near-mad, emaciated companions, and realized that they all would die of hunger and thirst before the silver mounts awoke from their slumber.

Instinct overtook her. The stone lance in her hand pierced one of her dying fellows, and she began to devour his flesh.

...

The Teekaz had no fear of eating the flesh of other Teekaz, but it was the Farchaser, exiled for refusing to partake, who returned with the Black Crown and became the first King.

Since then, eating our kin has become the strictest of taboos.

But at that moment, one of the warriors handpicked by the King defied his ban without the slightest hesitation.

Only through this act could she live. As for... As for whether she lived so as to complete the mission they were entrusted with, that is a tale for another time.

But at that time...

The warriors did not have the time to ponder this strange change, as boundless vitality poured into their exhausted frames like the surging tide.

With the greatest of joys did they touch one another and embrace one another, like newborn babes.

As for the Teekaz with the stone lance, its point still painted in blood, she looked up at that alien metal and remained silent for a while.

She did not understand why it remained aloof to the words the King had imparted upon them to appease the silver mounts, yet deigned to respond the moment she ate of the kinflesh.

Then, comprehension dawned on her. Perhaps... Perhaps the metal would not respond to the King's dignified appeals nor the pleas to smite their enemies...

But rather it answered the simplest and purest of ideas, a quiet 'prayer'...

Was that Teekaz... you?

The silver mountains are in Laterano? And you want to take everyone to go see them?

Do you understand now, child?

Before faith became faith, before the first brick of this Paradise of tolerance, equality, mercy, and joy was laid...

This was the origin of it all.

—!

It's that vision again. Our discussion's gone right back to square one.

*cough* Truth be told, I'd really like to head upstairs and enjoy some guava juice and an ice cream cone, or at the very least take a nap on the sofa...

I-I can barely feel my lips anymore... or my knees...

...

How long has it been since you started acting oddly and I rushed over to find a solution?

What caused the calamity to speed up so, to the point you needed to throw out all your old emergency response mechanisms and instead force everyone to directly synchronize data with you? You've forced Laterano to go through...

Such radical change.

In time, the spiritual light of the Sankta will be stripped away. In time, will Laterano still be considered Laterano...?

The sitting pope, Yvangelista XI, requests a twenty-seventh interactive simulation.

...

(Cry of prostration)

(Low prayer)

These monsters...

Neither Sankta nor the others at the Nativity can escape the influence of the Transfiguration's sudden termination.

All I can do now is to call everyone to my side and keep your minds steady and free of collapse ere we meet Him.

As for those you call 'monsters', they too are 'Sanktas', and the Law shelters them as well.

They are newly born, pious and plain. They will aid the people in sweeping away all obstacles along the path.

This path will take us past the Tower of Revelations in Pagus Ecclesia, past the Notarial Hall and gunsmithies in Pagus Michaelion, past the Sunset Chapel in Pagus Saint Marcel...

Before finally arriving at the Basilica.

This route...

A familiar one, yes? It is the order the street lamps light up as night falls on Laterano. He has laid out a most convenient path for us.

And so I beg you sleep a while, child.

We will have arrived once you awake, and there we shall rekindle hope for the continuation of our race.

Ngh—

—

I see now... You have been looking for an opportunity ever since you awoke?

You are still unwilling to accept it.

The tales we left behind became the chains that bound later generations...

The texts that speak of the majesty of the saints and the ugliness of the devils have been etched deep into your hearts. You need only witness my countenance to raise your gun against me.

But no matter, child.

You will come to understand who is named hero and who is named monster, who is named kin and who is named Alienus. You shall all understand.

I Fell...? That's... a real nasty feeling...

*cough*...

Awesome, never thought there'd be a way to turn that light out.

I dunno if I'm going to miss it later, but right now, it's not too bad having it off! My head's a lot clearer now that I don't have to deal with all your emotions!

Clear? No, child. Even though you now know my history, the history of our race, you still wish to make an enemy of me. How can you consider your mind clear?

What can I say? It's clearer than ever!

You say I've been trapped by those dusty old books you left behind, but they never said anything about having to listen to Your Ancient Beatitude's ideas!

I've been listening to you go on and on for ages already. Did you ever plan on asking us what we think?

The good news is the monsters chasing us have retreated.

The bad news is they're joining that weird procession over there.

Good thing we talked Idida into staying somewhere safe. Will Exusiai be able to handle herself, Doctor?

That monster looks really familiar for some reason... No matter how much she changes herself to look like a living thing, I can tell she's just a program.

The collapse of the dream must have cut off her connection with the machine, and as a program, all she can do is try to reestablish that connection... to restart the dream.

Passing that field of irises a minute ago, I saw halos blooming above the flowers, one after another. That's completely unprecedented.

The goal of that machine and that program is more extreme than we thought. Everything, organic, inorganic, will be defined as 'Sankta'...

This thing's crazier than when PRTS went haywire.

Not on my own, but...

...Kal'tsit.

Ever since it all went down, you've been avoiding saying her name to me, Doctor.

In any case, thanks for putting your trust in me. Amiya was so worried before we left—

Never mind. At least I managed to get a decent amount out of this operation.

That machine is special, Doctor.

We've tried to approach it in the past, but the more the Law of Laterano was gradually refined, the more difficult it became to try and figure out its nature.

Kal'tsit did come up with a plan, but even she admitted it was a bit too daring.

It's a really crude one. She never let me do it before.

But my nature does give me a talent that ordinary people lack. To some extent.

Of course, we should also thank our creator's open-minded attitude toward technology exchange—Whew, okay, this is the first time I'm trying this...

Stand back a bit, Doctor.

If it wants to speed up the changes happening across Laterano, it'll have to remove all of its underlying restrictions and break through its computational limits over and over.

Which means that machine should've left itself wide open to me. It won't have the time to limit my actions—

I'm trying to stop it—No, I'm not in control of the process anymore!

...

(Unknown language) Thank you for your hard work, 'AMa-10'.

(Unknown language) We meet again, Doctor.

(Unknown language) Our reunion has come much sooner than I imagined... Just as I had hoped.