Part 76: The dangers of the Gospel...I feel like we've gotten a real hint of them.

-Leiston Fortress-



Using the fog's particulate matter as a medium to exert mental control over a large area...
Well, that settles one question, at least.
Man's Voice: Excuse me, Professor.



Escaped Leiston, did you?
Yes, I finally managed to finish a bit of work. I thought I would stop by and see how you're holding up.



Yes, just arrived express from Rolent.
Thanks to Tita's report, I'm quite certain of my theory now.
About the Gospel, I'm assuming.
Mmm, yes, though it's ultimately still a hypothesis at this point.
I've gone over it again and again, both on paper and with the Capel, though, so I'm reasonably sure of this. Shall I go over it?
Absolutely.
Right, then! *ahem*





Tell me, what do you think it is, based on what you've seen and heard?
It's an effect that occurs to any orbal device located near an active Gospel, chaining from one device to another. And it renders these devices inert while a Gospel is active. That's how it seems to me, at least.
Mmm. Half right, half wrong.
What you're describing is closer to the Orbal Art 'Anti-Sept.' That shorts out the internal quartz-circuits of an orbment to temporarily suspend its functionality.
The phenomenon generated by a Gospel, however, is fundamentally different. It steals all the orbal energy formed in an orbment, down to the very last joule.
So it's more of an 'orbal absorption phenomenon,' then.
Yes. To make a comparison to a combustion engine, it's like siphoning out the petrol.
But...wait. Unless I badly misunderstand physics, that means the Gospel should absorb and store all that power, correct?
Good eye, lad! You've noticed a very important fact.
So, I've measured a Gospel after it 'absorbs' energy, but the Gospel does not actually hold any of it. Not even a single EP's worth.
Is it possible the energy is being vented into the wider environment?
No. Not at all. The energy disappears. Completely. Utterly. And...quite impossibly, thanks to thermodynamics.
...
Furthermore, these 'new' Gospels Estelle's group has been encountering...Every time they're encountered, they cause unbelievable phenomena that even our best orbal engineering can't explain.
It's unclear how they're causing such effects, but...I can say one thing with confidence.
And that is?
They're too small. I can say with absolute certainty that ANY device enabling such massive effects could not fit into the palm of one's hand. Even if the society somehow possesses technology CENTURIES ahead of our own, nothing that small could contain that much potential energy.
Ah...I think I'm starting to see where this is going.
You're saying the Gospels must be terminals, then? Access points of some sort?
Exactly!
The only function the Gospel unit itself has is an ability to manifest an abnormal warp in a local orbal field. That warp then resonates with any local orbal devices, expands, and draws energy from the devices. The energy then disappears through the warp.
Well, no. It does not 'disappear.'
It is sent...elsewhere.
And whatever is located 'elsewhere' is capable of causing the impossible effects we've seen.
You know, I HOPE I'm misunderstanding this.
I'm afraid you get a passing grade here, old friend. The society can use the Gospels to draw out and spread the power of whatever this thing is.
Hmph. Spreading the influence of a mysterious force...No wonder the society named them 'Gospels.'
...In that case...the nature of this 'thing' bothers me. As you said, even if it's an orbment out of our purest fiction...or...
As far as that goes, I'm afraid I have no real clue. I've thought of a number of possibilities, but that would be pure speculation at this point.
Now, Cassius, I will ask you the same question I asked you ten years ago. We're in quite the pickle. What do you need me to do?
Haha...The exact same words as when I asked you to develop the patrol airship.
Well, then...





Russell. Can you develop some kind of plan or method of stopping the resonance? The spread?
Heh heh! Thought you'd ask that.
I'm just about done with my current invention, anyway. I'll get to work as soon as I'm done with that.

-In My Heart-







Hi, Schera. So this is where you went.
Oh, wait...Do you want to be alone for a bit?
Hmhm. This is so unlike you, Estelle. Why so reserved? You want to ask about Luciola, right?
Um, yeah...
She says we met a long time ago, but I don't really remember her at all. I was wondering what she's like, and if you could jog my memory.
Let's see...Where to begin, then...
We have to begin with her stage name, I suppose. Luciola, the Bewitching Bell. She could show her audience illusions by dancing while using bells and fans. Thus 'bewitching' them, you see.
Hers was the centerpiece performance of our little circus troupe--the one that really brought the audiences in.
Illusions...Does she use an orbment to make them?
No, she used something she always called 'illusion magic' which is apparently some kind of very old, non-orbal art. Luciola was from a family with a tradition of working that art.
Was?
People who fall in with a traveling circus like ours tend to be one of two kinds. People who had cause to abandon their previous home and families, or people who never had such things to begin with...
Luciola was one of the former...and I was the latter.
I was about seven years old when Mr. Harvey and his band took me in. Back then, I was little more than a street urchin living in the slums of a city. Pickpocketing, petty theft...There was little I wouldn't do to try to survive.



The ones who reached out a hand to me were the troupe's leader, Mr. Harvey...and Luciola. They taught me, the little girl who couldn't trust anyone, the warmth of a family...And they taught me all sorts of skills that would let me earn a place for myself in the troupe. Dancing, beast handling, tarot reading...Luciola taught me all of it.
But then...eight years ago...Mr. Harvey died in an accident. Without his leadership, we all just...drifted apart, and went our own ways.



I'd been planning on staying with Luciola, but...Soon after Mr. Harvey died, she simply told me, 'There is something I must do'...and vanished. Hopeless and lost for the first time in years, I turned to the one remaining man in the world whom I still trusted.
As you might suspect, that was Cassius, who'd already begun working as a bracer. You know the rest, I imagine.



The reason I aimed to become a bracer, at first, was to improve myself. I wanted to be able to live and prosper on my own...show Luciola just how far I'd come once she returned.
But...well, it has been eight years. Perhaps that was enough time to re-examine my reasons...
Schera...
Hmm-hmm. Don't make that face.
Like Zane said, I don't intend to simply fight her without saying a word. I want to hear Luciola's story from her before doing anything. I want...I have to know what possible reasons could have made her associate with the society.
Yeah...that sounds good.
I've got your back, Schera! I'll do anything I can to help!
Haha! I know I can always count on you.
Still, you've grown quite a bit, haven't you, Estelle?
Wh-What? That's kinda sudden.
I always thought of you as being exactly what I'd expect of Cassius' daughter...I don't think that's quite right, or fair, anymore, though.
Uh...What do you mean?
Your strength isn't quite the same as Cassius'. Cassius has a heart as deep as the ocean and strength like a relentless wave...
But you, Estelle? Your strength is like the sun. You shine, and make others shine just by being near them.

...
I think that's why people are attracted to you so easily. It's what I like the most about you...and I know Joshua felt the same way.
I don't think you need to feel any pressure to 'live up' to Cassius, is my point.
Yeah...
Ahaha, you really are my big sister, Schera. You always know how to encourage me...Thanks.
Hmmhmm. You're very welcome.
Not saying you should return the favor, mind, but you really should drink with me sometime. Now that you're a full bracer, you'd better learn to handle your liquor. ♥
How is booze related to--You know what, never mind, I don't want to know.

-Dancing With The Wind-

I'll be back in my seat once I've enjoyed the wind a little more. Make sure you're all buckled in before we land, Estelle.



Passenger: Even the Liberl News says nothing of note's happened. That's something to be happy about, at least! Hmm...Well, I'm sure their MARKET isn't quite 'peaceful,' at least. Ho ho!
Other Passenger: Bose Market is dreamland for anyone who likes to shop! I've heard even the manager of the Edel Department Store's a fan of the Bose Market. I think the pilgrimage journal my husband wrote talks about that.



Heh...It makes my heart swell to return to a place of such sweet nostalgia.
Shocking as it may be, I kinda have to agree on the 'heart-swelling memories' bit...
Although, as I remember it, you were kind of rude back then. You said I wasn't attractive and made fun of me like a schoolboy.
You misunderstand me, my fair rose. I would only display such cute, bashful behavior in order to hide feelings of love unabated.
Yeah, I'll bet that's it, exactly.
You sure didn't waste any time putting the moves on Schera, as I remember. Or JOSHUA.
Well. Putting that aside.
As you stand now, your beauty is incomparable to what it was then. Yours is a supple, healthy beauty, with a maiden's gentle virtue.
Indeed, you have grown, Estelle.
Oh, um, thank you.
Though when you put it that way, it's kind of embarrassing...Please don't say it like that again.
There is no shame to be had in virtue, Estelle.
Still, you have but only begun to climb the ladder of adulthood. Should you wish to ascend even higher, I would be more than happy to...assist you.
No. Thank. You. If I was ever in a position to ask anyone about that sort of thing, I'd be a million times better off asking Schera.
Ah! A pity. The things I could teach!
Though...Schera would be the one to...
...Ahhhhh.
I'LL REMIND YOU THAT I HAVE A VERY LARGE STICK.
Speaking of Bose, I remember that lovely mayor and her handmaiden with the cool gaze.
Ah, I thrill at the thought of meeting them again.



Passenger: Oh, oh, I know! I know! Mommy, Mommy! Let's go eat there!
Other Passenger: Really, child...My daughter keeps saying she wants to eat at the Anterose Restaurant in Bose. *sigh* It must be nice to be a child...so innocent, so unaware of...prices.



Crew Mem. Alex: We're very sorry for the delays at Rolent. I'm afraid merely launching into that fog would've been incredibly dangerous...We've never experienced fog of that sort before.



Passenger: The existence of the Empire weighs more heavily on the minds of our troops than anyone else! Ironically, I think our military men will welcome the non-aggression pact more than the rest of us.



Sorta, yeah.
Oh, Tita, this is your first time in Bose, isn't it?
Uh-huh. I've heard there's a really big store in Bose. I kind of want to see it...
The Bose Market, yeah. Think of it like the department store in Grancel...but even BIGGER. It's actually a bunch of different stores all in once space. It's really busy!
Wow, that sounds amazing!
Heehee...I hope we arrive in Bose soon.
Oh, Estelle! Have you been to Ravennue Village?
Yep! I stopped there once on a job.
That's Agate's hometown, right?
Uh-huh, he has a little sister named Mischa living there. Agate goes back pretty often, I think. At least once a year to say hello to her.
Ah, right.
Agate's little sister, huh? Must be hard for the poor girl, having such an antisocial lump for a brother.
Estelle, that's not nice! Agate can be, um...blunt? But he's also really nice!
Ah, yeah, yeah.
He is just kind of clumsy and easily embarrassed, to be honest.
Heehee...
You know, I bet Mischa's a really good person. Whenever Agate talks about her, his eyes turn so gentle......
Tita? What's wrong?
No, it's nothing. My heart just felt, um...kind of weird for a bit...Haha! I wonder why?
(Hmmm...Soooomebody's a bit jealous of Mischa, I bet!)
Mischa, huh...
Heehee! I hope I can be her friend if we meet!



Captain Petrov: Still, I've been a captain for years and I've NEVER seen fog that thick. Even the lights at full beam couldn't burn through it. Flying in that would've been impossible...even for me.
Crew Mem. Roger: Helm, you're going a bit too far northwest. We don't want to get too close to the mountainside. I want to avoid turbulence if we can. Please correct course slightly to the south, avoiding the mountainside, Helm. Try to put our course above the eastern Bose roads.
Crew Mem. Quint: Ba-dum-ba-da-dum. ♪ Yes, sirrrrr, understooood. Correcting course to south, bum-da-dum-da-duuuum. ♪ Ba-dum-ba-dum-baaaa-dummm. ♪ Men of the skyyyyy-yyy... ♪ Fly like crooooows, from town-to-tooooooown... ♪



Hey...is something wrong, Agate?
...It's nothin'.
You still wanderin' around the ship?
Yeah, basically.
Oh, you're from Ravennue in the Bose region, right? This'll be your first time back home in a while, then.
It's been a little while, yeah. I did stop by the old place after the queen's Birthday Celebration a while back, though.
...Hey, wait a second. Why are you assumin' I'm goin' back home?
Awww, don't be embarrassed, you big teddy bear!
You've got a little sister back in Ravennue, right? You mentioned her once.
Hehehe...You must be the biggest softy when it comes to her, huh?
Uh. Hey...
Oh, yeah, where the heck in Ravennue is your house, anyway?
I don't remember meeting any girl who stood out as 'Agate's little sister' when we were there investigating the Sky Bandits. There was a girl with Lewey, but...no, too young, and I figure your little sister's GOTTA have your hair.
I'll...introduce you to Mischa soon. Assuming we have some reason to visit, anyway.
Yeah! Please do.
And in that case, we'll have to bring Tita along, too.
Wh-Why would we have to do that?
Tita's kind of attached to you, in case you hadn't noticed! She'd be pretty let down if you didn't introduce her to your sister, you know?
...
OH! I get it!
You don't want Mischa and Tita to meet, hmmmmmmm?
Wh--
Haha! Noooow I get it!
They might get together and get in lots of trouble like Tita did with Renne, or they might get jealous of each other...
Ahhhh, being an older brother must be hard work. ♥
Oh...That's what you meant.
Huh?
Well, don't worry, I'll clean up any mess that happens. I've gotten pretty good at Tita-herding! So you just go ahead and introduce those two, um, crazy kids and I'll make sure nothing blows up!
...Yeah. Thanks. I'll be countin' on you for that.
Lemme just say this: I'm only heading back to Ravennue once we're settled with the job. Don't think you're just gonna drag me out there or something.
Oh, you jerkface.



Zosimov: That fog in Rolent was totally a kick, wasn't it? I took the chance to get out and enjoy some nature when we were docked!
I'm not surprised he doesn't remember seeing Estelle there.



Crew Mem. Nora: To your right, currently, you can view Nebel Valley. The fog around Rolent has cleared, but that area remains foggy year-round. At the end of that valley are the peaks which mark part of our border with the Erebonian Empire.



Passenger: I hope it leads to harmony between Liberl and its neighbors.



Passenger: It's very popular with fishermen, I've heard.



Passenger: And then it just...dissipated in an instant! I've never seen such strange fog in all my days!



Ahaha, more or less.
More importantly, I'm sorry. I didn't really open up about Joshua until the very end.
Haha. Don't worry.
Still, that girl with Joshua is one of the Sky Bandits, isn't she?
Yeah. She's a cheeky, insulting little punk by the name of Josette Capua. She's also the single biggest tomboy I've ever laid eyes on. And people call ME a tomboy sometimes! Pfft.
I, um, I see...
She does um, seem a bit charming, from the photograph.
Mmmm. She can be pretty cute if she keeps her mouth shut. And she did manage to play a PERFECT upper-crust girl when we first met her, too.
I'm sorry?

I...I see!
That is impressively dexterous, if I may say so.
Well, it does make sense, since she's apparently former Erebonian nobility. Putting on a face like that is her specialty, I think.
Peel away the layers, though, and like I said--at the core she's a cheeky, classless little punk.
Haha...Still, from what I've heard, I can't really find cause to hate her. I suspect that if we found a chance to talk, we might have quite a lot in common.
Yeeeeeah, I can't see that happening. We'd slide off each other like oil and water. Our personalities wouldn't fit together. Trust me.
Haha, maybe...
Hmmhmm...It's been ages since I've been to Bose, come to think of it. I think the last time was when Jill took me on a little shopping spree at the Bose Market.
Oh, um...
Kloe, you were put to sleep with us back there. Did you have some kind of dream?
I did...It was during the Hundred Days War.
During the war?
Oh, I see. That's when you were with Matron Theresa...
Yes, I was in the care of Matron Theresa during the fighting. We lived together for some time.
And...Heehee.
Um, what's wrong?
It's just that, even though it was set ten years ago, Clem and Jill both showed up. If I had stayed in the dream long enough, perhaps even you and Joshua might have appeared.
Ahaha, well, that's a dream for you. Coherence not guaranteed!
Haha, very!
Still...in hindsight, it was a little frightening.
Huh?
In the dream, I was...happy. Very, very happy. I wanted everything to stay that way from the bottom of my heart.
But...that isn't right, is it? Simply wishing to escape reality in that way.
Yeah, I know what you mean.
It's always nice to have a happy dream, sure. But...yeah, if you asked if I wanted to see that dream again? I'd be a little hesitant.
Yes...
The dangers of the Gospel...I feel like we've gotten a real hint of them.



You're really growing as a bracer!
Ahaha...I'm still kind of a newbie, I think. Like, I'm not even remotely as good with a staff as Dad.
Hmm! Well, I don't think you should worry about Master Cassius much.
An S-rank bracer is a master of their profession to a degree that they attain the unity of purpose all martial artists seek, after all. To be honest, I don't think I could attain such enlightenment even if I spent my whole life trying.
I, um, I see...
I gotta admit, it's kind of hard for me to understand how incredible my dad is, but...You mentioned 'unity of purpose,' and I think you mentioned that to Kloe at the castle. What does that mean?
Mmm...Kotowari. Yes, in Liberlian, and especially for how I mean it here, there's no...well.
I know. Master Cassius was once such a transcendent master of the sword, he was given the title of 'Divine Blade.' Today, though, he can wield a staff just as easily as the sword he spent his life training with. Why do you think that is?
Ummm...He practiced really hard?
That's part of it, of course. But more than that, it is because he could instantly understand and relate the nature of staff combat to his previous experience.
Something beyond what we call 'skill,' above practicing forms and reflexes, above muscle memory...A mental state where one can grasp the true nature of all things and control them at will...
That, and only that, is what we refer to as 'unity of purpose.'
The true nature of something...
His plan to push back the Imperial Army during your war was the same, I'd bet. He understood the nature of war--of combat--so intrinsically, so instinctively, he was able to construct the plan he did. There would be no one more fearsome as a foe.
I thought his big genius plan was just making Professor Russell come up with a weapon the Imperials couldn't possibly counter.
I get it...I think...
But...that means that even my supposedly enlightened dad was beaten, in some ways, by the society. During the coup he was lured out of the country, for starters.
Yes, they almost certainly possess someone equal to Master Cassius. It's hard to know if it's this 'Loewe' person or this 'professor,' though.
Um, could it be the guy we know as 'Lorence'? He was...pretty powerful.
Him...?
He is incredibly skilled, yes, but I'm not sure if he matches Master Cassius.
Besides...his chi. His soul. They did not have unity of purpose. Not in the way I have spoken of. He is a blade, sharpened in one specific way by the coldest frost, tempered to perfection, untouched by anyone...That is the sense I got of him in the arena, at least.
Yeah, I get what you mean.
He hasn't shown himself, but I figure he's got to be up to something...
He...did seem to have some kind of fixation on Joshua.
Yes, it wouldn't surprise me if they knew each other from Joshua's days in the society.
Between him, myself, and Scherazard, we've all got some strange ties in our past to this group. I wonder if this is the guidance of She Who Dwells Above...?
Oh, that reminds me.
Zane, you were put to sleep with the rest of us. Did you see a dream of some sort when that happened?
Mmm, yes. It was a dream of my days at the dojo.
Made me realize that Kilika hasn't changed much over the years, to start with. Even in the dream, I had to laugh at that.
Huh! So Kilika's always been...um, like that?
Yes, 'like that' is a good way to put it. I always thought it was unbelievable that she and Walter, of all people, had gotten toge--
Wha...?!
...That was a slip of the mouth.
Sorry, but forget that. Please.
Y-Yeah, sure.
Up next is Bose, the closest area to the Empire in Liberl, eh? I'd like to get a look at the famous Haken Gate some time, if we can.

*BING BONG*