Archive of Our Own

Mission clean-up was a bitch. After action reports, damage assessment, the managing of bereavement packages...

She did have some experience about the last part due to her earlier career, but that didn't make the paperwork any less annoying or soul draining. There were moments when she entertained the notion that paperwork had to be an invention of the 77 Devils. It's exhaustive effect on the human spirit was perfectly in line with the abilities typically associated with such gehenna spawn.

But even taking into account the general nastiness of Gralsritter management, this particular mission clean-up promised to be even more of a headache than usual.

"Whoever took this photograph caught you at your best, Ein," Rufina said conversationally, the newest edition of the Imperial Chronicle obscuring her face. "You strike such an imposing and dashing figure - any more such pictures and I might fall for you."

"That's news. I thought you're already in love."

Rufina put down the newspaper. "Between the two of us, I'm supposed to be the teaser."

"And as with every master, it's their fate to one day see their pupils surpass them," Ein said.

"You sound grouchy, Ein. I can feel it. You're radiating grouchiness like a cursed artifact."

She used her tactical orbment to lit up the eleventh cigarette since she entered her office, marveling at her newfound ease of the resonance effect. Toby truly was a genius when it came to adjusting orbments. Then she thought back to why she lit the cig in the first place and her mood soured again. "Rufina, this mission was supposed to be a simple case of busting an artifact smuggling ring. The First Dominion being featured in Erebonia's most prominent news outlet was not part of the agenda. Thank Aidios for small mercies that I didn't end up on the front page."

Rufina's silhouette glowed blue for a moment. A renewal of the protective wind art to keep the cigarette smoke from reaching her. "Yes, this might be a problem. Our usual procedures for information control won't work."

"I can just imagine the conniption Cardinal Jeremías would throw if we were to tell him the Gralsritter need to memory edit an entire suburb worth of people." Ein leaned back in her seat and rubbed her tired eyelids. "We probably need the help of the Metatron unit to cover this up."

Rufina arched an eyebrow. "Oh my. I do tell you to improve the cooperation between the different Congregations, but this is one point you usually refuse to listen to. You must be desperate."

"And as the saying goes, desperate times call for desperate measures." Ein pushed aside the remaining stack of documents in disgust. "Something about this mission doesn't sit right with me. There were too many small irregularities." She took the newspaper and looked at her picture, trying her best not to burn a hole through the paper. "It's just a gut feeling, but it's almost like I've been trapped."

Rufina sighed. "It's always conspiracies with you. Unfortunately, they always prove to be real."

"I'm still putting together the pieces." Ein took another drag from her cigarette but the nicotine refused to help. "The more I think about this, the more I'm convinced our young smuggler is the real price in this whole mess. And the implications scare me."

"Okay, Ein. It's high time for a change of pace, because I can't follow your thought process anymore." Rufina took the mission report and intel files and spread them over the table. "Let's go over everything with a fine toothed comb and this time, you explain every step. I'll be your sounding board. Two heads are always better than one."

Ein smirked. "Yes. Let's. That's what I keep you around for."

Rufina chuckled. "Happy to be of service, oh great Dominion."

"You're supposed to keep my ego in check, not stroke it."

"Not now, Ein. We have work to do."

And work they did. Step by step, they reconstructed the investigative and executive phase of her latest mission, diving through both church and broker intel with Micht's information being most prominent. Inquiries and phone calls were made and as always when Ein combined her mental prowess with Rufina's, connections and patterns she previously overlooked became clear. And what was just an ominous hunch when she arrived in Arteria transformed into a clusterfuck of such magnitude that it surprised even her.

She squashed her fifteenth cigarette into the ashtray. "This is bad."

"Are you sure about that... young man?"

"Nothing else makes sense. Why would Cardinal Jeremías and Keird ally otherwise? There's only one major policy they truly agree on." Ein pinched the bridge of her nose. "Figures. The one time the top brass of both Congregations work together, it's to sabotage me."

Rufina stood up. "Time is running out. What's our next step?"

"We go forward with the questioning. No matter the scenario, we need to confirm the true extent of our guest's unique talents. And I want a second, third and fourth opinion on him. Gunther's vast experience, Thomas's trove of historical knowledge and your preternatural intuition, Rufina. Nothing gets overlooked."

"How certain are you right now?"

"Ninety percent."

Rufina folded her arms. "Then we need a follow-up plan. Worst case, the cardinals are already making their move."

"You're right." Ein stroked her chin. "Let's split the labor. You go forward and talk to the young man. Try to win his trust. Be careful though. He's very guarded."

"While I have confidence in my negotiation skills, making an orphan and hardened smuggler open up to me in such a short time is a very unreasonable demand."

"You think it's impossible?"

"It depends. Does he trust you?"

The question made Ein pause. In some corner of her mind, she felt an unnerving certainty that the young smuggler named Toby genuinely trusted her, as foolish as it was. They reached a sort of understanding in the course of their little adventure, but Ein could for the life of her not pinpoint how this came to be. She didn't do anything special during the mission, nor did she treat him much different than she would have any other person in his position. If he were naive or sheltered, there wouldn't be any mystery, but smuggler Toby was someone who grew up on the streets. A trickster. A survivor.

"Yes, he does for some reason. I saved his life, so he probably thinks he owes me."

"Good. This makes things easier. I'll refer to you then."

"Always looking for a way to cheat."

"How else can I keep up with Stigma bearers like you?"

"True that." Ein took out a compound quartz from her orbment setup and pressed it into Rufina's palm. She then closed her finger around hers. Slowly, softly, they soaked up each other's warmth. "Give this to him and tell him the following: you are to me what this quartz is to him."

"A coded message." Rufina smiled teasingly. "How exciting. And I guess my next step is to put him under a conventum sanctis iudice?"

"Yes. You provide him with the thaumaturgical protection of Arteria's charter while I throw in my political weight." Ein clenched her fist. "And just to be sure, prepare the files from your investigation into the unsanctioned artificial stigma experimentation."

Rufina's eyes widened. "You're willing to go this far?"

Ein snorted. "Considering what's potentially at stake here, this looks like a fitting occasion. I won't let this incident end up as one of the few cases in Gralsritter history when our order has to imprison a human being."

*******************

The past two days had been both the most exhausting and most exhilarating time of his life. A job gone wrong. Jaegers gunning for his life. Fighting to kill. And of course meeting that imposing nun with eyes the color of fresh blood who entered his life like a whirlwind, upending both the tenuous stability of his smuggler life and the preconceived notions he held about the world.

He thought he was already attuned to the hidden aspects of society. Shady, criminal dealings were his territory. The place he roamed to eke out a living. And being on the wrong end of the law was just par of the course. But his flight on that beautiful white aircraft showed him just how little he truly knew, all the while soaring through the sky at speeds that boggled the mind.

Liberl proved to be the nation with the most advanced airforce, using their air superiority to beat the juggernaut that was the Erebonian army. Or so official history claimed. But that mysterious ship was faster than anything Liberl could build. He had flown more than once in commercial aircrafts and learned about the limits of military aircrafts from magazines. None came even close.

So where did the technology come from? What kind of hidden agreements and connections did the Church maintain? And the little bits Sister Carnelia told him about the role of the Gralsritter - securing live artifacts, preventing their misuse, protecting people form their unpredictable but powerful abilities... was there perhaps more to it? He wasn't the best at poker, but he knew a proficient player always had another ace in the hole, another layer to the intentions openly shown.

And the Church certainly was a player.

It was common knowledge that it was impossible to reverse engineer artifacts, but this was something he learned in Sunday School. Knowledge curated by the Church. Now that he knew they had an entire order of knights tasked solely with handling them, could this supposed common knowledge be trusted? He had handled lots of artifacts until now, but whether alive or not, they never seemed as inscrutable to him as the textbooks asserted. There was always something about them, their designs, what little he could glean without taking them apart, which spoke to him, whispered to him. Hauntingly similar to his understanding of combat orbments with their interplay of gears, escapement, quartz and orbal energy combined into a symphony of structural energy. But in the end, his job was that of smuggler. Different than his beloved orbment there was no touching the wares beyond what was strictly necessary.

Arteria wasn't quite what he expected. It wasn't so much a city but an entire interconnected complex of churches, monasteries and facilities whose functions he could only guess at. Not that he saw much of the city itself as he was inside the deck of the white aircraft, the Merkabah, with his face pressed against the cool surface of the bull glass.

The Holy City had its own airport but of course the Merkabah didn't land there. To nobody's surprise, at least not his, there was an entrance to a hidden airport about 45 selge northwest of the city limits. He wondered why there weren't sightings of unnaturally fast aircrafts making it into international headlines with all the tourists and pilgrims around, only to learn that the Merkabah had invisibility cloaking. Because of course it had.

So here he was, guided from an underground hangar to an underground facility complex. He walked through tunnels and blast doors made of polished steel, the pragmatism of the design similar to the Imperial Military. In fact, were it not for the banner of Star and Grail or the unique uniforms and habits of the squires and knights, he would've easily mistaken this place for the HQ of the newly formed Railway Military Police; a place he once saw from the inside.

But it was exactly his single experience with the RMP which told him what to expect now. A small room with a table in the center, non-transparent glass on one side of the wall and a pretty, pink-haired sister pouring them two cups of coffee.

The foreplay to an interrogation. What else did he expect really, but to get out of the frying pan and into the smoldering fire of gehenna?

The sister was, if he were honest, more conventionally pretty than Sister Carnelia. Her dimpled smile was open, friendly and had this certain mixture of maturity and cuteness tailor made to cause quickening pulses and fluttering hearts. It was the kind of smile that could easily tempt guys to commit stupid mistakes.

And he didn't trust it as far as he could throw the table between them - which wasn't very far at all, given his weak physique. He had never been one for proper workout.

"My name is Rufina Argent," she said in a melodic voice. "What should I call you?"

He raised his eyebrows at how she formulated the question. Neither 'what's your name?' nor 'who are you?'

"I'm Rooney, a pleasure."

"Rooney?" The way she said it sounded like she was rolling a piece of chocolate in her mouth. "Are you sure it's not Phil?"

A mischievous one. Only made her more dangerous. "Nah, today's a Wednesday. Phil is for weekends." He leaned forward and reciprocated her sweet smile with his own. "But you can call me Kris tomorrow."

"I'll keep it in mind, Rooney the Trickster."

Just his luck. Of course this church lady already memorized his file or dossier or whatever this super secret organization called their intel documents.

"So if I may ask, what are we waiting for? Sister Carnelia, who I assume is your colleague, insisted on dragging me here."

She sighed softly. "And knowing her, she did it literally. Please, allow me to apologize for her rough treatment."

He scratched his head. "Nah, it's okay. It was her... roughness that saved my life. I owe her. Really. And you didn't answer my question, sister."

"You're right, I didn't." She folded her hands as if in prayer. Then she focused her clear, blue eyes on him. "Did... Sister Carnelia tell you about the purpose of the Gralsritter order?"

"You mean your whole deal with artifacts?"

"Correct. I'll be candid then. In a few minutes, you'll be questioned. The purpose is to determine your aptitude with artifacts; something we're very interested in, as you surely understand."

He narrowed his eyes. "And what happens after that?"

"It depends. If you have what we suspect is an innate affinity to artifacts, there are several scenarios that could play out. In the worst case our higher-ups might order us to isolate you on this compound. Indefinitely."

A shiver ran down his spine while his mind went blank. "You would make me a prisoner."

The sister looked down as if ashamed. "Yes. There's no sugarcoating it. But understand this: Sister Carnelia is very much opposed to this. So am I. And we intent to do everything in our power to maintain your freedom."

"I don't want to be insulting here, but how much power and influence can two church sisters possibly have?"

"You flew with the Merkabah, didn't you? Would a regular church sister be allowed to command such a vessel?"

He opened his mouth only to close it again when he couldn't think of another retort. "So Sister Carnelia is somebody important?"

"Yes. She is in fact the highest ranked field leader of the Gralsritter order. She's also staunchly on your side. I'm her right hand."

He shielded his eyes with both hands and tried his best not to hyperventilate. So his situation wasn't completely screwed up. And the church sister who saved his life was an even more incredible person than he could've imagined. But could he trust the words of the person in front of him?

As if reading his mind she said: "I know you don't trust me. And I understand. But we don't have time to get to know each other the proper way." She took something out of her bag and handed it to him. To his utter surprise, it was the piece of quartz he lent to Carnelia at the tail end of their chase through the Heimdallr sewers. The one last bit necessary for her to cast the ultimate entropy art and for them to break through that jaeger encirclement.

"I am to Carnelia what this quartz is to you."

She was...

His mind was overloaded as he tried to process her words. This was his lucky charm. A compound nohval-goldia-amberl piece he created himself. He couldn't explain how it worked exactly, but as long as it was part of his orbment setup, fate, luck, chance or whatever it was called favored him. Sister Carnelia first teased him about it, albeit without malice. She then inquired about it, how this piece had accompanied him for so many years, how its creation was a point of pride for him, how often he depended on it for peace of mind.

To think that a person could be the same as his luck quartz. Perhaps this was to be expected for people who relied on others. Who didn't live their life alone.

He turned his attention back to Sister Rufina. "I think I get it. Fine, I'll try to trust you, too."

"Are you sure? In order for me to properly help you, your trust has to be genuine." She stretched out her index finger and tapped it softly against his duster, right where his heart was. "You don't need to say it, but you do have to believe it."

This was just like the time when Sister Carnelia cast that strange spell on him, shortly before they made it to the cathedral. "Is this somehow connected to your thaumaturgy?"

Sister Rufina's eyes widened. "She really revealed a lot to you, didn't she? Yes, I want us to establish a thaumaturgical contract with me being the guarantor and you being the client. I'd love to explain all the little details for you to make an informed decision, but we don't have time."

He sighed and raised his arms in surrender. "I got it. Just... go ahead. The worst thing that can happen is for the spell to fail, right?"

She smiled wistfully. "Believe me, Roony, you don't want the spell to fail." After that she unclasped the bronze medallion hanging around her neck and thrust it forward until the sigil of the grail filled out his vision.

In the name of She Who Dwells Above do I hold this piece of consecrated septium,

Space's golden glow, Consciousness' silver glow, Entropy's atramentous glow,

By your interlocking natures, bind him to the laws of the faithful,

And thus grant him the immunity of and from the faithful,

So I proclaim and so mote it be.

A strange force washed over him. A kind of warmth which calmed down the chaotic swirl of ugly emotions and dark thoughts he was suppressing. Just like that, it felt like a heavy burden was lifted from his shoulders. He looked at Sister Rufina in wonder, who smiled brilliantly at him.

"Thank you so much for putting your trust in me. I will do my utmost to live up to it."

He scratched his head. This was weirdly embarrassing. "I didn't do anything really?"

"On the contrary, you..."

The door to the interrogation room opened with three persons walking in. The first was a man in his fifties or sixties. It was hard to tell because the old priest had a body so muscular it bordered on the grotesque. Biceps as thick as his thighs. Sculpted shoulders and pecs which wouldn't look out of place on a statue depicting an ancient animistic god. The second guy looked like a typical scholar... on the surface. His posture was a little too straight, his demeanor a little too confident to belong to the kind of eggheads who never got out of their ivory towers. There was something almost militant in the way he walked, something which reminded him of a soldier's march.

There was no doubt these two were also formidable members of the Gralsritter. They smelled like senior members, but this only put the woman they flanked into starker contrast; she had lost her sister's habit and exchanged it for a cloak of crimson instead. The color brought out her eyes, their intensity capturing his attention as easily as a moth lured in by the flames. He realized she was someone special the moment they met, but with each bit he learned about her, each additional puzzle piece he was presented about the enigma called 'Carnelia', it became clearer just how special, how singular an existence she was.

"I think introductions are in order. My name is Ein Selnate, commander of the Gralsritter and First Dominion. As for my codename, you should already be aware of it." She sat down with all the gravitas of Lady Fate. "We need to have another chat, Toby, with all cards on the table."

And then, for the briefest of moments, her stern demeanor turned back to that teasing, saucy smirk he was so familiar with. She then winked.

Despite all the worries he still harbored, this gesture alone reassured him that everything was going to be fine.

*******************

Ein couldn't help but feel a little crestfallen at the change in 'Toby's' expression when they entered. The wonder he regarded her with at the end of that artifact hunt. The almost childlike enthusiasm as he flew inside the Merkabah. All of it was reverting back to the bearing when they first met: that of a shifty-eyed youth who wrapped himself in several layers of deception, misdirection and lies.

One short glance at Rufina told Ein that the task was accomplished. She could feel the subtle hum of energy between Toby and her most trusted subordinate signifying the established conventum sanctis iudice.

Another step in their careful preparations. But the young man's nervousness, which grew visibly after she made her formal introduction, just wouldn't do going forward. So for a moment, she reverted her thoughts back to that fateful train ride with the gentle sun rays tickling her cheek. An eternal moment of reprieve in the middle of an undercover mission, a thin slice of freedom she enjoyed by playing the role of a mundane sister, chit-chatting with a random passenger to kill time. She then winked.

His relief was almost palpable. Good. There were still procedures to follow and adjustments to be made to reach their desired outcome.

"Show us your orbment," she ordered.

He hesitated a bit as if deciding how obstinate he needed to be. So there was still some nervousness left. Ein knew he was an better actor than this. "Is that really necessary?" he finally said.

"Yes, Toby, it is." She inhaled deeply. "I give you my word that we'll treat your orbment with the utmost care. But I want Rufina and Thomas to have a look. They are among the best art users in the Gralsritter order."

"I'm not so sure about my supposed expertise with orbments," Rufina said.

"Right now, we don't have time for false modesty." She turned to him again. "Please?"

He scratched his head "Alright, alright. But just looking, deal?"

Ein gave a small nod. Following that, Toby put his second gen orbment on the table. He wanted to open the quartz casing first, but Ein interrupted him. "Open the back."

He hesitated again, more naturally than before, and relented. Rufina and Thomas leaned forward and peered into the innards of the device, their facial expressions similar. A narrowing of their eyes, bewilderment and then confusion mixed with flabbergast.

Thomas was the first to stop his inspection. He pushed up the bridge of his glasses. "Mr Randonneur, right? You do realize that modifying your orbment to this degree cancels your right to any warranty services provided by Epstein affiliated orbment shops?"

"Ehhh, yes, I know..." Toby let the words hang in the air, though Ein could practically taste what he wasn't saying. Not that I ever needed those services.

"This is..." Rufina turned to Ein, her soft smile vanished. "I have no clue what has been done to this orbment."

"Hey, come on. It's not like I did anything illegal. I merely adjusted it to my taste." Toby took his orbment and put it back into the folds of his brown duster. "This baby casts arts about 38-40% faster, though this comes at the cost of shock resistance. One big melee tussle and the whole arrangement gets screwed up. Oh, and big changes in ambient temperature also disrupts the gear transmission." He folded his arms. "I've been experimenting with insulating materials to layer the orbment casing with, but plastic doesn't cut it while ceramic is too expensive. And it doesn't help..."

"Wait a second!" Thomas held up his hand. "Your orbment casts 40% faster by default? And what if you add nohval cast amplifier quartz?"

Toby shrugged. "Then it's even faster of course."

"To give you a taste of what he's capable of," Ein interjected, "I watched him cast eleven consecutive air strikes with an average delay of 0.28 seconds."

Rufina, Thomas and Gunther all regarded Toby with a mixture of wonder and respect. He shrunk a little at the attention.

"Riiight. Wait? You actually stopped the time?" He asked her.

Ein smirked. "I did. It's not hard. One tenth of a second is a very long time in a life and death fight." Rufina and Thomas nodded along while Gunther chuckled. "I'd say a tenth of a second is more like an eternity, Commander Selnate."

"I... guess?" Toby looked around the table with some trepidation. "Am I the only normal one here?"

Ein and her subordinates looked at him askance. "Young man," Gunther said, "I hope this is just your poor attempt at being humorous."

Toby decided to play it smart and refrain from replying.

"To continue the questioning before we get sidetracked, " Rufina cut in, "how or where did you learn to modify orbments... Roony?"

Thomas blinked. "I thought his name is Toby?"

"Our young friend here considers names to be as clothes. Something easily changed every morning." Gunther said sagely.

Her second in command grimaced. "Am I the only one who didn't read his file?"

"I haven't read it either, just as Commander Selnate ordered."

"Then how did you..."

"Gentlemen!" Ein spoke up. "Let's stay with the program." She looked Toby in the eyes. "Your answer?"

"I'm pretty much self-taught. Or what was the fancy word for it? An autodidact?"

Thomas cleared his throat to hide his abject surprise. "You never apprenticed under an orbal engineer?"

Toby shook his head. "I worked in an orbal shop when I was little. Cleaned the store and the equipment, but that was the extent of it." His face darkened. "The owner never taught me anything. Most of the time, he couldn't even be bothered to pay me."

Ein felt how Rufina and Thomas became unnerved though they hid it well. Only Gunther kept his cool which was as expected. She glanced at Thomas. "It's time. Show him."

Thomas looked at her with an expression of silent protest. Of course he'd consider their next action controversial. It was the opposite of what the Gralsritter were supposed to do. But orders were orders. He raised his hand and released the partition, revealing an object of filigreed gold and interlaced silver surrounding a round surface of non-reflective black. Ein heard Toby suck in the air sharply at the sight of it.

It was just as well he did. This was an artifact. A live one.

"What can you tell us about this object?"

"Well, it's probably an artifact."

She leaned forward, shortening the distance between them, watching his pupils dilate. "And?"

He started to perspire. Sweat was forming on his palms and forehead. Ein could smell the mounting panic despite all the reassurances he was provided. The moment of truth was inching nearer and nearer.

"What can I say? Everybody knows artifacts are black boxes, right?"

"Rufina, please present the list from Micht."

Toby's eyes widened and his face contorted from the betrayal he no doubt felt. "Micht ratted me out?"

Ein sighed. "It's his job to rat you out. Among the many roles he plays, Micht is a church plant. He's our insider into the wider network of artifact smuggling. You surely know the saying: it takes a thief to catch one."

"Though whether deliberate or not," Rufina added, "Micht has been covering for you. His bookkeeping only registered you as an orbment smuggler. But digging deeper reveals this was a cover for the most prolific independent artifact smuggler of all - you." She inhaled deeply. "Over a period of four years you transported 187 artifacts to various buyers of means. "

"Since the Congregation for the Sacraments began to collate case reports," Thomas continued, "statistical analysis tells us that roughly a third of all smuggled artifacts are live ones. And in about half the cases when any person comes into contact with a live artifact, it leads to possession and accidents, often associated with either injury or death."

The numbers coalesced instantly in Ein's mind. One divided through two to the power of sixty-two point repeating three. "The chance for you to have never encountered any mishap with an artifact is very close to zero," she said with finality. "Except if you know better than anybody else what you're doing, Toby." She gestured to the object laying on the table. "Now tell us what you can discern about it."

So he did while the room held its collective breath. He pointed out features, visible or invisible, that only the foremost church experts were supposed to tease out of any artifact. Often at the risk of life, limb and sanity. After three minutes of Toby rattling down the properties of the Spectral Mirror of Ezer, Ein called an end to the interrogation and led Rufina, Thomas and Gunther out of the room.

Even the Roaring Lion, the most veteran among her Dominions, looked slightly shaken.

"What's your assessment after the questioning?" She asked Rufina, Thomas and Gunther. "Don't hold back. I want your honest opinions."

Thomas and Gunther looked at each other. It was clear their thoughts aligned. It was Thomas who spoke up. "To put it succinctly, this young man might be the second coming of Professor C. Epstein."

Gunther folded his arms across his barrel chest. "I met Epstein personally and their similarities are striking. Not just in regard to their innate talent for... forbidden technology. Their demeanor, their spirit. They even look similar."

Thomas pushed up his glasses. "You think this might be a case of reincarnation?"

"Reincarnation is possible?" Rufina blinked in surprise.

"There are some rare cases in recorded history," Thomas explained. "It connects to the deeper secrets of the world, something the higher-ups really don't like people to know about."

"There are many things the top brass doesn't want us to know," Ein said acidly. "Rufina can keep a secret, Thomas."

"Which is why I'm so candid about this. But back on topic - this presents us with a problem."

Rufina touched her arm. "Is this what you meant back in the office, Ein? The reason why we have to imprison him?" Ein nodded grimly to play along with their little farce.

"Why do we need to resort to such a drastic measure?" Barkhorn asked. "Whether reincarnation or not, we can come to a similar arrangement like we had with Professor Epstein. And considering the threat of Ouroboros, the Church could certainly use the innovations of another singular genius."

Like the engine of their Merkabahs derived from the 'Wheel of Heaven', Ein thought bitterly. "Gunther, you know the Pontifical Commission has been worried about the speed of technological progress. Their general consensus is that Epstein was given too much free reign back in the days. I fear they won't grant the same arrangement to Toby because they don't want to risk a second orbal revolution on top of the one we already have."

"His abilities aren't something we can keep secret," Thomas said. "But I agree with Gunther otherwise. We provide him with a stipend and special recommendation to work at the Epstein Foundation. An honor a lot of talented youth will never receive in their life."

"Isn't it presumptuous of us to think that Rooney is going to jump at the first opportunity to become a researcher?" Rufina interjected. "He is first and foremost a human being with rights. Before we go over his head and decide his career trajectory for him, it behooves us to learn about his own aspirations and needs."

Gunther nodded. "Rufina is correct. No matter his abilities or their momentous repercussions, we ought to respect his free will."

Thomas took off his glasses and massaged his brows. "As much as I'd love for us to take the ethically sensible route, members of the Pontifical Commission are going to oppose our stance. Are we prepared for this?"

Ein felt her lips widen into a grin and given how Thomas and Rufina were looking at her in trepidation, it was one of her nastier expressions. Well, she couldn't help it. She always enjoyed a good challenge and with the way things were developing, some of the more problematic higher ups had given her the perfect opportunity to put them in their places.

"Believe me, we're prepared. Rufina, return to Toby and explain everything you haven't yet covered, considering he's your client now."

"At once, Ein."

"Gunther, contact the Captain of the Papal Guard. I think he'd be very interested to weigh in on the Gralsritter's and certain cardinals' differences in opinion."

"Understood, Commander."

"Thomas, you stay with me." She took out a stack of documents. "Put these in one of your partitions, please."

"Why am I not surprised you're already on the warpath?" Thomas grumbled. "Dare I ask what kind of explosive documents these are?"

She laughed. "Explosive enough to shake up the current power structure of the Holy See. And I will make it very clear to the top brass that I'm not afraid to disclose them if we're pushed."

*******************

The moment Sister... no her name was Ein, something he'd have to get used to. Probably just another alias. After all, like recognized like. And the moment she left the room with her subordinates, he activated the improvised listening device he smuggled into her orbment. Though it was more accurate to say he configured Ein's quartz and energy transmission setup, turning her orbment itself into a wiretap.

What he heard was both shocking and reassuring in equal matters. Although he only understood about half of what Ein and her subordinates talked about, it was clear now that Sister Rufina had been completely straight with him. While one part of him was utterly confused by the Gralsritter's assertion that he was the second coming of the Epstein another part of him was simply overwhelmed.

In his entire life until now, which he lead by relying on himself and himself only, he had never pictured anybody standing up for him. It was both exhilarating and frightening. But now that he was experiencing it he wouldn't want to miss it for the world.

He was so engrossed in what he learned that he only realized Sister Rufina's presence several seconds after she entered the room. He jerked up in surprise and did a poor job trying to hide the headphones he wore, though he gave up midway when it became clear the woman in front of him wasn't fooled in the slightest.

"You couldn't be more suspicious if you tried, Roony. Reminds me of all the nights I caught my little sister trying to raid the pantry."

"You have siblings?"

"Oh yes. A very adorable little sister. Her name's Ries. There's also a young man whom we, well, picked up from the streets, I guess."

He arched an eyebrow. "This sounds kind of suspicious."

"It does, doesn't it, if told out of context." She tilted her head. "You remind me a little of him."

"I do?"

"Yes. Though we don't have time to talk about my private life right now. I'm here on Ein's behest to explain our next steps and what the thaumaturgy cast between us entails. But first, kindly explain what you're doing with these headphones."

He had already decided to trust her, so he explained his improvised wiretap setup. To his continued surprise, Sister Rufina broke out in laughter.

"Planting a listening device on the one and only First Dominion. By the goddess, you really are amazing with orbments." She continued to laugh until she finally caught herself. After wiping a tear from her right eye, she said, "This is actually useful. Ein will confront the cardinals soon and listening in on their conversation will give us an advantage."

He scratched his head. "Why's that?"

"The thaumaturgy I used confers a special immunity which protects you from any action by Church members that contravenes the laws of the Arterian charter."

It took him a moment to digest these words. "Okay. Besides the disturbing bit that church people violate their own rules, who's to say these cardinals won't use a loophole to imprison me? I mean, smuggling is a crime..."

Rufina smiled a sweet smile which was at the same time weirdly menacing. "They are welcome to try. But as it so happens, I'm a trained inquisitor."

"A what?"

"An Inquisition is a court process based on Church Law and inquisitors like me execute said process." Her smile became wider and even more menacing. "In the end, it's just a fancy name for legal personnel of the Church. And be assured, we will be the ones to exploit legal loopholes. Now, I think this is a good time for you to show me how your listening device works."

He swallowed. "You are one scary lady."

"Considering who I work for, I'm in good company."

*******************

Ein met Gunther and the Guard Captain in front of the central basilica with Thomas in tow. She greeted August Lasrovcik with a curt nod. "Thank you for making time to accompany us."

The tall man went into parade rest, putting his gleaming body armor on display. "Understand, Commander Selnate, that the only reason I'm here is on the strength of Master Barkhorn's endorsement. The rumors floating around you don't paint a flattering picture."

She held herself back from rolling her eyes. "Then today might be a good opportunity for you to let go of preconceived notions."

"Perhaps. If the goddess wills it so." He straightened. "I believe we have an appointment with Cardinal Keird?"

"Something like that." They entered the holy building hewed of marble and granite and arrived at the cardinal's office without incident. Cardinal Jeremías was also present which was just as expected. Though judging by the surprise on their faces they certainly didn't expect her to be here already.

Always take the initiative when opportunity called. Proper offense was the best defense.

"Your Excellencies, a pleasure to see you." Ein said smoothly. "I'm here to report on the results of my latest artifact retrieval mission."

Cardinal Keird narrowed his eyes, his gaze focused on Lasrovcik. "Guard Captain, your presence is not needed here. Kindly return to your duties."

"With all due respect, that is a mistaken assumption, your Excellency. I was asked to serve as a neutral observer, a role well within the purview of the Papal Guard." Ein saw the glimpse of a sneer on Keird's face which he smoothed over immediately.

Cardinal Jeremías sighed. "I don't know what you've planned this time, Commander Selnate. But please, begin your report."

"Gladly, your Excellencies." Ein straightened her posture and clasped her hands behind her back. "The 'Sinner's Gauntlet' has been secured and a mid-sized artifact smuggling ring busted. By collating guild intelligence and economic forensics, we followed the trail through several shell companies and legal cut-outs to the true source of the money: Count Krishnard, an affluent but lesser known noble from Nortia who amassed a fortune during the last two decades by being a shareholder of the Urius steel processing company, recently bought out by the Reinford group. From what we've learned so far, the Count shows signs of artifact possession syndrome. Patriarch Sigmar is already in discussion with Emperor Eugent to have Krishnard stripped of his privileges and legal protections. Dominion Number IV and XI are on stand-by with three knight platoons to take him into custody the moment we have the political go ahead."

"Two Dominions? Three knight platoons?" Cardinal Jeremías rubbed his forehead. "Is such a show of force necessary?"

"Yes, your Excellency. The count is what we Gralsritter classify as a hoarder. If the invoices we used to track him down are accurate, he has collected between 30 to 40 artifacts. If even a tenth of those are alive, it would make the man's mansion a hazard zone."

Keird cleared his throat. "Well, it is good that the Congregation for the Sacraments is following its Aidios given duty, but is there a reason to conduct this briefing inside my office?"

Ein let go of her inhibitions and presented the man with her biggest shit-eating grin. "I thought your Excellency would be very interested in the second part of my report. It concerns a smuggler whose witness statements aided my investigation into Krishnard's... malfeasance. After all, it was due to this particular smuggler that Sandalphon decided to meddle in Gralsritter business."

Guard Captain Lasrovcik cleared his throat. "I hope you have a good explanation for this, your Excellency. Spying on our own people shouldn't be done lightly."

"I am well aware of this," Cardinal Keird snapped. "But I'm within my rights to believe that our vaunted Commander Selnate merits such scrutiny. After all, in order to stamp out heresy caused by the siren's call of Aidios' gifts given too early, she employs those same heretics thirsting for the touch and power of artifacts."

She chuckled. "So this is your justification? You direct internal Church intelligence at me and my subordinates because we're too good at our jobs? Or has it escaped your Excellency's notice that the number of successful retrieval missions has increased by 40 per cent since we've systematically made use of plants and double agents embedded in the black market?"

"Results are not everything, Commander. Seeing one of the Church's most honorable and powerful units cavorting with criminals will breed skepticism. It will breed doubt as to your integrity. Which leads me to my next point: why have you authorized one of this smuggling filth to set foot within our Holy City?"

Ein walked towards Keird's office desk, slowly reducing the distance between them. "You know perfectly well why I've brought him here, your Excellency," she said, enunciating every word. "But let's end this little charade and get to the point. I performed a questioning together with Thomas Lysander and Gunther Barkhorn. After going through the proper test, we believe unanimously that the young smuggler possesses the innate knowledge to both handle artifacts and reverse engineer them."

Cardinal Jeremías stood up from his seat. "What's the meaning of this? Commander Selnate? Keird?"

So her superior wasn't aware of the true depth of this twisted game? Though there had to be at least some complicity. Keird wouldn't have risked siccing Sandalphon on them without prior agreement with the formal head of the Gralsritter.

Cardinal Keird folded his hands as if in prayer. He looked at her with hard, stony eyes. "Then I expect you to do the right thing, Commander Selnate."

"And what would this right thing be, Cardinal?"

"Isolating him from wider society of course."

Cardinal Jeremías stepped between them. "You will explain right now what this is all about!"

Ein folded her arms. "What happened was that internal Intelligence screened our black market contacts, which is when they came upon one of our key plants: Micht. By analyzing his financial ledgers, they stumbled upon irregularities which made them realize that an unassuming youth wasn't an orbment but an artifact smuggler. Following this they allowed their intelligence to leak through, putting me, the strongest Gralsritter, on the trail both in the hope of cleaning up house and flushing out said artifact smuggler. As it so happens, the young man is extremely slippery." She started to pace.

"That's where internal intelligence and by extension Cardinal Keird's plan went astray though. They banked on me treating the smuggler like just another criminal who I'd throw to the proper authorities on the first opportunity. And once he was detained inside a holding cell of the RMP for orbment smuggling, Sandalphon could swoop in and make him an offer he can't refuse. Except I didn't act as they expected. I realized this wasn't the first time he carried a live artifact. I started to dig through the documents too, and sniffed out the double agents in our midst."

"And now that everything is out in the open," Keird said sardonically, "I hope you will order Commander Selnate to detain the young smuggler, Jeremías. We already discussed this. The state of politics. What rapid technological progress has done to the world. Just look at the Hundred Days War and realize that this is merely a prelude, a foretaste of what nations can potentially unleash unto themselves." He slammed his hand down. "We can't have a second Epstein disrupting everything further. I refuse to risk it and so should you."

"This is..." Cardinal Jeremías wiped the sweat from his forehead. It was in this moment that the office door opened. Rufina and Toby entered the increasingly crowded room with exceptional timing, her right hand smiling like the canary that ate the cream.

"Who are you and what are you doing in my office?" Keird shouted.

"Rufina Argent, knight of the Gralsritter and assistant to the First Dominion."

"Toby Randonneur." He looked out of his element, but then his demeanor hardened. "The so called smuggling filth who's now contaminating your halls."

Ein did her best not to laugh at his attitude. And the way he phrased it... very curious.

"As for you, Cardinal Jeremías," Rufina said, "there's no need for you to fret over this decision, because it wouldn't make any difference."

"A lowly knight has no right to speak in such a manner among her betters," Keird snapped.

"You, Cardinal, will address me as Inquisitor Argent. And as of today 4:38 pm, Toby Randonneur has consented to become my client under the conventum sanctis iudice."

Ein watched in satisfaction as Keird's face turned ashen. "As you no doubt know, your Excellency, the one person who can overrule a conventum sanctis iudice is the Pope himself. The only other way to circumvent it is to act in accordance to the Arterian Charter."

"Article Nine," Rufina continued, "which states that no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile. Additionally, Cardinal, your covert action against my client also violates Article Ten. Both by denying him a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal as well as failing to issue a criminal charge against him in the first place. Your justification for robbing him of his inalienable right to Freedom of Movement is based on what my client might do in the future, not a crime he committed in the present. As you should know, pre-crime goes against the very foundation of every justice system on the continent. As such, you don't have even the vestiges of a case."

Keird was visibly shaking now, both of his fists clenched in rage. "I see now, Commander Selnate, that you're intent to push this issue while blinded by your intransigence. So be it then. Let his Holiness decide on the matter. He is well aware of the dangers of unmitigated progress. The proliferation of deadlier and deadlier weapons. I believe he will give us an exemplary showing of his judiciousness. He will see the path toward the greater good."

Cardinal Jeremías was struck speechless. Guard Captain Lasrovcik meanwhile just furrowed his brows. "Now I understand why I was called here. This is a highly unusual situation."

Thomas palmed his face. "Understatement of the century, Captain."

Ein pulled out a stack of papers and threw them on Keird's desk. "If you want to escalate this to the very top, be my guest." She smirked. "But if you do, consider that his Holiness will also learn of your involvement in this. I fear your platitudes about the greater good will fall a little flat in context of your past transgressions."

The man's expression completely derailed after he skimmed through the documents. His voice started to panick. "How? When? This..." There was a movement of his left arm, but Ein stopped him by speaking up. "Don't. Even. Try. This is just a copy. The original documents, the original evidence, is at a place you cannot reach." She did her best not to glance at Thomas while saying it.

Keird slowly lowered his arm which was no doubt holding a combat orbment. His face was that of a defeated man. "You will rue the day, Selnate, when you decided to cling to sentimentality. To cling to cheap ethics. Sometimes we need to steep ourselves in evil to do what is necessary. I thought a person with your background would understand this."

Ein scoffed. "It's because of my past that I understand the danger of becoming a monster to fight the monsters. In the end, we turn into our own worst enemies. Watching Georg Weissmann join Ouroboros, while you enabled his artificial stigma research from the shadows, should've clued you in." She turned her back to Keird and looked over everybody present until her gaze finally rested on Toby. He was staring at her in open wonder. "Gentlemen, Rufina, we're finished here. Oh and Toby? We need to talk. My office, now."

*******************

He felt like he was finally allowed to breathe again. And here he thought being nearly killed by jaegers was the height of excitement.

"How are you?" asked Ein, her voice surprisingly soft as she talked to him from across her office desk.

"I don't know. I really don't. What should I think? What should I feel? I mean, until yesterday I was just a nobody. And now..."

"It's okay to be confused."

"I didn't just dream it all up, did I? What was said in that office? If you didn't make that cardinal back down, would I've been brought before the Pope?" He shook his head. "I never thought... I mean, transporting artifacts was just a job."

Ein sighed. "This is one reason I need to speak with you, Toby. As of now, you're a free man. But before we let you return to the outside, there are two conditions."

"Of course there are." He put up a weak smile. "Just lay it on me, Ein."

"The first condition is that I regularly keep an eye on you in the future. Cardinal Jeremías, my superior, insisted."

"Okay, what does this mean exactly?"

She leaned back in her seat. "It depends, which leads us right to the second condition. You need to leave your current job. We're willing to both overlook and shield you from criminal charges regarding mundane orbment smuggling, but there's no way we will continue to overlook what you do with artifacts."

He lowered his head. "Figures. So I need a new job?"

"Yes. And if you were to become part of the Gralsritter under my command, we would kill two poms with one stone."

He thought a little about this option but after a while he shook his head. "Sorry, I don't think I want to do this. After what I witnessed today, what your higher ups are willing to do in the name of the greater good..."

She nodded. "Understandable. You've taken a glimpse at the well hidden underbelly of the Septian Church. There are few even among those serving the goddess who know of its existence." She started to tap her fingers on the desk. "Would you be interested in becoming an Epstein researcher instead?"

"I don't know. Tinkering with orbments all day sounds fun, but what that cardinal said - it kinda weighs on me."

He heard her humming in agreement. "It is a complex problem, although this is no justification for violating your basic rights."

"I..." He paused, suddenly feeling awkward. "Why? Why were you willing to go this far? I'm just a washed up orphan. A criminal."

"You are someone special, Toby." He heard the rustling of clothes, saw her walking around her desk and sitting down, right beside him. He became very aware of her presence. "Never let anybody tell you otherwise. Especially not yourself."

He chuckled weakly, wondering how fate allowed him to meet such an amazing person. "Thanks, really. You didn't answer my question though."

"What would you like to hear? That it was the right thing to do? That I didn't want to risk a person with your abilities to develop deep resentment toward the church?" She leaned back on the sofa, her voice wistful. "Perhaps the reason is simple. Straightforward. I know what it's like to be imprisoned and I didn't wish such a fate on anybody else if I could help it."

He blinked. "A prisoner?"

"In a sense. Or more like a leashed hunting dog. Do you know what each of us swear the moment we're inducted into the order? I pledge to offer my soul to the Goddess above, and both body and blood to Her church on earth."

"This sounds... pretty grim."

She chuckled. "It is. But given how powerful we are, especially Stigma bearers like Dominions, it's only natural for those weaker that they want to put as many chains on us as possible."

"This sounds so unfair. Why would you put up with this?"

"Because we're capable of great violence. And violence without purpose is just barbarism." She sighed. "But now that you know a little about my burden, you should stop feeling bad about tying me down." His eyes widened as he realized how Ein read him like a book. "Keeping an eye on you is one of many chains, one of many obligations, promises and oaths which bind me. And honestly..." She faced him fully and smiled, "I think it might be an obligation I'll enjoy. Do you understand Toby? You're not alone anymore."

All he could do was look at her smile while failing to parse her words. It wasn't the saucy, sultry smile she showed when she posed as Sister Carnelia nor the confident, at times almost feral smile she displayed when dominating every room she entered as the Commander of the Gralsritter. This smile looked carefree, almost innocent. There was a loosening in his chest, a vise unwinding around his insides which he didn't even know existed. Something dripped down his face, stained his duster. He looked around, confused as drops of water continued to fall, confused as a sob wracked his body. It was only when he felt her arms around him, when he stretched out his tongue to taste the saltiness, that he finally understood he was crying. And wrapped inside this cocoon of warmth and compassion, inside the protection of the strongest and most valiant person imaginable, he let loose what was denied to him, what he had denied to his heart for far too long.

All Ein did while holding him was whispering softly, reassuringly, as he, the lone, paranoid wanderer without an identity allowed himself to bare his emotions to somebody else. And even as his tears continued to stain the fabric of her uniform, somewhere in a tiny part of his consciousness, there was a whisper, sweet and innocuous, telling him that everything was going to be all right.