Something of a Homecoming

[Achkaerin]

The Cathedral was packed, which fair enough was a normal occasion given that there were many acts of worship a day due to the significance of the Cathedral as the end point of the Pilgrimage route, but this was a little different this time there were more unlikely candidates sat in the pews. At the front of the Cathedral were three chairs, only one of which was presently occupied this was by Alexis Minette, the High Priestess of the Cult of Namis, the native religion of Achkaerin. Martin had to chuckle as he led the Pope down the aisle this was going to be amusing - both Alexis and the Pope were formally addressed as 'Your Holiness'

"Your Holiness Alexis Minette" Martin said "May I introduce His Holiness the Pope." Alexis couldn't hide the grin, she'd had the odd dinner with Martin and heard the stories of the man before her.
"Good to finally be able to put a face to the name." Alexis said "Your seat is the one between mine and Martins."

With everyone seated, Martin stood up to address the assembled congregation.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Cathedral of Santiago, welcome to the Inter Faith Forum." Martin said "We were hoping to have Hannah Barker the Priestess of the Cult of Helus here today, however she has been taken ill this morning with a bout of food poisoning, so you've got myself, the High Priestess of the Cult of Namis and our special guest today all the way from the Ecclesiastical State, his Holiness the Pope who we have persuaded to participate today, the format for those of you attending one of these for the first time is a small devotional act of worship followed by a short address and then the question and answer session. And as he is here myself and the High Priestess would like to personally invite the Pope to say a few words before we open proceedings."

[The Young Pope]

The Pope happily got up from his seat as small rounds of applause could be heard from the attendees, as he rose to the podium to say a few words.

"To Representatives of different religions, May it never happen again that the religions, because of the conduct of some of their followers, convey a distorted message, out of tune with that of mercy. Sadly, not a day passes that we do not hear of acts of violence, conflict, kidnapping, terrorist attacks, killings and destruction. It is horrible that at times, to justify such barbarism, the name of a religion or the name of God himself is invoked. May there be clear condemnation of these iniquitous attitudes that profane the name of God and sully the religious quest of mankind. May there instead be fostered everywhere the peaceful encounter of believers and genuine religious freedom. Here, our responsibility before God, humanity and the future is great; it calls for unremitting effort, without dissimulation. It is a call that challenges us, a path to be taken together, for the good of all, and with hope. May the religions be wombs of life, bearing the merciful love of God to a wounded and needy humanity; may they be doors of hope helping to penetrate the walls erected by pride and fear. Thank you." Pope Peter II said before returning to his seat, waiting for the real action to begin.

[Achkaerin]

Martin stood up and smiled
"There's always something about these occasions, something special, something to be remembered that we may walk in different cultures and different faiths but we are united as one family as the human race and deep underneath that is something that matters, something that transcends barriers." he said "We begin and focus by joining in song with the hymn He Who Would True Valour See"

This was something interesting to the forum, the hosts determined the worship if they'd be in a Cult of Namis temple it would have been one of theirs, a Cult of Helus temple would have been likewise and so on. With the hymn, an appropriate choice for the venue, over Martin now had to deliver a short address before the question session, the real meat of the event, began.

"A few years ago I was asked by my daughter which person in the Bible I found the most intriguing." Martin said with a glance towards Kathryn "My answer might surprise some of you, did I pick a disciple? A Prophet? A King? No I didn't, I picked Pilate and that's the truth. The Pagan governor who holds the life of Jesus in his hands on Maundy Thursday, the one man with the power to put Jesus to death, the one man the Pharisee's need to convince. You'd think it'd be easy wouldn't you? To convince the man who represents the oppressor to eliminate a threat, but it doesn't happen that way, and that's what's so wondrous, this man, this governor asks the questions, inadvertently declares the truth and sits there and talks with Jesus and in the course of their dealings there's seemingly a lot of common ground developed between them and that's our cause here today to discuss sensibly, to talk honestly and to hopefully realize that there is far more that unites than there is that divides." he took another breath "With that said let's have a good session and we're now open to questions."

[The Young Pope]

A woman raised her hand and stood up as she proceeded to ask a question. "Holy Father, my name's Emmy Carette and am a local myself of Santiago. It's a privilege to be graced by your presence and thank you so much for visiting us. My question has to do with those who're curious about our Christian faith and was wondering how to properly answer this: Since God is all-knowing, why would he create the angel of light, knowing that angel would become the devil?"

Peter was pleased with the first question, as it wasn't that challenging so to say. "Thank you Emmy for your question, I'll try my best to answer this.

Well, Some might think that God is on the hook, in part, for the suffering in the world, because had he not created Lucifer, the “Angel of Light,” Lucifer never could have wrought the havoc on humanity that he has. Or some might think God was otherwise unloving in creating Lucifer, because had he not created him, Lucifer would not be enduring the pain of eternal separation from God. While those are understandable human reactions, they also reveal an imperfect understanding of what true love is.

First, God’s knowing something is going to happen—given his divine omniscience—doesn’t mean he’s going to cause something to happen. For example, we as mere humans still have our God-given free will in which we can choose to cooperate or not with God’s plan for humanity in general and for our lives in particular. God gives us free will to see whether we will trust him to provide what’s best for us or whether we’ll go our own way in opposition to him, as exemplified in Matthew 25:31-46.

Here we see, then, that true love is not coercive. It respects the free will of the beloved. God doesn’t let sin and death have the last word either, sending his only begotten Son to become man and redeem us all through his one sacrifice of Calvary. So he gives us plenty of opportunities to repent and walk with him throughout our lives and to accept his gift of salvation and persevere in it.

Similarly, God undoubtedly created the devil and all of the other angels good and lovingly gave them the power to cooperate with his plan or to turn away from him. Sadly, the devil and other fallen angels perfectly foresaw that their rejection of God would mean their eternal separation from him, and yet they chose to turn away from God anyway. As a result, their rejection of God was not simply radical but irrevocable. And so the blame for their eternal destiny lies with them, not because of a lack of God’s mercy, as stated in Catechism 393. Because they basically said to God, “If this is heaven, to hell with it.”

[Achkaerin]

"Every religion has their divine beings and their evil ones." Alexis said when the question got bounced over to her "Christianity has God and the devil, The Cult of Helus has a pantheon of Gods and the Underlords, in the Cult of Namis we have the Trinity of Goddess's and the Great Unspoken all created by the God Ezotl. Now why would a being we label as good create something evil? Big question that seems to run counter intuitive to what is known. But let me ask you this - in a world with no evil how would you know what was good and what was not? How would you differentiate between things such as right and wrong? How would you learn and grow as a person? If there's no wrong choice then there's no adverse consequences and therefore no mistakes. Doesn't really sound that appealing does it? I can't speak for anything other than the faith I lead so I'll answer the theological side with the simple answer - the Cult of Namis has a strong emphasis on balance at its heart, the Rhythm of Life the mystical force we believe flows throughout the world is the harmony of many different elements one of which is darkness, why is that? Because the devotion to the study of that Rhythm is to study the spirituality of the world and one must be allowed the opportunity to discover all the aspects of it."

"Shall we have our next question?" Martin asked

[The Young Pope]

A middle-aged man stood up. "How should I handle my son wanting to insult Satan?".

TYP almost chuckled hearing that question, a bit of a strange one but nonetheless he was there to answer the questions asked by the masses, no matter how bizarre they sounded. "Opposing the devil and his ways is fundamental to the Christian life. Yet I would tell your child that God does not want him to be preoccupied with the devil. In one sense, as mere human beings, we need to be sober and not open ourselves up to the devil, who is a powerful fallen angel. It is not our job to seek out the devil but to resist him and his activities, and we do so by staying close to the Lord.

When we are centered in Jesus Christ, we need not be intimidated by the devil, for Christ has conquered him. On the other hand, we shouldn’t let ourselves become unduly focused on the devil, which could occur if someone makes insulting him a regular part of their lives. St. Paul’s exhortation to the Philippians, 4:4-9, is useful here". he said opening the right passage from his pocket bible.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.
A few hours had gone by, with so many questions entering and answers exiting the mouths of the religious hosts, a pleasant occasion for the pontiff although he started to quickly become starved out and wouldn't mind some lunch with Achkaerinese nobility. When the last of the questionnaires were done, TYP focused his gaze towards the other two colleagues of his, trying to signal that the time was up for today.

[Achkaerin]

With the forum over Kathryn and Marin guided the Pope to the entrance of the Cathedral, it had been a pretty good morning
"So the plan is that you now go and have lunch with the Shearney family." Kathryn said as the trio stood in the entrance of the building "I'll come and get you afterwards, then we're off to Artaxia and then a helicopter trip to Valtheim." she looked up as a young woman wearing black shorts, a blue t-shirt and a white hoodie jogged up to them.
"Your Holiness may I introduce you to Lady Hope Shearney" Martin said
"Your Holiness a pleasure." Hope said she looked at Martin and Kathryn "Vicky got held up."
"Hope's your escort for the next couple of hours while you have lunch." Kathryn said

"If Your Holiness doesn't mind a pleasant walk through the city." Hope said, she was precluded from driving because of her medical conditions and in all honesty with the amount of footfall that took place in Santiago car wasn't really the most efficient way of moving around "We may even try to pick my older sister up on the way."

[The Young Pope]

"Glad to finally meet the first of the Shearneys...Well thanks for this forenoon, see ya soon." TYP patted Martin's shoulder and kissed Katherine bye.
He took a good look at what Hope was wearing and feeling that what he had put on wasn't exactly ideal for travelling on foot..."My dear Lady, if you could please wait a few minutes..."  Pope Peter gathered his security detail and spotted the man he was about to search for. "Ah Padre, Padre, such a good timing. So hey, may we borrow the sacristy...?" he asked while they head inside the Cathderal the voice fading away into obscurity, with staff members carrying bags following suit.

It didn't take too long before the Pope and his security detail were dressed similarly to Hope. "Apologies, had to change into something more flexible and light, the blazing heat would've made me into a soggy mess. Anyways, might as well get a move on?" Both Peter and Hoped proceeded to jog with the security following right behind, from an appropriate distance. "Hope, hehe no pun intended, you don't mind that we jog a lil' as I assume you're of the right caliber for such endurance and we'll save enough time, an opportunity to get some exercise that I haven't managed to do for quite some time...So, anything news worthy you could tell me my Lady? Everything faring well with the family?" Peter asked.

[Achkaerin]

"The family's fine, keeping as busy as always." Hope said as they jogged along, though predictably they were stopped a few moments later by autograph hunters taking the opportunity to ask Hope for hers, being a sports star came with certain expectations after all. They jogged a little further after that coming to the St Jame's House a few moments later, or to put it another way the home of the Shearney family. They arrived at the same time as Hope's older sister.

"Your Holiness." Hope said "This is my sister Vicky and judging by the look of it she's come straight from work."
"Well when you get involved in a drugs raid operation." Vicky said "Not much you can do." she still had her police vest on, though the vest also bore the cross of St James indicating that she was part of the Santiago police department, which was a little different to other police departments as it had its own Royal decree and more recently act of the Senate "Your Holiness welcome to our home."

The trio, plus the Pontiff's entourage made their way inside the grounds, heading around to the garden they found the other three members of the family waiting first up the mother, the matriarch of the family Duchess Elizabeth Shearney, she held the noble title as it were as it was her family that had ruled the land on behalf of the Achkaerinese crown for so long. Predictably her husband the Duke Samuel Shearney was on the phone to the newsroom finalising the next day's front page of the Global Outlook, a paper that Elizabeth owned. Finally sat at the garden table highlighting sections of a textbook was the last of the three daughters Charlotte Shearney.

"You're later than I expected." Elizabeth said
"Autograph hunters." Hope said "May I introduce his Holiness the Pope."
"Elizabeth Shearney, this is my husband Samuel and our youngest daughter Charlotte, I presume you've met Vicky?" Elizabeth said
"He has." Vicky said
"We've opted for cold food for lunch as it's a little bit on the warm side and we've seen the itinarary for your visit and you've got an evening meal with the Emperor tonight and that'll be something so we don't want to ruin your appetite." Elizabeth said, she indicated trays of sandwiches, salads and the like "How's your day in Santiago been?"

[The Young Pope]

Peter found it annoying sometimes when they were constantly stopped by these slimy paparazzis and the like. "These sorts of people think they can demand our precious time by walking up to us and begging for...Oh Lord, Bollocks! Look!" the Pope exclaimed as hundreds upon hundreds of slimy paraparazzi were charging towards them like overly excited Hippos. "Alright gang, we gotta get out of here pretty fast!"

"Your holiness take some of my men and we'll try to apprehend them as much as possible." The head of the Pope's security detail said.
"What...are you mad? Come along  it's..." the Pope was abrubted.
"I said GO your holiness! GO!"
"Alright alright, you two with us!" the Pope said.

Hope and Peter alongside two of the GSPT quicky jogged away as fast as possible, with the Pontiff giggling in excitement as he looked back witnessing the brave guardsmen holding the Paparazzi hoard rather suprisingly well, with a few punches and tackles here and there. It didn't however take them too long to reach the very home of the Shearney Family, meeting Vicki in the process. "Drugs eh? Speaking of which, unfortunately an aid of one of my cardinals got busted by our own Holy Inquisition, apparently a drug-infused gay orgie occured in one of the apartments close to the Vatican, got discovered after neighbours' complained about animal noises...fun times indeed" the Pope said. An issue such as this one had existed for centuries no matter how many times one tried to solve it all, corrupt clergy seemed to be a difficult scourge to get rid of, perhaps Marty could give some advice later.

He greeted the Duchess, Duke and the last of the Lady sisters as the rest of his security detail catched up to them. "Ah glad you made it in time, hope you didn't have to use guns hehe." the Pope humorously said. "Well thank y'all for receiving me in your lovely home and cold foos does sound more than appropriate for the current weather. As for how my day's been...well I suppose great; receiving questions from the faithful and getting chased by these Photo Hunters, Paparazzi...a pretty normal day like all other days hehe." 

The Pope gave it a try to spark a meaningful conversation, "So Samuel, may I hear already the latest happenings before that paper gets published by tomorrow? Your writing's quite intriguing and fascinating, one of the first things I absolutely look forward to every morning when I have my cup of coffee..." his holiness said.

"Ah Vicky making Santiago proud by dealing with the most serious crimes...who're active in the drug trade, some sort of criminal organisation that slipped my ears? Can't argue how tough that job is, one really has to have that fiery passion glowing and utter commitment!

Also Charlotte, heard that you're studying Sociology and Psychology? Smart girl, we need more competent people in these professions. I'm quite the historian, especially in military history if I have to boast a little". he said noticing the kind of litterature she was reading.

"Hope, any upcoming games? Fun to tune in the evening's sports whenever I get the chance, surely your team's doing quite well?.

Elisabeth dear...what's Santiago up for these days, any new projects worth investing in? Perhaps there's something I can do for this city..." he finally asked, waiting eagerly for the replies.

[Achkaerin]

"Santiago's been fairly quiet, usual influx of pilgrims on a daily business." Elizabeth said "Which is how we like it. Though I know my girls prefer more action than that."
"Now you're making me sound bad." Vicky said "I'd rather spend all day booking people for traffic offences than investigating the more serious stuff that happens here any day of the week but I don't get to pick and choose. Means I miss Hope's games though, don't think I've seen a game for a couple of years."

"You haven't missed much." Hope said "I did spend pretty much all of last season on the sidelines with injury." she looked at the Pope "First game of the year, caught a pass in a rather precarious position the opposition player I was contesting the ball with fell into me and I came off worse."
"You were a good study partner though." Charlotte said, at this point Samuel who'd been on his phone hung up.

"Problem?" Elizabeth asked
"No." Samuel said "Just got an unusual suggestion from one of the journalists, we'll talk about that later."
"Ok." Elizabeth said, she looked at the Pope now "We didn't know that the Global Outlook had a global audience."
"Mother." Vicky said
"Of course." Elizabeth said "Vicky has something she'd like to propose to you as an idea."

[The Young Pope]

"Oh it actually does; One of the most awaited pieces of writing and quality journalism to be read in ES during the early hours of the morning with freshly brewed coffee right next to you, gives a nice perspective on the most significant events happening globally...Have you ever thought about establishing a branch in the Ecclesiastical State? I can already tell you that we many talented young journalists that an honorable and prestigious paper such as the Global Outook would be highly interested in" the Pontiff managed to say.

"Well do speak up Miss, am curious as to what you've been planned..."

[Achkaerin]

"I sit here as the latest in a long line of people to command the Knights of St James." Vicky said "Thing is these days it amounts to essentially being the local chief of police for Santiago and the surrounding area, the department is so special we even have our own Act of the Senate dealing with us. It's sometimes a little difficult for the Order to embrace its history, and there are other knightly orders around Mundus with a rich history as well so why not once a year say bring them together for a good old traditional fair and tournament event?"

While Vicky had been talking Samuel and Elizabeth had been having a whispered conversation

"Your Holiness clearly as the paper has an audience over in ES, it's something we may consider but as the appeal exists with the online version it's simply a question of what we wish to do, as of course the equipment needed to print the paper in its usual form is expensive. So what we would propose is this, we'll open a small office in your country and we'll operate in partnership with universities there, offering those studying journalism and photography the chance to gain some experience in their chosen field sort of like apprencticeships. We may choose to offer some of the students a job after that but that is ultimately our decision. In return the ES government will provide opportunities for the students to try out their skills through interview and photograph opportunities as well as meeting half the costs of the project." Elizabeth said

[The Young Pope]

Peter clearly liked both offers, especially the first one regarding an annual knightly tournament as it could potentially bring many people closer and form new friendships while adding important international recognition to the Ecclesiastical State. "An annual tourney you say? That sounds definitely like a terrific idea; one of my favorite subjects is history and it would naturally be fun to organise a trip back to the medieval ages where everyone of different creed and color are welcome; perhaps you'd like to become the chief project manager if I decide to instigate this? I suddenly got many ideas to throw into the mix and the Ecclesiastical State would be the ultimate location to host it, considering the dedication of preserving the ancient.

I'll also share the Global Outlook Project idea with the Soubois Cabinet and see how we can proceed from there, although from what I can already gather it sounds terrific. It's about time we promote this type of quality journalism in Albion and help those who're potential by creating a stable ground for them to develope their skills and initiative to further heights." the Pope said enthusiastically.

[Achkaerin]

"Well provided I don't get a really big case I'll be happy to manage such a project." Vicky said, she went back to eating more than the others she was the one who could be called away at a moments notice, the doorbell went and Hope went to answer it.

"We'll leave the journalist matter with you, should it get support you can contact us." Samuel said

At this point Hope returned with Kathryn in tow

"I hope I'm not interrupting or that you've not got waylaid." Kathryn said
"Of course not we've had a rather fruitful lunch." Elisabeth said
"Good." Kathryn said "I'm just mindful that going by our schedule his Holiness is due in Artaxia in a couple of hours and we've got to get there."
"How exactly are you doing that?" Charlotte asked
"We're taking the helicopter." Kathryn said she looked at the Pope "Is there anything else you want to talk to them about? I can wait a little longer if you want."

[The Young Pope]

"Oh there's no need for that, I believe it's time for me to move on, though I have to say that I had such a wonderful time with you Shearneys in your humble abode.", Peter said referencing to Santiago, their private home and thanked them over and over again for their generosity and hospitality before saying their final good byes and blessings, urging them to pray for him as he would do the same, before heading with Kathryn to the Helipad, pleased with the outcomes of surprises thus far.

"So mind telling me what you were up to while I was munching on sandwiches? My visit has so far been nothing but wonderful and exciting, so many new individuals to meet and old contacts to be revived." the Pontiff commented as the helicopter proceeded to hover above ground as soon as everyone was strapped on and turn into the appropriate direction of their destination.

[Achkaerin]

"Just the usual catching up with the office." Kathryn said "There's always something going on, now let me fill you in on the rest of today, we're going to spend a couple of hours visiting the University of Artaxia it's the most renowned university in the country and one of the oldest on Mundus, there are many famous alumni including the Emperor. Once we're done there it's a quick flight up to Valtheim for dinner with the Emperor. So for the moment sit back and relax, we'll be in Artaxia before you know it."

[The Young Pope]

"Sounds good, a moment to relax my eyes for a bit." Peter said as he looked throughout the window, the helicopter preparing to hover away before he shut his eyes. "Y'know even I as a Achkaerinese still can't comprehend the type of culture we have, for some reason I find it hard to specifically pinpoint it to one specific definition compared to other countries; it must be the diverse sets of ethnicities and religions, customs and traditions that make it so, or what do you say? Maybe it's just me personally, travelling too much from one end to the other haha." the Pope inquired, interested in finding out Kathy's view on the matter, also looking forward to be meeting with his Emperor colleague, as there were a few topics he would've liked to delve into.

[Achkaerin]

"Well when you've got a nation that was originally a number of smaller ones and each in someway different you're bound to get differences, you're also bound to see a nation develop over time that bases it's identity on inclusion and tolerance, it wasn't always like this but today it's a country that knows it's identity and is proud of it. Other nations have a definitive identity you can trace back to an origin point Achkaerin has several origin points usually tribes from each hold. But if it's a melting pot you want go down to Gowu arguably the most multi-cultural city on Mundus." Kathryn said


The University of Artaxia was without question the most prestigious University in Achkaerin, boasting a host of significant alumni including the Emperor himself among others. The various colleges of the university were steeped in history, seven of them had been there since the beginning but others had come into being over time until there were now twenty five colleges across the city. Kathryn and the Pope were heading into Lady Erin's college, named after Erin Ayanami, a figure from centuries earlier. They walked through the college to one of the labs, the name 'Dawnbreaker Team' on the door.

"If you haven't heard about the university's attempt at the solar powered landspeed record you're about to." Kathryn said as she opened the door, inside the lab was a buzz of activity several discussions going on at once, in the centre of the lab sat the Dawnbreaker with some of the student team working on it.

"Minister Deed." a woman said
"Kit Davenport meet his Holiness the Pope." Kathryn said
"Nice to meet you." Kit said
"What are you up to?" Kathryn asked
"Running a few computer based simulations to generate the various power equations." Kit said "And we seem to have Luke in a good mood."
"That's Luke Ayanami." Kathryn explained "He's the member of staff who oversees all these little projects, so it would seem no one's doing really badly at least."
 

[The Young Pope]

"Ms. Davenport, a fine privilege and pleasure to get to meet a fine lady and researcher such as yourself." Peter said, charmed by the grace of Kit and shook her hands. "To you as well Mr. Ayanami...Thank you for the willingness to show a Pontiff around your beautiful facilities in this great University of Artaxia, one of the greatest prides of our nation and I'm sure it'll attract and refine the future thinkers of our time. Would you mind telling me exactly your current Projects as well as your upcoming ones? In 'plain' English, would be very appreciative hehe." Pope Peter II said.

[Achkaerin]

Luke smiled, it was probably the most common question he was ever asked, well at least by the parents of prospective students when came the time for open days.

"Well what we have is several different teams of students who do a variety of different projects for a wide variety of reasons covering a wide range of areas. You've seen the Dawnbreaker which is obviously Kit's current project. We have another team this time headed up by another post grad research student called Phoebe Scott that's pioneering the research into Graphene and its applications. Let me think what else have we got going on at the moment? There's one for the Achkaerin Space Agency trying to develop something to overcome a problem and various other smaller ones that are mainly research orientated and mostly in the medical field." Luke said "Future project wise I don't normally get a lot of advance notice of because what tends to happen is that one of the student captains as it were gets in touch with me and asks 'can you take this to the board?' normally that's an email or phone conversation but it has been known for people to knock on my door at unearthly hours in the morning having just had a 'lightbulb moment' right Kit?"

"That was Phoebe not me." Kit said

"Ah yes it was." Luke said "That was graphene wasn't it?" Kit nodded

"Anyway" Kit said "I don't know whether or not Luke's entirely answered your question, he's a little querky which is why we like him so much but it does mean he babbles a fair amount."

[The Young Pope]

"You've answered my question pretty good I must say...indeed." Peter replied in a robot-like manner as he was staring on a random spot in the room, which was when he did something a bit peculiar. "I'm deeply sorry as I hate to disrupt the schedule in such a manner, but a personal emergency needs to be taken care of quickly; if you'll excuse me, I'm sure you can entertain the Secretary of State." TYP said as he left the room in a rush with a few bodyguards leaving a perplexed Cardinal Angelo Voiello behind with Luke and the girls.

"So...ehm...you ladies free for tonight?" the Cardinal asked flirtatiously.
"Damn, where's my...*sigh* You there let me borrow your phone..." he gestured to an aide, who didn't wish to experience the wrath of a Holy Man and thus complied immediately. Entering a bathroom, TYP had to simply mak an important phone call and figure out how to fix himself as a person, clearly being Pope wasn't easy at all...with the scandals and schisms propping up as well as critics accusing him of not caring enough...he felt he had no one else to turn to other than...

"Marty...hey it's me, so listen I'd wish to meet you right now before the Emperor, I do hope you wouldn't say no to a confession hehe? Let's just say that even the highest standing of the Lord needs a bit of guidance on the right path..."

[Achkaerin]

"One problem I am a significant number of miles south of where you presently are." Martin said on the other end of the phone "And likely to be getting further south because when you're done in Artaxia you're flying over to Valtheim to meet the Emperor." he paused for a second "Ask Kathryn to take you to Saint Felicity's Chapel it's away from the main hustle and bustle of the centre of Valtheim but it doesn't force you too much out of your way. I'll meet you there."

Kit and Kathryn glanced at each other trying not to giggle, this was probably to be expected but male flirtations weren't going to cause either of them any cause for concern. Luke would normally have been concerned as well but he knew about Kathryn and Kit so he was a little more relaxed.

"Did you invite me along for dinner tonight?" Kit asked glancing at Kathryn
"It's dinner at Blue Rose with the Emperor and Anezaki Mellor's cooking." Kathryn said "Of course I invited you."
"Then there's the answer." Kit said "We're in the same place as you Cardinal so we'll have plenty of time to talk."