Shadow and Ash

Why are each of us here, if not for our own obsessions?

Finally. I thought maybe you had dozed off.

Come on, cut me some slack. It's hard finding a good sniping vantage point.

This is it, Andoain. Hands up—

(Whispers) Here... out of obsession...

Watch out!

How does he still have enough strength left for Arts?!

How could one find salvation alone?

No, not salvation, but a life with dignity.

You come before me because of your sense of justice, and I arrived here because of mine.

It comes to myth, to obsession, to the ultimately futile crossing... the path was always beneath my feet.

Why do we place our hopes on salvation? What we have done is not for the sake of salvation.

But to save ourselves.

Have you come to your senses, Andoain? Then look me in the eye—I felt like I was shooting a target dummy.

I'll walk my own path, whether this is my mission or not.

I must thank you, Fiammetta.

You're welcome. I'll be sure to tell your friends about this epiphany at your funeral.

As for right now, you're—

I'm afraid it's not yet time for that. I still have a use for him.

Someone blew up one of the support beams. We need to go!

Who the—?!

The explosion was approved. I personally submitted the application and stamped it myself.

Oren! Why you—!

What are you doing, Oren? Is this what you came to do?

Welp, cat's out of the bag.

(Go, Andoain. I'll find you later.)

......

Fiammetta, Mostima... perhaps we'll meet again.

Wheresoever that may be, let us hold onto our obsessions.

For as you say, they are why we exist.

Please, miss, I must ask you to come down from the signboard.

I'll have to call the Guards if you don't comply.

But while we're at it, I just have to know.

How on Terra did you get up there with a wheelchair?

Where there's a will, there's a way.

That dust cloud... another explosion? There's been too many of those lately. It's starting to seem more like a fireworks show than a conference.

Um, excuse me? Could you give me a hand?

Sometimes it's easier to get up than to get down.

You must be joking! What is wrong with Laterano's crisis management? That explosion damaged my collection! I demand an explanation!

The Lateran bells are ringing for the first time in a thousand years? Was this prepared by His Holiness as a special welcome for us?

Being with you barbarians is too much to bear. If not for my respect for His Holiness, I'd—

Tell the cook to prepare dinner. I refuse to attend another Lateran banquet.

Can these people really bring change? Most of them are opportunists, at best.

Yes. This is something that only Laterano can do - Laterano, the city of miracles, forever fair and just.

Your Holiness... I will pray for us.

Rare to see you so nervous, Velliv.

I'm too old for parlor tricks. All I can do is to keep walking, as far as I can.

Your Holiness, the broadcast is ready.

Thank you.

Let my words and deeds honor my name and title.

Greetings, honored guests. I am Yvangelista XI, and I welcome you on behalf of Laterano.

We are facing a great challenge, one that threatens not just Laterano, but all nations across Terra.

As you know, our countries are built on the backs of nomadic cities.

Indeed, the advent of such cities established the very concept of the modern nation state.

In the past, a state was simply a gathering of people of similar lifestyles, huddled together for safety in the face of Catastrophe. 'National borders' were simply whatever lay within their sights.

This all changed with the birth of nomadic cities.

As is the human condition, conflict began to arise as these states interacted with each other.

Perhaps even the word 'conflict' is an understatement.

I saw the fall of Gaul with my own eyes.

The 'Capital of the World' fell overnight. Armored battleships went silent, and the Old Vanguard of Gaul was reduced to ash.

But it was more than Gaul that fell that night. It was the fall of civilization itself.

All the might of the Gaulish Emperor and his legions could not save an empire that once stood proudly as the center of all lands.

What, then, could possibly preserve our own civilization, that the people of Terra have painstakingly built, piece by piece, under the dark cloud of Catastrophe?

Laterano gave much for the war that engulfed the entire continent. Our Messengers crossed both the wilderness and the royal courts, building Laterano's reputation.

The Sankta heard your calls for peace.

But our lands had seen too many shades of this so-called peace, pooling in the dark corners of castles, palaces, and tents.

We've seen the birth of secrets, meant only to benefit a select few, that lie in wait to undermine peace and order when least expected.

The old wars of conquest may be a distant memory, but in their place we have tacit understandings and secret dealings, that determine the fates of lives and nations from out of sight.

Today though, Revelation has come.

It is my hope that the process of building peace be transparent from the very start. That we will all reject secret agreements between the few.

There are questions that anyone who does not cling to the past, anyone who is concerned about the future of this land, should be asking.

How do we ensure the survival of civilization?

How many people are endangered when peace is threatened?

What does safety for one country mean for the safety of other countries?

Civilization is key to survival. Peace is something to be shared with others, not hoarded for oneself.

As such, I call for the establishment of an accord of mutual assurance between nations.

We have far more common interests than many would imagine.

Terra must stand together, or fall together.