act42side

Hehe. Thanks, sis.

I'm sure my letters found their way to you?

Uh... yeah.

You know, I made a bet with Mamma and Tata. They said you'd major in intercity net security and become an expert in the Notarial Hall.

But I thought you'd never waste your creative mind like that. I was sure you'd major in faith assistive engineering and design a new mobile confessional that'd shock the city.

In the end, you left Laterano, just like that.

Let me be clear, sis. I don't regret it one bit.

You know I'm not the type, and I'm even less the type to let anyone hold any regrets for me.

Which is why you rushed all your preparatory courses and threw that wild graduation ceremony, right?

Heheh.

I peppered Mostima with questions about you. Your work in Lungmen, your boss, your coworkers...

I know you went to Siracusa, to Sargon, and many more places besides.

You deal with all sorts of people every day. Gangs, cops, famiglie, lords ameer... you're always on the move...

Why does my life sound so different after going through a Mostima filter?

Well, I did live a nice life after leaving Laterano. Wasn't sad or anything.

I mean, you were still bedridden then. Didn't know how you got hurt, if you'd ever wake up, and Mostima refused to say a word.

I had to know what the heck happened!

You're my sister, you know?!

But that woman, bless her heart, kept avoiding me. I got a whole load of nothing from her.

Don't blame Mostima.

You know, sis. I've been through a lot these past few years.

There's some stuff I would have never thought about, if I stayed here.

In Lungmen, Mostima was the only Sankta around, but she lost her empathy.

Texas, Sora, Croissant, Bison, and the boss... At first, I made friends with them the same way I did here.

We're all besties now, but without empathy I sometimes still can't help but worry about silly little things...

I've been trying hard to overcome that, and every time I do, our ties become a little stronger.

But here, things are different. Like right now, I don't even have to think anything to know you wanna go somewhere else to give me a big proper hug.

What kind of collective has empathy turned us into?

Does it make us more, or less sensitive to others?

Does it make us so insensitive that it's easier to accept totally outrageous change?

Does this have something to do with everything you've done since you came back?

Laterano's sick, sis, just like you were back then—

We gotta wake it UP!

El, you need to give me more than that.

There's Pontifica Cohors guardsmen right behind these doors, right? I heard them when I came into the room.

Let me guess, are you going to say 'this is your last chance...' or something like that?

If you insist on refusing to explain why you disrupted the Summit of Nations and reveal the forces backing you, the Seventh Tribunal will have to hand you over to someone else.

I don't know what kind of punishment you'll face, El.

Laterano's leniency has never applied to those who violate the Law, especially these days—

C'mon—'Apple pie with mayonnaise!'

What?

Wh-What's going on? Was that an explosion downstairs?

A terror attack?

Aren't they interrogating the terrorism suspect upstairs right now? Who else would dare to attack the Seventh Tribunal?

Automated Confessional, 'ELCARO-001', in position!

A-A mobile confessional?

Fire.

Gah, what's going on? Who let that in here? Did they not realize this one's malfunctioning?

But that's just a mobile confessional, buddy.

Gah, who thought it'd be a good idea to put so many guns on a confessional?

Alert! A mobile confessional is attacking us and attempting to rescue the suspect Lemuel.

Calling all combat units, we need backup!

I repeat!

A-Again!

Now the left staircase... blow it up and I can slow them down for a little longer...

Do you read me, El?! I'm here to save you!

Vani?

Haha! Sick idea! I never expected you to find out the secret of this confessional and use it to help me out!

I-It's nothing. It took me so long to finally realize there is something unusual with its plate number. I noticed it when you stopped it before, but I didn't think too much.

All confessionals start with 'LC', for 'Laterano automated mobile Confessional', but this one starts with 'ELC'...

She practically scanned the entire city, stopping confessionals one by one... until I noticed her.

Alright, Exusiai. Pontifica Cohors reinforcements will be here soon, and the Nurtury guards are also on the move. We need to get out now.

Coming right up!

The guards respond quickly, constructing an emergency passage upstairs, assembling to face the chaos.

Exusiai breaks the door open as the confessional speeds up toward her, blocking bullets from the Pontifica Cohors. She hops onto the vehicle, and steadies herself as the confessional wobbles wildly from her landing.

The Sankta's red hair flutters between the bullets and gunsmoke.

Confessor... uh, wait, you've been exposed, so we can go back to normal, right?

Leader, savior, Doctor! You're! So! Awesome!

There's six guns on the front outer rack.;There's three guns in here.

Feel free to use them as you please.;Do what you do best.

Vannini switched out the bullets for non-lethal ones.;As for whether they'll hurt your countrymen, I'll trust your aim.

Gotcha! Talk about perfect timing, the Seventh Tribunal confiscated my guns.

The passages on both sides are hard to break through.;We need a new escape route.

Then through the windows we go. The noisier, the better. We draw attention, and make it easier for Vani to slip away.

You won't fall apart, will you?

Hold on tight. I can't promise I won't fling you out.;I'll take the wheel, you handle our tail.

Got it. The party's about to begin, so let's show them what a perfect pair can do!

You don't know how Exusiai manages to wield so many guns at once to suppress all the Pontifica Cohors guardsmen with a hail of bullets.

You're also unsure if falling from a window this high will pose a problem back in reality.

All you do, is take her and zoom to the sky!

Divine judgment!

Rock n' roll!

Barrage!

Apple... uh, never mind! Not the best place for that.

Phew! I'm beat—

Finally shook off the stragglers. That was tight. Since when did they react so fast...?

Sure enough, you took to the roofs, El.

Always the contrarian, ever since you were little.

S-Sis?

What's with the confessional, and that girl?

Oh, just good friends of mine.

You said all this law-breaking is about waking Laterano up?

You were never the type to talk theory or explain something away with fancy rhetoric.

By 'wake Laterano up', you mean to rouse everyone in the city awake?

...It's complicated.

Look at me, El.

Yeah?

Separated by roof ridges, Lemuen looks at her sister. The sun is unbearably bright, but she said 'look at me' so gently that Exusiai does not even blink before complying.

For a long time, Lemuen and Exusiai stand unspeaking. Silence links the two.

Go.