Micaela opened the door to the Blessing building, peeking in carefully in case any surprises lay inside. The corpses littering the grounds had been bad enough, and while he was cool, Rashawn had frightened her. After finding the Numbers earlier today, she didn’t think she could handle anything else. She waved King to follow her as she slid in, letting out a breath when lights came on, revealing nothing. She turned to give him a thumbs-up, but he was already moving to one of the consoles.

“I still can’t figure out how you deduced that I’m an acolyte.” She said after him.

“Your timeline doesn’t add up with what we know about the world.”

She considered that. She came here eighteen years ago when she was six. Sure, she didn't remember having to survive outside, but that could be chalked up to her being at a young age. He said his deduction wasn't based on the book, but something was missing that she couldn't grasp. Her timeline didn't line up...What could she remember before Darkness Day? She was out with her parents, and shadows suddenly flooded the city. She was six at the time. Was Darkness Day not eighteen years ago?

“When did Darkness Day happen?”

“Twenty-two years ago, according to Judge. If you’re really twenty-four, you should have been two at the time; likely too young to become a Gray. I could believe you don’t remember survival, except that wouldn’t cover the four years you spent out there.”

“So I was six from the moment Darkness Day happened to the moment I got here because...? Grays don't age?" King answered with a nod.

Another Castle Cerulean secret, making her heart heavy. Had there ever been a moment of truth inside these walls? She sighed; there was just more to get to the bottom of.

“So I gotta ask, what are you planning to do in here?”

"Link up to the Luster. From what you said this room is where you promote people to higher Sectors. I suspect that means it has a way to access God’s light.”

"Yeah, that sounds about right, but will it affect you?" She still didn't quite get what a Dark Disciple was but it was clear they couldn't connect with God. She still remembered her first time in Two. It was like the air itself was suffocating her, as something else wrapped tight around her body. Francis assured her it wouldn't last much longer, but ten minutes felt like ten days in the meantime. She later learned it had something to do with proximity to God's power. One was the closest, but Two felt it like the base of a waterfall.

“No. I don’t think it will.” He held up his remaining two Halos. “But it should affect these. I think it will cause a reaction in my Luminance band too. New Dawn created this and the armor to make their version of Lightbearers but didn’t complete them. I've been thinking about that phrase. Did they bear their Light or the Light of the Gods?"

He had been stingy with most of his knowledge, but they had at least talked about that. There was a machine in the mobile lab that she could use to make soldiers stronger. It was temporary and could deplete a halo or battery if used too long, but the power boost would help in dangerous situations. Using his terms, it, "made the Luminance brighter." It made the soldiers more capable, and the Enclave had a version called Luminance Amplify. Both were reactive measures, but New Dawn seem to want a proactive option. According to the Numbers, they'd need it.

“I’m guessing God’s light.” She nodded. “So I assume you want to what...capture it?”

“I certainly have the tool for it, don’t I?” He drew her eyes to the halos again.

“Well, step on the platform! I have no clue what I’m doing, but I bet you’ll be fine!” She sat down and King obliged.

To her surprise, entering her login information brought the interface up. An app filled the display with a six-pointed star overlaying a body’s diagram—empty boxes awaiting at each point. As King stepped upon the platform, single digits filled them; a separate value wrote across the center. With familiar ease, she changed the numbers until she felt it was right and watched a counter tick down from ten. She imagined what Francis might do if this was someone else. The six boxes were static, but she was certain they were supposed to change. The console beeped and a realization struck her before she pressed the button. It would make the machine activate, but change her future as well. Once it was pressed she couldn't claim she was forced into the role. Her heart screamed that she shouldn’t do it, but her mind was the one at the wheel. She pressed, and a rod lowered. King held the halos up. They unfolded and shined, making rings around a ball of light. It reminded her of an atom, and the unreadable marks making the third ring only brought the image home. Something about that didn't seem right, but King wasn't remotely bothered. Instead, he stepped back, holding his hand out.

“Luminance Condense.” He called. It shrunk small enough that he could grab it in a hand. He reached to do just that, only for the atom to expand with a sudden burst. A blue man filled its space, looking at his hands with an impressed smile. King and Micaela stared on in shock, almost as surprised by his appearance as they were by the symbols on his body.

“Using the halos and the Condense command to draw power out. I have to say, Dr. Gupta, I thought New Dawn was gone, but it seems you were still at it in the lab.” His hands dropped, and his smile went lopsided. “Ah, but this isn’t New Dawn, and while your armor certainly looks familiar, you’re not with them, are you?”

“Who and what are you?” King asked.

“You may call me Khalaf. As for what I am, I guess it depends. New Dawn had a name for it, Refracted Harbinger, but I haven’t been that for a while. I guess you could call me a prisoner instead, but I prefer you see me as an observer. I suppose I need a title to go with that…let’s say, the Teal Chronicler.” Khalaf took a bow. “Enchante, but who and what do I have the pleasure of meeting?”

“My name is King.”

“I like it.”

“If you know New Dawn then you know of the Enclave too.”

“My former home in this horror world!”

“Then you probably know about the children the scouts brought back.”

“Ah, the special ones. And you’re one of them.” Khalaf looked around. “And you’re in Castle Cerulean.” He looked at Micaela. “With one of their people.”

“We decided to call people like me Radiant Acolytes.”

“A fantastic choice, how very New Dawn of you. It works as well for what you are and what all of this is.” His eyes went back to King. “But I have the feeling you didn’t intend for this summoning to happen.”

“I didn’t. I was attempting to acquire a portion of the Cerulean God’s Luster.”

“Then you are very fortunate that I was around. That wasn’t a bad thought, but things are a bit complicated here.”

“Which means it’s great we summoned you, because I have questions.” Micaela drew him back.

“I bet you both do. Which means I’m the perfect person to talk to. There are stories here in Cerulean. The Girl from the Lost Land. The Doctor who sought God. The Ancient Loyalist Bloodline. And of course, The Cerulean Arbiter. Where should we even start?”

“What do you know about the Arbiter? What do you know about Castle Cerulean?”

“What do you know about the Fall of New Dawn?” King added.

“These stories are connected, so you’re in luck. Starting with you, girl,”

“Micaela.”

“Micaela, yes. What is the Almighty Want?”

“Gods plan for the people of Cerulean. Through work and prayer he shall acknowledge us, leading us through the dark to a promised land. Each section tells us of a time he’s done it before.”

“And each section says it starts with a king. The Priest King Otto Ludvig Klein—bearer of gods word, bringer of god’s wish. Otto Ludvig Klein shall lead us to the promise land. It is a name so prestigious that only the Arbiter himself can bestow it.”

“So you already know what the Almighty Want says. I don’t see why you asked me.”

“Because you live under the rule of the fifth Otto, but when was the first one born?”

Micaela shrugged. “I never thought about it. I just know they’re an old German family. Are we talking pre-Rome?”

“By a bit, yes. The Arbiter witnessed the death of a neighboring pantheon and chose the first Otto so that it may never happen to him.”

“Isn't a Pantheon what we call the group of the first attending to a Luster?” King held up a hand. Khalaf nodded.

“You’ve done your homework, good. Yes, though by the time the word reached the modern age, it had long change to refer to the gods of a religion. That’s simply the power of the Luster after all. With so much to it, it’s hard not to spawn more than one. The Arbiter reasoned that the pantheon died because of that, and sought a means where he may never meet that fear.”

“So purifying isn’t quite right, is it?”

“You mean the purpose of Castle Cerulean? Yes and no. Purifying is an excellent way to look at it. When people are sacrificed to the Luster, it becomes malignant. When people worship it though, it diffuses. You get Gods of War, Medicine, Pleasure, Pain. You’d find it funny how many Gods can be born of one Luster. All Blue, but different shades.”

Micaela brought her hands together as her eyes narrowed. “What you’re saying is that we’re making the gods, but there's like 80,000 people here. That'd be a lot of them."

“That’s a lot of food. People in three don’t make the gods, they provide material. The pasta for the dish you know, not what you think of when you say spaghetti. Two cleans up after them, and One is what feeds the Arbiter.”

King grimaced as the words flowed through his ears. “If they’re feeding this arbiter, does that mean they’re trying to make their own God Eternal?”

“Say what now?” Micaela looked at him.

“He figured it out. And now you see how this tale goes. Once upon a time, the Arbiter spoke to someone who could see him, saying he knew the world would one day end. The two made a deal, Otto Ludvig Klein would strive to keep the Arbiter alive and help him grow, and in time his bloodline would rule god’s world.”

“How do you come into this picture then?”

“Cerulean’s not the only place with deals and plans for gods. I fell into an unfortunate trap and when my captors were slaughtered, my vessel was brought to Cerulean. These marks upon my body makes it impossible to eat me, but I was never on the menu. I’m more of a magnet, or to stick with the analogy, bait for the meat. Inside, the Sectors make the food, but there’s plenty more out there too.”

King’s eyes narrowed with understanding. “In the Overcast...how many shining hearts are out there?”

“I couldn’t say, but I can say this. These marks pull the hearts closer, and Cerulean sends its soldiers out to collect.”

Micaela glared. “You guys can’t just say words I don’t know and keep going. What’s the God Eternal? And what’s a shining heart?”

“Will you accept a problem to the first question?” Khalaf cackled. “As for the second, it’s the answer to a math problem. What happens when you pull blue Luster and Luminance together? It makes a seed that ominously resembles a heart.”

“And you draw those hearts here...but how?"

“Because he’s a harbinger. He was made to draw in light in the first place, now he’s permanently like that.” King answered.

“Thanks to the grand Dr. Francis Beaufort, of course. If only I knew how obsessed with blue he was.”

Micaela shook her head. “Let’s take a step back. You said things are a bit complicated here, but it seems like everything has been fine for a while. With the exception of all the bodies outside, Cerulean seems as normal as ever.”

“Well, that's the thing about normal. It dies when things are strange. As matters have it, it's been dying for some years now. I draw Shining Hearts in, but there was a girl who learned how to make them. She’d take the detritus building in Sector Three and make a heart out of it. She did that for a bit, giving these hearts to people who wanted to go up."

“Why though?”

“Well, we all have a role to play, I suppose. She probably never wanted it, but Cerulean didn’t give her much choice. She could do it, but that took a while until someone realized the halos would give her the materials she wants. Not all of them of course. It had to be ones grabbed out of the loose batteries.”

“I was just about to ask about those. What changes someone from an Acolyte to a battery?”

“Too much contact with a god. The pillars try to avoid it, but they can't be everywhere."

Micaela considered that. "They're people who get overwhelmed.”

“There’s that Illuminating mind. What reason do you suppose that is?”

“The Pantheon? I guess Sector One doesn’t always get the chance to feed the Arbiter. Maybe some of the food gets out and into Three, it comes in contact with someone sensitive enough and they mutate.”

“Which means there’s something about the mutation that’s special. Is there another God present in Cerulean?” King asked.

“He calls himself the Cerulean Captive, imprisoned by the Arbiter of course. Usually, loose batteries are monsters, but Francis went and made a few people special. No crimson prophets, only blue ones. Except Prophets interpret the will of God. When they are told no other god exists, they trust the first one that speaks to them."

“What would have happened if King summoned that guy instead of you?”

“Well he’d kill you like he did those soldiers. His advent is not done yet. He’d probably try to kill King too. There’s something about the way the light touches you that would terrify him.”

“I have a question about the Captive…” King’s eyes narrowed again. “Did he send two soldiers to New Dawn?”

“As matters have it, he did. For the same reason Cerulean was in on the attack seven years ago. He wanted their Refraction equipment.”

King nodded, letting out a breath. “How do I kill him?”

Khalaf smiled. “That unfortunately will be impossible at the moment, but I like where your mind is going. How about we team up, King. I can’t leave this place outside a vessel, and you don’t have enough of a Luminance to utilize your armor.”

“Is escape all you get out of this?”

“If everything goes well, I’ll see the fall of Castle Cerulean too.”

“I don’t know how I feel about that.” Micaela frowned. “I’m not exactly happy about being a tool for feeding a god either, but this place is my home.”

“What about your question? Why did Cerulean mark the Enclave as an enemy when it doesn't know they exist?"

Micaela turned to Khalaf.

“Well it’s like I said. We all have a role to play. In a world where The Arbiter plans to save the people from darkness, there can’t be another place promising the same salvation.”

“So they just want to get the competition off the table?"

“They didn’t just attack New Dawn to get the blueprints for the halos.”

She sighed. "This sucks, but I guess I should have expected that." She clenched her fist. "I want to make Cerulean better.”

“Fortunate, because you play a part too. I’m only interested in wiping out the royal family and making Francis cry, but I’m willing to spare Cerulean for the most part.” On six fingers Khalaf balanced unreadable marks. They remained nothing for King, but as Micaela looked at them more, they took the shape of numbers. “Enter these values on your console and bless King again. Tonight will be rough. We’ll want to do our best to survive.”

“What’s happening tonight?”

“All the roles are being filled.”

⁘⁛⁘

Rashawn's descent began without grace or warning, leaving him to fall to the sprawling city outside. It terrified him to his core, but he couldn't hate the chance to see Castle Cerulean beyond its walls. Darkness stretched out around him, but it shone brilliant and blue. The high rises reflected the Luster like a crowd entranced by a charming speaker. It faded as you followed the floors down, becoming more of a sheen as you reached Sector Two. He watched a blue streak fly through the sky to the west and wondered if Peter saw it too. Sector Three was the dimmest of the bunch—its light a stream flowing around the buildings. And then there was the darkness of Sector Four below, shining with electricity, but forsaken by something that seemed like honest love. The Cerulean Arbiter did see the other Sectors as something more. Some believer in Four once told him it was a test, but out here he could see how wrong they were. It made him smile somberly. He would never be able to convince them otherwise, and yet thought they'd be better chasing a disgusted god. That sucked, but could he say his choices were better? They were all at peace, while he was falling to his inevitable end.

Until something caught him.

It bounded fast through the sky, catching him gently between large fangs as it slid around, rushing to a tall building nearby. With care, he was placed on the roof; the savior walked away as it shrunk into a thin spotted dog. It was cute and he wanted to pet it but forgot that thought as it went to a sitting figure's side. In a golden robe spotted like the beast’s fur, the figure faced Castle Cerulean with a wooden mask on their face. It looked much like the dog and two others that joined it, but the paint was faded, and parts were chipped away. A ball lantern hung from a hooked staff against the figure’s shoulder, splashing light upon them as it moved in rhythm with their breath. Rashawn didn’t think they wanted to talk, but cleared his throat still, just to thank them for the rescue.

“Thanks for the help. That was about to be bad.”

Slowly the head nodded and slightly looked over. It gestured to give it more, and he crossed his arms.

“I don’t got anything else.” He pulled his pockets out. “Just a thank you.”

It nodded again. “Just...a...thank...you…” The voice was elderly, with the hint of some sort of accent. “What a strange language. It has heard many words.”

“Yeah. I hear English is trash.”

The stranger shook his head. "It is storied. It has seen places.”

Rashawn shrugged. Who was he to disagree? He was too interested in this strange figure to push back too. Sure, the last interesting encounter tossed him in the air, but three out of four was good.

“Names Rashawn.”

“A storied name.”

“You got one?”

“Not a name anyone can remember. Long ago they called me the Golden Painted Dog and so I suppose you can call me Painted Dog too.”

“Well, thanks again for the save, Painted Dog. Can you send me back?"

“There, yes?" He pointed at the castle. "You don't want to be there."

That was true, but Rashawn looked around. There wasn’t much of anywhere else to be. Still, he sat beside the man and let out a sigh. The dog that saved him nudged him, and he scratched behind its ear. Static clung to his fingers, and Painted Dog nodded.

“Why do you want to go back?”

“I don’t, honestly, but I met some interestin’ people. It’d suck if I can’t talk to em no more.”

“I will send you back then.”

“Word?”

“Yes. But may I share a story first.”

“The floor’s yours Painted Dog.”

“I once knew a place like this. It was in a jungle across the ocean, in a land where people looked like you. The jungle was thick and dangerous, but they often had to move through it. Some of them could see a light within it though and shared this with their people. Follow the Golden Light. They'd say, but not all the people could see it. Those who could became leaders, and marked the way with carvings of the wild dogs they would sometimes see. As time went on these people disappeared, and the rule became, Follow the Golden Painted Dog. It became a rite of passage to follow the Painted Dog as deep into the jungle as they could. One young boy determined to do just that went further than anyone before him. Deep in, where vines were thick and trees were tall, he found the Golden Light and asked,

Will you come back with me? The people would like to see that you still shine.

And the Golden Light replied I cannot, for you are the only one there who can see me.

The boy asked, But how do you know unless you come!

And the Light said, Because no one has seen me for a very long time.

The boy was determined though and asked, What if I carry you with me to show them you are still here.

“For a moment, the Light didn't speak. It had never heard a question like that. It wondered if it was possible and gave the boy a mask and a lantern. The boy smiled and took them, and the light disappeared. He was not alarmed though, for with the mask and lantern he could show the people the Light was still there. When the boy returned home the people in his village claimed he was the Light, but he was still the same boy many of them knew. One elder woman who still remembered her grandmother's stories told the people that the boy was right. He was not the Light, but the person the Light chose like a descendant. He would carry the light into the next era, as its Scion."

“Were you that boy?”

Painted Dog shook his head. “I may have been but it was so very long ago.”

“What happened to the village and people?”

“I did not listen to the Wolf in the Shadows when he warned me of an old and dangerous terror. He said a monster would come for the people but I did not think a thing of darkness could tell the truth. It was Darkness and I was Light, after all…”

“Damn. That’s ass.”

Painted Dog simply nodded in response, placing his staff on the roof between them. He pulled his mask free too, revealing a round glowing golden face. The light of it was dim like it was moments away from going out. Rashawn looked at the staff, mask, and sad faces of the dogs, and frowned at the old man.

“I guess if no one can remember your name, it’s like no one can remember you.”

“Painted Dog can be whomever they desire. Whomever can be Painted Dog. I came to this place waiting for the story to be of someone else, but they do not let those with the chance run free.”

Rashawn followed his eyes to Sector Four. “Rejects are Scions?”

"Wounded by a God who does not yet want their story to end. However, mine is over. Will you become Painted Dog in my place?"

Rashawn picked up the mask. As he did a spark ran across it, bringing the color back. The dogs looked up excitedly, and the former Painted Dog nodded. Rashawn hadn't quite accepted it yet, but he felt the power and knew this was right. This was why Khalaf told him not to sell himself short, Prophets might interpret God's Will, but it seemed that Scions were the ones to decide it. He nodded back to Painted Dog, bringing the mask to his face.

"What shall you do first, Painted Dog?" The old man looked up at him.

“Show the people of Sector Four that there’s better out there for them.”