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The first order of business that day was figuring out what to do with Joseph, and that had been settled before Blake and Eleanor could even leave to respond to the threat to their base. The next thing on the itinerary happens to be to talk to the Pope about a number of magimatter samples that the Romalian Church had secured with great effort. To this end, the serpent and the wind mage are sitting across from Vittorio and Julio at a relatively modest table, and the atmosphere couldn't be much more strenuous.

Neither side ever committed to trusting each other, each for their own reasons. Things such as the Wind Stone Crisis, the Reconquista, and the Mad King Joseph have enabled both sides to set the issue aside for the sake of accomplishing a greater goal, those have been knocked aside one by one until, once again, the serpent and the pope find themselves testing the water once more.

The fact that neither side has opened the conversation in earnest is a testament to just how much each side wanted to avoid being the one to start what is no doubt going to be an ugly discussion.

"So, I hear from Eleanor that you have secured a few of Joseph's chimeric experiments?" Blake finally makes the first move after a few moments by attempting to broach the first topic of concern.

"Indeed, we have. It is disturbing to see just how far Joseph was willing to go to further his mad schemes." Vittorio attempts to move every bit as carefully as the construct sitting across from him.

"Indeed." The serpent takes a swig of coffee to give himself a moment to think. "I'll be blunt, neither I nor Aoi particularly approve of anyone other than us handling that material. It would have been wiser to simply destroy it."

"I understand. We have actually disposed of the chimeras on the grounds that it was a mercy kill. It appears that they held some shreds of various human minds upon inspection, though it appears as though they could not be reconciled in any satisfactory way." The pope, however, is mostly still as a statue beyond speaking.

"And I can safely assume that you did not dispose of all potential samples." Blake practically glares holes in the man sitting opposite him.

"No, we have not. I would hope that you understand that this is perhaps the greatest gift we could have received. The threat of the elves still looms, and with us lacking two Void mages, we humans need every advantage we can get." Vittorio is completely unperturbed by Blake's behavior. "You have no doubt encountered the savages yourself by now, and understand how helpless most humans are such a threat."

"I have, and have killed several by now. They are indeed formidable." As much as the serpent doesn't like to admit it, he does understand Vittorio's point at least. "I cannot, however, necessarily condone your potential methods for dealing with them. You've no doubt collected quite the dossier on Aoi and I, and fully understand precisely how much power you could potentially wield."

"It is necessary to save humanity in the absence of the Void." Vittorio speaks with an absolute conviction.

"And what happens after you've saved humanity?" The serpent is no doubt just as eerie to watch at this point, as he is making no effort to breathe and appears just as still as the Pope.

"Then we assist in the reconstruction of Halkeginia and ensure its security and prosperity. Make no mistake, we have no intent of subjugating the other nations once we are done with the elves." Vittorio closes his eyes for a moment as he speaks.

"A noble pursuit, though I must question how you intend to enforce sensible use of the magimatter once your life is over." It's subtle, but Blake is cracking his cup's handle ever so slightly despite maintaining an otherwise neutral expression.

"If necessary, I will perform the necessary modifications to extend my life beyond natural limits."

Blake pauses for a minute or two while collecting his thoughts. "So you intend to convert yourself into an entity much like myself." While he would like to lay into the Pope for stating something like that so casually, he holds his tongue for the moment. As much as he would love to start this, there's no reason to make this turn uncivil for the moment.

"Ideally, I would not simply convert myself, but also the other three Void mages so as to ensure that the Void's power is never lost or hidden to us again. Far too many wielders have been thrown to the side, Blake, and I would prefer to see that it does not happen again." Even the Pope understands that he's starting to tread into dubious territory, and he hasn't missed the serpent's body language. It's clear that the only thing keeping him from attacking verbally is the presence of the Valliere's eldest daughter.

Still, Vittorio knows full well that this is a ticking time bomb waiting to blow, so he chooses to broach the topic of greatest concern to himself first. "To that end, I would like to know why you withheld information on the remaining two Void mages rather than coming forward with it."

While Blake maintains a stony disposition, Julio can tell that Eleanor is getting slightly nervous again. "I think I understand why. You fully intend to protect the youngest sister of the Valliere family on the grounds that you do not believe her ready to face her destiny."

"And what makes you think I withheld anything?" Asks the serpent neutrally.

"Aoi is in possession of the Gandalfr runes, and you, yourself, Blake, are in possession of the Lifdrasil runes." The Pope continues on instead of his partner. He continues, noting that his declaration has in fact sparked the most minuscule of responses out of the construct. "Much like how Joseph was in possession of the Founder's Incense, King Wales was in possession of the Founder's Music Box, and Princess de Tristain was in possession of the Founder's Prayer Book, I too, possess one of the four holy Void artifacts. The final one known as the Founder's Round Mirror, which has shown me aspects of the Founder Brimir's life when he was alive."

Vittorio's eyes narrow slightly as he continues. "However, the images displayed have been nothing short of... unusual at best. Sometimes it shows the Founder's life, but sometimes it shows images of someone else's life. I do not know who it is, but one thing is quite clear. Somehow, the Founder walks among us again, and he knows where the last two Void mages are."

That last line was by and far the very last card the Pope would have ever wished to play in this sort of scenario, but out of everything said so far it is the most effective in evoking a response.

The ambient temperature around the construct spikes for a moment, but settles back down before it can actually bring any real harm. "And prying into someone else's private life has given you concrete evidence of deceit?"

"Yes." Vittorio states flatly. "The Founder has seen much of you both. Though I do not have a constant means of observation via the Mirror, I have seen memories far too recent to be those of Brimir's initial time on this world."

"To that end, I will say this: If you had cooperated with us, we would not have had to resort to the measures we have. The power of the Void would have been more than enough to end the elven threat once and for all."

"And what guarantee, exactly, would I have had that you would not have turned the Void on Aoi and I next? Or those allied with us?" Blake asks tentatively.

"There would have been no need." States the Pope.

"...You lie." The serpent's eyes are alight as he sizes up the Pope. "Given how you have acted thus far, I don't believe you for a minute. Aoi and I represent some form of salvation to you, but the power we wield is easily as great as the elves, if not moreso. Beings who can end a civilization destroying crisis, who could change the framework of the land, who could sow chaos and discord without ever meaning to... Neither you, nor your papacy, nor the ruling class would have suffered us for a moment more if they had the means to end us once you got what you wanted."

"And in turn, you would much rather have nothing to do with us. I fully understand." Vittiorio's mannerisms haven't changed much, but it's clear that he's no longer forcing himself to remain completely neutral like before. "I will not deny your words, however, as they are true on some level. I would prefer to not simply trade out one threat for another, if it could be helped."

"And the only way we could be considered a non-threat is to answer to you at your beck and call, no doubt." Blake simply sends his coffee cup through a portal rather than risk breaking it.

"No, there would be no need for that, either. We would simply need to match you in some form, so as to counter your potential threat with a might that could equal it." The Pope states this simply and without malice, though that is merely what is on the surface. "Especially since you seem intent on denying Halkeginia its greatest power. You possess two of four Void mages, wish to remove the third from existence, and have secured three of the four Void artifacts. We cannot counter those that would end humanity without those tools."

"You no doubt believe that I would abuse my power if given half the chance, but what guarantee do I have that you would not do the same?"

"So, we are officially at an impasse, I would say." Blake rises from his seat, though Eleanor is hesitant to do the same.

"Indeed, we are." Replies the Pope, who does the same. "I would say that our alliance of convenience is at an end."

"Indeed." Blake's response is more solemn as he purposely pulls the wind mage back from the table a bit. "I must ask one last question, then. Would you say that we are enemies, now?"

"We are unwilling to reconcile our differences, and have antagonistic views of one another." The Pope pauses for a moment as he thinks about what it would mean for him should he say yes to that question. "I would think that we are, for now."

An awkward silence falls over the room as neither side quite knows how to respond to the other. "You do realize that I could kill you inside of a second if I so wished, yes?"

"Indeed."

"And that I could tear apart this entire church in a matter of minutes."

"Yes."

"That I could raze your entire holy city to the ground in a day, tops?"

"Unfortunately."

"And you still wish to regard me as a foe."

"You oppose us, so it is inevitable."

Blake stands in front of the table separating the two from each other, and he notes that Julio has left the room. He scowls as he considers the implications. "You wouldn't gamble on opposing me if you didn't have a card you could play already."

"Indeed." The Pope states solemnly.

A few more tense seconds pass before the serpent flips the table at the Pope and sends Eleanor through a portal in the same motion.

"Fireball!" Vittorio's voice rings out, and the table shatters in an explosion. "Fireball!" The Pope utilizes the weaponized spell failure to try and punch through the construct, but the spell is inaccurate and strikes a full foot to the left of where he intended it to go. "Fireball!" The next explosion forces the construct to actually evade it, and the Pope in turn is nearly turned into a pile of cinders by a torrent of rosewood flame.

The only thing preventing that is the reappearance of Julio himself, brandishing a wand of his own as he calls upon a barrier of wind to disperse the flames enough for the Pope to move. "I commend your proactive approach, but it won't be that easy."

"So it would seem." Blake crosses his arms and taps his foot in a seemingly innocuous gesture that quickly causes the floor to shake, then begin to collapse. "Incinerate!" The serpent mocks the usual spellcasting routine by pointing his finger at the Pope and launching his own fireball from it, which is promptly detonated by the Romalian leader.

Vittiorio ends up needing Julio to come save him and evacuate the room.

Rather than pursue on his own, Blake opts to use the chaos and confusion to simply gate out and begin rallying those he can together to stand with him.

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