Chapter 28: Knowledge of Mysteries

|Pleroma|

Shintaro's vision was initially hazy, but then he could see his surroundings quite carefully. He was in the Gold Laguna Hotel, all alone. It was strange to see the place look so empty, with none of the usual chatter. It hadn't been long since Teruko demonstrated her power here. Yet that power had quickly revealed itself to be the EX-NIHILO playing a game of cruel deception, one with fatal results.

"Where is everyone?" He asked. "Hello? Anyone? Please, if you're here -"

"Calm down, Shintaro-kun. It's just you and me for now."

There was a flash, and none other than Nisa Liat appeared. Yet she was in a different outfit than he had seen her in before. This was a short purple dress with matching boots, complete with silver bracelets.

"Nice outfit." Shintaro said. The minute he said it, he felt odd. This was the mastermind behind Bythos, right? Why was he compelled to compliment her? This feeling towards her didn't feel like hatred at all.

"...Thank you." Nisa Liat said, happily. "I wish I could tell you more about our situation, but right now, there's still a chance you might not be able to handle it. Then we'd be back to square one."

He raised his eyebrows, confused. "What do you mean? Who are you? Are you really the Nisa Liat we met at that space museum?"

"You ask too many questions. Unfortunately, ones that if I answer, it might destroy your state of mind." She said. "One moment. I want to try a change of scene."

She smiled, and walked closer to the window. Pressing her hand against it, the environment suddenly shattered like glass, and the two of them were floating aimlessly through the strange space of the previous dream.

"This place again? What is this?" He demanded, clenching his fists.

"You don't know?" Nisa Liat asked, titling her head. "I suppose you wouldn't. It's called Pleroma. How can I describe it? It's a place beyond material matter. It's where human thoughts from countless people float, in a sense, aimlessly. It's almost like the barrier between the two Kosmos. While we're in this world, I can recreate almost any memory you've ever had, as well as mine. Both Kosmos are connected to Pleroma. Think of this world as the barrier between them, and the Gnosis as the means to cross that barrier."

The 'world' changed yet again, and she and Shintaro were now on top of a giant white stone tower, below a turquoise sky that almost resembled water. He looked, but couldn't see anything else for miles, except for what seemed to be another tower of the exact same style. Nisa Liat smiled again, and moved closer to her guest. He couldn't move, no matter how hard he tried to force himself.

"Where are we now?" Shintaro asked. This 'Pleroma' unsettled him more than anything he had ever seen in the Theio Kosmos. And Nisa Liat seemed to be quite friendly with him, he noticed. Just what did she know that he did not? Being in this world was making him shake with fear. "I...I want to go home. I hate it here..."

"I know. But have a little more faith in me and the others. You'll be truly home soon. Things are finally going the way I desire." Nisa Liat said. "And that wretched girl will forever be denied her victory."

"What girl? Are you talking about Kei?" Shintaro asked, defensively.

"What? No, I mean that damned – Hold on. Kei?" Nisa Liat asked disturbed. "Kei who? Answer me!"

"Kei Kakusa! You've already met her, haven't you?!" Shintaro asked. "At the Museum! Remember, your Persona Rosmerta looks almost exactly the same as her Ostara!"

The mysterious leader of Bythos froze on the spot, staring into space, horrified. How could she not know who Kei was? They had met face to face very recently. Was this Nisa Liat even the same one? Shintaro couldn't make sense of any of this at all. But he desperately wished he was anywhere else but this place, where no organic matter seemed to exist.

"Something clearly has gone wrong. But you won't have to suffer for much logner. I'll make sure your memories are corrected soon enough. Before long, it will be as if this Kei Kakusa never existed. Or anyone else but you, me, and the others. Return to your slumber, Shintaro-kun. I'll do everything I can to erase the past."

With that, Shintaro vanished, leaving the dark haired girl alone in the city.

"Interesting. I wonder who exactly is this Kei Kakusa? I'll need to get Shinju and Akemi to take care of it at some point. For now, I'll wait and see what happens..."

|May 13th|Chieki Academy|13:36 pm|

The school week was finally over at Chieki Academy, and the twins were leaving the class with Eiji, who was still a little annoyed with Masato. However, they were unified in their hatred of Mr. Koyanagi, who had spent most of the lecture condemning the world, particularly their generation.

"You children don't understand just how vital mathematics is, do you? Without it, society would never have progressed so far. Technology never would have advanced to the state you get to enjoy today. Yet no one has the drive to study anymore, not nearly as much when I was young. I dread to think what will become of Japan."

Can't he just stick to teaching maths? Who cares what he thinks? He's never treated us as worthy the minute we walked into his classroom. Complete loser!

Masato and Natsumi were about to leave the school, but they heard familiar voices talking by the entrance to the Practice Building. They decided to sneak closer, after quickly saying their farewells to a bemused Eiji.

"...you sure it's all that bad?" Toshiaki asked, still dressed in his full uniform. "I mean, is it that big of a deal that Artemis hired more security people?"

"Well, it makes me wonder just what's going on over there." Evelina said, anxious. "I've heard rumours that Artemis are allied with Bythos. If that was the case, then what is my father thinking? Is he using Bythos to take down corporate rivals? Or even worse?"

"Oh come on, you really believe that? They're just a stupid cult. Your father's a smart man, he wouldn't side with them." Toshiaki said. The twins, trying to remain inconspicuous, looked at each other with unease. Evelina was Svante's only child. Was it fair to hide what they knew from her? Yet, involving others could lead to more tragedies like Teruko. Masato understood that. He would hold his peace.

"I hope you're right, Toshi. Otherwise, I might have to do some digging myself..."

As Evelina said this, Natsumi saw someone else taking a close interest in this conversation. Asami, with a solemn look on her face, having just left the Practice Room. She very quickly moved away, her bag briefly brushing against Evelina's.

"Oh, I'm sorry, senpai..." Asami said. She then left the school grounds, leaving the others confused.

"Huh, she was in a hurry. What's up with her?" Toshiaki asked.

"Beats me! Probably needs to upload another hundred thousand videos about makeup or something." Natsumi said, shrugging. "How are you guys doing?"

"We're alright. Just talking about some family stuff." Evelina said. "Speaking of which, isn't your brother getting married? The one who teaches at Kansei?"

"Yeah, that's right. Although it's become more of a gruelling battle for control over the wedding plans." Masato said, shuddering. "Our mother is quite forceful when she wants to be. Which is nearly always."

"I know what you mean. My dad can be the same way with me and my little brother." Toshiaki said, chuckling. "We used to misbehave all the time. And we'd get in trouble, start crying, he'd say sorry for shouting, and then it'd start all over again."

Wait, just the three of them? Did something happen to Toshi's mother? Or should I not ask?

"Hey, want to see what we've been working on?" Evelina asked. "You'll love it. It's all set up in the electronics room! It still needs some fine tuning, but I think it's good for a quick demonstration."

The twins considered this briefly, and nodded. Enthusiastically, the four of them continued into the building. However, Masato couldn't help but feel as if he was being watched by someone. And that someone might not be as friendly as their guests.

|Hiyashi – Midori Hall|14:02 pm|

The Midori Hall was a moderately sized building, that certainly did not rival the likes of Aramis' HQ. However, today it was the first day of the weekend's Book Festival, and now the hall was filled with some of the most talented local authors, and Shintaro was amazed at some of the faces here. He had a backpack ready, one compartment filled with old books he wanted signed, and another empty – in case he needed to pick up more.

That bizarre dream about the 'Pleroma'. Was that a real dimension, outside of the Akartharto and Theio Kosmos? I hate all this not knowing. If only I could talk to Nisa Liat outside of those dreams.

Right now, Celestine was on the stage, discussing her life and her series of novels. Just hearing her speak was so captivating. Even though she was from France, she had no trouble conveying her words in Japanese at all.

I'm so jealous. I wish I could be that fluent in other languages. Perhaps I should ask dad about a summer vacation somewhere, so I can practice speaking in English. Or French, even.

"It was a major struggle for me to get published. I know that's nothing new, especially in today's writing world, but when you go without sleep over the manuscript you've worked on for possibly years, it's heartbreaking when you're inundated with rejection letters. Especially ones where they were too lazy to put your name in the blank spaces – yes, that actually happened." Celestine said, with one of her sly smiles.

It's just like what she was telling me when we were at the Golden Dragon. That story about the man who made those false reviews. Sleaze, she called him. I wonder, if I end up publishing anything, how many times I'll end up rejected before my book gets put on the shelves of Book Wyrm? Or will I ever get that far?

"I never expected my novels to become so famous in Japan. It's been wonderful living here, and experiencing a foreign land. Exciting, as well. It's given me limitless inspiration for the next Leanne Rouge already. I've only lived her a short time, and already I've met special people. The kind of people that I couldn't imagine not having in my life."

Huh? I wonder who she's talking about. The girls at the Golden Dragon? Her publishing company? Or me? We have been spending a lot of time talking, I suppose.

During the question and answer session, Shintaro stared at her in admiration. She was so refined, so elegant, so composed. Perhaps she was the most beautiful he had ever met. He didn't understand why she was so captivating. Was it her words, both from her mouth and pen? Or those eyes that twinkled whenever they met his? Either way, he felt as if his spirits had truly been lifted. Teruko's demise would always stay with him as one of the worst experiences of his life. Yet that didn't mean everything else afterwards had to be awful.

"In your books, Leanne has a really bad relationship with her estranged sister. Is any of that from your own experiences?" A young lady in the front row asked.

"Well, I do have a sister. We don't see eye to eye that much, but it's far less dysfunctional than Leanne's family issues. She lives in Austria with her husband and daughter. It's been quite a while since we last spoke..." Celestine said, somewhat longingly. It was the first time he had heard about her own family, Shintaro realised.

Finally, Celestine was done, and the guests were free to explore the festival. As Shintaro got up, he saw her gesture to follow. So he did, making his way past the throngs of book lovers and novelists. Eventually, they were outdoors, in the garden area – all alone.

"It's been a great festival already." Shintaro said, happily. "I always love it when this time of year comes around."

Before he could continue, however, she placed her arms around him, and stared deeply into his eyes. It didn't take a genius to know what was going on. Their feelings had finally burst out, unable to be restrained any longer. She and him moved closer, and their lips finally met. With both eyes closed, all they could sense was each other.

This is...my first kiss. I can't believe it. With Celestine. I...

She finally let go, and they stood in front of each other, somewhat awkwardly.

"When you were staring at me the whole time in that room, I...I finally realised." Celestine said. "How completely special you are. I've met so many intellectual men, but none of them hold a candle to you."

"I...I've never done anything like before." Shintaro said, shaking. "...But that was incredible."

"You knew who I was talking about during that speech, didn't you?" Celestine said, smirking at him coyly. "Don't worry. This will just be between the two of us. A secret – but it doesn't have to be eternal. One day, there will be a perfect moment to tell everyone."

"My parents would freak if they knew what just happened." Shintaro said. "So it's a good thing I'm not going to tell them."

Celestine held his hand, and they walked closer to the bed of flowers by the wall surrounding the building. His heart was pounding. To think that, despite his denials, he and his favourite author had finally become as one.

"I heard some company in Japan say 'two in harmony surpasses one in perfection' once." Shintaro said, suddenly. "I forget which one it was, but...it's sweet, isn't it"?

"It's certainly poetic. Would they sue if I put it in my book?" Celestine said, and the two of them laughed. "Relax. I've got plenty of places to get inspiration from. And people, too. We're going to have many bright and honest years together."

"Years?" Shintaro said, almost giddy. "...That would be perfect. After what we just did, I know I don't want this to end too soon. No. I don't want it to end at all. I don't care what anyone else thinks."

"Wonderful...that's the kind of attitude I love about you." Celestine said. "I was starting to feel lost in this city before I met you. But now I have new hope."

Hope. Shintaro felt the same way. A light had finally shone on his heart's darkness. The Shadows that infested the Theio Kosmos would be powerless to stop him now, he finally felt. And if EX-NIHILO dared to revive itself, then the avid reader would send it straight back to hell.

As many times as it takes. You monster and all of Bythos will never prevail! I have someone waiting for me in this world now...someone so special.

"Are you alright, Shintaro?"

He looked at her, and nodded, blushing. "Sorry. I was just thinking about what you said. Were things really so bad before you met me?"

"Bad? I can't say that. Empty would be better a word. I thought I was living to write more and more novels. But that's not enough. When it comes to you, words aren't enough. That's why I..."

"You've been searching for someone a long time, haven't you?" Shintaro asked. "For someone...like me?"

"...Yes. It truly is unfortunate that..." Celestine hesitated, not quite able to finish. He stood there, wondering just what about this could be of misfortune. "...We're so far apart in age. But time will change that."

"Each second brings joy and pain to the world. It's up to those looking at the clock to choose what each moment means to them." Shintaro said. "...The last line of Silver Pain."

Celestine nodded. The two of them went back inside to the hall, and while on the surface, they were talking about literature, far more was on Shintaro's mind now.

I hope the others understand. Even if they don't like it, I have to follow my feelings. That's what having a Persona means, right?

|Practice Building – Room 1-A|14:24 pm|

"Wow!" Masato said. Sitting on the work bench was a meticulously crafted robotic car, with multiple lights attached to it. Evelina took out her smartphone, and with the app she had designed, began putting it through their 'assault course', full of ramps and other obstacles.

"All made in-house!" Toshiaki said. "You wouldn't believe how hard it was to get hold of some of these components. But when there's a will, there's a way. Man, if only I had the spare cash, then I could get something even more fancy going."

"At least you don't need to pay me for my software skills. For now, anyway." Evelina said. While Toshiaki adjusted some of the obstacles for the car's route, Evelina went to look in one of the boxes full of spare parts. "...Huh?"

"What is it, Evelina-senpai?" Natsumi asked.

"These phones. They weren't there when we were in this room earlier today."

Masato, alarmed, looked over. He gasped at the sight – two Gnosis devices were indeed left inside the box. Evelina took one of them in her hand, and she looked at it carefully.

"How bizarre. I wonder what brand it is? It looks rather sleek. Toshi, you should have a look too!"

"Alrighty..." Toshiaki said. He wandered over, whistling to himself. The twins remained frozen with fear. Just what was this? Had Asami left these here for someone to find? The male senior took the other phone, and tried his best to turn it on.

"Huh. What a weird looking operating system." Evelina said, glancing at it carefully. "Some of the screen looks glitchy, too."

Indeed, one of the apps was labelled as 'SIOBHAN-M', and another was 'LUTHER-H'. These were foreign names, obviously, but ones that didn't seem familiar to anyone around. Natsumi wondered if perhaps they were Bythos members, but as far as she knew, all of them were Japanese. Perhaps if they could speak to Kaii or Toki, they could look into this deeper.

"Huh, this looks weird as hell. Most of these icons are greyed out and keep pulling up weird error messages when I try to tap them." Toshiaki said. "What the heck is going on with these phones? They suck..."

"Well, I wouldn't say that just yet. They require some digging." Evelina began connecting the phone to her laptop, much to Natsumi's fright.

"Should we really just let her do that?" Masato whispered, frantic, into her ear.

"What else should we do?!" She replied, as quietly as she could.

"...Weird. It won't recognise the phone when I plug it in." Evelina said. "Not even that noise you get when you put something in the USB port. And these are 3.0 ports."

"Uh...must be broken!" Natsumi said, pretending to be amused.

"I guess, but there's something weird about it. It doesn't feel like it's made out of plastic or metal. You know what? I'm gonna hang onto it. Maybe do some research." Evelina said.

"Yeah, me too. My old phone is pretty slow now anyway." Toshiaki said, nonchalant as always. "Anyway, we're going to head home now. See you two later, okay?"

"Um, yeah, sure!" Masato said. The two older students left, leaving the other two petrified.

"Oh no...we shouldn't have let them just keep those things!" Natsumi said. "Dammit, I should have seen this coming! Asami acting all weird earlier, when she was leaving this building. What the hell else is she trying to do?"

"There's no telling what will happen with those two if they take those Gnosis home! We've got to think of something!" Masato said, frantic. "If one of them has EX-NIHILO – oh god, no, I don't even want to imagine that."

The two quickly left the Practice Building. As they did, they noticed Mr. Koyanagi giving them harsh looks, while he talked to another teacher. Eager to avoid his attention, they left the school grounds, and hurriedly made it back home. With any luck, as long as their two senpai didn't scan any of the 'Aeon Pathways', they would be safe from the Theio Kosmos.

Yet in these times, safety was far from easy to guarantee. They needed to keep an eye on their two favourite senpai. Perhaps even steal those errant Gnosis, if that was the only way to protect them.

|Ginumi Promenade|15:00 pm|

While Shintaro was spending the day with Celestine, Akari and Kohaku had decided to go to Ginumi alone, and enjoy the pleasant Spring weather. Kei had politely declined, having already made plans to hang out with Haia Oshiro and Minae Saito.

"Kei's certainly become popular, hasn't she?" Akari said. "I wonder how she does it..."

"I wish I knew." Kohaku said. "I was never good at making friends until I started at Kansei. It was just me and Shintaro. That mess in junior high probably had something to do with it..."

"Is it hard being with the twins?" Akari asked. "Relax. I can keep a secret, even if Suzu says I'm a blabbermouth. But if I was, then everyone would know that she likes kissing her band posters every night."

"...Yes, I imagine they would." Kohaku said, raising an eyebrow in derision. "I'll be honest, it kind of does now and again. She acts so bubbly, like I remember her being, but then I picture her with that horrid gang of girls, and joining in with their abuse."

"Some things just don't go away." Akari said. "People just can't get away from their past. Noburo might never be able to move on from Teruko. And then there's all the stuff Toki did."

"Yeah. Toki might honestly be trying to be a better person, but he did put Shintaro through hell. Not to mention his ex-wife. I don't know if I'd be able to work with him, if he does quit Bythos." Kohaku said. "Noburo...he doesn't deserve all of this. I wish I could help him."

Akari, surprised, looked closely at her friend. "Oh? You look pretty upset over this. Don't tell me, you...like Noburo?"

"Ah! No, not like that!" Kohaku said, almost desperate. "We're similar. His love of theatre, my love of music. Our goals for the future. I might not have known him for that long, but the moment I meant him, I felt like we understood each other."

Akari smiled. "It might be weird to say this, but Noburo's luckier than he thinks. After all, he has friends like you worrying about him."

Friends like me. No doubt everyone else feels the same way. We want to help Noburo. But we just don't know. What can we do? Do we just leave him alone, and wait for him to resolve his feelings? Or do we run to his side, and save him?

"Perhaps..." Kohaku said. "Kaii has you falling for him too. And all the young nurses, too. He must be enjoying the attention, right?"

"Me? Falling for Kaii? He's 20, I'm only 16!" Akari said, shaking her head, flustered. "That's not fair, Kohaku-chan!"

Kohaku laughed, as they continued to walk along the promenade. "Sorry. But you put me on the spot about Noburo. If anyone's bad at hiding crushes, it's Shintaro."

Akari joined in the laughter, grinning. "I'll say. He denies it so much, but you can see it in his eyes. Celestine means so much to him. But Kei doesn't seem so fond of her. Why is that?"

"Why? With Kei, I never know." Kohaku said, frowning. "She's one of us, I know that. But her heart is so closed off. Any time we ask her about her past, she gives vague answers and clams up."

"If only Epona could analyse human minds." Akari said. "Maybe that's what I have to work on! Get her to read minds! Then all of Kei's secrets will be ours! But I'll keep them, just like the one about Suzu and the time she tripped and fell in the mud. At her cousin's wedding."

"You, a mind reader?" Kohaku said. "If you ever do that, make me a promise. Don't read mine."

"Oh? Sure, I guess. Should I get that in writing?" Akari asked, jokingly. "...You're looking serious again, Kohaku-chan."

As they were turning right towards the main thoroughfare, Kohaku gasped at the sight of a familiar young woman, walking out of an apartment building. It was Aika, the singer she had seen in concert not too long ago, wearing one stunning bright pink designer dress, with sparkling sleeves.

Wow, it's really her again!

"...Hmm?" Aika said, as she saw the two girls. "Oh, didn't we meet several weeks ago?"

"Yes! And I was at the concert too!" Kohaku said, happily. "This is my friend from school, Akari Ito."

"Charmed to meet you," Aika said, as she shook friends with her new acquaintance. "Unfortunately, I'm in somewhat of a rush. I'm attending a formal dinner in Tarumi, hosted by my record company."

"Oh, okay. Sorry to bother you. Have a good night!"

"...Oh, is that a flute?" Aika asked, seeing the silver instrument poking out of Kohaku's orange school bag. "I'm impressed. Mastering the flute is quite an achievement."

"Mastering?" Kohaku asked, somewhat embarrassed. "I can't say that. I've never even performed as a professional."

"I see. Regardless, I'd like to hear it sometime." Aika said. "Why don't we exchange contact information? I like getting to know my fans. And you seem quite the devout fan of my music."

Oh my goodness! I...I'm going to be friends with Aika Makino! This is so cool!

The two of them swapped contact details, and soon after, Aika ran towards the taxi she had called, and was whisked away to her social event. As Kohaku waved, Akari stood there, bemused.

"Huh. You and Shintaro get to meet your heroes. How the hell do you do it?" Akari asked.

"Aren't you happy for us?" Kohaku asked. "I know they say you should never meet your heroes, but...look how happy he's been after meeting his. And now that I've met mine, I feel great!"

Akari didn't seem so sure, however, but shrugged it off, and two of them continued towards a cafe they had been interested in trying.

Does she think it's too good to be true? No, that's not it at all. Aika Makino and Celestine Courtois aren't just good at their craft. They're good people, deep down. That's what makes them so special. I won't let anyone spoil that.

|Mizuho – Solberg Estate|16:01 pm|

The Solberg house was quite the impressive architectural feat, with gleaming white walls and immaculate Grecian style pillars. There was a grey-haired gardener tending to the many flowers surrounding the home, and plenty of birds fluttering around the fountain. It very much was European in style, as intended by Svante, so that his family could ease into moving to a new country more easily.

"Ah, welcome home, Evelina! Is Toshiaki not coming today?" A middle aged woman, Marta Solberg, said. Her hair was quite dark and short, compared to her daughter's, but she had the same fair features in her face. She was somewhat plainly dressed in a white shirt and black trousers, but had a fetching blue diamond necklace. Her husband was fond of giving her gifts, and this had been his first present when the family moved to Japan.

"Hi mother! He's gone home for today. He's helping his father with dinner." Evelina said. The two of them went inside the home, and saw an elderly lady in the kitchen, with a kindly smile.

"Welcome back, darling. I'm cooking tonight." Esther Solberg said. Svante's mother, she had come to Japan with him to experience a new country, and had become quite popular with the older citizens of Shinshuto. While she certainly did like to portray herself as a kindly grandmother, she was still very fierce as a mother, as Svante had found out on several nights working late.

"It smells terrific, grandmother!" Evelina said, smiling. "Is father not coming home for dinner?"

Marta shook her head, sighing. "He said he had a lot to deal with today. Something to do with security concerns at Aramis. It's one thing after one these days. If only he didn't end up sleeping in his office, too. It's so annoying having to take him clean clothes. Perhaps he should have a whole wardrobe there too, then he'd never have to come home!"

"Don't trouble yourself so much, dear. But you're right - that son of mine works too hard. He's forgotten how to take care of his household. Thank the heavens he begged me to join you all here, otherwise things would fall apart completely." Esther said. "Now, I might have a bad hip, and all the hairs on this eighty year old head are grey, but I'm still sharper than any of those Japanese swords you see lying around."

"Uh...yes, absolutely! We'd be lost without you! Um, Mother, I'm going to do some homework before dinner. There's a lot of material to cover this year already." Evelina said, taking her bag upstairs. Once in her room, a rather ornate one filled with plush green furniture and many computer parts and textbooks, she decided to look at the Gnosis one more time.

Masato and Natsumi seemed pretty scared of these things. I wonder why? Wait a minute. Didn't that Tamura person have one when she came here one night? Rinaka Tamura, that private security woman? I did like talking to her, but she was so shifty. Maybe I should ask her about it next time I see her.

The Gnosis didn't seem to be powered on. Odd, Evelina thought. The battery was more than halfway charged when she looked at it last. She wasn't sure how to open it up and take a further look, so she decided to begin charging it with a spare cable from her drawer, combined with a high-speed portable battery.

"Just what are you, 'Gnosis'?" Evelina asked, holding down the power button. "Never heard of you before. Wonder if you've got other friends out there? Or are Toshiaki and I the only owners of you guys? I guess I'll find out easily enough."

She very quickly googled 'Gnosis', but only found details on how it was a Greek word meaning 'knowledge', and it's connection to Gnosticism. There were other services out there called Gnosis, but neither of them seemed to be connected to cellphones or any other kind of technology. While she had come across obscure brands of electronics in the past, she had never had one that didn't seem to exist.

This is weird. My computer is charging it, but it doesn't seem to be listing it anywhere in the list of connected devices. How exactly do I go forward in studying this thing?

Suddenly, there was a text message on the Gnosis. Evelina hadn't been able to check if the phone had a SIM Card inserted yet, or if the phone was connected to any wireless networks, but she felt her heart skip a beat when she saw it. Warily, she tapped the screen to read it.

From: RITA

You've worked out that this is no ordinary phone, haven't you? You won't be able to examine it properly before your awakening. Look carefully for special things this Gnosis reacts to when you're outdoors. I'll be in touch later on.

"Huh? Rita? Who the hell is that?" Evelina asked. The name was written in English capital letters, yet the rest of the message was in Japanese text. Confused, she typed out a simple reply, asking this Rita who she – or he, possibly – was. However, no reply seemed forthcoming.

Fine, 'Rita'. I'll wait. Right now, I've got studying to do. But I'll find out just what sort of device this Gnosis is, and why it was left in our school. If there are others with them, I want to talk to them too...

|Mizuho – Yukimora Home|17:00 pm|

"Anyone home?" Toshiaki asked, as he opened the front door. He was a bit late getting back, having looked in a few sporting good shops. Far less grand than his friend's home, but this was a home nevertheless. Yet the place was looking quite messy, and no doubt it was up to the elder son to clean up once again.

"That you, Toshi?" A tired sounding man said, walking into the living room. He was in his white shirt, black trousers, and favourite red tie. He looked quite like his son, except with darker hair, and a small beard and glasses. Tetsuo Yukimora, an office manager known for being very strict with his employees. Yet his efforts had paid off well for the company, and thus he had been able to provide for his two sons alone, and fairly comfortably too.

"Hey dad," Toshiaki said. "You look beat."

"Tough day at the office. Our new hires don't know what they're doing..." Tetsuo said, grimacing. "I ordered Chinese food, and it's all ready. Sorry, kid, I was too tired to cook tonight."

"Don't sweat it. I'll always eat food from the Lucky Genbu." Toshiaki said, laughing. "So, where's the little guy? He playing hide and seek by himself again?"

"Oh, come on! That was one time!"

Barging out of the kitchen was an annoyed young boy, not quite in junior high yet. His hair was more auburn, closer to his late mother Kazue, and his face had more of her features than his father. He was wearing a green shirt, bearing characters from an older series of Featherman, and black shorts.

"Sorry, Yuudai," Toshiaki said, chuckling. The three of them went into the kitchen, where the various dishes were ready to eat, and some exotic flavours of juice were poured out already. "So c'mon, baby brother, tell me all about school."

"Baby? I'm eleven! But...it was great! Sahashi-sensei said I was doing really well, and our soccer team won!" The younger brother said, excitedly. "Oh, and Nami-chan is going to Beppu in the summer!"

"Ah, is she? Wish you were going?" Toshiaki said, amused. "Wish it was a romantic getaway!"

"Uh...no!" Yuudai said, shaking his head furiously. "Beppu just has a lot of hot springs, that's all!"

"If you say so...that's one thing this city doesn't have." Toshiaki said. "Evelina was asking after you, y'know."

The young boy's face lit up. "Really? Evelina's so cool! She's even taller than you!"

"I know. Crazy, huh?" Toshiaki said, smirking. "Better drink your milk if you want to be our height some day."

As they talked, however, Tetsuo sat at the table in silence, as he was prone to do. He did look back and forth at each of his sons, but barely responded to anything they said.

Quiet as always. He never used to be this way. But then again, it's been just the three of us for a long time. Maybe if our mom was still here, he'd be more talkative. All I can do is help him around the house, and be the best brother I can be.

Finally, dinner was over, and the three boys went to do their own things. While his father was downstairs watching a show about carved candles from Germany, and his brother was playing various video games, Toshiaki went into his perpetually untidy room, and prepared to example the Gnosis device in more detail.

"Alright, you weird cellular phone, show me what you got." He said, hooking it up to his own computer. It had various programs that Evelina had designed for him to experiment with, and various circuit boards he had used with them. However, the only thing that happened when he attached his Gnosis was the charging symbol appearing on the screen. It seemed to have turned off already. Irritated, he turned it back on, and while he waited for it to fully boot up, he began doing internet searches.

Evelina's probably doing the same thing. Wonder if she's struck gold? If she did, she'd be all over it. Maybe for once, I'll beat her to it. So, who manufacture this thing? Can I jailbreak it?

His eagerness turned to irritation quite quickly, however, as nothing but apparently irrelevant searches appeared. It mostly seemed to be about vaguely religious or philosophical topics, things completely uninteresting to him. It was beginning to creep him out, now that he thought about it. Who put the phone in Chieki Academy, and who had created it in the first place?

Even taking pictures of it and trying to run an image search provided fruitless. The only matches were with vaguely similar, but completely normal phones. Sighing, he decided to leave it for tonight, and head out for an evening run. Before he was finished putting on his new black and gold sneakers, however, the Gnosis vibrated. Curious, he picked it up, and saw a new text message.

"The hell? But I didn't see anything in the list of contacts..."

From: SHIKO

Even someone as dim as you should be able to tell this isn't your typical smartphone. You can search all day for it online, but you won't be able to unlock its secrets. Wait until the right moment, boy. Once that time comes, I'll speak to you in person.

"The hell? Shiko? That a girl's name? And who's she calling dim?" Toshiaki asked. He didn't know anyone at school called Shiko. And whoever wrote this text seemed to have a bit of an attitude. It seemed familiar, somehow.

So did this person leave these phones on purpose for us to find? If so, why? I did want a new phone, but one less creepy than this. And with less rude texts, too. Shiko, don't start off by making fun of my intelligence. I'll find out what this Gnosis is my way, and if you're up to no good, then I'll put a stop to that myself.

He left the phone on his bedside table, and decided to get changed for an evening run. Before long, he was jogging at a steady pace, waving to his neighbours. The younger children cheered as they saw him, and he waved back, smiling.

Yet as he ran, he began wondering about the mysterious 'Shiko'.

"Shi means death, doesn't it? And 'Ko'. That's 'child'. Child of Death? Am I overthinking this? ...I better call Evelina tomorrow and get this figured out."

|Theio Kosmos – Chieki Academy – Rooftop|18:00 pm|

Asami and Keiya were waiting patiently at the top of the school, and as they saw Hanashima Hospital, they shuddered. Had things gone according to plan, they would not have needed to have battled Astraeus, nor would they have lost the Cognition Core. Now, the Fortress they had used was lost to them, and the hospital had become an ordinary place. Their failure still stung, and neither of the Admins had yet to redeem themselves in the eyes of Nisa Liat.

"...We must not make any more careless mistakes." Keiya said.

"I know that. Nisa Liat might smile at us all sweet, but..." Asami said, shuddering. "No. I won't end up like the runts."

Just then, the door opened. It was Rinaka Tamura, looking quite tired. She had devoted herself to training, since her own defeat at the hands of their enemies.

"I take it the Gnosis was received?" Keiya asked, crossing his arms.

"Obviously. Evelina is mad about technology, as is that friend of hers. Of course they'd be drawn to it, like moths to a flame." Rinaka said, frowning. "Any attempt to decipher these devices outside of this world is meaningless, of course. Their only choice is to come to this world..."

"And submit to the Pleroma Princess."

Asami looked to the door, and saw they had a new guest. Clad in a far grander outfit she usually saw him in, he was dressed up in a blue suit, complete with white gloves and a matching rose in the breast pocket.

"Koyanagi-sensei..."

"Shiro. Did he attempt to reply to your message?" Rinaka asked. "Does he suspect 'Shiko' is you yet?"

"Patience, Tamura," Shiro said, with a small smirk. "He hasn't responded. Perhaps he thinks I'm a 'child of death', and is too afraid to answer. But he'll meet me and Mergen in this world soon enough. Then he'll learn his proper place."

"You hate a lot of your students, at least that's what Asami tells me," Keiya said, somewhat bluntly. "Yet why is this Yukimora child so worthy of your attention?"

"Let's just say, every time I look at him, I remember the past," Shiro said. "A past that ended far too painfully. It earned me the undying hatred of one man and cost me a future with the woman I loved. That's all I'll say, for now."

"You don't have to tell us the whole story. After all, we all have our painful histories. That's why Nisa Liat chose us in particular. The ones that have been ruined by this city. Thus, in turn, we bring 'ruin' to Shinshuto." Rinaka said.

"And from ruin comes rebirth," Asami said. "My friends might just end up in high school after all with me. And I can introduce them to Natsumi. If only that could have happened without any of this. Still, after the Cognition Cores are all together, reality itself can change, and there will be no more room for regrets."

"Regrets. I can't recall a single day where I haven't blamed myself for the past." Keiya said, as he looked at the deck of cards in his hand. "When the city renews, so shall I."

"Renewal...yes. That's what we need. No more 'surviving' painful incidents. Eliminating them from history. Making others the way they should be – happy, and with us, not against us." Shiro said, adamantly.

He turned to face the buildings surrounding the school. As he did, he caught glimpse of a cemetery near by, and shuddered. The others looked at each other in confusion, unsure what exactly he was reacting to. Finally, Rinaka spoke.

"...Shiro and I will continue the plan tomorrow." The former policewoman said. "You two are on standby. Everyone else is keeping a close eye on Ginumi."

The four of them left shortly after that, leaving nothing but an empty school, and an uneasy aura hanging over it. Before long, 'Rita' and 'Shiko' would show their true faces. No one yet knew whether tragedy or joy would follow.