The next morning, after much of a day at sea, the four from Gotham gathered in Saint Christopher's commissary. Located a deck down from their quarters, they were observed with distant wonder from the other monks aboard the ship, most of whom they hadn't seen. After collecting a meager breakfast from a short line, they all sat down at a table in one of the ship's back corners. Sadie observed her friends through bleary eyes as she picked at a plate of stale bread and sausage. Between bites, she summarized the next of the strange dreams she'd had.

"Do we even know if any of this stuff is real?" she said. "Or am I just having weird, vivid dreams that we're trying to assign meaning to?"

"You said you'd never heard of a manan-whatever, right? But we still found the term before, right?" Stephanie said. "Have you ever heard of that city in Ethiopia you mentioned?"

Sadie shook her head. "But I don't suppose anybody has Wi-Fi so we can even check on this ship, right?"

Tim and Stephanie both shook their heads. Cassandra rubbed at her back for comfort.

"I don't get what this thing is trying to tell me." Sadie opened her hand and held up the dark green stigmata. "This thing wants me to know something, but I can't tell what. Just that I'm supposed to sympathize with these guys because they had it bad?"

Tim said, "Or maybe it's supposed to tell us their leader, this Kedar guy, is a master manipulator." After a moment to consider that, he shrugged. "Or maybe not, since the only people he seems to get to his side he brought over when they were kids."

Sadie nodded and took another bite of breakfast. With a squint she looked around the dining room, plenty of monks occasionally glanced her way, but she didn't think any were in earshot if she kept quiet. "It's a small thing, I know, but I can't be the only one feeling ripped off that I was just in France, about to go to Italy, and the food sucks, right?" Sadie rubbed crumbs from her eyes as she sipped from a mug of coffee. "This stuff's okay. But that's about it."

"If we get the job done and shake these guys off our tails, maybe we can convince them to let us stick around for a couple days," Stephanie said. "Get some real Italian pizza, and some real Italian spaghetti and meatballs or whatever."

"Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but nobody actually makes that over in Italy," Tim said. "I remember being on a trip with my parents when I was six and being heartbroken I couldn't get it at any restaurant."

Sadie lowered her chin onto her folded hands and groaned. "Spaghetti and meatballs isn't authentically Italian, huh? Disaster. Absolute disaster. The worst thing I've dealt with all week." Cassandra rubbed at her back as if it was an honest that that required comforting. And as silly as that seemed, it did make Sadie smile. "As soon as we're done here, I'm supposed to report to the bottom deck so they can interview me of whatever."

"That's right," Stephanie said. "What's the deal with that again? Did give you any more details?"

"Just that it's some kind of required questionnaire to determine I'm not clinically insane or something. That it's not all in my head." Sadie opened and shut her palm a few times for effect. "It's definitely not in my head, it's in my hand. And they've told me so many times that this 'isn't an exorcism' that it's starting to sound like suspicious specific denial."

With a hand still rubbing at her back, Cassandra asked, "Can you try to be nice with them?"

Sadie huffed and cast a frustrated glance at her. "I don't think it's fair I'm being singled out for bad behavior here. Are you going to walk up to any of these guys and ask them to be nice to me? Because I feel like I'm only at my worst when I'm reacting here."

Cassandra looked down and away. "Don't know these people. Wouldn't listen anyway."

With mounting frustration, Sadie crossed her arms. "Sometimes it's just about the appearance of this stuff." She also looked away. "Like when you didn't seem freaked out that the woman with the knife grabbed me yesterday."

"Saw it in her eyes," Cassandra said. "Wasn't going to do it—"

"See, that's—couldn't you at least tell me you were playing a mind game or something? That it was psychological warfare? I'd feel a hundred—no—a million times better if you told me you were just trying to psych her out."

"Not going to lie to you—"

Sadie pinched the bridge of her nose and looked to be fighting back tears. "You lied to me for years about why you were up so late at night. And when I found out, I didn't give a damn, because I got that it was important." She looked back up, but Cassandra's eyes remained turned away. "Can you maybe get how this was important for me? Like—if you're right, if she wasn't going to do it, and you literally couldn't give her this stupid rock, then would it have made a difference to look scared?" When Cassandra struggled for words, she pressed on. "And anyway, we barely know this chick, how can you be so sure she's so decent. If she knew I had this thing in my hand, who knows what she'd do." With her heartrate up and a hundred more questions burning in her head, Sadie said, "Well, come on, do you have anything to say?"

Across the table, an increasingly uncomfortable Tim and Stephanie started to silently squirm. At one point, Tim's mouth did slip open, but Stephanie squeezed his hand as if to tell him to wait, so he did.

Cassandra turned her chair toward her and faced her again. "Felt like you had a lot you wanted to say. Wanted to give you the chance. Uninterrupted."

The response silenced Sadie for a few seconds, but eventually she said, "Well, okay, thank you for that."

"Don't know how to explain, just feel it," Cassandra said. "She loves me when I'm Angel, don't think she's totally misguided." She bit her lip as she considered her next words. "But you're right. You were scared. Probably would have felt better if I seemed scared too. Or worried. Or at least… something. I'm sorry."

Sadie rested her head on her hand and shut her eyes. After a sigh, she said, "Thank you for saying it." She stuck her last bite of sausage on her last bite of toast and finished her plate. "I wanna get this interview thing over with quick as I can." She turned to Tim and Stephanie. "Can one of you guys come down with me? Maybe hang out outside the door if I call for help or whatever?"

Surprised, Cassandra asked, "Don't want me?"

"You were watching my door most of the night. You should get some more sleep." Despite her frustration, she did pat Cassandra on the leg for reassurance.

"I'll go," Tim said. After a moment to choose his words, he continued, "I know I'm being paid more deference here. It's messed up they take me more seriously since I'm a man, but if we can't change their minds, may as well use it, right?"

Sadie held a fist out in his direction. "That's the right thing to do when you've got power in oppressive situations. Bump me."

With a tired, satisfied smile, he tapped his fist against hers.

"Well then, I guess we'll bid you adieu, ladies." Sadie rose and leaned over to Cassandra. The two shared a brief kiss before she made for the staircase. Tim gave Stephanie a matching goodbye and followed after Sadie.

"Well, that frees us up for a bit." Stephanie rested her head on the table. "Wanna go see if they have The Game of Life sitting around anywhere? Or maybe The Game of Afterlife, I guess?"

"Want to find where Nijah is," Cassandra said. "Want to talk to her."

Stephanie pursed her lips at the though. "Oh man, Cassie, I don't think that's a good idea. I don't even know of these monks are gonna let you near her, but if they do—" she hesitated before she continued, "And I don't know how they're going to have her secured, but you remember what happened with Rafal."

"Don't think they'll let me get close enough to make a mistake," Cassandra said. "Think I can reach her. Think I could reach any of them, but she's here right now." After a moment passed without reply, she said, "Know it did go wrong. But I did reach Rafal. That was the first step."

Stephanie blew a tired breath up at her face and nodded. "Still no guarantee they're going to let you talk to her, but all right. If you insist on this righteous mission, I'll come with you."