Rhiqualon the Autocratic Dominion is a nation divided into social stratas of the Autocracy, the Servant class, and the slaves. The Autocratic families maintain power through the sheer power of the Autocratic Admirals and the nation's indomitable navy. But balance is maintained by the Supreme Autarch, who serves as the ultimate authority in Rhiqualon.
Luckily for the 5-year-old Dante, although Rhiqualon borders the King of Fontaire's royal domain, this is the safest place he could be due to the intense hostility between the two nations. The Autocratic Families abhor the idea of a sole royal family taking a lion's share of wealth and power. As such, Rhiqualon does everything in its power to keep the Fontaire in check.
"Kind of reminds me of North Korea and South Korea," Dante said, "Only this time, both governments are extremely fucked up."
Dante slouches on the couch in the yard of their home, watching Lil Rig try and cut down a tree with his wooden sword. The noise from the city market could be heard from the window. But Dante pays it no mind because thinking about the market only serves to frustrate him even more.
"Slavery? Slavery- Slavery! What am I going to do with slavery? I'm just one man. I'm no Abraham Lincoln?" He tells himself.
"If anything, I'm also a victim of slavery. I'm no different from these slaves. I'm locked in with my destiny of being the Celestrian Emperor. That's an even harder toll if you ask me."
Dante smugly smiles as he successfully justifies to himself his being nonchalant toward slavery. Then he jumps on the soft cushioned bed in his room and stretches like a newly awoken cat.
"All this pressure is so hard on me!" he said.
He opens his eyes and he sees his mother Marvia with arms crossed and looking at Dante with eyebrows raised. "Dante? What are you doing? Why don't you go say goodbye to the Holy Archivist Ravka Grimshaw. Don't you have anything to say to her before she leaves for Jeddah?"
Dante stands up quickly and replies, "Oh, I just woke up. I was studying all night and I was not able to get some shut-eye, Mother."
Marvia sits down on the bed and says, "I guess, I have some explaining to do. And you've been acting out on me with your melancholy."
Dante stops smiling and looks at his shaking fingers that he tries to control.
"So is Trela my sister? Who is Ravka and why were you controlling a homunculus as Toad? And why did you take me here in Rhiqualon? Why did you let Ravka leave with Zylthar's Radiant Blade?"
"You have lots of questions," Marvia said. "I will answer them all. Come stand up."Marvia closed the room's door and locked it. She then closed the windows too making sure no one would see.
"Mom, what are you doing?"
Dante is curious but trusts his mother. And if there was one person in the world of Gomorrah that he would trust it would be Marvia.
They sat across each other on the floor and knelt in a prayer-like position. Dante looked at his mother and could only see a pure, loving, woman that had cared for him all his life in this world.
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Marvia took out her Scriptures and asked Dante to put his hand on the pages of the book when it is opened.
She opened the Scriptures, it activated with a holy glow on Dante's hand. And he can feel the light's heat burn into his veins collecting his blood.
She then prayed, "Oh Holy System. Allow the advocates of Archangel Uriel to fulfill their will through Divine Bilocation. Let our souls be of service to the Celestial Providence and be agents of Systematic fate. This is pleading with the Authority of an Archangel's Ward given to me by the Holy System."
The light then peered into both of their physical bodies and seemed to consume them and drag them into another dimension.
And within seconds both Dante and Marvia disappeared from the room and what was left was her floating Scriptures suspended in the air and protected by a divine shield.
Dante opened his eyes and he could see a beautiful woman adorned in a gown of golden aurora and a halo made of stars that glimmered brightly. Her skin was smoother than cream, and her hands moved like graceful reeds dancing in the breeze.
Marvia was her.
"Mom?" Dante could understand that this was Marvia's true nature. And he knew that she could have appeared in an even holier form but it would burn so brightly that his sense of self would disappear.
He then looked upon himself but he was a mere speck of light that barely emitted a wavelength of goodness.
"I suppose, I would expect my soul to look like this. I shouldn't even exist in a realm like this," Dante told himself. "I'm surprised I'm not some black hole that sucks up all this light like the demonic being that I am."
Marvia smiled and whispered to him, "My son. Only the brightest stars become black holes. The little ones become white dwarfs like you, but that means they've lived a good, long, and satisfactory life and can begin watching over the rest of us even though unnoticed from the darkness of the night sky."
Dante was an idiot when it came to astronomy, so he didn't understand what Marvia was saying.
Dante could not see anything in this realm, nor sense anything because it was beyond time and space.
"What is this place, Mom?"
"It's the first sphere of heaven. The Wandering Realm. There are nine spheres of heaven. But you to reach the top, you must ascend with your Piety," Marvia answered.
"Why are we here, Marvia?"
"We're here because this is where I am originally from," Marvia answers. "I am an angel. And I chose to live as a human. Trela's real mother had passed away and is here in heaven. And I-"
"You came to earth by taking her physical form. It's like demon possession," Dante thought. "I've heard of this from Ravka. It's an Angelic Incarnation. But why?"
"All will be revealed in the proper time." Marvia smiled.
She then showed a screen that both of them can understand written in the language of the Angels.
[Welcome to Bilocation Mode!]
[Dante de Monfort is now authorized to access Bilocation Mode]
"Bilocation mode? Mom, what is this?"
[Queuing Dante de Monfort as available Bilocator #171]
"Remember when I was with you as Toad and it turned out to be a Homunculus? That was Bilocation. Bilocation transports your soul, and imbues it on a homunculus so you can take its form."
"What is it for?"
"When members of the Church of the Holy System request assistance from the Holy System, they are given the option to summon a Bilocator to assist them in a Pilgrimage. And Pilgrimages are selfless acts of service and obedience for the Holy System."
"But we can still do Pilgrimages without the Bilocation Mode, right?"
"Yes. But this protects you from exposing your identity. A high-profile name like yours attracts unwanted attention and may compromise your Pilgrimages. As you have experienced with-"
"Sir Lysander Verinthal. The Knight from the Faithful Realms of Mensor rebels."
Marvia nodded. And she then moved closer to Dante, giving her speck of light of a son a kiss.
"Remember to be grateful to the Archangel Uriel's advocacy. The truth is you wouldn't have been allowed to access Bilocation Mode without his support."
"Advocacy, huh? I guess, even heaven has its favorites."
[Pilgrimage is Now Available! Downloading Soul in 5... 4... 3...]
"May the Holy System guide you, my light!" Marvia said.
[2...]
"Wait! Mom! I'm not ready yet!"
[1...]
A portal appears sucking Dante into a portal to back to the world of Gomorrah.
"Oh! Holy Mother of-"
[100% Soul Download Complete]
[Dante de Monfort - Status: Pilgrimage Active]