Dante chuckled at the way his friend ended the call. He swiped off the call ended screen. He went back into his contacts. Then, he dialed his fiancé's number, planning to inform her of whom was going to officiate their wedding. He tucked his phone between his ear and shoulder. He picked up his utensils as the call went through.
"Hello, my love." Dante spoke first.
Isabella's happy voice sounded from the other side.
"Hey, Dante~ What are you doing?" She inquired.
"Just having lunch." Dante answered. "What about you?"
"I'm out with my friends! We're deciding on the decorations for the wedding." Isabella replied. "By the way, did you find a venue and a priest?"
"I found the priest but I haven't decided on the venue yet." Dante cut into his food.
"Who is it?" Isabella asked.
"Pope Francis XII." Dante took a bite of his lunch.
Right then, Isabella's voice halted.
"What?" She blurted the next second.
"You heard me." Dante swallowed. "Pope Francis XII will officiate our wedding."
"Oh my God…" Isabella groaned. "Dante, I love you so much."
Dante chuckled. "Me too–"
Right at that exact instant, Dante was cut off by his lover's erratic voice.
"I love you! I love you! I love you! I love you!" Isabella exclaimed her love in a rapid manner. "Thank you so much! You're the best!"
"Oh hell no." Dante pulled his phone out and cut the call.
From the other side of the table, Missio laughed and ate another piece.
"Y' know I heard a saying… Some men drown while others thirst." He commented.
"I'm just tryna swim." Dante replied, pushing his food. "But she's trying to drown me."
Both siblings burst into a fit of laughter. After a few moments, they finished their food. Dante paid the bill. They headed off the RV, walking along the streets of Vatican City. Eventually, they reached their vehicle. Dante spun around before they entered the RV. He locked eyes with Missio.
"Listen, Missio. Bellum will train you in Cinque Terre but while we spend the month here, I'll teach you how to control your enhanced vision."
"Sounds like a plan to me, bro." Missio raised his hand – shrugging.
Dante smiled. "You'll master it quickly. Let's start right away."
"First, let's change though."
Dante looked at Missio torn overcoat. "Right…"
***
After putting on a more casual attire, the brothers stepped out of the RV. Dante brought out two chairs and unfolded them. He placed them on the ground. Missio took a seat. Dante did as well, heaving a sigh.
"Now, let's move on."
"Say… how long will it take me to master this enhanced vision?" Missio inquired.
"I would hope a week." Dante replied.
"What do you mean hope?" Missio pouted.
"Don't make me remind you of Verona. Oh… I had a flipping headache teaching your ass how to control your senses." Dante grunted, shifting in his chair.
"Oh, come on. I was special needs back then."
Dante burst into laughter, clutching his chest. Missio covered his mouth, unable to control his laughter as well.
"What the hell did you say?! Special needs? HAAA!!" Dante laughed breathlessly.
Missio didn't respond – consumed by his own laughs. After a few seconds, the brothers calmed down. But once they met their eyes again, they went back into a fit of laughter. Eventually, they calmed down.
"Jokes aside…" Dante caught his breath. "Let's get on with your training."
"Right – Right…" Missio wiped his mouth. "What do I do?"
"At the Ascendant level, you get enhanced vision. You still keep th X-ray vision from the scarlet eyes just now, you've got additional abilities. You can zoom into objects at great distances; you can things in extreme detail down to their molecular structure and you can see reality at a faster rate than others. Try all of them, you can choose which ability to activate." Dante explained.
"Then, how can I activate those powers?" Missio asked.
Dante raised his hand. "Same as before, focus on your eyes."
"But I'm gonna go to the sun again?"
"That's because you poured all your focus into your eyes." Dante explained. "It's literally like the zoom in a computer. The more you press it, the more it zooms in but unlike zooming, you actually keep full resolution."
"That… makes too much sense." Missio blurted. "You're a good teacher."
"Can't say I didn't wanna be one." Dante smiled. "Now, try to use your vision."
Missio nodded. He drew in a deep breath. He closed his eyes, resting them. His eyes flew open the next second. He looked forward at Vatican City. He took his brother's advice, pouring a bit of his focus into his eyes.
'Like zooming in on a picture…'
The next moment, his vision moved forward. His eyes stopped before the restaurant they had just been at before. He saw a waiter, carrying a plate of food to a table. He shifted his mind and closed in on the food. He saw its molecular structure. He zoomed out. He elevated his head, looking at the heavens. He poured more of his focus. His vision went farther – beyond the sky and exited the atmosphere. He saw the moon.
'What the…?'
He turned his attention to the moon. He saw that its surface had been shattered, leaving deep cracks within the natural satellite.
'How the hell did that happen…?'
As he questioned how this was possible, something moved at the edge of the moon's surface. He looked towards it. A massive futuristic white painted building sailing on the surface of the moon. It traveled smoothly, avoiding the shattered side. Its top held a large telescope which moved continuously in a loop, staring into the stars above.
'Is that a moon base? Haven't seen one in a while…'
Missio nodded. Suddenly, his vision distorted. He blinked and his vision restored. He zoomed in further on the moon. Then, he saw a massive rift appear on it. From that void, grey-skinned beasts with crimson red eyes exited. They opened their mouths – seemingly to roar but nothing came out. More monsters flooded out of the rift. Just then, the moon base stopped and spun around.
From it, a singular individual wearing a spacesuit exited. He watched the chaos fragment in silence. After a while, he moved his arm, forming a circle using the chaos in the surroundings. He pushed the complex circle towards the rift. Reality shook violently as the circle landed on the fragment. Then, it closed as if it hadn't existed in the first place. Missio sighed and unfocused. His vision returned to normal. He blinked.
"God…"
"Having a difficult time?" Dante questioned,
"Nah. It's actually pretty easy to control." Missio replied, shifting in his chair.
"Really? Damn, your training in Venice really paid off…" Dante commented.
"It really did…" Missio agreed.
Dante placed his hand on Missio's shoulder. "But… I hope you're okay with staying the month here."
Missio tilted his head. "Well… I'll give it a chance."