Quote:Guido shifted uncomfortably in his chair.  It didn't help that this not-quite-a-room underneath the Vatican, a chamber really, was poorly lit and ventilated.

The cardinal fixed him with a piercing stare before asking in an icy manner,

"-What- are you saying?  That the eternal soul is but a parasitical entity that opportunistically hops from mortal form to mortal form as people die and are born?! ... That the history of humanity is an unending tale of rude exploitation perpetrated by The Source?!!"

Quote:Qvarik (the alien "grey") studied the pork dish for a few seconds.  In its strange tone, it said,

"This is the flesh of pig.  Did you cook it long enough?  Otherwise it might be harboring tularemia!"

At this, Sergeant Whiteman cocked an eyebrow and looked up.  "Hmm.  Rabbit fever from eating tainted pork ... this calls for tricky-Gnosis ..."

As always, Qvarik's expression remained, well, expression-less.  It regarded Whiteman and simply commented that it did not understand.

For his part, Whiteman wished that he could somehow convey the notion of urgency to Qvarik with regards to opening the portal.  Two security policemen had passed through it before it suddenly closed, and Whiteman desperately wanted to know if they were still alive ... elsewhere.