As Lev's shuttle approached the "Chapel.Perilous", things only got weirder. Reggie could now see another garish addition to the light show which bathed the ship. Directly above the pilot house, a huge golden apple seemed to rotate slowly. After a few seconds, Reg saw the expected Greek letter Kappa emblazoned on the apple's side. "'To the Prettiest One' indeed!", he muttered under his breath as Lev diverted to an unused docking port on the far side of the Geisha.
Moments later, they were in a lift ascending to the "long house" on the ship's foredeck. The lift disgorged them into a scene more reminiscent of a carnival than a Church service. Reggie's jaw dropped a bit further as Lev guided him to a cozy furniture grouping set off to the side of the long "Chapel". Lev muttered something about "checking the staff", and wandered off, leaving Reggie to gape and wonder at the scene.
He was about to wander off himself in search of Malaclypse when a stunning young woman in a VERY short Greek toga approached bearing two large golden plates. One plate was piled high with cigarettes which Reggie immediately recognized as the Church's private stock of "Kallisti Gold", grown on his own plantation. To be polite, Reggie took a couple and placed them on the low table.
The second plate appeared to be empty until the woman extended it. Embedded in the plate were a retinal scanner and a keypad, and the engraved word "Donations". "So much for 'free admission' he thought, as his eyes traveled back to the girl's stunning anatomy.
"Umm, Miss, are you a Church member then?" Reggie enquired.
"Nah. Me 'n the other girls worked at a "Pooters" club on Curacao until a few days ago. The old geezer who owns this tub offered us all a small fortune for a few weeks' work. The gig's a bit weird, yeah, but it beats servin' drinks in a thong!"
Reggie gulped at the image, but smiled politely and continued. "Thank you, err, Miss. And where would the 'old geezer' be at the moment?"
"Oh, he'll be along shortly, once the marks are pleasantly fuzzy!"
At that, Reggie surveyed the "congregation" once more, noting the haze of smoke collecting as the group partook of Eris' "sacrament". But, something was off. The familiar odor of the Gold was there, but he also detected a sickish sweet overtone to the smoke; and then a slightly bitter odor wafted in as well. It suddenly dawned on him from the "old books".
"Why, the bastard is using Hassan I Sabbah's formula! He's added the equivalent of Black Alamout hash and belladona to the mix!" Reggie's brows knitted as he realized the implications. Whatever "secrets" Mal's sermon might reveal would be augmented by a very old and very serious metaprogramming tool.
Reggie was about to find and collar the Episkopos for an explanation when a soft chime began to sound at intervals. The "Acolytes" from Pooters began to herd the congregation onto soft throw pillows scattered about on the floor.
As the room began to quiet, Reggie could hear the soft strains of an old Terran song begin to grow in volume. If it was a "hymn", the Church that used it escaped him...
"Well, whatever this is about, Mal's really pouring on the coals", he thought. He sat back and resigned himself to the experience.
![[Image: SophieAd.jpg]](http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o108/Shamus_FL/TAZ%20Images/SophieAd.jpg)