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tenshiharmonia · 2 years

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Of infernal patterns and theological virtues

Hello there. I’m here to get some thoughts out of my mind once again. So, I’ve been thinking about those Bayonetta characters that I tried to conceptualize in one of my previous posts and came up with some additional details I wanted to share with you. It’s nothing particularly big or important, but you know how the saying goes, the Devil is in the details. And you cannot have an Umbra Witch without some demons. :3 No but seriously, I just felt like it was a nice and interesting way to flesh those characters out a little more. It’s amazing how writing about things makes you grow attached to them... So, first thing first, I’m still not sure about the name I want to give to my Umbra boy, but since there is a lot of things in the Bayonetta universe named after figures from the Norse Mythology - Balder, Aesir, Loki, Loptr, Vigrid, Noatun, Fimbulventr, the Jörmungandr tower, the Valkyrie military transport, and so on and so forth... -, and since said mythology is one of the few where the Moon is regarded as male, I was thinking, maybe I could give him the name of the Scandinavian Moon god, Máni. It would make for a pleasant contrast to Apollonia and maintain the solar/lunar naming pattern I wanted for the two siblings without making it too blatant. I mean, I haven’t made up my mind yet, but the more I think about it, the more I like this choice... Speaking of denominations though, you know how Bayo’s main sets of guns in the first two games were both named after famous vintage songs (I don’t really know what are the technical commonalities between Scarborough Fair and Love Is Blue, so I won’t try to categorize them further than that :p ) ? Well, as you can tell from the previous point, I love this kind of pattern, so I thought it would be nice to keep the trend and name the weapons of my Umbra boy after an old song too*1. Now, I don’t know if Bayo’s guns were really named after this exact version - although it wouldn’t be surprising, since it’s pretty much the quintessential and most well-known rendition of the ballad -, but like a lot of people, I cannot hear "Scarborough Fair" without thinking of Simon & Garfunkel. I bet you see where this is going, but my point is, "The Sound of Silence" would make for a fantastic name for a set of guns. I don’t know anything about firearms though, so I cannot tell you what type of guns I envision them to be, but I think that their individual names would be "Touch", "Disturb", "Echo" and "Whisper", after the last lines of the different verses of the song. Additionally, I don’t think they would have been crafted by Rodin, but by a rival demon smith. I was considering naming this guy "Mulciber", after one of the fallen angels in John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost*2, but I’m still not sure. That issue aside, I must say that if I had to devise a plot for a game where Cereza were to meet those characters, I think this guy would play a crucial part in the first few chapters. Here is how I imagine the way it would go : after a chance encounter with a mysterious man who appears to be a survivor of the Umbra clan, Bayonetta is left with a lot of questions. Sensing that something wicked is brewing - no pun intended -, and in possession of one of the bullets that the enigmatic warlock was using, she asks Rodin for his expertise. Thankfully, the demon is able to identify the bullet as the work of another infernal master blacksmith. By an odd stroke of luck, it also happens that said blacksmith has recently emigrated from Inferno to settle in the Human realm. Thanks to Rodin, Cereza is able to track the demon and goes to meet him, hoping to find a lead in her research of the Umbra boy. I think those events would make up the prologue of the game. Of course, the demonic craftsman would have set up his new forge under some ancient volcano. I would say the Etna, since it’s the go-to mountain for this kind of thing and would tie in nicely with Mulciber’s origins (as described in a previous footnote), but at the same time, I’d rather make it a completely original location*3. Anyway, opening with Bayonetta reaching the base of the volcano, the first chapter would probably focus on the witch as she makes her way to the blacksmith’s lair, starting on an eerie yet beautiful snowy path to end up in the fiery depths of the mountain. Instead of angels or demons, I also like to imagine that the enemies here would be various kinds of magical automatons that the infernal blacksmith would have created to guard the path to his den, in the bowels of the volcano. Now, having found the guy, it’s time for Bayo to make him talk. Obviously, the craftsman is not particularly willing to rat his client out, so Cereza will have to make him spill the beans with all the finesse and subtlety by which we know her, culminating in a boss fight against the uncooperative demon. Thankfully, if his smithing skills are on a par with Rodin’s, his powers are far weaker than those of the Infinite One, making for a much less painful battle. As for the plot, one can imagine that a good old spanking would be enough to loosen the blacksmith’s tongue. Now in possession of the lead she was looking for, Bayonetta can finally chase after the mysterious man. But as she is drawing near the town where the boy is said to hide, the question remains : is this all one big coincidence, or is there someone plotting in the shadows to lure the witch on their Machiavellian chessboard... ? This is a purely rhetorical question, obviously, but yeah, I think it could make for a nice beginning. Anyway, since I broached the topic of the enemies Bayo would have to face, I’ve been thinking about another species of demons that I would like to introduce : the Imps (short for "Impious", to keep to the trend of the demons being named after negative feelings and qualities, like Insidious, Malicious, Hatred, et cetera). As the name implies, they would be little demonic creatures created by Baphomet - the demon Máni has made his pact with - to act both as servants and extensions of himself. Having little power on their own, they would probably not pose any real threat to Bayonetta on the battlefield, but the idea is that Baphomet can basically use them as magical surveillance cameras, seeing through their eyes, or outright possess them, wherever they may be, to extend his influence across the world. Speaking of Baphomet, I also picture that one of the key aspects of his character would be that he is impossibly old. Like, "was there long before the First Armageddon even happened" old. So while he isn’t as powerful as the likes of Sheba or Jubileus, his knowledge of the universe and its mechanisms is unparalleled. One could even work in a reference to the story of Laplace’s demon, although the affection that the old goat has for the two siblings may sometimes blind him and distort his calculations...

Now, let’s take a look at the bright side of things. It’s time to talk about theology Apollonia and her holy entourage. As you may recall from my previous Bayonetta post, I was contemplating the idea of introducing three new Auditio based on the theological virtues, so as to complete the set of the seven heavenly virtues from the Christian tradition (of which the four cardinal virtues that the existing Auditio represent are part of). Well, as you can guess, I was pretty much already sold on the concept, so here are some thoughts I had about them. First of all, their names. Okay, that point wasn’t really difficult. All I had to do was translate the virtues’ names into Latin, as they did for the Cardinal Virtues. So, after checking multiple online translators (I’m not really fluent in Latin, so I’ll have to trust them on that one), we have : Fides (Faith)*4, Spes (Hope), and Caritas (Charity, also referred to as Love). I must say, I like the sound of it. It’s quite funny how all the Cardinal Virtues’ names end with vowel sounds (Fortitudo, Temperantia...), while all the Theological Virtues would all have theirs ending with an "s" sound (or whatever is the technical term for that). Really, the contrast between the two groups is something that I really wanted to explore, so it’s quite an amusing coincidence to have it engraved in their very names. On that note, I’ve been thinking about how to implement them in the lore of the series. As I pointed out in my previous post, coming up with three new Auditio would inevitably require to explain why three of the most powerful angels have not been heard of before, especially when the first game’s plot was centered on the resurrection of the queen goddess of Paradiso. If you remember, I suggested that, maybe, the Theological Virtues could have proven more reasonable than their Cardinal brethren and opposed the return of the Creator, which would have led to them being booted out of Paradiso by the other four and joining the two siblings in their exile. I must admit, I wasn’t really convinced by the idea at first, since it seemed a little too implausible for three of the most important angels in the rigid hierarchy of Paradiso to go against the Divine Will like that, but after giving it some thought, it would make for a delightful contradiction. You see, according to Christian philosophy, the four cardinal virtues are supposed to be human virtues, while the three theological ones are supposed to be inspired by God. With that in mind, wouldn’t it be exquisitely ironic if, in the Bayonetta universe, the embodiments of the three theological virtues turned out to have a huge fondness for Humanity while the incarnations of the cardinal virtues are blindly loyal to their insane goddess ? I don’t know about you, but personally, I find it quite fitting (although I also imagine that Apollonia and the three Auditio already had contact before the clan war, at which point the three angels basically went "Our colleagues have lost their marbles ! Can we go with your brother and you ?" ). To stay on this topic, I also like to think that while the Cardinal Auditio are known to behave in opposition to the qualities they embody - like Fortitudo being a bit of a coward, or Iustitia attacking everything indiscriminately -, the Theological Auditio, on the other hand, are always spouting philosophical platitudes about the virtues they represent. One can only imagine Cereza’s immense frustration when she’ll have to deal with those rambling loons. XD That being said, Apollonia would still have a lot of affection for them, treating them as trusted friends and advisors, almost like a trio of weird uncles. Now, on a completely unrelated note, I also thought about what the titles of their themes could be. I know, it doesn’t really amount to anything without the songs that go with them, but hey, as you can probably tell by now, I love to play with those kinds of little details. :p Anyway, devoted Fides' would be "In convictions and promises", optimistic Spes' would be "In waiting for better tomorrows", and all-loving Caritas' would be "In regards to Love, universal and everlasting", the last one being an obvious reference to the song "In regards to Love : Agape" from Yuri!!! on Ice (it may not really sound like a boss battle theme, but this is how I imagine their songs would sound like, that is to say, imposing in a tender and crystalline kind of way, rather than the heavy and dreadful choirs of the Cardinal Virtues*5). I would also like to cite the NieR games’ soundtracks as a major inspiration for what I envision their themes would sound like, especially the Shadowlord’s theme, "Bipolar Nightmare" and "Emil - Despair". If you don’t know them already, I warmly recommend you to listen to them right away ; those games’ scores are magnificent. Music aside though, I still have no idea what my Theological Virtues could look like and what their powers could be. Since the Cardinal Virtues all had elemental powers, it would make sense for their Theological brethren to have some too, but I don’t really know what theirs could be. At the very least, I picture that Fides would have some sort of brainwashing ability, since he is, you know, Faith, inspiring blind and absolute devotion in others, but I don’t think it would be related to his "element" per se. That being said, I also imagine that the three of them would possess a limited shapeshifting power, allowing them to assume more practical forms when they are around their smaller companions. Alternate forms that I like to picture as a trio of identical, tall and human-like silhouettes, wearing hoods and long, flowing mantle seemingly filled with nothing, their only visible body parts being floating marble faces and disconnected, jointed hands, like articulated mannequin hands made out of the same immaculate limestone as their mask-like visages. Kind of like the Sages in Twilight Princess, if you see what I’m talking about, with only minor variations in colours and ornaments to differentiate the three Auditio. As for their true, monstrously angelic forms, well, I don’t really know what direction I would like them to take. Since one of the symbols of Hope is an anchor (because, you know, Hope anchors the soul and keeps it safe and steady against the storm and the vagaries of fate), I was thinking about giving Spes the appearance of a colossal, living battleship, in the same vein as the Kinships and Worships, but I’m not entirely convinced by the concept. At the very least, I would like to work a rainbow in his design (yes, an actual rainbow), in reference to the one that God put in the sky as a token of hope after the Flood*6. Of course, said tale also brings to mind the idea of an enormous boat, so I’ll have to think about it. Now, regarding Caritas, the main symbol of Charity is the Sacred Heart, a burning heart said to represent the eternal and boundless Love which God lavishes upon his creations. And really, a grotesque, pulsating heart would fit quite nicely - so to speak - with the visceral monstrosity that angels display under their marble skin. Of course, I don’t really want the Auditio to be just a humongous heart with a face taped on the front, but I guess it’s a starting point...

Anyway, I think I wrote down everything I had on the mind. For now, of course, but still, it feels nice to get all those thoughts out of my system. If you made it this far, thank you for taking the time to read the whole thing. I don’t know if my divagations are really that interesting, but at the very least, I really like to share them here. Who knows, maybe they’ll inspire somebody else one day... Now, to conclude this post, there was one last topic I wanted to address : the Moon song ! Since the first two games both had a cover of one of Frank Sinatra’s Moon-related songs - Fly me to the Moon and Moon River, respectively*7 - as part of their soundtracks, I thought it would be nice to pick one too. I must admit, Sinatra’s repertoire is not one I know really well - and the fact that they already used his two most iconic Moon-themed songs didn’t make it any easier XD -, but after listening to several recordings on YouTube, I would say that my favourite is probably "It's only a paper moon". Granted, it doesn’t really allude to the Moon that much, but I think that a Bayonetta remix of the song would make for a stylish battle theme. I only need to find a softer, more sensual version for Cereza to pole dance on during the credits. :p Joking aside, I also considered "Reaching for the Moon" and "The Moon was yellow (and the Night was young)", but I ultimately find them less striking than the previous one. That being said, if we don’t limit ourselves to the crooner’s catalogue, I would also like to bring up the "Moon Song", from the "her" movie. Sure, it is a lot more recent than the pieces covered in the games (and has a painfully uncreative title), but it does exude a similar vibe. And the fact that it’s a duet between a man and a woman would make it quite appropriate for a game where Bayonetta is pit against a male Umbra Witch... Anyway, thank you once again for listening to my monologue. It’s always a pleasure to share my ideas with you. Take care of yourselves, and have an awesome day. ^_^

*1 - Even though I’m well aware that it’s not really an actual tradition of the Umbra clan, as indicated by the names of Jeanne and Rosa’s own weapons. If anything, it looks more like a Rodin thing... *2 - He is credited solely as an architect in the poem, being the one who designed the capital city of Hell, Pandaemonium, but since "Mulciber" was originally another name of Vulcan, the Roman god of fire and metalworking, I would say it doesn’t feel too out of place to reimagine him as some sort of multifaceted craftsman who likes to forge weapons too (in fact, I found quite a bunch of cool demon blacksmith pictures by googling his name ; don’t hesitate to give them a look :p ). *3 - As I mentioned earlier, a lot of places in the first two games are named after locations in the Norse mythology, so if I were to opt for this second option, I’d like to call this mountain "Nidavellir", after the cavernous realm where the Dwarves are said to reside (apparently, said realm is also known as "Svartalfheim", so there’s also this option to consider, although I must admit that I’m not really knowledgeable enough about Scandinavian myths and linguistics to tell which name would be the best XD ). *4 - Google Translate also gives it as "Fidem". Phonetically speaking, I kind of like it more, but apparently, it’s only a declension of the noun, and it would bug me to have one of them not being named after the nominative form. So if you speak Latin, feel free to give me your opinion on the matter. ^^ *5 - Not that I don’t like them, of course, but you catch my drift. *6 - You know how it goes, "after the rain comes the sun", "every cloud has a silver lining", "there's always light at the end of the tunnel", "April showers bring May flowers"... Really, I’m tempted to say that the symbol is pretty self-explanatory. *7 - Although it’s debatable if those really count as Sinatra songs, since he merely covered them. Still, for the sake of simplicity, I’ll limit myself to his work for now.

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tenshiharmonia · 2 years

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Bayonetta Recap - Part 4

C - Angels

The Theological Virtues as a whole : Fides, Spes and Caritas

- Along with the four Cardinal Virtues, they formed the celestial council embodying the Divine Will of Paradiso and tasked with overseeing the realm of Light in Jubileus’ absence

- By an ironic twist of fate, the three Theological Virtues turned out to be much more sensible and benevolent than their Cardinal brethren. While the four Cardinal Auditio are fanatically loyal to Jubileus and only exist to enforce her will, Fides, Spes and Caritas, on the other hand, have a genuine soft spot for humanity.

- Therefore, when the opportunity arose to revive the slumbering goddess through the help of an exiled Lumen Sage, the three of them opposed the idea, knowing full well that Jubileus’ return would doom the human race to a grim future. However, they were still outnumbered, so by four votes to three, their objections were ultimately overruled. And to ensure that they wouldn’t try to use their influence to disrupt their grand design, the Cardinal Virtues arranged to have them driven out of Paradiso.

- Note that, at this point, Apollonia had probably already made their acquaintance. I don’t think they were especially close back then, but I like to imagine that the three Auditio already had some sort of preceptorial fondness for this promising girl. Likewise, Apollonia probably already held them in higher regard than the other authorities of Paradiso...

- Still, knowing of her ties to the Umbra Clan through her brother, they tried to ask for her mediation in the hope of preventing the nefarious machinations of their colleagues from succeeding. Sadly, the tension between the two clans was still at an all-time high after the events that led to Cereza’s conception, and the manipulations of Paradiso proved to be quite effective at fanning the flames of war. None of the clans’ elders were willing to listen to the voice of reason, and the escalating distrust was quickly getting out of hand.

- Silenced by their peers, and with nowhere else to run, the three angels ultimately resolved to accompany Máni and Apollonia in their exodus. They spent the next five centuries watching over the Sage and her brother, helping them build their own little community far from the bleak specter of Vigrid.

- Unlike the Cardinal Virtues, who are known to often act in contradiction to the qualities they are supposed to embody (like Fortitudo being a bit of a coward, or Iustitia attacking everyone and everything indiscriminately), those three, on the other hand, are almost always spouting philosophical platitudes about the virtues they represent. They can be quite a handful to deal with, especially when you have as little patience as Bayonetta, but Apollonia still treats them as trusted friends and advisors.

- All in all, they’ve become like a trio of weird uncles for the two siblings

- Since their true, angelic bodies are way too massive and cumbersome, I like to think that when the three of them are hanging out with the two siblings and the rest of their entourage, they use some kind of limited shapeshifting power to assume more practical and mundane forms*. In those forms, they look like a trio of tall and nearly identical, human-like silhouettes, draped in long and flowing mantles with hoods. Kind of like the Sages in Twilight Princess, the mantles are seemingly filled with nothing but air. Their only visible body parts are mask-like marble faces (note that they can still emote), floating where their actual visages should be, and long, disconnected hands, jointed like those of some mannequins. Colour-wise, I’m not entirely sure, but my first idea was for the fabric of their cloaks to be as dark and sparkling as the night sky itself. If you’ve seen the – at the time of this post’s writing – latest episode of Helluva Boss, "The Circus", I was basically thinking about a deep black version of Paimon’s own cape. The glittering effect of his cloak, in particular, is exactly what I have in mind. It’s certainly a bit unusual for angels to wear black, but I feel like a lighter colour scheme would simply not be as striking as I want it to be. Black would make for a much better contrast between the cloaks and their alabaster body parts. Besides, while its main emblem is the Sun, Paradiso is also associated with stars in general (I mean, one of the realm’s area is literally referred to as the "Sea of Stars"), so a fabric that imitates a glittering night would still be quite appropriate. For the rest, while the three of them would look nearly identical to each other in those forms, I think there would still be slight differences in the shapes and colours of the ornaments they’d wear. The exact details are rather nebulous obviously, but for example, I was thinking that, maybe, Fides could sport white gemstones, while Spes and Caritas’ colours of choice would be green and red respectively (in reference to the colours that Dante associates with each virtue in his Divine Comedy). I don’t think that the colour schemes of their true angelic forms would be as strict (they would probably sport the same "white and gold with stained-glass-like splashes of colour" palette as the other Auditio), but it seemed like an important distinction to make in those secondary forms... Really though, I had this picture in mind, of Apollonia sitting on a throne, with those three ominously protective figures standing behing her, and I thought it was pretty sick, so I hope that my words have done my vision justice. XD

* I was also toying with the idea that those forms aren’t actually the result of shapeshifting, but some kinds of projections or power constructs. Basically, magical puppets that they manipulate from afar, speaking through them while their true angelic bodies hide in some sorts of dimensional folds, concealed and unreachable until they actually need them (to fight an insolent and troublesome Witch, for example). I don’t know which explanation I’ll ultimately opt for, but I must admit that I kind of like this "puppets" idea...

- Since all the Auditio that Cereza has to fight in the games have an elemental attribute, I thought it was only natural to assign one to my Theological Virtues as well, since they are supposed to complete the original set. I must admit, however, that I have absolutely no idea what their elements could be. Fire, Air, Earth and Water are already accounted for ; Light is a shared element among all angels ; Darkness is the demons’ exclusive domain ; Temperantia also covers lightnings and everything meteorological ; Iustitia, as the "Giver of Life", is already related to plants and poison ; and Glamor, while not an Auditio, is strongly associated with Ice... Really, I’m not sure what it leaves me with. Since I’m currently playing Pokémon Legends : Arceus, I was considering taking a leaf out of Dialga, Palkia and Giratina’s book, but I’m not entirely sure. I mean, a guy named "Spes" having Space powers would certainly be hilarious. And I guess that Fides being assigned Time could be interesting* (one could even imagine that it was actually him who taught the Lumen Clan how to manipulate time in the first place). Meanwhile, Love being the highest of the heavenly virtues, Caritas would obviously inherit Giratina’s antimatter. Which would actually resonate pretty well with his character, marking him as unfathomably more powerful than the other Auditio, just as Love transcends everything else. Alternatively, I also considered for his element to be Soul. Or maybe it could be referred to as "Heart" ? Either way, I’m talking about the sacred and ineffable principle that animates all beings, allowing him to have a certain dominion over the vagaries of metempsychosis. I also thought about stars. It’s not an elemental attribute per se, but as the supreme embodiment of Paradiso’s pure and infinite light, I think it could work. After all, isn’t Love supposed to be "as constant as the stars" or something like that ? One could even imagine a combination of the two, since stars are often regarded as the souls of our ancestors, watching over us from the heavens... Yeah, as you can tell, this is all one big work in progress (if that wasn’t clear enough :p ). For the sake of exhaustivity though, here is a list of all the other elements I considered, with varying degrees of likelihood : Metal, Crystal, Sand, Dust, Sound, Death and Decay, Gravity, Aether (whatever it might be XD ), Radioactivity, Paper, Magic itself...

* Although it would probably be more fitting for Fides to get Space and for Spes to be assigned Time, since Faith is supposed to be a "guiding light", while Hope is disposed toward both the future and making all the difference in the present...

- I also assigned titles to their non-existent theme songs. Some would say that it doesn’t really amount to anything without the tracks that go with those names, but hey, it’s still fun. ^_^ For the record, though, while the Cardinal Virtues’ themes are meant to be heavy and threatening, I like to think that the Theological Virtues’ songs, on the other hand, would have a more ethereal and crystalline grace to them. Actually, the title of Caritas’ theme is a reference to the song "In Regards to Love : Agape", from Yuri!!! on Ice, and said piece is certainly a good example of what I’d like those themes to sound like (although its pace may be a little too gentle to work as a battle theme). Another reference I’d like to mention is the Shadowlord’s theme, from NieR Gestalt/Replicant...

Fides, Theological Virtue of Faith

- Theme song : "In convictions and promises"

- Design-wise, my first idea would be to base him on the "Spear of the Cathedra" enemy from the game Blasphemous. Basically, he would look like some kind of pope or bishop sitting on an elevated cathedral throne of gigantic proportions, preaching otherworldly truths to those listening below and armed with an ornate episcopal crosier whose bottom part doubles as a spear with which he can impale the infidels (at least in theory ; since I envision the Theological Virtues as genuinely amiable and well-intentioned guys, he would probably not do such a thing... at least unprovoked).

- Of course, being a Bayonetta angel, it would not be just a particularly big guy seated on a particularly big chair, but some heavenly abomination whose silhouette happens to look like a bishop sitting on his throne. Heck, the bishop’s face would probably not even be the angel’s face, but rather some sort of sculpted, visage-like ornament. His actual face would probably be located somewhere on the "torso"...

- Being the Theological Virtue of Faith, he possesses incredible brainwashing powers, inspiring blind devotion in others. It’s not particularly useful in combat, especially against someone as strong-willed as Cereza, but it can come in handy when dealing with, ahem ahem, uncooperative elements.

Spes, Theological Virtue of Hope

- Theme song : "In waiting for better tomorrows"

- Since the main symbol of Hope is an anchor (as it keeps the soul safe and steady against the storm), I was thinking about having him be some sort of humongous living battleship, in the same vein as the Kinship and Worship types of angels. Of course, the concept also brings to mind the tale of the Flood and Noah’s Ark (which were actually already cited in the games as part of the Kinship angels’ lore). Now, the story itself is not really about Hope, but I do think that it resonates quite nicely with the notion*. I’m still not sure if it’s really the direction I want to take with him, but it would certainly makes for an interesting base...

* Seems like DC Comics agreed with me on this one since they apparently based Adara, the living embodiment of the Blue Light of Hope, on Noah’s dove...

- At the very least, I’d like to work a rainbow in his design, in reference to the one that God put in the sky after the Flood as a token of Hope for humanity. After all, there is a lot of proverbs that link the notion of Hope to the promise of a bright spell after the raging storm : "after the rain comes the sun", "every cloud has a silver lining", "there's always light at the end of the tunnel", "April showers bring May flowers"... And really, a rainbow is the perfect embodiment of that idea.

- I could also try to put some sort of twist on the concept of a living ark, like the second game did with the Insidious, who are gigantic manta ray demons that also serve as battleships, carrying the legions of Inferno in their bowels. Along the same lines, I was thinking that, maybe, Fides could also be some kind of enormous sea creature transporting souls and angels inside of him. My first pick would have been a whale. It’s not particularly original, but hey, whales are cool (and it could make for an interesting design). Besides, the way they spout water from their blowhole would be a nice and convenient excuse to work the aforementioned rainbow in his design since it often makes one appear. Really, the only downside of the idea is that, well, whales don’t exactly have anchors, and that element is like, the core of the entire thought process. I mean, you can always work one in the design if you’re creative enough, but I’m afraid it would make the whole thing feel a little too cluttered concept-wise. Still, it seemed like an interesting idea, so I wanted to share that train of thought with you.

Caritas, Theological Virtue of Charity (alternatively : Theological Virtue of Love)

- Theme song : "In regards to Love, universal and everlasting"

- In reference to the last few verses of Dante’s Divine Comedy - truly one of my favourite sources of inspiration -, where God’s love is described as a divine wheel that "moves the Sun and the other stars", I’d like to implement in his design the idea that Love is the motor that, you know, makes the world go round. I don’t really know how to translate it into an actual design, so it’s still pretty nebulous, but I was thinking that maybe, he could look like some sort of gigantic cog, with a big, pulsating heart in the center, to reference the Sacred Heart iconography. Or maybe like some kind of living solar system model. I don’t know if you see what I’m talking about, but basically, I would imagine it as a core with multiple rings and spheres revolving around it. Of course, one can imagine that said core could be the heart I mentioned earlier. I don’t really know where the angel’s face would fit in all this, but it could certainly make for quite an interesting battle, with Bayonetta having to jump from ring to ring to reach the innermost layer and strike his weak point while avoiding the Auditio’s attacks and minions. Really, I’m not entirely convinced, but the concept seems to have potential...

- Regarding this idea, another inspiration I’d like to mention is the esthetic of the dream worlds in Hollow Knight, with all those floating wheels and ethereal spirographs. I don’t really know how it could factor into Caritas’ design, but it definitely feels like the kind of vibe I’d like for him.

- Speaking of Hollow Knight though, do you know what else looks like a wheel, is the Pale King’s favourite waste of space and money, and would make for cool projectiles ? Buzz saws. And really, I can totally envision Caritas throwing wave after wave of hard-light buzz saws at Bayonetta. Kind of like the blades that Iustitia uses to hinder the Witch when she is running on his tentacles...

- By the way, if we go with the "astronomical model" idea, it would probably be (roughly) based on the geocentric Ptolemaic system, with the angel’s core standing for the Earth, and seven rings revolving around it. Each ring would represent - and be stamped with the sigil of - one of the seven classical "planets" (from the innermost to the outermost : the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn). If we want to be technical, there should be nine rings, since the Ptolemaic system also include the sphere of the fixed stars and the Primum Mobile, but I feel like it would be a bit too much. Also, I wonder if instead of rotating in the same plane, it wouldn’t be more interesting and impressive for the rings to move along concentric spheres in a three-dimensional manner, if you see what I mean. It would not be astronomically accurate, for sure (as if the Ptolemaic model was correct to begin with), but it would certainly make the design feel more intricate and dynamic...

Apollonia’s angelic entourage also includes :

- a Grace and a Glory : Apollonia’s right and left hands (don’t ask me which brother is which hand, though XD ). Those two were the first angels that Apollonia ever contacted and have faithfully stayed by her sides ever since, watching over Máni and her like a pair of protective and dutiful big brothers. And it would not be an exaggeration to say that this is indeed how the two humans consider them. Even in battle, they are Apollonia’s oldest and most trusted partners. She can even summon their heavenly claws to perform... whatever the Lumen Sages’ equivalent to the Wicked Weaves is called, tearing into her enemies with all the holy fierceness of flames and thunder.

- a Joy : one of Apollonia’s closest friends. Acts as her lady-in-waiting and confidante. And as her self-appointed bodyguard (even though Apollonia is more than capable of taking care of herself). Also, she knows how to play the transverse flute.

- a Valiance and a Valor : holy paladins and brothers in arms (if you’ll pardon me an intentional pun). I’m still not entirely sure about the exact details of their relationship to Apollonia*, but I like to think that when the girl went into exile, the two heavenly knights took it upon themselves to help her perfect her swordsmanship and became her instructors, spending the next five centuries training her in the way of the blade, so she certainly has a huge deal of respect for them, in a student/teachers kind of way. They also features among the angels that she can summon when performing her Lumen-branded Wicked Weaves, using their swords to prolong her own. Most of the time, she’ll only solicit Valiance’s help, but when cornered by a particularly strong enemy, she’ll switch to Valor, adding his shield to her battle choreography.

* My initial idea was that they were followers of the Theological Virtues who chose to join them in their own exile, so they kind of ended up associating with Apollonia by default. Still, they quickly developed a strong affection for the girl and her brother, taking the two humans under their wing and pledging allegiance to their ideals of peace and harmony...

- an Ardor : I must admit, I have zero idea what that guy’s deal could be, but I love the Affinities and their relatives, so I could not not include one of those guys in my Lumen girl’s inner circle.

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