and "The universe requires sacrifice. It always has, and it always will. Because the universe is sacramental. and " - - Broken and scattered, the survivors of the strange events in the Taklamakan Desert are trying to make sense of what happened while the rest of the world tries to store balance by scapegoating the artilects.The Process - an ancient, alchemical plan to transform human consciousness - goes far deeper than anyone thought, and only the artificial magnetosphere known as St. Michael's Shield prevents its fulfillment.The Lucifer Particles may hold the answers, but the path to understanding them leads through the strange, sub-quantum world of the Holomovement, guarded by the secretive scientific cult known as the Divers. The price of knowledge may be too high.In Rome, the Princes of the Church converge to elect a new Pope, while Father Gabriel Serafian, an exorcist and former neuroscientist, is drawn even deeper into a conspiracy of global - and possibly supernatural - dimensions.Confusion reigns. New discoveries threaten the very foundations of both science and faith. A cloud of unknowing has descended upon the world.Meanwhile, visions of a young Chinese girl who died during the genocides may point to a way forward...