“It’s not that simple,” the Pope responded. “This process requires your open consent, otherwise…”

The word hung in the air like an unpredictable menace in the room.

“Otherwise?”

“Otherwise it could all end… badly.”

“Mmm.”

Unfortunately, although the President preferred not to think about it, this was undoubtedly true. But surely, this wasn’t the time to indulge in bleak images of failure. He had enough of that from… mortal politicians!

This is the Pope!

Surely he has something more to offer!

Come on –press him.

“Alright then,“ the President said. “Talk to me.”

The voice of the Pope warmed further as he told the President the story of the Regeneration from his perspective. The idea of wiring someone up for renunciation had been introduced to him as an interesting experiment but he openly conceded that he’d been a little cynical at first, particularly when he’d heard that they’d chosen a non-Catholic Australian athlete to carry the implant.

“Privately I considered the sadhus had little chance of bringing a dramatic, eastern-style spiritual experience like renunciation to a westerner. And by that I mean any westerner, let alone a non-Catholic. Non-Catholic western Christians, in my opinion at that time, and I must stress, this is a view I have since changed, simply lacked the power of faith required to push through something as demanding as I believed renunciation to be – a view which has also altered in recent times.”