Chapter 10 Summary

Reaching New Rome takes at least three months and entails great danger from robber bands. Francis prays they will be too ignorant to understand the value of the relic and his illumination. Some thieves allow victims to leave, relieved of booty. As a precaution, Francis wears a black eye patch, suggesting to the superstitious he has the evil eye. Two months out, Francis is waylaid in a wooded area near the Valley of the Misborn, a colony not affiliated with Catholic charities for leper like mutants. Occasionally babies are born with recessive genes, appear normal, but are so devoid of human spirit some even within the Church advocate destroying them. New Rome under Pope Leo XX refuses, however, and the misborn are often called the "Pope's Children." The short, brawny robber who confronts Francis appears normal, but has a companion who may be...