Mother Superior Agnes knelt alone in the dimly lit convent chapel long after midnight.
The rest of the sisters slept soundly in their cells. Only the soft flicker of votive candles and the distant hoot of an owl disturbed the heavy silence. Agnes had come here, as she did every night, to offer her private penance, to pray for strength against the sinful thoughts that sometimes crept into her dreams despite years of strict discipline.
Tonight, however, her prayers felt different.
A warm, golden light slowly filled the chapel, growing brighter until it bathed the stone walls and the crucifix above the altar in divine radiance. A voice, soft yet commanding, undeniably feminine whispered directly into her mind:
"You have served me faithfully for many years, my devoted daughter. Your purity
