The Penitent One looking up to the Cradle of Affliction.
Obtaining the Cradle of Affliction is the Penitent One’s ultimate goal in the game. Deogracias also refers to it as the "Cradle of the Grievous Miracle" and the “Final Relic”. He continues to say that it is a “grail of blood and gold that emanated from the forehead of the Father...” This seems to be referring to the Twisted One, and his following dialogue that mentions the First Miracle further implies that this is who he is referencing.
The Cradle is guarded by Escribar within the Mother of Mothers, next to the famous Turned Throne on top of the ashen mountain that was once the Burnt Tree.
Deogracias tells the Penitent One that he must take “communion with the First Miracle,” implying that obtaining the Cradle of Affliction will allow him to connect in some way with the Twisted One. In ending A, he undergoes the same process of turning into a tree that the Twisted One and Escribar did, implying that the “communion” is experiencing the same fate. All of this indicates that the Cradle of Affliction is the source or somehow connected to the source of the Miracle.
The Cradle of Affliction parallels the Holy Grail in Christian culture, the cup Jesus used during the Last Supper, and in which Joseph of Arimathea would later receive Christ's blood at the Cross. It is the object of desire in many medieval quests, and many Arthurian legends relate the Grail to miraculous powers such as happiness, knowledge, and eternal youth.
Relevant Dialogue[] | |
|---|---|
| Deogracias after defeating the Last Son of the Miracle | "The Cradle of the Grievous Miracle, the final relic, the grail of blood and gold that emanated from the forehead of the Father as he silently lamented the moment of his blessed twisting."
"That first relic is here, at the top of the ashen mountain next to the Turned Throne where His Holiness was kissed by our Miraculous Pain." "And now your final communion with the Miracle awaits." |
| Deogracias after defeating the Last Son of the Miracle | "Your communion with the First Miracle awaits." |
| Deogracias in the Holy Line | "The Cradle of Affliction is what you seek. This can be found in the Mother of Mothers of the churches." |