The Pilgrimage

Author's notes:

Although there's a few hints of things to come, there's no sex scene in this chapter. It's devoted to character and plot development. My use of mixed mythology is an essential component of the story itself. The plot will become more complex as the story continues. As you can see, I'm trying to put more than just sex into this tale. I hope it adds to your enjoyment... bob54z

A special thanks to Kayline Blake for a great editing job.

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Morrigan was sitting on her bed her back to the wall and her arms around her knees when the Goddess Banba appeared.

"Good morning my child. How was your night?"

"Good morning my goddess. My night was...as wonderful as any woman could ever hope her first time to be. It saddens me it had to end so soon. But at least I have the memory to cherish."

"Cheer up my child. Who knows what the future holds in store. In the meantime, destiny calls you to duty. Your people need their queen to prepare the way for them. It's time to put your crown back on and begin to plan humanity's future, Morrigan."

Morrigan had showered right after Marcus left. She sighed deeply as she slid on the golden silk spaghetti strapped dress the Goddess handed her over her sumptuous body.

"What's wrong my child, don't you like the dress?"

Morrigan accepted the three inch heeled matching gold pumps the Goddess held out to her. She slipped them on as she replied, "Oh...um...it's not that at all, my Goddess. I know it's been a little more than a month since all this started, but to me it's been lees then a week. Everything's happened so fast. A week ago, I was this seventeen year old toothpick with no tits, no hips, and a flat ass. My only care in the world was making a pilgrimage to my ancestral homeland, exploring its beauty, and making some new friends."

She stood in front of the mirror shaking her head with a soft little giggle. "Now look at me. This dress may cover my amazing new body, but it damn sure doesn't hide any of it. Don't get me wrong, the dress is perfect, I love it. The neckline plunges deeply showing a massive amount of cleavage and putting these great tits you gave me on full display. The hem is just long enough to cover my fantastic new ass, barely, as long as I don't bend over, and the whole thing hugs my every curve like a second skin. I love the pumps too, they push my sexy ass up and out, giving it that 'smack me' look I always envied in other girls."

Morrigan slid her cape over her shoulders fastening the clasp in the front of her neck. Then picking up her tiara, she placed it on her head as she turned to look at the Goddess Banba. "Try to understand, my Goddess. In one short week, I've gone from being a seventeen year old girl without a care in the world, to an eighteen year old woman. A queen who's responsible for the lives and happiness of almost five million people. It's a lot for me to take in all at once. Unfortunately, I don't have time to waste trying to adjust. There's far too much to be done and precious little time to do it in. I only hope I'm up to the task you've given me, and that I don't screw up too badly."

The Goddess looked Morrigan in the eyes as she spoke softly. "I understand a lot more than you think Morrigan. It's not your ability to get the job done that's shaken your self-confidence. It's all the new powers and abilities you unlocked last night. You've had some time to really look at them in the cold light of day and all that power scares you half to death. You're terrified you'll make a mistake and someone will get hurt or killed because of it. That's what your real problem is, isn't it Morrigan?"

"Yeah, you're right about that my Goddess. All that power scares the shit out of me. I don't believe ANY human being should be entrusted with this much power. The potential for abuse is just far too great."

"Look Morrigan, if you weren't afraid of your powers right about now, I'd be really worried. The simple fact that you recognize just how dangerous you are, and that it scares you, is of great comfort to me. It tells me you won't abuse your powers. You can't, you don't have it in you. Do you remember your petition to me to give Ashling back her life? You told me you needed someone you could trust to be courageous enough to tell you when you were wrong. Someone who would help keep you on the right path. Your petition was granted because you're right, Ashling IS perfect for the job. Just do your job and trust her to do hers."

"I know you're right my Goddess and I do trust Ashling to do her job. But, that still doesn't stop me from being as nervous as a kitten in a room full of rabid pit bulls. I don't think I'll EVER be comfortable having all this power."

"I hope not Morrigan, I really do. Because the minute you become totally comfortable with your powers, I'll probably have to destroy you."

Morrigan giggled softly. "Thank you my Goddess. That actually brings ME great comfort. I really feel a lot better knowing that. I'm gonna round up Aileen, Kelli, and Ashling and head to the conference room. Could you please have my grandmother, my mother, my uncle and his family, Meagan and her family, along with Teagan and Galen meet us there? Oh and could you please arrange for breakfast to be served to us there as well?"

"Sure, I can do all that. It'll be interesting to see what you have in mind. Especially after the conversation we just had," she laughed.

When Morrigan, Aileen, Kelli, and Ashling got to the conference room, a full breakfast buffet was already laid out. There was every breakfast food imaginable along with coffee, tea, milk, and juice. Within minutes, everyone Morrigan had requested to join her was there along with the goddesses Banba, Brigid, and Danu. Once everyone had their food and was seated Morrigan began. "Before I can make any decisions about anything, I need some information I simply don't have. Uncle Pete, how many families on board have computers in their quarters that are connected to the ship-wide network?"

"There are computers in everyone's quarters and all are connected to our network Morrigan."

"I was hoping you'd say that! I need to know how many souls we have on board, right down to the last burping baby. I also need to know how many are children and how many are adults, and what professions, if any, the adults have at what skill level. Would it be possible for you to use the main computer to do some sort of census then compile it all into a data base I can search using keywords and key-phrases?"

"Sure, that wouldn't be difficult at all. I could easily do it myself but it would take me a few hours. Joe Thompson, our resident computer expert, could do it before we finished breakfast. He's in the control room now. Want me to have him get on it?"

"Would you please? Thanks Uncle Pete."

A few minutes later Pete came back. "Joe says to give him half an hour and everything will be ready. You'll hear his announcement about the census over the ship's intercom."

"Thank you. That's one thing down, only a couple of billion more to go," Morrigan giggled. She looked around the table smiling. "I was only half kidding about that one. We have 29 days before we reach orbit around Erie. There's just too many things to be done and I can't do them all myself, nor can I possibly think of every single detail. I need some reinforcements, so I'm asking for all your help, not as your queen, but as your family member or friend."

Gael spoke up. "Morrigan, don't beg. It's unbecoming of a queen. Peter's already told you that you have a small army ready and willing to help. That includes every person in this room! Tell us what you need my queen and I swear by the heavens, we'll get it done!"

"I'm glad you feel that way Gram. You get one of the toughest jobs. We're gonna need an economy. That means some kind of banking system. But I don't want cash floating around. It causes temptation and too many other problems. As of right now, you're my finance minister. See what you can come up with."

"Me and my big mouth," Gael laughed.

"Don't worry Gram, I 'm giving you some help. Mom, Galen, both of you are assigned to the finance ministry. Teagan sweetie, I've watched you with your laptop. Your fingers just seem to fly over the keyboard. Would you please be Gram's personal secretary?"

"You mean like a job?"

"Yup, that's exactly what I mean."

"WOW! COOL! My first job!"

Morrigan looked down at the table as she connected with Gael's mind. "Gram I don't know how much help Teagan's gonna be. I just don't want her running loose on the ship."

"I kinda figured that. I know she lost her mom a long time ago. But Teagan's very bright and articulate. She may just surprise you."

"Megan, would you mind becoming my personal assistant? I can't type worth a damn and my spelling really sucks. I'm also gonna need you to prepare my daily schedule, which we'll talk about later, and brief me on any reports coming in as a result of any appointments."

"I'd love to Morrigan. When do I start?"

"You've been sitting there taking notes since I first opened my mouth. I'd say you've already started." Morrigan laughed. "Seriously though, just come to my quarters later and we'll get things all set up."

"You got it Morrigan."

Morrigan turned to Megan's parents. "Mr. and Mrs. O'Leary, I understand the two of you worked as small business development experts back on Earth. We're gonna need markets, bakeries, and a whole host of other small businesses. I realize you can't do much until we get the database I requested up and running. But would you mind helping me out by taking on that challenge for me?"

Mrs. O'Leary replied, "Morrigan, my name is Rose and my husband's name is Adam. We'd be more than happy to help in any way we can."

"I thank you both." Morrigan turned back to Pete. "Uncle Pete and Aunt Sally, when we arrive on Erie, we're gonna be dealing with the three basic needs of human survival, food, clean drinking water, and shelter. No matter where we set down there will be an abundance of game so I really don't see food as much of a problem. I'll also make sure we land near a large body of fresh water. We can carry it by the bucket load if need be. But Erie's orbital positioning is slightly different than Earth. Using Earth's calendar as a reference, we'll be landing on either February twenty-eighth or the first of March, depending on where we set down. So we're looking at the tail end of winter, beginning of spring. Providing shelter for everyone on board is gonna present a challenge. Got any ideas?"

Pete looked at Sally and chuckled. "Go ahead sweetie, you tell her."

Sally looked at Morrigan giggling. "Morrigan, you call this the Arc of Salvation. But she was christened 'NASA'S WET DREAM!' Your uncle had me christen her that because she was built from the bottom up as a colonizing ship. She's completely modular. Essentially, she's a bunch of homes connected together then attached to a central core. You push a button, she breaks into separate sections. You push another button and each section separates into individually powered units with their own heat shield and capable of landing on their own. Each unit's guidance system can be controlled three separate ways. You can pre-program their on-board systems from the command deck. You can remotely control their on board systems from the command deck using the ship's computers. Or they can be landed manually from inside each unit. At least one person in each unit has enough basic skill to land manually in the event of an emergency. Once a unit is on the ground, you simply hook it up to a source of power, water, and sewage and you're good to go. We've even got stockrooms full of everything we need to complete the job, pipes, wiring, pumps, filters, you name it, and we've got it."

Just then, Joe Thompson came in the room and handed Pete several pieces of paper stapled together. Pete scanned through them, his jaw dropping, his eyes like saucers, and his face as white as a ghost. He looked up at Joe, "Are you sure this is accurate?"

"Positive Pete. I ran the data three times." said Joe.

"What's going on Uncle Pete? You look like you're really upset." Morrigan asked.

He handed Morrigan the sheets of paper. "It's a summary of the data you requested. We've got a problem."

Morrigan glanced at the first page. "WHOA! What the...?" She looked at the Goddess Banba. "Goddess, if this report is right, and I have to assume it is, we've got five million, two hundred sixty seven thousand, nine hundred and eleven souls on board. I was told the Arc had a maximum capacity of five million period. Last I heard we had a little over four million people aboard. How in heaven's name did we end up with roughly another million people? Where did we squeeze them in and do we have enough resources on board to take care of them properly?"

"Relax Morrigan. Everything's fine. I didn't get the chance to tell you, what with everything happening so fast yesterday and you being...um... otherwise occupied last night. The goddesses Sif, Eostre, Frigg, Freya, and Lofn all decided to accept your offer at the last minute. In fact the last couple of hundred people boarded just as the missiles were being launched. Between all of them, you have just over a million new subjects. The Arc was built to hold a maximum of five million ADULTS. If ALL the data you requested is in that report, you'll find that a little over two million souls on board belong to children, a great many of them infants. Danu had to convert some recreational space into living quarters, so yes, we're a little tight space wise, but not overly so. As far as food and other necessities go, you know, we ALWAYS provide."

"I know you always provide Goddess. I'm also overjoyed that another million people were saved from the calamity that befell Earth! My questions were based solely on my surprise at the numbers, not on any lack of faith in you."

Pete spoke up. "The problem isn't with the number of people on-board, Morrigan. It's with the number of households reporting their occupation as farming. Almost twenty five hundred households are reporting their primary occupation as farming. The problem stems from the fact that farms, by their very nature, have to be rural or at least suburban. We simply don't have enough manpower, supplies, or equipment to provide water and electricity to that many farms in a reasonable amount of time. It's gonna take us weeks of working around the clock just to get the major city fully powered. We figured you'd choose a spot near a lake or river for the city. Our plan was to get that wired up first and then get the farms done. Yes, we knew there would be some farms, but we only figured on a couple of hundred. So when we compiled the list of supplies we would need, we only included two hundred fifty, twenty kilowatt generators. We felt that the primary need of the farms would be water so we intended to send the well drilling rigs to them first while we wired the city. Now I don't know what we're gonna do."

Joe tapped Pete on the shoulder. "I think you should talk to Kylie McDonald, Pete. She worked with Lugh on the central power core for the ship. I talked to her just before I came in here. All she said was 'don't worry about it'. It's like she already has an answer to the problem, but I'll be damned if I know what it is."

"You're right Joe. If Kylie's not worried about it, that means she's way ahead of us. It also means she thinks I know the answer too. Damn it, I should have read that report she gave me weeks ago. But I didn't think it was necessary. I've known Kylie for most of my life. When it comes to physics and power generation, she's the best there is. I'm betting the solution's right there in that damn report. Well I sure as hell don't have time to read it now." Pete stood walking over to the ships intercom. "Kylie McDonald, please report to the conference room on the command deck ASAP."

A few minutes later a stunning redhead came strolling in. She was about six foot two inches tall and built like an Amazon. She wore a one piece jumpsuit that hugged her every curve like a second skin, covering everything but hiding nothing. Her tits were huge like two halves of a ripe melon round, full, and firm. They sat high on her chest without the slightest hint of sagging and from the way her nipples were nearly poking through the jump suit; it was obvious Kylie preferred to go braless. She had a narrow waist, wide womanly hips, and long slim shapely legs. Her beautiful emerald eyes flashed with irritation as she said, "What the fuck, Pete? I hope this is important. I was in the middle of running a level three diagnostic on the central power core. There's been a twenty percent increase in power consumption since early yesterday morning. I was trying to track it down when you called."

"Grab a seat and relax Kylie. The increase in power usage probably stems from the fact that we picked up another million passengers just before the missiles went off."

"Christ Pete, why the hell didn't you tell me? I've been chasing my tail all morning trying to figure it out. All Joe told me was that there are about ten times more farmers than you planned on."

Pete picked up the data report handing it to Kylie. "I didn't tell you before because I didn't know about it. I just got the data a few minutes ago myself. That's part of why I called you up here. I haven't had time to read your report, so I have no clue what's in it. Can you take a few minutes to brief us, and if you have any ideas on how to get power to the farmers in a reasonable amount of time, we'd love to hear them as well."

"All right Pete. I'm not gonna lecture you on the importance of reading reports from your department heads. I should've realized you hadn't read my report when you didn't hunt me down and pepper me with a million questions. I'll try to break it down in layman's terms, but it's not gonna be easy. I barely understand how it works myself."

"To begin with, the central power core, like the ship itself, is modular. But unlike the ship units, the power units aren't designed to land on Erie's surface. Instead, the power core breaks up into a dozen separate units that move to pre-programmed geostationary orbits. Each unit is a fully self-contained power station with an output capacity that would exceed all of Earth's power plants combined. Their reactors use a form of Ion based technology that's light years ahead of anything I've ever even dreamed of. Which by the way, is why they're orbital. There's no cooling issues, hence no pollution issues, and while I don't understand how, their fuel regenerates itself, eliminating the need for any maintenance period. That's a very over-simplified version of how the central power core works."

"Now, on to the farms. If you had read my report, you would know that each landing unit is equipped with a self-deploying, self-tracking dish that automatically locks onto the nearest power station. Within minutes of touchdown, each unit will have access to full electric power. This also explains why I INSISTED that each unit be equipped with all electric appliances as well as electric heating and cooling systems."

"There's one more thing in my report that should make Joe and you both very happy campers. I talked Lugh into embedding satellites into the power units for both internet and television access. There will be no interruption of internet service, and one of the recreation areas can be easily converted into a television studio. We have all the equipment needed on board, along with thousands of DVD'S containing movies and television series. One of the first things I did once the power was on was to set up an automatic recording system. We actually have an archive containing hundreds of hours of news broadcasts from every country on Earth detailing Earth's final three weeks, right up to, and including the horrific way it ended. I honestly hope it never gets stuck in some historical archive and instead gets used in schools to teach future generations just what happens when prejudice and hatred become dominating factors in societies."