The Mechanical Era

The sun had just moved into the middle of the sky, marking it midday. Located inside a dense forest was a freshly built wooden cabin, where the next meeting of the hooded men took place. It was quickly built to hold a square table with wooden chairs surrounding it. They weren't allowed to use the isolated cabin from last time and had to build one of their own.

They cut a few trees down in the forest, use them as logs, and built one in a matter of days. They then used the remaining wood to make a few chairs and a large table. Granted, it wasn't as smooth or comfortable as a regular table, but it worked as a temporary base for now.

The chairs were all seated with rather ordinary men, who all wore a tunic for the top, some pants, and a pair of calfskin shoes. On top of their ordinary clothing, they all more ominous beige cloaks made of cotton and imported from the city of Hoverdam.

These men were patiently waiting for one more man to arrive, who is said to have taken a good time exploring the city of Hoverdam before coming back. From the letter he gave them, he should be here by now.  As they waited, they covered with each other, talking about their daily lives, their family, or their occupation.

As they conversed with each other, another hooded man approached the cabin and knocked on the door. From the other side, he can hear the man instructing him to give the password to enter the cabin.

"May I see the stars once again?" he replied. The door immediately opened, and the man entered the cabin. The room entered a moment of silence, as the hooded man sat down on his chair. With all the members gathered around, it was time to start the meeting.

One of the men took in a deep breath and got up from their seat. He then looks at everyone in the room and begins to speak.

"Greetings, everyone. I am glad that you all have managed to make it to today's meeting. We will pick up from where we left off.

Last time, we agreed to send one of our own to investigate the kingdom of Hoverdam and asses their kingdom to see whether the government is friendly enough for us to move there.

We have sent this man here, who will go by the alias Rico from here on out. Rico, can you please tell us about your experience in the kingdom of Hoverdam? What was it like? Do you think it is safe?" the man told, before sitting back down.

Rico stood up from his chair and gathered up his words.

"Before I give my assessment of the kingdom itself, I think it would be best to educate you all on the unique state that the kingdom is currently in. I believe this would be helpful for the correct judgment.

I arrived in the city of Hoverdam on the 11th of Navitas on a sailboat. I docked at the port located downtown. When I got into the city, I noticed that the air have a slightly sulfurous and smoggy flavor to it.

Regardless, when I traveled the city further, I continue to notice a lot more unique features I could not find in any other city. First was the presence of glass in many of the downtown buildings.

Upon further investigation, I found out that these materials were being produced in high quantities inside of what they call a 'factory' using large and complicated mechanical systems that appear to be powered by a device known as the 'steam engine'.

This steam engine has been applied to many sectors of the economy of Hoverdam and within the cities and the towns next to it. It has undergone massive economic changes that I believe allow them to have an economic advantage compared to the rest of the continent.

For example, take the cloaks that you all are wearing right now. It is primarily made of cotton, which the city had to manage to import and turn into a cheap cloak that can be sold to many people, within their city, and to the rest of the continent. It is also, however, the reason for the decreased air quality of Hoverdam, which is an unfortunate side effect.

The kingdom of Hoverdam also has undergone a transportation boom, as the roads of the cities can be found with metal tracks, that allow big moving vehicles to transport people all around the city. I can easily move from the downtown to the outskirts in about an hour. With that, I believe that is all you need to know about the current state of Hoverdam," Rico explained.

"Alright, that is good to know, but what about the... friendliness of the government? Do you think they will persecute any religious activity?" one of them asked.

"Well, that is what I was about to get into. From what I have witnessed, as long as you do not identify with the Angelisist church, and so along with the mainstream version of what is allowed, they will not punish any religious activities."

"Mainstream version? What does that mean?"

"Well, sir, their version of the correct way to god now relies on a book that people must read. As a result, many are hoping to enroll in places of learning called 'schools' where they can learn to read and write."

"A book?"

pαndα,noνɐ1,сoМ "They call it the bible. Now, as most people in the city are only partially literate, the ones who can read take the bible and read it out for a group of people to hear. Once the session is over, they will ask for donations for them to continue."

"But only the pope is allowed to interpret the word of god! But worst of all, that sinner is profiting off the word of god! What kind of blasphemy is that? Yet those people tolerate it?" one of them argued. He was one of the hard-liners at the meeting.

"But that is much better than restricting the word of god altogether! Besides, won't it be easier to convert them back to the right path than from starting over?" another argued.

"Well, what did you expect? You all expected the bishops to be around? Besides, we are looking for the kingdom that is the most friendly!" another argued, mocking the others. The room almost entered into an argument before one of them stood up and yelled.

"SILENCE!" he spoke with his deep voice of authority, silencing the others all down like children. He then turns to Rico.

"Did any knights arrest this man? Was he allowed to preach the word of god in one way or another?" he asked.

"Well, to answer your question, yes. Although for civilian law enforcement, they use a different group of people called the police. They wear these black uniforms and carry a baton.

On my first they, two of them looked on into the building and definitely heard that he was preaching from the bible, but left. This pattern seems to have continued.

The ones in charge of enforcing the law don't seem to mind that particular way of practicing religion." Rico replied.

"With this, I hope that you can make an informed decision on the matter. If you have any questions, please ask me." With that, Rico sat down and stayed silent. The original announcer stood up and started to speak again.

"Well, thank you, Rico. You have done well. Now, it is time we come to an informed decision. In my opinion, although I might not agree with the way in which religion is practiced, it is still the best method to allow the word of god to continue.

Now, as the Kingdom of Hoverdam is obviously much friendlier than any other kingdom on the continent, I do not think that it would be wise to pass up on the opportunity. What do you all think?" he asked.

The cabin then erupted into a fierce, yet short, argument about what they were to do. In the end, it was decided to move into the kingdom and find a base to operate from there.

"Alright! Now that a decision has been made, is there anything else that one would like to add to this meeting before continuing?" he asked. One of them raised a hand, attracting the eyes of everyone to him.

"Yes?" the man who raised his hand stood up.

"About that donation thing. I think it would be best if we start to copy the man's strategy," he suggested. While some were obviously repulsed by the idea, others listened in.

"Continue?"

"Look, from what Rico said, what if he gather a bunch of ex-bishops and priests, and get them to read out the word of god? This would allow us to gain funds to help pursue our mission," he suggested.

"But won't they get arrested?"

"If they act as priests. Instead, like Rico said, they will act as 'civilians trying to spread the word of god', with only this time, we won't be committing a sin." he elaborated. The others thought about the idea, and all overwhelmingly supported it.

"Well, I guess that is it. We shall move into the kingdom of Hoverdam, and operate from there!"