AuzT H E C H U R C H O F S T A R R Y G L O R Y
Prioress Cabot The Church of Starry Glory, Vegas Southside
The communion was in full swing, as the Prioress was looking down onto the main hall, where the common faithful gathered in front of the altar, a single shard of stone laying openly on a long table, a fire burning next to it. They had told them, that it had fallen from the stars, an embodiemnt of Starry Glory, the same glory resting in the soul of every human. A pleasant light was shimmering from multiple lamps onto the gathered crowed, filling the hall to such an extend, that the church had to remove benches weeks ago, allowing its sermons only to be witnessed standing..
...at least for the common faithful!
Multiple loges had been build tracing the wall, allowing a discreet and private encounter with the faith, for the ones that valued their privacy, and the caps to pay for it. Few openly admitted to be part of this underground gathering, as it hadnt become "en-vouge" on the strip, yet it was mentioned during cocktail parties, social gatherings and private meetings. The prioress knew, that all private loges were filled. Vegas Starlets, Brahmin Barons, Shot-callers on the strip silently took in the words, just like Captains of Industry and wealthy never-do-well´s did. Many of them would stay, to later have private chats with the priests of this church, or even the prioress herself. Few would leave without making generous donations and promises to soon return for "future services"!
Mr.House knew what was going on in here, so did the King and the other powers that be. For them, it was just a harmless parlor trick, with the prioress herself, confessing in private corespondence with the King himself, right hand to the great Mr. House himself, that this was a business, not a religion! Sinners of the Casino, dreamers of the old Vegas and the broken, could come in here, and lose their worries in a more "social productive" way, then drinking, whoring and gambling like the rest of the hordes that were driven to the Strip. Just another form of escapism from the dark wasteland...
Vanishing beyond locked doors and passing armed guards, the Prioress grinned over how well this con had worked. In her 400 years, she would have never seen herself becoming a priest, yet who could not worship the source of immortality itself? Who could not become devout and faithful, after laying eyes on the monolith itself? She had seen the glory, the endless fire of the stars and the dreamer awake. How pitiful they had been, leeching off a mere spark of the true power that was, is and always will be...
The doors were the heaviest in the whole temple, steel and magnetized locks. They were deep below the church now, and with an easy step, the Prioress entered her brothers personal study. The old fool was still out there, digging for what he claimed were "old Spanish and Indian" ruins. A eccentric, yet reasonable hobby for an well educated and spoken man, with a lack of talent with people. Hundreds of drawings, books, maps and holodisks were tossed around, in this vile battlefield of an obsessed man, driven by the desire to find the second city...
"Poor fool...digging in the dirt for what.." Her hands moved along the tables and chairs, cracking under the weight of knowlage and artifacts, and Jacks thousands of papers, written in great hurry during his long conversations with the prophet himself. She herself had found him almost hilariously boring and overly dramatic, while being more impressed by the young Marie. She had calmly watched her, playing with her puppet, humming and moving blocks with just a glare. How one could prefer the endless ramblings of a mad blind man, over this uniquely gifted girl, was beyond her! But, alas, they had been send here, to found this church, and Emogene had once more returned to her third favorite city in all of the US.
She could hear the mad scratching against the door of the sealed off cage. Growling and snarling, she felt the same pity she always felt, as she reached for the syringe. Her heart was pumping faster, as she took a deep breath, before walking over to the safe on the wall, her eyes narrowing as she slowly undid the lock, before her shivering hands reached inside, taking the glowing rock out. The snarl behind her turned into a whimper, as she could hear the heavy body quickly rushing away from the door. Guilt filled her, as she slowly turned around, the glowing part of the monolith itself, held firm in her hand. "I am sorry dad...this will just take a single moment..."
Walking to the door, she could hear the mad sobbing, the short laughter and then the snarling. The sounds did no longer scare her, like they did when she saw him change into what he was now. She was just glad, that he no longer was able to form words, with what once had been his mouth. Once more, her mind considered the fearful thought, that he may one day not even host blood in his veins, should he change any futher...but once more, she banished this thought, as she unlocked the door.
"Hello father..."
