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"Look! There's a large version of you, Lucky! I think this is what you will look like if you grow into a tiger. You would look so ferocious!"

"Meow..."

The children loved the place. They did not let the darkness deter them from running around and exploring the sights.

"Quiet down, children!" Gloriana tried to admonish the kids. "This is a sacred place of worship. Even if you don't want to respect your father, you should at least respect the piety of its guests!"

That was the thing about this 'church'. The main hall of the headquarters of the Creation Association currently holds over a hundred different visitors!

Much to Ves' relief, the visitors did not wear robes or acted anything close to radical Ylvainans, Hexers, Vulcanites or any of the other crazy extremist believers that he had encountered in his journeys.

Most of them wore clean business suits or workwear that looked as if they were right at home in a workshop.

"Even before we have renovated this structure into a church, we have already begun to attract admirers of one of your divine personas." Director Samandra spoke to Ves. "Back then, they would sit in front of the totems you have made for us. They prayed for many reasons. Some wanted your blessing to help them succeed in their next crafting projects. Others wanted to get accepted as an apprentice to a famed maker. Many of the older and more experienced artisans came in order to gain inspiration."

Ves felt worse and worse as he said heard this. Though he understood that Vulcan needed a lot of spiritual feedback in order to grow and evolve, he did not want to turn his incarnation into a literal god!

"You know that I explicitly set up the Creation Association as a non-religious organization, right?"

"I do not think so." The former priestess from the Life Research Association retorted. "You wouldn't have put me in charge if that was the case. Deep down, you recognized that this path was inevitable. You are a god, Ves. If not now, then in the future. What we are doing for you is helpful to you. We know that because Vulcan's glow has been growing stronger and more defined with each passing week. I know because I pray to you multiple times every day myself."

Ves let out a frustrated grunt. "I did not ask for your prayers."

The woman smiled at this response. "Yet you, or rather Vulcan, accept my prayers with . You even answer back to me at times. This allows me to know that I am doing god's will."

"That isn't me! That must have come from the spiritual dwarf essence that I stuffed into his creation!" Ves complained!

Vulcan may be another version of himself, but he also developed more autonomy due to the fact that he was an external incarnation.

Ves let Vulcan do his own thing most of the time as it was too exhausting and distracting to micromanage another life form, especially one that transcended the limits of lower order life.

The disconnect that resulted from that caused Ves to miss a few details that he should have learned about sooner.

The fact that Vulcan did not see fit to inform Ves showed that their bond was not entirely perfect!

Director Samandra Avikon observed the patriarch's expression carefully and felt she needed to intervene.

"You seem to be under the impression that churches exert an adverse influence on people."

"Can you blame me? I've seen what faith can do when it goes too far. The moment humans stop thinking for themselves, the moment they become enslaved to a small group of people who call the shots. It is too easy to turn normal people into uncritical, unthinking drones that automatically shout specific slogans. What is worse is that these indoctrinated fools can easily be converted into warriors of faith and do all kinds of stupid stuff. You only need to look at states like the Vulcan Empire to see how easy it is to instigate billions of people into committing violence."

"You are only looking at one side of the coin." Samandra Avikon shook her head in disapproval. "Different faiths come in all shapes and sizes. Not all of them produce a negative impact on society. Just as there are good pioneers in the Red Ocean, there are bad pioneers. You wouldn't allow the latter to define the entire group, right? The same goes for churches. Each of them need to be evaluated by their own merits, not the preconceived notions that you hold and unjustly apply to everything that has any relation to belief in a greater existence."

"It's completely unnecessary for humans to believe in anyone aside from themselves! Our race has no need for faith in these modern times! Whenever we are faced with a problem, we no longer have to pray to an illusionary sky god and rationalize everything based on unfalsifiable assumptions. We have learned that we are better off with picking up our tools and fixing the problems through the use of advanced technology and methods."

"What you are describing are two different things." The woman spoke. "I have no doubt that technology has been a boon to our race, but if you think that human life has made faith redundant, then think again. Look at these people who have taken time off their valuable schedules to visit our fine church. What do you see?"

He indulged her for a moment and scrutinized the workers who visited the renovated establishment for one reason or another.

"I see craftsmen and artisans who are eager to get their next fix."

"That is not true, sir. In fact, we explicitly tried to reduce the exploitative nature of our business model. The majority of these visitors have never experienced the full glow from a Vulcan totem. The reason why many of these workers eagerly visit our church is not to turn themselves into unthinking drones of the Church of Vulcan, but to gain a moment to interrupt their busy work routines. Look closer."

"I am already looking at the visitors. What is it you are trying to tell me?" Ves skeptically frowned.

"Do you see that they are suffering, patriarch? Do they look as if they are being forced to attend? I think not. They enjoy spending time here, and I do not blame them. The glows of the totems may not be particularly strong when they are in their passive modes, but every member of our Association enjoys them nonetheless because they can sit down and contemplate their work under better conditions than before."

The head of the Creation Association gestured to another part of the hall where a group of dozen different craftsmen had gathered together to chat and socialize with each other.

"Our church has also become a gathering point for like-minded people. Our halls have welcomed many visitors who have undergone a lot of upheaval by moving to a completely new environment. Aside from the people they traveled with, everyone else around them are strangers who come from many different corners of human society. What we offer to our members is an open meeting ground where diverse people can come together and befriend each other through their shared passions and respect for Vulcan."

All of that sounded nice, but what did that have to do with faith?

"People can meet each other outside of churches, you know." He said. "There are bars, cafes, symposiums, virtual communities and more. Sure, the Creation Association is a little different from them, but that doesn't mean you have to convert it into a full-blown church!"

"You are correct." Samandra Avikon conceded. "We did not have to turn this fine structure into a more beautiful church, yet we did. Aside from taking advantage of the tax exemptions offered by the government, we have clearly noticed that for all of your assumptions, there are people who seek greater meaning in their lives."

Ves scratched his head. "You've lost me there. Explain this reasoning, please."

"This is a deep and profound topic that I can discuss for many days, but the premise is rather simple. Not every human possesses blind faith in technology and materialism such as yourself. There are people among us who are not satisfied with blindly attending school, earning their diplomas and starting their work as if they are bots. Humans are not cogs in a machine, but our society tries its best to make this happen because that is how it can run more efficiently. Life is about more than productivity. Life is about enjoyment, contribution, meaning, purpose and fulfillment. I think that all mech designers should understand this sentiment."

She was right in a sense. The issue she was speaking about was an age-old problem in human society ever since industrialization first emerged a long time ago on Old Earth.

However, that did not make Ves convinced that faith was the answer.

"There are many secular alternatives for people to find greater meaning and purpose in their lives." He told her. "Encouraging people to turn into blind worshipers is not necessary."

"I respectfully have to disagree with you." Samandra plainly said. "It may be difficult for you to acknowledge this, but in the hyper-materialistic cosmos we live in today, there is a greater pressure for humans to find spiritual sustenance. What we offer to the craftsmen and any other humans who are interested in what we stand for is a safe and positive sanctuary for them to fill the void within themselves."

That caused Ves to look at the visitors in a different way. As he studied their moods, their expressions, their stress levels and their physical states, he felt that they did not seem negatively impacted in any fashion.

There were clear differences between the guests who had just entered the enormous hall compared to the ones that have been here for a while.

Each time they knelt or stood respectfully in front of one of the totems of Vulcan, they acted as if they silently shared their burdens to a parent.

Whether they received the relief they desired or not, most people looked to be in peace by the time they retreated.

When Ves quietly connected to Vulcan and tapped into the prayers and worship that the spiritual incarnation constantly received, he noted that the design spirit actually listened to them at a less-than-conscious level. Not only that, the spirit occasionally responded in a subtle manner, giving the more earnest and worthy of believers a small push in the right direction!

This was actually a fairly small operation to Vulcan, so much so that his main consciousness never even thought about it. Spiritual entities could do this because they were not bound by mortal limitations.

Despite how little this impacted Vulcan as a whole, the people who regularly prayed to him became affected to a much more substantial degree!

An answer or simple validation from Vulcan was all that people needed to release their stress, regain their confidence or find the courage they needed to embark on a risky venture.

Though Ves personally thought that the deceptive nature of this operation was simply a way to encourage more people into thinking that Vulcan was a literal god, the benefits to them were not question.

"Okay." Ves sighed. "I can acknowledge that this 'church' is not as bad as others, but what are you going to do with all of the faithful that have emerged?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"We are not the Vulcan Faith." Samandra emphasized. "We have no desire to engage in politics or force a specific lifestyle onto groups of people. We do not seek to turn this church into an activist center. We have no intention to convert the population of this planet to our faith by force. The Creation Association will always remain a free, open and inviting sanctuary for every individual, with a specific focus on the makers and creators who Vulcan appeals to the most."