Rebirth of the Interstellar Pope <Mecha>

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

[Rufeite: Reconstructing the Temple of Light took immense time, manpower, and resources. At first, I thought I was simply rebuilding a religious site lost for 3,000 years. Later, I realized I just wanted to stand where Anno once stood. I wanted to be closer to him.]

Michael's red light flashed as it prepared for the jump. "Destination: Temple of Light."

The interstellar leap of 3,000 years had clearly advanced mechanical civilization. Within just twenty minutes, the Stargate's jump technology carried Rufeite and Anno from the two-story building at Jerusalem University to the Temple of Light.

The interstellar gate outside the Palace of Light opened into a calm lake. As they emerged from the three-dimensional jump space, Anno found himself spluttering from the unexpected water.

Rufeite, his hair soaked, held Michael between his fingertips and frowned. "There are six Stargates leading to the Palace of Light, and you picked Star Lake. Don't tell me this is your way of protesting the appearance of the vibrator!"

Michael's red light flickered briefly before going dark, pretending to shut down.

Rufeite pinched the string attached to the device and gave it a swing, sending Michael flying in a wide arc.

Anno stood speechless. He remembered a similar incident with his ancient civilization mecha, Napoleon. When Anno had failed to praise the appearance of Napoleon's naked statue, the mecha had transformed into a dog and shredded his papal robes out of spite.

The water in Star Lake wasn't deep-Rufeite stood chest-deep, while the water reached Anno's neck. Rufeite shook his hair, scattering droplets as he waded toward the shore. "Ignore it. If you don't discipline them for three days, they'll tear down the roof. Last time, it turned into a long-range infrared telescope to spy on a United Nations clerk taking a bath. It's a real troublemaker."

Anno followed, trudging through the water with a faint smile. Troublemakers. These mechas, despite their immense power and inviolability in battle, often behaved like mischievous children, constantly seeking their masters' attention by causing problems-much like the offspring of a pope, competing for their father's favor.

After the death of a pope, most of these ancient mechas chose to follow their masters into eternal slumber. But where was Napoleon? Anno wondered. After his own death, what had become of his mecha? How had Napoleon ended up in Rufeite's possession 3,000 years later?

Anno was tempted to ask, but he knew better. Asking too many questions would raise suspicion. He had no way to explain his rebirth or prove that he was truly Anno.

Jerusalem had been reduced to ash in a massive particle explosion 3,000 years ago. Since then, archaeologists, ancient civilization scholars, and religious authorities had searched tirelessly for the original site, but with no success.

The first pope had constructed Jerusalem on a star at the edge of the universe. At that time, only religious figures could access the city via an interstellar jump. As humanity expanded and religion underwent internal strife, Jerusalem was eventually relocated during Anno's reign to the central axis of the universe, in a four-dimensional space yet undiscovered by humans.

Only one Stargate led to the real Jerusalem, and only the most devout religious members knew the gate's code and the precise jump itinerary. This secrecy had trapped Anno when a traitor emerged from within the religion. With no one to turn to, he had triggered the particle explosion.

The Jerusalem that now stood before them was merely a scaled-down model, built by Rufeite on a private planet he had personally purchased. Still, when Anno saw the replica of his lost city, a surge of emotion washed over him.