The Pilgrimage Ch. 05

"I'm not trying to be mean, Vanessa, but you're a princess; get creative if you have to. You're acting in my stead, so whatever you decide to do; I've got your back. That's something you should remember, Sis. No matter where you go. No matter what you do or say; you're acting in my behalf. You're my sister, I love you, and I will always have your back! Trust your instincts. Have faith in our bond, and most of all, trust our goddess! Do that, and you can never go wrong. Okay?"

"All right, Morrigan; I get the message. I'm a princess, act like one. Ya know, I love you with all my heart, Sis. But you can be such a hardass at times. You're right though, you wouldn't have given me the job if I couldn't get it done right." Vanessa stood and walked over to where Morrigan and Megan were seated. She gave them both a kiss on the cheek then said, "I've got a job to do. I'll see you two later." Then with a wink and a wave she was gone.

It wasn't even a minute later when Morrigan heard Vanessa's psychic scream, "Aileen, I need you, NOW!" Recognizing the mixture of panic and anger in Vanessa's telepathic voice, Morrigan knew instantly that something was horribly wrong. She stood Megan on her feet and said, "security to deck two, section twelve, suite thirty-four now!" Then she disappeared.

When Morrigan appeared in the suite, Aileen glanced up and gave her a quick thumbs up then turned back to healing the young man she was working on. Morrigan glanced to her left and saw Kelli and Ashling standing on opposite sides of a man with Kelli's sword pointing at his throat. Kelli looked at Morrigan and said, "please tell me I can."

Morrigan shook her head then said, "Sorry, Kelli, I can't do that. Whatever happened, he's entitled to a fair trial first. I made that mistake once; I won't make it a second time. Morrigan looked to her right and saw Vanessa talking quietly to another young man. She squatted down and softly said, "all right, Sis, tell me exactly what the hell happened here."

Vanessa took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "To tell you the truth, I'm not exactly sure myself, Sis. When I popped up outside the door, I was shocked to find myself in full battle gear. I remembered what the Dagda told me about danger being close by. I looked both ways in the passageway and didn't see anything. Then I heard David tell Keith to put down the gun. I reacted without really thinking. I popped through the door and gave Keith a wack just as he pulled the trigger. I must've knocked off his aim because he only hit Donald in the right shoulder. I knocked him the fuck out then kicked the gun under the sofa and called for help. That's all I really know. David here can tell you the rest."

Morrigan turned to David and said, "you can tell me the whole story later, David. Right now, I'm sure you're worried about your brother. Aileen's healing him as we speak. I can promise you that she's the absolute best there is. Trust me, in a few minutes you won't even be able to tell he was ever hurt."

Just as Morrigan stood, the door slid open and her Uncle Pete rushed in with three other armed security people. Morrigan pointed to Keith and said, "lock that piece of shit up! For now charge him with attempted murder. Then go ahead and charge him with anything else you and Aunt Sally can dream up after you finish your investigation."

Pete snorted then said, "investigation? I don't know how the hell I'm gonna do much in the way of investigating. Pulling your whole battle team in here has contaminated the shit out of my crime scene." he turned to his security team and said, "Tom, Ray, take the prisoner to the brig and tuck him in a cell. I'll deal with his stupid ass later." He watched as Aileen helped Donald to his feet then asked, "how's he doing?

"Physically he's fine. He was shot in the right shoulder. But the bullet went all the way through and out the other side. I've healed all the damage and he won't even have a scar."

Donald looked at Aileen with amazement and said, "I don't understand how you did it. But it doesn't even feel like I've been shot! I feel great! Thank you very much, Aileen!" He turned to Pete and said, "David and I will answer any questions you have. But can you please make it quick? We never even knew we had a sister and we'd like to meet her as soon as possible."

Pete asked a few questions then said, "that's all I need for now. I've got a pretty clear picture of what happened and why. Whatever prosecutor gets assigned to this case may have a few more questions. But I'm sure that can wait a day or two. The only problem left is that this suite is a crime scene. It's gonna have to be sealed off until the investigation is completed. You're gonna have to find a place to stay for the next few days at least.

Morrigan and Vanessa exchanged glances then Vanessa said, "my old quarters are vacant. They're welcome to stay there for as long as they need to. It's a four bedroom suite which makes it a perfect place to meet with their sister." She turned to Donald and David then continued, "I'll port the two of you there and with a little help from my goddess we'll get you cleaned up and some new clothes. I assume you don't want to meet Donna in bloody clothes, Donald."

Donald shook his head then said, "You're right, Your Highness. I definitely don't want to meet Donna looking like this!" He locked eyes with Morrigan and continued, "I appreciate everything you and your team have done for me today, Your Majesty. If it wasn't for all your help, I wouldn't be here right now. It amazes me that someone in your position, with as much as you must have on your mind, and who is as busy as you've gotta be, would take the time to help a simple commoner like me. I will never forget what you and your team have done for me. You have my loyalty and respect for as long as I live. If there's ever anything I can do to repay you, just ask and I'll move mountains to get it done for you."

Morrigan smiled then said, "I'm your queen, Donald. Part of my job is to see to your safety. Your pledge of loyalty really warms my heart. But I think you need to go with Vanessa and get ready to meet your sister. I know for a fact that Donna is really anxious to meet the both of you. The Goddess Banba is Donna's patron. She's very proud of the way you and David stood up for yourselves and your sister. She's blessed your meeting and she will insure that you have complete privacy and anything else you may need."

Vanessa took Donald's hand and reached for David's. As she grasped David's hand she said, "come on you two; it's time to get you ready to meet Donna." with that, the three of them disappeared.

After they were gone Morrigan said, "thank you everyone; you did a great job. Especially you Aileen. I think it's time for all of us to get out of Uncle Pete's way so that he can do his job." She turned to Pete and said, "I've got to get back to Megan and Kylie. Before I go is there anything you need from me Uncle Pete?"

Pete shook his head as he replied, "not that I can think of at the moment, Morrigan. But I have to tell you that the brig isn't designed for long term confinement. It's totally secure so he won't be going anywhere. But I'll have to pull at least three of my security people off of their roving patrols to babysit his stupid ass, and there's nothing by way of food nearby. So I'm gonna have to assign someone to haul his food from one of the community dinning areas three times a day."

"Why don't you just use a few of your recruits, Uncle Pete? I realize that they're not fully trained yet. But all they've gotta do is sit there and make sure he doesn't off himself, right? You could have whoever is patrolling that area swing by the brig every so often just to keep an eye on things."

Pete laughed then said, "now I know why you're a queen and I'm just chief of security, Morrigan. I love that idea; it's perfect. It'll give my recruits a little experience without disrupting my security routine. I'll assign two of them to each shift. That way one of them can make the meal run. That'll work great, thank you."

Morrigan gave Pete a kiss on the cheek then said, "just doing my job, Uncle Pete." With that, she was gone. When Morrigan returned to her quarters Megan was sitting in the easy chair chatting with Kylie. Morrigan scooped Megan up then plopped down in the seat pulling a giggling Megan back into her lap again. Megan kissed Morrigan's cheek then said, "you left in one hell of a hurry, Babe. What the hell happened? Is everything okay?"

Morrigan let out a soft sigh then said, "that asshole Keith went wacky." She proceeded to tell them what happened then finished with, "the idiot's in the brig and the boys are meeting with their sister, so all's well that ends well."

Kylie shook her head and asked, "how in the hell did he get a gun on board the Ark in the first place? How many other people have guns that we don't know about? Good Gods, Morrigan, there could be thousands of guns out there! That's one hell of a security risk!"

"Calm down Kylie. Let's not blow this all out of proportion. Yes, there could be thousands of other weapons out there, but it's not that big a deal. As far as I know there weren't any laws or regulations that prevented people from bringing their guns aboard the Ark when they boarded. I don't like guns, never have, and never will. But in this case I'm actually happy that some people had enough foresight to bring their guns with them. Think about it this way, Kylie. In a few weeks we're gonna be dropping what's left of our entire civilization onto a totally uncivilized planet. There isn't a single domesticated animal anywhere on Erie. That means people are gonna have to protect themselves, their families, their farms, and their homes from an overabundance of wild and feral animals. What would you have those people do? Shoot spit balls at a pack of coyotes, or a bunch of feral hogs?

Our patron gods and goddesses will never abandon us but once we land, almost everything is gonna be up to us to handle. They've already made sure that we have everything we'll need to build a strong and thriving society. But they're not gonna do all the work for us. That means we're gonna have to do our own fishing, grow and harvest our own crops, and until our farms get up and running, we're gonna have to hunt animals for meat and raw materials for clothing. Building the future is gonna be our job, and we're gonna need every single one of those guns to do it.

Don't worry, I have no intention of governing a society full of crazies running around with arsenals full of weapons. I'll do what I have to do to insure the public safety. Not everyone has a need for a gun. If they don't need one, there's no reason for them to have one. But at the same time, there's gonna be those that do need access to a weapon, and that has to be taken in to account as well. I'll talk to Uncle Pete and Aunt Sally about all of this. I'm sure they can come up with some reasonable gun control regulations, what weapons can and should be available to those who need them and aren't in government service. They can also decide on magazine size and the amount of ammunition that can be legally possessed at any given time. I'll also have them make sure that all weapons are registered and that possession permits are issued for a specific period of time. Probably a year. The permits will be renewable but only if a continuing need can be shown. If a need can't be shown, the government will buy the weapon and all ammunition at a fair price.

The private sale of weapons will be prohibited. People will only be permitted to sell their guns to government authorized agents who will be required to account for every weapon in their inventory. Because of the way our banking system is being set up, it'll be very difficult to buy a gun illegally. All cases of illegal possession of a gun will be investigated by a Kelli with the authority to do a psychic interrogation. Knowing that, I doubt anyone will be stupid enough to transfer a gun illegally. The only real way to possess an illegal firearm will be to steal it, and in that case, punishment will be swift, sure, and without mercy. In the meantime, I'm not gonna do anything about the guns already onboard until I've had a chance to talk to Uncle Pete and Aunt Sally tomorrow." Morrigan kissed the top of Megan's head and asked, "what do you think about all this Meg?"

Megan frowned and said, "seriously? I'm just your PA, Morrigan. I don't know squat about guns. I like the sound of your overall plan though. It's simple and easy for someone like me to understand. I think it'll go over well with most people except the current gun owners. They may prove to be a problem. You might wanna consider some sort of a grandfather clause that'll allow them to keep their guns but requires registration and prevents transfer of ownership except to a government agent. My only other suggestion is that you make some kind of public statement about what happened with the O'Reilly boys and their asshole father. This is a big ship, Morrigan. But it's still a ship. Bad news like that will spread like wildfire, and the story will only get worse as it travels."

Morrigan idly ran her fingers through Megan's soft, long, fiery red curls as she thought about what Megan had said. After a minute or so she leaned down gently brushing her full pouty lips against Megan's then replied, "okay my horny little PA. You haven't steered me wrong yet. I'll seriously consider your grandfather clause idea. But to be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about it considering everything that's happened today.

It's been a long day, and emotionally I'm beat. But you're right, I do have to reassure people that everything's under control, and that there's not some nut running around the Ark with an AR15. You and I will handle that mess in a few minutes." She turned to Kylie and continued, "when we were on the control deck I got the sense that there was something else you wanted to talk to me about in private. You already know I trust Megan as much as I do you, so go ahead and tell us what's on your mind."

"You've had a hell of a day sweetie. You've been running around like a chicken with it's head cut off. I know you've been delegating tasks as fast as you can find the appropriate people, and I realize there's a shit load of things that still need doing. But you're not gonna do us any good if you burn yourself out. I admire your devotion to your duty, and I can understand you wanting to have every little thing ready before we land. You have to realize that there are only so many hours in a day, and that you can only do so much during that time. Do us all a favor and try to pace yourself. Make a list of the most important things you wanna get done. Give it to Megan and let her draw you up a schedule that let's you get them done while still having time to relax and unwind. That's number one.

Number two is that I've picked up signs that there's another major conflict brewing about two days flight time from our present position and it's right smack in the middle of our projected course. While you were gone I talked to Banba about it. She's decided that it's best to avoid this one because both sides have developed a rudimentary interstellar drive. So we'll be going through the portal at fourteen hundred tomorrow instead of a week from now. Don't worry it won't change things much. We'll still arrive on the same day, just a few hours earlier than originally planned. There's a few minor things you should probably warn people about though. There'll be some turbulence, a small decrease in gravity, and a flash of very bright light for about ten seconds. None of it is really dangerous, but looking directly at the brightness of the portal could cause some temporary vision problems. I'd like to close the shutters over the observation ports for a short time, just as a preventive measure. But I need your okay to do it.

Last but not least, you were talking about looking into electric powered vehicles. I think it's a definite possibility. I figured you'd want electric vehicles. So I've already been talking to Lugh and Thor about it since yesterday afternoon. They've managed to 'borrow' a few advanced designs from a couple of species that are way ahead of us technology wise. We've modified them for human use, and with their help, I suspect we'll have a prototype ready for you to look at sometime late tomorrow morning. The hardest part of it all was coming up with a design that uses local raw materials so that the process is easily repeatable."

Morrigan laughed softly as she shook her head then replied, "still giving me that gentle kick in ass when I need it huh, Kylie? Okay I get your point. Some things are essential, some are important, and others can wait until we get around to it. I'll try to slow down a bit. But even with Megan scheduling tasks for me, it's not gonna be easy. Going through the portal early doesn't worry me as long as we stay on schedule. I'll make a public announcement about it in the morning. Go ahead and seal off the observation ports if that's what you think needs to be done. From now on whenever you feel you need to do anything that enhances public safety, just do it. There's no need to check with me first. Safety is always my number one priority. Thanks for taking on the transportation issue for me. That's just one less thing I have to worry about. As usual, you're one step ahead of me. I know you and Lugh work together really well. I can understand him stepping up to help you out. But how in the hell did you get Thor to join the party?"

Kylie shook her head as she said, "I didn't; you did. It seems that you've made quite an impression on both Lugh and Thor. The two of them came to me yesterday asking what they could do to help make your life a little easier. We talked about some of the hurdles you'd have to deal with in the near future. When I mentioned the transportation problem and that I thought you'd wanna take advantage of all that extra power we had available; they high fived each other. Then Thor said that creating an electric powered transportation system suitable for human use sounded like fun. Lugh agreed and we were off."

"I don't know why that surprises me as much as it does. Our goddess did say that all the other gods and goddesses were united in their quest for a better humanity. I guess I just never expected this level of support. Please give my heartfelt thanks to both Lugh, and Thor. And Kylie, thank you too! You truly are amazing!"

Kylie smiled as she stood. "No thanks are necessary, My Queen. My duties to you may have changed, but my love for you never will." She giggled then continued, "you two really do make such a cute couple. Do yourselves a favor and find some time to enjoy each other." With that, Kylie disappeared.

After Kylie ported out of Morrigan's quarters Megan placed her hand on Morrigan's cheek leaning in to give her a soft kiss. She pulled back and said, "I know I advised you to make a public statement. But you're physically and emotionally beat, and you haven't eaten anything since breakfast. Please allow me to at least make you some dinner before you go out there and deal with that mess."

"Thanks Meg. I know you really love me, and like Kylie, you're worried that I'm pushing myself too hard. Dinner does sound lovely. But I think I'd rather wait if you don't mind. I honestly don't wanna get all relaxed then have to go out there and deal with that unpleasant situation. Just let me get that public statement out of the way. I promise you that will be my last task for the day." She winked and continued, "after that we'll go to your quarters and you can feed me dimmer. Then we can spend the rest of the night feeding each other desert. Have we got a deal, my sexy little PA?"

Megan's eyes sparkled like a thousand stars in the night sky as she giggled then said, "you drive a hard bargain, My Queen. But you've got yourself a deal." She giggled again as she stood. "I'm already drenched thinking about it. Let's get this damn statement done and over with before I end up making the whole control deck reek of wet pussy!"