Ultimately, the Creator, for reasons unknown, left behind the world he had crafted with his own hands, abandoning this country of God. When the robots rose to power, not only did they seize control of the Third Mainland, the Astrolabe’s largest territory, they also raised Father to the role of man-made god. The other lands, both large and small, began to pray to the Creator, eagerly awaiting his return.
But this was only one set of beliefs. Moran also taught A-Ka about other faiths. A-Ka really liked the stories that Moran told, and he was equally fond of A-Ka and Percy.
“Though you cannot see the world,” Moran said earnestly, using his fingers to gently stroke Percy’s closed eyes, “you have a pair of eyes in your heart, and they seek the light in every moment.”
Percy began to smile. “Thank you.”
“Uncle Moran, if you believe that the Creator is only an artifact of a faith, then what is faith?” A-Ka asked.
“Faith is born of humans. It is the power that propels someone forward. Under the light of faith, the shadows brought about by death and horror dissipate…”
“Teacher Moran,” a young person said in amusement, “I don’t think that simply believing in the God of the Stars will bring about salvation. Haven’t you seen how many people have risked their lives despite being atheists?”
A-Ka didn’t understand his point, and he shot the youth a look. He knew that there were many young people around his age on the boat, and all of them were spoiling for a fight, preparing for when they arrived at the Second Mainland to build their new lives from the ground up with nothing more than their hands.
The bard smiled. “Faith is not the same as worshipping a deity. The people that you have mentioned are those who have faith in themselves, but there are others who believe in the existence of a god. At the root of it, they adopt these beliefs so that they can believe the moral compass they have in their own heart. Young ones, when you grow up, you will slowly begin to understand.”
The youths in the cabin didn’t continue that debate with Moran, but it was obvious that they didn’t wholly agree with him. A-Ka could only keep these words within his own heart.
He really liked this environment. Though they spent every day waiting and didn’t know exactly when they would reach the shore, the entire ship was like a huge classroom. Everyone had knowledge of their own, and A-Ka learned a lot because of that.
One night, a storm hit the boat. Lightning raged across the sky above the sea, and the large ship bobbed like a single leaf on the vast ocean. Seawater sloshed in from the windows, and the people inside closed them in a rush as their terror grew and grew. The violent jolting of the ship caused many of the passengers to throw up, become dizzy, or fall into despair.
As the boat fell into the grip of horror, the bard Moran knelt in the middle of the cabin, praying in a low voice.
“The God of the Stars who created everything, your light guides the destiny of this land… May you look favorably down upon us and lead us to the bank filled with light.”
His voice traveled through the cabin. Slowly, those within it began to calm, and more and more of them knelt on the ground, joining Moran in prayer. The thunder grew softer, and though the lightning still lashed out, it no longer seemed like it wanted to destroy everything.
As A-Ka observed this, he realized that Moran’s prayers seemed to carry the power to soothe human hearts. In the face of his words, the wind and rain gradually lessened, and everyone slowly sank into sleep, no longer fearing the struggles out at sea.
Nevertheless, lightning burst across the sky, and in his dream A-Ka seemed to sense something—a kind of change in his soul. As thunder rumbled, he felt that he could clearly see the essence of the world. Illuminated by lightning flashes, the seawater split into protons, neutrons, and electrons. Countless gas molecules collided before separating again within the darkness. He seemed to view this through a pair of eyes created from nothing but spirit, and as he looked at his surroundings, he studied the segments of the ship, the creases on the sails, and even the dowels holding the wooden buckets together. Percy remained sleeping soundly by his side. When A-Ka looked at that water purifier with a complicated structure in Percy’s shoulder bag, he understood the countless precisely oriented parts that came together to form it.
He saw the principles that were the foundation of the world.
Another bolt of electricity shot downward, and A-Ka suddenly jolted awake. His surroundings returned to normal. Within the dark cabin, a lantern glowing with white light swayed gently.
Moran hadn’t yet slept, and he lifted his head, looking askance at A-Ka. Seeing that A-Ka’s face was covered in cold sweat, Moran shook his head. He walked over and placed one hand on A-Ka’s forehead.
“What did you see?” Moran asked.
“I…” A-Ka mumbled. “I had a dream.”
Moran smiled slightly. “Dreams are the eyes of humans, through which they see the world and themselves. Sleep, child.”
A-Ka’s breathing evened out, and he once again fell into a deep sleep.
The next day, excited shouts rang out across the deck, and the refugees within the ship cabin all rushed outside. A-Ka went along with the crowd and saw land in the distance. Their journey had finally reached its end. Every person started cheering loudly and crying.
The chimes of a bell tower rang in the distance. A-Ka began to smile. In the sunlight, a lively port city appeared on the horizon.
“That’s Kurlovich,” Moran said, “a port city of the Second Mainland. It’s still a good distance from there to Phoenix City.”
A-Ka brought Percy to the prow of the ship and described the scene to him. “There are many seagulls,” he said. “All the houses are white under the sunlight. It’s beautiful, very beautiful…”
Percy closed his eyes, feeling the slight breeze that blew from the west, and he nodded. “Yup!”