CHAPTER ONE

The Sisters of Unity ship began preparing for the event to elect their new leaders. First, it would be to decide who the outsider would be to observe the process, as the order’s charter requires. Since Jenai was their first High Priestess who served for almost 100 years, this seemed a daunting task for them. Now they would be selecting the next High Priestess. Only one has been nominated, but there is still time for others to be included in the selection. The two who have volunteered to organize and run the selection ceremony are Sister Yoon-Hi and Sister Jazea. They were two of the closest to Jenai, who had served her as her assistant for 40 years. They also would be retiring since most of the Order has been and will be replaced by the younger generation. Most of the order now was between the ages of 18 and 25. This is mainly due to the Shylzan situation and the war that engulfed most of the planet. The Colonizing council decided that the new worlds for the Shylzan would be led by a younger select few, while the older members would stay on Shylzan to hold back the coming destruction, so more of the select would escape.

 Ji-Hun is concentrating on discovering more about the new world, especially Naeya's proposal, which she could not access. Nar Zani reminds Ji that she is due for an update. Ji asks if there is another way to get the update than going below to hook her up to the NARI computer distribution network: “One moment, Young Lady Lee.” A minute later, NAR Zani says, “Yes, Young Lady. I can connect to the station air data stream, turn off the firewall on the C-Block, and then connect to the update distribution node.  Ji asks if that will cause a security violation. “Young Lady Lee, I don’t believe so. Your mother created and set me up as a HIVE control point. I can update the other NARI Synths also if you like.” Ji pauses momentarily, thinking this may be a problem, but it is convenient. She wonders why her mother did not explain this before they left Shylzan. Then Ji had a devious thought, “Nar Zani, can you update Kang’s Synth, the one he calls Toaster, so it complains about being called Toaster?” Nar Zani replies, “Yes, young lady, should I do anything else?”  “No, Zani, don’t make it obvious. Get your update while making the mods for Kang’s toaster synth. One more thing, Zani, can you make Kang’s Synth request to be called sweetie?” Then Ji giggles almost uncontrollably, thinking of how Kang will be so annoyed. Nar Zani says, “Yes, young lady.” Ten minutes later, Ji Hun receives a message from Sister Qwan indicating she has been formally requested to attend the Sung Gai leader selection ceremony. Ji Hun turns and looks over at Nar-Zani (Her synth aid). “Nar-Zani, get my purple gown and my satchel.  I will be attending the Sung Gai leader selection ceremony.” Thirty minutes later, Ji Hun arrives on the Sisters of Unity ship. The guards quickly lead her to the ceremony, where she is instructed to take the seat of honor on the stage. She will be the selected outside observer for the ceremony. Ji-Hun becomes a little nervous, leaving Nar-Zani back on Unity Star. Many thoughts were running through Ji’s head, like who selected her to be here, what she is supposed to do, and what her friends will think when they see her on the station viewers. Waiting for the ceremony to begin, she began looking around. The ship was modest; no expense was made to make it look special. The Sung Gai were a group that valued life over putting on shows. They focused on treating others as being more important than themselves. They lived a life of minimal means. Almost all they had was from donations and the support provided by the corporations. She knew her family owned the largest corporation in Aerok, and it was being set up with ready workers on Cyhnon. She then thinks she is here because of her family's influence. She recalls how her mother focused on the teachings of Sung Gai all her life. She even made her memorize their words of wisdom. About fifteen minutes later, the ceremony started to get underway.

                 While being confined to their rooms, many had food delivered, others just used their stash of snacks, preferring to wait till the food service opened again. Over the station's comms, it was announced that the Sung Gai ceremony to select a new leader would begin in one hour. The proceedings will be broadcast over the station's digital viewer stations. In honor of the event, the Sung Gai Order has sent food made by Aerok chefs to all the new colony leaders’ rooms. Others will have a buffet set out in the station lounges. Security Chief Dosh cancels the confined to quarters order but warns all that security will be watching closely, so all need to be on their best behavior. It also states that the brig is at 50% capacity, so the air locks can be used if it is filled up. “Be warned,” she adds.

The Station appears calm as the colony leaders settle in with their meal, just waiting to watch the proceedings. The rest of the station enjoys the buffet provided while their attention is glued to the monitors, watching the Sung Gai elect their new leaders. Three Sung Gai, two priestesses, and one dreamer walk onto the stage. Each of them greets Ji-Hun as they pass by her. Sister Qwan Yoon-Hi motions the crowd to quiet down, a short pause, then she says, “May Sung Mai be with you”, and the crowd repeats back. Another pause as the crowd is only focused on Sister Qwan. She then begins saying, “I am one”, and the crowd repeats. Then she says, “We are one,” and the crowd repeats. They continue reciting the Shylzan unity pledge. As soon as they finish, Qwan introduces Lee Ji-hun as the outside observer. The audience gives Ji-Hun a respectful bow as Ji-Hun returns the bow. Sister Jazea then turns to the audience and says, “Welcome to our first hyeob-yag to officially select our new High Priestess. The first order of business is to present all those nominated to become our next High Priestess.” Dreamer Shari Minz passes the envelope to Jazea. Then Jazea looks over the crowd as she slowly opens the envelope and pulls out the paper. “I only see one name here, Choi Min-Su.” Sister Qwan quickly interrupts the proceedings before it is said that she is running unopposed. “We have a sealed message from High Priestess Sung, and we were instructed to read it before electing a new leader.”  She waits for the locked box to be brought to the podium by the guardian waiting by the back door.

                The guardian approaches the stage slowly with the box. Some chatter around Unity Star makes it evident that the entire station is focused on the proceedings on the Sung Gai ship. The chatter gets louder as many wonder what is in the box, some wonder if it is something High Priestess Sung had left for them, or would it be a message to all the Shylzani? Min-Su gets concerned that she may not be unopposed as her cousin Mae-Seon and her mother have guaranteed her. Min-su waits anxiously as it seems it is taking forever for the sealed box to be brought to the podium. Many on Unity Star whisper as if the Sung Gai could hear them. As the box is handed to Sister Jazea, all observing go silent as if they are holding their breath.

                 Jazea reaches into the box and finds in it a portable digital message device. Looking up at the crowd and then to the camera and those viewing, she says, “It appears High Priestess Sung left us a parting address.” Jazea slowly takes the DMD and plugs it into the viewer. A couple of minutes pass as it loads, then High Priestess Sung appears on the screen.

“Myeong Mai be with you.” The crowd and many on Unity Star gasp when she says, “Myeong Mai be with you.” Many questioned why she said that, and others wondered if the difference was intended or a mistake. Then Jenai begins her message:

 “I greet you all and hope all is going well. If you see this now, you must select a new High Priestess to lead our Order because I have passed on. I have led the order for almost one hundred years, so this will be a hard task. I implore you not to rush into selecting just anyone. You will have many challenges ahead of you, so you all must work together. Have patience with each other, keep your mind on the goal and ideals of the Chaos Unity teachings. The goal is to find a place called Deoleoun and the people of Gil. I believe that until this prophecy is fulfilled, we will not find the unity we seek. Keep focusing on what is essential, not the rivalries that appear for a time. The one who succeeds me must know the Chaos Unity teachings as if they were their own. They must be so devoted to the cause that the teachings have become their life.”  

Back on Unity Star, the quiet is broken by Kang running out of his quarters shouting, “My Toaster is broken!” Some shout back from their rooms, telling Kang, “Go to the lounge. There is plenty of food there, and surely they have toast!” Others say, “Kang must be drinking too much.” Some say, “Be quiet. We are trying to hear Jenai’s address regarding the Sung Gai order!” Security eventually arrives, takes Kang back to his room, and instructs him to calm down and stay in his room until the proceedings are over. The security guard is seen leaving Kang’s room, trying hard to control his composure and not laugh too loudly.

 The speech by Jenai continues.

As the camera view moves around the room, it briefly shows Ji-Hun seated on the stage next to the Priestess and the dreamer running the ceremony. The leaders on Unity Star start to ask why she is there.

Jenai continues: “The one you choose must be humble and have shown the desire to serve others. To be the High Priestess of the Sung Gai order, you must not be one seeking power. You must be one who will serve the whole and the outsiders. I have one in mind, and I recommend someone who has shown all these qualities and served me well. I would like you to consider electing Myeong Mai.  She is not outspoken but has a strong character. She is young, but I think her wisdom is well beyond her age. Again, I want to remind you that the priorities are staying focused on the Chaos Unity teachings and fulfilling the prophecy. Avoid those who seek power over serving. They will only lead you down the path of destruction and despair. I recommend that Myeong Mai be selected as your High Priestess to lead the Order. I have complete confidence in her abilities and leadership.”  Jenai closes her message with, “May you find unity in the chaos.”   The message ends.

 The audience gets louder as they quickly begin to discuss what they heard. Min-Su quickly finds those she knows who support her bid to become the next High Priestess. Sister Jazea taps the microphone to get the audience's attention and instructs them to return. Meanwhile, the chatter on Unity Star has become noticeably louder. Kang may be the only one on the station who has stopped watching Sung Gai on the viewer. He is only concerned about what happened to his Toaster, who now needs to be called Sweetie. The proceedings quickly get back in order. The chatter dies down. Jazea instructs the audience to take a break from the proceedings. “We will adjourn for two hours to discuss what we just heard.”