But before we get to the location, let's shed some light on why that is a good idea, said Gaia. "As we know, the last millennium has not been kind to your numbers," Gaia said with a faint smile. "The latest estimates put your believers at roughly five hundred million, meaning Christianity has lost nearly a billion followers since the year 2000."
Urban remained silent as he considered those numbers. He knew that Christianity had suffered significant losses in many parts of the world, but hearing Gaia state the decline so bluntly still made the problem feel more immediate. She then explained that perhaps four hundred million of those remaining believers were only shallow believers, people who had grown up surrounded by Christianity without developing particularly strong convictions of their own. Those people were not necessarily lost forever, but turning them into devoted believers would take considerable time.
"If you want to increase the number of people capable of becoming priests, you should begin in the United States," Gaia continued. "That fits my plans perfectly, and it gives your church an opportunity to rebuild its influence in a place where Christianity still has deep foundations." Urban's expression became thoughtful as he considered her suggestion. He understood the potential, but he also immediately saw several problems with it.
"I understand the need to create as many people with the priest class as possible," Urban replied. "However, why begin in the United States?" He leaned forward slightly, his expression questioning as he continued. "Christianity has deep roots there, but the relationship between the country and the church has become complicated, especially after Trump's attempts to use the faith for political purposes."
Gaia nodded as though she had expected the objection. "Yes, I know," she replied, her expression becoming considerably colder. "But as I told you, I want to root out the corrupted humans, and they are particularly troublesome there." She paused before continuing, making her next point carefully. "I cannot simply appear personally because doing so would make them disappear into hiding, and some of them can avoid my senses as long as they do not actively use their void energy."
Urban's eyes widened slightly at that revelation. He had assumed that Gaia's awareness of the world was nearly absolute because she claimed to be the consciousness of the planet. The fact that even she had difficulty finding certain enemies meant that the corrupted humans were considerably more dangerous than he had initially imagined. "So you need the church to become your eyes and ears," Urban said.
"Exactly," Gaia answered.
She folded her arms as she looked toward him. "The people at the top of the food chain there do not genuinely care about the common man unless they can make money from him." Her voice carried obvious disgust as she continued describing the situation. "It is a place where organized crime and a corrupted state apparatus have become deeply intertwined, and I need people on the ground who can recognize what is happening before those enemies realize that someone is hunting them."
Urban stared at her in disbelief. "Are you saying the people at the top genuinely do not care about maintaining a stable homeland?" he asked. "I was under the impression that they valued stability, even if only because instability would threaten their own wealth and power."
"Do not worry about it being strange that you never heard about it," Gaia replied. "What would be the point of reporting such things if the reporters themselves are pressured, bribed, or frightened into silence?" She explained that the extraordinary crime rate and corruption had remained hidden behind layers of misinformation, while those at the very top had convinced themselves that they did not possess enough manpower to control the entire situation.
"As long as the surface remains clean, they are satisfied," Gaia said. "Until now, the gangs and corruption have remained sufficiently hidden that the people with the greatest influence can pretend everything is under control." She then waved her hand dismissively, clearly indicating that the political situation itself was not her primary concern. "That is not important right now, because I have something much more useful for you to do."
Urban straightened in his chair.
"I want you to assemble two hundred and fifty thousand men next week," Gaia said. "After that, you will perform a massive blessing ceremony and store a small amount of your purified god's power inside each of them." She then summoned a detailed blueprint and placed it before him. "This is the magic circle you will need to construct, activate, and charge before the ceremony."
Urban carefully examined the diagram. The circle contained numerous symbols that he did not yet understand, but the system information appearing alongside it made clear that Gaia expected him to follow the instructions exactly. "What will these people be used for?" he asked. The scale of two hundred and fifty thousand people made it clear that Gaia was not planning a symbolic gesture.
"After the blessing, I will send them to the largest church that remains under your control in each state," Gaia explained. "They will spread the teachings of your god, protect your faithful, and investigate anything suspicious they encounter." She smiled slightly before adding one final instruction. "And make certain that you tell them they are hunting corrupted humans."
Urban frowned.
"But won't that alert the corrupted humans?" he asked. "If we publicly announce that we are searching for them, they will realize that someone knows they exist." He could already imagine the consequences of allowing their enemies to understand the scale of the operation.
"No," Gaia replied confidently. "It will not."
Urban looked unconvinced.
"They will not be able to resist trying to corrupt your god," Gaia continued with a small smile. "That is exactly why you need to be careful. If they believe they can gain control over your god, they will eventually reveal themselves." Her expression suggested that she had already considered the possibility and was deliberately using their arrogance against them.
Urban nodded slowly.
"Any other questions?" Gaia asked.
"No, not at the moment," Urban replied. He rubbed his forehead as he tried to organize the enormous amount of information he had received during the day. "It has been a rather eventful day, and I have quite a lot to do."
He then remembered one of the most important tasks waiting for him. "I also have a televised address coming soon," Urban said. "During that speech, I intend to reveal that God is alive." He sighed before continuing. "I will explain that He has been deeply wounded and corrupted by the void and by corrupted humans."
Gaia smiled approvingly.
"That is considerably better than telling humanity that their collective belief created the entity they worship," Urban continued. "I doubt most people are emotionally prepared to hear that their own thoughts and faith played such a significant role in God's existence." He shook his head. "And explaining that God needs humanity to help restore Him would probably create even more confusion."
"Well, it is good to hear that you already have a plan," Gaia said. "Good luck, Pope Urban."
With those words, Gaia vanished.
The room immediately became silent.
"That went rather well," Evindal said from somewhere nearby. He had apparently remained hidden throughout the conversation, and his expression showed genuine curiosity. "But why did you feel the urge to intervene?" he asked. "That does not seem like something you would normally do."
Gaia turned toward him.
"No, humanity is generally best left to learn its own lessons," she replied. "But your visit reminded me that I can occasionally nudge them in the right direction when necessary." She looked toward the distant United States with an irritated expression. "I hope this will light a fire under them and encourage them to improve their situation instead of endlessly daydreaming about world domination."
Evindal raised an eyebrow.
"You really dislike them," he observed.
"I dislike their current behavior," Gaia corrected. "Their obsession with guns is not the problem by itself, but they have allowed that obsession to become a substitute for solving their actual problems." She sighed as she continued. "I doubt that dream will ever completely disappear because it seems deeply rooted in their national culture, but they could at least learn to get their domestic situation under control."
Evindal looked genuinely confused.
"You seem opposed to guns," he said. "They appear quite useful from everything I have read about them. Why would you want to stop humanity from developing them?"
Gaia shook her head.
"No, guns are excellent tools," she replied. "If I did not have the long-term goal of turning humanity into a guardian race, I would probably have given them permission to develop as many firearms as they wanted." Her expression became serious. "But that is not the path I want for humanity."
Evindal considered her words.
"I think I understand," he finally said. "If you allow them to solve every problem through overwhelming firepower, they will eventually stop developing other methods." He glanced away as he considered the simulations he had already run on his own planet. "It also removes some of the danger that forces a civilization to continue improving itself."
"Exactly," Gaia replied.
Evindal nodded slowly. "And your race needs constant innovation for firearms to remain useful at every technological level. If the weapons become too dominant too early, they could actually prevent the development of other systems that would eventually be necessary."
Gaia gave him an approving look.
"You are right," she said. "That is why I have placed an artificial limit on how far humanity can currently progress with firearms." She sighed as she looked toward the United States. "I understand why they believe their country depends on guns, but eventually they will have to learn to think beyond them."
For a moment, Gaia said nothing.
Her eyes remained fixed on the United States, where the consequences of the country's choices were beginning to accumulate. Above that distant nation, the shape of an eagle seemed to emerge within the world's cultural energy, but unlike the proud symbol it was supposed to represent, this eagle looked sick and exhausted.
Gaia frowned.
"That is worrying," she muttered.
The eagle's condition was not yet catastrophic, but it was deteriorating. Gaia could only hope that the new pressure she had placed on the USA would be enough to make them reconsider their path before the damage became irreversible. She had no intention of carrying them forever, but she was willing to give them a final push in the right direction.