Bringer of the Faith

“There is nothing that is more important than the swift and efficient use of terraforming technology on Mars. I am convinced. God placed unto humanity a New Edan, but this one, we must make!” Hans Hermann looked around the room at his audience. Some watched with interest, others looked bored. 33, 6’3” and broad shouldered, he looked more like a young, square jawed prize fighter than wandering, preaching, Mars lecturer.

“We have before us an opportunity to construct a society new! Soon, Humanity will be a multi-planet species, forever. Do you not think that is the time to begin afresh? To construct a society not bound by the past, by the morals of the established order.”

“Our scripture,” he continued, scanning his audience, “is our story, our human story on Earth. It is a beautiful story; one of work, dedication, and faith. But that doesn’t mean we should seek to emulate those ways on new frontiers. It is to us instead, to take God’s commandments, bring from Earth for a new beginning.”

“One day friends, on New Edan, it is we who shall be written about, and who the stories shall command others to live their lives, but it is not for we, friends, to import the custom, the judgements, and the sins of Earth to Mars.”

“We don’t know what our society will look like on Mars,” he paused for contemplation, “but we know is that this new world, is the one God gave to us, to settle, to make our second home. That is the dream of New Edan friends, and it is the dream that I will be participating in, along with the Green Mars venture. Now please, friends, let us discuss our new world, and how you can help to realize our dream.”

He opened the floor to questions, as he always did. He’d been on the speaking circuit for a few years now, but since the announcements of official colonization efforts, the pace had been hectic.

“When will you be able to build a church Mr. Hermann,” asked a lady, who rose to speak.

“I do not know,” he said serenely, “maybe immediately or maybe never.” He saw confusion in the faces of those in the hall. Exactly where he wanted them. “New Edan may not worship the way we here worship, friends. Who is to say what is or is not right for New Edan yet? What we must remember are the commandments of God himself, and what is best for his children. Not the ways of those people left on our first home. These are old ways.”

“In the history of Earth, the churches of Earth decided that which was a sin, those acts that were decided by men on earth to be moral or immoral,” he gazed around at the eyes fixated on him, “we shall not be ruled by Earth. Not by it’s government, not by it’s laws, and not even by its history. When we proclaim, “that goes against God’s teachings on Mars,” it shall be because it was learned on Mars and is wrong for Mars!”

“How can Mars be a new Edan if Mars is settling Mars isn’t even mentioned in the Bible,” asked a man in the audience.

“Ah well, how was someone following Moses in the Sinai Desert to say, “look at that little red dot, we’ll live there some day?” These books, my friend, teach us only of the history of God on Earth. Why should God have told us what was right for Mars before his children were ready to venture forth?” A man in a priest’s vestment stood, an angry expression on his face.

“How can you say that you serve God and then say you can decide what is, or is not sin?”

“Father,” he said, taking his time, “thank you for coming. The followers of God on Earth have many churches, many practices, and many different ways to celebrate our Lord. They derive from our faith and devotion to God but also our history. It was right for the people. The ways the faithful tended to their flocks, they were right for the time they happened, but now, as we set out into the stars, can be say they remain right?”

“Yes, we can son, practice your faith how you will, but the right path is that of the holy church. What you propose is by leaving Earth you leave behind sin!”

“Which holy church father,” he asked, cutting the priest off. “Would you bring the religious schisms of old, to a new planet, where the morals of here and now may not represent the sensibilities of the two thousand years ago? History defines most of our practices, our teachings. God gave us wisdom, freedom, and the ability to conquer space itself. He gave us these gifts to be used. Many sins in today’s world are nothing but the constructs of history. The history of Earth. What is a sin on a planet where oxygen is the most precious of resources?”

The audience mostly nodded along.

“There is no righting the past, but the future is coming. It is on Mars, friends. Support me, and soon we can settle New Edan together.” The audience mostly applauded vigorously. A few, the priest included, walked out. That was normal; men of the cloth never enjoyed his stuff he thought ruefully. He, however, knew better. They were the past and Hans Hermann was the future. After the lecture many of the attendees came up to him, often to give him their donations in person. Something about pressing their money into his hand gave them a closeness they seemed to enjoy and didn’t mind. It was their donations that were always implied to be behind his joining the Green Mars team, though nobody officially said so; that would be crass. Instead, Tara Dayton had come to him with a recruiting proposal he couldn’t pass up, and he took it. It was still his money, but the Green Mars Corporation would be the only place he could spend it on Mars.

Hermann and the Green Mars Corp knew full well that the terraforming process would take decades, possibly generations. They’d need workers, motivated recruits willing to abandon their lives on Earth to build their colony, and if it took the faithful to do it then so be it. The company and he came to an understanding, and Hans Hermann, was nominated to one of a pair of general duties roles in the colonist team. After the meet and greet, Hermann headed backstage, to the little office that functioned as the Green Room for the speaking venue. Steve, his Green Mars Corp representative, was waiting there to greet him. The man always looked like he was stressed beyond words.

“Great speech as always Hans, great job,” he said anxiously bustling around Hermann as he walked, who, ignoring the hanger on, sat on the office couch. “Couple um, notes, if you can, it’s the second last before Greenland, as you know of course, and I’d, The Company, would like it if you’d tone down the whole independent Mars schtick down, a little,” Steven continued, making air quotes around ‘independent Mars.’

“Do you take me for a hypocrite?”

“No no no, nothing like that, just a little, you know. Investors get worried, stocks etc if one of their founding colonists is totally against the connection back to Earth, you know…” he trailed off. Hermann said nothing, staring at him.

“It’s not a big deal, just you know, something unifying I guess,” Steve added, stuttering.

“Unifying, fine. I’ll be… unifying, Steven.”

“It’s just you know, stonks,” he said, forcing a laugh.

“Do you take me for a fool or a hypocrite Steve?”

“I ah, sorry no I don’t mean tha…”

“So you wouldn’t want me to lie or dilute my message, then? That my message, my vision, is compatible with yours and thusly, needs no dilution? Is that true mister?

“I’m sorry Mr. Hermann, I um,” he stammered, turning red in the face.

“Thank you for your time, Steven.” He hustled awkwardly out of the room. Hermann already was planning to ensure there was no animosity between the interests of the company and his vision; he needed them on side. He would do what they asked, as dismissive as he was about Steve. It was fun making him squirm.

“They still don’t listen,” he mused to himself, “they don’t have the vision to see my vision is their vision, and through me, their mission is fulfilled. They’d figure it out, and in the meantime, Steven can afford to get his wings clipped a bit for his efforts.” Hermann stretched and took off the grey sport jacket he was wearing. He loosened the black tie and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his white, collared shirt, and sighed happily with some relief.

He was sipping a glass of water and had started reading a portion of his training package when he heard a rap on the door. Putting aside ‘Interplanetary Logistics,’ to the side, he rose and strode over to the door. He wasn’t expecting anyone per se, but he wasn’t surprised either. There were often visitors. He opened the door to see a tall Hispanic woman with long dark hair standing in front of him. She looked around thirty, wore a yellow cocktail dress with straps, and a cross hung at her ample cleavage. Her heels were tall with rhinestones on the straps.

“Hi, Mr. Hermann, I’m Andria, I, I really wanted to ask you some questions, is, is that OK?”

“Of course,” he said magnanimously, waving her through the entrance, “please come in.” His eyes followed the wiggle of her round butt as she came inside. He closed the office door behind them and invited her to sit on the couch with him.

“I really hope I’m not a bother Mr. Hermann,” she started before he cut her off.

“Don’t worry about this! What do you wish to know? I am an open book, as they say. Don’t be shy.” The woman, Andria, he reminded himself, shifted nervously next to him.

“I’m a little confused, but I want to know more you see. If we define sin, then is doing something that is sinful here, maybe, not so sinful there?”

“Do you mean values that are imposed by ourselves here on Earth. Rules, that seem not to make sense anymore but are borne by our history?”

“But these are sins according to God?”

“They are sins according to the men that wrote down the will of God. Are they the only arbiters of sin?”

“Sooo,” she said slowly, “things, sinful things, here… they won’t be sinful there?”

“Some things, ****, theft, these things are wrong. But other things won’t be. Perhaps in a world with so little oxygen, hoarding that will be a cardinal sin? We don’t know where society will bring us on Mars.”

“That… that makes sense. So some sins in this new world… maybe won’t be?”

“By chance, Andria, do you refer to sins of passion? The sin of love and sex?” She nodded, her eyes avoiding his. Hermann felt a wolfish confidence, and began an argument he had used many times, with many women. “When the men who wrote the great holy texts wrote them, there was no contraception, children had starved, and had harsh, brutal lives. People needed guidelines on how to live… And when to love,” he said, watching her nod attentively along.

“Now things are different, the world is a different place. Women can choose things for themselves, birth control is common and normal, and on Mars, well, it will likely be a society in which at first anyway, there are limited survival resources and there probably won’t many children. In such a planned society, why should anyone consider enjoying the pleasures God gave us, a sin?”

The anxiety in her hazel eyes seemed to have faded a little when she looked at him. She seemed to inch imperceptibly closer to him.

“And what of the sins of… Earth?”

“Andria,” he said haughtily, as he felt her hand slid to his thigh, “we are a society about to travel to the Red Planet. The great quest of a lifetime.” While he talked, Andria leaned over his lap a little and started undoing his belt. “And when we travel out to space, to colonize a planet! Do you think God would care about safe, free, sexual acts done to enjoy the pleasure he granted to us? I, mmm..” he sighed happily when he felt her warm hand slide into his underwear and start to rub his hardening cock. She was looking up at him in rapt attention, waiting on every word.

“And when we, mmmgh, do go out into the void,” he continued while Andria pulled his cock out of his underwear, “will we go out there thinking sin matters more or less on one place or another?” Andria leaned down and slid her mouth slowly down around his cock.

“Ohhh fuck, good girl, I don’t for one second believe, yeah just like that, mmm, I don’t believe that if something just becomes a sin here on, mmm, E-Earth.” He groaned as she started slurping loudly on his cock. “Mmmgh yeah suck it,” he groaned, his hand on the back of her head, pushing his cock deeper into her mouth. “When more people can come to New Eden, gaah, we’ll reinvent what is sin and what isn’t. We’ll do anything guugh, we want.”

Andria slid his cock out of her mouth and sat up. A string of pre-cum and saliva hung from her lip and her makeup was smeared. She popped the straps off her dress and let it fall around her waist. Hermann leaned in and kissed her for the first time while she reached around and unclipped her bra. She broke away from the kiss and stood, shrugging the bra off.

Nicest titties in a while, Hermann thought to himself, they looked soft, and her round dark nipples were hard. She lifted her dress and slid her panties down, then straddled Hermann on the couch. She reached down guided his cock and as he watched, she lowered herself onto him, sliding deep inside her with a moan.

“Ooh fuck,” he gasped reaching under her dress. She had a short, trimmed, bush, and he found her clit with his thumb as she slowly rode him.

“I wanted this since I first laid my eyes on you,” she whispered, “I knew it would be right. I knew you would lead me the correct way.”

“I’m so glad you came to see me,” he said as he leaned forward to suck her big soft tit.

“Mmmm baby, me tooooo,” she whispered, her pace quickening. “Feel how went I am for you, ohh god it’s so good.”

“You’re so fucking tight,” he gasped, her tits bouncing in his face. She squealed with pleasure and gripped onto the couch. The couch creaked loudly under them

“Fuckfuck yes,” she moaned loudly. Hermann felt clamp tight around his cock and she cried out, slamming down harder on harder on him.

“I’m going to cum soon,” he grunted, “oh fuck, yeah I’m, I’m gonna.”

“Cum in me! Do it, cum inside me,” she whimpered. It was all it took to send Hermann over the edge. He gripped onto the couch and groaned loudly, and he exploded into orgasm, feeling pulse after pulse of his hot load fill her pussy while she bounced and wailed with pleasure on top of him.

He grunted, and collapsed backward into the couch, his hands relaxed, and Andra slowed to a stop, keeping him inside her. She leaned over and kissed him deeply, and he slowly explored her body with his hands, which felt like they were ten times heavier than they were before. Then she stood slowly, his cock, softly sliding out of her and his cum smearing her pussy and thighs. She started to dress, and he watched her pull her panties on while his cum dripped out of her pussy. He liked to see his messy handiwork. When she picked up her bra and put it on, he sighed and started to fix his pants. The awkwardness Hermann had seen in Andria before returned. He took her face in his hand and kissed her passionately. When he backed away, she smiled, her eyes half open. He gave her another smaller kiss and broke away.

“I am very happy you came to talk to me Andria.”

“So am I Mr. Hermann. You have been wonderful.”

“Call me Hans, please, we are… familiar,” he replied with a chuckle. “When we meet again, we will be on Mars together Andria,” he said seriously, holding her hand. “Before we do, tell others, our cause is the cause of Mars Andria.”

“I will, she said eagerly, holding his hand in hers, I will see you on Mars mist… Hans.” He gave him a quick peck on the lips and strode out of the office door. He locked the door behind him, hoping belatedly that it was well soundproofed. It didn’t matter that much anyway, he reflected. She wasn’t the first woman and if the story came out… well it wouldn’t be the first story either. It didn’t matter. He wondered if he would see Andria again. She was far from the first woman who had visited him backstage in this tour.

“I wonder if she was on birth control,” he muttered to himself, his mind going to all the women who had sought spiritual guidance with the guy preaching that sin isn’t sin. “Cult leader babies running around,” he said, then laughed at his own joke. He’d been accused of starting a cult for years now, and it didn’t bother him anymore. How could their way, the way that cannot absolve the gap between faith and science, be anything more than doomed to failure? And the ‘sex cult’ allegations, he mused. The jealous will always find new ways to try to break a person down. Nobody had to do anything, they were just told they were just told it was without sin to do what they desired to do, so they did it. Nothing wrong with that. The room smelled like sex.

He texted Steven and told him he would be ready to leave to their next engagement.