A religious hike done traditionally done by teen boys with their father on Midsummer’s day on various worlds in the Pax imperium. Varying in length between a few miles and several weeks. The goal is to walk out a scale model of the local system, starting with its star in the center and then ending with the furthest of the giant planets.
Culturally the walk functions as one right of passage from childhood into adulthood with the goal of showing teens how large the system is and how small they are in comparison to it. The spiritual purpose varies from sect to sect, but it is often said to teach humility.
The New Rationalists often use the ritual as an opportunity to rigorously challenge what they see as the dominant anthropocentric view of the universe. Although as humanity expands to the stars and finds no other sentient species waiting for them, this view has become less and less popular.
The practice of the pilgrimage has been supported by various religious sects over time. It is currently most heavily practiced by the New Rationalists but also supported by various Christian and Muslim groups as well, including the Apollonian Catholic Church.
King of the House of Athena and the most influential ruler of the democratic monarchists in the Pax Imperium. He is perhaps the third most powerful politician in the Pax Imperium behind the Pax Empress and the CEO of the Unity Corporation.
The second son to King Nicholas Athena. Jonas is second in the line of succession to the throne behind his older brother Stephen.
A Unity agent who works closely with Timothy Randall after his return to Earth from Aetna. Katana was one of the first agents whose mind had been trained so that he could function both in intraspace and meatspace at the same time. This gave him tremendous advantages over other agents.
Andy Sherwood is an IT project manager on Aetna. He doesn’t trust Jack Halloway’s ability to protect his customers from Unity Retribution, so he tends to purchase his black market goods at the flea market near the administration building. Unknown to anyone on Aetna, he’s also one of the Unity Corporations most wanted hackers.
Mike Fisher is a device manager for IT on Aetna. He’s an avid reader and has paid Jack to find him books at times. Unknown to Jack he has a military background, and despite his current poor physical shape was once a top rated commando.
Peggy Benitez is an officer on the Flying Fish.
Larry Flynn is the XO of the Flying Fish.
Ginny was a dancer in a club who became Jack’s first girlfriend when he was a teenager.
Beatrice Parker works for human resources as Carla savage’s assistant. Later she is assigned to Jack Halloway as his personal assistant on the station.
