There weren't many displays while we walked through these narrow hallways. There were many tapestries of course, most of which covered the windows along the stone walls. Covering the window with curtains was pretty common knowledge as a way to keep heat or cold in or out. These tapestries didn't even all pertain to goddesses and most of them were simple designs of isometric patters of one description or another.

As for the displays they were simple things like helmets, spears, or pieces of armor. This hallway seemed to be dedicated to humans who either fought alongside or against goddesses in the past. The items gathered here the artifacts of such times. Most of the items were in some kind of protective case though not all. There were also not information placards for everything but at least everything had a label. I did my best not to stop and stare at them as the human aspect wasn't that interesting to me.

Suddenly inside my head a minor alarm went off. It had something to do with the prayer feed I had going constantly inside my goddess zone. Who was even setting off these alarms anyway? My subconscious? I'd have to look more into that. Regardless there was something important going on.

I came to a halt and lifted my left hand to the two people in front of me.

"One sec."

Both Timothy and Maisy stopped and looked back at me in confusion. They wouldn't even notice me standing still for more than a couple moments due to the time acceleration inside.

With them taken care of I jumped down into the goddess zone. Miya was taking a nap on the couch and I didn't want to disturb her, however the alarm was waking her up. I shut it off and whispered quietly to her.

"It's alright. Go back to sleep."

This thankfully worked and she drifted back off. Now to take care of the situation.

Looking at the world map I could see the prayer was coming from high up in the mountains to the far west. It was from middle aged man who was wandering around pretty far away from civilization. His prayer was along the lines of "please save me from death goddess." It appeared there was a blizzard raging all around him. Lost in the mountains during a blizzard. Yeah real smart.

Teleportation time. Though I was sorta busy right now. I'll just bring him here then!

With another thought I leapt up into my body again and opened my eyes. It had only been a few seconds of course in the real world. Since I already had my left hand raised I whipped it to the side of my body and opened a large six foot tall portal, its glowing light shining in the hallway.

At first I wasn't sure what exactly would come through the portal, but thankfully it seems only what I want to does. So within the same moment I conjured portal I reached through it with my arm and felt the man on the other side. Then with one smooth movement I pulled him backwards and through into the hallway I was standing in.

All three humans were completely shocked by what just happened, the lost man most of all. In one moment he was freezing to death in a blizzard and the next he was standing in some hallway. He looked around blinking in confusion until he saw me, his eyes then going wide with shock.

He gasped. "G-Goddess? Is that you? You're so small!"

I simply shrugged. "Surprise!"

With that out of the way he looked around trying to get his bearings.

"Where a-am I?"

"You're in Norlov." I responded.

"Norlov?" he said in shock, turning back to stare at me. "Do you have any idea how far away that is from Vemdelen? I'll never make it home!"

This got a deep sigh out of me as I put my hands on my hips and looked up at him judgmentally.

"Well you should've thought of that before you got lost in a blizzard!"

His expression changed again, this time to one of despair. He also seemed to remember fully who he was talking to and gulped, putting his hands together and kneeling before me.

"Please great goddess! I beg of you to send me home! I thank you for saving me with your great mercy, but so far from home my home will be no more by the time I travel all the way there."

He had a point I suppose. So with another great sigh I relented.

"Fiiiine..."

Without having to go into the goddess zone again I could pinpoint another person praying in the town of Vemdelen and opened another portal near them. It was in someone randoms house but that wasn't important now. Then once it was open and without another word I pushed the man through it and back into his hometown. The portal then closed and I turned back to the other two with me.

Timothy and Masiy were both standing there with wide eyes and blank expressions. To their credit they had stood there quietly and watched the whole thing without interrupting, though it was clear they weren't exactly sure how to process it. Annoying!

"Well?" I said shooing them forward. "Carry on!"

Timothy nodded with that distant look in his eyes. "Yes goddess."

After witnessing such a display they were both surely deep in thought about what kind of goddess they were walking with. I'll admit it wasn't how most gods would've handled such a situation in the stories I remember but hey, whatever works. As always I've been playing these sorts of things by ear and making it up as I go along.

Regardless they continued walking and eventually we reached the main worship hall. At least that's what the sign on the doors said. Looking inside from here revealed it was quite ornate and decorated with fancy pews and candlesticks. There were thick decorative ropes and various tapestries depicting goddesses. It was the full deal just like I remember from the various extravagant places of worship in my old world. Honestly such places staying so beautiful over long lengths of time was always impressive.

Standing in the room were three people, all of them dressed similarly to Timothy. They were clearly more staff and were probably all hiding in here due to my appearance outside. I mean if a real goddess showed up to your converted goddess temple I'd hide in the central part to stay out of sight too. Two of them looked in their twenties, a man and woman, though the last one was a sort of old man in fancier robes.

Timothy and Masiy clearly knew them and the two groups responded accordingly.

"Timothy! Masiy!" the older man said. "You're alive! You shouldn't have gone off alone like that!"

He was walking towards them through the central isle of pews when he saw me standing behind them. This made him stop dead in his tracks as he looked at me in confusion. There was also a fear in his eyes that probably came from some primal instinct.

"Who is that?"

I simply grinned smugly and put my arms crossed over my chest.

Timothy cleared his throat and stepped out from in front of me. He was clearly nervous as he gestured to me.

"M-May I present the Goddess of Knowledge and Light: the great Jenna."

The three new people just looked at me in confusion for a moment. So taking this opportunity I stepped forward and summoned my books, putting my arms out and up as to an adoring crowd.

"Yes that's right! You're goddess is finally here! Hahaha!"

Instantly the three new humans shrunk back from me in fear, the man who had approached taking many steps backwards as he took up a defensive position. They would have recognized my voice from when I was speaking outside so there was no doubt in their minds that I was who I said I was.

I stopped and put my hands on my hips. "Oh come now! Stop being so scared! Are these two pissing their pants over me?" I gestured to the two with me.

Maisy then stepped forward to be next to Timothy and held her hands to her chest.

"She really isn't that bad of a goddess Arlon! She's scary sure. But she's been kind to me and Timothy."

It was then the old man identified as Arlon noticed the mango that Maisy was carrying still. She had been taking bites out of it on the way but it was still over halfway there. Seeing it made him confused which battled with his terror for dominance.

"What's that?" he asked.

Stolen novel; please report.

Maisy lifted the fruit up and pointed at me. "It's called a mango. The goddess gave it to me!"

The way she did it was almost accusatory. Regardless it did cause the others to pause and really think for a moment, their terror mostly abated at this point. They were probably thinking along the lines that if this goddess would give a gift to someone they had just met surely she couldn't be that bad after all.

I interrupted the forming awkward silence. "So introduce your friends Timtim."

Timothy cleared his throat and stepped in front of me, Maisy following behind. He then pointed out each of the new people one at a time.

"T-This is Arlon. He runs the temple here. He's my boss..." He bowed his head somewhat embarrassed before continuing. "That man in the back there is Keb. He works here with me. The woman there is Thecia. She helps clean like Maisy does."

The Thecia woman looked interesting as she had short gray hair despite being young. Her skin was fair and her eyes were a vibrant green. Now that introductions had been made she seemed much braver than the others considering her body language.

"Goddess Jenna" Thecia said stepping through the pews. "You're not here to destroy us?"

A understandable question. They didn't know my feelings on this temple museum yet. I suppose its time to settle their fears once and for all.

With my hands on my hips I walked up to Arlon and looked up at him with an intense gaze that clearly made him nervous. He was twice as tall as I was right now be he was well aware how quickly that could change. After a moment of staring he looked away, this was an act of submission in animals and brought a smile to my face.

"So you're Timtimmy's boss huh?" I said with a smirk. "I'm starting to like Timothy you know. I'm sure you've taken good care of him haven't you?"

Arlon looked back at me briefly and took a step backwards. The others coming closer to the conversation as he replied to me, trying to keep a strong presentation for their sakes.

"Of course goddess. Timothy is one of our valuable workers here at the temple." He looked at Timothy then back at me. "He knows much about goddesses. Their history is quite important to him. We are honored to have him here with us."

I simply nodded with my eyes and crossed my arms over my stomach. "Mhm mhm."

Then I looked around the worship hall. The entire place reminded me so much of those large tabernacles from the other world. Most of them were in dedication to the one I remember as my father Elohim. The specifics were still hazy and I remember all life being his children to a certain extent, though I was a member of a special group. I knew that much to be true somehow. I said a small prayer hoping he heard and answered me, as I believed he could hear me somehow. It was some bit of knowledge that was ingrained deep within me.

Finally I dropped my arms to my sides and walked through the pews and away from the humans, running my hands along the pews as I went.

"You know this place reminds me of the temples dedicated to my father. He also had great places built in his name with followers and priests. Though he didn't need them."

This brought a look of shock upon all their faces, their fear of me shifting to curiosity and fear about this new being.

Keb was the one to speak up. "A male goddess? Not female? What is that?"

The girl Thecia spoke next. "I've heard of such a concept. A god. Though no such thing has ever existed. Just powerful creatures calling themselves it to copy goddesses."

Now this was interesting. No gods only goddesses? I wonder if this was a recent revisionists history thing or if it was actually true. It certainly would explain some things I suppose. Who these powerful creatures are was also intriguing.

I walked back a bit and stood up on one of the pews close to them, sitting down on its back so I was at the same height as they all were. With my new position I put my hands on my lap and looked them over.

"My father created everything you see. He's all powerful, all knowing, and full of love." My eyes began glowing. "The king of possessive and jealous love that would see the subject of its affection showering in blessings and all those who would do harm terrible destruction."

Their eyes went wide in fear which caused me to calm down. My eyes stopped glowing and I tilted my head a bit.

"Not to worry! He's not the kind to send fire from the sky. At least not anymore. Just because he created everything doesn't mean he wont allow free will either. His name is Elohim, at least that's what I remember his name being."

I put my hand under my chin and became lost in thought. Maybe that's why he sent me here? To bring some kind of mission to completion in this world? These other goddesses would surely be his children as well. Maybe they were all punished somehow. I needed more information.

I returned my gaze to the humans and put my hands under my chin, propping myself up on my knees. My eyes were glowing again, perhaps from the intense curiosity I felt. It did make me a bit more intimidating and I eventually got control of it again and shut it off.

"I require more information. I'm a stranger to this world you see. While I'm not here to radically alter your lives I do have some kind of mission from my father of which I'm currently not sure of. As such I don't actually know much about the history of goddesses. You'll forgive a goddess for her ignorance and enlightenment me wont you?"

This goddess in front of them was showing surprising vulnerability which caught them off guard once again. Why would such a superior being lower itself to ask questions? To show its ignorance? Was this goddess weak? No. There was a certain power to admitting one's shortcomings that much they knew. This goddess was humbling herself to them not out of weakness but out of strength. She was so confident in herself that she felt comfortable asking humans to give her information she lacked. A budding respect for yours truly began to blossom inside their hearts and minds.

Arlon cleared his throat. "Ahem. I believe Timothy and I can handle this. The rest of you are dismissed. There is clearly no danger here so you're free to go about your tasks."

The others moaned and protested, clearly wanting to stay and learn more about this goddess that had appeared in their lives. However the word of their superior won over and they left the worship hall. Whatever they did around here they went off to continue doing.

Maisy however did need the extra permission from Timothy.

"Are you sure its ok?" she asked concerned.

Timothy nodded and smiled at her. "Don't worry I've got this!"

With this confirmation she too left the hall giving one last glace over her shoulders. Then with a final nod she disappeared off somewhere else in the temple.

They did in fact leave as their life signals showed on the map I had. They didn't go far of course but they were out of earshot. Typical curious creatures. Not that I minded that much.

Now that Timothy and Arlon were alone with me they each took a seat on the pews in front of me. They seemed nervous to be giving a history lesson to a member of the subject group, but as per my request they were going to give it their best shot.

Arlon let out a nervous sigh. "So where should we begin? At the beginning I suppose. Timothy?"

With the indication to start out Timothy put his hands together on his lap and looked up at me sitting above him. He avoided eye contact and chuckled nervously.

"Go on" I said softly. "Pretend I'm just another person."

This encouragement helped him calm his nerves somewhat. He started just talking and quickly found a grove, the passion he had for the subject shining through as his confidence began to build.

"Well you see... It all started long ago. Supposedly goddesses have existed since the world itself came into being. Or at least as long as mana has. Long ago humans and all sorts of creatures existed living on the planet, both on its surface and the inner world."

He stopped for a moment and looked at me. "Y-You know about the inner world right?"

I blinked. "Tell me where its located."

"Well its underneath our feet" he replied. "At least according to legend."

With a sigh I waved my hand dismissively. "A hallow earth. Yes I'm familiar with the concept. Continue the story."

Timothy nodded and adjusted himself in his seat. His nerves were getting to him.

Seeing this Arlon gave him a pat on the back and smiled warmly. "I suppose I can take it from here son."

My eyes were glowing again and they snapped from Timothy onto Arlon as my focus reasserted itself. At this point I was entirely enamored on the consuming of this knowledge. They both could tell they had a captive audience and perhaps this set the two humans at front of me at ease.

Arlon took a deep breath before starting.

"In the ancient times the world was embroiled by chaotic forces. Mana ran wild and the races of the world were subject to its chaotic nature. It was then that the goddesses appeared, each wielding pure mana to shape the natural world and give it order. Thus life flourished, humans most of all as they were favored by the goddesses for their willingness to worship."

He paused to collect himself.

"However this worship led many goddesses to abuse their power, to become evil and rule with tyrannical oppression. Thus did humans begin to rebel against them, in no small part to the creation of magic. You see just because goddesses could manipulate mana it didn't mean other races couldn't too. Of course not in its pure form like the goddesses, no mortal magic was tied to the elements. Thus the first mages were born and they fought back against the goddesses."

He stopped and looked at Timothy again, allowing the young man to continue.

"Well um" Timothy started nervously. "We don't know exactly what allowed humans to get the upper hand over the goddesses, but we did. Thus many of them were either killed or imprisoned, in no small part thanks to their infighting over worshipers. That we do know was a major factor to their downfall. But because of the disappearance of goddesses mages now had to keep the chaotic forces and monsters of the world under control. That's why mages are so important and honored."

My eyes stopped glowing as he finished his explanation. Regardless of how much of this history was accurate or not was impossible to know for sure. The march of time muddies all truth after all. However it did seem believable and it all made a certain amount of sense. Goddesses being the enforcers of order being corrupted by their power, a classic tale that mirrored what happened in my previous world with its gods.

There were of course confusing aspects, like why the goddesses vanished when they were so powerful. These other powerful monsters were interesting too, maybe dragons or demons or some such. It was also clear that I was the first goddess to show up in a very long time. Surely there would be more after me. I'd need to be prepared for that.

I stood up and stepped down off the pew.

"Well thanks for the info. I'd like to take a tour of the museum now if you don't mind."

Arlon stood up and bowed "Of course not Goddess Jenna!"

"I can show you around goddess!" Timothy said jumping up.

As I turned around I nodded to him and tucked my hands inside my vest.

"I'd like that."

I then paused for a moment. If I was going to take over this temple I'd need to solidify priests of my own. For whatever reason I was liking Timothy a lot so him being high priest felt right. This Arlon would need to be pretty high up as well as he was older and wiser.

"I've decided that Timothy will be my high priest. Everyone else can be in the priesthood under him. Arlon you will be the chief advisor to them and will have a position just below Timothy's. Any questions?"

Timothy looked shocked. "Me goddess? I can't possibly-"

"I've decided" I retorted.

This made Arlon step beside Timothy and put his hand on the young man's shoulder.

"I believe you can do it son. If a goddess has faith in you why shouldn't I? I'm not upset at all by this development."

He then looked over to me and nodded.

"I thank you Goddess Jenna for allowing me to stay with these young adults here at the temple. I've really grown attached to this place and would hate to leave it forever. I worried because of my age you would cast me out or dispose of me."

A quick laugh escaped me, the sound chiming across the room like the ringing of bells. My hands were taken out of my vest and put on my hips, my body still facing away from them. I did look over my shoulder for a moment at them.

"Like I'd do something as mean as that! What kind of goddess do you take me for?"

I then beckoned with a flick of my head. My eyes were sparkling with excitement and a wild grin was across my face.

"Come on my little Timothy. Lets go learn about goddesses!"