The Wakeful Wanderer's Guide to Disillusionment

Scion

A few days after their encounter with The Other, Maxtor told Fish and Reyleena he needed to get back to his team in The Middle.

["I've been working from here, but they're used to seeing my physical gorgeousness. Things move fast there. I need to get back before I become irrelevant,"] he informed them.

Not wanting to continue to exploit the hospitality of the Silent Sisters of Jay, Reyleena asked Maxtor if she could join him.

["I would be honored if you would be my guest, oh Maenad,"] he replied.

Fish said he found the abbey too quiet and that he'd like to return with them as well. He had been very quiet since their conversation in the cabin. Whatever he was contemplating, he kept to himself. Maxtor sent his request for transport as they shared another simple meal of rice and beans in silence in the dining hall with the sisters.

The empty zeppelin arrived that evening, landing on the open hillside by the pond. Eight long thin silver legs extended from it and dug into the dirt. Reyleena made preparations for her departure before one final night's sleep in the blissful quiet of the cool mountainside. The gifts left for The Weeping Mother were to be distributed to locals in need by the abbey. The abbess said she would be happy to field requests and offers. She was relieved to see them go and said as much, in the spirit of simple openness. Reyleena was not offended. She knew she was going to miss the simplicity and solitude she had enjoyed during her stay, but it was time to leave.

In the morning, they took tea and some toast, and a dozen of the sisters and the abbess left their morning meditations to watch them leave. The three passengers embarked and the blue zeppelin rose gracefully into the morning air.

The cabin of the zeppelin was small and open to the wind. Reyleena had never been aboard an airship before. As they rose, she felt a thrill in the pit of her stomach and leaned out of the cabin to watch the landscape shrink below them. She knew she was returning to the turmoil of Interconnected life and had no idea what her place would be or how she would be received. She had ignored her Merit during her stay. Likely, she was in the gutter by now. At least she had been offered a place to sleep and good food to eat for the time being. It was best to take things moment by moment. She followed the paths of the sisters as they reentered the abbey to continue their practices, longing for the silence they cherished.

Shortly after takeoff, The Other appeared to Reyleena on the seat next to her, no longer as a blue ghost but as a young man. He was thin, with a long face and straight jet-black hair. His dark eyes regarded her. She ignored him.

["Do you still have my copy?"] he asked after several minutes of looking at her watching the scenery pass below.

["Can't you check?"] replied Reyleena, annoyed.

["I dare not,"] The Other sent.

["Why not?"] Reyleena was puzzled. She was used to The Other's omniscience.

["I don't want to say until I'm sure. Is it there?"]

["I haven't touched it. I have no way to access it. That giant glob is just sitting there in my head."]

["Good,"] The Other said. Reyleena found his new face and body appealing.

["I like this new look,"] she told him.

The Other continued to watch her face for a while before responding, ["Thank you."] It vanished.

The three passengers enjoyed a quiet trip over the spotted green landscape of the Green Mountain Forest before gliding over the Berkshires and landing just outside of Maxtor's home town. The journey took six hours and was unforgettable.