The Paragon of Eden

Part 3

Jonce wasn't Eden, and so Deelia couldn't stay. She was just beginning to have a mind of her own again. It was wonderful, but it wasn't without its pains. It wasn't anything new, but that time she had spent drifting in her consciousness had been a strange sort of bliss for while it lasted. At least, that was how she saw it now that she had these new things on her mind.

Did she have to settle for perfection? What was wrong with the way Jonce managed a pretty good civilization without succumbing to pirates or war? It was perfect in someone's eyes, at least. Perhaps it was simply the fact that this place made such an explicit effort to be perfect that its shortcomings shone much brighter. Yes, that is a good way to justify Hau, isn't it?

But Deelia knew that was not what Hau was really thinking. No, he did want perfection in all of its mysterious glory. He would settle for nothing less. His strange Warback was even named the "Paragon," and it was perfect in many of its own ways. The only thing it wasn't was a paradise that fit every need a society could ever cherish. And, with the power that Hau's actions suggested, perhaps he was justified in searching for something impossible. The Paragon should have been impossible. Deelia's survival should have been impossible. Hau was an impossible man, shrouded in the realm of impossibility. Everything was possible to him.

And yet he seemed to be taking his time finding this place they could call home. The world must have been big if such a person hadn't yet found it.

"The world is a small place," Hau suddenly said with a grimace.

Deelia was lost in thought, but she responded as naturally as she could. "You already knew about Jonce?" Of course he had. He had shown her the clothing store and had known just about every way to handle going about that place. But Deelia was feeling lost at the moment. Anything is possible now.

"Oh, I thought it was obvious. I did know about it. I know a lot of places, you see. I even know one place that I need you to promise to me you will never tell another soul about it. Will you?"

"Yes..."

"Ok, good, because it would be one of the greatest sins to do so, and also because we are headed there right now."

But they had been in space, in the Paragon, many stretches of space away from Jonce for quite some time now. There was nothing but void all around. Deelia didn't seem to be able to feel fear of that, it seemed. Her relationship with this strange vessel proved to be unyielding. This wasn't just a tool, it was a constant, something as powerful as nature. Wasn't it?

It could open pathways toward other reaches of space...

It was doing that right now. Slowly, the Paragon inched towards that great eye in space until it passed through and ended up somewhere completely different. This new place, however, didn't have a great city or some planet on the other side. It barely even looked different. It could have been the same location for all Deelia understood, and the stars could have just shifted from a new angle.

But Hau seemed sure. He wasn't lost. Though Deelia was more the individual she could have been now more than ever, she still believed that Hau could do anything he wanted with perfect planning and execution. He had done so before, and he hadn't failed yet. Except for being kicked in the balls. And being captured by pirates.

The space around them changed. Something strange was going on, and Deelia's understanding of the world seemed to be uprooted by what she saw. The black abyss around them slowly faded into a very light orange, and clouds whisked themselves into existence all around, spaced evenly like some master-crafted painting. The stars wavered in behind this visage, springing into and disappearing out of sight. Eventually, reality stilled, and the realm of this cloudy, sunset sky became settled as their surroundings.