I returned to Apus Major and spoke with him at length about my visit to Yggdrasil. His eyes shone with a youthful zeal as he recalled his own experiences with Her, and it touched my heart to see him passionate about it even after all these years. It was then that I knew I would always have this feeling with me, no matter what happened - even if the Fyggs themselves bloomed tomorrow and whisked us away to the Almighty Himself, I'd always know this sense of fulfillment.

Renewed by my visit to The World Tree, I declined Apus Major's invitation to stay at the Observatory awhile to relax. I was too full of energy, I had to go back to the Protectorate and serve my purpose; I had to see Her again. I hesitated only briefly, still wanting to catch up with my brother, but I would see Gallus when I came back. And with me, I'd bring the biggest piece of Benevolessence yet.

As I made my way back to the portal I had arrived through earlier, I realized it wasn't just my own excitement I was feeling; the entire Observatory was humming. All around me I heard the same thing: 'The time of fruition was soon to come'. With the dreams of my people in mind, I dove into the portal and found myself soaring rapidly towards my new home of Angel Falls.

The view from above the falls was enchanting in its simplicity. All the town really consisted of was two halves split by the river from the waterfall, connected by a series of little bridges anchored to a spit of land between them. None the less, it held its own special charm.

Landing on the small island in the middle of town, I overheard two of the young village men speaking to each other. Both were still slim with youth but with enough muscle and jaw definition to act like they were grown. One was dark blonde with impressively tall hair, a small leather guard protected his heart while he wore a dagger close to his waist. The other was a squirrely looking thing in green, with fluffy yellow bangs nearly obscuring his eyes. Both had lightly tanned skin from a life playing outdoors, and enough scuffs on their boots and patches on their cloths to prove that hadn't changed. Excited to learn more about my flock, I listened in.

"It really is weird. . ." The tall-haired boy mused, hand on his chin and eyes boring into the ground.

"What's weird, Ivor?" The other boy chirped, "You mean that name thingy on the Guardian statue?"

'Ivor' dropped his hand to his hip and glared at his friend. "Of course I mean that name thingy, Hugo, you dolt! I'm sure it said 'Aqui-' something before. But now it's 'Altairis'. . ."

I was surprised. It was very rare to hear of any mortal notice our magic, and a quick change of names on a statue was an especially subtle sort of thing. Only someone particularly clever and observant of our ways would ever notice.

"Really? Well it's said 'Altairis' for as long as I can remember." Hugo replied.

"And how long is that, exactly? Do you remember reading it before?"

Hugo stopped, scratching nervously at his mess of hair. "Er. . . I. . . That's funny. . . I, I can't say that I do."

Ivor threw his hands up. "You see! Everyone around here's weird. It's only just changed, and everyone thinks it's been like that forever."

"Ah-ha! It must be the work of the village Guardian, then!" Hugo exclaimed.

Ivor scoffed, his face a portrait of smug self-satisfaction. "Don't be such a wally! There's no such thing as Guardians. They're just made-up rubbish."

I rolled my eyes. Perhaps 'Clever' was too generous an assessment. Still, he gained a keen eye through his skepticism, and that was not something to ignore.

"It's only Erinn who believes in all that nonsense." Ivor continued. "She's a complete airhead, if you ask me."

Hugo shot his friend a small smile, "I've asked you about Erinn plenty, and I recall you thinking something very different."

Ivor nearly exploded. Face red as a tomato and voice shrill as a bat, he denied ever thinking about the girl before in his life.

As they bickered, I became lost in my own thoughts, as what Ivor said made me wonder. Would I face the same issues the other Celestrians have been complaining about? Would I grow bitter at my flock if they stopped thanking me for every little thing? And how could I win the heart of those too foolish to believe?

Just then, Hugo said something that caught my attention. "So what do you think of those ghost rumors?"

Ivor scoffed. "If I'm not fool enough to believe in a stinkin' Guardian what makes you think I'd buy into a bunch of hooey about ghost hauntings?"

The two of them turned their conversation to fishing as they walked off towards the other side of the river, leaving me concerned.

If there really was a lost human spirit roaming the town at night troubling my flock, then I'd have to do something about it. The problem was, I had never got to practice putting souls to rest before, never even seen it done. So what was I to do?

I silently cursed Aquila's insufficient teachings and then scolded myself for being so unfair. He hadn't felt it right to let me go on my own so soon and perhaps this was part of the reason why. I felt ashamed realizing that I'd never considered that maybe Aquila was right in his opinions about me. So much for believing I had all the technical knowledge needed; my very first day alone on the job and I'd already hit a wall. With a sigh, I pushed it from my mind and set about the duties I could handle.

As I explored the town I found myself too distracted to be anxious. Each mortal I ran across was in need of something; from finding lost jewelry to general manual labor, I just didn't have time to worry about what I couldn't do or change. And with each crystal of Benevolessence harvested, I felt I had less and less to be concerned with anyway. It seemed Ivor was an oddity, and the people of the village were in fact quite pious. With each new gem, I felt I understood my flock better and better as every persons Benevolessence felt different from the last; some feelings so subtle they defied description, but holding them in my hands, I understood them on a fundamental level.

Setting the newest piece of glowing crystal gently into a makeshift pouch tied round my waist, I noticed a familiar figure floating over the town. Instantly annoyed, I flew upwards to meet him. "Aquila."

He turned and considered me for a moment before speaking. "You are taking your new role very seriously, I am glad to see, Altairis."

I folded my arms across my chest, mirroring his own stance. "Of course I am, they are my flock after all. Which begs the question of what it is your doing here exactly."

"What is it? You feel that your old master does not trust you to work alone?"

I raised an eyebrow. Did he really need to ask that question in light of everything else that's happened?

Aquila turned away from me and looked outward over the plains and mountains, towards the rest of the world far beyond Angel Falls. "It is my duty now to patrol the entire Protectorate. Though you guard it well, I must sometimes revisit my old territory." He turned back towards me, "And as I am here, Altairis. . . There is one last lesson I must teach you. As Guardians, it is our duty to tend to our mortal flock. But this means more than merely watching over the living. Sometimes we must help those who have passed away, but whose souls continue to roam the land."

I felt my face heat up as I realized what he was really doing here. What an idiot I was. Despite his undesired task of teaching me, he still did it to the best of his ability. Even now, after I had treated him so unappreciatively, he was still here, determined to make me prepared. He didn't want to put the flock he cared for in ill-equipped hands and he didn't want me to feel foolish either.

"You hear it, too, do you not? The voice of a wandering soul here in the village in need of your assistance. . ."

"Er. . . yes, master Aquila. I think I. . . oh!" I said, spotting an unfamiliar man standing on the far side of town looking over the water, moonlight shining through his incorporeal form.

Still unsure of exactly what my task consisted of, but unwilling to face my master in my embarrassment, I dove down to engage the man.

"Hmph! wot's wrong wiv people 'round 'ere nowadays? Whys everyone givin' me the cold shoulder?" The ghost man asked himself.

"Uh, hi." I said dimly.

The confused man turned and regarded me with relief. "Eh? Oh, someone who's prepared to gimme the time o' day at last! Listen 'ere. Can you tell me 'ow come everyone's ignorin' me?"

My heart sank. How do you tell someone they're dead?

I stumbled over my words. "Ah, well. . . Er, you see. . . Well what I am pretty sure is happening-"

The man's eyes grew wide as his sights rested on my halo, then lowered to my wings. ". . .'Ang on a minute. . . W-Wot's wiv that get-up, eh? Y-You ain't a. . . Oh, my days, you are! Yer a Celestrian, ain'tcha?"

"Well, yes. Yes I am."

"So I've. . . I'm already. . . I've breaved me last, is it? Go on, you can tell me. I can take it! That's wot's 'appened, innit?"

I sighed. "It appears that is exactly what has, uh, 'appened. I do not know precisely how it occurred but, I am sorry sir, you are dead."

The ghost man took a short moment to gather himself before speaking again. "Well, cheers for bein' straight wiv me, Miss, er. . .Celestrian. It's a good fing you told me. When I thought everyone was just ignorin' me, I was about ready to do meself in anyway!" The man laughed a surprisingly hardy laugh for a wandering spirit.

"Oh. Ahaha. . . ha?" I awkwardly replied.

"But now I know wot's wot, I can just get on wiv it and. . . Well you know. Rest in peace an' all that."

I cleared my throat nervously. "Ah, yes. I suppose you can. . . right?"

My fears receded as the man closed his eyes and gently flowed out into the ether, leaving behind a roaring flame of Benevolessence. I let out a long held breath of relief, my first talk with a mortal and it had been like. . . that. I wasn't sure what to think.

"You have done well, Altairis. Thanks to your intervention, a mortal soul has made its peace, and is now at rest." Aquila said as he landed next to me.

"Thank you, master Aquila. I did not realize all it took was lending them an ear. But look at this!" I showed him the heavy crystal that now lay in my hands, shining brightly in the night.

He smiled and it lit up his face, making him almost unrecognizably boyish. "The Benevolessence of a departed soul shines more brilliantly than any and brings with it a great sense of accomplishment."

I agreed enthusiastically, suddenly feeling better than I had in a long time. "Master Aquila? I must thank you."

He looked confused. "What for?"

I nervously shuffled my feet and did my best to not look away as I spoke. "I have been acting very foolish lately and yet you still showed up tonight knowing that I would need support. You came here even though you knew I would be angry at you for it, all because you knew it would be better for me and for the mortals I care for. You are a truly great teacher and I apologize for acting so ungrateful earlier today. I am. . . sorry."

The confusion drained from Aquila's face and he closed his eyes.

I waited a moment in uncertainty, praying he would say something and finally, just as I felt a renewed sense of embarrassment growing inside me, he began forming his words steadily.

"I am not very adept at speaking with those so much younger and more. . . expressive than I. I am even less able to convey the emotions I feel within myself outwardly in a proper manner." Opening his eyes, Aquila continued with more ease. "Because I have failed to express myself properly, I feel I have done you a disservice as my apprentice. Though it is true that I took you on at the behest of Apus Major, I have greatly enjoyed the challenges that came with teaching you and reveled in the mutual triumphs of your learning. I did not mean to offend you with my doubts for they were not directed at you. I believed you unready because I doubted myself." Aquila's face took on a pained expression.

"But why, master?"

Though clearly uncomfortable, he continued on anyway. "I had never taken an apprentice before and was unsure of my ability to properly teach you. I would never have been able to forgive myself if you had gotten hurt because I failed to properly train you. And I have failed you in that I withheld my feelings and let you believe yourself inadequate when that was not the truth. In spite of all this you still have triumphed - I did not lie when I said I was surprised to see you bloom so, Altairis. So you need not seek forgiveness for your outburst, instead, it is I that must say I am sorry."

The uncertainty inside me evaporated as a bevy of new emotions plagued me. I had needed to hear those words so badly, and was relieved to have them said now. I also wanted my master to regain the confidence he had always projected before. It was unnerving for his facade to slip and see that underneath he was as vulnerable as any of us. Above all, I wanted to let him know how grateful I really was. Unsure of how to say any of that, I kept silent and hugged him instead. I only hoped my feelings could seep from my skin and soak into his, for he was not the only one who had trouble expressing himself.

After everything between us was well again, we spent a few minutes talking about more lighthearted things, something that we had never been quite capable of before. Eventually we agreed that I should hurry back to the Observatory with the Benevolessence I had acquired, after all, some things come first and we'd have all the time in the world to talk once we joined the Almighty.

"Then I shall bid you farewell for now." master Aquila said. "I have much to do here in the Protector - Hm?"

Following master Aquila's gaze upward, we spotted an intensely bright golden light streaking through the sky in the shape of a train. I had only seen drawn pictures and heard excited descriptions, but I instantly knew what it was; The celestial carriage said to bring us to the Realm of the Almighty. "Isn't that. . . ?"

"The Starflight Express. . . Indeed, it has been unusually active of late. . ." Aquila's voice trailed off briefly as the train zoomed out of sight. "I have changed my mind. I shall accompany you to the Observatory after all, Altairis."

I cradled the largest piece of Benevolessence tightly against my chest, and with a mutual understanding between us, master Aquila and I made the journey home together once more.