Unlike the other days, the Head Teller walked with Mussodji on her way home. After the fright on her first afternoon in the cave, the couple didn't worry anymore when she returned after sunset, knowing the Head Teller was with her.
When they arrived, the young woman greeted her parents and beelined for the kitchen to bring some water and roasted nuts. She then served her parents and the elderly figure who had taken seats under the family court's tree.
The Head Teller invited her to sit before thanking the family for their hospitality. Then, he announced to them they were blessed by the Spirit of Fâro who chose to return through their home.
The couple was at a loss for words as their surprise was mixed with incredulity. Then, her father thanked the elderly while her mother remained silent. Both their faces were grave despite what should rejoice them.
The Head Teller added that the ceremony was set for the following day and saluted the family before leaving. Once alone with their daughter, the parents took some seconds to digest the news.
Her father spoke first and stated that the divine spirit knew better and the family should abide by their wishes. If they wanted their daughter, then no mortal should oppose. The mother visibly thought otherwise but refrained from verbally expressing her displeasure.
The family didn't attend the end-of-day gathering, and later in the evening, Mussodji's mother asked to hold her for the night. It was their last night together, and the proximity was much needed. In the morning, she asked to bathe and groom her for the last time, like she would have done on Mussodji's wedding day.
Before going out for their daily activities, the parents tightly held their daughter and voiced how happy they were for her, despite their sadness. The months she spent with them couldn't compensate for the years apart and their broken home, but they were happy to have been granted those moments together.
She reassured them they weren't losing her for good, to which her father replied they would pray in the cave's temple every single day. Mussodji felt slightly guilty for letting them believe she was settling in the temple. She reasoned that wearing the deity's attire during the ceremony would let her sweat infuse the garment. Yet, she started to doubt leaving forever.
After the ceremony, it wouldn't only be her parents, but the whole community, expecting she would listen to their prayers in the temple. Maybe she could travel back and forth the plateau, to be at least present for her community. After all, they had been so welcoming of her. She couldn't completely let them down.
Even if her grandmother was open to the outside world, the community wasn't and changing their habits would take generations. She might not commit to her deity persona, but she could offer the minimum. The Head Teller requested a divine rain to bless the land, but maybe she could come up and do it again once a month or so.
The family spent the day in silence despite the few curious who approached them with questions. People saw the Head Teller walk into their home the previous day. They wanted to know what made the parents so sour they didn't attend the previous night's representation.
The community assumed Mussodji hadn't been accepted as a teller. It was a logical suspicion since her parents had been overjoyed when she started training. Some of her peers asked her if she was doing well during the communal activities, but she didn't answer.
The young woman wasn't sure of the answer. On one hand, she felt bad for letting the Head Teller down. On the other hand, she knew she didn't want to retreat inside the cave. She didn't want to be lonely again.
Even if the Head Teller assured her the Spirit of Koni would answer her calls and keep her company, she still wanted real warmth and weight on her. Dreaming wasn't enough, especially since her companion might be alive and, perhaps, waiting for her on the lower lands.
As the day declined, the ceremony approached. When she arrived in the tellers' compound after communal activities, the other tellers gathered apprentices to prepare for the ceremony. The Head Teller walked with her towards the cave where she meditated before changing into the deity's attire.
The seemingly heavy costume turned out light as feathers. She couldn't see through her costume and thought for a few seconds before remembering how the water talked to her when she played her harp. She slowly reached for the instrument left on the working table and paused before gaining some inspiration.
She stroked the longest chord a few times until the air grew humid. Fine raindrops sprayed from the sky as if a wet fog were hanging in the air, too light to fall on the ground. As fog covered the forest and the compound, she could sense buildings parting the breeze and people moving around.
She also felt calmer and strangely ready for the ceremony. With her instrument in hand, she walked out of her room. The Head Teller bowed before her and they walked towards the community. The ceremony had already started and tom-toms were echoing like never before.
Lit torches paved the way from the tellers' compound towards the community's centre. Surrounded by the plateau's inhabitants, all the tellers worked in unison to chant glory to the Spirit of Fâro. Their music made Mussodji's heart beat in unison with their rhythm.
The ceremony passed in a blur, from the Heat Teller recounting the creation's tale to her procession from the community towards the communal path towards the cave. Once alone in her room again, she removed the deity's attire and walked into the inner pond.
The fever she felt from her community during the ceremony had permeated her skin and made her buzz. Somehow, she felt the urgency to act on it to channel their prayers out of her system. Inside the cold water, she gained the inspiration to play a melody she never heard before. It was lulling and made a soothing rain fall on the plateau.
It wasn't yet dawn when Mussodji regained her consciousness. She was floating inside the pond with her harp in her hands. Her body was featherlight and she wondered how long she had been asleep. She didn't even remember falling asleep last night.
Slowly, the young woman exited the water and used the towel inside her room's basket. She silently exited the cave and walked towards the lake. Fog still hung in the air and the ground was wet under her feet. The Earth's smell was more noticeable and enticing than she could remember.
Standing on the lake's shore, she looked back before diving. It wasn't a farewell. It was a goodbye to a life she grew fond of but couldn't live anymore. And on a brighter note, it was a restart for her free life on the lowlands' beach.
She swam downwards and her surroundings gradually darkened until she passed the tunnel and arrived at the beach. She was at the place where she saw Sebastian for the last time and her expectations heightened. Looking around, the lifeboat was pulled on the sand and covered in loose vines. The day's light was still cold and grey at this early hour.
She called his name and her companion emerged from the vessel and approached her. She was relieved to see him and giddy when he reached her level. As they expressed their shared happiness, his arms were warm around her and his voice made her insides vibrate nicely.
She confessed how she often saw him in her dreams but still missed him. He happily smiled and asked her if she wanted something better than a dream. She voiced her approval and he kissed her on the lips. A simple kiss to begin, followed by a feverish one with his hands holding onto her and his want firm against her.
When they parted, he asked if she wanted more and she eagerly nodded despite being out of breath. Satisfied with her reaction, he led her inside the lifeboat and lowered her on the thatched makeshift bed they hadn't shared in almost a year. There, his clothes fell on the ground and her fabric loosened open.
He slowly pushed her open and deep. It was much better than in her dreams and she vaguely wondered if he also experienced these sweet hallucinations. She lost track of her thoughts as soon as he pulled back to push into her again. The slow pace steadily increased and she held onto his shoulder blades while they breathed their satisfaction out loud. Finally, she seized and blacked out for a second.
They slowly came down from their heights and regained their breath. His weight on her felt so nice that her remorse for leaving the plateau was completely erased. He then moved to remove the protection before spooning her and covering them. Satisfied, Mussodji swiftly fell asleep.
She woke up again after noon and lazily stretched on the empty bed. Her body was fully rested but she was hungry. She then remembered not having dinner last night and skipping breakfast earlier. After dressing in her fabric, she looked around the lifeboat and noticed two pots by her side.
One was open and contained a few berries and nuts. The other was sealed and water moved inside when she lifted it. Mussodji assumed Sebastian left it for her and enjoyed the treats before exiting the lifeboat. Outside, her companion carried a water pot into a makeshift shower on the beach.
He had already showered and offered her to use the pot. Afterwards, she sat beside him on the shore. They were facing the beach and she noticed the perfectly arching rainbow below the covered sky.
Her companion had been the first to talk and asked what made her resign her position on the plateau. She countered that she didn't leave the plateau forever. Then, she confessed not wanting a lonely life in the temple. He followed by asking why she didn't recall the Spirit of Wind. Mussodji hesitated for a second before stating it wouldn't feel the same.
Sebastian looked pensive for a moment before focusing back on her. He asked if she remembered the expeditions lead by the Kakin Empire on the island. She nodded in approval and he told her how he had been part of an expedition three years ago.
At the time, he was a hunter with a keen interest in wealth. He heard about the new continent's supposed resources and the Kakin Empire's willingness to pay high prices for them. Along with other hunters, he ventured on what he thought was the new continent.
Human-looking creatures he never heard of were supposed to lead the expedition towards the heart of the new land where their aura-bending abilities should allow them to mine the resources. He remembered a feeling of impending doom taking over him and his peers when the heavy doors closed behind them inside the tunnel.
As they ventured further, they fell one after the other and he was the only survivor. His life was spared only because he decided to give up on the expedition and use illusion to escape the beasts that littered the underground cave.
He managed to exit when the guarded doors opened again to let in another expedition. Unwilling to show his cowardice, he remained hidden and caught the humanoid creatures giving sealed boxes to the Kakin officials.
After a short investigation, he realised the expeditions were in fact sacrifices in exchange for the new continent's ressources. The humanoid creatures sold them to the officials in exchange for hunters. No one was ever supposed to come back alive.
At first, he felt anger at the officials for sacrificing him. Then, he felt overwhelmed when he realised he couldn't return to his life and loved ones. And finally, he resigned and gave into his madness induced by loneliness in a wildlife he wasn't equipped for.
He might have died in a sorry state if it weren't for an elderly woman who found him on the beach. She helped him become human again and gave him the knowledge needed to live, and not only survive, in the forest.
Once his mind was back in order, she counted him her version of the world's creation and revealed how she mixed things this time. She then asked him to find her granddaughter and bring her back to the island, so that the Earth could be cleansed from the evil beasts and receive a new breath of life.
He had no way to verify if she was honest with him, or if it was another ploy. Yet, he esteemed her so highly that he would go on any quest she could ask him. That was how he received the Spirit of the Wind deity and hid in a vessel to return to Lake Mobius.
After his confession, Sebastian looked at Mussodji with expecting and, dare she say, hard eyes. She didn't know what he expected from her. To be honest, she had an idea but refused to accept it. From what he said, he brought her there to fulfil the deity's duties.
She suddenly felt chastised for acting on her emotions rather than giving into her divine persona. The butterflies that danced earlier in her stomach turned into sour lead and she felt like throwing up.
Compared to what he went through, she wouldn't have been this lonely in the temple. The tellers would clean her room and bring her meals along with fresh fabrics every day. She guessed she overestimated the expectations and gave into her fear of being alone again.
Then again, she had never been left on her own devices to fend for herself. She might even say she had been sheltered inside the Zoldyck estate, especially after hearing what happened to the previous incarnation. She also remembered when the third son asked to be her friend.
He was younger than her and, at first, she assumed he only acted as the rebellious pre-teen he used to be. But when he didn't waver despite the years and subsequent maturity, she gave him the cold shoulder and missed on what could have been a nice connexion.
Coming to terms with her misjudgments and impulses was a lot for Mussodji. She stood up and walked towards the ocean. Her companion tailed her and she turned around to ask him why he was following her and why he welcomed her back if he thought she should have stayed on the plateau.
Sebastian replied it was because she wanted it. Mussodji looked away and turned to walk along the beach. After a while, she noticed stray wooden planks drifting on the sea. The further she walked, the more there were bits of destroyed vessels.
She asked what happened and he answered the heavy rain from the previous night flooded the island. The smaller vessels at the docked city sank and were destroyed to rescue the inhabitants.
Mussodji couldn't believe the rain had been this heavy. She didn't remember the whole night but she was sure the rain had been light and soothing. Acknowledging her disbelief, Sebastian suggested making a detour by the dock to see for herself.
She agreed and he lead her into the sea where he focused on his aura. She felt something prodding under her skin and had a feeling of déjà vu. They melted into the water and moved through the water faster than she ever experienced.
In a dozen of minutes, they arrived near the docked city and reformed. She could see the sunken ships deep below the surface and numerous lifeboats pulled on the beach. People were distraught and scuba divers were retrieving what they could from the wrecked ships. At some point, they retrieved dead people and she turned away.
She felt guilty as her rain from the previous night made collaterals. They walked on the way back while she ruminated the Head Teller's words. She was supposed to drown the rest of the world to fulfil her duty and supposedly cleanse the Earth. But she couldn't.
Not after witnessing what floodings meant in terms of casualties. She couldn't sacrifice people simply because they were born in the wrong place. Her community didn't care for a world they never witnessed, but she did.
She hadn't noticed she was crying until she sniffed. She then murmured her unwillingness to accomplish the deluge and desire for another solution. Sebastian told her the understood and would help her.
She knew he wasn't fine with her decision and asked him why he agreed with her. He replied that there wasn't a thing the Spirit of Koni could deny to the Spirit of Fâro. His words left a bitter taste in her mouth and she thought about the Head Teller.
As far as she could remember, the authority figure had been pliant to all of her wishes. Just like Sebastian. And it was all because of their reverence for her deity persona. She suddenly felt ill knowing everything they did for her against their will, especially her companion. She might have to stop referring to him as such. He obviously didn't act on his own volition, but rather to please her.
The night was already falling and they were still far from the lifeboat. Still upset, she asked him if they could travel back like they did and he complied. When they arrived he sat inside the lifeboat and looked over exherted. She guessed the trick involved her divine energy but exhausted him.
Deciding she had enough for the day, Mussodji left her thoughts for when the sun would rise again. She could think about her course of action after sleeping for the night. Also, she expected to find some enlightenment during her slumber.