Excession

He, Ren, Dajeil and Zreyn were its only passengers.

'Yes, you're being a hick; stop it at once,' Dajeil told Zreyn, who shrugged. Dajeil glanced round at the dunes, the golden sand and the bright blue sky. 'Anyway, it's a long journey,' she said. 'Maybe we'll get bored with all this and want it all changed back to the way it was.'

'Just let me know,' Amorphia said.

Dajeil took another look round. 'I'm glad I let you talk me into remaking the old place like this, Amorphia,' she said.

'Pleased you like it,' the avatar said, nodding.

'Have you decided where we're going yet?' Zreyn asked.

The avatar nodded. 'I think… Leo II,' it said.

'Not Andromeda?' Zreyn said.

Amorphia shook its head. 'I changed my mind.'

'Damn,' Zreyn said. 'I always wanted to go to Andromeda.'

'Too crowded,' Amorphia said.

Zreyn looked unconvinced.

'We could go there… afterwards?' the avatar suggested.

'Will we even live to see Leo II?' Dajeil asked, opening her eyes and gazing over at the creature.

The avatar looked apologetic. 'It will take rather a long time,' it admitted.

Dajeil closed her eyes again. 'You could always Store us,' she said. 'Think you could manage that?'

Zreyn laughed lightly.

'Oh, I could give it a try,' the avatar said.

Epilogue

call me highway call me conduit call me lightning rod scout catalyst observer call me what you will i was there when i was required through me passed the overarch bedeckants in their great sequential migration across the universes of [no translation] the marriage parties of the universe groupings of [no translation] and the emissaries of the lone bearing the laws of the new from the pulsing core the absolute centre of our nested home all this the rest and others i received as i was asked and transmitted as i was expected without fear favour or failure and only in the final routing of the channel i was part of did i discharge my duty beyond normal procedures when i moved from a position where my presence was causing conflict in the micro-environment concerned (see attached) considering it prudent to withdraw and reposition myself and my channel-tract where for some long time at least it was again unlikely i would be discovered the initial association with the original entity peace makes plenty and the (minor) information-loss ensuing was not as i would have wished but as it represented the first full such liaison in said micro-environment i assert hereby it fell within acceptable parameters i present the entity peace makes plenty and the other above-mentioned collected/embraced/captured/self-submitted entities as evidence of the environment's general demeanour within its advanced/chaotic spectrum-section and urge they be observed and studied free with the sole suggested proviso that any return to their home environment is potentially accompanied by post-association memory confiscation in the linked matter of the suitability of the relevant inhabitants of the micro-environment for (further and ordered) communication or association it is my opinion that the reaction to my presence indicates a fundamental unreadiness as yet for such a signal honour lastly in recognition of the foregoing i wish now to be known hereafter as the excession

thank you

end