Yin looked strangely at the woman. She looked real, but unless this ship could keep people hostage, Yin assumed it was the face of the ship. The woman looked Yin in the eyes. “So, you want to know why you are here, and you thought I would know?”
"Well, you are the one that brought me here, so do you know?"
The woman stepped closer to Yin, measuring her. “I do.”
Yin was beginning to get frustrated, but there had to be a point to all of this. “So will you tell me, or do I have to figure it out on my own?”
"I am sorry, sweetie. You have to figure this one out on your own, but you do get credit for thinking to ask me. I can’t tell you everything you need to know, but I can tell you my part in it. Centuries before you were born this water fall was much different. The waters weren’t as clear or as strong. But one day there was said to be a star that fell from the sky. Many villagers in the area were scared and ran away from the glowing light, but two people ran toward the light, each with their own motives in mind. One was said to be a woman who wandered in the night and turned the soil of the Earth for the farmers. She provided much for her village, but her soul was cold. She ran towards the light seeking to be whole and warm for she felt that there was more to this life that she led. The other was a man who worked as a miller for the village. He prospered from the fires and rose early with the sun every day to provide works for his friends and customers. But he was restless, and he ran towards the light hoping to find meaning in his work and his days, for as much as he provided for his village, he always craved more. As the star touched down to the Earth it collided with the basin at the bottom of the falls. As the two were running towards the light, it appeared that it had begun to rain over them, but the truth was that the star had caused the water of the fall to splash. As they both arrived to the star, they were soaked with warm water and the woman cowered in the light of the star because she was not used to such power, but the man ran forward and saw the woman as he approached the edge. He went to her, seeing that she was in pain and held her. He covered her eyes and carried her into the basin where the star had begun to dissolve. The sky shimmered around them with the dying of the star and the water that they were soaked in and were walking into became magical. And that is where we have brought you." Yin stared in astonishment processing the story slowly.
"Okay…but I still don’t understand what that has to do with me." Yin rubbed her eyes, tired and thoughtful.
"Well that is exactly as much as I can tell you, and that is what you have to figure out for yourself. Good luck on your journey" The woman gave a fleeting smile before blinking away and drawing back into the ship console. The man approached Yin and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Why don’t you get some sleep, and we can resume your questions tomorrow?"
"Alright, but can we camp out by the bottom of the fall so I can be outside?" The man smiled at Yin’s request and relocated the ship. Yin looked out the door and saw the moon shining white on the water of the fall. The man pulled out a tent and Yin slept outside the door of the ship.
When the geese arrived that night, Yin was dreaming of her mother. Mother had sat Yin down in front of the mirror and began to brush and braid her hair. Yin missed her mother and the way her fingers combed and weaved through her hair. She could remember the steadied look on mother’s face and the occasional flash of a smile in the mirror when she looked up. Yin loved those moments to be able to memorize everything about her mother’s face, but also because that was the best time to talk to her about anything and everything. Mother would know what to do next and how to figure out what is going on.
In the dream, Mother was about to tell Yin the secret to making important decisions, but when she opened her mouth a loud and piercing honk came out instead. Yin awoke slowly trying to separate reality from the foggy dream world when she noticed a goose picking at her hair. She screamed and jumped back but the goose flapped its wings and honked more. Yin got up and ran into the ship to find the man. “Help, a bird is attacking me!”
The man came strolling out of one of the hallways laughing, “Where? Show me.” Yin grabbed his hand and led him out to the goose that had been biting at her hair, but when they went out the door there was a whole flock of geese. Some were drinking water, some were swimming, some fighting, and the rest staring at Yin and the man yelling. The man went out into the crowd. “Alright Alright! One at a time please! Can one of you come ahead and tell me what’s going on?” The geese quieted and spread about until one beautiful bird with a blue crest on his chest stepped forward to honk. Yin stayed by the door of the ship ready to run of things got messy. “Now how can I help you?”
"honk"
"Oh yes, this girl is named Yin, and she is perfectly fine."
"honk"
"Well I would pleased to translate for you, but she seems quite scared so I am not sure how much you will get from her. You’ll just have to speak with me if you don’t mind."
"honk! honk! honk!"
"Well I understand your concern, but I am not a man of Earth, and I have no reason to hurt you or the girl. If Yin wanted to go home she would have asked. Now will you tell me the message you wish to deliver?"
"honk honk"
"Okay, you can tell Yang that he has no reason to worry. Yin is safe and here of her own will" The man eyed the goose for a response, but the goose eyes Yin until she nodded to confirm what the man had said. Then the goose turned to the flock and they all flew away in a fit of feathers and piercing squawks. Yin turned to the man astonished and expecting an explanation.
"What was that?!"
"Well those were a flock of geese apparently sent by your brother Yang and a giant cat. They wanted to find out if you were okay, so I told them. You can go back to sleep now." The man finished with a smile and passed by Yin to disappear back into the hallways. Yin was still confused, but her exhaustion overpowered her and she fell back asleep for the night, knowing that she might as well rest as much as she could because when she awoke in the morning, there would be so many things to question and figure out and no place to start.















