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It may be where items pushed along by the object end up.

I’ve checked intermediate answers following the standard path from 13ac/2dn and the reverse path from 13ac/6dn. On the standard path, we have already noted 24ac (an irregular past tense given in Chambers), and 10dn and 4ac (standard plural forms of real words). However, I can see three real words in the intermediate forms in the reverse path. These are 12ac ( given as an alternative spelling for a more common word beginning with “c”), 16ac (the standard plural of a word meaning a type of bracken), and 14dn (the standard plural of an older form of “pixel”)

So, unless there is an alternative solution that we are currently missing, it looks like the preamble does not strictly work.

d2e,
I cannot sea anything in Chambers to support the notion that the first four letters denote an ocean-going vessel. If 'ocean going' is denoted by the remainder of the entry (which I concede would be legitimate) why does changing the penultimate letter make the entry a more fitting answer to its definition. It actually makes it less fitting. Perhaps I'm being dense but I do not follow your reasoning.

Yes, I also noted that plural of that older word for pixel and the bracken when I worked backwards.

it is just a vessel. The last 7 letters gives a person's name. What does he own? grid fill or final grid? The paradox is that the first vessel contains the rotten elements that have to be replaced to make a new vessel (ocean going). Are they the same vessels? That is the paradox of change.

d2e, that strikes me as pure sophistry. You have not convinced me that the first change is to the penultimate letter of 13a and that it makes a fitting answer to fit the definition of the puzzle title. I appreciate that you made the suggestion in a spirit of helpfulness to address the inconsistency of non-words/real words, but as wintonian has pointed out, reversing the sequence of changes does not resolve the problem because of the brackens and old pixels in 14d and 16ac. Given that both approaches result in some changes that leave real words in the next entry to be changed I cannot see the attraction of a reverse sequence that involves a very contrived explanation of 13ac after its initial change.

Oh dear ! And I'd invested so much in d2e to exonerate the setter, who in some respects has my sympathy. But, it's true, I didn't make the full tiring trip in reverse that I'd made forwards yesterday. And my hat's off to you people who exhaustively check on these things. So where do we go from here ? For the people who might look here in order to understand the puzzle, there is a gap...

After trying to do the sequencing myself, I have given up.
I know where 13a ends up. This paradox was the subject of another puzzle in the past. I forget which puzzle.
After a lot of search, I found one speculation that it may have been named Silver Seed.

I saw two suggested strings.
Can someone give me the string they think works?

Thanks.

i "think" ...13a 2d 22a 11d 8a 21d 19a 5d 17a 18d 25a 23d 12a 1d 1a 3d 16a 14d 24a 10d 9a 15d 7a 20d 4a 6d 13a

xwordfan - typo in your sequence... there isn't a 1d. Should read 13d. Apart from that it's good to go!

... provided you accept the non- words/real words conundrum.