Heavenly Experience

What... am I doing here...?

I wake up with a fuzzy mind. My forehead hurts. I touch it; it was bleeding, but now the blood is dry. I try to get up, but I stumble and fall again. My nose starts to bleed.

Why do I feel so tired...? I can't breathe properly...

A talisman lies before me.

This is familiar...

I look up and see a statue. I recognize it. It's the girl from before, but with a different pose.

Has she... always been like this...?

I pick up the talisman; it's warm. I get up.

I was told to keep the talisman on her forehead...

I place it where it belongs. Her eye turns blue and she looks at me. Her hair turns blue and orange, while her clothes and stripes turn black. She begins to move slowly. The bandages covering her body fall away, revealing her face.

It takes me a moment to process what's happening, until I remember I had a gun. I run to grab it and point it at her.

Valerius: "Stop right there or I'll shoot!"

The interviewer said the relics were indestructible... the guards shot at her at some point, but the bullets ricocheted. Still, I have no choice!

I feel short of breath, so I try harder, unconsciously dropping the gun. My vision goes blurry and dark.

I can't breathe... the Geiger counter isn't beeping anymore, so it's probably not radiation...

I fall to my knees.

— I'm... sorry...

Huh...? I can't even speak properly...

She kneels in front of me, staring into my soul.

— You... looked like an enemy...

Valerius: "What...?"

She brings her beautiful eyes closer to mine. I feel something strange coursing through my veins. It's like an ethereal energy building up, helping me breathe. She continues to stare at me. I slowly stand up. She follows me with a mysterious gaze.

Valerius: "Am I dreaming...?"

— This is not... a dream...

Valerius: "That's what a dream character would say..."

— This... is real...

The church around me blurs slightly, and she disappears. Suddenly, I feel something touching my earlobe. I look back; it's her nibbling innocently. I jump away, surprised.

Valerius: "W-What are you doing?!"

— Ears... are shaped like a fetus...

Valerius: "What does that even mean?!"

— Tabili...

Valerius: "What...?"

— My name... is Tabili...

I soften my attitude, trying not to scare her.

Valerius: "Tabili? That's a good name. Mine's Valerius."

Tabili: "Valerius... are you valiant?"

Valerius: "Not exactly, but this situation certainly surprised me. If I'd known this was coming, I would have been a little more cautious..."

Tabili: "You are alive... we were meant to know each other..."

Valerius: "Huh? First of all, what are you? You were a statue minutes ago... you're not human, are you?"

Tabili: "I don't... remember..."

She stares at me with a blank expression, like a doll, or rather, like a statue.

Tabili: "Thank you... for awakening me..."

Valerius: "This is certainly a dream..."

Tabili: "It's not... a dream..."

I take a radio from my bag to contact my superiors. It doesn't work.

Tabili: "What... are you doing...?"

Valerius: "Are you the culprit? The one who killed the guards?"

Tabili: "Guards...?"

She tilts her head innocently.

Valerius: "I'm not the first one here. Have you seen anyone else?"

Tabili: "Humans... placing artifact..."

Valerius: "Yes, the talisman on your forehead!"

She looks up, trying to see her own forehead. She fiddles with it and removes it. Her body slowly transforms into a statue again.

Valerius: "W-What?!"

I put it back on and she goes back to normal.

Tabili: "Oh..."

I stare at her in shock.

Tabili: "Talisman..."

Valerius: "Yes, do you remember anyone trying to put it on your forehead? Besides me, of course."

Tabili: "Humans... tried to awaken me..."

Valerius: "And you killed them?"

Tabili: "Cosmic... radiation..."

Valerius: "Huh? This is getting a little crazy... By the way, thanks for helping me breathe."

Tabili: "Oh..."

She stares into space with her mouth slightly open, as if she isn't even paying attention.

She's so cute... but she's still a murderer!

Valerius: "Why did you kill them?"

Tabili: "Instability..."

Valerius: "Was it involuntary?"

Tabili: "Angel..."

Valerius: "What?"

Wait, I was unconscious for a while! I need to check the cameras!

I run to the monitor. Thanks to the generator, it's still running. Before I can check the history, something catches my eye.

Why are all the outside cameras showing the city? They must be broken... was it the radiation?

The Geiger counter shows low radiation. Tabili nibbles on my earlobe.

Wait, what?

I turn around, and she doesn't let go. Surprisingly, it doesn't hurt.

Valerius: "W-What are you doing?"

Tabili: "Ear..."

I give up trying to understand her obsession with my ear. She's very light, so I grab my gun and head for the back door.

I open the door, point the gun, and something truly strange surprises me. It's the sky. The wind blows in my face. I look down and feel dizzy. The city is kilometers away.

Valerius: "What...?"

Tabili: "Sky..."

I take a step back and place Tabili on the ground. I fire the gun into the sky. The sound dissipates quickly, as it's an open area. However, it's still loud enough to deafen me for a few seconds.

It's not a simulation room... and the gun works, which means it's unlikely to be a dream...

Tabili: "Oh..."

She stares at me with her mouth slightly open. I close the door.

Valerius: "You're right, this is real."

She nods.

Valerius: "Do you know why we're in the sky? Are we dead?"

She points up with her finger.

Tabili: "Church... floating..."

I check the history record while she nibbles on my earlobe again. The church started flying after I passed out.

I guess that's why the radio doesn't work here...

I sit on the floor, thoughtful.

Valerius: "I don't think there's anything else to do. I'll wait until I wake up or someone rescues me. There's no point in wondering what might have caused this."

Tabili: "Instability..."

Valerius: "What do you mean by that?"

Tabili: "The talisman... guides my power..."

The church distorts and suddenly disappears. Instead of falling, we float in the sky. I look down; a shiver runs down my spine.

Valerius: "W-Wait, take us back to the church, quickly!"

Tabili: "Oh... I'm sorry..."

Everything around us turns orange, the ground black beneath our feet. We face the sunset. I get up to look around. There's nothing but the island we're on. It's an endless sky; the sun doesn't move. We stare at it, but it doesn't hurt our eyes.

Tabili: "Sun..."

Valerius: "Indeed..."

We look at each other. Most of our faces are black, covered in shadows; the side facing the sun is orange. I realize I'm no longer wearing the hazmat suit. It's just my normal clothes.

Tabili: "Do you... like it...?"

Valerius: "It's peaceful. And really weird..."

Everything blurs again, and now we're inside a skyscraper.