Anneza was all set for her final approach to the Earth. She could already see the welcoming blue atmosphere, with its wondrous clouds... truly, Earth was the most beautiful planet in the universe. though she was surprised by the sudden change in starlight, as the sun turned... yellow again.
She felt a grip of fear. Its not as if she told anyone she drifted the cosmos! If she turned back human here, she wouldn't survive!
... but no. She didn't change back. Anneza 'breathed' (or close enough to it in the space void) A sigh of relief. The idea of dying, again, in the void of all places was possibly the most unpleasant death she could think of.
Suddenly, she 'heard' a strange sound from her antenna. It sounded like... crying? It made the space girl tense with concern. She turned back around, to follow the strange sound. It was difficult though, because wherever the sound was, it existed outside the gravity paths of the Earth, Sun, and Moon. She had to zig-zag a little, to build up some speed on her own locomotion. Doing this in space, was a great deal faster then the Earth, and she quickly built up a speed equivalent to a fast moving satellite.
About an hour into her journey, she could now see... something very strange.
... a little girl.
She was a space-girl, just like Anneza, only her hair was a curious pink, and a little longer. She was completely naked, but her skin seemed to be luminescent, bathed in some kind of light. Anneza recognised it as a 'distress' signal of her species, from the way the light vibrated her antenna and was like a beacon to her eyes, against the other points of light in space. The poor girl couldn't have been more then five years old! Anneza slowed down in her approach to her, trying to float slowly.
The little girl glanced at her and looked fearful, the distress signal pulsing a little. "P-please d-don't hurt me!" She said alarmed.
Anneza blinked. she understood her... she understood her completely! She was almost giddy with amazement. "I- I'm not going to hurt you," She said. "What are you doing here all alone?"
"I- I was trying to find the story. But This universe is so big I got lost! An' I don't know where my start is or my ending, an' I can't find the narration! I'm just so lost!" She cried. "Can you write me in? Please? I don't know if I'm supposed to be here!"
Anneza looked blankly. Maybe her translation was off... because that made no sense at all to her. Still the child was clearly lost, any maybe even delirious from being lost in the void of space. From this place, it was not even possible to know which planet was the Earth, unless you knew what you were trying to hear for.
In concern, Anneza reached out and touched her head... and found that her own skin started to become luminescent, along with her clothes.
The child looked in amazement, as a copy of Anneza's clothes appeared on the child, made to her own size. She looked at Anneza and quickly hugged her. "A-are you my mummy?" She asked hopefully. She looked in amazement at the silvery clothes... and the feeling- the incredible feeling that she somehow 'belonged' to Anneza. She didn't know how or why this should be possible... but... it was undesirably true.
The space-girl swallowed. "Let me take you home... you shouldn't be here alone. I'll... I'll find your mother, I promise."
"...I think I already found her." Was this the start of her story? Ever since she left the books and found the sunlight... she wasn't sure how this universe worked at all... it was so confusing! What... was she before? Something... or nothing? Well... she was something now.
Anneza and the little girl travelled back to the Earth. Anneza was not at all sure, how to explain this one to her own parents... or to anyone else.
Robert stepped out into the sunlight... Rachel was there, her red hide naked for all to see. It didn't licit any response from the other devil priestess though. The two stared at each other for a while.
"So... it looks like we're both stuck like this," Said Rachel with a smile. She was just so glad.
Robert frowned. "You would try to council me, child?"
Rachel softened a little, detecting the edge on the other woman's voice. "If... you want."
Robert looked bitterly a moment then relaxed. "Sorry... I didn't mean to snap. I must now deal with the fact that my life for as it was, is over." She slumped down on the bench, six of her eight breasts jiggled just slightly, under her robes with great distraction to her. "It's fitting really. I caused damage to the church, even if I am forgiven by those around me now... I must still be repentant. I'll pay for it, for the rest of my life."
"Urgh, you priests are weird. Do you really think being a woman is a punishment?"
"No- of course not," Said Robert annoyed now. "Do you really think me so shallow? I was happy to be a man, and maybe I can be happy like this. maybe... but I'm not just a woman. I'm a devil woman. I'm made to look evil. Honestly, you should be angry at me depicting woman in such a bad light!"
Rachel fumed a little. "Oh come on. That is nonsense. You know it too. Everyone is different, and if you're a devil woman it makes you no better or worse then an angelic woman.
Robert sighed. "Maybe...yes. Anyway, I'm stuck like this. It's a good thing I took a vow of chastity. Otherwise..."
"What? Because nobody would like a devil-girl?" asked Rachel ever so sweetly.
Suddenly Robert blushed. "Ah- well- of course they would like you. You have.... a more normal figure, for one. I'm just a.. hoofed monstrosity with a woman's face. I pray... I pray that at least God will company me in my life, no matter where it takes me. "
"You're far prettier then you think, Robert. Trust me on this. A woman knows."
Robert glanced at her. "You think that?"
"A woman knows," nodded. Rachel.
The child looked in awe as they approached the Earth. "W-what is that?" she asked.
"That is the Earth... it's where I live," said Anneza strangely. "Haven't you ever seen it before?"
The child looked with confusion. "I... I think? I don't know. I've never seen it all like this"
Anneza had to smile at that. "Not many have. It... took a while for me to get used to."
The child kept close to Anneza then tensed. "Ah- help! I- I'm falling!" she gripped Anneza tightly now, so close that their antenna arced with a little electricity between them. This seemed to disorientate Anneza for a moment and she tried to pry the child off her.
Finally Anneza managed to stabilise their direction relative to the planet. "- it's okay. That's just gravity. The Earth is pulling us in because we are so close to it. It happens about now." She knew of course that this being space, everyone was falling all the time. But with the reference point of an actual planet, their speed became that much more terrifying- especially the first time.
The child continued to look in confusion but Anneza was very experienced now in this art. Indeed it was an art, to land oneself without injury with impeccable grace. It was something Anneza tried to do, this... art of perfection, probably carried over from her old life. Unfortunately, with a child in tow, Anneza dared not risk using the special gravity path between Earth and Moon. They had to descend slowly, until the little girl could understand how to use those paths herself. Anneza wasn't even sure how she did it... but if they got separated on a gravity path, it could be hours until they found each other again...
"What's all that down there?" Asked the girl suddenly.
"Clouds," said Anneza.
The child giggled. "That one looks like you!"
Anneza smiled a little. "That was an old friend, actually."
"Oh... you no longer friends?" Asked the girl.
"Well..." Anneza swallowed. How could she convey that when she had nobody to speak to, she went maybe just a little insane, and created her own friends in the clouds? Now that she thought about it, that was rather pathetic and... just so very sad. "They... stayed to talk to me when I was lonely... but they have to keep moving to see other people who also get lonely."
The child looked innocently and just accepted that explanation without further thought. Eventually they broke through the cloud barrier. "Hehe... it tickles! Oh- and its cold!"
"Yes... we're away from the sun. it's actually 'colder' here then in space," said Anneza knowingly. She didn't want to think too much of the temperature differences, otherwise she would realise there was no way this was possible, and it might just force her to combust or freeze in logic bomb.
The child looked, her face full of wonder. "So big.. so much land. Where do we go?"
"That there is America," said Anneza. "Just... follow my lead."
Anneza knew what her home town sounded like. Together they approached the town, and were about thirty thousand feet in the air.
Suddenly The child got very excited. "What's that! what's that!"
"Er- That's a plane," said the space girl.
They were close enough to be able to see the poor pilot... staring at them.
"What do we do Mummy?" asked the girl looking back to her.
"uh...wave to them." said Anneza with a slight shrug. It looks like yet again she was going to be in the news... she hated it so much.
The little girl obliged waving happily to the pilot, then all the passengers who were scrambling to the windows to see them as they continued their decent. Finally they were too far away for the plane to see.
"They... like me?" Asked the girl with confusion. "Why do they like me so much?"
"Why wouldn't they?"
The child frowned a bit in thought. "... cause they haven't read me?"
Anneza blinked at that explanation. Strange and stranger, and getting even stranger. "What's your name anyway?"
"My name? Uh... you have to give me one, I think" said the girl looking lost again.
"Huh? Why?"
"Cause you're my mummy mummy!" the child giggled.
Anneza tried her best not to roll her eyes. She was not good with children at all, especially when they played games. "I'll be your 'mother' for now, but you must have had one before. What's your name?" The space-girl was still getting used to the idea of being a woman for the rest of her life... being called 'mother' was still just 'weird'.
"Uh... I guess I called myself Lost?"
Anneza sighed. This was hopeless. "Okay.. well.. I'm not too keen on calling you 'lost'... so... how does the name 'Astra' sound?"
"Astra?" asked the child. "I like it! What does it mean?"
"It means star," said Anneza.
Astra giggled. Slowly more of the Earth was becoming visible as they broke through the last of the clouds. "Oh look! Is that where you live? So many houses... which one is yours? I can't wait to be home!"
Slowly Anneza took Astra down to ground level. They still hovered of course, unable to get any closee to the mass below them as the other 'force' counteracted gravity, when their feet were this close to another mass. She held Astra's hand carefully and knocked on the door of her parents house.
Her father opened it, smiled seeing Anneza, then looked curiously at the girl. "Who's that?"
"Astra," said Anneza vaguely understanding from the confusion what was being asked of her.
Pyoa! said Astra with a smile.
"Er... come in," said Anneza's father.
"They talk funny," said Astra.
"They speak English. I... used to speak it, but forgot how." Anneza said a little sadly. Still... there was hope. Now that she might be able to learn it, as well as a child... though that did bring another question, just how did a child learn? Maybe by spending time with Astra, she could figure it out too? Astra appeared keen on learning English...
"I'm going to take you to the police station first, to see if anyone knows who you are. A lot of people went missing... They'll take you to your real mother, okay?"
Astra looked a bit upset at that but nodded.
