Astral Friends

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Charly wasn't sure how to put it all into words.

For months, she had patiently meditated, with the goal of astral projecting herself. Day after day, attempt after attempt, rooted to her mattress with only the numbness of her body to say anything had happened. But she kept trying, even though it hurt and she was certain she was doing it wrong. But, at the end of all that, she found herself snapped free from the world she knew, lucid, and walking around in places she struggled to properly describe.

The initial liberation reminded her of digging her nails into a wine bottle with its cork fallen deep down into the neck. One moment, in the void of fluttering light memories squirming beneath her eyelids, the next wandering the soupy strands of her room, unbound by breath. The first few times, this was as far as she got, the world around her but in the off-hours. Streets and buildings like movie sets between filming. Then, she ventured further.

The mists cleared away to reveal hungry shadows, shapes gnashing and clawing at burning light. Faceless masses bit at the light and ran away. Nameless bulks slithered. Beyond that, she met the remnants, the wanderers.

People who used to be people. A man who desperately had to make a scheduled train. A lady in white who was late for her wedding. She could talk to them but they were so easily distracted, lost and lonely but lucid. Like amnesiacs or Alzheimer's patients bitterly unable to recall what they had forgotten. She moved on.

She found herself on the street corner of a city she'd never seen before. Crystalline towers glittered in the distance. People or the sense of them swelled in waves. Busy, working, and searching. It felt overwhelming.

"You okay there?"

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Turning around, her breath caught in her throat. Standing before her was an ethereal young woman. Her smile brought Charly peace as her features twinkled. She was clad in a gown with gossamer bands. It seemed to be shaped from a single piece of cloth without any needlework. The chest dipped around her bountiful bust, clinging with allure but modesty. Her hair, like spun sparkling glass, dangled so long behind her it surely should've touched the ground but never did.

Charly was without words as the mystical lady guided her through the bustle of the cityscape. Between the long, shimmering alleyways and rippling roadways, they stopped at a café and sat beneath a tree covered in fruits she didn't recognize. And so, they spoke.

Charly fumbled with polite words and honorifics as the ethereal lady reassured her, "Just call me Mariam." In return, Charly muttered her own name. Mariam smiled and said her name was lovely, as were her clothes. Charly hadn't paid attention to what she was wearing, fretting her spirit body might've been naked. But it was wrapped in a fluttering blouse and a knee-length skirt she'd worn several years ago and misplaced during a vacation.

Gently, Mariam asked her about that vacation and whether it had been fun. Soon, Charly was talking to her as freely and comfortably as the sister she'd never had. Tea arrived at some point, although Charly wasn't sure if they had paid for it. It tasted like liquid cake.

Finishing a difficult story about the day her aunt died, Charly felt a heaviness pass over her, like weights dragging her out of the clouds. Mariam touched her on the hand like warm, refreshing bath water and noted, "Looks like you have to head off. It was lovely meeting you. I'll see you soon."

As everything got blurry, Charly felt the crystalline city fall away to shadows and whispers and, finally, silence as she stared up from her own eyes at the blank features of the ceiling. The lingering, ghostly aroma of tea clung to her nostrils. She got less sleep than she wanted writing down every detail. Unlike the myriad of lost dreams she'd vaguely sketched out in assumptions and inference, her astral trip felt as real and clear as any moment she'd experienced.

Even at work the next day, she loitered around with thoughts of the places she'd seen. Her boss, Arthur, scowled and urged her back "on task". She sighed and left the astral for data entry. Still, it felt so mindless that she quipped to herself she might leave her body due to the sheer monotony. Between work and breaks, she regarded Arthur.

He'd been at the office as long as anyone could remember. He wasn't mean or cruel, but he was unyieldingly firm.

He stood over six feet but often crouched, giving the impression to Charly of a schoolmaster peering down and judging her. His balding head sparkled with the overhead office lights wherever he went and a gray halo of the remains of his hair. Not even a hint of stubble clouded his chin and his pale-gray suits matched his hair.

During a coffee break, Charly cracked her neck and picked a tea bag instead of a pot of coffee. Sipping it slowly, she sighed.

"Is it cake-flavored?"

Turning, she noticed Arthur had walked in to refill his cup. Frowning, Charly glanced between her cup and Arthur. She hadn't mentioned the strange flavor of tea in the astral realms but it was likely just a random coincidence. She smiled and told him, sadly, it wasn't. Arthur didn't elaborate and Charly was too shy to question him further.

During lunch, she consulted the books which got her into astral projection and tried to find something to explain this oddity. Perhaps she had transmitted her thoughts along the realms or the act of drinking that tea had altered the material space. But nothing she found provided a satisfying resolution.

That night, it was easier to slip from her body. The cork had been loosened. She managed to pass through the lower realms like shaking off a bad dream and returned to the City. It felt like somewhere in China, exotic but familiar. What haze she felt before had lifted to a clarity beyond her glasses. She wandered for several minutes before Mariam found her with a tap on the shoulder.

And so Charly's nights went. They explored the City, watching craftsmen toiling at their endless tasks, and drinking liquids that had no equal in the material world. Charly spilled thoughts about her family and how her mother refused to let her see any films with aliens until she was a teenager. Not for fear they might scare her but because of how unnatural they were. She'd seen that particular, old Spielberg film at a friend's house as a child and been grounded for a month. She also was not allowed to even look at the games where you captured and battled small animals. Again, not any concern about the animals, but because they were "weird and unnatural".

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She built to a crescendo of bitterness at all the things of the imagination she'd been denied. Mariam listened patiently and, when peace returned to Charly's face, she stretched over and wrapped her in her arms, telling her it would be alright.

At work, the topic of aliens came up, along with a very specific video game. Charly drowned her confusion in tea even though she couldn't will it to taste like cake or anything amazing. That night, since it wasn't a workday to follow, she set everything aside and dove into the astral realm. She had what felt like a full day with Mariam, tending to a downtown garden with color-shifting plants and furry fronds which needed to be placated like unruly kittens. She even went swimming in a literal river of ideas as Mariam watched.

She stayed long enough to see Mariam fade and put on a dainty yawn. After they bid each other goodnight, Charly followed her. It was difficult, because Mariam could've moved higher or physically away or just winked out of existence in this plane. Fortunately, Charly's thoughts pursued her, on the heels of an after-image. Slipping back into the edge of the physical, she felt sick to her ethereal stomach. It was like crossing her eyes.

She'd read about Cold War psychics who projected themselves into enemy bases. She couldn't imagine that, as her body was like a throbbing beacon which desperately sought to yank her back. Fine details were covered in a dense haze. But she could make out enough to see Mariam in a housing tract she recognized.

Passing through walls nearly kicked her back to her body but she held on and watched as Mariam slipped inside a familiar, balding form. Shaking her head, she hung on long enough to see Arthur stretch up from his bed with a frown of confusion. Back home, the sour stomach had followed her. Snacking on saltines, she shook her head, brushed crust from her eyes, and tipped her glasses onto her head. Her cantankerous boss was a beautiful woman who treated her like a little sister. Or his spirit just appeared that way.

This was beyond any of her research. She pondered bringing up "feminine sides" at work but couldn't imagine any way of doing it without losing herself to abject embarrassment. The best she could manage was hinting at things like the garden in a clearer fashion. At most, Arthur remarked that it might make for an interesting book (just not on company time).

She had to resign to the fact that Arthur was likely projecting but not lucidly. Previously, she'd mentioned her efforts at exploring astral realms and he'd snorted that it sounded like a bunch of "hogwash". Mariam never brought up any details that matched Arthur and she shied away from personal recollections, preferring to let Charly share what was on her mind or just live in the delights of the moment within the City.

Piecing bits together, she discovered Arthur had no children, had never been married (he hardly bothered looking), and only fancied some reading and aquarium collecting aside from work. So, she brought details of books and fish to Mariam. She listened as intently as always but never made any overtures like Charly had found something which truly interested her.

She wondered if Mariam was in a trance and didn't know it. So, she pushed it. She asked prying questions of Mariam, urging her to be more open. Still, Mariam politely declined. Charly took her to a rather ironic meditation class in the City. It made her woozy to participate, again like she was trying to cross her eyes. For Mariam, it felt like she was on the cusp of something.

She explained that her fingertips seemed like they were aflame, not in a painful and horrifying way, but like the warmth Charly felt when Mariam touched her. Only deeper, brighter, and more radiating. A phantom fireplace.

Playing it by ear, Charly urged, "You have to wake up, Mariam. You are sleeping and you need to awaken your full self!" She had no idea if her advice was good or she was helping but smiles came easier to Mariam's face, so she counted that as a win.

After several weeks of urging and pushing and quiet confusion from her boss, Charly finally ran into Mariam and noticed she had a deeper, more-tangible glow to her, as though she'd been doused in a silvery coat of glow-in-the-dark paint. Without trying anything else, Charly urged her to take the walk back early. They dipped through the realms and came to rest at Arthur's small, lonely house.

Mariam didn't notice her own body as Charly guided her across the room. All but dragging her there, Charly pressed, "You have to wake up!"

With a flash, Charly was back in her own bed with a sticky sheen of sweat. Along with it, her mouth felt like she'd recently vomited and a tiny trickle of blood dripped from her nostrils onto her nightgown. Shaking her head, she resolved never to try something like that again.

In the morning, she went to work like normal. But, halfway to the stairs, she felt a tap on her shoulder. A sudden and familiar hug greeted her with a ghostly aroma of cake-like tea. A mature woman with flowing, twinkling silver hair and a sparkle in her grin greeted her like a younger sister, "Good morning, Charly! Did you have a beautiful evening?"

The woman wore a gray business skirt with a bright touch of cream tone. She dashed up the stairs at a brisk pace Charly couldn't match. Catching her breath, Charly asked, "Mariam?"

"Yes?" She answered as automatically as astral Mariam, as automatically as Arthur when she called his name. But her high voice and eagerness were all Mariam.

She had so many impossible questions and still so much fear to ask them. But, she calmly answered, "Yes, Mariam, I had a lovely night and I hope you did too."