As I woke, my first instinct was to gasp for air, but my attention was immediately brought to the place around me when I realized I was falling.

What is happening now? I flailed my arms, trying to grasp onto something—anything—but I gave out a heated breath. There was nothing but open space around me. It really feels like I’m receiving some punishment I didn’t know about.

The air rushed past me, tearing at my clothes and whipping my hair into a frenzy. My heart pounded in my chest as I tried to make sense of what was happening. Below me, there was no ground, no end in sight, just an endless void stretching in every direction.

I coughed out blood when the pain in my stomach returned, and I hurriedly put pressure on my wound. I know that the amount of blood you would lose from having a knife thrust into your stomach would kill you in a matter of minutes, but my question is, why am I still alive?

I even drowned too. Even if I am having trouble breathing, I'm here entirely dry. I could still clearly recall my lungs burning because water was getting inside of them. Yet, I’m still alive?

And now I’m falling. God knows where. Presumably, my way down to hell if death works three times a charm.

I caught my bag slipping out of my shoulder, and I hurriedly tried to grab it, but it slipped out of my reach, flying upwards. I looked up and saw my pills spilling out of the bottle quickly.

The pills scattered in all directions, glinting in the strange, ethereal light that surrounded me. Some drifted away into the void, disappearing beyond my sight, while others hung suspended in mid-air. My heart sank as I watched them drift further and further away.

I let out a frustrated grunt. There are too many things happening at once in a single day. This is not what I mean when I want a change of scenery.

More so, giant clocks began to appear from the void beneath me. They ascended slowly, their pendulums swinging with a deliberate rhythm that echoed loudly in the space.

Tick! Tick! Tick!

I stared in disbelief at the clocks; their faces varied—some ancient and ornate, others modern and sleek. There is one issue with them, though: although they are all ticking at the same time, the handles are frozen at 10:39 PM.

I reached out tentatively towards one of the clocks, hesitating before touching its cool metal surface. The clock didn't budge. Its hands were refusing to move, despite the ticking sound continuing unabated.

Tick! Tick! Tick!

My clothes began to glow with an eerie luminescence, casting strange shadows in the area around me. They started to shift and writhe, as if alive with their own energy. The fabric seemed to pulse with faint light, matching the rhythm of the ticking clocks.

The torn fabric that was cut through was getting sewn up in front of my eyes by some unseen force. The threads twisted and turned, weaving themselves back together seamlessly, as if time itself were correcting the damage.

I muttered in amazement, "My clothes... they're repairing themselves," as I felt the ache in my abdomen progressively go away.

Tick! Tick! Tick!

My clothes began to morph into a white jumpsuit as if being reshaped by invisible hands. The fabric flowed and shifted, molding itself around me until I was clad in a uniform.

I quickly removed my coat, realizing it might be the next to go. Thankfully, things didn't turn out the way I had anticipated. This is expensive, so it would be a shame if my coat changed too.

Then, I caught something strange coming up towards me. It was a glowing white trail, and I couldn’t tell what it was until it started to swirl around me.

It danced through the air, rose slowly to my face, then halted, suspended in mid-air in front of me. By that point, I had noticed they were glowing texts. As I squinted to read them, the words began to form and shift.

—WELCOME, AVEL CANOSA

"I must be hallucinating," I muttered aloud, my voice barely more than a whisper in the vast emptiness around me as I stared at the texts in front of me.

The glowing texts continued to shift and transform before my eyes, the letters rearranging themselves with fluidity. As I watched, the phrase "Welcome, Avel Canosa" began to deteriorate; the letters ‘V,’ ‘C,’ ‘N,’ and the remaining two ‘A’s were crumbling away one by one until only fragments remained: "A EL OS."

Confused, I watched as new words formed before my eyes.

—WELCOME BACK, ASPHODEL

Asphodel? The Asphodel Meadows? What did it mean by "Welcome back, Asphodel"? Was it referring to me?

I reached out tentatively towards the glowing letters, but they remained just out of reach, dancing and shifting like playful spirits taunting me with their message.

"Who are you?" I called out into the emptiness, my voice echoing faintly. "What is this place?"

No answer came, punctuated only by the steady ticking of the clocks and the hypnotic sway of the letters.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Am I dreaming?

It’s just that I was amazed and perplexed since I could never have imagined witnessing something like this in person. I thought that, maybe, this was just an overly vivid dream that I had to wake up from.

But dreams, no matter how realistic, could never match the senses' insistence and detail that everything around me is real.

It’s scary, I know. It's terrifying to encounter things you would expect only to happen in fiction, and I am scared, but for some reason, I kept thinking about these few words.

I want to write this.

Tick! Tick…

Desperate for answers, I called out again, frustration creeping into my voice. "Hey! Who is Asphodel?"

Once again, my words echoed into the emptiness, unanswered. The only response was the continued ticking of the clocks and the faint sway of the glowing letters.

"Fine," I sighed, resignation coloring my words. "I'll just keep talking to myself, then."

“I am not “Asphodel.” You got the wrong person. You got my name right for the first part yet—”

—YOU ARE NOT ASPHODEL?

The glowing letters responded almost immediately to my words, shifting and rearranging themselves in a flurry of movement.

"Wait, what?" I muttered, stunned by the rapid response. "No, I'm Avel. Asphodel is something else, someone else."

The letters danced before me as if contemplating my response. Then, slowly, they began to reform.

—AVEL CANOSA

"Yes, that's me," I affirmed, feeling a mix of relief and curiosity. "But why 'Welcome back, Asphodel' then? What does it mean?"

The letters remained still as if considering their next move. Then, abruptly, they started to rearrange once more.

—ASPHODEL IS YOU.

“Yeah, no. I am not Asphodel. I already told you.” I sighed and crossed my arms. This free fall is oddly calming right now. There’s no telling when I will hit the ground, though.

The glowing letters seemed to hesitate, their luminous forms flickering faintly as if processing my denial.

—BUT YOU ARE ASPHODEL.

I frowned, my skepticism growing as the glowing letters persisted in their assertion.

"No, I'm Avel Canosa," I reiterated firmly, hoping to clarify any misunderstanding. "I don't know who or what Asphodel is, but it's not me."

The letters hung in the air, their glow pulsing gently in the void around me. They seemed to shimmer as if contemplating their response.

—YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN.

The words appeared slowly, each letter forming deliberately before my eyes. Their glow intensified briefly before settling into a steady rhythm.

"I haven't forgotten anything," I replied, my voice tinged with uncertainty. "I know who I am, Avel Canosa. A writer, a person. That's it. I have a good memory despite being locked up in my room for several months, believe me."

— AUTHOR?

"Yes, an author," I affirmed, feeling a twinge of relief that the letters seemed to be engaging in a more straightforward conversation now. "I write stories and novels. That's what I do."

The letters hovered silently for a moment, their glow flickering faintly as if processing this new information.

—AND YET, ASPHODEL.

I frowned again, perplexed by the persistent mention of Asphodel, despite my insistence otherwise.

"What does Asphodel have to do with being an author?" I asked, my arms tightening across my chest in frustration. "Why do you keep saying that?"

—ASPHODEL IS YOU.

The words appeared again, glowing brightly in the dim void. They seemed so certain as if they were stating an undeniable truth.

"But I'm Avel," I countered, my voice firmer now, trying to reason with these mysterious letters. "Can't you understand that?"

You will remember.

"I don't remember being anyone named Asphodel," I muttered, feeling a pang of frustration. I'm starting to think this is some sort of mistake.

Silence greeted me again, the letters remaining stubbornly fixed in their assertion. They didn't disappear this time, nor did they offer any further explanation. It was as if they were waiting for me to come to some realization on my own.

But I won’t stand down to a bunch of letters that seem to know more about me than I do.

Feeling a surge of determination, I squared my shoulders and stared defiantly at the glowing letters hovering before me.

"I don't care what you think or believe," I declared firmly, my voice echoing faintly in the vast expanse around me. "I know who I am. I am Avel Canosa, not Asphodel. Whatever this is," I gestured around me at the surreal surroundings, "it's not making any sense."

In response to my statement, the glowing letters stayed motionless. It seemed as if they were considering my words for a moment.

—YOU DENY.

The words formed slowly, each letter glowing with intensity as if emphasizing their point.

"Yes, I deny it," I asserted, my tone unwavering. "I am Avel Canosa. I'm not denying who I am; I'm affirming it. Asphodel is not me.”

—SO YOU CLAIM TO BE AN INTRUDER?

"No, I'm not claiming to be an intruder," I replied hurriedly and waved my hands around, realizing that this might lead to a situation I didn’t want to be in. "I'm just trying to understand what's going on here. I woke up falling through the sky.”

—YOU DENY

—SO YOU ARE INTRUDING.

"No, that's not—"

—UNTIL YOU FIND TRUTH

—BEGONE.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

The text turned red, and a sharp, quick rush of energy shot out from the glowing characters, knocking me backward through the void.

"Wait! No, please!" I shouted, my voice tinged with panic as I tried to resist the invisible force. "I don't understand what you want from me!"

But the letters remained unmoved, their glow now pulsating in an angry rhythm.

—YOU ARE INTRUDING.

—BEGONE.

The commands rang out insistently, each word feeling like a weight pressing down on me and making me feel sick. Perhaps this is actually my way down to hell.

"I'm not leaving until I get answers!" I shouted into the void, my words bouncing back at me in an unsettling echo.

—THEN YOU WILL FACE CONSEQUENCES.

I felt a sickening lurch as the void around me flickered and shifted. Suddenly, I was no longer falling through the void.

Instead, I found myself falling through a sky that seemed more real than the space I had been in moments before.

I let out a frustrated scream as I saw a glimpse of what was down below. I was hurtling towards a massive glass dome below. The dome loomed closer with each passing second. I flailed my arms, desperate for something to grab onto, but obviously, there was nothing but empty air around me.

I tried to alter my trajectory by twisting my body, but it didn't help. The dome shot up to meet me with terrifying speed as the air whipped past me, ripping at my clothes and whipping my hair, and I realized that I might not make it out of this alive.

Okay, think. Think, Avel. There had to be a way out of this. I couldn't afford to give in to fear or despair, even when falling through the sky.

I reviewed my options quickly. Twisting and turning hadn't worked to alter my trajectory, so perhaps I needed a different approach. Maybe I could use the momentum to my advantage somehow. Or a weak spot in the dome—a way to break through or change my course at the last moment.

Suddenly, an idea sparked in my mind. If I couldn't alter my trajectory directly, perhaps I could use the dome itself to my advantage. I observed the curvature of its surface, calculating the angle of impact and the momentum of my fall.

With a deep breath, I adjusted my body position once more, aiming to glance off the dome's surface rather than collide head-on. It was a risky move, but I had no other choice.

Realistically, this would not work. I don’t know if the glass would hold or shatter. But if I take into consideration what has happened to me for the past few hours, there could be a higher chance that...

As the dome loomed closer, I braced myself for impact. The rush of wind intensified, drowning out all other sounds. With a final twist, I angled my body towards the dome's edge.

Seconds stretched into eternity as I closed the remaining distance. The dome filled my vision, and I noticed moving figures underneath the glass.

I could see the startled faces of those inside, their expressions frozen in disbelief as I hurtled towards them. They moved quickly, some pointing, others backing away in alarm.

Yeah, forgive me if I surprised you. I’m more surprised than you guys are.

With a sickening jolt, I felt myself make contact with the dome. The impact was jarring, rattling my bones and sending shockwaves of pain through my body. The glass vibrated with the force of the collision, and then,

SHATTER!

This is not going well.

The glass dome shattered around me with an ear-splitting crash. Fragments of sharp, jagged glass exploded outward, creating a halo in every direction. I shielded my face instinctively as the shards flew past me, some grazing my arms and legs with stinging cuts.

For a moment, time seemed to freeze. The people inside the dome stared in disbelief as they witnessed my dramatic entrance. I could see them moving and reacting, but their voices were drowned out by the rushing wind and the ringing in my ears.

The ground was approaching at an alarming speed, and I landed on it with a bone-jarring thud. Pain shot through my entire body as I hit the ground, rolling several times before coming to a stop.

For a moment, I couldn't move and couldn't breathe. The world around me was a chaotic blur of shattered glass and shocked faces.

My body ached all over, each breath sending sharp pangs of pain through my ribs. I lay there, sprawled out, trying to gather my bearings.

Through the haze of pain, I saw the figures inside the dome rushing towards me, their faces filled with concern and confusion. I tried to sit up, but my body protested, a wave of dizziness washing over me.

Something is telling me that I need to get used to this.

The people inside the dome had gathered in a loose circle, staring at me with wide eyes. A handful of them appeared scared as they approached with caution.

"Hey," I called out weakly, trying to muster some semblance of composure. "Can someone help me?"