Where am I?

I think... I think I'm falling. But that couldn't be right. No. No, I only felt like I was falling.

Water swirls around me, rising ever higher. I reach out and try to grasp the liquid, but my hand passes through and dissipates into nothing. There is no pain, only a feeling of profound disappointment.

At least, until a soft voice whispers in my ear.

"My darling child," she croons lovingly. The water ripples with delight, little streams of bubbles popping up from the never-ending fountain and embracing it. I, too, find myself drawn to it, though I couldn't explain why. "Please, come closer..."

A fierce storm clashed with another, its dark clouds swirling with flashes of lightning. Two powerful forces of nature, locked in a timeless battle, fought against each other.

"Don't be afraid," she gently whispers, reverberating through the fountain. Every droplet trembles, seemingly reaching out for something just beyond its grasp. Without understanding why, I find myself echoing the gesture.

The lightning-and-fire avatar surged forward, riding a magnificent chariot. Against him, it roared a gargantuan serpent made of thunderous waves, its body extending to the furthest reaches of the universe and beyond.

"You will not share my fate," she declares with a determined warmth. The water stills at her words, yet beneath the surface lies a lingering unease and concern. "I will not permit it."

A man stood before a woman, his face a mask of regret and sorrow. He held a simple wooden club, it's surface stained with the blood of his victims. The woman looked upon him with a gaze of utter betrayal and pain, her slender frame trembling with a mixture of despair and rage.

"I won't let this senseless bloodshed be your legacy," she says, her voice heavy with sorrow. The world around the fountain trembles as cracks start to appear. "You have so much potential to achieve greatness, far more than I ever could. That's why..."

I awoke with a jolt; what the hell was going on?

Groaning, I rubbed at my eyes and blearily scanned the room. Suu was nestled at my side, her head resting comfortably against my shoulder, and a warm blanket had been draped around the both of us. Ah, I must've dozed off while in the middle of reading. My mind was still foggy, and I gradually became aware that Suu's feeler was still attached to my head.

Ah, that could have been the cause of my strange dream.

Now that I had taken the time to reflect, I recalled what Suu had mentioned earlier about a "fountain" and a woman's voice in her dreams. We must have experienced a form of shared dreaming when we fell asleep while still connected, which was both terrifying and strangely fascinating. Perhaps if I could learn how to lucid dream, we could explore these dreamscapes together and create something truly magical...

Well, later. As I pondered what my dream had meant, I couldn't help but notice the woman's voice sounded oddly familiar, and it even reminded me of my mother's voice. Could it have been her? What would she be doing in Suu's dream? It was highly likely that they just happened to sound similar. Additionally, the brief visions of battles puzzled me as I had no idea who the combatants were or how long ago it had happened. All I knew was that it was in the distant past.

Suu started to stir awake, and I reflexively reached for her hand and gently squeezed it.

"Hey there," I greeted softly as her emerald eyes slowly opened, "Good morning."

"Mm. Morning," Suu hummed, smiling up at me before her expression fell, "You saw it, didn't you?"

It wasn't too hard to guess what she meant by that. "Yeah," I told her with a nod, "It was... confusing. You've been seeing that every time you sleep?"

'Sleep' is the relative term, of course.

Suu bobbed her head once, then tilted curiously. "Though... I never understood what she was saying until now," she said, her voice taking on a hint of awe. "I knew she was talking and that it made me sad, but I never knew why it made me sad. How or why I knew even that much was anyone's guess."

I was perplexed by Suu's dream. She seemed not to understand it, but when I connected with her, it became clear to her. It was all in English, so why could I understand it when she couldn't? It was a mystery that left me wondering.

This whole language thing was bizarre. I had never tried to learn much Japanese, aside from the occasional word or phrase I had picked up from watching an excessive amount of anime. Certainly not enough to have a proper conversation. But somehow, I could understand everyone around me, and they could understand me perfectly, even though I spoke English. Something must have happened that allowed that to happen, likely during the event that brought me here in the first place.

Was that "something" also what allowed both me and Suu to comprehend the words in a dream that she couldn't before? This was getting increasingly complex, the happenings of my unique status here. I had a potential solution, but it needed to be tested, preferably with someone who could communicate in English. It was strange even to consider this possibility.

My stomach growled, disrupting my train of thought. I needed to analyze this further, exploring every angle and gathering as much information as possible, not just about my newfound ability to break through language barriers but also Suu's dream, which could be linked to the origin of slimes.

"C'mon, sweetie," I said as I stood, pulling Suu up with me and holding her in my arms, "Let's get some breakfast, okay?"

"'Kay!" she answered cheerfully.

A few hours later, it was my turn to do the laundry, giving me the perfect opportunity to think while I went about the task and enjoy the music streaming from my phone's speakers. I had made it a habit to always put some music on in the background during mundane tasks, so I had taken the time to collect as many of my favorite songs from the past as possible - and, to my surprise, they were all in English!

I had never considered grasping all the English lyrics precisely until now. Perhaps I am mistaken, but I highly doubted that all these bands had extended their reach to Japan.

Seriously, did someone shove a babel fish into my ear? I couldn't feel the freaky little creature squirming around inside me, but with all the strange things I'd encountered since I arrived, I wouldn't have been too surprised.

"Carry on, my wayward son
There'll be peace when you are done
Lay your weary head to rest
Don't you cry no more"

"Fuckin' word," I sighed sympathetically.

"Did you understand that?" Miia asked from behind me as she carried up the last of the laundry baskets to the rooftop. I nodded in appreciation before replying.

"Can't you?" I asked curiously, my eyes widening with surprise. The song hadn't sounded any different to me, yet she seemed to think otherwise. I paused the song so we could discuss it without interruption.

She shook her head emphatically. "No way. I can decipher some words here and there, but only that's because I tried to learn some English when I initially thought I was going to America. I could manage a conversation, more or less, after a week of studying. I'm pretty sure it was a week... I've just been out of practice for a while now." She tapped her chin in deep thought as she reminisced.

Now that I had even more to consider, I realized I could somehow understand English and Japanese even though I was only listening to English. From that, I could assume that whatever I was saying sounded like English but was being translated into Japanese for the other people. In conclusion, whatever had brought me here had kindly provided me with some translation magic or other supernatural aid. While I was thankful for the help it had given me, I couldn't help but question why it had done so.

The second thing that astounded me was Miia's mastery of the English language - she had only been exposed to it for a week. She yet was already able to conduct conversations fluently! Teaching English is not an easy task, considering how complex it is - it can often feel like Frankenstein's Monster, with many rules, exceptions, and nuances that can take a long time to understand. Even most native English speakers experience difficulty in mastering the language, myself included.

"That's incredible! How did you manage to get that far in only one week?" I asked, amazed, as I hung Rachnee's shirt on the clothesline.

"Eh, heh, it's nothing special," Miia laughed nervously, scratching her head. She moved beside me and began to help me out. "Most liminals have an amazing ability to pick up different languages quickly, which has made the Cultural Exchange program much smoother and more successful."

"Is that so?" I wondered out loud before taking Rachnee's loincloth and daintily handing it to Miia.

"Mhm," Miia began, "we tend to have an easier time learning languages from the part of the world our species originated from."

Perhaps that played a role in my capabilities. Although I was initially thought to be liminal, it was proven that I was, in fact, one hundred percent human. Upon further testing, nothing about my biology had altered in any way.

My suspicion that the Far Side was responsible only strengthened with each passing moment. I needed to talk to Lala as soon as possible in the hopes that she would be able to provide some clarification.

Miia asked, "So, you're originally from America, right?" After I nodded, she smiled and said, "That's probably why you understand Japanese so well. I'm not from around here, but you speak Japanese well for an American! It's almost like you're a native speaker. Does that make sense?"

I comprehended what she implied, yet that didn't bring any more clarity to this entire situation.

"Thanks." I laughed nervously, feeling a little awkward. I wasn't sure if I wanted to share my thoughts with Miia now. Maybe it would be best if I just kept them to myself. "Um, anyway-"

I gave Miia an apologetic glance before answering my phone, buzzing next to me.

"Hey, Kuroko, what's up?"

"Didn't you mention something earlier about a lesser devil called Lilith in this area?" the coordinator asked from the other end.

I had a feeling I knew where this was heading.

Miia raised an eyebrow at me, her expression one of concern. "Why do you look like you just stepped in something icky?" she asked worriedly.

I raised a finger to her, asking her to hold her question momentarily. "You're right," I said to Kuroko, "But why do you ask?"

Kuroko continued, "After you mentioned it, I asked MON to be on the lookout for someone who matched your description. Sure enough, Tio soon spotted a naughty little girl running around, and she was able to capture her and bring her back to HQ. She was a persistent devil and almost managed to escape, but in the end, we got her safely back."

My eyes widened in surprise. I had not anticipated such successful and rapid results in that case; I had assumed Lilith was too sly and cunning to get herself out of trouble, yet here she was, defeated by a well-prepared member of MON. It seemed the only reason Lilith had been able to outmaneuver Manako in the past was that Manako had not expected to face a lower-level devil, and Lilith seemed to have already known Manako's insecurities.

"Very nice!" I said appreciatively. "Should I come down there then?"

"As soon as can be feasibly arranged," Kuroko replied, "We can hold her for some time since she has broken the law, but the quicker I can be away from this troublesome child, the better."

I wasn't exactly looking forward to dealing with Lilith. Not only did I have several reasons to be apprehensive, but I knew that getting through to her and having a normal conversation with her would be difficult and potentially very frustrating. Still, it had to be done. If I was able to talk Draco down, then I could do the same with Lilith. I had to stay positive and believe that I could do it.

"I'm on my way," I stated confidently, determined to navigate this situation and maintain my dignity successfully.

To be continued...