A sudden wave of dizziness washed over Mike, and he grabbed his head, struggling to stay awake. He silently repelled the entity within him as he fought to maintain control.
Meanwhile, Miram and Garo continued to glare at each other in disdain, their animosity palpable.
However, Garo's gaze eventually shifted to Mike, and she noticed that his eyes were fixed on the portrait on the wall.
"That's Agira, my Jyuran," she said, her voice soft and reverent. "The previous Jyuran's wife."
"I heard she died before him," she continued. "We're not well-informed, and their story is not well-narrated. However, the story says she was a courageous and kind woman and the founder of the Akunmi."
Miram emerged from her hostile stance, her eyes narrowing slightly. "What's Akunmi?" she asked.
"The orphanage home," Garo replied. "I heard she took care of the orphans during her lifetime."
She then tilted her head, making a subtle gesture for Miram to follow her. However, Miram misinterpreted the gesture, her eyes widening in disdain.
"What? Why are you doing that?" she sniffed.
Garo's glare intensified. "Let's go already, so the Jyuran can rest!" She yelled, but Miram shook her head disapprovingly.
"No way! I'm not leaving the Jyuran alone in this place," Miram declared. "We hang here together!"
The phrase "hang here together" sent a chill down Mike's spine, and he wondered if his worst fears were about to come true.
"Suit yourself!" Garo hissed, her stare venomous. She levitated, flapping her wings slowly to gain altitude. As she turned to Mike, her eyes darted toward Miram, and she hissed again, her disdain for Miram evident.
"Have a good rest, my Jyuran," she finally said, her voice slightly softer as she addressed Mike. With that, she fluttered toward the door on the balcony above and left.
As soon as she departed, Mike felt his headache intensify, and he could no longer control the entity within him. Instinctively, he transmuted into his human form.
To his surprise, this action sent shivers down his spine, instantly vanquishing Jran's threat to consume him.
Miram's eyes widened in astonishment as she beheld Mike in his human form.
"Oh my world!" she exclaimed. She drooled over her, her mouth agape with wonder. "You're so cute! But you don't have wings and long ears."
"This is how we look on my planet," Mike clarified, amused. "No wings and no long ears. We invented some things that transport us to wherever we wish to go."
Miram leaned closer to him. "What are they?" she inquired.
Mike smiled, making different gestures to accompany his explanation. "Vehicles for land, they carry you to anywhere you want, and aircraft for air. They swallow you up in the air and pour you to your destination."
"Wow! I would love to visit your planet. The first place I'd visit is the aircaf," she said, happiness radiating from her face.
Mike chuckled lightly. "I bet the first place you'd visit is a large iron cage in the NASA lab," he scoffed. "We humans don't like scary surprises." He whirled around the room, his eyes scanning every nook and cranny.
Miram followed his gaze. "Are you looking for something?" she inquired, her smile slowly receding.
Mike nodded frantically. "Where do we sleep tonight?" he replied, his eyes still scanning the room.
Miram's broad grin hinted at impending displeasure. She pointed to the ceiling, and Mike's eyes followed her gesture. "And you can't sleep in your current form," she said.
Mike burst into laughter. "Why would I sleep on the ceiling? Isn't that absurd?" he said.
"You hang upside down, of course," Miram replied, as though it was the most natural thing in the world.
Mike's laughter froze on his lips as he inspected Miram's serious tone. He searched her face for any sign of jest, but her expression remained steadfast. "Are you for real?" he asked, seeking confirmation.
"Yes, my Jyuran," Miram nodded. "I don't know how you sleep on your planet, but here, we hang!"
It was then that Mike realized the true meaning of the word "hang" in this world. He had been misunderstanding it since his arrival, taking it literally.
"But what if someone were to sleep on the ground here, or on something soft?" Mike asked, probably seeking a way out.
Miram thought for a moment as she ensconced her wings, wrapping them snugly around her body.
"There are two reasons why someone would choose to sleep in such a manner," she replied. "It's either they're in the process of giving birth, or they're afflicted with some kind of illness."
"Illness?" Mike thought, couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Whoa! This is insanely absurd!"
He raised his head up to look at the ceiling again. "How do you expect me to..."
"Transform back, and I'll show you," Miram cut in. "It's easier than you think."
Mike hesitated for a moment, fearing the malevolent soul would seize control of him. After thinking for a moment he transformed back into his Anthropter form.
His enormous wings erupted out of his back and unfurled, the sound of tearing skin and creaking bones filling the air.
However, the searing pain of his transformation still lingered around his back, slowly receding as he adjusted to his new form.
"Now watch me," Miram said and she levitated, flying toward the ceiling with a gentle whooshing sound. As she reached the ceiling, she flipped her body upside down, and Mike's eyes widened in alarm.
He quickly averted his face, thinking Miram was going to fall. But Miram's voice resonated toward him, calm and reassuring. "I'm not going to fall, my Jyuran. I've been doing this since childhood."
Mike slowly opened his eyes, and his gaze met her inverted form. He gasped in wonder. Miram was hanging upside down, her wings wrapped around her body like a dark, leathery cloak.
The sight rang a bell in Mike's head. "OMG! You look like a bat!" he exclaimed.
Miram unfurled her wings, and a soft cooing sound escaped her lips. She didn't understand what Mike said, but her instincts told her it was a compliment.
"How did you do that?" Mike asked.
Miram dived downward, her wings beating rapidly as she descended. Just as she was about to hit the ground, she flipped her body over, landing softly on her feet.
"I can't believe you don't know how to sleep," she said to Mike. "Even a ten-year-old kid knows how to sleep."
"No, no, no, no! That's not what I mean," Mike clarified, his hands raised in a defensive gesture. "Of course, I do know how to sleep, but this is different," he explained. "On my planet, we lay down on a soft material called a 'bed'."
Miram tilted her head, her eyes narrowing slightly as she tried to comprehend the unfamiliar word. "Well... we don't have a bed here, only the 'sleepher'," she shrugged, her shoulders rising and falling in a gentle motion.
"What's sleepher?"
"Come up here, and I'll show you," she replied, taking to the ceiling with a gentle flutter of her wings.
Mike hesitated for a moment before leaping into the air, his wings propelling him toward Miram. As he approached her, he flapped his wings vigorously to maintain the same level as her.
"Now, flip over and stick your legs into the ceiling," Miram instructed, laying an example for Mike to follow. She flipped her body over, her legs disappearing into the ceiling as if it were made of a soft, pliable material.
Mike followed her example, flapping his wings to gain momentum before flipping over. He hit his legs against the ceiling, but instead of sinking into the surface, he felt a jolt of surprise as he realized he couldn't hang.
He fell off, his body plummeting toward the ground.
"GBAM!!!!!"