Rhia showed me the way to the bathroom, an ostentatious room connected to the one I woke up in. I frowned when I saw it. That was way too much gold for any room. I raised an eyebrow at Rhia after a quick glance in there.

“Don’t suppose you’ve got any sunglasses on you, do you?”

“The room will adjust to your needs and wants. The last master here was… eccentric. Just walk in and imagine what you’d like.”

Skeptical, I took a step inside, closing the door behind me. Is the idea of a shapechanging bathroom any crazier than anything else you’ve heard this morning? I thought. Shrugging, I closed my eyes and brought up an image of a fancy bathroom I’d once used in a hotel I’d splurged on right after leaving the Army. Single with a separation paycheck led to a damn good week post service.

Suddenly I felt the floor shift under my feet. I opened my eyes to see the gold melting away into the floor and walls, to be replaced with silver taps and faucets. A stand up shower encased in glass popped up to my right, and a large jacuzzi tub that could easily fit four people popped up next to that. A double sink appeared at the opposite end of the room, with a linen closet opening up next to that, with softest, fluffiest looking towels I’ve ever seen. A door to my left opened up to a smaller room which housed the toilet. Pretty standard there. Looking closer, I noticed the shower already held hygiene products in it. Shampoo, conditioner, body wash, a rather expensive looking loofa. Toothbrush and paste next to the sink. Deodorant, even a contact lens case and solution, even though I haven’t worn them in years. Curious.

Then it hit me. I was remembering what the room looked like while I was staying in it, so the room had replicated it just like that, although with much higher quality looking items than what I had back then. Well isn’t that something? I thought. Now all that’s missing is a woman soaking in the tub.

Just then there was a knock at the door.

No fucking way! I said inwardly. Outwardly, I was calmer. “Yes?”

“Sir? It’s Su,” was the muffled response through the door. My heart skipped a beat. Did the bathroom provide her too?! I wasn’t exactly in a state of mind to really enjoy myself at the moment, but perhaps a good palette cleanser would help me? Maybe? Is that why she’s here?

“W-what can I do for you?” I stammered, already imagining the possibilities and getting excited at what I was seeing in my mind.

“Um, Mistress Rhia asked me to deliver these to you. Your new clothes, sir.”

New clothes? Ah! I remembered suddenly that I was only wearing a sheet wrapped around me. While there’s something to be said for the freedom and airflow it brought with it, it’s definitely not my style. I swung the door back open and found myself face to face with the blue maid.

She smiled brightly at me and went to hand me the bundle she held before glancing down and freezing in place. Her smile turned into a wicked grin as she met my eyes again. She placed the clothes in my waiting arms, winked one beautiful green eye at me, then turned and left, closing the door behind her, with just slightest hint of a skip in her step.

“Now what was that about?” I muttered to myself as I looked down to see what she had been looking at. “Oh. Shit.” Togas, apparently, are useless at hiding erections.

Thirty minutes later I stepped out of the bathroom, freshly showered and feeling cleaner than I ever have. I’m not sure what the difference between showers here and on Earth are, but at that moment I was grateful for it. Wearing jeans and a t-shirt, I felt much more like myself. I can only assume Rhia got my sizes and style from one of the times she was poking around in my head. I’ll have to have a talk with her about that in the future. Right now, though, I was glad she had.

There was no one in the room at the moment. I walked up to the window again and stared out, taking in the desolate landscape stretching out in front of me. I looked up at my home planet, slowly spinning in the sky. I closed my eyes, trying to imagine what was happening down there, up there, whatever perspective I was supposed to use. Suddenly I heard voices coming from behind me. I opened my eyes and saw light reflecting off the window in front of me. I turned around to see a massive screen along the right hand wall where the windows and columns ended. Walking over to it, I found the most comfortable looking couch and recliner I’ve ever seen placed in front of the screen, but they lost my attention almost immediately when I saw what was being shown.

“The Event, as people have taken to calling it, is massive in scale.” A reporter was shown standing in front of a desolate landscape, one that I was already familiar with. As he continued talking, a satellite image of the southern United States was put up on the screen, with the States’ outlines superimposed on it. “As you can see here, just about all of Texas, except for the far western corner and half of the panhandle, most of Oklahoma, Louisiana, half of Arkansas, and a portion of Mexico were obliterated.” The camera switched back to the reporter. “Every government, civilian, and military agency have been swarming through here for the last week, attempting to collect any data they can while conducting the seemingly hopeless search for survivors. FEMA has reported that they’ve moved from rescue to recovery, however as operations proceed further in to the blast zone, they have less and less hope for finding anyone, or anything, for that matter.

I stared at the screen. The news started showing videos they’d collected from viewers and affiliates. Shaky cell phone footage from people live streaming the storm with green lightning. Suddenly the storm pulled in on itself, and a bright glow could be seen miles off in the distance before a flash ended the stream. More cell phone footage of the same event from different angles and distances. Most with inane commentary by the people filming it. News crews, security cameras, weather chasers, every camera that was streaming its feed to somewhere outside the blast zone. There was one recording that really captured my attention though.

It was from the International Space Station. They were recording the storm from 250 miles in altitude above the eye of the storm. I remember being near the heart of the storm, but hadn’t realized just how massive it had grown. The spiral of clouds covered the entire state of Texas. There was a brief golden streak away from the eye of the storm, and then the clouds started pulling in on themselves. The news paused here to speculate what that streak was. Naturally people were assuming it was a missile of some sort, but others pointed out that the streak was moving away from the epicenter, not heading towards it. Letting the video resume, the clouds continued converging until all that remained was something glowing so bright that the ISS focused on it. Then there was a green flash and the video stopped. The anchors and experts onscreen took that moment to remind everyone that they haven’t been able to reach the space station since that video feed cut off, and while they were hoping for just a communications issue, due to the scope of the damage on the surface, they weren’t holding out much hope.

I flopped down on to the couch. My legs suddenly couldn’t handle the weight of my own body anymore. I just slumped down, staring at the screen, taking it all in, oblivious to everything around me. I don’t know how long I stayed in this position, but the news anchors had started repeating themselves, emphasizing how little information they had, but trying to keep the viewers’ attention even so. They showed video from embedded reporters riding on military vehicles as they drove across the desolate landscape, everyone aiming for the epicenter. They showed hundreds of people in many different uniforms and suits combing the area, attempting to find any kind of answer about what happened, but, of course, they weren’t able to. The forces at work were so far beyond anything they could imagine.

My trance was finally broken when I felt a heavy, energetic load land in my lap and disappear again. I shook the fog out of my head and focused on the black fur missile racing around the room, jumping on to and then bouncing off the bed, sliding across the floor, barely missing hitting the window, before correcting her trajectory and aiming right me again, only this time I was ready for her. I stood up as Ryo leapt, and as she hit my chest I caught her. Her weight sending me flying back on the couch. Her tail wagged hard enough that the whole couch was shaking as she licked all over my face. Despite everything I’d been told this morning and just saw on the news, I laughed and smiled. My Ryo. My last ray of sunshine left from my old life. The one who, even in her sleep, didn’t want to be parted from my side the week I was unconscious, if the news was correct about when The Event took place.

“Hiya, sweetheart!” I said cheerfully. She pushed her head under my chin, flopping over on her side as she lay on top of me, clearly expecting a good side scratching, which I obliged her with. “Oh!” I exclaimed in surprise. “Your fur is really soft! In fact, I don’t think it’s ever been this soft! They’re really spoiling you up here, aren’t they?” Her tail thumped against my leg for a response. I sat up, patting the seat next to me on the couch. “Come on, let’s have a look at you.”

Reluctantly, Ryo moved off of me and sat up straight and proud for me to look her over. I’m smiled at how she almost looked cocky, but after looking her over, I couldn’t blame her. Her coat was soft and shiny like it never was before, her nails were perfectly clipped, and even the pads on her paws looked like fresh and soft. Since we went on a lot of walks, she’d built up some callouses on her pads, but there was no hint that they were ever there. Just looking at her, you could tell that this was healthiest she’d ever been in her life. Remarkable, I thought. She looked over and licked my face.

“I told you, we’ve got facilities here that she would love. She’s spent the morning being pampered by the maids you saw earlier. Full doggy day spa, if you will. We’ve never had a dog up here before, and the girls are absolutely in love with her. Our chef has already declared that Ryo gets the second best meal on the moon from now on. After yourself, of course.”

Rhia had made her way around the couch and was standing between me and the screen. She was gazing adoringly at Ryo. “She really does love you, doesn’t she?”

I continued running my fingers through Ryo’s fur as I answered Rhia. “I’m all she’s ever known. A friend gave her to me as a ‘getting out of the army’ present. She was a couple years late on that, of course, and I’m about 90% sure it was really because Ryo here was the runt of the litter and she couldn’t sell her. So, I took her in and raised her.” I looked at Rhia. “And now she’s the last connection I have to the life that I used to have. Since my family lived in Texas and all.” I put my hand up to stop whatever it was she was going to say. “Don’t worry about it. We hardly spoke anyway. It’s not that I didn’t love them or anything. I’m just not one for keeping in touch. After seeing some of that, I can at least rest assured that whatever happened to them happened so fast that they never knew what was happening.” I gestured at the screen behind her.

She half turned to look at the screen. “Yeah, I was kind of hoping to delay this part a little longer, until you’d wrapped your mind around what I told you earlier. How did you do this, anyway? None of this was here before.”

“Dunno. Same trick as in the bathroom I think. I was staring out the window, trying to imagine what was happening down there, and then boom, there it all was. Let me guess, what happened in the bathroom had nothing to do with the bathroom, did it? That was my power activating, right? My ‘god-like’ power?”

“Not ‘god-like,’” she sighed. “You. Are. A. God.”

I gestured at the screen again. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“That was already there. It just responded to your desire to see current events. As befitting a deity, that screen will let you see anything you want to within your area of responsibility. Which is Earth and its surrounding space.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Oh? Really now? Anything? I just have to think it, right?”

Rhia furrowed her brow and glared at me. “I surely hope that the world’s newest god won’t use his powers to do something so low as peep, right?”

“Perish the thought,” I said, waving her away. “I certainly wouldn’t think of doing it with you right there anyway. Hmmm. My mind’s too much of a mess right now to really focus.” As evidence of that, the screen was rapidly flipping between many different images, clearly trying to zero in on what I wanted. I decided a more analog approach was probably necessary. Putting thoughts into words has always been the easiest way for me to focus my mind, so I gave it a try.

“Screen off.” The screen turned off.

“Screen on.” The screen turned on, showing the moon’s landscape. Probably the default setting when nothing is targeted.

“Screen, show me Ryo.” A closeup view of Ryo popped up on the screen. Seeing herself on the wall, she tilted her head in confusion. The image on the screen mimicked her movements. Ryo jumped off the couch and walked up to the screen. The image, of course, followed her movements, reversed of course, since it was acting as a camera. A thought struck me.

“Screen, mirror image.”

The image immediately flipped and suddenly the Ryo onscreen was perfectly mirroring the real Ryo. She pawed at the screen, watching her reflection return the gesture. I could see her tail start to wag and she prepared to start playing around, but there were other things I wanted to see first.

“Screen, show me Su.”

“Seriously?” Rhia sighed. I shrugged.

“Just testing my new toy. Where’s the harm in that?”

The screen switched to another room I haven’t seen yet. Come to think of it, I haven’t really left this room since I woke up, have I? Ah well. What have we here? Onscreen I saw what appeared to be a fancy dining room, with a long table that seated about twenty. I could see three maids working in the room, clearly getting it ready for a meal. Center screen I could see someone’s back, bright red hair pulled back into a tight bun. The back suddenly straightened and Su’s head whipped around, seeming to stare right at me. No, not seeming. She was staring right at me. Once again, just like earlier in the bathroom, a mischievous grin spread across her face and winked at me. Then she seemed to look to where Rhia was standing and stuck her tongue out at her. Rhia facepalmed as I commanded the screen off.

“Sorry. Wasn’t expecting that.”

“I did. There’s no way she should have known that you were watching her, yet she seems to have this uncanny ability to pick up on it. Freaked Inton out as well. Be careful now. For whatever reason, she seems to have taken a liking to you. Never trust anyone that flirts that much on day one.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I turned back to the screen. “Screen, show me the ISS.”

The image of a half wrecked space station appeared on the wall. Well, I say half wrecked. What we were really seeing was half a station. It was like someone had neatly cut it in half. We both stared at the screen.

“There’s no way anyone’s alive in there, is there?”

Rhia absentmindedly shrugged her shoulders, never taking her eyes off the screen. “You never know. Remember how I was telling you about people surviving things they never should have earlier? I’ll admit, the odds are low, but not impossible.”

“Screen, show me the interior of the ISS.”

The view switched to the inside of the station, breaking up into different segments to show me inside each remaining module. When my attention was drawn to one panel in particular, it grew to fill the whole screen. It looked like there was still some power there, and I could see two bulky spacesuits just floating there. The view moved until I could see two men through the faceplates in their helmets. Their eyes were closed, and they weren’t moving. I had no way of telling if they were alive or not.

“Is there any way we can find out if they’re alive?”

“I suppose we could fly on over and take a look. It’s not like you’ll die from exposure to outer space, you know. You’re still awakening to your power, however, so that may not be a smart idea right now. It took a week for you to heal from the rapid acceleration I put you through when we met. I’d feel better if you were protected out there, but we don’t really have a selection of ships and spacesuits lying around.”

I could imagine where she was coming from. I’d spent 35 years living my life as a normal human. Conditioned to believe that I could die any number of ways, to include suffocation and freezing, both of which were typical results of exposure to outer space. If what Rhia told me was true, and I had no reason to doubt her at this point, I would actually be fine in such conditions. At least, my body would. Mentally, however, would be a different story. My subconscious would still be trying to suck oxygen into my lungs. Oxygen that wasn’t exactly in high abundance outside an atmosphere. I’ll ask her for some kind of training regimen once things have settled down. In the meantime, there were more important things to worry about.

“What about just you, then?” I asked her.

She looked away from the screen to stare at me. “What about me? Are you suggesting I fly out there and peek in the window?”

“Well, yeah. We need to verify if they’re at least breathing. If they’re still breathing, we can figure out a way to save them. You know your abilities better than I do. I’m sure you must know a way.”

Rhia eyed me for a minute, as if weighing her options. I decided to try one last approach.

“Haven’t enough people died because of us?”

This last question seemed to strike her physically. She took a step back and her breath caught. I poured the pressure on.

“You tell me my job is to guide humanity to a brighter future. If we sit back and just watch these men continue floating out into space without even attempting to help, what kind of example would I be setting? Please, just pop out there and verify their status. Then come back and we’ll figure out what to do after.”

This seemed to finally convince her. She gave me a reappraising look, then said “alright. I’ll go. It’ll be difficult to do this without being spotted by any satellites NASA undoubtedly has pointed at the station, though.”

“It’s a risk we have to take. Lives are more important at this moment, and we’re the only ones in a position to help if they need it. Even if you’re spotted, you’ll probably end up as a legend like the Black Knight satellite or used by the various religions to prove some bullshit point of theirs. Either way, most people will probably just write it off as ramblings of nutjobs, just like they do with most conspiracy theories and images of Jesus in their breakfast.”

“Very well. I’ll be off then.” She turned and left the room. I sat back down on the couch and continued to watch the two men floating on the screen. As Ryo curled up next to me and laid her head in my lap, I saw a golden streak fly by the massive window I was looking out of earlier. Well that confirms my theory about what I saw earlier in the news footage. That streak at the eye of the storm was Rhia leaving Inton to do his thing. I instructed the screen to show me a split view, one steady on the astronauts, the other following Rhia. Her side was just a golden glow for a second before the station, or what was left of it, loomed in front of her. Damn she’s fast, I thought.

Her black wings spread out, as if to slow her speed. Since there was no air in space, I doubted that was why she did it. Probably some angel magic I didn’t know about, or it was just reflex. She did, however, slow down to a more manageable speed as she approached the station, casually moving around each of the remaining modules and peeking in the windows. An idea suddenly struck me.

“Screen, can you show me any feeds that NASA has of the ISS at this moment?” The two main images I was watching shrank to the top half of the screen and three new images popped up, each showing the ISS from a different angle. Yep, there she is. She was clearly visible on two of them, her black wings contrasting with the white exterior of the station as she shuffled about before stopping at one in particular. I focused on the top two feeds again, letting the other three disappear. The images showed her banging on the side of the station, but I wasn’t sure if the guys inside were even capable of hearing anything while in their suits. Frustrated at the lack of response, apparently, she gave the station a quick shove. I was impressed with her remarkable show of strength, but as then men inside pinballed around the interior, I saw no attempt from either of them to slow or stop their movements. Of course, this didn’t completely rule out their being alive, but it did significantly lower the likelihood.

I simply didn’t have the knowledge to be able to know if these guys could survive a week in a crippled space station. Since they were in their suits, I would guess that the air in the station had run out, and that they had taken refuge in them to buy themselves more time. I made a snap decision then. Keeping my eye on Rhia’s screen, I tried thinking as loud as I could. Maybe she’d pick up on it.

RHIA!

She grabbed at her head in shock, then turned around to face the moon, shooting a dirty look in its direction. She wasn’t quite looking at me through the screen, but she was damn close.

Sorry. Too loud?

She nodded.

Alright, I won’t do that again. Can you communicate back to me like this?

A negative headshake.

Ok, then just listen. I want you to grab those two men, no matter if they’re dead or alive, and take them home. Houston’s gone, so I guess… I tried to think of a place to take them where they’d be received immediately. Just take them to a hospital. Johns Hopkins or something.

She made a dubious face and pointed back at her wings. Guessing that she was saying this would expose her to the world, I shrugged, not that she could see it.

Don’t worry about that. Whether they live or die, they deserve to return home one more time. Who better to deliver them than an angel?

Pausing for just a second, she turned around and ripped the hatch she was next to off the station. When nothing flew out of the station at the sudden exposure to vacuum, it confirmed my belief that the station had leaked its remaining air out, despite their attempts to seal off the modules that still remained. She grabbed them and tucked one under each arm before turning towards Earth and flying off in a golden arc. I could see she was flying slower, so as to not crush the men she carried with excessive g forces, like she did me when she brought me up here. I was near immortal and survived the trip, however painfully. These men weren’t and had to be handled delicately. I continued watching as she arced over the horizon, a golden streak seen by half the world.