STEM 11 - ANDROMEDA 21st Century Performance Task

Simeon L. Lacson Jr.

“An Angel’s Return to Heaven”

In the vast expanse of this observable universe, there is an ever-expanding

space encompassing countless worlds and billions to trillions of galaxies.

Beyond it, it is still unknown and unable to be seen.

Then, what about the edge of the endlessly expanding universe?

It is where what you call the rulers of heaven—angels, gods, and

transcendent beings—resides. In a place where only if you are able to cross
the realm beyond time and space can you reach it, one such curious angel
decided to descend upon a mortal world.

Earth is a beautiful planet and one of the few habitable planets in the
universe. In its atmosphere, what seems to be a meteorite fell from the sky
and crashed into the ground.

The said meteorite landed inside a dense forest, causing the silence to fade
away from the loud sound stronger than thunder itself.

However, no creatures panicked at the crash, seemingly like there are no

creatures that live within it.

Except a man with black hair and tattered clothes slowly approached the
crash site out of curiosity. He was staggering in his steps and oftentimes fell
to his knees as he closed in towards the site.

The man had a malnourished body, evident from his skinny arms and legs,
and looked like he was drained of strength and vitality.

Crack!

"W-who's there?"
The man asked in a hoarse voice, mustering all he had to say. He was
dehydrated and couldn't even remember the last time he drank.

He carefully approached the source of the sound, and there he saw

something—someone who once again captivated the depths of his heart. The
man was mesmerized by the sight in front of him: an angel with two pairs of
ethereal white wings and green eyes that seemed to pierce his soul.

The angel approached him with careful steps, sizing up his body, and a frown
showed on her face before it disappeared.

"I am Mari; what is your name?"

Suddenly, the angel asked in a gentle tone, which filled the man with
nostalgia as her soothing voice resounded like music to his ears.

"I..."

It took him a few moments before he inevitably replied to the angel's inquiry.

"I'm Sean..."

At the moment he spoke his name, vague images started filling his mind
before they disappeared as if they were never there. Sean's head started to
hurt. Seeing that, the angel waved her hands horizontally in front of his head,
and the pain gradually faded away.

"Nice to meet you, Sean. Did it hurt?"

The angel inquired, giving Sean a kind smile.

Once again, he was captivated, not by her beauty but by her familiar smile,
which seemed to ignite the fire of an unknown emotion residing within his
heart.

"Yeah, it did for a moment, but it soon disappeared. How did you do that?"

"Fufu~ Shhh, stay quiet, and let me heal you. The treatment I just did was
temporary; soon the pain will once again return, and it will be much harder to
bear than the last one."

Upon saying those words, she sat down on the grassy ground and gestured
for him to lay on her lap. Although dumbfounded by her actions, Sean
eventually followed her instructions and laid his head on her thighs. Then, she
chanted ancient words unable to be comprehended by a mortal such as
himself; for Sean, it sounded like a lullaby sang by a mother to ease her baby.

It made him feel the essence of tranquility, and finally his consciousness
faded away without him knowing that his whole body was glowing a golden
hue.

Only when he finally entered his dreams did the angel reveal a tired sigh and
a wry smile.
"Ahhh, he looks so cute when he's sleeping."

"If only..."

"This could last a little longer."

...

Days passed by, and the complexion of the man eased bit by bit with the help
of the angel. As of now, his body had already gained some weight, and his
arms and legs had gained some muscles.

In contrast to what he felt, Mari looked pale and exhausted with each
passing day; however, she tried her best to hide it from his eyes. Although
they were always together, it would only take so long before she was
discovered by Sean.

Nonetheless, Mari didn't care, as her goal for coming here was to close its
completion; she was already satisfied with this, no matter the outcome that
may come after that.

A month later, starting from when Mari descended into this world, even
without recollection of anything of what happened before he entered this
forest, Sean would from time to time stare at the empty air, his eyes
apparently looking lost.

"Mari..."

Sean called her name, right after he recovered from his dazed state.

Sean looked lost; he was frowning, and a stinging pain lingered in the depths
of his heart.

"Mari."

He called her name once more, but no response came his way.
It was then that Sean started to feel anxious. He started to look for her all
over the forest, but to no avail. Then, a sudden thought popped up in his
mind, and he headed in a certain direction.

The crash site where he first...

Was it really the first?

But he had no time to think, and his steps started to accelerate at a much
higher speed while his heart started to beat faster.

"Mari..."

Once again, he called her name.

And once more, no response was heard.

Sean wanted to scream; he wanted nothing more than to rush to her side.

Towards Mari's body, seemingly lying lifelessly on the ground, her face was
pale and full of wrinkles, and her hair was white like her previous,
un-withered wings.

"Why didn't I notice it sooner?"

He thought of himself as a fool as he approached her side, step by step. It

was faint and light, but it was audible enough to Mari's ears.

"Mari."

He called.

This time, however, he received a response. Mari's unchanging, enchanting

smile reached his eyes, rapidly inching closer to his heart.

Their gazes met, but none said a word. One pair of eyes was full of vigor and
vitality, while the other had long lost its color.

"Is this what you wanted?"

"Indeed."

"Are you happy?"

"I am."

"I am satisfied, Sean. No one can say otherwise."

"I've fulfilled my goal of returning to this world a second time."

"You're foolish."

"Indeed, I am."

"Naive."

"Fufu, perhaps so."

"Lovestruck fool."

"That I can't refute, though I never expected those words to come from you."

"It'll be lonely."

"......"

"Do you really think I want this?"

"......"

"If you really wanted to save me, then you should've saved yourself."

"..... Sean."

In response, Mari only smiled as she spoke his name.

"Do you want to hear a story?"

She asked him.

"......"
Sean did not reply; even so, she didn't mind and began her story.

"There was once a girl who came from the heavens above, a place where no
mortals could ever hope to reach. The girl was childish, naive, and lively. All
she wanted was to explore this everlasting universe and have the time of her
life, but at the same time she executed what her heart told her to do; she was
forsaking her responsibilities."

"But then again, who cares? She had already explored every corner of
heaven, so out of curiosity and boredom, she decided to sneakily descend on
a mortal called Earth. What a naughty girl, don't you think?"

"Fufufu~ What do you think happened next? A typical tale of romance, she
fell in love with a man, who ensnared her every bit of her being."

"He was everything to her. He was her source of love, care, and happiness.
She wanted nothing more than to stay in the mortal world for eternity."

"However, she was discovered, as the girl had broken a forbidden rule, and
that is..."

"To love a mortal."

"And so, the rulers of heaven broke them apart; the girl was returned to her
place, and the man was erased of his memories and sent to a faraway place
for punishment."

"After that, what do you think the girl did?"

"......"

"Fufufu~ As anyone would suspect, she once again sneakily descended upon
the mortal world to see the man, only to find him suffering. The man was
slowly losing his vitality without stopping and without any recollection of his
memories."

"He was approaching his death as punishment from the rulers of heaven, and
the girl couldn't bear to see this happen; she wanted to prevent this from
happening; however, there was only one cure."
"What do you think it is? That's right, in exchange for his life, she gave him
her own. It was a punishment from a divine being; he was slowly being stolen
of his vitality, and the only way to save him was by giving him her own life."

"Do you think the girl regretted her decision? Was it really wise to exchange
her own life for the man?"

"Of course not, you dumbass."

"Fufufu~ In your eyes, it might be so. However, people have different values,
and to me..."

"I only wish for you to live, so I can love you even if we are far apart."

"Even if for you it is not the right decision, I did what I did, and I will never
regret it one bit."

It was then that she found herself deep in his embrace, and her smile
widened as she breathed in a whiff of his smell one last time.

She was satisfied.

The relief that came over her because she was able to save the love of her
life was overwhelming.

And slowly, her eyes closed, and giving him the brightest smile of her life, she
spoke her last words.

"After all, even in the event that I die, as an angel, I would simply return to
heaven."

“Sometimes even the smallest decisions can change your life forever.”

-Kerri Russel / Success.com-