Other World?

"You have died, Alex," the voice replied. "That's all there is to it. You have died."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "No. That cannot happen," I squealed.

"It did happen," the voice repeated, as if to emphasize the finality of the situation.

Suddenly, the space around me shifted, and a small screen materialized in front of me. I was confused and disoriented. "What's this?" I asked.

"Watch it for yourself," the voice said.

I peered at the screen, and my heart sank. The scene seemed familiar but weird. I could see a little girl running over the road to catch her balloon.

"Lisa!" I cried out.

"Is this what I think it is?" I asked the voice.

"..."

I noticed myself in that picture, and instantly, it clicked. This was me before all this started! What was happening to me? All sorts of questions were running wild now, but I had to see what really happened.

The cargo vehicle that was supposed to be going straight turned left at the last moment before hitting the girl. And the unluckiest guy who was half crushed by that was me. ME!

"How am I alive now then?" I asked. "If this is what actually happened, how am I still able to move around, how am I able to talk and even feel this REAL?!" I yelled.

"Humans are indeed a strange race," the voice replied, sighing or at least it sounded like a sigh. "Here, watch from a different angle."

The scene played out again, and I watched from the side of the truck. As I looked around, I saw no hands on the wheel, and there was no person driving it either.

"Hey! What is going on here?" I said. "How can it move if there is no driver present? This seems so surreal."

"Lisa!"

My mind was racing, and I couldn't make sense of what was happening. My confusion only grew as the voice continued to speak.

"Yes, it is true," the voice said. "What happened here is caused by what you humans call it, 'other-worldly.'"

I felt like it had said something important, but I was too worried to notice anything. As I silently watched the situation unfold, I realized the climax was coming.

About a couple of feet away, before hitting the little girl, the handle made a sharp left. How in the world did that happen? It was supposed to go straight.

"No. This isn't real," I said to myself. "That's not how things work."

I couldn't fathom what really happened there. The wheel just turned left. How in the world did that happen?

"Wha-t was that...?" I asked.

"I should have known," the voice muttered. "In simple terms, the turning of the wheel was caused by an entity that wasn't from your world. Some pests ran past my barrier and entered your world."

"Huh? No, no, no, this doesn't make sense!" I cried.

"No matter what you think now, it doesn't change the fact that this is the reality," the voice said. "You have died from the hands of an unknown entity."

"This isn't some fantasy novel where things 'just happen.' This is the real world we are talking about," I replied, even though I was still in the process of understanding all of this.

"Human remain quite. This is happening whether you believe it or not," the voice commented. "Before you could pass onto the realm of the dead, there is something I need you to do."

"Realm of the dead, huh?" I could feel my heart racing.

"What I need you to do is," the voice said to me. "You need to put up the barrier again and terminate the entire race of these pests who went through my barrier."

"What did you say?" I was dumbfounded. "You already had me lost, but now what's with this termination, putting up the barrier?"

"I don't know how much simpler I can make myself."

"You realize I am not your leader type person, yes?" I asked. "Even when I saw that little girl about to get hit, I deliberately chose to ignore it and move on. How do you think I, who is a coward, do something of that difficulty? And more importantly! How in the world would I terminate these 'things' you mention?! I can't kill anyone!" I explained.

"Yeah, it's true, but--"

"AND, MOREOVER, IF THEY ARE ABLE TO PASS THROUGH YOUR BARRIER, WHICH YOU MAKE LIKE IT IS STRONG, WAS PENETRATED, WOULDN'T THEY BE ABLE TO KILL ME TOO?!" I interrupted, my voice growing increasingly agitated.

"Never interrupt me, child, again," the voice said sternly. "All you have to do is do what I asked you to do. All the other things will be taken care of."

I was stunned into silence.

"Understood?" the voice asked.

"Obviously not!" I exclaimed. "Taken care of? How?"

"Complete the task I gave you, then maybe you might get rewarded," the voice said.

"Huh? Rewarded? You realize I am dead, right?" I asked incredulously. I didn't know what sort of reward I would receive that might be helpful to me if I was dead.

"We'll see."

The sight flickered, and I was once again transported to a new location. "Where am I now?" I asked, but no response came.