Between Heaven and Earth

Chapter 4: The Rest

(Same as before, I do not own anything. Credits to Kamachi Kazuma and lowiro)

In the middle of the night

Touma woke up in the hospital, with his hospital gown and patches of bandages over his body. He might have been injured after all of that when suddenly, someone grabs his right arm full of bandages. It was Misaka Imouto with the black cat she hasn't named yet. He might be moving but his body won't be for now because of the painful injuries he received and from the anesthesia.

"Huh?"

Touma was confused about Misaka Imouto visiting him in the middle of the night.

"A-Are you...?"

""Misaka 10032" says Misaka as Misaka answers."

This makes a silence between the two until the cat meows to break the silence.

Touma then sighed for the relief that she is still alive.

"Well, looks like we all managed to come back safely."

""About that" says Misaka as Misaka replies."

""Misaka cannot return to the same world as you just yet," says Misaka as Misaka states."

Touma then realized the experiment.

"Then, the experiment-"

""No, it's not that. It seems that the experiment is headed for cancellation with the defeat of Accelerator" says Misaka as Misaka reports with care"

He was relieved that the experiment was now cancelled but Misaka Imouto then continued.

""The issue with Misaka has to do with Misaka's body" says Misaka as Misaka explains."

"Your body?"

""Yes. Misaka's bodies are clones, originally created from onee-sama's cells, and with the administration of additional drugs, our bodies have been stimulated for rapid growth." says Misaka as Misaka explains."

""As such, we cellular clones, whose lives are already short, have had our lives cut even shorter. Does that make sense?" says Misaka as Misaka asks."

""Which is why it is necessary for the research facility to take us in temporarily, and adjust each of us individually. Are you listening?" says Misaka as Misaka asks, glowering."

He might have a little grasp of this.

"Adjust you?"

""Yes. By performing a hormone balance for our rapid growth, and adjusting the mitotic rate of our cellular nuclei, they will be able to restore our live spans to some degree." says Misaka as Misaka answers."

Then she stood up from Touma's hospital bed to get her cat, and bid farewell (for now, that is).

"Well then..."

But before she leaves,

"H-Hey, hold on!"

She stops walking and stands right there as if he's asking her another question.