Beverly sat cross-legged on the strange, pulsating ground of the pocket dimension, her mind reeling with questions. Angele and Joanna, now fully reverted to their natural forms, loomed beside her, their tentacles undulating gently in the thick, metallic air.

“What… what are you?” Beverly asked, her voice trembling slightly. “Where do you come from?”

Angele’s eyes, now a kaleidoscope of swirling colors, fixed on Beverly with a gentle intensity. “We are anthropologists from a world far beyond your own,” she said, her voice a melodic thrum that seemed to resonate in Beverly’s bones. “Our planet’s name, in your language, would be a series of images and sensations, impossible to pronounce with a human tongue.”

Joanna nodded, her own voice joining Angele’s in a hypnotic harmony. “The same is true of our birth names. In our natural form, we communicate through a complex interplay of light, sound, and chemical signals.”

Beverly shook her head, trying to wrap her mind around the concept. “But you look human… or you did. How is that possible?”

“We have the ability to reshape our physical form to a limited extent,” Angele explained. “But it requires great concentration and effort, and we must return to our true selves to regenerate and recharge. That’s why we created this pocket dimension – it’s a small piece of our homeworld, a place where we can be ourselves.”

Beverly hesitated, almost afraid to ask the next question. “And your relationship with me… was that all just a study? An experiment?”

Joanna reached out with a tentacle, gently brushing Beverly’s cheek. “No, Beverly. Our feelings for you are real and profound. We never meant to cause you harm. We didn’t know that prolonged exposure to our kind could trigger a metamorphosis in humans. By the time we realized what was happening, it was too late.”

Angele’s voice took on a tone of deep regret. “We hoped that your world’s medical science might be able to reverse the process. But when we discovered the plan to euthanize you, we knew we had to intervene, even if it meant violating our own version of your Prime Directive.”

Beverly’s eyes widened. “The Non-Interference Mandate? How did you know about the euthanasia? How did you find me?”

In response, Angele waved a tentacle, and a shimmering screen appeared in the air before them. “We have ways of monitoring events in your world,” she said. “We saw what they were planning, and we knew we had to act.”

Beverly stared at the screen, a sudden thought occurring to her. “Can you show me what’s happening in 3B? In your condo?”

Joanna nodded, and the image on the screen shifted, revealing a scene of controlled chaos. Forensic investigators swarmed through the familiar space, dusting for fingerprints and bagging evidence. Beverly watched, her heart in her throat, as they tore apart the life she had known, the home she had shared with her beloved friends.

Suddenly, one of the investigators answered a phone call, his face growing grim as he listened to the voice on the other end. “Another team has arrived at Anderson’s family home,” he said, his words sending a chill down Beverly’s spine. “They’re bringing them in for questioning.”

Beverly lurched to her feet, panic and determination warring on her face. “I have to go back,” she said, her voice shaking but resolute. “I have to make sure my family is safe. I won’t let them become targets because of me.”

Angele and Joanna exchanged a long, unreadable look, their tentacles twining together in a gesture of silent communication. Finally, Angele turned back to Beverly, her eyes glowing with a fierce, protective light.

“You’re not a prisoner here, Beverly,” she said, her voice a solemn vow. “But you need to understand the dangers that await us on the other side of that portal. And you’ll need help navigating in three-dimensional space because you won’t be in human form.”

Beverly nodded, her jaw set with determination. “That doesn’t matter. I can’t hide here while my family is in danger.”

And with those words, the three of them turned to face the shimmering portal, ready to plunge back into the chaos and uncertainty of the world they had left behind.

Not. The. End.