Not from my lips.
From everywhere.
A final exhale of somethin’ that doesn’t even realize it’s gone. I swallow hard, turnin’ to the crystal megalith. It’s still there. Still pulsin’. Still hungry.
And alone.
Because I unmade those monks. I unspooled them.
A deep groan rolls through the cave, vibrating through my ribs, then the ground yanks me back?—
The Arena.
I blink.
The roar of the crowd slams into me like a hammer. Floodlights burn too bright. Metal bars gleam with fresh blood. Three bodies at my feet that I don’t remember killin’.
Fuck. I don’t even remember movin’.
I breathe in. Even. Steady. My heartbeat is slow—way too slow.
Something hums inside me.
Not Spark. Not right.
A long, static-drenched chuckle rumbles through the speakers.
Epsilon.
“Ohhhhhh, my boy.” His voice is silk and wire, pleased, amused.Proud. “Now, wasn’t that fun?”
I stare at the bodies.
At my own hands.
I don’t answer.
It wasn’t. Not because I didn’t enjoy it, but because I don’t remember it.
I do, however, remember the monks.
And I think I could unspool ‘till the end of time.
The smile is just creepin’ up my face when I hear somethin’.
Strainin’ I lean forward. And when I do this, I slip right out of my fuckin’ body. Just… walk away from it—like a shadow. Andwhen I look over my shoulder, the rest of me is slumpin’ to the ground.
I look down at myself, only to find that… I’mhim.
Empty man.
Except my insides aren’t black anymore, I’m filled up with spark. Glowin’ bright blue. Full.
Because I’m the spark stealer.
The unspooler of monks.
What the hell is happenin’ now? Can this shit get any weirder? Can this fuckin’ day get any worse?
