The invisible war
I spotted him walking home. His Spark was nearly gone. Even without that, his dull eyes and slow trudge would signal the spirit parasites had claimed another.
He wouldn't last long. A day or two at most. The parasite writhed around him. Invisible to most eyes, they are usually small and faint.
This one had clearly been feeding many years. It had the solidity that spoke of a long ordeal for the host.
There was nothing to be done. His Spark was almost gone. A slim sliver of silver was all that remained.
And yet something wasn't quite right here. The parasite should have been larger. Or it should have finished it's consuming.
He had lasted longer than most manage.
So I followed. A mystery perhaps.
His Spark was fading even as I watched. When it went out? Death would find him. When the will to live is gone entirely, then something would claim him. Disease maybe. Or an accident born of recklessness. Or suicide.
It didn't matter what it was - I knew what actually killed him. The parasite sapping away every bit of fire in his life. The will to live, the moments of joy. All faded and grey.
I almost couldn't watch, but I I followed on out of a morbid curiosity. Why was he different from normal?
But as he trudged slowly up the driveway, to what I assumed was home, I realised. A flash of brindle and tan. A wag of a tail. A joyful bark as he opened the door.
And most of all? A brilliant flash of golden energy that reached out and mixed with what little was left of his Spark. Letting it grow a little. Disrupting the parasite. Buying him just a little more time.
The purest of gifts; freely given.
His back straightened a little, and his eyes lost some of that dull veneer. I fancied I heard him mutter: "No. Not today".
It would be enough.
It was going to be ok.