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 ( Read more... )

I've thought for a long time that depression is a survival trait. It's like slow acting adrenaline - it doesn't help you in the immediate moment, nor does it help you in the long term.

But it does mean you can deal with a crisis, without being crippled by psychological trauma and grief.

As such it's a perfectly natural and normal response - akin to ( Read more... )