His manner seemed, all at once, strangely foreign and also more beautiful and natural than anything he had seen in all his life.

The mind fights surrender, but surrender is really the most natural thing in the world.

He walks hand-in-hand with her, his lover. She, who has no face. He worships her, his faceless lover, for she can do no wrong in his eyes.

Once the gate possessed her, Maria begrudgingly, painfully, went back to her regular life, except now she focused every ounce of her energy on becoming Selfless.

Who are you? Are you your clothing? Are you your hairstyle? How about your accessories? Your jewelry? Your shoes? Your makeup?

He didn’t like the way he could feel the heat of his breath reflecting off the back, or the way the world looked smaller gazing through it.

Without a moment of thought, I cocked my head back, my face reaching towards the golden sun, and I let out a guttural cackle…

Suddenly, the ant sunk its tiny, jagged pinchers into my flesh, a sharp stinging pain shooting through my ankle. But I remained still, unmoving…