The eye- Father Glowworm, if he was to call it by its name- was smaller now. Small enough for Yun to pick it up and hold it in his hand. He didn’t know much about human anatomy, but if he were to guess he would say it was around the size of a normal, human eye. If he squinted, it was almost normal. A disgusting but strikingly human piece of flesh, not a spirit bent on consuming him. It was powerless.

The eye wasn’t a perfect sphere, more of an ovaliod. It bulged at the pupil as it looked at him, peering into his soul with an iris of unnatural, almost luminescent green. It was the same color as the slime that had entrapped Yun time after time. He knew that look better than he did anything anymore- it had been the only remaining constant in his life for however long it had been. It made him seem pathetic when he thought about it, so Yun avoided thinking about it.

He was taking too much time to decide what to do. If given the opportunity, it surely wouldn’t have stalled so long before consuming him. What an ironic sentiment to consider, Yun thought, given their current roles. It was improbable- near impossible- that he, the street boy from Makapu, would hold power over one of the most powerful spirits in existence. If Father Glowworm had been in his position, it wouldn’t have hesitated before consuming him. So Yun didn’t hesitate before consuming it.

The sphere was just small enough that Yun could fit it into his mouth in one bite. That, at least, he was thankful for. He didn’t want to hold it in his hands. That would require him to actually think about what he was doing. The sphere- the eye- was about the size of a grape- no, a longan. It was smoother than he had been expecting, and much wetter, as if it was covered with a bitter, sticky glaze. From what he could tell, it would burst if he bit it. He didn’t know if he wanted to or not. He closed his own eyes and made his decision.

Before bit into it, Yun had taken into account the taste of the eyeball’s surface. It was sticky and bitter due to the exterior membrane that prevented him from reaching the center, with a bite that made him want to gag. He didn’t.

The eye burst when Yun clenched his jaw around it, just like he had suspected. Wrongness seeped from the action- the sin and sacrilege tied up in the moment finally released like the snap of a bow. A scream rang out and vibrated through his body, shaking his veins like the strings of an erhu. The taunt surface of the eye exploded as he applied pressure to it, exploding into the thick, bitter jelly that filled it. It had an almost creamy consistency, but none of the sweet taste. Instead, it dug into his tastebuds and alighted them like fire. The taste was so rank it was as if he could smell it, though that might’ve just been the reek of the swampland around him. It tasted almost fleshlike, equal parts like rotten meat, fish innards, and uncooked eggs- all tastes Yun still knew too well. Somehow, altogether, it was worse.

Yun figured that stalling would bide him no time, and swallowed. He had nothing to swallow it with- no syrup to help the medicine go down, no relief from the bitter horridness. His only option was the still swamp water he stood ankle-deep in, but he wouldn’t put that to his lips if it was his last option. It was ironic, given what he was doing. The creamy, jelly-like, almost liquidy texture of the eye’s insides only marginally helped it go down- it stuck to Yun’s throat as it went down. He had to put in extra effort to swallow what of the membrane hadn’t been absorbed into the jelly itself. The taste stayed in his mouth for a moment after. It was bitter, and terrible, and wrong. He could feel the very eyes of the Spirit World turning away from him, ashamed of what he had become.

Good. Let them be ashamed of me. Yun thought. Let them be afraid of me.
He stood where he was and closed his eyes, waiting for whatever was to happen as a consequence to his actions. He didn’t know what it was, but he was ready.