Version History

Expos stood in a room of complete darkness. A single spotlight illuminated a table. On the table sat a short mushroom stuffy. Expos stared at it, hands folded, face expressionless. Expos gasped and quickly began walking out of the room and down the hall. Expos walked into the entry hall of the Darp Tower. A tall thin person with light hair and light features was sitting on a half log stool that had been expertly crafted by some ancient occupant of the tower.

Expos: "Ah at last! My successor, I have waited many Cycles for you."

Zeshin raised their head to see a short, stout person with dark hair and dark features standing in the hall.

Zeshin: "Hello, I am Zeshin. I do not know how I got here. I do not consider my mind to be the most reliable when it comes to reality but this is a first. Which is saying a lot considering the life I have led."

Expos: "Quite the life it was, truly. I am your largest fan. I had been hoping you would be selected, and it seems the tower has decided at last. Come along now, you are The Most Worthy."

Zeshin: "Evidently you have me at a disadvantage. May I ask your name, largest fan?"

Expos: "Folks call me Expos, and I suppose that is my name in the sense you mean."

They walked together down a hall that curved so slightly it almost had the appearance of being straight, except that looking down its length, one could see it inevitably curved, hiding the end from view.

Zeshin: "How big exactly is this tower?"

Expos: "I am not sure it has a true size. It is as infinite as the universe."

Zeshin: "The universe is finite. We know the Spherve has a diameter; we just have not been able to calculate it."

Expos: "Dear, dear Zeshin, the universe is so much larger than just the place you call home."

The curved walls of the hallway bore strange markings that seemed to shift when observed directly. Zeshin's fingers traced along the smooth stone surface as they walked, feeling subtle vibrations that pulsed in rhythm with their own heartbeat. The air itself felt different here - thicker with ambient magic, as if the tower drew power from sources beyond the Spherve's familiar boundaries.

Expos noticed Zeshin's fascination with the walls and paused their stride. The shorter figure's dark eyes held depths that suggested knowledge accumulated over countless Cycles, yet something flickered there - perhaps uncertainty, or the weight of transition.

Expos: "The tower remembers everyone who has walked these halls. It knew you would come, even when I began to doubt my vigil would ever end."