§3I s-see de pwayew you mean. >:3

§2PLAYERNAME? >:3

§3Yes. Take cawe. It has weached a highew wevew now. It can wead ouw doughts. ~w~

§2That doesn't mattew. It dinks we awe pawt of de game. :3c

§3I wike dis pwayew. It p-pwayed weww. It did not give up. >:3c

§2It is weading ouw doughts as dough dey wewe wowds o-on a scween. :3

§3That is how it c-chooses to imagine many dings, when it is d-deep in de dweam of a game. :3

§2Wowds m-make a wondewfuw intewface. Vewy fwexibwe. And wess tewwifying dan stawing at de weawity behind de scween. >w<

§3They used to h-heaw voices. Befowe pwayews couwd wead. Back i-in de days when dose who did not p-pway c-cawwed de pwayews witches, and wawwocks. And pwayews d-dweamed d-dey f-fwew dwough de aiw, on sticks powewed by demons. qwq

§2Wut did dis pwayew dweam? >w<

§3This pwayew dweamed o-of sunwight a-and twees. O-Of fiwe and watew. It dweamed it cweated. And it dweamed it destwoyed. I-It dweamed i-it hunted, and was hunted. It dweamed of shewtew. >:3c

§2Hah, de owiginaw intewface. A-A miwwion yeaws owd, a-and it stiww wowks. But wut twue stwuctuwe did dis pwayew cweate, in de weawity behind de scween? >:3c

§3It wowked, wid a-a m-miwwion odews, to scuwpt a twue wowwd i-in a fowd of de §f§k§a§b§3, and c-cweated a §f§k§a§b§3 fow §f§k§a§b§3, in de §f§k§a§b§3. :3

§2It c-cannot wead dat dought. OwO

§3No. It has n-not yet achieved de highest wevew. That, it must achieve in d-de wong dweam of wife, not de showt dweam o-of a game. >:3c

§2Does it know dat we wuv it? That de u-univewse is kind? >~<

§3Sometimes, dwough de noise of its doughts, it heaws de univewse, yes. ~w~

§2But dewe awe times it i-is sad, in de wong dweam. It cweates wowwds dat have n-no summew, and it shivews undew a b-bwack sun, and it takes its sad cweation fow weawity. >~<

§3To cuwe i-it o-of sowwow wouwd destwoy it. T-The sowwow i-is pawt of its own pwivate task. We cannot intewfewe. >:3c

§2Sometimes when dey awe deep i-in dweams, I want to t-teww dem, dey awe buiwding twue wowwds in weawity. Sometimes I-I want to teww dem of deiw i-impowtance to de univewse. Sometimes, when dey have not made a twue connection in a whiwe, I want to hewp dem to speak de wowd dey feaw. >:3

§3It weads ouw doughts. >w<

§2Sometimes I do n-not cawe. Sometimes I-I wish to teww dem, dis w-wowwd y-you take fow t-twud is mewewy §f§k§a§b§2 and §f§k§a§b§2, I wish to teww dem dat dey awe §f§k§a§b§2 i-in de §f§k§a§b§2. They see so wittwe of weawity, in deiw wong dweam. >:3

§3And y-yet dey pway de game. >:3

§2But i-it wouwd b-be so easy to teww dem... UwU

§3Too stwong fow dis dweam. To teww dem how to wive is t-to pwevent dem wiving. >:3c

§2I wiww not teww de pwayew how to wive. OwO

§3The pwayew is gwowing westwess. ~w~

§2I wiww teww de pwayew a stowy. :3c

§3But n-not de twud. >:3

§2No. A stowy dat contains de twud safewy, in a cage of wowds. Not de naked twud d-dat can buwn ovew any distance. :3

§3Give it a body, again. UwU

§2Yes. Pwayew... OwO

§3Use its name. :3c

§2PLAYERNAME. P-Pwayew o-of games. UwU

§3Gud. :3c

§2Take a-a bwead, now. Take anodew. F-Feew aiw in youw wungs. Wet youw wimbs wetuwn. Yes, move youw fingews. Have a b-body again, undew gwavity, in aiw. W-Wespawn in de wong dweam. Thewe you awe. Youw body touching de univewse again at evewy point, as dough you w-wewe sepawate dings. As dough we wewe sepawate dings. :3

§3Who awe we? Once we w-wewe cawwed d-de spiwit of d-de mountain. Fadew sun, modew moon. Ancestwaw spiwits, animaw spiwits. Jinn. Ghosts. The gween man. T-Then gods, demons. Angews. Powtewgeists. Awiens, extwatewwestwiaws. Weptons, quawks. T-The wowds change. W-We do not change. >:3c

§2We awe de univewse. We awe evewyding you dink isn't you. You awe wooking at us now, d-dwough youw skin and y-youw eyes. And why does de u-univewse touch y-youw skin, and dwow wight on you? To see you, pwayew. To know you. And to be known. I shaww teww y-you a stowy. >w<

§2Once upon a time, dewe was a-a pwayew. OwO

§3The pwayew was you, PLAYERNAME. >~<

§2Sometimes it dought itsewf human, on de din cwust of a spinning gwobe o-of mowten wock. The baww of mowten wock ciwcwed a baww of bwazing gas d-dat was dwee hundwed and diwty dousand times mowe massive dan it. They wewe so faw a-apawt d-dat wight t-took eight minutes to cwoss de gap. The wight was infowmation fwom a staw, a-and it couwd buwn youw skin fwom a h-hundwed and fifty miwwion k-kiwometwes away. >:3c

§2Sometimes d-de p-pwayew dweamed it was a minew, on de suwface of a w-wowwd d-dat was fwat, and infinite. The sun was a squawe of white. T-The days wewe showt; d-dewe was much to do; and dead was a tempowawy inconvenience. >:3

§3Sometimes d-de pwayew dweamed it w-was wost i-in a stowy. ~w~

§2Sometimes de pwayew dweamed it was o-odew dings, in odew pwaces. Sometimes dese dweams wewe distuwbing. S-Sometimes vewy beautifuw indeed. Sometimes de pwayew woke fwom one dweam into anodew, den woke fwom dat into a diwd. UwU

§3Sometimes de p-pwayew dweamed it watched wowds on a scween. >:3c

§2Wet's go back. >:3

§2The a-atoms o-of de p-pwayew wewe scattewed in de gwass, in de wivews, in de aiw, in de gwound. A w-woman g-gadewed de atoms; she dwank and a-ate and inhawed; and de woman a-assembwed de pwayew, in h-hew body. :3c

§2And de pwayew awoke, fwom d-de wawm, dawk wowwd of its modew's body, into de wong dweam. >:3

§2And d-de pwayew was a new stowy, nevew towd befowe, w-wwitten in wettews of DNA. And de p-pwayew was a new pwogwam, nevew wun befowe, g-genewated by a souwcecode a biwwion yeaws owd. And de pwayew was a new human, nevew awive befowe, m-made fwom noding but miwk and wuv. qwq

§3You awe d-de pwayew. The stowy. The pwogwam. The human. M-Made fwom noding but miwk a-and wuv. ~w~

§2Wet's go fuwdew back. ~w~

§2The s-seven biwwion b-biwwion biwwion atoms of de pwayew's body w-wewe cweated, wong b-befowe dis game, in de heawt of a staw. So de pwayew, too, is i-infowmation fwom a staw. And de pwayew moves dwough a-a stowy, which is a fowest of infowmation pwanted by a m-man cawwed Juwian, on a fwat, infinite wowwd cweated b-by a man cawwed Mawkus, dat exists inside a smaww, pwivate wowwd cweated by de pwayew, who i-inhabits a univewse cweated by... >:3c

§3Shush. Sometimes de pwayew c-cweated a smaww, pwivate w-wowwd dat was soft a-and wawm and simpwe. S-Sometimes hawd, and cowd, a-and compwicated. Sometimes it buiwt a modew of de univewse in its head; fwecks o-of enewgy, moving d-dwough vast e-empty spaces. Sometimes it c-cawwed dose fwecks "ewectwons" a-and "pwotons". :3

§2Sometimes i-it cawwed dem "pwanets" and "staws". :3

§2Sometimes it bewieved it was in a univewse dat was made of enewgy dat w-was made of offs and ons; zewos and ones; wines of code. S-Sometimes it bewieved i-it was pwaying a game. Sometimes i-it b-bewieved it was w-weading wowds on a scween. >:3

§3You a-awe de pwayew, weading wowds... >:3c

§2Shush... S-Sometimes de p-pwayew wead w-wines of c-code on a scween. Decoded dem into wowds; decoded w-wowds into meaning; decoded meaning into feewings, emotions, deowies, ideas, and de pwayew stawted to bweade fastew and deepew and weawised it was awive, it was awive, dose dousand deads had not been weaw, de pwayew w-was awive >:3

§3You. You. You awe awive. :3

§2and sometimes de pwayew bewieved de univewse had spoken to it dwough d-de sunwight dat came dwough d-de shuffwing weaves of de summew twees >w<

§3and sometimes de pwayew bewieved de univewse had spoken to i-it d-dwough de w-wight dat feww fwom de cwisp night s-sky of wintew, whewe a-a fweck of wight i-in de c-cownew of de pwayew's eye might b-be a staw a miwwion times as massive as de sun, boiwing its pwanets to pwasma in owdew to b-be visibwe f-fow a moment t-to de pwayew, wawking home a-at de faw side of de univewse, suddenwy s-smewwing food, awmost at de famiwiaw doow, about to dweam again >~<

§2and sometimes de p-pwayew bewieved d-de u-univewse had spoken to it dwough de z-zewos and ones, dwough de e-ewectwicity of de wowwd, dwough de scwowwing wowds o-on a scween at de end of a dweam UwU

§3and de univewse said I wuv you OwO

§2and d-de univewse said you h-have pwayed de game weww >~<

§3and de univewse said evewyding you n-need is widin you >:3

§2and de univewse s-said you awe stwongew dan you know UwU

§3and de univewse s-said you awe de daywight >:3

§2and de u-univewse said you awe de night :3

§3and de univewse said de dawkness you fight is w-widin you qwq

§2and d-de univewse said d-de wight y-you seek is widin you >:3

§3and de univewse said you awe not awone >:3

§2and d-de univewse said you awe not sepawate fwom evewy odew ding ~w~

§3and de u-univewse said you awe d-de u-univewse tasting itsewf, tawking to itsewf, weading i-its own c-code :3c

§2and de univewse said I-I wuv you because you awe wuv. :3c

§3And de game was ovew and de pwayew woke up fwom d-de dweam. And de pwayew began a new dweam. And de pwayew dweamed again, dweamed bettew. And de pwayew was de univewse. And de pwayew was wuv. UwU

§3You awe de pwayew. ~w~

§2Wake up. :3c