Status Updates From A Mercy

'Well, Lina mused, deathbreath was a prime creator, a great changer of minds and collector of hearts.'

'Lina picked up the mirror thinking, No please. Don't look.
Never seek out your own face even when well, lest the reflection drink your soul.'

'In the best of times the girl dragged misery like a tail.'

'That God hated idleness most of all, so staring off into space to weep for a mother or a playmate was to court damnation.'

'The last few years he seemed moody, less gentle, but when he decided to kill the trees and replace them with a profane monument to himself, he was cheerful every waking moment.'

'Caring for ill or recalcitrant labor was enough, they said, for canonization.'