The Growth Accident, Part 15 (Patreon)

As Manuel brings his destruction to one of the city’s most sacred places, Adrian’s desperate attempt to keep people alive pushes him across a boundary he may never be able to uncross. What begins as worship performed for survival gradually becomes something disturbingly genuine, as fear, attraction, belonging, and devotion become increasingly impossible for Adrian to separate—and bring him closer to revealing the final secret he has kept from Manuel.

A short note on this chapter: The religious imagery here isn’t intended as a criticism or mockery of anyone’s faith. What interests me is the psychology behind Adrian’s transformation: how fear, attraction, dependence, belonging, and the desire for protection can gradually reshape someone’s moral perspective—even to the point where devotion to another person can take on an almost religious quality.

Of course, dynamics like these occur in reality in very different and usually far less extreme circumstances. Part of what interests me in exploring such an exaggerated fictional scenario is a rather personal question: Would I trust myself to resist that kind of pull if I were in Adrian’s position? I’d like to believe I would. But if I’m completely truthful with myself, there’s a darker part of me that isn’t entirely certain—and that uncertainty is part of what I’m exploring through this story.