..........                                          ..........
..........                                          ..........
..........                                          ..........
..........                                          ..........
..........                                          ..........
-......... they  tell me:  "we are  going to shrink .........-
--........ you."  i  don't quite like  the  tone in ........--
^--....... their voices, like  they are restraining .......--^
*^--...... themselves.  there is  a hunger in  them ......--^*
$*^--..... and  it  wants  me to  shrink. and  what .....--^*$
£$*^--.... really  irks   me  is  that  so  do   i. ....--^*$£
¶£$*^--...                                          ...--^*$£¶
@¶£$*^--.. they  give me  wristbands  and  anklets, ..--^*$£¶@
#@¶£$*^--. made   of  some   strange  stone.  their .--^*$£¶@#
@¶£$*^--..      surface is swirling, like dark      ..--^*$£¶@
¶£$*^--...   thunderstorms trapped in glass, like   ...--^*$£¶
£$*^--.... windows  into  a smaller world, close to ....--^*$£
$*^--..... my  body so  that  it  can  see  clearly .....--^*$
*^--......             whats in store.              ......--^*
^--.......                                          .......--^
--........ they give me food: prawn-like  bugs that ........--
-......... make  my tongue  curl with satisfaction. .........-
.......... "out  of this world", i think, having no ..........
.......... frame of reference. i  eat only two, but ..........
..........      the bugs leave me suspiciously      ..........
..........                satisfied.                ..........
..........                                          ..........
.......... they measure my clothes. "you  are going ..........
.......... to become about half as  big", they tell ..........
-.........  me, barely controlling themselves with  .........-
--........               anticipation.              ........--
^--.......                                          .......--^
*^--......                     ^                    ......--^*
$*^--.....                    ---                   .....--^*$
£$*^--....                  -----                   ....--^*$£
¶£$*^--...                 ........                 ...--^*$£¶
@¶£$*^--..                   -----                  ..--^*$£¶@
#@¶£$*^--.                   ---                    .--^*$£¶@#
@¶£$*^--..                    ^                     ..--^*$£¶@
¶£$*^--...                                          ...--^*$£¶
£$*^--....                                          ....--^*$£
$*^--.....                                          .....--^*$
*^--......                                          ......--^*
^--.......                                          .......--^