They had seen beasts emerge from the Rift. Vessels cloaked in hatred. Rejected children, twisted and broken by the Librarian's hand.
But never this.
The Rift no longer pulsed with danger.
It shimmered with stillness.
And from within that stillness, Truth stepped forth.
---
The entity was neither man nor woman. Neither light nor shadow. It took a form their minds could understand — tall, cloaked, face hidden in silver mist. But its presence went deeper, like standing in the eye of a storm you hadn't realized you were inside.
When it moved, it didn't disturb the ground — but the air remembered.
And that was the most terrifying part.
It wasn't here to conquer.
It was here to reflect.
---
The City held its breath.
Children who had survived fire and darkness stood frozen.
Even the flame pools quieted, flickering in reverent silence.
Only Isen stepped forward.
The spiral on her hand now burned with soft light, mirroring the one slowly unfurling across the being's chest.
