We fell through the rift again.
I was getting used to the feeling—like your body dissolves into stardust, spins through fire, and slams back into reality with all the grace of a dropped phone.
But this time… something felt wrong.
The air was cold.
The sky was black.
And I couldn't see anything—except the faint shimmer of a cracked mirror floating in the distance.
"Where are we?" Kaela whispered beside me.
Elira looked tense, her hand already on her blade.
"We're in Veritas." Her voice was low. "The world of memory. And nightmares."
"Oh great," I muttered. "A vacation in trauma town."
We took cautious steps forward. With each one, mirrors began appearing around us—floating, spinning slowly. They reflected not our faces… but our pasts.
I saw myself as a child, trapped in a lab.
Kaela saw herself stealing bread, alone in a dark alley.
Elira… saw a memory of herself crying over a burning city.
"Let's keep moving," she said, eyes hard.
But the mirrors weren't done with us.
---
Suddenly, one shattered—and a figure stepped out.
He looked like me.
Same eyes. Same hair. Same face.
But his smile was wrong.
"Hello, Jin," he said, voice like a whisper wrapped in poison. "I'm the part you left behind."
"What… the hell?"
Elira stepped in front of me. "A mirror-spawn. A shadow made from fear and guilt."
Dark Jin grinned. "Aw, did she protect you again? Can't you do anything without her?"
I clenched my fists. "You're not real."
He tilted his head. "But I am. I'm every doubt, every lie you've told yourself. I know who you really are. The scared boy pretending to be a hero."
"Shut up."
"Maybe Seraxion was right," he said, stepping closer. "Maybe you're meant to destroy the Rift… not save it."
"I SAID SHUT UP!"
---
A burst of blue energy erupted from my hand.
Dark Jin staggered back, laughing. "There he is. The real you."
Kaela stepped beside me, flipping a dagger. "Alright, brooding clone boy. Time to disappear."
But suddenly—the ground cracked.
Dozens of mirror-spawn began climbing out from the darkness. Some looked like versions of us. Some were twisted, faceless horrors. One of them even looked like Elira… but with wings made of black fire.
Kaela whistled. "Okay… now it's a party."
We fought.
I don't even remember most of it. Just flashes. My blade clashing against my own shadow. Kaela diving between illusions, laughing like it was a game. Elira unleashing a storm of starlight.
But no matter how many we struck down—they kept coming.
Dark Jin's voice echoed:
> "You can't defeat what lives inside you."
I was starting to believe him.
Until—
Kaela grabbed my collar and kissed me.
---
I froze.
It wasn't soft or gentle—it was chaotic, wild, unexpected.
When she pulled back, she winked.
"Snap out of it, Rift boy. I like you alive."
My face was burning.
"Elira's gonna kill you," I muttered.
"Worth it."
Elira cut through three shadows in a single strike. "Focus, idiots!"
---
We made it to the center of the world.
A massive cracked mirror towered over a black lake. At its core floated the third shard, pulsing with white light.
But in front of it stood… someone we knew.
Dr. Solas.
The rogue scientist. The one who worked for Seraxion.
"Still breathing, I see," he said, brushing dust from his coat. "And now you brought friends."
"What are you doing here?" Elira hissed.
Solas smiled. "Collecting. That shard holds the truth. All of it. The reason why Jin was created. Why the Rift exists."
He looked at me. "Wouldn't you like to know what you really are?"
I stepped forward. "Tell me."
"Okay," he said cheerfully. "But first—Kaela, if you don't mind?"
"What?" I asked, confused.
Kaela didn't move.
"Elira, something's wrong," I whispered.
Then Kaela raised her dagger—and stabbed me in the side.
---
The world stopped.
I stumbled back, blood blooming across my jacket.
"Kaela…?"
She didn't look at me.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "But I made a deal. I didn't know I'd actually start to care."
"NO!" Elira screamed, lunging at her—but Solas blocked her with a flick of his hand.
"Betrayal always stings, doesn't it?" Solas said with a smile.
Kaela looked torn—but didn't stop him as he took the shard.
"You're stronger than I expected," he told me. "But not strong enough yet. Not without this."
With a twist, he opened a rift and vanished.
Kaela stood frozen, dagger dripping.
Elira caught me before I collapsed.
"Stay with me, Jin," she whispered, her voice shaking.
But everything was going dark.
---
In the distance, I saw a memory.
Me and Elira, as kids.
She was crying. I reached out.
"I'll protect you," I had said. "Always."
---
I woke up in a tent, bandaged, weak.
Elira sat beside me, quiet, her eyes red from crying.
"She left," she said when I opened my eyes. "Kaela."
"...Is the shard gone?"
She nodded. "But you're alive. That's what matters."
I stared at the ceiling. Everything hurt.
"She kissed me," I muttered.
Elira looked away. "I know."
"Are you mad?"
She didn't answer.
I reached for her hand. She didn't pull away.
"Thank you," I whispered.
She finally looked at me, and for the first time—I saw real fear in her eyes.
"I thought I lost you."
"You didn't."
She leaned closer, her forehead resting against mine.
"No more secrets," she said softly. "From now on… we face everything together."
I nodded.
Even the betrayal.
Even Seraxion.
Even my dark reflection still whispering in my mind.
We had each other.
And that was enough.
For now.