The world around him was shifting, not with the erratic chaos of before, but with an eerie sense of purpose. The figures that had spoken to him in silent voices were gone, faded like whispers in the wind. The ground beneath his feet was no longer reflective, no longer showing things that did not belong. It was solid, dark, and unmoving. The sky, however, was another matter entirely. It churned like a living thing, streaked with color and shadow, light bleeding into darkness in ways that defied logic.
Jude took a slow step forward, testing the solidity of his surroundings. His body felt different, lighter in some ways, heavier in others. There was something humming beneath his skin, something he recognized as the presence that had been within him since the beginning of this journey. But it was no longer just a presence. It was woven into him now, inseparable from what he was.
