Was he truly ready? The trials he had faced had stripped him down, forced him to confront pieces of himself he had buried, but was that enough? The reflection tilted its head as if reading his thoughts, and for the first time, it spoke in a voice that was entirely his own, yet completely foreign.
"You already know the answer."
Jude clenched his fists, not in anger, but in determination. He did know. The hesitation was not doubt. It was the last remnant of the person he had been before this journey had begun, the final tether to what had once been. Letting go of that was not easy.
But he had already let go.
The realization settled within him like a weight being lifted. He exhaled, not realizing he had been holding his breath. And then he moved forward, not hesitantly, not cautiously, just forward.
The moment his foot touched the space where his reflection stood, there was no explosion of light, no sudden chaos. Instead, everything became still. Perfectly still.
