POV: “Echoes in the Rift”

  (Dark Zoe’s Parting Thoughts)

  I am the shadow that lingers,

  ? the piece you cast aside,

  ? the part you thought too jagged,

  ? too broken to keep alive.

  But I am you, Lightbearer.

  ? The mirror you refuse to see.

  ? For every bright thing you hold,

  ? there is darkness—

  ? and that darkness is me.

  Now, the Balance pulls.

  ? It’s funny, really.

  ? You fight so hard to hold it,

  ? to make it steady,

  ? to save them all.

  And yet, here I am.

  ? Still doing your dirty work.

  ? Still stepping into the chaos,

  ? because you never could.

  This isn’t about redemption.

  ? It isn’t about proving myself.

  ? No one will sing songs of the shadow,

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  ? no one will whisper my name in the dark.

  But I’ll do it anyway.

  ? Because if I don’t,

  ? you’ll break.

  And you, Zoe,

  ? can’t afford to break.

  The rift tears at me,

  ? pulls me apart,

  ? swallows me whole.

  ? It hurts, but I’ve always known pain.

  ? It’s an old friend, familiar and steady.

  And as I sink into the light and the chaos,

  ? as my edges blur and my voice fades,

  ? I find something unexpected.

  Peace.

  I was never meant to stay.

  ? You were always meant to grow.

  ? And in my last, fleeting moments,

  ? I am proud.

  Not of myself,

  ? but of you.

  Because the light isn’t beautiful

  ? without the dark.

  ? And now,

  ? you can finally shine.