VALERIE
The world trembled like a dying heartbeat.
I stood before the construct of my soul — a glowing core suspended in shadows, wrapped in thorned vines that pulsed with the rhythm of memory. Each beat radiated pain and defiance. A jagged crack split through its center like a lightning strike frozen in time. Behind me, Jason stood to my left. Jasper to my right. Dorian slightly behind, his hand on the hilt of his sword. Their presence gave me courage—but the cold weight of what was coming pressed hard on my chest. “She’s coming,” I whispered. The shadows ahead deepened. And from them, the Mirrorheart emerged.
She was me—twisted, sharpened, burned into something darker. Her body shimmered like fractured glass. Her eyes, once mirrors, were now wells of silvery fire. From cracks along he
