(Isabella’s POV) For a moment, I didn’t move. Not because I was afraid. Because I realized there was no script for what came next. The void had asked me to show it. Not take. Not choose. Show. That was different. Behind me, Rex shifted slightly closer, like he could feel how fragile this moment was even without understanding it fully. Lyra looked like she was afraid to breathe too loudly. Astra had gone completely still, eyes fixed on me like I was standing at the edge of something no one had ever crossed before. Even the elderly woman said nothing. The Heart itself pulsed once. Soft. Waiting. The void’s presence remained steady behind the broken door, no longer pushing, no longer breaking forward. Just… present. Watching. Learning. I swallowed. “Okay,” I whispered. The word didn’t feel powerful. But it felt honest. And somehow, that mattered more here than power ever did. I stepped forward. Rex immediately followed half a step, but I shook my head slightly. No
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