The Draconian Woman. Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Three – When Reality Began to Tear The First Author had barely finished speaking when the chamber shook again. This time the tremor did not come from beneath the roots. It came from above. The immense canopy of the Story Tree shivered violently. Thousands of luminous leaves detached from the branches and spiraled downward like golden snow. As they touched the marble floor, each leaf transformed into a glowing sentence before fading into nothingness. Serakha bent down and caught one before it disappeared. "Every ending is only invisible from the middle." The words dissolved in her palm. Emma stared. "I've decided even the leaves here are philosophers." "They're older than philosophers," the First Author replied. "They remember." A deep sound echoed across the chamber. Not a roar. Not thunder. It resembled the slow tearing of heavy fabric. Only the fabric was reality itself. Hairline fractures spread across the air. Invisible...