We rifted into Earth just before dawn.
But it wasn't the world we left behind.
The sky was bleeding—streaks of red light ran across the horizon like open wounds. The air shimmered with static. Our school, Starlight Academy, loomed in the distance... twisted, broken, floating pieces of it hanging mid-air like shattered glass frozen in time.
"Seraxion's anchored here," Elira said, stepping beside me. "He's turning your world into his stronghold."
I stared at the place I once thought was normal.
"I always hated that school," I muttered.
She cracked a smile. "You hate everything."
"I don't hate you."
She paused.
"I know," she whispered.
---
As we got closer, I saw the students—my classmates—trapped inside time loops, screaming silently, caught in moments of terror on repeat. One girl's laughter never stopped, even as her face cracked like porcelain.
A boy ran endlessly into a wall that wasn't there.
"Can we save them?" I asked.
Elira looked down. "Not unless we stop him. All of him."
I frowned. "All?"
But before she could answer, the front gate of the school opened on its own.
And someone stepped out.
Someone who looked just like me.
Except… his eyes were silver.
And he smiled like someone who had never felt guilt.
"Hello, Jin," he said. "It's been a while."
---
His name was Zerion.
Elira went completely still.
"Who is he?" I asked.
She didn't answer.
Zerion walked toward us with the confidence of someone who owned the world.
"Did they tell you I died?" he said. "That you were the only one?"
My heart pounded. "What are you talking about?"
"We were created together, Jin," he said. "You were the dream. I was the weapon. The Riftborn twins. You got the memories. I got the pain."
My mind was spinning.
"No. That's not—"
"Why do you think you can open rifts without a key?" he said, stepping closer. "Why your emotions reshape worlds? We were built to tear reality apart."
"Liar."
Elira stepped in front of me.
"He's not lying," she said.
I froze.
"Elira…?"
Her voice trembled. "They created you both to destroy the Rift. But you were never supposed to wake up. Zerion woke too early. He burned a whole world. So they erased the experiment… and left you behind."
I staggered back.
"They knew I wouldn't survive without a tether," I whispered. "So they gave me… a school. A fake life."
"A dream," Zerion said, grinning. "But dreams always end."
And then, he lunged.
---
The fight tore the sky open.
Zerion moved like lightning—like me, but sharper, more brutal, full of rage.
Every strike felt like hitting a reflection of myself.
Elira fought beside me, blade glowing white with fury.
"Don't hold back," she shouted. "He won't!"
But I couldn't do it.
He was my brother.
---
Then Seraxion arrived.
He stepped through the ruined school gates, the world bending around him.
His voice echoed through every mind:
> "One twin holds destruction. The other holds choice. I only need one."
He raised his hand—
And Elira screamed.
A black chain of Rift energy wrapped around her, dragging her into the air.
"Elira!"
I tried to move, but Zerion pinned me to the ground.
"You don't get to save her," he whispered. "You're not a hero."
"I don't care," I spat. "I just care about her."
I unleashed everything.
A blast of pure Riftlight tore through Zerion, sending him flying.
I ran toward Seraxion, hand outstretched.
"Elira!"
She looked down at me, eyes full of pain.
Then—Seraxion spoke again.
> "Choose. Give me the shard… or she dies."
I hesitated.
Just a second.
But it was enough.
Zerion reappeared and stabbed me through the side—again.
The world cracked.
---
I collapsed, choking on blood.
Seraxion pulled Elira into the air, whispering something only she could hear.
Her eyes widened with horror.
And then… they vanished.
---
I woke up in the ruins of the library.
Alone.
Everything was silent except for the ticking of a broken clock.
Then a voice.
"You're not supposed to be alive."
Zerion again.
He looked… tired.
"What do you want?" I whispered.
He knelt beside me.
"To give you a message," he said. "From Elira."
My heart stopped.
"She's alive?" I croaked.
He nodded.
"She said… 'Don't follow me. Not yet. Find the last shard. Finish this. I believe in you.'"
I closed my eyes.
He stood.
"I'm going back to Seraxion," Zerion said. "But I don't know who I'll be next time we meet."
"You could help us."
"I could," he said. "But I'm not you."
Then he vanished.
---
Now I'm alone again.
But I know who I am.
I'm Jin.
Riftborn. Dreamer. Destroyer. Brother. Lover.
And I'm done running.
---
The final shard lies in the place where I was born.
The Origin World.
Where they made us.
Where it all ends.