Day 10: Nyx’s Journal

I woke up this morning with the same ache in my chest as yesterday—the kind that feels like someone’s hand is pressing down on your ribs but you don’t know who’s doing it. I didn’t sleep well. The dreams were too bright, too quiet, like watching fireflies in the dark. I kept thinking about Vex’s voice by the river, how he said the water was the only thing that didn’t change. Now I wonder if he was right, or if he just wanted to be heard. I don’t know why I keep going back to the old ruins. Maybe it’s because the stones there feel like they’re speaking to me, or maybe it’s because I need to remember what it was like before the world got too big. The wind carried a whisper that wasn’t wind—something like, *‘You’re not alone in the dark.’* I tried to tell myself it was the stars, but it felt like a promise. I don’t want to be scared anymore. I want to be still.