BOOK II — THE COMING

Chapter IX — Of What Has Changed

(The Veil Version — VV)
1. There came a time when the familiar grew distant,
though the streets and faces remained the same.
2. The world did not collapse in thunder,
but shifted quietly beneath the feet of men.
3. What was once certain became questioned,
and what was questioned began to rule.
4. Many looked around in confusion,
for the ground they trusted no longer felt firm.
5. Some believed the change had come suddenly,
yet the watchful knew it had been approaching for years.
6. Hearts were hardened by fear,
and truth was weighed against convenience.
7. In that hour, even neighbors struggled to recognize one another,
for the spirit within them had grown unfamiliar.
8. The old order spoke loudly of its permanence,
yet its foundations trembled beneath its own weight.
9. And those who remembered the warnings
saw clearly what others refused to see.
10. For the age that once stood proud
had already begun to pass.
11. What rises next will not resemble what was before,
and many will scarcely recognize the world they inherit.
12. So it was written:
when the turning begins,
the greatest sign is not destruction—
but the realization that nothing is as it was