by Sela Croft
Rosamon stepped forward. “We must find a way to undo what the evil sorcerer is doing and is planning to do. He has operated unchecked for too long.”
“More will suffer if we don’t stop him,” Amalia said.
Logan appeared to ponder the situation. “Okay, we’ll vote. And I’ll go along with the majority.”
It seemed all but Logan were anxious to proceed. “Well, Morrigan, tell us what to do next,” he said.
Morrigan directed us to split up. “Go to a mirror and discern its message. The scenes are garbled and it’s difficult to tell what is really going on. We must make sense of it, then use the knowledge to unravel Seth’s plot.”
“We must know what is going on in the Fae realm,” Amalia said. “At first glance, many of the scenes are of other places. Some are in this human realm and others are of Shadowland.”
“And some are obscured,” Morrigan said. “It’s undetermined what realm is shown in the glass of those. I’ll focus there and see if I can figure it out.”
The group disbursed and went to the mirrors as instructed. The swirl of scenes around us was disorienting. I blocked out the other mirrors and paid attention to a select few. The scenes were more abstract than photographic. Maybe Seth put them in code, so others couldn’t use them.
Distracted, I looked around. Morrigan stood before a mirror with her hands raised, staring into its depths. Suddenly, I was struck with its meaning and yanked on Rosamon’s arm. She looked at it too, so we went over.
“See…right here,” I said, telling Morrigan what I’d perceived. “That has to be it.”
Amalia looked too, squinting at the image. “I see what you’re talking about. Those scenes involve the Fae realms. I’m sure of it. That’s a start, a clue of sorts. We should be able to decipher more.”
“I’m looking at it,” Morrigan said. “I didn’t make that out before. It’s difficult to shed light on the meaning of these obscure images.”
“Well, try harder.” Amalia had snapped. It seemed that the pressure was getting to her.
“Try yourself,” Morrigan said. “You’re Fae, so you’re part of the problem. We are helping you.”
Amalia’s distorted face turned red with rage. “Don’t do me any favors,” she said. “You wouldn’t be here, if the outcome didn’t matter to you.”
Morrigan thrust a hand in the air, as if dismissing an underling. I feared the argument would turn physical and cringed at the thought of the princess fighting the sorceress.
But Logan stepped between them. “That’s enough. We have work to do and little time to accomplish our task. I suggest that we focus.”
Logan was impressive when he was angered. His emerald eyes flared and his muscular body, all six feet of it, towered over the rest of us. His terse edict stopped the bickering, which wasn’t surprising. It would have been stupid to cross him. We were in this together, but he was the vampire prince. And he was in charge.
Chapter 15
Callie
Rosamon still had the notes from our mother. She held up a page and said, “Our mother mentioned these mirrors, more than once. She didn’t know much about them. But…she thought they should be destroyed.”
“We can’t do that,” Morrigan said. “This is our chance to succeed against Seth.”
“Maybe it is,” Rosamon said then looked with horror at the mirrors. “Or maybe it isn’t. The more I look into them, the more afraid I am.” She paused. “My mother wrote about what magic seemed to have done to her life.”
My sister looked right at me. “And look at all we’ve been through, from using magic. Given all that we know, maybe our mother was right. The mirrors should be destroyed.” Her voice fell to a whisper. “They are evil.”
The mention of evil pierced to my heart. Shame consumed me without warning. I’d been accepting my sorcerer heritage, as well as my vampire state. But was the power I held good or evil? Deep inside, I feared that it might be evil, as my mother had said.
“I’ve used them,” Rosamon said. “In the prison, I learned much about them. And was willing to increase my ability through their use. It had seemed right. But I have my doubts.”
Amalia’s voice rose above Rosamon’s. “How can you say that? The mirrors are magic. But that isn’t bad or good. It depends on how you use them. I relied on my mirrors in my kingdom, and I resent being thought of as evil.”
Rosamon didn’t pursue it. I knew my sister well, so understood her hesitation. The situation was overwhelming, easy to misunderstand. I wasn’t sure that I was clear on things, either. When Amalia had used her mirrors and taunted me, she’d done so for her own reasons. She’d used them for her evil aims, as far as I was concerned. Yet this wasn’t the time to debate that with her.
The others returned to the task of studying the mirror images. I turned back to one that was nearby to get a better view. The scene was violent and upsetting. There was too much blood, too many unheard screams, but the faces gave away the agony.
The repulsive vision made me turn away and put my hand over my eyes. Logan put his arms around me to hold me close. I accepted the comfort, needing an escape. It was all too much. The magic, the evil, the suffering.
Noah called to Logan about a mirror at the other end of the room. He released me from his embrace then kissed me sweetly. “I’ll be right back.”
There were a few normal looking mirrors, so I tried to get a clearer look. One of the reflections drew me in. I gazed into the glass, that seemed to function as a real mirror should. I craved getting a better sense of myself. I fought the idea that I was evil, yet maybe it was true.
Staring at my reflection, I tried to get centered and shed the uncomfortable feelings. There I was with my dark hair and glowing eyes. If I looked at myself, I might see the truth. The young woman I saw in the mirror was me, so I looked closer to reorient.
Startled, I took a step back. I looked at the image of myself in the mirror. Then the image in the mirror looked back at me—as though it was a different person. Unable to pull away, I stared at the woman across from me. She was me, only she wasn’t.
The image spoke to me, in a way that only I could hear. “You need to cross over, Callie. You know it’s the thing to do,” the image said. “You need to join your father.”
Stunned, I didn’t move. Reflections couldn’t speak; they shouldn’t speak. Only this one had.
“You and Rosamon belong at your father’s side.” The image spoke without showing any emotion. Her lips didn’t move but I heard the words.
“Step through the mirror, Callie,” she said. “You know you want to. It’s best for everyone.”
She was right; I did want to. The pull was strong. My mind had ceased to function on its own. All I could think of was being with my father, being on the other side of the mirror. The need to cross over was compelling.
But I wasn’t sure what to do. Confusion nagged at my consciousness but didn’t quite surface. The voice in the mirror mesmerized me, and I was paralyzed. Stuck in indecision, I didn’t move toward the mirror. Then my reflection…reached out for me.
Chapter 16
Logan
Rosamon was quite intrigued by one of the mirrors. Standing beside Noah, she gazed into the glass. I watched as she spoke in an animated fashion. As she referenced an image, she pointed it out, then talked about it using hand motions to describe it better.
“This is a window to a part of the Fae land that I’m familiar with,” she said. “I’ve seen it all before, through the mirrors that were in my prison room.”
The images moved at a rapid rate and I marveled that she could see them that clearly. I assumed it was because the scenes were familiar.
“It’s horrible,” she said then put her hand over her mouth. “He must be stopped.” She looked at Noah then glanced at me.
It was obviously a horror, even though I couldn’t see the detail that Rosamon could. “What do you see?” I hoped this would provide clues about Seth.
“Look at t
he creature.” Rosamon pointed a finger at a blob that looked like a Fae creature.
The thing had pointy ears and was colored to be easily disguised in the mushroom forests. But whatever it was, it wasn’t recognizable. “What’s wrong with him?”
Rosamon had tears in her eyes. “When I last saw that creature, he had his own sort of beauty. He was odd, but only as Fae sometimes are. But now…he’s been nearly destroyed.”
Noah gazed at the image she referred to, and I wondered if he saw what I did. The creature appeared disfigured in an awful way.
“The poor thing has been transformed into a monster. It must be Seth’s handiwork. The creature has been altered into something horrible. It reminds me of the distortion to Amalia’s face.” Rosamon covered her eyes. “I just…it’s too hard to face. Seth is turning the Fae into repulsive creatures.”
Noah put his arm around her, so she opened her eyes. She pointed out another creature and another. Some types I hadn’t seen before, yet she had. There seemed to be no limit to Seth’s cruelty.
I glanced around to see where Callie had gone and spotted her standing in front of a mirror. From a distance that mirror looked like a normal one with a reflection instead of a window to a realm. She seemed different, but I couldn’t say how.
Callie was usually lively. She would have noticed me looking at her and responded, but she didn’t. Her body posture was stiff, making me wonder what she saw in the mirror. I knew my love well, but my eyes seemed to betray me.
Her hair was raven black as it had been, but it looked perfect like a stylist had tried a bit too hard for the effect. And her clothes were pressed so not a wrinkle showed. That was unusual, so I struggled to remember if she’d looked that way before.
Brushing aside my mental meanderings, I went over to Callie. I was sure that as soon as I spoke to her all would be well. Yet I stood beside her and she didn’t turn to look at me. That was strange. “What do you see in the mirror?”
Callie jumped when I spoke, but I had no idea why she’d be startled. She gazed up at me, yet the look in her eyes was peculiar. Then she smiled at me, a bit uncertainly at first. That allied my suspicions somewhat, yet I was puzzled.
In the few moments I’d left Callie alone, something must have happened. I was concerned about her, yet unsure how to put that to rest. She wasn’t indicating any distress or sharing what she’d seen in the mirror. It was possible that I was making too much of things.
“What’s wrong, my love?” I touched Callie’s cheek, but she didn’t seem to respond to me. The atmosphere between us was cold, devoid of passion. Her violet eyes were vapid, and she seemed soulless.
I was freaking out, needed to get a grip. Surely, I was reading too much into her reactions. Yet she hadn’t answered my question. In fact, she hadn’t spoken at all, which was downright weird.
When I studied her, it seemed that she was afraid to tell me something. Almost as if she spoke that she would give something away. But what secrets could we have between us?
Panic took over. This was Callie, the woman I loved above all else. Had I lost her? And if so, how? In such a brief interlude, it seemed unlikely any major change could have occurred. We hadn’t argued. As far as I remembered, we’d been close. The last time I’d stood next to her, love had filled my heart.
I’d felt love from Callie, and, simmering passion even when we had been doing very usual things. The bond between us had been there, unbreakable. Yet I couldn’t feel it, so faltered in my certainty that we couldn’t be separated.
It wasn’t clear if the change was in me, or in Callie. Yet I was the same. Possibly, she sensed the lingering repulsion I had from viewing the creatures Rosamon had pointed out. It had been sickening to see, and difficult to brush aside. But Callie would be able to tell that any bad feeling wasn’t connected to her.
A bad feeling couldn’t be connected to Callie, who was only good, joy, love. She was everything to me. And to see her that way, feel the discord, made my heart fall. I dared not think that she wouldn’t snap out of it, and marveled that I’d even considered such an awful thought.
“It’s alright, my love,” I said then took her hand. “You may tell me, anything at all. You know I support you in all things. Whatever is distressing you, don’t hold it inside. You may share it with me.” I kissed her hand. “I beg you to share it with me.”
Still no response. The blank look in Callie’s eyes was disheartening. I floundered for how to revive her. “Was it something you saw in the mirror?”
I pulled Callie close and wrapped my arms around her, as reassurance of my love. She remained stiff, without hugging me back. I tipped her chin up and kissed her lips, but she might as well have been frozen.
At long last, she spoke but her expression revealed no emotion despite her words. “I saw something in the mirror.”
When I released Callie, she stepped away from me. If I remained calm, I hoped she would tell me what she’d seen.
“I confess that I felt something when I looked in the mirror,” Callie said. Her voice was steady and devoid of feeling. The way she said it reminded me of an automaton.
Callie stood with her arms at her sides, looking at me. “I saw something in the mirrors that tells me my father is preparing.”
It was curious that she used the word father instead of Seth. Her unexpected use of a term of affection got my attention. “What is your father preparing for?”
“Vengeance,” she said. “That is what he’s doing in the Fae lands. He’s reaping vengeance against the beings there, the monsters…or what he’s turning into monsters for his own reasons.”
A tinge of fear raced up my spine. Callie might have seen into the depths of the evil. The sight might have affected her. But I dared not ask. It was enough that she was finally talking to me.
“Who are the targets of his vengeance, since those who imprisoned him are long gone?” I hoped she’d offer something useful.
When Callie didn’t immediately respond, I thought she hadn’t understood the question. “Could you tell whom Seth is after? If he seeks to make the ones who damaged him pay for their crimes against him, he won’t be able to. Those sorcerers aren’t around anymore.”
A glance at the mirror told me that whatever Callie had seen had disappeared. It was merely glass, reflecting Callie speaking with me. But lacked any image of an outside realm. What in the world had she seen?
Chapter 17
Logan
With a gleam in her eyes, Callie began to speak. She parsed her words like a robot, but I resisted the urge to shake her and snap her out of it. What she might relay was too important.
“Seth won’t need to take revenge on the ones who harmed him,” Callie said. “He will seek revenge on their heirs.”
It took a moment for that concept to sink in. My worst fears were realized. All I cared about, everything I loved would be his target. Dread filled my heart.
“Did Seth name those who will be the target of his hatred?” On some slight chance that I was wrong, I’d posed the question, hoping Callie would prove my fears were unfounded.
Callie stood like a marble statue but said, “Seth’s victims will be three. The first will be the sorcerers’ descendants. The wrath each incited will be taken out on their progeny.”
I swallowed hard. “And the other ones he’s after?”
“Second, is Shadowland.” Callie didn’t show the distress I would have thought. I’d assumed she’s grown fond of my kingdom, so would surely care. Maybe I was mistaken.
“And third,” Callie said, “is the human realm that’s been denied him, all these years.”
The last one made me shudder. Seth’s evil would spread to the outside, unless we were able to stop him. If he succeeded, there wouldn’t be a shred of decency left. The goodness of humanity would be perverted, and the world ruled by evil.
For a moment, I was speechless. Callie’s revelation shouldn’t have surprised me, yet it was shocking. The magnitude of what Seth intended to
do was beyond belief. And the worst part was, he had a good start in achieving his aims.
Once Callie began speaking, she seemed willing to continue. “After all, the purpose of the Fae was to serve as weapons in a war, from long ago. As it turned out, that war wasn’t fought.”
“Seth told you that?” There was no way Callie came up with that on her own. The insight Seth had shared made my skin crawl.
Callie nodded. “Seth understands it all. “The Fae aren’t that different from the vampires in your realm. I know what both were made for.”
“And what was that?”
“Fae territory and Shadowland were created as practice arenas; that’s all.”
That premise raised my ire. How dare Seth claim that my kingdom was no more than a playground for war? “I’m glad you have relayed what the evil sorcerer said. But surely you don’t accept that. You’ve been in my realm too long to think that what he claimed is true.”
Callie stared at me. “It is destiny,” she said. “This was all bound to happen. What Seth describes makes sense. Look at all that’s happened.”
I was stunned and overcome with grief that my love would side with the enemy—even if only in concept. “You can’t really believe that.”
“You cannot deny it,” Callie said. “If you examine what has happened through the ages, where the path has led you, then you’ll see the reality.”
“And what is that?”
Callie didn’t hesitate. “The true fight was always about the outside world. The final battle was destined to be fought in the human realm.”
What she said rang true, although I resisted believing it. Yet I refused to think that destiny couldn’t be altered, that there was no hope.
Then I recalled some of the things my parents had told me about the Fae realm and the origins of Shadowland. Through the centuries, war had ravaged both kingdoms. My land was headed for destruction, the royal vampires already near extinction.
Yet legend foretold of a king who would rise to power and save the land. Was Seth to be that all powerful ruler? Was fate that cruel, the future that destitute?
