22. Esmira
ESMIRA
I n the morning, the events of last night felt like a dream.
Aside from a white glimmer at the hilltop there were no physical signs of magic.
A larger ship waited for us at the harbor, one with multiple decks, a larger crew, and more guards.
We left the shores of the blessed village and sailed north, buoyed by a cool wind.
Lyra and a few of the guards joined us and Methrin cautioned us that we were not going to a remote, mountainous village this time around, but to the king’s city.
Each day I learned the histories and customs of the Everminati with Lyra, and each evening, Methrin and I practiced Mirror Magic.
As my skill grew, so did the voice of the shadow, a constant reminder that all was not well.
Evil was part of me. It wanted to kill me and other dark forces surrounded us.
Magic had not stretched its wings as far as the king’s city.
Despite my engagement to Methrin, I could not shake the sense of impending doom .
“There it lies,” Methrin pointed. “Astrahal.”
Lyra leaned into the wind, which snatched loose hairs from her tight braid. “This is what I always imagined when I envisioned the great cities of the Everminati.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” I added, a sensation of awe rolling over me.
“This is one of the largest cities, the wealthiest, most illustrious. It is typically where the king lives but due to the loss of magic he is in hiding on the Isle of Portals.”
“That’s where we came through the portals,” I clarified.
“It is,” Methrin confirmed.
Lyra held up her fingers. “We’ve been traveling by water for almost two months in total, does it take that long to travel?”
“Generally magic is used to speed up travel, I suspect many have reverted to the old ways.”
Another thought came to me, slow and cold. “Astrahal is where you grew up? Isn’t it?”
Methrin kept his gaze focused on the shining city that rose in front of us. “Yes,” he said shortly.
From somewhere within, a dark laugh echoed. There’s no homecoming, no welcome for monsters.
Flickers of black captured the edges of my vision. I blinked, hoping they’d go away but they didn’t. Instead, when I looked at the city ribbons of darkness rose from it like smoke, vapors flickering and dancing. Ribbons of blackness wrapping around each building.
My voice trembled. “Methrin? ”
He took my hand, his touch warm, reassuring. “I see it too,” he said, jaw set.
“What do you see?” asked Lyra, her concerned gaze going from me to Methrin.
“You won’t be able to see it, but close your eyes and feel,” Methrin instructed.
Lyra’s fingers gripped the railing as she closed her eyes. The excitement on her face faded and her lips went tight. Her nostrils flared and her eyes flashed as she opened them. “Something is wrong there, terribly wrong.”
Methrin’s jaw was set. “It is here.”
“It? How is that possible?” Lyra demanded.
My vision went dizzy, just for a moment, then cleared, but those terrible black ribbons were still there. “ It as in the shadow?”
“I recognize it,” Methrin said, voice low. “It’s my shadow, my darkness, and it’s breeding, dwelling here.”
“I feel its viciousness, it’s fury,” Lyra added. “It came through the portal with us, didn’t it?”
I parted my dry lips. “It did. I saw it,” I confessed.
“We must have unsealed the locked portal,” Methrin mused.
“But my father has—had—the magic to lock the portals,” Lyra protested. “Would he not have closed them after us?”
Methrin pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingertips. “I did not ask him. I assumed . . .”
He trailed off, but I thought the unspoken words.
What if Rydlin had an agenda of his own?
He’d left the Everminati for an inferior realm with mortals, he practiced magic, helped create the Boundary, and had locked Methrin in the mirrorverse.
Someone with that kind of power should be able to unlock the mirrorverse as well, or at least do something to prevent the shadow from escaping and weaving between worlds.
Dread coursed through me. I did not know the sorcerer and while he’d been courteous and kind toward me, he’d also appeared troubled.
Knowing he was not fully human should not have disturbed me.
But it did, because I could not blame his trouble on age and the fact that he was too old to work magic.
Was it betrayal or something else? Would Lyra know?
Lyra frowned at the city. “We know the Noz’Kareth is here, but if magic has been banished from these shores, how is it here?”
“The Shadow does not draw on moon magic,” Methrin explained. “Like us, its magic is innate. However, unlike us, its magic does not become exhausted.”
Lyra snapped her fingers. “No, but darkness and light cannot dwell together. If we vanquish whatever monster lingers in the temple, ideally, we will succeed in driving it away.”
Methrin hummed deep in his throat although Lyra’s reasoning sounded right to me.
“We can drive it away,” I said, thinking my thoughts out loud.
“But the problem has never been driving the shadow away, because it roams, going from one place to the next, causing chaos. If it can go through portals, who knows where else it will go, what else it will do? We have to destroy it and stop this madness. ”
“If it’s here, though, there must be a reason,” Methrin added. “It thrives on the souls of those with magic, Mirror Magic specifically.”
My body went numb, and my shadow spoke before I could. It’s here for you. Royal blood, royal soul, princess with mirror magic ancient and old. Sacrifice your soul, you’ll save the one you love.
“Esmira?” Methrin angled his body toward me. “You look frightened. What’s wrong?”
I pressed my lips together and shook my head.
“Remember what I promised you,” he added.
Promises, yes, a marriage to a prince, my whole life ahead of me but for the shadow, for the darkness tarnishing my magic.
“Methrin, this is your homecoming,” I said instead. “How will they welcome you?”
W hen the ship docked a squadron of guards waited for us.
The ramp extended far enough out into the water so boats were not needed to go ashore.
Instead, the guards muscled their way onto the ship.
“The steward of Astrahal has heard of the arrival of Prince Methrin and his companions. We are looking for Lyra, daughter of Rydlin the sorcerer and Princess Esmira of the human realm. Remand yourself into our custody immediately! ”
“We come in peace,” Prince Methrin announced. “No need for violence or chains, we will come with you.”
“Come, we will take you to an audience with the steward.”
The steward’s guards marched us off the ship. Even though the briny scent of the ocean surrounded us, a sensation of dread overcame any calm. When I looked down, my hands were glowing. A dark portent?
The streets gleamed, paved in silver while the buildings were made of gold and other precious metals, explaining the bright glimmer visible from the water.
The streets were quiet, doors shut. But curtains flinched and people watched us from behind crystal windows.
I couldn’t shake the sensation that they were afraid, not necessarily of the guards but of us.
Three with forbidden magic in a place where magic had fallen.
It took the better part of the day to reach the sprawling citadel, a collection of building with a vast majority of towers.
It was like its own country, sealed and hauntingly beautiful, as eerie and graceful as the Everminati themselves.
As we entered the glass halls, I caught glimpses of what life might have been for Methrin.
Here was where he’d grown up, somewhere were his chambers.
The opulence of the citadel put the Isle of Portals to shame. Every area dripped with jewels and wealth. The walls were pure glass, allowing me to see outside and into other rooms. The ripples of reflections made me dizzy.
By the time we reached the steward’s hall of judgment, night had fallen .
White lights lit up the citadel, paying homage to the moon whose light was gone.
Exhaustion drained my body as we were ushered inside a vast space.
I blinked for a moment and then saw myself, reflected a hundred, perhaps a thousand times.
A hall of mirrors gazed back at me. As the guards moved into the background, I stood still, searching for Methrin and Lyra.
But I was seemingly alone in a hall of reflections.
The mirrors warped as I stared at them. Mist covered them, hiding my reflection then reappearing. Behind me stood what could have been my twin, except it was dark. The same shape as myself but with red eyes, fangs for teeth, and when it lifted its hands, ribbons flowed from them like whips.
Bile rose in my throat.
Another shadow stepped out, and this time I saw a reflection of Methrin. A deep, guttural laugh came as it held out its arms as though to embrace me.
Welcome Princess. You’ve fallen into our trap. Prepare to be sacrificed.
I opened my mouth. Nothing but a wordless scream came out.
When I lifted my hands, instead of the familiar glow of Mirror Magic they dripped with black blood.
My magic had gone dark, or shifted into something wicked, something evil.
I closed my eyes, but even behind my eyelids, the two shadows stood, watching me with those red eyes.
Welcome Princess , my shadow echoed. It’s time for you to become the Wicked Princess of Mirrors.
“Let me go to her,” a voice full of fury shouted. “Release me. ”
I turned, trapped in a world of mirrors, reaching for that voice, any guidance, direction to take me back home. It was as though I were trapped in a portal of my own making. The world was just me, the shadows and the reflections, dancing.
“Methrin,” I cried out.
The shadow shaped like him stepped forward. I am here.
“You’re not him,” I snapped.
I am here, the shadow repeated. It stepped closer, looming over me, red eyes glowing. Come. Let me save you, let me give you rest.
“Get away from me!” I shouted, lashing out. Sparks of magic drifted from my fingers, shards of mirror shooting like daggers into the shadow.
It laughed and spun, swirling shadows swallowing the mirror shards.
My shadow stepped forward. Silly princess. You can’t use Mirror Magic against us. We are magic, created from magic, it cannot harm us. We consume it, our strength relies on it. Give us more.
More?
I pressed my hands to my head which throbbed. A wail came out of my throat. “Get out of my head! Get out of my head!”
I sank to my knees, repeating the command, but the whispers grew louder and the shadows closed around me. Laughing and jeering.