Page 39 of Wicked Prince of Mirrors
The shadow shook, not with fear but with laughter.Oh foolish princess, I’ve already won.
Something cold caressed my cheek, and my vision swam.
The monster vanished, taking its foul laughter with it.
My shoulders sagged with relief but not for long. An army of those wailing shadows hurled toward me. Light glowed from my fingertips, and I hurled magic at those creatures. Mirror shards flew at them and a sudden buoyancy of energy coursed through me.
Behind me came shouting. Methrin? Lyra?
The shadows parted and the light bloomed again, brighter this time. I ran toward it, desperate to escape the creepy mirrorverse. If Methrin had been stuck in this hell for years, how had he survived without going mad?
A frame appeared around the light, the edges of a mirror, the lip of a step and great columns on the other side. I flung myself at it and was thrown violentlybackward. I landed on my back, the wind knocked out of me. I lay back, gasping.
Suddenly strong hands were around me, pulling me up. Methrin?
“Esmira,” he said. “You have to open the gates. Use your magic, just the way you freed me.”
He helped me to my feet, guided me near the light.
I lifted my hands and pressed them against the surface, holding still, letting magic do the work. It rolled out of me, unexplainable, uncontrollable. Vaguely I was aware of Methrin holding me up and Lyra on the other side of me. “They are coming back,” she warned.
“Esmira,” Methrin encouraged, his voice calm, steady.
Slowly the light shifted. Glass appeared, a barrier between worlds. As my hands touched it, the glass warped then shattered with a terrible roar. I felt as though my insides had been sucked out and my vision went dizzy again as Methrin carried me through the mirror.
A high pitched screamed filled the air and a stern voice ordered, “Don’t move.”
PART II
13
ESMIRA
Ahum rang loud in my ears, I opened my eyes, blinking against the bright sheen of white light. A dark shape hovered over me. Methrin? Fingers touched my face, a voice calling in the distance. “Esmira? Esmira!”
I struggled to sit up, my head spinning, hands burning. My stomach roiled in protest and I collapsed, eyes closing again. I was lifted somewhere, voices drifted, some loud, aggressive, others softer, pandering.
Eventually it all faded into nothingness.
When I next woke, it was to the flickering of flames and the rich scent of cooked meat. I lay on something flat with a bit of give, my head propped up, a blanket covering my legs. Rolling to one side I opened my eyes, unsure what I’d see.
I was on some sort of patio, columns rose above me, holding up a covering. A few steps led down to a grassy lawn where a fire burned, surroundedby a ring of stones. Lyra sat near it, occasionally turning a spit, and the juice from the roasted meat dripped into the fire, causing it to hiss and shoot flames higher.
Sitting up, I waited for my head to spin but there was nothing. The burning sensation had faded from my hands and the glow had left my fingertips.
Beyond Lyra was a shimmering pool of water, reflecting a pale light. It was bright, not as bright as day nor as dark as night, it was something in between, a haunting, beautiful lingering. Everything was beautiful, the vibrant grass, the still pool, the orange flames, the whiteness of the columns.
Another lounge lay to the side of me and the door to inside was open. Candlelight flickered, but I made out a room that must lead back into the palace or castle or wherever we’d ended up. When I’d come through the mirror, I was aware of space, wide open cavernous space, and it left me feeling alone in the world.
“Where are we?” I called to Lyra, looking around the quiet area again. There was no sign of Methrin or the other Everminati. If not for Lyra and the strange area, I would have thought the journey through the mirrorverse nothing but a dream.
“Esmira!” Lyra abandoned the fire and ran to my side. “Are you okay? I was so worried. We came through the portal and you collapsed.”
“I’m fine.” I held up my hands. “It was odd coming through the portal, so much magic bubbled up, it overwhelmed me. It was like a surge of power, uncontrollable.” I trailed off, recalling the out-of-control feelings, the way the monster made itself present and tauntedme. I had to share what I knew, I had to tell him. “Where’s Methrin?”
Lyra winced as she sat down beside me. It was only then I noticed the tightness of her face and the way her hands trembled. Bright, sunny Lyra who seemingly was afraid of nothing. My heart sank. Something bad had happened.
“He’s—he’s with the elders.” She wrung her hands. “We should eat. They will come for us soon for Prince Methrin’s trial.”
