Chapter 54 Fractured Reflections

• The chamber beyond the shattered crystal door yawned wide, cloaked in an eerie glow that bled from walls of glass and endless mirrors. Their footsteps echoed unnaturally, multiplying into a thousand overlapping sounds until Lucia felt her head begin to swim. The air itself was thick with a metallic tang, as though the chamber had been sealed for centuries, preserving the breath of countless souls.
• Kelvin reached for her hand instinctively. “Stay close. This place is meant to disorient us.” His voice reverberated strangely, carrying not just once, but rippling across the mirrors until echoes of his command whispered from all directions: Stay close. Stay close. Stay close.
• Mirabelle’s gaze darted uneasily from reflection to reflection. For every image of them she saw—there were a dozen others distorted, warped, stretched into shapes both beautiful and grotesque. “It’s not just glass,” she murmured. “These mirrors are alive.”