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My breath caught as I stared at Lysandra.
Her crimson eyes… they weren't just reflections of a curse. They were fragments. Like a door slowly creaking open, allowing something that should remain sealed to slip through.
"Lysandra…" I whispered, knees buckling.
Aldric caught me before I fell. "She… what's happening to her? Is that—"
"Valion," I said quietly. "He… entered Lysandra. When his body shattered, he scattered himself. One of his fragments… clung to the most vulnerable."
Lysandra stood motionless, her face blank. But that red glow pulsed behind her pupils, as if her eyes no longer belonged to her.
"I don't feel strange," she said softly. "Only… cold. There's a voice… like a whisper, but it's not from outside."
"Lysandra," Aldric called gently, stepping closer. "You need to fight that. Whatever is whispering to you… that's not you."
She shook her head slowly. "I don't know the difference… I can hear everything. Screams. Commands. Memories that aren't mine… But they feel like they are."
I swallowed hard. "He planted his soul inside you. Not just a curse, but his consciousness."
Lysandra looked at me. "Then… will I become him?"
"Not if I can stop it," I said, forcing myself to stand, though my body felt like it was burning from the inside out.
Aldric steadied me. "You need time to heal. Whatever happened inside that cursed heart—you're not fully recovered."
"But the curse won't wait," I said. "And Valion… he'll use Lysandra to unlock something even darker."
Aldric's jaw clenched. "Then what can we do?"
I looked at the ground, still warm with magic and blood. "We take her to the Mirror of Souls. If Valion's soul truly resides within her, the mirror will reveal it. And maybe… show us a way out."
Aldric nodded. "Fine. But if she tries to hurt herself—or you—"
"I know," I cut in. "But don't treat her like a monster. She's still that little girl. We have to remember that."
We moved swiftly. Our footsteps carried us through a forest that had begun to wither—its leaves losing their color, the sky darkening though dusk had not yet come.
Valion wasn't just attacking souls—he was poisoning the physical world.
The Mirror of Souls lay within a crystal cavern behind the Astorian mountains. It wasn't merely a tool of vision, but a guardian of the boundary between soul and will. If Valion was inside Lysandra, the mirror would reflect it.
We arrived at the cavern just before nightfall. The fog was thick, and the air inside felt like it could freeze our blood.
Aldric placed a hand on my shoulder as we stood before the massive obsidian altar.
"Are you sure this will work?"
"No," I admitted. "But it's the only hope we have."
Lysandra stood silently before the mirror, her eyes beginning to shimmer with tears.
"I… I'm scared."
I held her hand. "So am I. But we do this together."
She nodded faintly.
As she looked into the mirror, its surface began to ripple. It didn't reflect—but dove deeper. Layer by layer… until finally, a face emerged. Not the monstrous Valion we had seen before—but a younger version. Handsome. Alluring. Deadly.
"Welcome, my child," he said from within the mirror.
Lysandra gasped. "He… he's speaking directly in my mind…"
I stepped forward, placing myself between her and the mirror. "Get out of her body. This isn't your place."
Valion smirked. "And you think you can defy the will of blood? She descends from the bloodline that once opened the door for me. She is the continuation of that pact. She… is the perfect vessel."
Aldric stepped forward. "Then we'll shatter the mirror. Cut off all your pathways."
Valion laughed. "Break this mirror, and her soul is trapped with me forever."
Lysandra went pale. "No… don't!"
I closed my eyes. "We can't destroy the mirror. But we *can* cast him out."
"How?" Aldric asked.
I looked from the mirror to Lysandra. "We ask her to choose."
Valion hissed. "She's just a child. You can't force a soul this young to choose!"
"She's stronger than you think," I snapped. "And she's not alone."
I held Lysandra's hand. "Lysandra, look at me. Listen to your heart. Is that voice… truly yours? Or were you just taught to accept it?"
She trembled. "I don't know… But… I know Mama's voice. I know the sound of the wind in our garden. I know Aldric's laugh when he carried me away from the guards. And this voice… it's none of those."
Tears fell from her eyes.
She turned to the mirror. "You're not part of me. I didn't invite you in."
Valion roared. "You cannot cast me out!"
The mirror trembled. Cracks began to spread across its surface.
I took a deep breath. "Lysandra, say who you are!"
She screamed, raising her hands, her crimson eyes glowing fiercely.
"I'm not you! I'm not your shadow! I am… *Lysandra Valeria!*"
The mirror shattered—exploding outward in a burst of silver light.
Valion's image split apart, shrieking in agony, before disintegrating into ash.
We were thrown back by the surge of energy. The cave trembled, cracks spreading through the ceiling. I shielded Lysandra with my body while Aldric pulled us toward the exit.
Outside, the sky looked different—brighter, but far from peaceful.
Lysandra sobbed in my arms. "Is he… gone?"
I shook my head slowly. "Not completely. But he's been torn from your soul's core. That's enough… for now."
Aldric exhaled deeply. "But he'll be searching for another vessel."
"He'll need time. That fragment is weak now. But we must act fast… before he finds another crack."
The three of us sat at the cliff's edge, gazing out at a horizon just beginning to lighten.
For the first time in a long while, I felt a flicker of calm within the storm.
But before we could truly breathe easy, the ground trembled again—softly.
And from the shadows beyond the forest…
Someone emerged.
Their steps were graceful. Robes lined with gold. Their face, hauntingly familiar—and as they drew closer, my heart seemed to stop beating.
"No…" I whispered.
Aldric rose to his feet, his body tense.
The woman looked at us—then at Lysandra—with a gaze both cold and piercing.
"I've come for the child," she said.
Her voice… a voice I had buried deep in my memory.
My mother.
---
She gave me a crooked smile.
"You think this curse was all Valion's doing? You're wrong, Seraphine. He was merely a servant. I… I am the creator."
The sky darkened behind her, and light gathered in her hand, forming a new circle of blood.
"Now, it's time to reclaim what's mine."
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