Viena and the Black Mirror

[ 8 ] - 𝐈'𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐨

      Viena felt like every ounce of emotion drained out of her like a pulled plug, left with nothing but the blood on her hand and the shards scattered across the floor.

The presence from before vanished, and Viena found herself almost missing the harsh tugs and sharp pokes. There had been life, but now she felt nothing.

Perhaps it escaped. A restless spirit once imprisoned in an object, free to move on to the next life. If a mirror ensnared Viena, she would be very demanding too.

Viena's adrenalin faded the more she leaned over on the floor, arms hanging by her hips as the numbness faded and the pain in her hand increased. She didn't even have to glance down to know it was torn up horribly. A long time ago, she saw her father once punch a mirror. The recovery and aftermath was not something to bat an eye at.

The impact of her fist made the current silence sound even more empty. Now only the pounding in her ears and the scraping of stones reamined.

Wait- scraping of stones?

Viena twisted her torso to face the sliding entrance, only to be blinded by the harsh firelight flooding from the opened hallway. As swift as she could, Viena snagged a large piece of glass in her unbloodied hand, standing to face the blurry figures.

She blinked several times to clear her vision. But what she saw was the most terrifying and spectacular sight she had ever seen.

A man with pointed animal-like ears barricaded the entrance with his figure alone. On his head a crown of branches decorated his silvery braided hair. He lumbered forward like a giant shadow, cloaked in crow feathers and dark viridian robes.

A black panther prowled at his side, one with black chromatic-like wings and an immense amount of jewelry covering its body. A tiny glowing ball of light fluttered off the ground, chasing after the two of them.

The shard of glass Viena held, dropped from her hand. It drew their attention as it scattered more pieces across the very-dangerous-to-walk-on floor.

"Oh, great Terra, this is awful! Are you okay, dearie?!" the glowing ball of light said. "Let's get that glass out of your hand."

The firefly-like creature zoomed up to her so fast, Viena experienced whiplash. She stood stunned as the small thing lifted and examined her injured hand.

"Stay here, Paulné," the giant said. "You shouldn't go near the glass."

The panther rolled its eyes. "Trust me. I was not going to go near that mess anytime soon."

Viena glanced up in shock as the panther spoke, forming words with her mouth in a strange accent she'd never heard before.

"Hold still sweety, we'll fix you up in no time." Viena winced as the firefly began picking out the different shards of glass that were all embedded into her hand. Now that she was looking closer, Viena could see the creature much clearer. She had a humanoid figure and wore a wrapped dress made of petals, insect-like wings protruding from her back. A fairy...

"What is happening..."

The fairy chuckled and tossed the shards aside. "We're rescuing you, of course."

"Rescuing...?"

"It is our duty to protect those who are of magic blood, to provide sanctuary." The man stepped forward, using his stone-like feet to brush away glass to the sides of the room. "My name is Senrot, but I usually have everyone call me Sen." He held his hand out in greeting, clawed fingers relaxed harmlessly.

Her own hand twitched forward out of curiosity. Sen held her palm in both of his hands, lifting it up and down in a gentle motion. "Viena..." she whispered