The moment she entered the Maze of Mirrors, Faye felt the air grow colder, heavier. The world around her twisted, the forest dissolving into a labyrinth of glass. Everywhere she looked, there were reflections—endless versions of herself, each one distorted, warped. The walls of the maze were made of mirrors, their surfaces slick and cold, reflecting versions of her that she barely recognized.
Her greenish-gold eyes stared back at her from a thousand angles, but each reflection showed something different. One version of her was small, frightened, her body trembling with fear. Another was older, her face twisted with anger and resentment. Another was broken, tears streaming down her face as she clutched the silver key her mother had given her.
Faye's chest tightened as she moved deeper into the maze, the reflections growing more twisted, more grotesque. Her fears, her insecurities—they were all laid bare in the mirrors, staring back at her with accusing eyes.
"You're weak," one reflection whispered, her voice harsh and cruel. "You'll never survive this."
"You don't belong here," another reflection sneered. "You never did."
Faye's breath came in shallow gasps as she stumbled forward, her hands trembling. The reflections closed in around her, their voices growing louder, more vicious.
And then, in the distance, she saw something that made her blood run cold.
One of the reflections wasn't hers.
It was Kieran.
But this version of Kieran wasn't the one she knew. His eyes were dark, his face twisted with a cruel smile as he watched her struggle. His voice echoed through the maze, soft but filled with malice.
"You think you can trust me, Faye?" the reflection said, its voice a twisted mockery of the real Kieran. "You think I'm on your side? You're nothing to me. Just a pawn in a game you don't even understand."
Faye's heart pounded, her chest tight with fear. Was this Kieran's true nature? Was he playing her, just like the stories were?
She didn't know.
But as the reflection's voice grew louder, Faye felt something else stir inside her—a spark of defiance. She wasn't just going to lie down and let the Realmss consume her. She had come this far, and she wasn't about to give up now.
With a sharp breath, she raised her hand, focusing all her energy on the mirror in front of her. She didn't know how to control her magic yet, but she didn't care. She had to try.
The reflection of Kieran laughed, but the sound was drowned out by the roar of magic as Faye released the energy building inside her. The mirror shattered, the glass exploding outward in a burst of light.
And just like that, the maze began to crumble around her.
YOU ARE READING
The Story
FantasyFaye is invited to the Heartseeker Academy, for supernaturals. While being scorned, Faye thought that she was only human... Or that's what she thought.
