The Mirror Realm

Mental Breakdowns Suck

I trip over a fallen branch, stumbling and eventually falling. Crap. I think, scrambling to get back up, I have to keep going. I have to do this for my brother. I grit my teeth and jump over my next obstacle; a dead body. Don't look, don't look whatever you do, Alex. This is all for you, Ethan.

Determination is kicking in, making my adrenaline increase. I can feel the blood pound in my head, my feet, and my arms.

"Come on Alex, keep up!" My fathers voice floated back to me. "If we're saving your brother then you have to stay with me!"

My teeth slam together in irritation and mumble things.

I notice I'm coming considerably closer to him and I start to worry.

"Father? Are you doing okay?" My breathing comes out less ragged than his.

"Not.. really.. You might have to go on... go on without me, princ-" I hear a gunshot and he then falls over. I slam my feet in the ground, struggling to stop, but I fall over in the process. I crawl back to him and weakly flip him over.

"Daddy?"

"Go on darling, I'll be fine." His eyes slowly become glassy.

"Daddy no, I need you!"

"I'll tell your mother that you love her." His breathing is slower and slower with every breath.

Tears well up in my eyes. "I love you, Daddy." I plant a kiss on his dirty forehead.

"I love you too, princess." His mouth goes slack, breathing stops and his eyes look up, seeing nothing. I can't stop the tears and struggle to keep my own breathing under control.

"Where are they, I know I shot one of them!" A rough voices brings me out if my trance. Tears still flowing, I get up and continue running. Where did Dad say the portal was? I try and remember but a gunshot in a leg really makes you forget about everything else. Searing pain flowers up my left leg, and you can't really run with pain in your leg either. I cuss loudly as I fall down. My head lands next to an overturned rock, and my eyes slowly open. Sweat drips down my head as I try to read what's written on the rock.

Th s  w y  to  Po tal ^

"This way, I know I got her! I heard something fall at least!" The same rough voice came from about 3 feet to my right. I held my breath and waited them to pass by. My ear was pressed against the ground, so when the did pass it sounded like a herd of elephants.

I betcha they're all fat. Conscience laughs.

"They're probably assholes too." I grunt and push myself off the ground. Pain streaks up my leg and I collapse back on the ground, holding a scream in. I stuff my hood of my sweater in my mouth and let it all out. Everything that happened in the past 3 months; Ethan being kidnapped and taken to some other realm, my best friend leaving me, and my boyfriend thinking I was going crazy. All of it came pouring out, making me start crying.

"I really wish Mom was here." I whisper.

Yeah well she isn't now is she? Sometimes I think Conscience hates me. Look, are you just gonna lay here and cry for your Mommy or are you gonna man up and find your brother? Because if I were you I'd go find my baby brother.

I sigh, Conscience is right. Aren't I always?

I reach into my backpack that I was carrying and search around for some kind of painkillers. My clammy hands slid over some cold tube and grasp it. I pull it out to see a syringe. Air sucks in through my teeth and makes a whistling noise. I chuck the syringe over to my right and breath deeply. Someone doesn't like shots do they? I shake my head and continue my search. I couldn't find anything else and I start hyperventilating. "I can't do this, I really can't do this." I start muttering and look around. If I were real, I'd grab your face and kiss it. Woah, guess Conscience is a guy. Then I'd slap you to tell you to man up and plunge that syringe in your leg. Alex, you have to pull yourself together and battle on. I can promise you it won't be a mistake, you just have to trust me.

"Of course I trust you, you've been with me for my whole life, a whopping 17 years. Why wouldn't I?"

Because you might think I'm just a figment of your imagination, like everyone else.

"Well let's just battle on- wait, we've been together 17 years and you haven't once told me your name."

That's because I don't have one.

"Well we can think of one later, now I have to get to the Portal." I grit my teeth and drag myself over to where I chucked the syringe. I found it right away, lucky me, and brush the dirt off. I drag myself back over to my bag and look to see what exactly this is. I found some sheet that looks like a doctors note with some really slanted handwriting on it.

"'Pain medication', how convenient." I shrug with shaking shoulders.

I believe in you, Alex.

And with those words I plunge the syringe in the back of my leg. It was almost instant relief. I grab the nearest branch and test my leg out by bending it back and forth. It seems to be working alright, so I test putting weight on it. I feel absolutely no pain and I smile.

Works like magic. That's sketchy.

"Oh shut up, it works doesn't it?" And that keeps him quiet for a while. I start with a slow jog and break into a run. I kept straight, remembering the rock. Trees pop up more and more often, the forest is becoming thicker and thicker. fallen branches and even trees scatter in my path. Good thing I can't feel anything in my leg. I keep sprinting and finally trip over a fallen log. I somehow do a comical fall and flip over at least ten times. I then feel a sensation I've never felt before in my life, I'm suddenly air born. I hurtle through air and just keep going. My eyes closed as soon as I fell. but now they opened in fascination. I find myself in a forest like setting.

You're.. you're seeing this too right?

"Unfortunately yes." I whisper. I look around, trying to find some sort of exit. Seeing an actual door, I tried walking towards it. Either I didn't move, or the door moved away.

"Umm, hello?" I tried calling out to see if anyone is here. "I'm a little confused, is this the Portal?"

"Never speak of that in here!" A disembodied voice seethed.

I jump in midair. "Oh, sorry, what do I call this then?"

"You call this the P."

"The Pee?" I tilt my head.

The disembodied voice takes a deep breath. "Yes."

Nice one, Alex.

"Can you help me then if you know what this place is?" I set my hands in my hips.

"Yeah sure, I have nothing better to do anyways. I've been stuck in here for about 400 years. What do you need help with?"

"Well for starters, did you see a cloaked man go through here with a little boy?" My hands start twisting together in nervousness.

He pauses, most likely in thought. "Now that you mention it yes. About a week ago?"

"Yes! Point me in the direction they went please!"

An archway suddenly appears to my right. "Through here."

"Thank you so much!" I blow him a kiss. I then step through the archway, finding myself hurtling through air.

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