Mirror Me

28: With Mirror in Hand

"Owen," I said removing my fingers from the water, "I can fight back."

"What!" cried Owen in alarm. "Are you crazy? I don't see a weapon on you."

"My weapon is right here." I lifted the mirror in my hand. "Martha did say that Mirrorbenders need to be resourceful. I found a way to do so, but I need you to stand beside me so I don't accidentally hurt you." Owen looked at the pond then to my mirror. He suddenly realized what I was planning.

"Hope," said Owen admittedly, "Scrying boulders is not the same as scrying walnuts."

"Trust me," I said, my voice determined. "We can do this if we work together."

"I can't believe I am trusting you." Owen jumped to my side. "Know that this is crazy, but I believe in you. Now don't make me regret this."

I smiled and raised my small mirror to the forest before us. Owen grabbed my arm.

"Together we are strong," I whispered.

Dipping my fingers into the cool water of the pond, I began to summon my power. The clearing around us erupted with Shadows. Each one glared their fangs, snarled, and snapped at us. I closed my eyes and focused my thoughts on the boulders in the water. "Come on," I whispered. Nothing happened.

"Hope!" cried Owen squeezing my arm tighter. "They are moving closer." Sure enough, the Shadows inched forward. Any moment they would be upon us to snatch us away. Owen started to panic. "Hope! Do something!" A Shadow reached out one of its clawed fingers up to Owen's face. "Hope!"

I opened my eyes. Suddenly a bright light even brighter than the fire in the trees formed around the lake. A pulsewave exploded around the pond bending trees backward and snuffing out their fire. My fingers in the water tingled as the light touched them. The reflection of the night sky began to shift and fade to resemble the world through my small mirror. Then like bullets from a gun, the boulders sticking out of the water fell through the surface of the pond and exited the mirror. Starting out small and growing in size and density, the boulders hammered forth into the legion of Shadows.

The Shadows hit by the zooming boulders exploded into piles of sand. Owen moved my arm around aiming at the Shadows that had lunged forward. We cried out in excitement.

"I'm doing it!" I yelled.

"Keep doing it!" shouted Owen.

"Take that you stupid monsters!" I shot another large boulder into the clearing. It soured into a crowd of dazed Shadows and continued into the forest knocking down trees in its wake. I had never been so thrilled in all my life. For the first time I was proud of myself and confident of the power I had long suppressed. "Wooo!"

"There's another one!" Owen shifted my arm as a Shadow crept on all fours towards us. "Bam!" cried Owen as the sneaky Shadow disintegrated. "This is amazing! I can't bel—" Owen stopped. He felt dizzy. His arms and legs grew incredibly weak. All the energy seemed to have left his body. I felt his grip on my arm weaken and in a sudden tumble he collapsed on the shore.

"Owen!" I cried. "Owen, speak to me!" I dropped the mirror causing the light around the pool to fade. The reflection in the water turned back into the night sky. Reaching over I nudged Owen praying he would move. I promptly turned him over. He was still breathing but unconscious. "Oh no!" I cried out alarmed. "I must have used too much energy. Dammit!" I looked around. The Shadows had begun advancing yet again. Their numbers unceasing. "What am I going to do? Think Hope! Think!" I pulled Owen close. He lay heavy on my lap. I grabbed Owen's dagger that had fallen from his hand and pointed it at the creatures. "Stay back! Don't come any closer! I will turn you into sand!" Not intimidated by my threat, the Shadows eased forward. Seeing my mirror glisten in the firelight, I knew I had no other choice but to scry us both to safety.

Snatching the mirror off the ground, I hovered its surface over the water. "Please save us," I whispered. Suddenly, the water started to cave inward as if being sucked down into a dark drain. Images of different places swirled inside. This must be an opening into the Mirror Passages, I thought. With all the strength I could summon, I yanked the unconscious Owen to the water's edge. I closed my eyes, held my breath, and with a final tug we slipped together into the dark watery vortex.