Round 98

The mirrors lining the hidden chamber shifted and writhed in response to their presence, each surface catching the flickering torchlight and reflecting it back in ways that made her head spin. She'd faced worse than a few creepy mirrors, though she had to admit these ones gave her the distinct urge to look away.

But even as fear threatened to overwhelm her, Varrika knew that they couldn't turn back now. They'd come too far, sacrificed too much to give up on their quest for the Time-Splitting Sword.

Merrin's sharp eyes caught movement in the shadows— or perhaps it was just the flickering light playing tricks on her vision. She whispered something under her breath, but Varrika couldn't make out the words over the creaking of the stone around them.

The mirrors had pulled them through somehow, and now they stood in a twisted forest beyond the mirror's reflection. The trees loomed overhead, branches reaching out like gnarled fingers, as if trying to ensnare them with every step they took. The air was thick with an otherworldly energy, and the ground beneath their feet felt unstable, as if it could give way at any moment.

Varrika gripped her mace tightly, her knuckles white against the worn handle. This place feels wrong, unnatural. It's like we've stepped into a waking nightmare, where our worst fears are about to come to life, she thought, even as fear threatened to overwhelm her. But even as fear threatened to overwhelm her, Varrika knew that they couldn't turn back now.

They'd come too far, sacrificed too much to give up on their quest for the Time-Splitting Sword. And besides, there was no telling what would happen if they tried to return through the broken mirror—it might simply pull them back in, or worse yet, trap them between worlds forever.

No, they had no choice but to press forward and face whatever horrors awaited them in this twisted realm. The question was: which of them would take the lead?