Chapter 27

Queen Isabel 

The visions shown to me by the mirror had left me drained and exhausted, as they always did.

Yet, seeing the bleak future that awaited us if I failed was a price I had to pay to gather the knowledge necessary to prevent it.

It had been years since I gazed into its black surface for the first time, and I remember running away, terrified by the images it had revealed to me. But those visions had haunted my dreams, forcing me to return, even if against my will, and face the fate that awaited us.

I wished it had been someone other than me who had stumbled upon it in the dark tunnels that lay below the city, but with time, I had accepted my destiny. Some lesser person might have turned their back on the truth, terrified by the sacrifice this path required, and with it, doomed us all.

The mirror revealed the dark future when the weak heart led us to the destruction of everything I held dear, and I didn't have any reason to doubt its messages any longer. Even if I could not control what I saw, every dream had become true, and I had used all the knowledge I learned from them to become who I was today.

Almerious helped me use this understanding and had guided me throughout the years as I built a world that stood a chance to resist the darkness that loomed over us. But regardless of his help, I was alone in carrying this burden on my shoulders. I knew he would betray me at any moment if he sensed weakness in me. The mirror had offered me that future, when my dead body lay on the cold marble floor of my chamber as he bowed his head to his true masters, welcoming the destruction they brought to this world. Only fear kept him under my control.

I wished I had any other choice, but I didn’t, and deep inside, I knew that if I could somehow undo the past and craft a joyful future for myself, I would never dare to do so. It would mean sacrificing everything around me and seeing it crumble to dust as darkness slowly overtook the world.

I lifted myself from the cold, dusty floor and lit the lamp, letting its light illuminate the dark chamber. I glanced at the mirror one last time, and a cold shiver ran down my spine as I took a few careful steps towards the tunnel that would take me to the surface.