The Night Raven

We ascended several more floors until we reached the seventh floor, and there, at the top of the stairs, was a door. It had no keyhole, no handle, no discernible way to open it. What do we do now, I thought. Video game logic dictated that there was a hidden lever in the room or a puzzle to solve that would open the door. Although, this wasn’t a video game, and whether that logic was right, I couldn’t be sure.

“Looks like this is our first impediment. Let’s have a look around and see if we can find a clue on how to open the door.”

Marisa agreed and started to weave through mirrors, looking for a clue. Did we need to arrange the mirrors in a specific order? Without a hint it would take ages to guess all the possible combinations. Yet, there must be a reason they were left here. Or were they simply a distraction?

“Marisa, what do you make of this room?”

“What do I make of this room?”

“Yeah, why do you think there are all these mirrors here?”

“I have not seen such strange things before and do not know on which logic they work.” She walked over to me and looked around at the different mirrors. “Through this glass, darkly is beheld a horrible creature next to me, but when I gaze upon your face with my own eyes, I do not see what the mirror claims. Does it prophesy things to come or show a hidden side of the mind shrouded in dark?”

I looked at the mirror and didn’t see an usual creature standing next to me. What I saw was a cloud made of trumpets, made of noise. I looked at a different mirror and saw a little girl in blue clothes sitting atop a crescent moon.

“What do you see in this mirror?” I asked, pointing to the one where I saw the little girl.

“I see a young man, adventurous but foolish, with nothing more than the clothes on his back.”

“And what about this one?”

“I see a man as large as a mountain with an axe at his side.”

“All right, so... Somewhere in this room is a mirror that doesn’t distort our reflection. Stick close and let’s find it.”

We walked through the room, going from mirror to mirror to find the one that reflected our true selves. We saw reflections of ourselves upside down, as old people, as people from my world, and as beings in a world that neither of us knew but was still familiar.

“Ferdinand, come here, for I believe this mirror to be normal.”

I stepped next to her and looked at myself in the mirror. There was nothing out of the ordinary, but Marisa’s reflection had a quality to it that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Her hair looked longer and more blonde than brown. The black of her clothes was more black, the red more red. Her eyes shone in the light. Her skin was smoother, free of blemishes.

“This isn’t the one we’re looking for.”

“Tell me how you know.”

“Well... How should I put this? Does my reflection seem off to you?”

She looked at the mirror and then at me and then at the mirror again. “No. Yes, somewhat. I cannot say what sundry changes I see, but I know them to be. More handsome perhaps. Can you articulate what you see of me?”

“Your hair looks longer and more blonde in the reflection.”

“Anything else that is of note?”

Sweat started to form around my forehead.

“The mirror... doesn’t quite reflect all the details of your face.”

“In what way?” She inched closer.

“It makes everything smoother.”

“You mean to say I am more beautiful in the mirror?”

“Yeah. No, I...”

“So what is your answer? Am I not beautiful here as I am now?”

She inched closer again. My face was hot. Electricity ran through the air and electrocuted my nerves and brain, causing a short circuit in the cognitive function facility.

Click

Suddenly, we were thrown off balance. The tower shook and a loud boom echoed down from the floor above us.

“Whatever was that noise?”

“I don’t know, but let’s go check it out.”

I drew my sword and rushed up the stairs, throwing open the previously locked door. The tower’s final floor was open and exposed to the world. Half-finished crenellations surrounded the perimeter. Grass grew all around us, but nothing else. The patches of dead flowers scattered about told me as much. Perched on the battlement was a giant raven, no less than sixteen feet in size. A nightly cloak draped his feathers in black. His Vulcan-like eyes glared at us. The raven cawed and my blood turned to ice, freezing me in place.

Marisa walked forward, bowed, and proceeded to speak with the raven. “O Raven of the Night, we seek the divine object kept safe in your tower.”

The raven studied Marisa a moment, hopped off his perch, and paced around the tower.

“And who is the one with the human soul?” he asked.

I moved my mouth to speak but my voice was trapped in my throat. This terror inflicted upon me by the raven continued to grip me. I closed my eyes and searched for my voice.

“My name is Ferdinand,” I said and bowed my head.

“What is your name, O Raven?”

“I am called Grimnir, Grimnir of the Celestial Tower... And I have someone here who wishes to meet you.”

The bird shuddered and a ghastly wave of energy rippled over his feathers. He spread his wings and rolled his head, cawing to the sky. His transformation complete, he spoke with a voice from a thousand years ago.

“Ah, a more suitable host. Let’s see, there should be a soul here,” he said, the words drooling from his beak. He scanned the tower and locked eyes with me.

“Mauritius?” The name caused him pain and he touched his head with his wing. “No, Ferdinand. I remember now. Yes, we have unfinished business.”

What unfinished business was he talking about? Did the raven become possessed like Behatus? No, it willingly allowed itself to be controlled. Real terror embraced me now.

“Who... are you?”

“I am Wode.”