Chapter 10: Through the Mirror Veil
The marble corridor that led away from the Midnight Salon was silent, lit only by soft spells embedded in the walls. Faint glyphs of gold pulsed under the stone's surface—wards of privacy and pleasure, Elias assumed. At his side walked Lady Yssa of House Meravelle, barefoot yet regal, her long silver hair cascading down her open back. Her body moved like flowing water, graceful and deliberate.
Neither of them spoke.
The corridor ended in a round chamber of reflective obsidian, devoid of doors or windows. At the center stood a basin shaped like an open flower, its petals made of polished glass. Violet vapor drifted lazily from the pool within. Suspended above the basin was a full-length mirror with an ornate bronze frame shaped like a serpent devouring its own tail. Runic etchings shimmered along the mirror's rim.
Yssa extended her arm. "Disrobe."
Elias met her gaze. "Direct, aren't you?"
"It is the mirror's rule," she replied. "No clothing. No lies."
He didn't hesitate. With practiced movements, Elias removed his tunic and belt, baring his lean frame. His muscles bore the tone of someone who trained not out of necessity, but discipline. A faint scar traced his left side—a remnant from the duel months ago with the Swordmaster of Orendell. He stood tall, bare, unflinching.
Yssa's eyes flickered, but she said nothing.
She followed suit. The black gown slid off her like silk water, pooling at her feet. Her body was statuesque—full breasts tipped with dusky pink, wide hips curving into toned thighs, and a pale, slightly glowing complexion. The faint blue runes tattooed along her spine pulsed once.
Elias's breath caught, but he hid it behind a smirk. "I see the mirror favors the bold."
"No," she said softly, stepping into the basin, vapor curling around her ankles. "It favors truth."
She extended a hand. Elias took it, and together they stood in the glowing pool. The water—or was it mist?—reached just past their calves, warm and unnervingly sentient, brushing skin like fingers.
Yssa raised her free hand.
[System: Ritual Initiation Detected – 'Veil of Reflection'] [Requirements Met: Two Souls | Physical Exposure | Consent Registered] [Activating Mirror Veil...]
The mirror shimmered, and Elias saw their reflection shift. In it, they stood not in a chamber, but on a snowy cliff beneath twin moons. Naked still, yet wind did not touch them. And their reflections did not mirror their movements.
The reflected Elias took a step forward and whispered into Yssa's ear. The reflected Yssa laughed and leaned in, lips brushing skin.
Elias frowned. "It's showing something that hasn't happened."
"Possibility. Vulnerability. Unseen desire. The mirror chooses," Yssa said, her voice oddly distant now.
A jolt ran through Elias's spine. Memory fragments flickered—his old classroom in the university, a shattered sky, the white space between worlds. And then, a child crying, a woman's scream—familiar, pained, distant.
The mirror shifted again.
Now Elias saw himself dressed in golden armor, standing over a battlefield soaked in fire and blood. At his side, Lady Selendra knelt, wounded. Behind him stood Yssa... pregnant?
His breath caught. "This is a vision."
Yssa's voice trembled slightly. "Or a warning. The mirror shows what may come. What you fear. What you want."
Another shift.
This time, they stood in a lavish bedroom. Yssa on her knees, hair undone, lips parted, eyes begging. Elias's hands buried in her hair, his voice low and commanding. The air in the chamber thickened. The Elias in the mirror moved forward, taking her mouth with his, bodies pressed close.
Yssa's real body tensed, her breathing ragged. "The mirror is... persistent."
Elias stepped forward, cupping her chin. "And what do you see now?"
Her eyes searched his face. "Power. But also restraint. And that scares me more than recklessness."
The mirror cracked.
Light spilled from it—blinding, hot, and intimate. The chamber trembled, and both Elias and Yssa were forced to their knees as the vapor coiled around them, binding their limbs together, skin brushing skin.
[System: Soul Connection Initiated – Temporary Fusion Active for Duration of Veil Ritual] [Warning: Emotional Feedback Loop May Cause Physical Overlap]
The pressure surged.
Yssa gasped as her thoughts spilled into Elias—raw desires, fears of abandonment, the weight of her House's curse, the longing to be seen without illusion.
Elias clenched his jaw. "You're bleeding into me."
"You... taste like fate."
A pulse of heat flashed between them, and they collapsed forward, tangled, breathless.
---
They awoke hours later, curled against each other in the basin now empty of mist. The mirror stood silent once more, a single line split across its surface.
Yssa sat up first. Her face flushed, her eyes brighter than before. "No one... no one has ever broken it. You saw too much."
Elias wiped sweat from his brow, still dazed. "So did you."
She nodded. "The nobles will talk. I'll deny nothing."
He met her gaze. "Neither will I."
[System Notification: Trait Acquired – 'Mirrorwalk (Rare)'] [Skill Gained – 'Shared Sensory Link'] [Emotional Bond Level 1: Lady Yssa of House Meravelle]
They dressed in silence, but not coldness.
As they left the chamber, Yssa whispered, "This world moves with secrets. But we now share one... and a future, if you want it."
Elias took her hand once more.
"I rarely want what's offered," he said. "But this… I'll keep."
And together, they stepped into the dawn.
---
End of Chapter 10