The four stood at the heart of Moonshine, the very pulse of the city beneath their feet.
The lights of the Skycore still burned brightly, yet there was an unsettling stillness in the air.
Moonshine, once a beacon of hope, now felt *heavy*—its streets not buzzing with the same vibrant energy but filled with a creeping, unspoken fear.
"Something's not right," Neha muttered, looking around. "It feels... off."
Tara frowned. "We've restored the balance, defeated the Mirrorborn, and yet, this... this unease lingers."
Jasmine, her expression serious, nodded. "The Shroud may be gone, but the darkness never truly disappears. It just hides, waits for the right moment to strike again."
Tom, still a bit uncertain about his place in all of this, stepped forward. "What are we missing?"
Tara glanced at the horizon, her mind racing. "There's something beneath the surface. We need to find what it is, before it grows too strong."
They made their way through the city, searching for any sign of disturbance, but the streets were quiet. Too quiet.
The moon hung high above, casting a cold silver light over the stone buildings, but the peace it once promised now felt like a silent, suffocating weight.
It wasn't until they reached the old library that they found their answer.
The library, once a haven of knowledge and magic, stood eerily still. The door creaked as they entered, the air thick with dust. Shelves lined the walls, stacked high with ancient tomes and scrolls, but one book in particular seemed to call to them.
A small, unmarked tome rested on the central table. Tara's hand hovered over it, almost instinctively, before she opened it.
The pages crackled as she turned them, revealing a hidden history of Moonshine—a story that hadn't been told in centuries.
The Mirror of Ages.
The book described an ancient mirror created by a powerful sorceress, a mirror capable of stealing the life essence of those who gazed into it. The mirror fed on the energy of the soul, draining its power and aging the person in a matter of moments.
Tara's breath caught as she read aloud the last part of the passage:
*"Once powerful, the mirror was shattered, its pieces scattered across Moonshine. But beware, for those who seek it shall find not just their own reflection but their undoing."*
Jasmine's voice was a whisper. "The Mirrorborn... it was never truly defeated, was it? The mirror's shards still exist."
Tara looked up sharply. "The sorceress who turned you into a bird... She must have hidden it before she fell. But now... the mirror is regaining power."
Neha crossed her arms, her face grim. "But how? Why now?"
"Because it needs to feed," Tara said quietly, piecing it all together. "The magic in the mirror—whoever looks into it, whoever seeks its power—ages, grows weaker, and the mirror grows stronger. It feeds on *time* itself. And someone... someone is bringing it back."
Tom's eyes widened. "What can we do to stop it?"
Tara closed the book with a snap, determination flooding her. "We find the pieces. We destroy the mirror, once and for all."
But as she spoke those words, a shiver ran down her spine. The balance they had worked so hard to restore was about to be tested in ways they hadn't prepared for. The mirror wasn't just a tool of destruction—it was a force that could unravel everything. The power of time, once disturbed, was a dangerous thing to meddle with.
"Let's go," Tara said, her voice resolute. "We need to track down every shard. Together."
The four of them stepped out into the streets, their eyes scanning every corner, every shadow. They had a mission now—a new, more terrifying one.
But as they walked, something deep in the core of Moonshine stirred. The ground beneath them trembled, and for a moment, the very sky seemed to darken, as if the mirror had already begun to wake.