Lidien stared at the woman. He tried to step back, but his body wasn't listening to him.
"Kanaz... you are alive? How?"
Kanaz smiled; her innocent look made Lidien's transformation revert without him canceling it.
"Urgh!"
He kneeled, panting... holding his chest beating like a drum as his heartbeat thundered in his temples, the headache pounding in his ears.
Kanaz continued to walk toward him slowly...
Every step she took made Lidien flinch as his 'Whisper of Souls' continued to ring in his very soul.
It kept getting louder and louder the closer Kanaz got to him.
Until the ringing stopped when Kanaz kneeled in front of him.
Lidien tried to fight it, but the body's own memories moved his hands independently of his will.
He could only watch, a helpless spectator, as his trembling hands reached out to hold Kanaz's face...
Kanaz held his hands, making Lidien flinch.
Focusing his eyes on Kanaz's wrinkled hands, Lidien became sure... they were made of patched skin.
Noticing where his gaze was, Kanaz's bright smile turned sinister as her teeth slowly formed into jagged points and her giggles twisted into screeches.
And with her rasped and haunting voice, she said:
"Don't worry, Lidien... You will now become a part of me..."
Lidien activated his Incite of Blood, betting it would help him take control over his body.
'Damn it, Lidien... your unresolved emotions will get us killed!'
Kanaz's mouth enlarged, ripping the skin till it tore toward her ears like a giant's maw.
Yet, even though Lidien took over control of his new body, he could only remove his hands from the monster wearing Kanaz's face.
Without strength, with an overused sparkline, he could only watch the monster's maw slowly descend upon him.
A whistling sound of a whip sliced through the air.
Until its head was detached from its neck.
Spraying blood like a fountain, bathing Lidien in crimson.
Lidien watched Lily smiling at him.
He smiled back as all the exhaustion and agony he had fought to survive embraced him until he slumped onto the damp earth.
As his eyes darted towards the Alpha and the monster that had used Kanaz's face, he saw their skin decay like melting ice, transforming into a being... a thin yet muscular beast.
Skinless Leopard, it used the skin of its prey to shapeshift while absorbing its memories and skills. The stronger the being it killed, the stronger it would become. This was the true ruler of the Bone Orchards.
The sound of slow applause broke the silence.
"As expected of my little brother..."
Lily sat beside Lidien scanning their surroundings for possible threat before she carried him onto her back.
"You're safe now, Lidien... go take a rest. Sister will handle everything from here."
Lidien forced a smile and clung to Lily's neck as though holding his lifeline.
"Thank you..." he said softly as his consciousness faded from fatigue.
***
As the birds' tweets woke Lidien, he found himself lying on the bed, morning light touching his face.
He breathed a sigh of relief as the warm rays tingled his skin.
Lidien slowly got up and walked outside the bedroom.
But was confused when a woman with black silky hair and crimson eyes, alluring and more mature than any Demon of Lust, was sitting where Lily should have been.
"Mother? Why are you here?"
The woman smiled, tempting and captivating, making Lidien's heart skip a beat.
"You're accepting me as your Mother now, my child..."
As his survival instinct kicked in, a cold dread piercing through his fatigue, Lidien bowed and smiled like a child toward her.
"Of course, Mother... thank you for enlightening me..."
The woman gestured for Lidien to sit down beside her, which he obeyed without resistance.
She gently caressed his hair and let him lie on her legs, gently stroking his face.
"Mother... where are we going?"
The woman smiled gently as she gazed out, the light reflecting in her eyes.
"To our territory... to our future Kingdom... or should I say, Queendom?" and laughed with grace.
The carriage traveled quietly through the land; there were no disturbances, nor could any conflict be heard from within the carriage...
Lidien, who was lying on the woman's lap, was confused. He was sure they were still in the Bone Orchards, yet it was impossible not to hear any beast howls as they traveled through the notorious region known for its endless magical beast hordes.
Unless...
The scope of the soldiers' advancement was so large that not even a small sound could be heard from their procession.
After a few days of travel, what greeted them was the loud cheering of crowds, shouting "Prince" and "Queen," wishing for their longevity.
Lidien looked outside, and what he saw was thousands of soldiers wearing armor like in a medieval era.
Yet, as he scanned the area, he noticed that at the center stood not a castle with archers and catapults monitoring from the top, but a majestic portal... Lightning snaked through the clouds, crackling like thunder at its edges.
"We are home," said the woman beside him.
As the carriage passed through the portal, everything changed abruptly.
Thousands, no, millions of shattered mirrors floated randomly beneath crimson skies, their fractured surfaces humming with a low, dissonant energy, and the castle that Lidien had hoped to see stood in the middle of the land, atop a floating island with a bridge attached to the end of the cliff.
Lidien and the woman got off the carriage, traveling across the bridge toward the castle in the sky.
"Be careful, my son... even I will not be able to help you if you fall from this bridge."
Lidien looked down, only to see nothing but a void.
"Where are we?" he asked, gulping.
The woman held Lidien's hand tightly and said:
"Welcome to your new home, the Rift of the Shattered Mirrors... and, I'll warn you... do not look at your reflection when you gaze into the mirrors."
Lidien gripped the woman's hand tightly; he was sure her warning was something that needed to be followed no matter what.
Yet, he couldn't help but glance at a mirror far away from him... like an instinct, when told what not to do, he unconsciously disobeyed, unsure whether it was curiosity or just the mirror itself whispering for him to take a look.
What he saw was himself...
In a dark cave lit by a torch's emerald flickering light...
Stabbing his own chest in front of a black-cloaked man.