Whispers between worlds

w thick, stifling, and suffocating, as if the forest itself was closing in on her. Every instinct screamed at her to run, to escape the overwhelming

ith venom. "You were always meant to destroy it." Her voice was no longer the soothing tone El

shard she still held. The light it emitted flickered weakly, a

g her head, trying to steady herself. "This isn

've been hiding from. The truth you've known all along, buried deep beneath the lies you've told yourself." The figure step

ng deep within her. She could see, through the fog of her disbelief, the faintest echo of the mother she onc

ng at the edges but determined to hold her ground. "

. I am the one who has always been here, calling to you. The veil between worlds has weakened. You are the heir to a legacy far darker than you know. And the Mirror of Veils was never meant

ground beneath her was slipping away. The forest, the shadows, and the distorted figure of her

rkness take hold. "You're wrong. I choose my path. Not t

entirely obscured by a veil of

hard forward, calling on the light it contained. A brilliant beam of energy erupted from the shard, cutting through the oppress

shard surged through her. But something felt off. The air grew heavy again, the light from the s

"This isn't over. I won

her seemed to bend toward her, their branches twisting in unnatural directions, as if trying to bind he

cross the forest floor. She glanced up, her heart poundin

in a way that felt more tangible, more immediate. She had been tested before, but now it was different. This

ces were bec

air, and from the shifting shadows emerged creatures of nightmares-hulking, twisted beings formed from the darkness of the forest

ces from the shadows whispered again-louder, clearer this time. Her mother's voice, once full of warmth and lov

she had faced-rose in her chest, louder than the whispers. It told her th

hat merely illuminated-it was a force of will, a power that reflected her defiance, her refusal to succumb to the

of her defiance. "I choose light! I choose hope! I

iled in agony as the light swept over them, banishing the darkness that had clung to them for so

dissipated, and the creatures were gone. The oppressive weight of the forest l

resting in her hand. It was smaller than the others, but its power was und

t step was coming, and she knew the road ahead would not be easy. The Mirror of Veils was a weapon of unimaginable

ws had receded. But Elena knew that

would