It had been twenty-seven years since the siege of Crence and the chaos of that day. Adam now sat at the end of a long, polished oak table in a refined meeting chamber of The Order. He sat with various chapter leaders on either side of him, each from one of the various southern nations where The Order had taken hold. The meeting had already been long and arduous. Adam hoped it would wrap up soon as he sat there at the helm. He had other matters requiring his attention.

  “Thank you, Brother Matthius, for the brief update on our finances,” Adam said with a sigh of sarcasm. “Brother Aldwin, I believe you had an update for me. How is Kester faring?”

  “Our jurisdiction in Kester is growing, but it's slow. It could be assisted with further support by the general population, not to mention its leaders,” Chapter Leader Aldwin spoke.

  The room hung in an awkward silence for a moment as Adam looked at Aldwin patiently, and they looked at Adam with blank faces.

  “Well?” Adam yelled, frustrated with the men before him. “Is this not a problem, or do you have a solution?”

  “We have some ideas,” Aldwin said, almost tripping over his own words before calming himself and proceeding. “We could create further sentiment through programs for the lower class. Providing them with healers free of charge in public events and settings might help change public opinion.”

  “And what of the nobles?” Adam asked. “We need their support more than some peasant's.”

  Aldwin leaned into the table nervously, speaking with his hands as much as his mouth. “Most advisors of the noble courts in Kester are not in support of us, let alone affiliated with us. I've tried to convince nobles to take on advisors recommended and affiliated with The Order, but most refuse. The nobility of the region enjoys a culture of elven influence. They see the elves as wise and intelligent in their unnatural age and enjoy having them as advisors. They almost treat it like the mark of a high-class court.”

  “The solution, Aldwin,” Adam said sternly, his patience wearing thin.

  Aldwin straightened in his chair, speaking with growing confidence. “If we can't replace them, we make them ours. We expand our licensing in this region to include some elves—give their courts what they want while bringing those advisors under our oversight. It would increase the services we could provide and improve how Kester perceives us.”

  Adam placed his palms on the table and tapped his fingers lightly as he thought about what Aldwin had said. “Brother Aldwin... how old are you?” he asked.

  “I'm 20, sir,” Aldwin answered, confused by the question.

  “Only 20! Wow,” Adam exclaimed without changing position. “And already a chapter leader. Your peers must think highly of you. Where do you hail from, if you don't mind me asking?”

  “Permisha,” Aldwin replied. “I was raised in a port town on the coast.”

  “Permisha!” Adam exclaimed. “That's not far. We are from neighboring nations. I was born here in Crence. Our people have a common history.”

  “I suppose,” said Aldwin as he watched Adam slowly stand from his chair, step behind it, and lean on the back of it.

  Adam spoke firmly now. “Brother Aldwin, I've seen your work, and you no doubt show promise in our ranks. I can see you are very smart, but what the intellect of mind cannot afford, the wisdom of age can buy. Can you briefly recite to me Permisha's history with the Alden Empire?”

  Aldwin paused and looked to his peers, now confused, but then quickly returned Adam's gaze and answered. “We were the last nation to be fully conquered by the Empire. We were also the first to see the Empire return home after the Drakmere Rebellion. Their rule was short-lived for my nation, and it was all before I was born.”

  Adam now stood tall and began to pace and circle the room as he spoke clearly for everyone to hear. “This is the history you learn in a book, Brother Aldwin, but it doesn't match the truth. I remember when soldiers from Crence and all over left for Permisha to fight on the front line defending all our homes but couldn't fight back the imperial tide. They took your home with the assistance of Dwarves and support of Elves. There is always more at play. We are a brotherhood created not just to provide a service and grow in power. We are establishing a new order. We are trying to set humanity on a better path. Would any of you let the Orcs, Elves, or Dwarves decide what that path is for all of us?”

  The group unanimously answered “No,” in various tones, at different times, and in different ways.

  “Then I hate to inform you, but they've done so up to this point,” Adam spoke more passionately by the moment. “Since the beginning, our continent has been invaded by others. First came the Orcs from across the western sea—raiders who pillaged, murdered, and looted us for resources, sport, and religious sacrifices. They established their strongholds on our lands and forced us to adopt their warring ways just to survive. Then the Dwarves came—refugees of a supposed lost world. They begged for our charity, and we gave it to them, and they gave humanity the tools to further mutilate itself. The Alden Empire stood tall, relying on the Dwarves, and that would be their downfall. The Dwarves made Drakmere erupt to make the entire island habitable only for them and forcibly took it from humanity and sent the Empire into collapse. They alone are responsible for both the creation of The Alden Empire's rampage and its demise. Then came the Elves, calling themselves protectors of sentient life. Yet when the Empire threatened us all, they made their own deal—securing the golden isle once an orcish stronghold for themselves while directing imperial forces eastward, away from their borders and toward places like Permisha and Crence, where so many of our people died not even 30 years ago.”

  After circling the table several times while speaking, he finally paused at the opposite end from where his chair sat at the head of the table. He leaned over the table to get closer to them as he spoke and placed his palms flat on the table. “Our every step as humanity has either been directly or indirectly laid out by those other than us. I created this Order so that I might lead people to a better future for humanity. I'm blessed to have seen this movement grow beyond me. What was once my mission is now the mission of each of you, and I am humbled to be your leader. We have made much progress and gained much influence, but, my brothers, we do have an enemy. It is part of our mission to be the new light for humanity, and we cannot be tainted. If the Order were to be infiltrated by non-humans, we would be no better than the Empire. We must be better. Not only must we refuse their influence—we must fight their influence over humanity at every turn.”

  Adam straightened slowly over his brothers. His voice now barely a whisper as he spoke with a tone that cut through the tension he had created in the room. “My brothers, we are not only fighting.” His voice rose to fill the room. “We are at war!”

  The room was dreadfully silent as the chapter leaders traded glances at each other and at Adam, but Adam stared through the center of the table, seemingly still in his own thoughts. Finally, Adam took a deep breath and stood back up as if snapping out of it and spoke now as if to return things to business as usual. “Aldwin, gather what resources you can within our current guidelines and see what you can do. If you lack manpower, resources, or need any assistance, you will defer to Brother Silas since he will be your new neighbor. He will be taking over Crence as chapter leader since I and our headquarters are moving to Foremere. In fact, I leave today.”

  Adam smiled and spoke with excitement. “Rejoice, brothers! We have come far. Foremere and King Declan will soon be recognizing us as an official part of their government. This is a major responsibility and opportunity for us. Let us not falter now at such an important time.”

  Adam signaled to an individual in the corner of the room and proceeded to speak as the man brought his coat to him. “You all may continue, but I have much to do today, and I believe that was everything on the docket.” He slipped his coat on as everyone stood up out of respect. “This time next year, we will be meeting in Foremere.” He waved to them once as he turned and walked out. “Until then, brothers.”

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  On the carriage ride back to his manor, he thought over his successful day. Soon they would have government backing in Foremere and more jurisdiction than ever before. It comforted him to know that he had had an opportune moment earlier to realign his brothers with the true cause of The Order. The mission was far from done.

  He arrived at his manor and made his way to find his wife, Evelyn, at work in their study. She sat with her legs crossed in a meditative position in the center of the dimly lit room. The only light came from the flickering candles that encircled her. Evelyn sat facing away from Adam, but he could see her in the standing mirror that faced her in the dark. He walked behind her quietly to observe his wife's reflection.

  In the mirror, all he could see was the two of them flickering in and out of existence in an endless black void. The image felt almost off-putting. He had seen her doing this countless times and even lingered occasionally to watch. This moment felt different and particularly empty. He sensed their reflections were devoid of something intangible and grew uncomfortable before looking down at the real Evelyn seated before him.

  She was a divinator like her father now, and much of her arcane work consisted of methods like these. Everything seemed symbolic to what she was doing. She was physically here, but her consciousness, much like her reflection, was flickering in and out of existence, scouring the cosmos.

  Adam found his dreams and goals so lofty that he believed nothing in this world of Moria could serve in furthering them. The Order worked hard collecting resources and information for him, but his childhood friend and wife for most of his life had just the skills to seek beyond their physical limits. He encouraged and often pushed her to use her skills constantly and believed it would be her who would deliver their breakthrough. To him, it wasn't just his destiny—it was theirs.

  “Anything?” Adam asked.

  “Quiet. I'm focused,” she replied softly, but Adam sensed the urgency in her voice.

  Adam crouched behind her to get closer to her but made sure to remain outside the candles that encircled her as she had asked of him in the past. Adam watched her intently and could sense an odd thickness in the air. He could choke on the darkness that slowly amassed to engulf them. Each candle's flame seemed to stretch and flash wildly, but even as they grew, they appeared to cast less and less light on the room. He watched as her head occasionally leaned back and side to side like a child unable to hold up their head.

  “Evelyn?” Adam called to her calmly.

  She was silent as the room continued to feel unreasonably more hostile by the second to him, but more so, her silence brought awareness to a new horror. The room felt silent beyond reason or understanding. He knew he was not deaf because his ears sought sound. The world had gone mute. He was left only to hear his faint breath, and his raging heart. The silence became so unbearable that he nearly felt like he could hear his blood moving through his veins like rushing streams in the earth. The silence became so great it transformed into its own kind of deafening noise. Adam could feel himself begin to panic, and it felt unlike him.

  Adam fought his urge to cross the boundary and called out to her again: “Evelyn!”

  With no response from Evelyn once again, Adam quickly leaned to look around her and look at her reflection. Both of her eyes were rolled back and shifting wildly like they were reading something on the inside of her eyelids or skull. Her lips barely parted but clearly moved without a sound as if muttering nothing at all. The sight sent chills down his spine as she appeared possessed. He couldn't wait any longer and stood up and stepped in the circle so he could reach her.

  “Adam, no!” Evelyn yelled as her arm reached out subconsciously, trying to stop Adam as he stepped across the barrier.

  Immediately, the room almost felt calm. The candles died down to normal and no longer raged like before. The darkness no longer plagued them but lingered just outside the circle, pressing against the imaginary barrier of light the candles gave. The silence was great, but it no longer ripped at his sanity. They both breathed heavily as they looked around slowly, as if they had survived an ambush. Adam and Evelyn locked eyes and stared at each other as if each were searching for what to say, but before Adam could come to terms with everything, his attention was drawn to the mirror.

  Adam could see in his peripheral vision that Evelyn watched him closely, but her reflection ignored this reality. It watched her as if enamored, with unblinking eyes and an uncanny smile. Before he could muster the courage to warn Evelyn that her own image had betrayed her, her reflection turned to match his gaze. Evelyn, seeing the horror in his eyes, turned to see what had brought Adam such fear and was met with a mirror that wouldn't look back at her.

  Evelyn stood up quickly, and as she did, her image turned to finally look at her but never matching her face. Its eyes felt empty in their unfocused gaze, and its smile was like an imitation by something that had never known the purpose of a smile. It matched her body and stood up with her, its movements synchronized but somehow wrong, as if puppeted by strings. It looked like her entirely, but its expression was something Evelyn could not reproduce in her best attempts. Adam watched in silent horror as his wife faced her doppelganger in the mirror.

  Evelyn spoke before Adam could muster words. “What is this?” she asked with fear, staring into the mirror.

  Adam's dread only grew, and his chest filled with anxiety as Evelyn's question hung in the air and only silence answered. The darkness outside the candles still shrouded every edge of the room. They stood alone in a sea of nothing except for the anomaly trapped behind glass before them.

  It finally abandoned its wicked smile for a moment and as its mouth opened, the room unnaturally silenced, making way for it. Even its voice was a cruel mockery of Evelyn's. It was her own voice multiplied and layered upon itself like a choir, each speaking with a different tone, creating a harmony that was somehow deeply wrong.

  “An answer,” it replied before returning to its soulless smile.

  Adam watched quietly as Evelyn cautiously interacted with her reflection.

  “To what?” she asked with an assertiveness to make her voice clear and heard, but a hint of fear could still be heard.

  “Was it not you that called out? Did you not make your will known to the ether of the vale?” Evelyn's reflection spoke with its corrupted voice.

  Evelyn turned to Adam, speaking now to him. “I don't know what this is, but it feels…”

  Adam placed a hand on her shoulder and interrupted her. His excitement at the possibilities of having his dreams realized overwhelmed him. “What do you know?” he asked the mirror.

  His own reflection now sprang to unnatural life as it adopted the same uncanny smile and faced him. He turned to match its eyes as it began to speak with his voice in the same haunting way Evelyn's reflection spoke. The sound of each word filled him with fear, but he anticipated each one with excitement.

  It answered with his own voice to his own question: “Your vision aligns with forces greater than you know. I would see Eden realized. I have assured the path exists. I have merely… removed obstacles and... created opportunity.”

  “What opportunity?” Adam asked without hesitation, now solely focused on the offer at hand. His excitement at the possibilities was quickly replaced by Evelyn's worry and doubt.

  “What are you?” she asked. “And what do you want with us?”

  Her reflection answered her: “I am but a fragment… an echo of my master who awaits beyond the vale in sacred silence… Ask not what he desires. Ask instead what each of you desires, and know that this pleases him… You should only hope your desires never conflict.”

  Adam barely heard the warning, his attention fixed on his own reflection as it continued: “I have positioned the pieces, aligned the moments, and adjusted the odds… The opportunity is now yours to lose or grasp… You will find the shepherd in sheep's clothing—greater than man but hiding in one's skin. I will also bring down an exile from the stars. You will require his assistance in your endeavors.”

  “What else can you tell me?” Adam asked, desperate for more.

  Both his and her reflections now stared at him, smiling ear to ear, but before they could do anything else, Evelyn's sprung to action.

  “No!” she shouted. She kicked over the nearest candle. “Enough!” she shouted once again as the candle rolled across the floor and stopped as its flame went out.

  The reflections twisted and contorted while maintaining their wicked smiles as the darkness around them pulsed ever quicker until suddenly it all stopped. Almost all the candles seemed to go out except for a few. Their reflections were theirs again, conforming to their movements and no longer speaking of their own volition. Adam and Evelyn stood in what they could only describe as a peaceful silence in comparison to the silence of earlier.

  “Why did you do that?” Adam asked, frustrated with Evelyn.

  “You didn't feel that? Weren’t you scared? I've spoken with things before, but that was different.”

  “Different?” Adam yelled.

  “Different as in dangerous! Adam, that thing knew things it shouldn't know. It manipulated our reflections and spoke with our voices.”

  “Different as in it was helping us? Years I've searched for the possibility, using everything at my disposal. Even with The Order: all its resources, mages, and scholars, I've found nothing.” He stepped toward her. “My love, you promised: we would help each other to no end and never hold each other back. Finally, you found me something, and now you've taken it away.”

  “Adam… I—”

  “It's fine, Evelyn,” he interrupted her as he turned away to go grab his coat. “It's not completely lost. It said the possibility is there, and it gave me two people to look for.”

  She reached out as if to grab him, but her arm fell short, and she rested it back at her side. She knew there was no stopping him, let alone warning him.

  Adam threw his coat back on and swung the door open and stepped through without looking back. “I'm nothing if not resourceful.”

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