The Enchanted Mirror

A long time ago, on a small island, lived a beautiful and clever witch. Her name was Livia. She was blessed with magic and although she used her magic for good, people grew jealous of her capabilities, teasing her for being different. They refused to listen to her and blamed her for crimes she didn’t commit. For this reason, she was banished from earth and was forced to go into hiding. Using her magic, Livia created an underground kingdom, far more advanced than any human colony in the galaxy. But there was only one problem, Livia was alone, no one else was gifted with magic like her. So, to put an end to her loneliness, she built a mirror. It was an enchanted mirror that could bring anything that was visualized to life. Using this tool, Livia created more witches and became the leader of the new race.  

Using their unique gifts, the witches built a whole underground community as their home base. Under the leadership of Livia, they used their powers to help the human race grow more advanced and become independent.  With each passing day, the witches grew more powerful. Soon, some witches became selfish and started using their powers only for themselves, believing that nothing could harm them. They formed a coven and spread evil thoughts to the rest of the community and turned them against their leader.

Livia refused to use her magic for her own good and encouraged others to do the same. This started the Witches’ Duel, a war that lasted for 20 days. Livia was more powerful than any of the witches, but against 300 other witches and their leader who was Glinda, Livia and the 5 others were powerless. But she had a secret weapon that the evil witches didn’t know of, the mirror. Livia knew that she could win the war but she believed that fighting wasn’t the way to end all evil in the world. So she turned herself in, giving her magic mirror to the purest, kindest, and the honest human family Livia knew, in hopes that the enchanted mirror will be passed from generation to generation and be used to save the world from the witches and cast her last spell,

“When there is unrest in thy witch colony, when there is evil everywhere, a girl will rise and overpower thee, to spread virtue and become the heir.”

  Unbeknownst about the spell Livia had cast, Glinda set to chant her own spell to overpower Livia and put an end to her good ruling, Livia warned as she took her last breath, “She will end this injustice, I don’t know when but she will. The girl will be successful and thou will fail!” Naturally, this panicked Glinda, and she took this as a threat to her evil reign. She knew that Livia was very powerful and took the warning seriously. She informed new rules so that no one would be able to get into their underground kingdom without her knowing. But Glinda didn’t know about the enchanted mirror. Livia was too clever to reveal her secret weapon and this would prove to be useful in the future. 

530 years later…

Lily Walker stood in front of her mirror, brushed her long, hazel-colored hair for the surprise celebration, looking at the night sky sprinkled with shining diamonds. She was 15 years old and had a determined face, showing that she couldn’t be bossed around by anyone. As much as strong and brave Lily was, her electric blue eyes held a lot of sadness from the time she lost her 8-year-old brother. They had been in a bad car accident last year and had lost Jakob in the process. Her mom had finished recovering from her broken arm and life was almost back to normal, almost. Since then, Lily had vowed to always be brave and overcome all hardships, no matter how hard. Lily was as normal as a person could get, but everything had changed for her after the accident, not only physically but emotionally. Her thoughts and actions were different and in the past months, she had started to feel more and more lonely like she didn’t fit in.

Lily walked out of her room and smiled, “I am ready, mom. Now, what’s the celebration about?” Her mom smiled mysteriously, her blue eyes twinkling, and shook her head. Lily’s dad entered, carrying a big mirror, almost 6 feet tall, and set it in the room. 

“Now we know how much you have suffered after the loss of Jakob,” her father started as Lily’s eyes fell a little at her brother’s name, “But we are very proud of you for taking the situation as best as possible. So, your mother and I thought that you are ready to take on this responsibility. I think it’s time that you got to know why this mirror is so important to our family.” Lily’s eyes widened. As far as she knew, the mirror was a family heirloom and had been in her family for centuries. She had tried many times to ask her parents questions about it but they would refuse to say any more. Her curiosity grew and she asked, 

“Why is it so important dad? I want to know.”

“This mirror has been in our family for many centuries, it is considered a good luck charm. My mom told me that our ancestors received this from a fortune-teller as a thank you gift for their hospitality. Some even say that a witch gave it to them so we could protect it. Of course, no one knows for sure. We have always protected this mirror from all cost, now it's time this job is passed to you.” As Lily approached the mirror, she felt a warm sensation on the back of her neck. The air tingled and as she got closer, an odd sort of energy formed. A bright white light flashed and a purple blast shot out and hit her on her chest. She fell back in alarm as her parents rushed towards her. 

“What happened? Did you trip?” Her mom asked, worried

“The light, something hit me!” Lily stammered

“Something hit you? We didn’t see anything,” her dad said, exchanging glances with Lily’s mom

“You didn’t see a purple light?”

“No, why? Is something wrong?”

“No, I just reckon I am tired. I should go to bed, it’s pretty late.” Lily went to bed with her heart racing. She felt different like she had noticed a part of herself that she didn’t know. She waited until the lights closed and until she heard soft snoring from her parent’s room. She slipped out of her bed and quietly tiptoed back to the hallway,  reaching the mirror. Moonlight poured from the open window and shined down on the glistening mirror. Lily kneeled down and traced the cracks when a bright white light flashed again, this time as if trying to tell her something. The cracks felt too straight and wide to be a crack. Trusting her instinct, Lily put her nails inside the crack and pulled on the glass, revealing a hidden note inside, slightly yellow with frayed edges. She opened it and read the fancy writing. 

O Savior, 

I know thou will think this is crazy but it’s not. I am a witch. Thou is a witch as well. Witches exist and they are causing chaos in the world. Witches used to be good. We had a kind heart and always used to help the humans, but when Glinda turned bad and turned almost everyone against me, everything changed. I was forced to give up and cast my last spell to make thee a witch. I don’t know what will happen, just that thou are meant to change the way witches think and behave. Glinda is about to kill me and take the throne for herself. I am afraid this is only the beginning of her evil deeds. Thou have to fix all this. Remember, Glinda is very smart and she won’t be outsmarted easily. This mirror will help thee succeed, it isn’t an ordinary mirror, it’s an enchanted mirror. Anything thou visualize in front of it will come to life. Keep it safe and use it wisely. This mirror should never fall into the wrong hands. Our secret kingdom is located underground. Thou are probably reading this note centuries later from now. I gave this mirror to thy ancestors so that one of their descendants, thee, can save the witches colony. I am counting on thee. Thou have a difficult choice ahead. 

Good luck, Livia.

Heart pounding, Lily put the note back in the hidden compartment of the mirror with trembling hands. NO, she thought, this can’t be true this is NOT happening. There is no such thing as witches and nothing has happened. I am just a normal girl who has nothing to do with all this. This must be a prank, yes, that’s what it is. She tried to reassure herself and refused to believe anything that the note said. 

She went back to sleep, trying not to think about what she had found out but sleep didn’t come to her peacefully. Every night as Lily slept, she dreamed about Livia and the note. In her dreams, she would see a woman in a maroon, old-fashioned dress with puffed-up sleeves calling to her. The image of Livia sacrificing herself never left Lily's head as day after day passed. 

“Honey, are you feeling ok?” Lily’s mom asked at the dinner table one day. Lily hadn’t been her usual self lately, eating less, talking less, even going out less. It worried her mother.

“Of course mom, I’m fine,” Lily lied. A few minutes later, she went quietly to sleep. 

“Lily, Lily, you have to help. Lily help. LILY!” Lily jolted awake. Her room was pitch black. She could hear the buzzing of insects and the crickets chirping. It had just been a dream. She pushed her blanket aside and walked towards the mirror, the same spot, and stood in front of it. She gathered a few items, a watch, some food, and water. She had reached her decision.

It sounded like a prank but deep inside, Lily found herself believing this. She knew that if this were all true, she had to help fulfill her purpose and carry on what Livia had tried to do. It was hard to comprehend that she was a witch but Lily was drawn to the idea of witches being real, like a magnet pulling her closer and closer. Bending down, she pulled out Livia’s note from the crack in the mirror and placed it in her bag. Standing up, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, visualizing every detail of the object she had in mind. A woosh of cool air swift past her as she opened her eyes, in front of her stood the door, made entirely of marble. A humming sound came from inside, like whispers encouraging her to open the door. Lily stepped over the door frame, one arm carrying the mirror and one arm slinging the bag, leaving behind her home and parents, knowing that nothing would be the same as the darkness swallowed her whole...

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