Chapter 111: The Mirror of Fantastic Illusions

The battle for the ruined kingdom had finally quieted.

Smoke still drifted from shattered towers, while the distant sounds of reconstruction echoed through the broken streets. 

Resistance soldiers hauled supplies quickly through the city.

Pig Legion engineers reinforced damaged walls, while the Marionette Corps scout quietly searched for hidden cult remnants.

For the first time in days, Gene, Selene, and Lilith weren’t running toward another battlefield.

Instead, they were heading beneath the queens castle.

The same underground vault where Lilith had discovered the mysterious Black Gem.

“This place gives me the creeps,” Gene admitted as Athena projected a soft blue light through the tunnels.

The stone corridors seemed older than the castles history itself.

Strange carvings stretched across the walls.

Dragons circled stars while seven gemstones surrounded an enormous tree whose branches reached into the heaven. 

Hooded figures extended their hands toward creatures of every imaginable shape but ones that look normal.

Selene gently brushed her fingers across one carving.

“Wait a minute. These are a lot different than the ones I remember translating earlier.”

“The symbols have changed,” Athena replied. 

“Now that the Black Gem has awakened, additional inscriptions have become visible.”

Lilith skipped forward with Fluffy trotting happily behind her.

“I still think there’s a lot of treasure here.”

Gene laughed.

“You’re probably right.”

Lilith grinned.

“I know I can feel the treasures!!!.”

⸻

The massive circular chamber soon came into view.

The seven stone sockets surrounding the central dais glowed faintly.

Six remained empty.

Only one now shimmered with dark energy.

Lilith untied the enchanted pouch hanging from her belt.

“Behave this time.”

The bag shook once.

She cautiously opened it.

The Black Gem floated upward.

Unlike before, it no longer tried to force itself onto anyone. It hovered silently in the center of the chamber as if patiently waiting.

The room darkened.

A deep rumble rolled through the stone.

Black mist spiraled from the gem before slowly taking shape.

Two golden eyes opened.

Then an enormous dragon emerged from the darkness.

His scales resembled polished obsidian streaked with silver veins that shimmered like distant stars. 

Long ivory horns curved backward from his head, while countless ancient scars crossed his massive body. 

Great folded wings rested against his back, each large enough to cover an entire house.

He wasn’t frightening.

He was ancient.

The dragon studied the three of them.

Finally…

His gaze settled on Selene.

“I wondered how long it would take.”

Selene blinked.

“You… know me?”

The dragon lowered his enormous head.

“I knew your grandmother. You have a similar scent as her.”

Silence filled the chamber.

“My grandmother?” ,Selene whispered.

“She carried the Black Gem before you.”

Selene’s eyes widened.

“So it’s true…”

The dragon nodded slowly.

“Papa! She was one of the last completed Dreamseers.”

Lilith whispered excitedly next to Gene.

“You know it’s true because he talks fancy.”

Gene smiled.

“He definitely does.”

⸻

The dragon lowered himself until his snout rested near the floor.

“I have carried many names.”

“My oldest name has been forgotten.”

“My final name…”

He smiled softly.

“…is Great Teacher.”

The title echoed through the chamber.

Athena immediately began scanning him.

“Energy output exceeds every previous dragon encountered.”

Gene folded his arms.

“So… you’re the guardian of the Black Gem?”

Great Teacher chuckled.

“I was.”

“My purpose ended the moment a worthy successor arrived.”

His eyes met Selene’s again.

“The Gem has already chosen.”

The Black Gem floated toward Selene.

Unlike its earlier attempts with Lilith, it moved gently.

Almost respectfully.

Selene reached out.

The gemstone rested in her palm.

Warmth spread through her body.

Dark ribbons of magical energy wrapped around her wrist before flowing through her summoning crest.

Instead of consuming light…

The darkness became peaceful.

It settled beside the light already within her.

Athena announced calmly,

“New Summoning Contract Established.”

“Dreamseer Relic synchronized.”

“Guardian Dragon registered.”

Selene smiled.

“Thank you…”

Great Teacher bowed his head.

“It is an honor to fight beside another Dreamseer.”

⸻

The dragon turned toward the enormous sealed doorway.

The circular socket beside it matched the Black Gem perfectly.

“These vaults cannot be opened through force.”

“It recognizes only the Seven Gems.”

Selene carefully removed the gemstone from her bracelet-like summoning focus and placed it into the socket.

A deep click echoed.

The chamber trembled.

Ancient mechanisms that had remained dormant for centuries awakened.

Stone gears turned slowly causing sand and dust to pour down from the ceiling.

The enormous door slowly opened.

Cold air drifted outward.

Gene whistled.

“That definitely beats a normal key.”

⸻

The room beyond the vault door looked nothing like a normal treasure vault.

Hundreds of ornate chests rested upon carved stone pedestals.

Each differed in shape.

Some were carved from crystal.

Others from living wood.

One seemed to be entirely made from silver vines.

Another floated several inches above the floor.

Every chest bore an engraved plaque.

Selene approached the nearest.

Letters slowly rearranged themselves into a language she could read.

“A Dreamseer earns power through understanding.”

“Beneath every legend rests a truth.”

“Answer these questions correctly.”

“Or leave empty-handed.”

Lilith frowned.

“…It’s making us do homework.”

Gene laughed.

“I think Mother Sarah would love this place.”

“You better not call her!”

⸻

Selene knelt before the first chest.

The inscription read:

“What gives life to a summoned guardian?”

She thought quietly.

Gene remained silent.

After a minute she smiled.

“It isn’t magic.”

“It isn’t power.”

“It’s purpose.”

The chest clicked.

Its lid opened.

Inside rested a glowing crystal wrapped in silver thread.

Athena scanned it.

“Summoning Focus Crystal.”

“Increases synchronization between a summoner and there guardian.”

Selene carefully stored it away.

⸻

The second chest read:

“When does imagination become reality?”

Gene looked on thoughtfully.

Lilith raises her hand dramatically.

“ It is obviously whenever papa builds something.”

Everyone laughed.

Selene considered the answer.

Then nodded.

“When someone believes in it strongly enough to give it purpose.”

The chest opened.

Inside rested an ancient Dreamseer robe clasp.

⸻

The third riddle proved harder.

Then another.

Then another.

Eventually Gene sighed.

“We need reinforcements.”

⸻

Nearly an hour later…

Moira hurried into the chamber carrying three books under one arm.

“I came as fast as I could.”

She looked around.

Then completely froze.

“…I never thought that a place like this place actually existed.”

She rushed from chest to chest, reading the ancient inscriptions with childlike excitement.

“Oh…is that a …”

“Oh, this is incredible.”

Gene grinned.

“I take it you can read these?”

Moira looked offended.

“I’ve spent fifteen years studying First Dreamseer dialects.”

She immediately began translating.

One chest required identifying the first magical covenant between dragon and summoner.

Another asked which virtue allowed imagination to survive corruption.

Another required arranging ancient runes in the proper order.

As each answer was given…

Another chest opened.

One after another.

Soon artifacts covered a nearby table.

Ancient scrolls.

Gem polishing tools.

Dreamseer journals.

Broken relics.

And finally…

A beautifully carved crystal chest.

Unlike the others, it contained no riddle.

Only a single sentence.

“Truth cannot exist without reflection.”

Selene gently opened it.

Inside lay four shimmering mirror fragments.

Each floated into the air.

The pieces slowly drifted toward the broken mirror hanging at Selene’s side.

The shards merged with soft flashes of silver light.

Cracks on the face of the mirror disappeared as the mirror grew larger.

New runes appeared around its frame.

Athena’s voice became noticeably excited.

“Artifact restored to forty-two percent operational capacity.”

Gene looked surprised.

“It actually repaired itself.”

Great Teacher nodded.

“As it always has.”

He stared at the partially restored relic.

“There was once a time when every Dreamseer carried one.”

Gene looked at the mirror.

“What exactly is it?”

The dragon smiled.

“You have called it merely a mirror.”

“It deserves its true name.”

He lowered his head respectfully.

“This relic is the Mirror of Fantastic Illusions.”

The chamber fell silent.

Great Teacher continued.

“It does not create illusions.”

“It reveals them.”

“It exposes deception.”

M

“It tears away false realities.”

“It allows its bearer to distinguish truth from lies, dreams from nightmares, and corruption from purity.”

Gene slowly realized what that meant.

“The Hollow King…”

Great Teacher nodded.

“The Hollow King’s greatest strength is distortion.”

“He twists memory.”

“He corrupts imagination.”

“He bends reality.”

The dragon looked directly at Selene.

“The completed Mirror of Fantastic Illusions is one of the sacred relics forged by the First Dreamseers.”

“It was used alongside the Seven Gems to imprison the Hollow King.”

Athena projected a new schematic.

“Current restoration progress: 42%.”

“Remaining fragments required.”

Moira carefully turned another page of an ancient journal.

“There are more vaults. All over this world.”

Gene looked toward the remaining sealed doors.

Six still stood unopened.

Each bore a socket waiting for another Gem.

Great Teacher folded his wings.

“The First Dreamseers did not leave weapons.”

“They left lessons.”

“Each Gem opens another chamber.”

“Each chamber reveals another truth.”

“And when the final door opens…”

Even the dragon’s calm voice grew solemn.

“…you will finally learn why the Hollow King feared the Dreamseers more than any army.”

Gene, Selene, and Lilith exchanged determined glances.

The journey for the Seven Gems had only just begun.