Meera wasn't sure if she should shut the door and back out of the house or use a Mirror Blast right then and there. The room had all these men standing in a line, eyes closed. The witch had them dressed down to their underwear, and she had a lad who barely looked like he was fifteen on a table. His one leg had turned into a mirror leg, and the other was halfway there.

With a start, Meera realized the golems had been these men. The witch had been turning these men into the Mirror Golems and sending them after her. It took everything Meera had not to attack the scantily dressed woman.

She was strikingly beautiful, the kind one would do a double take if they saw her on the street. She had long blonde hair and green eyes. The woman's sparkling dress covered the essential bits but didn't leave anything to the imagination. She put down the piece of mirror she was about to attach to the boy and wiped her hands on a towel, which was presented to her by a man who was in a daze.

The witch turned to Meera, smiling. "You've cost me a fair number of these. I should be mad at you, but it's not like every day you get a visitor wielding a mythical weapon."

Meera clutched her chakram tighter. "Who are you? And why are you turning these men into your golems?"

The witch smiled. "To keep my privacy, of course. A woman like me gets many visitors, and I would so like to be left alone."

Meera's nostrils flared. "Why? I killed all those golems—no innocent men for your fucking privacy."

"You should calm yourself. You are talking to a sister of the Arcane Order. A Sorceress of Akhessai. A first-grade conqueror of the Prismatic Arts. If you don't believe me, you can Identify me, and after that, you better talk to me with respect, girlie."

Of all the things she said, only one stood out to Meera. "You're a Sorceress of Akhessai?"

The witch sighed. "Why is it that everyone only hears that? Yes, I'm a Sorceress of Akhesaai. Now bow down to me but don't ask for a favor in exchange for your firstborn. I don't do that. That's Valentina's business."

Meera squinted and couldn't tell if she was joking about the firstborn part. In any case, Meera Identify'd her.

[Sorceress of Mirrors – Level ??]

This made sense as she had created the mirror golems and was turning a poor lad into another one. In no world was Meera going to let her go through with this? But the witch did have all these men under her control. If she made them attack her, then Meera would have to kill or hurt them at the least. She had to play this carefully.

"I'm not here for any favors, and where I'm from, we've done away with the bowing and the scraping. So, you don't have to worry about that, and I don't have a kid either."

"Oh, didn't know the Varsha Empire had become so advanced that they've stopped bowing to their betters," the witch said. "The way I remember, weren't they the ones that started it all."

Meera gritted her teeth and repeated the words that were grinding down her soul. "Not a Varshan."

"Oh, could've fooled me. Does this not-a-Varshan have a name, or does she just enjoy killing my precious golems?"

"Do you have a name?"

"I asked first."

Meera hated this woman even more than the rich girl that had sent her here. "I'm Meera."

"Not a Varshan name, indeed." The witch smiled. "I'm Kalrina of-well, you know my titles already. So, Meera, with no family name, who is not from Varsha, what can I help you with, that you went through eleven of these nice specimens to get to me?"

"I have a request and a few questions to ask of you."

"Oh, do tell," she said giddily. "I always love those."

Meera was not such an idiot that she missed the sarcasm in her voice. "I request you to release these men back to their families."

Kalrina's right eyebrow twitched a little. "That seems more like an order."

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

"No, still a request. Their families are suffering without them, and because of your golems, they cannot leave. They are about to run out of food."

"But this valley is a bounty of food and game."

"Game that they cannot get to because anytime they step foot into the forest, your golems show up to harass them, which I now know to be cruel as these golems are their very loved ones."

Kalrina snorted. "Oh dearie, you have no notion what it means to be cruel. I can show it to you, but I want to hear these questions first."

Meera had only one question until she discovered that this Kalrina was a Sorceress of Akhessai. Now, she had a few more, but she settled on two additional ones, which she was sure would raise a few eyebrows.

"I'm on the Champion's trail. Last I heard, he came through here and talked with a witch. Is that you?"

"How do you know the Champion was ever here?"

"I have my sources."

"The sources could have been lying."

"You haven't outright said no about the Champion coming here, so it makes me think he was here."

Kalrina's lips cracked a hint of a smile. "He could have been, or he could not have. Why do you seek the Champion? You're not one of his raving fans, are you?"

"I'm an independent contractor hired by a very wealthy individual to bring Neel to him, so he can ensure his safety until the Champion has to do his thing and save us all."

"I see." The sorceress nodded. "That wealthy individual wouldn't happen to be Arhazar, the Godking of Varsha?"

"No, I have never even seen the man, and like I've said, I'm not a Varshan, so I doubt I would be allowed into their borders."

The witch snorted. "Oh, I'm sure you will be. But let's set that aside and hear your second question."

"Do you know what is a Reflectora?

This got a reaction from the sorceress. Her eyebrows shot up as her eyes widened. "My, my, now, that is a curious question. What would an independent contractor want with an ancient relic of the past."

Meera frowned. "It's an ancient relic? What is it used for? Where would I find one?"

"Oh, I've said too much already. Is that all the questions you have for me? Because I won't lie, I'm quite intrigued by these questions from a person who claims to be an independent contractor and wants to know about such dangerous things."

Meera did not like the look in her eye. Even though Kalrina came off as cheery and bubbly, her eyes were trying to pierce through Meera's soul and discover her secrets.

"My last question is, do you know the exact words of the prophecy?"

"A very curious adventurer indeed. Most would have asked me the secret to making the golems, but you're asking about the one thing that hardly anyone asks about. After all, everyone already knows about it—the Great Dragon will rise and try to end the worlds one by one, and the Champion will stop it."

"I don't think you heard me. I want to know the exact words of the prophecy."

"I heard you, girlie. Now, I want you to hear me. My answer to your request is a plain and simple no, and you can take your questions and run out of my forest before I send more of my golems after you. Now, you can leave my hut, or I can put you on the table and turn you into my pet."

Meera looked at the unconscious lad whose legs were slowly being turned into those of a golem. She looked to the witch and back to the lad, and something didn't make sense.

"Okay, I will leave and fight more of your golems and get even stronger until I've killed them all. then I will return, and my request will turn into a demand. Or we can do a trade."

Kalrina barked a laugh. "Ha! The pup bares her teeth to the lioness. Go on."

"You say you're a sorceress of Akhessai, and yet you are here in this untouched forest on a different world when you should have been at home with your sisters. You kidnapped all these men and turned them into your servants and protectors. You don't let anyone even enter the forest. My question is, why? Why go through all this?"

Karina's face grew dark initially, and Meera readied herself for a fight. She quickly surveyed all the parts of the room which had some shadows she could jump to.

Then Karina relaxed and smiled a little. "So, you're not a complete dullard, as I thought. My original plan was to lure you in here and kill you for making me waste so much of my Mana and resources by killing my pets. But now, we might be able to make a trade, or at the very least, I can get you out of my hair."

She stood and moved for the window, and as the light of Mirithia fell on her, Meera was once again reminded of how beautiful she was. Beautiful but cruel.

"You asked why I am here. The answer should be obvious. I'm in hiding. Hiding from my sisters who are cross with me because I did something I shouldn't have. The specifics will just bore you. That's why when I landed here, I took control of the men, made them into golems, and set up shop near the Gateway Mirror. So, if my sisters come knocking, I can get out of here like this." She snapped her fingers.

"But that is your problem. Why involve these folks?"

"Simple answer, because I can and must for my survival. Tell me, wouldn't you do everything you can to protect yourself."

"I wouldn't endanger innocent people to save my own hide."

"How very noble of you. Now, you mentioned something about a trade. So, let's do a trade, as I can hardly stand your self-righteousness. There is a cave nearby filled with dangerous monsters, but if you could handle my golems, they should not cause much trouble for you."

"What do you need from the cave?"

"I'm getting there, my hasty one. At the heart of the cave, you will find a green crystal called the Crystal of Darthin. Bring that crystal to me, and I will release all these men, as I won't need them if I have that."

"Why didn't you go get it yourself?"

"Because it is entirely bothersome, and putting a few men under my spell is much easier. After all, which man would not lust after me."

Meera had the strong urge to punch her pretty face. "And you will answer my questions?"

Kalrina shrugged. "Sure, but for that, you will have to answer a few of my own, but we'll get to them later. Now, shoo, the Cave of Wraiths awaits."

Meera gulped. That can't be good.