Meera awoke to darkness. Her eyes fluttered open, and she saw nothing. Her heartbeat quickened, thinking she had gone blind. She felt around and found she was in a box, where she could not even stand properly. Her claustrophobia set in right away. Her heart thrummed as anxiety built up in her chest. Her chakrams were gone, and she felt odd as if something was missing. She felt for her Necklace of Darthin's robes. It was gone, too, which meant she no longer had her Armor of Mirrors. She felt around, and all she had on was her undergarments. The anxiety threatened to blow over into a full-blown panic attack.

She beat against the box, and nothing. She activated Druvis Power; strength flowed into her veins, calming her down a little. She punched at the box with all the might of a Druvis, but the box held. Without her Gem of Echoes, she heard nothing.

What if they've locked me in this box and left?

She called her chakrams, and they did not come. She tried many times, thrusting her hands out in every direction, and nothing. Then, an eerie thought came to her. What if I’m dead…no, no, no…

She shivered as her heart beat at the pace of a galloping horse, threatening to burst.

"Help!" She screamed. "Somebody help me! Please."

"They locked me in here."

"Please let me out."

"I'm scared…"

She screamed her throat raw, and no response. Tears dripped from her eyes. She didn't know how long she stayed there like that, for there was no way to tell time in this place. Her anxiety slowly withered away as she accepted her new reality. As her anxiety evaporated, her brain started working again.

"I'm alive," Meera said to herself. "I'm alive. I'm not dead."

She breathed out on her hand. "This breath is real. My tears are real. I'm alive…but then, why am I not hungry?"

She was neither hungry nor had the urge to go to the washroom, and it must've been hours since she had awoken. Aside from breathing, all her other bodily functions had stopped.

I wonder if my Mana still works in here.

She brought up her stats, which appeared white on the black background of the box. Usually, they appeared black.

Stats

[Health: 1107/1110]

[Stamina: 1109/1190]

[Mana: 1420/1420]

She smiled at her near-perfect stats and activated Mirror Blast. The box rocked as it was washed with light and sharp shards of mirrors. In that brief moment of light, she saw herself, and she was fine, almost naked but fine, which was a huge relief, even more so than seeing her Health stat.

This is one way I can get some light in here.

She used Mirror Blast six more times and poured enough Mana into the attack that even the witch would've been riddled with holes. Each time, the box rocked, sometimes quite violently, but it held. No cracks or light seeped in from the outside. All it did was leave white spots in Meera's vision. But the white spots soon disappeared, and she was left in darkness again, suspended in whatever this was. If she didn't know any better, she would have said she was trapped in a black hole.

With nothing better than to wait out her sentence in this horrid box of darkness, she decided to bring up her notifications, as she had killed two Watchmen.

*ding!*

[You have killed Bloodstone Watchman – Level 121]

*ding!*

[You have killed Bloodstone Captain – Level 156]

*ding!*

[Congratulation. Mirror Image Hunter has gained 2 levels and has reached Level 154. You have been awarded 6 stat points]

*ding!*

[Congratulations. Mirror's Affinity has reached Level 113. All of your mirror-based attacks will get a 116% boost.]

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*ding!*

[Congratulations. Armor of Mirrors has reached Level 40]

*ding!*

[Congratulations. Ambush Tactics has gained 2 levels and reached Level 58]

*ding!*

[Congratulations. Mirror Shield has reached Level 41]

*ding!*

[Congratulations. Mirror Wing has reached Level 22]

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Petrifying Surge. Petrifying Surge – Type: Active. You can release a wave that will encase anything it touches in bloodstone for a short period of time. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Bloodstone Implosion. Bloodstone Imposion – Type: Active. You can concentrate Mana to a singular point inside you and unleash it in a devastating explosion of Bloodstone spikes, damaging everything in the area. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

Meera rubbed her chin. She had seen the first skill in action when the captain turned the gate and her Mirror Shield to that reddish stone. Though the second skill sounded more devastating, she already had a similar skill that worked better with her Mirror Affinity. Besides, having a skill that could petrify her opponents rather than kill them could be handy.

She chose Petrifying Surge, meaning she had to replace an existing skill. She gave up Mistwalk as she already had a much faster teleporting skill.

*ding!*

[You have acquired the skill Petrifying Surge – Level 1]

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Bloodstone Bind. Bloodstone Bind– Type: Active. You can form tendrils of bloodstone to entangle and immobilize foes, restricting their movements. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

*ding!*

[Class Ability Activated. You have stolen the skill Ruby Rain. Ruby Rain – Type: Active. You can summon a crimson cloud over your immediate area that will rain bloodstone-infused red raindrops that explode upon contact. Would you like to acquire this skill?]

I'm sorry, it can do what?

The choice was simple. She wanted Ruby Rain. It would be like having a skill that carpet bombs the entire area, in a way. These Bloodstone guys have powerful skills. I should hunt more of them if I ever get out of here.

She was going to do that regardless for shoving her in this box. She had a feeling it wasn't the Watchmen who had done that. It was that Shadow Scribe. No matter her level, Meera would have words with her when she got out of here.

Off the three remaining skills she had picked up from the Mistblades, she wanted to keep them all. Nimbus, Mistbound Illusions, and Mist Concealment all had their uses. Mist Concealment and Mistbound Illusions could work hand in hand to confuse the enemy. Nimbus had proven its worth more than a few times.

Ultimately, she decided to give up Mistbound Illusions as she could only create it with mists in the area, which she could make with Mist Concealment. It could even confuse the enemy as she fell on their backs. But she wanted Ruby Rain.

I really should have asked Darthin for more skill slots.

Thinking of skill slots brought back memories of Shade and Cinders and how they had asked Meera to sacrifice them so they wouldn't fade away. Another thing to curse Edwyn for. She had cried for them the past days in the silence of the night. Even though she had only known them for a little while, those were losses she would not get over easily.

Thinking of her two ghostly friends reminded her of another who was with her—someone the Bleeders could not take away.

She called forth Onyx.

"Meera?" Onyx called. "Where have you summoned me?"

Just hearing his voice assured her she wasn't dead. "Onyx, it's so good to hear your voice."

"Why? Are you dead? It feels like I'm back in the room where they killed me, only it's somehow darker."

"It's a bit of a long story—"

Before Meera could say anything else, Onyx turned on his Light of the Dead skill, washing the whole box with light…and they both screamed.

Meera screamed because Onyx was the size of a raccoon, and he must've screamed because to him, Meera was a giant.

"Why are you so small?" Meera exclaimed.

"Why are you so big?" He shrieked. "And where are your clothes."

Meera sighed. "Let me explain."

And so she did in great detail as she knew she had enough time and nothing better to do.

"Why do you get in heaps of trouble whenever I leave you alone?" Onyx asked.

"Trust me, I've always been in heaps of trouble ever since I came to this world. But that is not why I called upon you. I needed some help."

"With breaking out of this box?"

"This box shrunk you down, which pretty much tells us that even you cannot get out of here," Meera said. "Though I was hoping you could help me figure out a way, we'll just have to wait for them to let me out. They would have to let me out sometime to take me before a judge to, you know, announce my sentence."

"Unless this is your sentence, and we're stuck here to spend eternity together."

"Not helping, Onyx."

"Sorry, your other problem. Go on."

She explained her problem about choosing which skill to keep and which to let go, as she liked all of them.

"Well, Meera, the question is how you want to build up your skills," Onyx said. "If you want to be a sneakier type of hunter, then I suggest you let Ruby Rain go and stick with what you have, as that will get you to a true assassin. Now, if you badly want Ruby Rain, which is an excellent skill, then drop Nimbus or the Illusions skill. They're both great, but Illusions combined with the Mist-producing skill is a powerful combo that will come in handy from getting out of whatever hole you've dug yourself in."

Meera sat dumbfounded as she stared at the tiny horse.

"What?"

"Where did that come from?" She asked.

Onyx tilted his head. "Honestly, I don't know. It just seemed like the right answer."

"I should consult you more about which skills to keep and drop."

"I'll be happy to help," Onyx said. "Don't tell anyone that you ask a horse for help on your skills. People might think you are what's the term, not right in the head."

Meera snorted and decided not to take Ruby Rain. For one, Onyx was right. Meera was in some sort of prison, and she would need all the deception she could get to escape. And second, she was sure to run into more Bloodstone Watchmen, which would give her more opportunities to steal it again.

Right then, the darkness around her disappeared. The light around her was almost blinding. She recalled Onyx right away.

"Who are you, and why have you come to Azeria, Meera?" said a deep voice.

Meera raised a hand to shield her eyes and looked between her fingers. She was in a room lit with torches, standing on a pedestal with her back to Meera was a broad man in shadowy armor.

"Who are you?" Meera barked.

"Have some respect." Someone backhanded her across the face, making her cry out. "You are in the presence of His Highness, Prince Narikas of Azeria."

Prince Narikas? Meera gasped. That is the Shadowsteel Warlord.