'What is this...? What happened? Why am I... unable to move? Why do I feel... weak? What exactly happened? Why do I feel something... pulling me? Did... did I survive... that monster? It doesn’t matter... Even if I survived... I will die... sooner or later.'

*******

Eve felt something lurking at her wounded shoulder and suddenly woke up to find herself in another place, a room the size of her body—or rather, a mouse's home. To those monsters, she was merely an intrusive mouse. She felt pain in her shoulder and couldn’t bear the intensity of it.

She turned to her right and saw a small dwarf binding a cloth around her wound. Eve touched her wound with her left hand; it was bandaged with great care.

"Thank you, little one... Wait... Are you the dwarf who saved me before?" Eve said, trying to stand up. She rushed towards him and hugged him, saying, "Thank you for helping me again, little one." Eve was joyful and happy.

She put down the little creature and headed towards a crack in the wall to exit this place, only to turn around and find the dwarf following her.

"Is this your hideout, little one? I mean, this place we're hiding in," Eve said.

The dwarf nodded as if to say 'yes.'

"Can you understand what I’m saying?" Eve asked, puzzled.

The creature nodded in confirmation.

'Does he understand human language? If he does...' Eve thought at that moment.

"Little creature... come on... let's go," Eve said. The small creature quickly complied, walking towards her with delicate, swift steps, making strange sounds, "No...z."

"You really make those sounds... so I don’t stumble while talking to you, little one... I’ll call you Mushroom... I kind of like mushrooms... Do you like it?" The little one began to jump as if pleased.

"I'll take that as a yes... But first... I want to ask you... have you met any children... or humans here?"

The creature approached one of the walls, picked up a piece of chalk from the ground, and started drawing. It drew two human figures holding hands, then what looked like an island with a volcano, a drawing similar to that of a child’s scribbles.

"I don’t understand the second part of your drawing."

The creature added a line as if representing the sea.

"Meaning... a volcanic island... in the sea?" Eve asked, confused.

The creature shook its head and then drew something underneath the island, almost like an iceberg, showing a mountain on the surface and much larger beneath the sea.

"You mean it’s like an iceberg?"

The creature shook its head in denial and then pointed to itself.

"Do you mean... affiliation... or are you... trying to guide me?" Suddenly, an idea struck Eve. She drew two human figures.

"Do you mean you want to guide me... to a safe place?"

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The mushroom nodded in agreement and then drew something else: a group of eyes watching the human figures and a mask in the midst of darkness.

"Ah... Sorry... I don’t understand... But this means..." Suddenly, Eve remembered that place, those eyes, the thick fog, the cold sweat on her forehead, and that dark void. Eve felt a tightness in her chest and said, "Do you want to return... to your homeland?"

The mushroom nodded in agreement and pointed to its drawing.

"What... is this...?" Eve realized she had misunderstood. She sighed deeply. "But... I don’t know the way out... Wait... Do you know the way out, Mushroom?"

The mushroom nodded in affirmation.

"Okay... Lead me there... if you want."

The mushroom grabbed Eve’s hand, and she said, "I’ll take that as your approval."

Eve looked through the crack; it was another corridor.

"Fog... but the situation is safe... Hold on to me, little one..." Eve said as she carried the dwarf.

Eve walked cautiously and with great tension through the misty corridor. The dwarf stopped in front of a door on her left. Eve noticed that the door handle was too high. She tried to reach it repeatedly but couldn’t.

"It’s too high... I don’t want to continue this foggy path... It feels... uncomfortably damp," Eve said, looking at the corridor. The dwarf tugged at Eve’s skirt as if trying to tell her something.

"What?" Eve asked, puzzled. Suddenly, an idea struck her as she looked at the mushroom and the door handle.

She picked up the mushroom and took a position as if she wanted to throw something.

"When I throw you... grab the door handle... I’ll catch you when you let go... Ready?"

The dwarf nodded in agreement. Eve said, "Let’s start... Go."

She threw the mushroom, which grabbed the door handle, opening the door. It let go, and Eve caught it.

"A well-behaved mushroom."

Eve and her moving mushroom pushed the door open to find a dark room with strange mirrors on both sides.

"Oh... another place," Eve said with annoyance.

The mushroom started making strange noises and pointed to the dark end.

"What are you trying to tell me... It’s as if you’re insisting on the end."

The mushroom continued pointing towards the end. Eve, surprised, asked, "Wait... Can you see in the dark?"

The mushroom began nodding in agreement and kept pointing towards the end.

"Okay... we’ll go... let’s hurry..."

The creature rushed towards the end, guiding Eve. The sound of glass cracking as mirrors fell was suffocating for Eve, as if it heralded a new victim. She turned to one of the mirrors and saw her reflection, shocked inside but not showing it outwardly. It was the first time Eve had seen her own body. She tried to lift her bangs from her left eye, but the mushroom interrupted her by tugging at her skirt.

"Okay... okay."

The mushroom pointed to a ventilation opening, and Eve proceeded. She looked to her right and left, feeling tense. What made it stranger were the distorted mirrors, with cracks appearing on the glass as if swallowing the light.

The mushroom started running clumsily.

"Don’t worry..."

A soft voice came from the mushroom.

Eve smiled and said, "Even though you’re not human like me... I don’t feel lonely with you."

A voice indicating loneliness and sadness came from the mushroom.

"I’m trying to find important people to me... I’m the reason they’re in this place... Even though I... didn’t do anything material for them... but... it feels... like an instinctive feeling... so..."

The mushroom’s voice showed surprise and concern as it wobbled and pointed to one of the mirrors.

"What..."

The creature ran awkwardly towards a giant mirror on her right. Eve followed quickly, saying, "What’s going on with you, Mushroom... since we entered, you’ve been—" Eve was startled by the giant mirror in front of them.

The creature stood motionless, staring at its reflection in the mirror. Eve turned to it, shaking it and saying, "Mushroom... what’s wrong? ...Deep sigh... I’ll open it myself, and you can come to me afterward."

Eve continued on, leaving the mushroom still standing in front of the mirror.

"Did I make a mistake? ...It didn’t work... This is strange."

Eve stopped and looked at a very familiar mirror on her left. She approached it to see her reflection. She wanted to see her left eye. As she tried to lift her bangs, suddenly, her reflection smiled and laughed hysterically. Eve felt fear and a chill run down her spine. Cold sweat dripped from her forehead. She saw the mushroom through it, with strange, distorted hands trying to pull it into the mirror. She turned around and was surprised to see nothing there. Turning back to the mirror, her reflection pointed towards the mushroom and began speaking in strange words: "Ze...ro... Ze... ro... Why am I still? ...Don’t you see?"

Quickly, Eve rushed towards the mushroom, jumping to pull it away from the hands. It disappeared suddenly.

Eve fell to the ground, looking around and calling out for the mushroom, finding it inside the mirror, being pulled and beaten, trying to escape. Eve was shocked. It was then that Eve realized those hands had taken the mushroom.

"Mushroom... hold on." Her heart pounded fiercely, fearing what had happened.

She tried to enter but couldn’t. She kept holding the mirror, placing her hands on it, trying to find another mirror like it, multiple times, but to no avail. Sadness and regret were evident on her face. She approached the mirror, looking at the mushroom trying to escape. She fell to her knees, placing her hand on the mushroom’s reflection.

"Come on... come on... open, you damned mirror... Take me instead of him... I don’t want... to see anyone hurt... because of my actions... Open... come on... open," Eve said, hitting the mirror.

Suddenly, a distorted hand grabbed hers from behind. Eve was startled, turning to see the reflection reaching out to her. Eve found herself being pulled into the mirror, as if it was threatening her with a new danger.