Chapter 24

“The Enchantress”

The digital void shifted, its glow piercing the canal mist, and a new consciousness emerged, carrying the grace of someone who'd survived by being exactly what others needed to see.

"Ah, Elara van Dijk!" Gameweaver's voice sparkled with dark fascination. "The survivor of Amsterdam's Red-Light District, now facing her own mortality. That wet cough of yours is quite the timekeeper, isn't it? Counting down your remaining days with such precision!"

Her attention focused on the mirror merged with Elara's digital essence. "Oh, but this mirror! The very one that showed you your own reflection as you watched that official bleed out. The one that helped you turn survival into vengeance! The Enchantress class is perfect for someone who learned that reflections could kill. Catch your enemies in this mirror's gaze, and they'll be yours to command - though this time, you won't have to get your hands quite so bloody!"

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"All those years of survival," her tone lilted with cruel amusement, "learning exactly what others wanted to see. Now you'll turn that talent into something deadly. Your thralls will fight and die at your command - though they'll need to see themselves in your mirror first. Just like poor Mira saw herself through your eyes, right before everything went so terribly wrong!"

Gameweaver's voice took on a honeyed mockery. "Of course, statistically speaking, even commanding an army of thralls won't significantly improve your survival chances. But isn't it delicious? Your final days spent as the one giving orders instead of taking them. The object of desire becoming the puppet master!"

The digital void rippled, its surface dark and shimmering with an eerie red glow, Elara's consciousness merging into the stream of billions as two more presences began to emerge.