The hallway beyond the underground chamber was colder than ice. Maya's ankle still burned where the rotting hand had grabbed her, and Aarav kept glancing at her pale face, worried but determined.
"We keep moving," Aarav said, tightening his grip on the lantern. "The mirrors… they're somewhere deeper inside."
They turned a corner and stopped in front of a large wooden door. The surface was stained a deep crimson, almost as if it had been painted with blood. Above it, an old brass plaque read:
"Room of the Red Bride."
A cold shiver ran down Maya's spine. "Do you… do you hear that?"
A faint sound of wedding bells echoed from behind the door—soft, but distorted, as though played underwater.
Aarav pushed the door open with a creak.
Inside, the room looked like a wedding suite frozen in time. The walls were draped in faded red silk, the bed covered with an ancient, blood-stained wedding dress. A broken mirror stood in one corner, its surface cracked like a spider web.
Maya stepped closer to the bed. "This dress… it's still wet."
Before Aarav could respond, the fabric twitched—like something alive was moving beneath it.
The dress suddenly rose into the air, filling out as if an invisible bride was wearing it. The veil fell back, revealing a ghastly face. The bride's skin was pale and torn, her lips stitched together with black thread. Blood dripped from beneath her gown, forming dark puddles on the floor.
Her voice—though her mouth did not move—echoed in their heads:
"He promised me forever… but left me to bleed on my wedding night."
The cracked mirror in the corner pulsed like a beating heart. Aarav felt a wave of nausea. "Maya… I think this is one of the seven mirrors."
Before they could act, the bride screamed. Her stitches tore open as black blood splattered across the walls. The sound shattered the lantern glass, plunging them into semi-darkness.
She pointed at Maya.
"Wear it. Become me. Or I will tear you apart."
The wedding dress flung itself toward Maya, wrapping around her arms like chains. Maya cried out as the blood-soaked fabric began to squeeze.
Aarav spotted an iron ring—a wedding ring—lying on the table. It glowed faintly red. He grabbed it, feeling it burn his palm, and shouted:
"Let her go!"
The bride turned, her hollow eyes fixed on Aarav. Her voice became a scream that made the floor shake.
Aarav hurled the iron ring at the cracked mirror. It shattered with a deafening scream, shards flying like knives. The bride let out an inhuman wail as her form began to melt into blood.
Maya collapsed on the floor, coughing. The dress turned into ash around her.
Aarav pulled her up. "That's one mirror down… six more to go."
Just as they turned to leave, a faint whisper filled the room:
"She knows you're coming… and she is waiting… in the room of shadows."
Aarav and Maya exchanged a look. They didn't know who she was, but one thing was clear—this mansion wasn't going to let them go alive.