white_chick

Dr. Elena Vostrikov, a renowned neuropsychologist, is sent to investigate a defunct Soviet-era psychiatric institute recently unearthed during a mining operation. Her assignment: to assess whether the site poses any biological or psychological hazards before a full excavation begins. Officially, it's routine. Unofficially, whispers in classified circles speak of “Project Mnemosyne” — an illegal mind-control experiment lost to time.

Inside the room, mirrors don’t just reflect — they remember. They mimic. And they replace.

As Elena and her team descend into a maze of psychological torment and otherworldly horror, the line between reflection and reality begins to unravel. Friends vanish, identities fracture, and a malevolent intelligence watches from the other side of the glass. What began as a mission becomes a desperate fight for sanity and survival.

But the mirror world isn’t confined to one room.

{Grayeridge Reflection}

Noah packed his belongings into his bag, securing the grimoire inside. His memories felt blurred and disjointed, yet the changes in the journal were unmistakable. Its shape had shifted, its pages now filled with strange scriptures and diagrams he couldn't recall reading before. He glanced at the Neverwhere Scaff coiled around his neck, another mystery. Where had it come from? Why did it feel so familiar?

He folded the Scaff neatly and slipped it into his bag before stepping out of the tent.

The campsite buzzed with activity. Students hurried around, packing their things. Teachers shouted instructions and coordinated the final headcounts.

A girl walked past him, laughing with her friends. Noah paused, vaguely recognizing her, then shook off the feeling and continued.

Lumi, mid-conversation with a few girls, suddenly looked back over her shoulder. A strange emptiness tickled her mind.

"Lumi, are you even listening?" asked one of her friends.

"Oh… sorry, what were you saying?"

A short distance away, Ezra spotted Noah approaching.

Noah shook his head. "I've tried calling again and again. No one's answering."

Ezra stared into the forest, uneasy. "That pink creature we saw... Did you learn anything from it? And what about this?" She pulled a hammer from her bag — the rainbow hammer, now small and mundane in appearance.

"I found this inside my stuff this morning," she said.

Noah took it and examined it. "Hold on to it. Something similar happened to me. I found these strange things when I woke up, and I can't remember where they came from."

Ezra studied him. "I know this sounds crazy, but... do you feel like our memories were altered?"

"Yeah," Noah nodded. "Like something happened... something huge. But it's all been wiped clean. Still, these objects... maybe they're clues. Maybe they're how we start unraveling it."

They both turned to look at the forest one last time.

Deep inside the citadel of roots, the White Witch sat atop the wooden throne, smiling faintly as she consumed the final wandering soul.

"Until we meet again," she whispered.

Later, on the final day of camp...

Noah and Ezra had borrowed bikes and were racing through the dense forest trails, dodging roots and branches.

"It's right behind us!" Ezra screamed, her laughter mingling with fear.

A beast of shadow and multicolored light hurtled after them. Its claws carved grooves in the earth. Its ever-changing eyes pulsed violet, red, and green. Arcs of rainbow energy slashed the air around them.

A blast erupted just behind their bike. Trees shattered into light.

"Tell me again why we're doing this?!" yelled Ezra.

"Okay—MAYBE JUST BAD DECISIONS!"

They had left the camp that morning to search for rune stones, guided by entries in the grimoire. But their exploration had been cut short by the arrival of this strange, shifting beast. Having learned from their encounter with the mirror monsters, they fled immediately.

As they broke through the treeline, the beast stopped. Its shape rippled, and it stepped through a tree trunk, transforming into a pink-haired girl in a red gown. She appeared beside the White Witch, who watched the students flee with an amused smile.

Mister Harrison found them just minutes later, furious and shouting. The two were scolded relentlessly before being herded back to camp.

The students packed the last of their gear and loaded onto the school buses. Ezra and Noah sat quietly side-by-side as the wheels rolled.

Miles away, deep in a hidden grove, a mirror shard sat glowing faintly.

Beside it, a pair of cracked glasses rested on the ground.

Chapter 44: Ash and Memory