I Can See Evolution Paths

Arthur stepped toward the strange ripple hanging in the air, the others following more cautiously behind him.

The distortion hovered directly in front of the Broken Mirror, its surface moving like the reflection of a lake disturbed by an invisible hand, another ripple traveling across it every few seconds before disappearing into the center.

He raised the Water Mirror, and the moment he did, the ancient structure responded. A low vibration passed through the ground, and the Broken Mirror began to glow.

Everyone stopped.

"Again?" Sun muttered.

Arthur didn’t answer, his attention fixed entirely on the structure ahead. The cracks running across it began filling with light, thin lines of golden-white threading through the damaged stone and glass, following every fracture as though something inside were slowly waking up, gathering at the edges of the missing sections before stretching across the empty spaces.

Then the broken pieces began moving. Fragments scattered around the structure for centuries slowly lifted from the ground, floating through the air, turning gently as they were drawn back toward the frame.

Athena’s eyes went wide. "It’s repairing itself." She stepped closer, unable to hide her fascination.

The fragments didn’t simply snap into place. The Mirror seemed to remember what it had once looked like, pieces rotating until their broken edges aligned perfectly with the missing sections, thin strands of light connecting them together, cracks closing one after another as the damaged material knitted itself back into shape.

Even the enormous frame began rebuilding, ancient stone rising from the ground to fill the places where entire sections had been missing, layer after layer forming around the structure, revealing carvings hidden for centuries beneath the damage, the ruined monument slowly becoming the magnificent thing it must have once been.

Arthur stared upward. "That’s..." He couldn’t find the right word. It wasn’t merely activating. It was remembering itself.

"I’ve never seen a Relic repair itself like that," Vedas said, staring up with equal disbelief.

"Neither have I," Athena agreed.

"So the Water Mirror can fix other Mirrors?" Sun asked, arms folded.

"Maybe not all of them," Arthur said, tilting his head, looking down at the one in his hand. "Maybe they just recognize each other."

That possibility made Athena’s eyes light up. "Two Mirrors responding to one another..." She immediately began examining the repaired sections, clearly trying to memorize every detail.

Arthur was about to walk closer when something beneath their feet shifted, a faint scraping sound coming from the ground. Everyone looked down as another sound followed. Something was rising.

Athena and Athy moved toward it at once, the earth cracking apart as a small object slowly emerged from beneath the soil. Athena crouched and pulled it free while Athy landed beside her, helping brush the dirt from its surface.

A notebook.

They stared at it, exchanged a glance, and both gasped.

"What?" Arthur asked, eyebrow raised.

Athena didn’t answer right away, carefully opening it instead. The pages were old and yellowed, but remarkably well preserved, several damaged by moisture, others covered in handwritten notes.

"It’s writing..." Athy leaned closer.

Athena nodded, and they kept turning pages together while the Broken Mirror continued repairing itself behind them, both of them growing more absorbed by the second. Then Athena stopped, her face going still.

"What’s wrong?" Arthur asked.

The final section of the Broken Mirror locked into place right as he asked, a deep rumble passing through the ruins as the last missing pieces settled into the enormous frame. The entire structure was restored, standing complete for the first time in centuries.

Then the ground beneath it opened, a massive section of stone slowly separating from the ancient road to reveal a wide staircase descending beneath the structure.

Arthur stared into the darkness below. The stairs continued far deeper than he could see, and beyond them, lights began appearing, one after another, revealing a vast underground network beneath the ruins. Stone buildings. Ancient roads. Collapsed towers. Bridges. Entire sections of a buried settlement stretching into the dark.

The Mirror hadn’t been standing in the ruins of a forgotten structure. It had been built at the center of something far larger, an entire civilization that had once lived around it.

"What the..."

Sun stepped closer to the edge. "There’s a whole city down there."

Athena looked equally stunned. "No." She shook her head slowly, staring into the underground darkness. "Not a city. This is much larger."

"How could something this enormous be hidden underneath the forest?" Mithra asked, looking around in disbelief.

Kong leaned over the staircase. "Can we go down?"

Sun grabbed the back of his clothing. "Don’t just jump into the ancient underground civilization!"

Kong looked disappointed.

"He’s got a point, though," Arthur chuckled.

"Arthur," Athena said, turning toward him.

"What?"

"Please don’t encourage him."

He smiled innocently, then turned his attention back to her. She was still holding the notebook.

"Now," he said, "what made you and Athy gasp?"

She looked down at the pages, seeming almost reluctant to answer, before finally holding the notebook out. "This handwriting is Goblin."

Vedas’s eyes widened. "Goblin?"

"It’s similar to the writing we found in King Halburn’s journal."

He stepped closer immediately. "So it’s another journal belonging to Halburn?"

"Not exactly." She turned several pages. "It appears to contain notes from Halburn’s expedition."

Arthur’s curiosity sharpened. "What does it say?"

She found a particular entry. "It says Halburn was told about the Mirrors in the Everglades by a man who called himself Varka Endou."

Luna gasped and rushed toward her. "D-Does it really say the man’s name was Endou?"

Athena looked at her, surprised. "Yes." She studied her expression. "Why? Do you recognize the name?"

Luna nodded, her hands coming together in front of her. "The Endou were one of the guardians of the Mirror, just like my Venus Tribe." She stared at the notebook. "But Grandpa told me they were all wiped out a thousand years ago."

"Then I guess Varka was either a survivor," Sun said, crossing his arms, glancing toward the underground ruins, "or someone who managed to leave the Secret Realm."

Luna shook her head. "That shouldn’t be possible."

"Why?"

"Grandpa said none of us were allowed to leave the Secret Realm." Her voice grew uncertain. "If Varka really was an Endou guardian, then he shouldn’t have been able to travel outside."

"Maybe the rules were different back then," Mithra offered.

"The rules?"

"Your grandfather might have been describing the rules that existed after the tribes were wiped out. It’s possible the guardians weren’t always forbidden from leaving."

Luna’s hands trembled slightly. "That’s possible..." She looked back at the notebook. "But then..." Her voice faded.

Arthur caught the fear in her expression, not fear of another guardian, but fear that the history she’d been taught might not be the whole truth.

"What else does the journal say?" he asked, looking toward Athena.

Athy leaned over the notebook. "It says Halburn saved Varka’s life."

Everyone looked at her.

"After that, they traveled together through several other Secret Realms. Apparently, Halburn helped Varka during one expedition, and the two continued traveling together for some time."

"Eventually, when Varka reached the end of his life," Athena added, "he told Halburn about the Mirrors."

Arthur’s expression turned serious. "Why?"

She turned another page. "Varka apparently believed the Mirrors shouldn’t remain sealed away." She hesitated as Luna stared at her, her own face growing grim. "And he wanted Halburn to find them."

"What?" Arthur pressed.

She looked down at the page. "He wanted Halburn to destroy the Mirror."

"What?" Luna’s voice rose sharply. She stared at Athena in disbelief. "Destroy it?"

"That’s what it says."

Luna’s breathing turned uneven. "Why?" She looked toward the Broken Mirror. "Why would Varka ask him to do that? He was one of the guardians. Why would he want someone to destroy the Mirror he was supposed to protect?" Her hands began trembling.

Mithra moved closer and gently placed a hand against her back. "Luna."

She shook her head. "No, I don’t understand. Why would he do that? If the Mirrors were important to our tribes, then why would one of the guardians want them destroyed?"

Arthur stepped closer. "We don’t know yet."

"But—"

"We don’t know," he repeated gently. "That means we don’t have to decide what it means yet."

Mithra kept rubbing her back while Eden floated closer, small wings fluttering anxiously, and even Star crossed Arthur’s shoulder to press its soft body against Luna’s arm. She blinked down at it.

"You’re worried too?"

Star bounced happily.

"Looks like you’re not the only one," Arthur chuckled.

Luna wiped her eyes and took a slow breath. "I’m okay."

"You don’t look okay," Mithra said, skeptical.

"I’m getting there."

"That’s better."

Arthur looked back toward Athena. "What else?"

She flipped through the remaining pages. "Unfortunately, that’s the end of the journal." She looked disappointed. "The only other information is about how Halburn entered this Secret Realm."

His eyebrows rose. "It was locked?"

"Apparently. According to the journal, the Secret Realm was sealed back then, and Halburn was given instructions on how to enter it."

He looked toward the enormous staircase. "So this place wasn’t always accessible."

Luna shook her head. "Grandpa always said the Secret Realm was protected. I assumed it had always been this way."

Arthur looked toward the repaired Mirror. "But it wasn’t."

He stared at the ancient structure for several seconds, everything settling into place at once. The Secret Realm had once been locked. A guardian named Varka had known about it, had traveled with Halburn through other Secret Realms, and before dying, had told him about the Mirrors and asked him to destroy them.

His curiosity burned brighter than ever. "We can probably find out more if we keep following Halburn’s trail."

Luna bit her lip, looking toward the dark staircase, then down at the notebook. Finally she nodded. "Let’s find out what happened."

The group began descending, Arthur following behind the others, one hand resting on Dusk while the Water Mirror remained in his other. The staircase continued downward.

[New Title Acquired: Ancient Pathbreaker]

[Effect: Slightly improves Arthur’s perception of hidden routes, passages, and ancient structures.]

He stared at the words for a moment, then smiled and continued on.

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