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Morpheus
We fell flat on our asses once the air cleared and the scene revealed itself.
"Ugh," I groaned out, readjusting my spine and reached up to make sure my horns were still intact.
"What in the bloody hell is this?" Dominik blurted out.
The lights in the building suddenly switched on, flooding the lobby with light rising from the polished marble floor. As I glanced around, rows and rows of formal evening gowns and men's dress suits filled the area. Bright shiny mirrors were everywhere.
"A formal dress and suit shop," Altair grunted out, stretching himself to a standing position.
"Well this is new. Let's see, we have the apothecary shop, the rotunda, the herb garden, a soup kitchen...and now this." Dominik ticked off each location on his fingers. "You know what? I've decided this is a personal hell."
"And Sadie is gone. That makes it a nightmare," Altair added.
"Probably because her spell couldn't keep her here long enough. "I replied while massaging my forehead. "She drained herself to get to the void. Good thing we got her the energy she needs. She's gonna need it when she gets back to Shadow World."
Altair walked over to the registers and started playing with them, punching buttons to make the drawers pop open. "What are these?"
"Cash registers, I think," I replied. "People try on these fancy suits and then pay if they want to take one home." Altair jiggled the knobs and punched the keys, listening for a response in hopes of discovering the secret of the machines.
"Hmm," he grunted, plucking the price tags from one of the men's suits. "Two thousand dollars? Is that a lot of money to a human?"
"Maybe."
Altair held up the mini human suit against his large form and said, "I wonder if they have shadow demon sizes."
"Doubt it. These are tailored for humans."
"Hey guys?" I noticed, from the corner of my eye, an arched floor-length mirror. Delicate black embroidery adorned its sides with beautiful patterns. "Isn't this the same mirror...?"
"It is." Altair approached and reached out careful to touch the glass. "It's the same mirror from Sadie's Aunt's apothecary."
"So, Sadie was right. The mirror we came through was the anchor. It's taking us to places where it was kept.”
Dominik plopped down a red leather chair. "I miss her already, but she shouldn't have risked it. She could've gotten stuck here with us."
"I don't thin she quite understands that her life force became tied with Shadow World when we declared her our future queen. If we hadn't, our home would've erupted in chaos," Altair snapped.
"Well, it's a good thing she's back in the real dimension. We have to get back to her," I declared.
Dominik pondered aloud, rubbing his chin, "If our life force is what's powering this false dimension, then if it's gone, the dimension will be destroyed."
Altair sprang up, his finger pointing straight ahead. "That's exactly what I was thinking!"
I stepped forward, my mouth agape. "And if I understand what the two of you are thinking, you suggest we take our own life to escape this hell? You can't be..."
I looked at both of my brothers in surprise as they remained silent. Altair, whose voice always carried authority and conviction, had nothing to say. His usually staunch opinions were lost. I thought he would be the first to speak, but instead he held his silence. I felt a strange sense of unease as I wondered what was going on in their minds.
Altair sighed heavily, the silence in the room weighing heavily on them.
"Or we could try it with one of us. I'd offer myself as a sacrifice, only if you two swear to honor Sadie until eternity. Until we can all be together again," Altair finally said.
Dominik rose from his chair, shaking his head. "Brother, you don't have to doubt us anymore. We will always honor Sadie and protect her, but I'm not letting you off yourself. We're going to find another way, preferably before Sadie does something reckless."
My eyes met Altair's and warning alarm bells went off in my head. "You saw that look in her eyes too, didn't you? She was about to do something drastic to get us out of here without fully understanding the consequences," I said urgently. "I want to get back to her, not only because I can't bear being away from her, but because I'm afraid of how far she'll go to save us."
"You and I both, brother," Altair said with a grave look.
