Chapter 3: House of Mirrors

Snow-like ashes fell from the sky. The night became more suffocating and foggy than before.

If not for Trixie slapping my face, I would remain petrified like an idiot in the middle of haywire.

Unfortunately, the only exit point was the entrance itself, so we ran as fast as we could, dodging fallen debris from ruined establishments and avoiding the flames as we made our way through the perya.

We held each other so tight. I could feel our pulse resonating against each other. Our breathing was rapid and shallow as we tried to make sense of the chaos around us.

All of my focus was interrupted, and everything else faded away as Trixie stumbled down to the ground, twisting her ankle in the process. I tried pulling her up, determined to help her walk, but each time we tried, we always caught off balance, causing her to cry out in pain.

At that moment, I knew Trixie's injury was more serious than I initially thought. I glanced at her ankle and saw a deep laceration, caused by the glass shards that littered the ground.

A dark bruise formed around the wound, and I could tell that it was infected by the pus and other fluids flowing out of it. My hand trembled as I lost my grip on her arm.

Trixie needed immediate medical attention. With all the energy I had left, I pulled her body towards an abandoned booth nearby. "Stay here," I said, my voice eager, and I gave her a reassuring look. "I'll find help."

"No!" she cried. "You can't leave me here!" She pulled my hand before I could walk away. I gasped in shock when Trixie pinned me on the ground, begging me not to leave.

I pushed her away to escape from her grip. She kept calling my name as dark gooey liquid gushes out of her mouth. Her tears and her saliva excessively drooled all over her face. It was so strange for her to react that way just because of her sprained ankles.

I took a slow step backward and then ran. Stepping away from her is the only choice I have. I abandoned her so that I could find help along the way. But how stupid am I to assume that someone was willing to assist us? Even a police officer wouldn't help! And now that I could see the exit, all I could think about was saving myself from this mess.

Mindless as it seemed, I let my body flow through the horde of desperate humans who want to get out of this perya.

A little girl being carried by her father caught my attention. They were far away from me, yet I could feel her fear the most. Her high-pitched tantrum dominated everything despite having the sound of chaos coming around in different sorts of directions.

I stopped myself from taking another step when Trixie's face kept flashing in my mind. I scratched the side of my head.

What am I even doing?

I turned around - pushing everyone who's blocking my path and ended up emptying the decorated kariton full of merchandise. I ran with it towards Trixie.

It was too late, though, because she was nowhere to be found. A bit of hope loosened up my feelings. Maybe someone helped her!

I dialed her number to call for her. I didn't expect I would hear her familiar ringtone near me. The faint sound led me in front of the House of Mirrors, just a one-minute walk behind the booth.

I picked up her phone on the porch to end my call. Dark stains parched all over her screen. It must be the gooey liquid coming from her mouth. I wrapped her phone with my handkerchief and put it inside my sling bag.

The front door creaked when I opened it - wait a second. If someone helped her, why would they go inside? And why is her phone not with her? Did she leave it here?

The lights are flickering and the path ahead is musky, so I used my phone to lighten up the way. I followed the drippings on the floor.

I was hoping to see her with random survivors, waiting for this madness to calm. Little did I know, at the end of the cold hallway, that a horrendous crime was waiting for me.

Trixie's body was already pale and ripped apart, exposing her guts. My mouth gaped apart, wanting to scream, but there was no voice coming out. I wish I was dreaming so I could wake up from this nightmare, but nothing ever happens every time I pinch myself. Thick, foggy smoke is everywhere, and Trixie's body is still lying on the ground.

I stumbled on my way to her. The warm blood soaked my hands when I tried to close the huge opening on her abdomen. Her guts keep slipping; it won't go inside her anymore.

I flashed the light on her face. Her eyes were still open, so I immediately checked her pulse.

It's weak, I barely feel her beating heart. She looked at me when I called her name. Her tears flowed down her cheeks.

"You ... you came ... back." The way she has a hard time talking, I know she's gonna lose her breath anytime soon. She reached for my arms, no longer aggressive as before.

I had so many questions in my mind, but only one word came out of my mouth.

"How?"

She wanted to whisper something, so I came closer to her. "Li ... kod ... mo."

I veered in the direction of light at my back. A pair of feet emerged from the fog that surrounded us. I looked up and saw his pale-skinned face and mouth covered with dark blood. His hand clasps a half-eaten meat-like organ that came from the insides of Trixie. I stand up and step away from him, fearing that I might be his next victim. I grasp the sling bag I was carrying and search for my lipstick taser.

We look at each other, eye to eye. No emotions can be seen in his eyes. They're just blank white surrounded by blackened veins in their corners.

He pounces on me, so I aim my taser at once. I thought fifty thousand volts would be enough, but nothing seemed to happen to him and that makes me shudder in fear. I push him against the glass wall and dash through the opposite way.

I picked up my phone to call for Vino. However, I was not able to press the button when the blank-eyed man pulled my hair. This time, he was the one who pushed me against the wall. The impact made my vision all blurry and everything to spin around. His pungent odor made my fuzzy sickness even worse, making me want to puke so badly.

Out of defense, I grasped his neck when he seized my arm. He freaking acts like a rabid dog who wanted to eat my flesh out. He even groans and grits his teeth every time his face was near mine.

My phone slipped through my fingers because of his rough moves. Now, there's no way I could make this through without assistance. The only thing I could do was scream my lungs out.

My voice became hoarser. I could feel the scratching in my throat. I slapped, smacked, and cursed him over and over, but no matter what I did, he never stops. He was really out of his mind, like a total whacko on a killing spree.

His heavyweight got me almost squashed and bit, so I strangled his neck with all my might to prevent my face from being mauled. With that, I was able to avoid his scratches like he intended.

I could no longer understand what madness was happening to us right now. What I only knew was that I won't let any person, especially this man in front of me, take my life away.

Ugh, wait - scratch that! Is he even considered a man? I mean look at his eyes! No human being could ever have a blank eye!

Several loud explosions erupted again. The powerful force of the shockwave reverberated through the establishment, cracking up the mirrors into spider-web patterns. The already distorted images of the room became even more distorted in the shattered glass.

In an unexpected turn of events, a metal pierced through his head. Small pieces of his brain spew out at me.

He was not moving anymore.

I released my grip on its neck, watching in shock as it crumpled to the ground.