Mirror Majesty

4: The Hiccuping Sand

With a few snaps of Zeno's fingers the tent unrolled from Owen's pack and floated above us. It bent and curved until a structure with multiple rooms formed around us. Owen divided out the last of the food rations. It was an assortment of crackers, a loaf of hard bread, three strips of jerky, and two apples. Another worried look befell Owen's face. He knew it was not enough to last much longer. Our water supply was nearly gone. No more than a few mouthfuls between us. Owen pulled out a bowl from his satchel, filled it with cut apples, and passed it around. We were to save the last apple for tomorrow.

"Eat up everyone," he said placing the sorry pile of food down between us. "It's not much but make sure you eat and get some sleep. Tomorrow we focus all our energy on getting out of this sandy wasteland."

Soon the sun set and darkness covered the sky. Only a few times in my life had I ever seen so many stars. Owen started a small fire from a torch he had swiped from Vanity's mansion and stuck it in the soil. He maintained the flame with magic until his eyes closed and he collapsed on the sand. Zeno followed suit shortly after; his arms and legs spread like a starfish. I heard him snoring with his mouth open and tongue poking out. Hijinx remained awake fanning the flame with his tail. His fur had turned to a bright white; his eyes a glowing blue.

"Trouble sleeping, Hope," said Hijinx noticing my wandering, restless eyes.

"Eh," I responded not knowing what to say. Hijinx inched closer.

"It's normal to feel nervous when so many are expecting great and terrible things from you."

"You don't have to keep reminding me. Trust me. I haven't stopped thinking about it for weeks." I swirled my finger in the sand. "You don't really believe I am going to destroy the world do you?"

"Well, words can be misinterpreted, and prophecies incorrect. Maybe the word, destroy, in this case means a new life is to come?"

"That's silly," I said with a fake laugh. "Life from death. Ha."

"Where there is death, there is also life." Hijinx looked out over the darkened desert. "If a flower never died, then the seeds it held would never be released and no more flowers would grow. Though opposites, one cannot exist without the other. Destruction goes hand in hand with life. Death is not always the end."

"But how can I know for sure," I said clenching my fists.

"Well perhaps we can try something and find out, and if we are lucky, find a way out of this desert." Hijinx picked up Owen's wooden bowl in his mouth. He carefully placed it next to me. "How about we try using your power of Dream Scrying and take a glimpse at the future?"

"I can do that?"

The cat purred with delight.

"You have barely tapped into your true power. A fully trained Mirrorbender can do more than travel between reflections. Your ancestor, Mirrorbender Ewan, was exceptionally gifted in seeing the future. It was he who knew that one of his descendants would come back to Tartarus and in a time most dire."

"So I can scry my future?" I looked at the bowl. "I remember Martha saying it was dangerous."

"A sage would tell you that, yes. But sages have been known to say many things to keep Mirrorbenders from discovering the dark secrets even they keep. Besides, a little practice may do you some good."

"Ok. I'm going to try it." I paused. "Um. How do I do it exactly?"

"Fill the bowl with water, stare into it, and focus on a question you want answered."

I grabbed the last remaining water from Owen's pouch and filled the wooden bowl.

"Owen won't be mad, will he?"