**The Sound**
That unbearable, piercing sound rang through every hall, bounced off every surface, and made the very walls scream. The windows shattered, the floors cracked, and the mirror—
—it fractured.
A pulse of silver light erupted outward, swallowing the entire building like a wave.
Every silver-eyed person convulsed violently, shrieking in distorted unison. Their reflections shimmered, split—and vanished like vapor in the wind.
Then—
Silence.
Just dust, cracked tiles, and broken glass.
---
Noah gasped as he opened his eyes.
He was lying on the ground, breathing hard, his vision blurry—but real. Solid. Not in the void. Not surrounded by mirrors.
He coughed once, then sat up, blinking as the pieces came back to him: the light, the reflections, that voice calling for help.
He looked around—
People.
Dozens of people were lying across the shattered hallway, unconscious but breathing.
Some were students, others teachers, a few janitors. All the missing faces. All freed.
And just a few feet from him—
Paige.
Her face was pale, her forehead bleeding slightly, but she was alive. Just next to her was Leah, groaning softly. On the far side—
Quinn's brother.
Still breathing, but still out cold.
"Noah!" Jamie rushed in, eyes wide. "You're alive?"
Noah nodded, still stunned. "I think we all are…"
Ezra and Quinn appeared next, skidding to a halt.
Quinn's eyes immediately landed on her brother.
He looked… normal. Bruised, unconscious, no silver in his eyes.
Quinn hesitated. Her hands trembled.
"Leave him," she said softly.
No one objected.
---
Paige coughed hard and sat up with Jamie's help.
"Ugh," she muttered. "My head feels like it exploded twice."
"You're okay," Jamie said, her eyes misting.
Paige managed a weak smirk. "Of course I am. I don't die easily."
Leah stirred next, blinking as she slowly sat up. "Did… we make it?"
Ezra nodded, still catching her breath. "Looks like we did."
Paige fumbled for her phone, hands shaking. "We need to call someone. Cops, ambulance, everyone."
She dialed with trembling fingers.
The others began helping the unconscious up—gathering survivors, checking for injuries.
Some stirred; some didn't.
But all of them were freed.
And for the first time since this nightmare began—
The mirror was gone.
---
As sirens echoed faintly in the distance, Noah stepped back and looked at the ruined hallway. His hand brushed against a small, sharp shard of glass.
A fragment.
No reflection in it anymore.
Just light.