The Mirror World trembled long before anyone saw the light. Deep within the citadel of the witches, the air itself grew hot, scrolls fluttering violently from ancient shelves as spells long asleep began whispering through the corridors like living smoke. The Knot Witch stood at the center of the chamber, her fingers weaving invisible threads that twisted and coiled like serpents in the dark.
"The Blood Jewels…" the Knot Witch hissed. "He's found them."
The Poison Witch turned sharply, green mist dripping from the corners of her lips as her eyes narrowed.
"Then he must be stopped before he unites the worlds," she said.
Before the words could settle, the Rain Witch lifted her staff toward the ceiling, her expression calm, almost mournful. Thunder rolled faintly in her voice.
"No," she murmured. "It's too late. We can only claim what's left."
The three witches opened their palms in unison. Their chants overlapped, ancient and vicious. The ground cracked beneath them, mirrors lining the citadel walls shattering into dust as seven spiraling portals tore open in the air, each pulsing with deep crimson light — doorways leading straight into the human world. Flames licked the edges of the rifts as the witches stepped forward without hesitation, their laughter echoing across both skies. Behind them, the vampire citadel burned blue, its towers collapsing under the strain of magic tearing the realm apart.
When the witches vanished, chaos erupted across the Mirror Kingdom. Vampires ran through crimson streets illuminated by lightning, panic tearing through their ranks. On the northern cliffs, Carl, Stacy, and Nyx stood watching as portal after portal ripped open across the horizon.
"They're going to cross!" Carl shouted, his fangs bared. "They'll find the jewels!"
Nyx's eyes burned like molten glass.
"Not if I stop them," he said.
He turned sharply, his cloak slicing through the wind.
"Stacy, with me. Carl, hold the line."
Before any of them could move, the ground exploded beneath their feet. The Knot Witch rose from the rupture, her eyes white as bone, living chains writhing around her arms. With a flick of her wrist, the chains shot forward, wrapping around their limbs, tightening like steel serpents infused with magic.
"You won't go anywhere," she said, her voice grinding like rusted iron. "I bind your fates. You will never escape me."
Nyx growled, muscles straining against the bonds. Poison Witch appeared beside them, her presence corroding the air itself. Green vapor poured from her breath, sizzling against the ground.
"You reek of ambition, child," the Poison Witch said to Nyx. "Let's see how long you last against decay itself."
The vampires roared and charged. Morvain Mare tore through the air with twin blades flashing, while Saya Mare summoned shadows that blinded and clawed at the witches. Ziess and Rieta fought wing to wing, carving paths through the mist as they shielded the younger clans. But then the Rain Witch stepped forward, her expression unchanged.
"Enough," she whispered.
She raised her staff.
The sky bled.
Rain poured down in thick, sizzling sheets, each drop hissing violently as it struck vampire skin. Screams ripped through the battlefield as armor melted and flesh burned.
"The sky… it's killing us!" Saya cried.
The vampires were forced back, their strength draining with every breath. One by one, the witches dissolved into light and vanished through the portals.
"They've gone!" Carl shouted. "They're in the human world!"
Nyx roared, tearing the chains apart with raw force that cracked the ground beneath him.
"Then so am I."
Nyx stepped through the collapsing rift, boots sinking into soil that felt unstable, unreal. The air of the human world vibrated with static and memory. Ahead, Joey stood frozen, the seven Blood Jewels spread across the ground, each burning like a fallen star.
Before the witches could reach them, Nyx appeared in a blinding flash of light. His aura slammed into the earth like a hammer.
"These aren't yours," Nyx said coldly.
He lifted his hand.
The Blood Jewels rose instantly, circling him in perfect orbit. The witches screamed, spells firing wildly — only to disintegrate upon touching the jewels' light. One by one, the stones embedded themselves into Nyx's chest and arms, sinking into his flesh like living hearts.
The sky dimmed.
Clouds twisted into a massive vortex overhead as the impossible began to happen. Slowly, inexorably, the two moons — one of the Mirror World and one of the human world — drifted toward each other. Soundless thunder tore through reality as they collided, merging into a single, colossal Blood Moon.
The Blood Moon exploded across the heavens, raining crimson fire over both realms. Oceans turned red. Horizons bled light. Every tree, every stone, every living being felt the tremor of transformation.
"He's merging them…" Carl whispered, his voice breaking.
The earth twisted violently. Human forests fused with obsidian deserts. Rivers flowed backward through shattered mountains. Cities mirrored themselves upside down in the sky as mirror gates shattered, spilling magic into mortal streets. Humans stared upward in horror as castles formed in the clouds and shadow beasts crawled across highways.
The two worlds became one.
At the epicenter stood Nyx.
Suspended beneath the Blood Moon, his body transformed beyond recognition. His muscles expanded violently, tearing through his clothes as veins glowed like liquid fire beneath pale, almost translucent skin. Seven sigils burned across his chest — scarlet, sapphire, emerald, amethyst, obsidian, gold, and white — spinning faintly like trapped stars.
His face radiated dominion. His jawline sharpened into inhuman symmetry, lips glowing faintly as if kissed by flame. His eyes no longer belonged to any world, shifting endlessly through the colors of the jewels. When he blinked, sparks fell like dying stars. His hair spilled past his shoulders in streaks of white, silver, and blood-red, shimmering like silk and lightning.
Golden robes wove themselves around his body, embroidered with pulsing white sigils. A red cape bordered in black unfurled behind him, heavy with authority. From his back erupted two colossal obsidian wings, blotting out the stars as they spread. Upon his neck, the ancient Blood Seal of the Lampire Lineage burned molten red, pulsing in time with the moon.
His hands radiated threads of power. Every movement bent the air, red wind curling around him like spirits bowing. Crimson mist swirled at his feet, crystallizing the ground wherever it touched. When he spoke, his voice layered — human, divine, and ancient thunder combined.
Silence knelt.
Behind him, the merged world stretched endlessly — floating human cities beside shattered Mirror Kingdom towers, rivers climbing into the sky before raining down as glowing blood. Mountains burned with molten veins. Forests turned silver and black. Bats filled the heavens, forming living constellations as war drums echoed in their wings.
Vampires, witches, and werewolves knelt upon the burning plains.
Above all, the Blood Moon pulsed like a beating heart, bound eternally to Nyx.
A storm of bats erupted, spiraling into a crown of shadow above him. Humans below screamed as bodies twisted, bones cracking, skin darkening. One by one, they transformed, wings beating in rhythm with Nyx's heartbeat.
"Rise," Nyx commanded.
The witches collapsed to their knees.
"All hail the Lampire Lord," the Poison Witch whispered.
Even the ancient werewolves emerged from the forests and knelt.
Far away, amid the ruins of the old manor, Raym Gald stood beside Old Gald, staring at the blood-red sky.
"He did it," Raym whispered. "He broke the boundary."
Old Gald's eyes filled with despair.
"You don't understand," he said softly. "This isn't power. It's the curse of our blood."
From the ashes of the old study, a book opened itself. The Book of Past glowed red as words wrote themselves across its pages:
When the blood of two moons becomes one, the child of the Mirror shall reign — and darkness shall learn to dream.
Raym closed his eyes.
"He's become the dream."