The room was quiet again, though Lyra's heart was still pounding from Daniel Kade's trial. His defiance had shaken her more than she wanted to admit. She kept thinking of his eyes, unflinching even as the void swallowed him whole.
Kaelen wiped the counter clean with slow, steady movements. He did not need to do it. The counter never held dust. The room always reset itself. But Lyra had noticed he did this after certain trials, as if the act itself washed something away.
Before she could speak, the door creaked open.
The woman who stepped in did not stumble. She did not panic. She walked with her chin lifted, her hair dark as ink, her dress cut sharp and fitted. She looked like she had been born to stand above others.
"My name is Marissa Dune," she said. Her voice carried confidence, almost arrogance. "And I assume this is some kind of test. I am not a fool. I know I am dead."
Lyra's breath caught. It was rare for a soul to admit it so easily.
Kaelen's eyes narrowed, studying her. "You are correct. You are here to be judged."
Marissa smiled faintly, as if that confirmed something she already expected. She walked to the table and sat with grace, folding her hands like a woman attending a business meeting.
Lyra asked gently, "How did you die, Marissa?"
Marissa tilted her head back, eyes tracing the ceiling. "I was poisoned. At a banquet. My wine glass. I felt it in my throat before the cup even touched the table. My so-called allies toasted my health while I choked in front of them."
Her lips curved into a bitter smile. "They thought they had won."
Lyra frowned. "Won?"
Marissa leaned forward. "Everything in life is war, my dear. The boardroom, the banquet hall, the bedchamber. Only the battlefield changes. I played my part better than most. That is why they feared me. That is why they killed me."
Kaelen raised one hand. The mirror appeared.
At first, it showed Marissa young, her eyes bright with ambition. She smiled at a friend who clasped her hands with trust. But then the scene shifted.
The friend lay in a hospital bed. Marissa signed a paper, her lips pressed in a tight line. The company was sold, the inheritance stolen, and the friend's life left in ruin.
Lyra's voice trembled. "She trusted you."
Marissa glanced at the mirror, then back to Lyra. "She was weak. She hesitated. She doubted herself. I did what needed to be done. She would have lost it all to vultures anyway. I simply made sure I was the one holding the feast."
The mirror flickered again. Marissa raises a glass to a smiling lover. Then slipping poison into his drink the following night. His body convulsed as she watched with cold eyes.
Lyra covered her mouth. "Why?"
Marissa answered without shame. "Because he was planning the same for me. I knew it. He thought I would never suspect. But I always knew. Better him than me."
Kaelen's eyes locked onto hers. "So betrayal became your survival."
Marissa lifted her chin. "Betrayal is simply another word for victory. The ones who fall are the ones too blind to see it coming."
The mirror darkened again. Marissa stood before a group of people, all kneeling, all looking at her with faith. She smiled at them, promised loyalty, then signed their names away for power. Their faces twisted into shock as guards dragged them away.
Lyra's voice cracked. "You betrayed everyone who loved you."
Marissa's smile did not falter. "Love is a mask. Trust is a weapon. If you do not use it, someone else will. Do you think the world rewards kindness? No. It devours it. I simply refused to be eaten."
Kaelen remained silent for a long moment. His hand rested lightly on the counter, but his eyes were sharp as blades. Inside, Lyra wondered if he saw himself in Marissa's words the way he had with Daniel.
Finally, Kaelen spoke. "You lived as a serpent. You wore masks, spun lies, cut throats, and called it strength. Did you ever once regret it?"
Marissa's laughter rang in the chamber, sharp as glass. "Regret? Regret is for fools who lose. I played the game. I won every time until the very end. That is the only truth that matters."
The mirror glowed brighter, showing the last banquet again. Marissa raises her poisoned glass. Her eyes widened as she realised her enemies had moved first. The same hunger she had shown them now returned to her in full.
For the first time, fear flickered in her reflection.
Lyra whispered, "Even serpents get eaten."
Marissa's eyes darted to Lyra, then to Kaelen. "You cannot judge me. None of you can. I survived longer than anyone. I was cleverer, sharper. If the world punished me, it was only because I let my guard down once. That is not a sin. That is the price of being alive."
Kaelen's voice cut through the air. "Your soul has been weighed."
Marissa straightened, eyes blazing. "Then weigh this. I would do it all again. Every lie. Every cut. Every betrayal. Because in the end, I was stronger than them all."
Kaelen lifted his hand. "Void."
The floor split. Darkness clawed upward. Marissa's chair tilted, but she gripped the arms with fierce strength. Even as the shadows wrapped around her, she did not scream. She laughed, sharp and defiant.
"You cannot kill a serpent," she cried as the void dragged her down. "We always find a way back."
Her voice faded into silence as the abyss sealed shut.
Lyra sank into her chair, shaking her head. "She believed every word. She believed betrayal was strength."
Kaelen did not move. His eyes lingered where the darkness had closed. "Belief does not change truth."
Above them, Aurelius's voice rolled from the unseen ceiling, deep and approving.
"Well done. Another viper cut down. Remember, Kaelen, betrayal is the most dangerous rot. Never hesitate when you see it."
Lyra's lips pressed tight. She looked upward but did not speak. She hated the way Aurelius praised damnation, as if every lost soul fed his pride.
Kaelen turned away from the counter and poured a drink into an empty glass. He did not sip it. He only stared at the liquid, the faint glow swirling inside.
Lyra's voice was soft. "Do you ever wonder if they could have chosen differently? If we had met them sooner, before the poison in their lives took root?"
Kaelen did not answer. He set the glass down. The glow inside dimmed to nothing.
The door stood ready once more. Waiting. Always waiting.
Lyra's hands curled into fists at her side. She knew the door would open again. Another soul would step through. Another mirror would tell its story. Another life would rise or fall at Kaelen's word.
The cycle never ended.
And above it all, Aurelius watched.