The mirrors exploded one after another, shards of glass spinning like knives, raining onto the mirrored floor. From each shattered pane, another Evelyn stepped out—laughing, sobbing, snarling.
Dozens of her.Hundreds.
Some carried blood-stained lanterns. Others clutched knives. Some crawled on all fours like beasts, eyes wild and glowing with the train's hunger. Every version circled closer, whispering venom.
"You're weak.""You're already dead.""You're just another passenger.""You'll never leave."
Evelyn's knees buckled under the weight of their voices. Her lantern shook violently, its white flame guttering, nearly snuffed out. She dropped to the floor, surrounded by her own shadows, her own failures.
The black-lantern Evelyn stepped forward, towering above her. "Look around," the double said, smirking. "This is who you are. Broken. Fractured. Ours."
The swarm of reflections lunged. Claws, knives, teeth—every fear Evelyn had ever known crashing down at once.
For a moment, she thought it was over.
But then—she heard them. Not whispers of the train this time. Softer. Fainter. The voices of Sophie, Alex, Leo… echoes of memory.
"Don't give in.""You're stronger than this.""Fight."
Her chest burned with something fierce, something brighter than despair. Evelyn's tears sizzled as they hit the lantern. The white flame roared to life, blinding, searing.
The reflections shrieked, staggering back as the fire spread, not just light but heat, fury, defiance. Evelyn rose to her feet, gripping the lantern like a sword.
"You're right," she shouted, her voice cutting through the cacophony. "I am broken. I am afraid. But I'm still here. And I'm not yours!"
She swung the lantern, the flame erupting outward in a storm. The mirror-Evelyns ignited, one after another, their screams filling the chamber as they shattered into ash and glass.
The black-lantern Evelyn roared, charging with all the power of the train behind her. But Evelyn met her head-on, slamming lantern against lantern.
White flame against black. Hope against hunger.
The mirrors exploded in a deafening shockwave.
When the dust cleared, Evelyn stood alone in the wreckage. Her lantern still burned, steady and pure.
The train had tried to make her destroy herself. Instead, she had reforged who she was.
But as she caught her breath, the rails beneath her feet rumbled. The next door was already forming.
The train wasn't finished.
Not yet.