"The Secret of the Black Butterfly"
"I am you, Iris."
His words echoed in my mind, sinking into my thoughts like a haunting whisper from another world. How could this be true? How could there be a version of me standing before me, in a passage that hadn't existed moments ago?
I swallowed hard and stepped back, but the wall behind me trapped me in place.
"No… you're lying!" I yelled, though my voice wasn't as strong as I wanted it to be.
But the thing that looked like me didn't move. His eerie smile remained unchanged.
"Why are you afraid of me?" he whispered, raising his hand slowly, as if trying to reassure me.
But I saw it. I saw how his hand trembled—as if he was struggling to keep it steady. As if some invisible force was restraining him.
"What… what do you want?" I muttered, feeling the air around me grow heavier.
The shadow's smile deepened, and in a calm voice, he said:
"I want to show you the truth."
Suddenly, something pulled me forward—as if an invisible force had yanked me into the passage!
I gasped, trying to resist, but my feet wouldn't move. Cold air wrapped around me, and for a brief moment, everything blurred.
And when it cleared—
I was no longer in my room.
I was somewhere else.
Somewhere I had never seen before.
The floor beneath me was black, like a mirror reflecting the sky—but it wasn't a sky at all. It was an endless sea of swirling darkness, with dim lights flickering within it. The air buzzed with distant whispers, voices I couldn't understand, yet they were calling me.
I spun around quickly, searching for the "reflection" that had dragged me here—but he was gone.
I was alone.
Or at least… I thought I was.
Because I felt a cold breath behind me.
And something whispered my name again.
To be continued...