Page 20 of Bedrest Blues & Otherworldly Clues
"An elaborate one," Murtagh agreed. "It was designed specifically to separate us from the group. Once we were inside, the exit was sealed. We spent what felt like three days trying to find a way out."
"How did you escape?" Hades asked. I hadn't even realized he was there.
"We didn't. Not exactly," Stella said, running a hand through her tangled hair. "The dimension began to collapse around us. At first, we thought we were going to be crushed, but then..."
"Then what?" Aidon pressed when she hesitated.
"Then Lyra appeared," Murtagh said, his voice hardening. "Not physically. She was a projection. She said our 'test run' was complete, and she'd collected all the data she needed."
"Data on what?" Mom asked.
"On how to trap us," Stella replied quietly. "She wasn't trying to kill us. She wanted to see how we'd react to being isolated from our magic. The pocket dimension dampened our powers, made them unstable and unreliable."
The mirror view suddenly distorted and then flickered with static. The shadow creatures must have sensed my observation. I refocused, pushing past the interference with sheer stubbornness.
Nina had joined the group downstairs. She was showing something to Aidon on a tablet. "—found anomalies in thewards," she was explaining. "They're not failing this time. They're changing."
"Changing how?" Hades demanded.
"It's subtle," Nina replied, swiping through diagrams on the screen. "The basic structure remains intact, but the specific magical signatures are being altered. Someone is slowly tuning our radio to pick up their frequency."
"Lyra," Mom guessed. "She's found a way to redirect our protective magic instead of breaking through. We knew it had cost her when she did it the other day."
Nina nodded grimly. "She’s doing it through those shadow seeds we found throughout the house."
"They're not just surveillance then," Aidon concluded.
"No, she wants to let something in," Hades interjected. "Something that can take Phoebe and the babies."
All eyes turned to Hades as he stepped forward. Power radiated from him in waves that made the mirror image waver. "I've been monitoring disturbances across supernatural realms. Lyra's growing power isn't just affecting our world. It's altering the fundamental barriers between planes of existence."
"What are you saying?" Mom asked through gritted teeth.
"I'm saying she's preparing to do something that will affect all magical planes," Hades replied. "The Underworld is experiencing unprecedented shifts. The Eternal Fields are failing. Even Olympus has reported anomalies in their divine spaces."
"She's planning to use the power from the Trifecta Ascension to take over Olympus. And she will want to be the only god," Aidon surmised.
I pulled back from the mirror with my heart racing. This was bigger than any of us had guessed. Lyra was far more power-hungry than I gave her credit for. I didn’t think anyone was insane enough to incur the wrathof the gods.
A sudden pain lanced through my abdomen. It was sharp enough to make me gasp. Jean-Marc looked up from his notes, alarm crossing his face. "Mom? What's wrong?"
"I don't know," I panted as another spasm hit. "Get Clio. Now."
He bolted from the room, shouting for the healer. I clutched my belly, feeling the triplets' magic surge chaotically in response to my pain and fear. The lamp exploded. The mirror cracked down the middle, and I tried to breathe through the discomfort.
"Not now," I pleaded, trying to steady my breathing. "Please, not now."
Footsteps thundered up the stairs, and suddenly the room was full of people. Clio pushed to my side. She immediately began examining me. The magical chaos made it difficult; papers kept slapping against her face, and the remaining intact furniture rattled violently.
"Someone control this!" she shouted over the din.
Aidon's power expanded, and I felt him trying to contain the magical outburst. The triplets fought against his restraint. Nina joined him, her hands glowing as she attempted to channel the wild energy. Mom began a stabilizing chant while Nana barked orders at everyone else to clear out and give us space.
Amid the chaos, I caught a glimpse of something in the broken mirror. There was a shadow darker than the others, watching with hungry anticipation. Lyra's spy was witnessing my moment of vulnerability.
"She's watching," I gasped through the pain. "She knows something's happening."
Hades moved to the mirror, waving a hand over its surface. The shadow shrank back, but not before I saw its malevolent satisfaction. It thought it was winning. The pains began to subside under Clio's healing touch, but the magicalchaos continued. The entire room was now defying gravity. Everything not bolted down—including all of us—floated six inches above the floor.
