Elizabeth sat with her legs crossed, upstairs in the middle of the room. The two story house was eerily quiet that night. The moon and the stars did not dwell in the night sky.

There were a few objects in the room. In front of Elizabeth was an old, oval mirror. It stood on four short legs. There was a crack on the top right part of the mirror. Her reflection was crystal clear; she could see every scar on her face.

She also held a white candle. It was freshly lit; a little wax dripped down to her fingers. It stung her a bit. The small orange flame was the only light in that room. The mirror reflected the flame. Her thin, fragile body made her lifeless, as if she was a ghost. Her long, straight, black hair partially hid the right side of her pale face.

Surrounding her and the mirror was a circle drawn with a crimson liquid. Outside this circle was another, larger circle. The outer circle reached the perimeter of the room. A large pentagram was drawn within the large circles. The liquid glowed, as if it was still alive. It pulsed and swirled, but she took no heed. It reached all the way to where the young woman sat.

She sighed. She tensed as she stared into the mirror. According to the shop owner, no one knew where the mirror came from. Those who purchased it often gave it back to the shopkeeper a month after it was purchased. He warned her of the dangers the mirror caused. However, Elizabeth believed that it was something else entirely different. It was not cursed; it held an enormous amount of power.

She first read about the mirror in the message boards in her preteen years. She'd only read about it a few times because of the rarity of the mirror. She assumed it was just a myth; a legend to scare little children. But once she encountered it within the shop, she knew it was the mirror. Elizabeth didn't understand how she knew what it was; it was as if the mirror whispered to her. She was drawn to it like an insect is drawn to a Venus flytrap. It was going to provide her with everything she wanted.

She took a deep breath and chanted. “Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary.”

At first, nothing happened. She stared harder into the mirror. After concentrating for a few seconds, she noticed something odd about her reflection. It was somehow different; the reflection followed her, but it was slow.

Then her reflection screeched. Elizabeth covered her ears, pained from the piercing sound. She hadn't expected her reflection to make a sound. Her heart beat quickened its pace. Her blood rushed throughout her body, boiling her skin. The room suddenly grew colder. Her hot breath was barely visible.

“What is it that you desire,” her reflection asked. It spoke in Elizabeth's high voice, but it was more ghastly.

“You can give me anything I want,” Elizabeth managed to stutter out.
“I can give it to you,” replied her reflection. “For a price, of course.”
Elizabeth grew more confident. “Power,” she said, “any power. Every power.”
Her reflection chuckled mockingly. “You humans are so power-hungry,” it replied.
“So what,” yelled Elizabeth, “What I do with my life has nothing to do with you.”
“But,” it said, “that's how I will determine what kind of power I will bestow upon you.”

Elizabeth hesitated. “Fine,” she said calmly. “Three months ago, my family was murdered. I don't know why they were murdered. All I know is that the police were involved.” Her voice gradually became more angry. “They acted as if they didn't know who the murderers were. Like hell they don't know. I know they know.”

By then, tears slid down Elizabeth's cheek. Her mascara mixed with the tears staining her cheeks black. Strangely enough, there were no tears dripping down her reflection's eyes. It's eyes, however, were suddenly pitch black. It look back at Elizabeth's dark brown eyes.
“So,” replied the reflection, “You want revenge on the police. Correct?”
Elizabeth nodded.

“But why take revenge,” it asked. The reflection slightly tilted its head to the side, looking as if it was confused. “Why would you use my powers to take revenge on the police? Why not use it to bring back your family? I am powerful enough to resurrect them, for a price.”

Elizabeth's expression didn't change. “I don't want them back,” she replied. “What's gone is gone. I can't gain back what I've already lost.”

“But still,” the reflection said eerily, “power is such a human thing to want. Every time someone has summoned me, they only wish for one thing; power. Although they have different reasons and different motives, the end result is still the same.”

“I don't care what other people think,” replied Elizabeth. Her patience was wearing thin. “I want power.”

“Let me ask you this,” said her reflection, “have you ever considered what revenge does to a person?” Elizabeth shook her head. Her reflection continued to talk. “A soul always wants to try and repair itself. Therefore it tries everything it can to fill that empty void left after a devastating loss. People like you want revenge because once you believe that your pain has been balanced, you can finally be at peace. Is that correct?”

Elizabeth nodded her head. She was quiet.

“It's true; it does balance something out. But the truth is, if a human kills another human, a part of their soul dies as well. An eye for an eye. The more they kill, the more they die. Does that make sense?”

Elizabeth yelled. “I don't care about all that stuff! I want my revenge. Everyone is already dying. All I want is for the police to suffer as much as I did.”

“But they do suffer,” replied her reflection, “every day. They may not feel it, but eventually all they will feel is the urge to kill. They destroy the one thing that makes them human. Do you still want your revenge?”

At this point, Elizabeth was riled up. She didn't care what would happen to her soul. “I want them to suffer,” she said to her reflection.

The reflection sighed. “Alright,” it said behind it's creepy smile, “I have one more question. What are you willing to sacrifice for your power?”

Elizabeth looked surprised. “What,” she yelled. “I already dropped my life's savings on this stupid mirror. Why the hell do I need to sacrifice something?”

The reflection laughed. “Those are the rules. I have been telling you, for every action there must be an equal and opposite reaction. Balance must be kept. In order for you to receive your power, you must give something up that is just as equivalent to it.”

Elizabeth wasted no time answering. “Anything,” she shouted. “I'll give you anything. Everything you want!”

The reflection stood up. “Is that so,” replied the reflection. “Then I will not grant your wish.”

Elizabeth quickly stood up. “Why the hell not,” she exclaimed. That's when she noticed the reflection's hands were moving. She looked at her own. They were clamped shut by the candle wax. She couldn't break it.

“You don't have anything of value to offer me,” replied the reflection. “If you're willing to give up everything, then you don't see the value of what you're giving up.”

“It's my soul, I'll do what ever I want with it,” Elizabeth said between sobs. “I'll make them suffer, and then I'm going to kill them.”

“Go ahead,” it replied. “Waste whatever is left of your precious life hunting and massacring those who ever did you wrong. It will start with the police, then your enemies at school. Eventually, your friends will die by your hands. You will kill anyone who's ever caused you any pain. Even the smallest fights will set you off. You'll become one, small, fragile piece of a soul, always looking for a kill. In the end, you will be no better then me.”

Elizabeth was stunned. “Can I bring my parents back to life,” she asked.

Her reflection's smile widened. At this point, the thing in the mirror hardly resembled Elizabeth at all. The thing's bones were sticking out of the over-stretched skin. It looked like it was going to rip. She looked at its teeth; large, white fangs stood out from behind its cracked lips. She almost resembled a human Venus Flytrap.

“As I have said before, you have nothing of value for me,” replied the creature. It was as if it spoke with two voices; one was Elizabeth's normal, high pitched voice, and underneath it, a low, growling voice. “I could bring your family back, but your soul is already broken, you've already killed someone just to summon me.”

Elizabeth paused. She looked at the pentagram she created. It seemed as if there was less blood then she applied, as if her reflection had been drinking it. Then she said, “It was a homeless man. No one would have missed him”

“Regardless,” replied the creature, “It was still a human. What right do you have to judge who lives and dies? The truth is, little girl, you are one step closer to becoming like me. Your soul is useless. There is barely any human life in it at all.”

Elizabeth couldn't move. She was terrified. She couldn't even talk, let alone think. “Since you do not value your life,” the creature said calmly, “then there is no point talking it.”

Elizabeth fell down on the floor, defeated. She didn't know what to do. “What's going to happen to me now,” she asked the creature.

“I will grant you one thing,” replied the creature. “In exchange for your whatever is left of your humanity, I will give you something that will kill your enemies.”

She didn't even need to think about it. “Okay,” she quietly said.

Suddenly, Elizabeth felt as if she was punched in the stomach. She held herself close with the lump of wax that encased her hands. The fire burnt through her shirt and reached her skin.

“What did you give me,” she weakly said.

The creature had dropped Elizabeth's voice. It was now purely a low, growling noise.
“A bomb,” it said.

Elizabeth, at this point, didn't care about anything anymore.

It continued. “In a few minutes, the police that killed your family are going to come in an attempt to kill you as well. When they reach this part of the room, the bomb will activate, and you will all die. This way, you get your revenge, and they all suffer the same fate as you.”

Downstairs, she heard the front door break. Footsteps echoed throughout the house. She guessed that there were more then a dozen humans looking for her. Elizabeth laid on the floor with the clump on her face. The black tears dripped onto the wood, mixing with the wax. She was done suffering. All she needed to do was wait.

It grinned. It's teeth were now all sharp.

The flame grew smaller and smaller as it reached the end of the string. Once the light was extinguished, the mirror had disappeared.