The Evil at the End

Mirrors can easily be a frightening instrument. Our imaginations sometimes convince us that there’s more to a reflection than we can possibly comprehend, potentially dark and evil things that can never be stopped. Sure, science can support their theories of light reflection increasingly well, but even the direct, factual truth can’t keep our minds from wondering. Not even repeatedly-proven evidence can keep us from THINKING. That is the truth many of us will never escape from: imaginations are unstoppable.

Perhaps the most popular belief relating to our doppelgangers is their independency. Some believe them to be a separate “being” living within a different universe, completely devoid of your bathroom or bedroom you frequent as a viewing window into their world. We all live in fear of the day that they arrive at the same conclusion and become equally as fascinated with us. All we could really do then is silently pray with them not to realize that we’ve continually stared back.

Some individuals milk these beliefs for entertainment purposes. Popular culture has spread the curiously frightening belief of Bloody Mary showing her face in our bathroom mirrors upon the lights’ absence, yet a small few of us can honestly admit to having tried this ritual; even fewer of those venturers wish to speak of their experience. Reflective surfaces are imaginatively known to act as a portal of sorts into otherworldly territory, where our greatest fears and unwanted beliefs come true, brought to life by their own will. Beyond those eyes of ours is a much darker land, one where anything and everything we wish away from existence does everything in its power to live.

Some individuals study the behavior of mirrors and their reflections. Generally, the results prove unimpressive or deceptively obvious, yet a few vague experiments tend to go awry in mysterious ways. One of the more common studies is the placement of two mirrors in opposing positions, thus creating an infinite exchange of similarly repetitive reflections. Unfortunately, this raises a greater number of questions than answers. As stated previously, reflections are thought to be more than a simple refraction of light. What could come of allowing contact between universes within our homes? How could this practically simple method of “cloning” ourselves prove dangerous? What possible misfortune could befall an individual who unknowingly carries out these mistakes?

Positioning yourself between the opposite-facing mirrors introduces an additional variable to this equation: you. You will then see infinite copies of “yourself,” each one alternating their position. Several of them look away, but the remainders face back at you, returning your stare. As far as we can see, and even further beyond that, we know that our gaze is being returned by another reflection. What we don’t know, since we can’t see where infinity ends, is how it is being returned.

A simple glance at all of those reflections can be enough to convince anyone: not all of them could be you…could they? Just look deeper into their eyes.

Notice how as they get further and further away, they appear to change…

Soon you’ll reach the one at the very end, the final one you can see.

Try to convince yourself it isn’t glaring back at you.

Only it knows for sure.