The Kingdom Beneath the Sea: Ariel’s Last Letter

A 16th-century chronicle from the Black Forest tells of Katarina von Solberg, an apothecary accused of necromancy. She was said to own a mirror crafted from polished obsidian and silver dust — rumored to contain a soul bound within.

Her stepdaughter, a girl with skin pale as snow, was beloved by the villagers. But when Katarina’s reflection began to move on its own, she believed the mirror had been possessed by the spirit of her dead husband — who claimed to favor the girl.

Driven mad, she fed the mirror her own blood, begging it to “make me fair again.”

When her house was found burned, the mirror lay intact — its surface faintly warm, with fingerprints visible beneath the glass.

It was sold to a collector in 1903. During transit, the crate split open. Inside, customs officers reported seeing a woman’s face — eyes open, smiling — before the surface turned black again.

The mirror has never resurfaced.