Midnight Case Files
Midnight Case Files — an illustrated stories story. 20 illustrated pages, free to read on Wonder Books.
Page 1
Rain lashed against the endless mirrors, each reflecting a distorted city skyline. Detective Miles Corbin stared into the nearest, his trench coat collar pulled high. Somewhere in this labyrinth of futures, a killer hid, and Corbin was the only one who could see through the illusion.
Page 2
Corbin pulled a crumpled photo from his pocket—a woman's face, serene and smiling. He had to find her killer before another future shattered. "Time to get to work," he muttered, adjusting his fedora. The hunt began in the heart of fractured realities.
Page 3
"Another dead end," snarled Inspector Davies, his face tight with frustration. "These mirrors are playing tricks on us, Corbin!" Davies, a burly man with a permanent scowl, gestured wildly at the shimmering maze around them. Corbin, however, remained calm, his eyes fixed on a tiny detail reflected in one of the mirrors.
Page 4
A glint of crimson. A misplaced chess piece. It was there then gone. "That mirror... the 7th from the left," Corbin said, his voice barely a whisper. He lunged forward, ignoring Davies' protests. Time was running out. The killer was close.
Page 5
The mirror rippled, revealing a lavish study. A velvet chair sat before a crackling fireplace. On the floor lies a chess piece, smeared with crimson. This is it, Corbin thought, the killer's reflection. He gripped his revolver, his knuckles white.
Page 6
A voice echoed from the shadows, smooth and menacing. "You shouldn't have come here, Detective." A figure emerged, tall and gaunt, his face obscured by the darkness. "Turn back, while you still can."
Page 7
"I'm not leaving without answers," Corbin replied, his voice steady. The figure chuckled, a chilling sound that reverberated through the room. "Answers are a luxury you cannot afford, Detective. Some doors are better left unopened."
Page 8
The figure lunged, a blur of motion. Corbin fired. The bullet shattered a mirror behind the figure, revealing another reality. The room dissolved into a swirling vortex of fractured realities.
Page 9
He landed in a bustling marketplace, the air thick with exotic scents. People hurried past, oblivious to the chaos he'd just left behind. "Where am I now?" Corbin asked himself, bewildered. This was no longer a simple murder case. It was a war for reality itself.
Page 10
A familiar face emerged from the crowd—the woman from the photo. "Anna?" Corbin gasped, his heart pounding. She smiled sadly. "You're too late, Detective. He's already won." Anna, however, was an apparition, another mirage reflecting into Corbin's labyrinth.
Page 11
"What do you mean, won?" Corbin demanded, reaching out to her, but his hand passed right through. "He controls the mirrors now," she whispered, her voice fading. "He decides which realities exist and which ones disappear." Corbin's eyes grew wide as the truth hit him.
Page 12
He remembered something he had read as a child: 'The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves, that we are underlings.' Inspector Davies, his face lined with worry, reappeared beside him. "Corbin, what's happening?"
Page 13
"He's rewriting reality, Davies! And we're the only ones who remember how it's supposed to be." Corbin grabbed Davies' arm, his grip tight. "We have to find the source, the point where he's changing everything." They looked at each other, determined to find out what was wrong.
Page 14
They followed a trail of fractured reflections, each more distorted than the last. Buildings twisted into impossible shapes, the sky bled with unnatural colors, the once busy markets were empty, stores boarded up. "Where are all the people? What happened to them?" Davies shivered in his jacket.
Page 15
The trail led them to a towering clock tower, its hands frozen at midnight. A figure stood at the top, silhouetted against the distorted sky. Corbin knew who it was. The killer, the architect of this twisted reality.
Page 16
"It ends here," Corbin said, his voice echoing in the empty streets. "You can't keep rewriting reality to suit your own twisted desires." The figure laughed, a chilling sound that echoed through the streets. "Oh, but I can, Detective. And I will."
Page 17
The figure raised his hand, and the world began to shift again. Buildings crumbled, the sky turned black, and the ground beneath their feet trembled. Corbin grabbed Davies and began to run, dodging falling debris. "We have to get to him!"
Page 18
They reached the clock tower, the entrance guarded by shimmering mirrors, each reflecting a different nightmare. Corbin smashed through the mirrors, ignoring the terrifying visions. He had to stop him, no matter the cost.
Page 19
He burst into the clock tower, the air thick with energy. The figure stood before a massive mirror, his hands outstretched, manipulating the reflections. "It's over," Corbin said, his revolver raised. "I'm taking back what you stole." Corbin is ready to defend reality.
Page 20
The figure turned, his face finally revealed—it was Corbin himself, a twisted reflection of his own despair. "You can't win, Detective," the reflection said, his voice a chilling echo. "You're already trapped in my mirror." Corbin stands, stunned by the face in front of him.
About this story
- Audience: kids (ages 6–12)
Questions and answers
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