Chapter Sixty-Five

Chapter Sixty-Five

The cabin was quiet, temporary silence heavy with the words of the strangers. Misty sat on the couch watching the interaction play out, still wishing she had a bowl of popcorn. She gave up trying to be heard and determined she would make more progress if she waited out the conversation and spoke up after everyone was finally done talking. DJ also kept his thoughts to himself. The growing suspicion that his Other was not actually in a mirror, but trapped somewhere else entirely, was confirmed by the strangers. He believed them to that extent. However, the options provided to alleviate the problem did not sit well with him. He tried signaling to Hanna that they needed a chance to discuss the situation in depth, away from the strangers, but to no avail. Hanna was zeroed in on Ace’s words and would not be diverted from hearing him out entirely. It was the same when she set her mind on going after EDJ alone. Nothing in the world was going to stop her. Her single-mindedness was both a blessing and a curse. 

“It just had to be something like that, didn’t it?” Hanna asked, offensively defensive stance relaxing into begrudging acceptance. She acted as though she already had a wheel of possible worst case scenarios spinning in her head and all the strangers did was confirm where the arrow landed. He wouldn’t remember me. Any of the times we had… including all the pain I caused him… He’d have a clean slate, but… She turned to the mirror for guidance, but Lui was not visible from where she stood. The image of his face in the glass when they were still on the mountainside near EDJ’s castle came to mind. “Would rather die than forget.” Isn’t that what he said? The pain in his eyes at even the mention of not being friends… I couldn’t do that to him… I can’t break his heart again… Hanna could feel her eyes watering. Keep it together. 

Ace watched her curiously for a moment. “It does not seem you want to give your friend up.” His tone was oddly void of feeling. “Can you find the strength to come to his aid?” 

Hanna let out a puff of frosty air and returned to her frigid disposition, burying as much emotion as possible. “Are…” She cleared her throat and tried again. “Are those the only ways?” she asked, her emotionless tone matching his.

NO! Those aren’t the only ways! But is anyone going to listen to me? Of course not! Misty thought to herself. It was taking everything in her to keep from marching up to the strangers and shoving them out the door. The only thing stopping her was the eerie familiarity she still could not place. I know I’ve seen them before, but where?! This is going to bug me until I figure it out. Maybe if I just stare at them long enough, it will click.  

“Afraid so, friend,” Jester answered. 

Hanna’s fury ignited immediately. “Don’t call me your friend, pal. A friend is more than a mere ally.” 

Jester flinched in surprise. “Sheesh, don’t be so hostile! We’re trying to help you here.” 

Hanna’s anger abated as she considered the options presented. Perhaps the best thing for him would be to give him up… for his own benefit. But I… I don’t think I can do that… She looked to DJ. He was focused on the mirror, deep in thought. It appeared he did not like the options either. Hanna turned to Ace. “If I go with you and we fail,” she started, always contingency planning. “Would you still be able to get him out using the card?” 

It was Jester who answered her. “We’d be able to get him back using the card, yes.”

Ace nodded with a smile. “We will be with you every step of the way.” Their answer did not provide the comfort she was hoping for. 

“I don’t see what the big deal is,” Jester flippantly added on. “You always said Lui was annoying.”

I never said- when did I say that?!

“Think about it,” he continued before Hanna could voice her thoughts. “Would you really be such close friends if your friendship hadn’t been strengthened through this ordeal?” 

“We were close friends before this!” Hanna snapped before biting her tongue and taking a breath. Has our friendship really been strengthened? Even if it has, what’s this have to do with them? None of this is making any sense… “What will happen after we get him out?” she asked. 

“We can finally turn this Original world back to the way it should be,” Ace answered. “When the world is the way it is supposed to be, your evil side will be washed away.”

Hanna stared back at him in shock. “My evil side… gone?” How can that be possible? 

Ace nodded. “Your evil side would be wiped clean forever. Isn’t that what you want?” His head tilted. “Or do you want to keep your evil side?”

“No!” Hanna shook her head. “Of course not! It’s just…” She frowned. Shard gone? Forever? She’s been with me for as long as I can remember. It’s hard thinking of a life without her, but if what they’re talking about is possible… If I could be free of her… No. “It’s impossible.” Hanna crossed her arms. “In fact, it sounds too good to be true. You expect me to believe that you would leave your lives of contentment behind, travel to our world, offer to help us get our friend back, and somehow rid the world of evil for good?” Her icy glare did not waver. “Even if all that were possible, it’s too selfless… for anybody!” 

A cold chill ran down Misty’s spine. She looked at the fireplace. The fire was down to embers and needed feeding. When did that happen? Didn’t I just add logs a minute ago? She glanced back at Hanna. Guess that’s what happens when you stress out an ice mage. If they don’t quit soon, I’m going to have to put a stop to this. 

“That’s it, Ace,” Jester said, finally having enough of Hanna’s attitude. “We’re out. Originals just can't comprehend our means. This was a waste of time.” He turned and walked toward the door, but Ace grabbed his arm. 

“No, we must not give up so easily. I’ll put it in a way she’ll understand.” Ace released his brother and turned back to Hanna. Perhaps ‘content’ was the wrong word. “We may live in contentment with ourselves, but that’s not to say we don’t have problems.” Ace pulled out a metallic device and pressed a button. A small hologram of Earth lit up above the object in his outstretched hand. “Our problem is your kind,” he continued. “Originals created Others. Others were always there, but they were inside you, where they belonged. Thorae exists to get Others out of your way and you out of ours.” He tapped a button and the planet changed. It looked similar to Earth, yet somehow reversed. Not an exact mirror image, but close enough. “No Other wants to be a human. They want to remain inside of you and be part of you, not an individual of their own. As I’m sure no Original wants their Other to become someone else entirely either.” He turned off the hologram and put the device away. “You created us, yet you live so differently from what you originally intended. Putting things back in place would help everyone.”

“Maybe there is a reason Others were created,” DJ finally spoke up. His reflective tone indicated he was carefully considering the information presented. Something seemed off, but he could not place what. DJ and his Others had been living separate lives for years. He certainly didn’t feel he could speak for them, but forcing them back into himself after everything they’ve been through? Was that possible? What was the point of preserving their autonomy and rescuing Lui with his memories intact if he was going to disappear in the end anyway? And Iul? He might as well be a complete stranger. It was easier to spot the differences between DJ and his Others than the similarities. To think they were complete clones at one point in time was almost laughable. What does “back to the way it should be” even mean? Something is missing. A critical piece of this puzzle felt just out of reach. Or perhaps it was being withheld. He couldn’t tell. 

“Exactly,” Hanna jumped in. “Maybe it has something to do with the way we live here. If our world was as nice as we would like it to be, why would Others even exist in the first place? Do you think that by setting things back into place that they won’t unfold again?”

Ace stood straight. “They might unfold again, but this gives us a chance to make sure things don't.” 

“Believe it or not, I’m actually an Evil Other,” Jester commented, as if anyone was going to be surprised by the statement. Hanna was just about to shoot him a sarcastic ‘no, really?’ before Misty intervened.

“Ok, I think we’ve heard just about enough of this,” Misty said as she stood up and walked up to the strangers. She reached her limit. “If you will excuse us for just a moment to think this over, I would be most grateful.” She ushered them to the door as she spoke. “And since you are so, as Hanna put it, selfless and kind, you won’t mind stepping out for a bit. Thank you!” She opened the door and, as gently as possible, shoved them outside and closed the door.