Lucid (#wattys2016)

Twenty-One (Revised)

Andre looked at Isaac intently. He was hesitant of telling his story, but he had to. He had to make Isaac fully trust him. He had refused to speak at first, but now was a good time. He couldn't run any further.

Isaac listened as Andre spoke, doing his best to show that he was interested. He was, of course, but he was also exhausted, and he didn't feel like listening to a story. Still, he had to. He needed to know what had happened between Andre and Matt, and more importantly, he had to figure out where Matt was. Another minute went by, and it was at that point that Andre begun. "I'm going to start from the very beginning of that day. Once upon a time, I was riding my bike to school, ready to start my day. After a few minutes, I finally got to school, and I walked inside the building. I was a bit late, as my alarm hadn't went off, so I rushed off to class."

"He was upon me in an instant. I looked up to see that Matt was on top of me, and I flew a punch to his face. He flied back, but he grabbed my arms, forcing me to become vulnerable. He hit me in the stomach, and I doubled over in pain. It was at that moment that he slammed his fist on my head, and everything went black."

"I woke up, looking around me. I had no idea where I was. To my right was pitch black, and that was also to my left. I looked out in front of me, now not in a complete daze, and there Matt stood, gazing me directly  in the eye. I could see fire in his pupils, blazing powerfully, causing an intense glow. He was determined to get his way, so whenever he spoke, I listened to what he had to say. 'Listen here, buddy. For about a month now I've been chasing both you and Isaac. You may be wondering, if I have magical powers, why haven't I just killed you yet? Well, I'm gonna spill the beans. I need at least one of you to take over this world. With two of you it's easier, but I can do it in one pretty easily as well. I'm telling you this now because I wanted to play with you, but now I've calmed down. I'm not playing games anymore.'"

"Matt continued to speak to me, but his tone became even more intense, his stern expression piercing through my eyes, my soul. 'I'm gonna cut you a deal. I'll leave one of you alive and one dead, and I've chosen you to be alive. All I need you to do is mess with Isaac, and then kill him. I have him kidnapped right now! Now, you may be wondering, why haven't I killed him yet? And, speaking truthfully here, I have tried to kill him before. The reason that I can't kill Isaac is because there's something inside him, some kind of power that I don't have. I can't kill him. But if you do, and you help me take over this godforsaken planet, then I'll not only let you stay alive, but you can have anything you want in the world. Anything!' Matt smiled, holding out his hand, which glowed brilliantly in the darkness of where I was. 'So, what'ya say, Andre?' I looked at him, unsure of what to do, but I knew that he couldn't be trusted. 'No!' I yelled. 'I would never partner up with you!' His expression immediately turned from happiness to anger and lust, and he glared at me, visible frustrated. His hand turned into a ball of fire, and he pointed it directly at me. 'I COULD KILL YOU IN AN INSTANT! YOU NEED TO LISTEN TO ME; I AM YOUR SUPERIOR!'"

"I stopped for a second, closing my eyes, cringing, waiting for him to kill me. But then I realized something: he needed me. Without me, he would never convince you to side with him, because he couldn't kill him. He would have to get someone else to kill him, to do his bidding, but it wasn't going to be me. No matter what I said or did, I wouldn't have killed you. I decided to act like I didn't have this knowledge, and I looked directly at Matt, finally saying the decisive eight words that would change its whole reality. 'Okay. Give me a knife, and I'll kill Isaac.'"

"Matt held out his hand for me to shake, and after a second our hands connected. As soon as I shook it, I felt a strange energy, almost like I was being controlled, and then the whole void turned into a gray room. It was empty, except for a tennis ball in the corner and you, blindfolded and in shackles. Matt leaned close to me, whispering in my ear. 'There's no rush... Don't be doing anything funny, cause' I'll be watching you...' Matt went out the door, and I looked at you again. I wanted to survive, but I didn't trust Matt, and would killing you be worth it? Would taking one life be worth living my own? What made me different? I picked up the tennis ball in the corner and bounced it against the back wall. I was going to show Matt that I wanted to kill you, but I wasn't really going to. I was going to trick him. I held the knife close to you, its shiny blade slightly connecting with your skin. I looked at you again, but I instantly turned my head behind me, looking for it, who wasn't there. I stepped back, and I taunted you, talking about how you were going to die. Then I spoke quickly, telling you about the dangers that were coming your way. Before I could save you, Matt came in, forcing me out of the room."