The Rose Thief (Achievement Hunter)

4. Doppelgänger

A dagger whistled through the air and sliced through the rope above Ray's head, leaving but a few strands attached to his noose. The dagger plunged into the wood of the gallows with a dull thud. The lever was already being pulled, and the somber man couldn't react fast enough to stop it. The trapdoor opened up underneath Ray, and he dropped a few inches before his feet hit something solid. The rope broke completely.

People were shouting. Ray's knees buckled, not expecting to only fall a few inches and land, but before he could tumble, a pair of hands was on him. A thick cape not unlike his own billowed around him and he was heaved upwards. The air wooshed out of his lungs as suddenly his whole weight was being carried by another person. He blinked his eyes rapidly, trying to clear the tears from them to see what the fuck was going on. He saw a blurred shape that must have been Jack reach back and fling something at him. Ray's cape suddenly pulled at his shoulders as an ax caught the edge of it and buried itself in the stone wall behind him. There was a massive tearing noise and the cape stopped pulling. And still he was being heaved upwards.

The ground dropped below Ray. His savior was apparently running on air. The pair leaped over the wall and ran for the nearby thicket of woods. Apparently on this side of the city, the woods were much closer. Ray was so shocked he forgot to scream and struggle. His noose slipped from around his neck and fell a dozen feet to the ground below. Once they were over the trees, the pair dropped.

They didn't fall quickly, per se, but Ray was still dropped ruthlessly. He wasn't dropped hard enough to break anything, but the ground rushed up to meet him and gave him promise of several bruises. If he lived long enough to bruise. A weight was upon him, a heavy billowing cloak drifting down to rest over the grass. Something cold and sharp pressed against his neck, and he reflexively choked and tried to lean away.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't slit your throat now," the weight on top of him hissed. Ray's eyes focused on... was he looking in a mirror? His own face floated in front of him. Thinner and screwed up in anger, wearing a small white mask instead of glasses, but his face all the same.

"Uhh, 'cause you just saved me?" he sputtered weakly as he realized the cold sharp thing on his neck was a dagger. The blade pressed harder against his skin, and his Adam's apple bobbed against it with a gulp. His skin itched with nervous sweat and he was still breathing hard.

"That was so I could kill you myself," his doppelgänger said angrily. Ray's heart was beating way too fast, and his mouth was dry. His lookalike looked ready to swipe his throat open any second now. "Who do you think you are, wearing my clothes and getting executed? Do you know how hard it is to build a reputation? Who are you, really? An enemy Mage?"

"N-no," he said, unable to prevent himself from stuttering. "I'm Ray, I swear to god, I - I came from Austin, Texas, I work at Achievement Hunter and make videos for the internet. I fell asleep in front of my computer and - and I woke up here I'm innocent oh please god don't fucking kill me."

His doppelgänger narrowed his eyes, studying Ray closely. A hint of confusion fluttered across his face. Finally, the doppelgänger withdrew his blade, jumped lightly to his feet, then with a wordless cry of rage spun and hurled the dagger into a nearby tree. Ray sat up and rubbed his throat while his doppelgänger retrieved the blade. The doppelgänger turned and faced Ray head on, holding his hands out as if on a stage.

"I am the one they call the Rose Thief," he said. Ray could see him clearly now. The overall theme of the Rose Thief's outfit was similar if not identical to Ray's. The shirt was stiff-collared and buttoned, and the vest was low-cut and white. A black long-sleeved jacket was held open by a belt wrapping around his waist. The jacket was pointed in the front and had tails. The pants were nearly the same but with a simpler fly, and the black leather boots were calf-high and belted up the side. The long black cape was tied around his throat with a bright red ribbon. A rapier with an intricate handle ending with a red rose pommel was attached to the belt by a frog. He wore a pair of white gloves, and a white eye mask partially concealed the Rose Thief's face, though at this point it was more for style than for secret identities.

"I don't understand half of what you just said," added the Rose Thief, "but I think I would know my own face if I was telling the truth or not."

Studying the Rose Thief's cape made Ray remember his own. He twisted around and discovered that it had ripped at a jagged angle, the longest part just brushing the grass where he sat, the shortest part maybe a foot higher. As Ray's face reddened, the Rose Thief let out a short laugh.

"Jack's ax had caught the cape. I had to cut it," he said casually, twirling his dagger. "You're wearing one of my old outfits, but don't feel bad. I haven't seen that outfit for five years, maybe. And by the Tower, it's even a bit tight on you." He grinned sadistically. "You're soft."

"What?" Ray said lightly, but he was too nervous to smile. After all, what stopped the Rose Thief from changing his mind again and killing him right there? "We just met and you're already insulting my weight."

The Rose Thief laughed heartily and strode over, holding out a gloved hand. "Does this really count as a first meeting?" he asked rhetorically. Ray took the hand and was hoisted up to his feet. The Rose Thief bent down and picked up a previously unnoticed top hat, which must have fallen off when they had landed.

Ray swallowed a lump in his throat and asked, "Uh, you're not gonna threaten to kill me again, are you?"

"Nahhh," replied the Rose Thief easily. He gestured broadly to the world around him. "I've decided the potential profit is too great. Can you imagine? Two of me! The guards won't know who to chase!" Ray decided not to tell him that he didn't really plan on stealing. The Rose Thief suddenly frowned thoughtfully. "Well, me. Self. Ray. I don't know where you came from, and maybe we can figure it out eventually, but right now we need to get to travelling. Guards and even regular commoners will be on high alert for the Rose Thief for a little while. We need to get away from Achievement City, maybe even the country entirely."

"Wait, Achievement City?" Ray asked, more out of astonishment than curiosity.

"Achievement City," the Rose Thief confirmed, a smirk making the corner of his mouth twitch. "The capital of the kingdom of Venator. You're really not from around here, huh."

Ray nodded to his mirror image nervously. "It's... an interesting story, that's for fucking sure."

"Well, we've got a bit of a walk ahead of us. Plenty of time to talk. I hope you like horses."