CRIMSON ROTH

Chapter 10 - Doppelgänger

"I-im sorry," she murmured, feeling heat flush into her face. Jake frowned before stomping away. Crimson stood there for a moment before following him. As she rounded a corner, she saw two branching paths. She stopped for a bit before picking the one of the right. When she saw Jake, she tensed a bit.

"Crimson?" he turned around, staring at her. His eyes turned harsh. "Why'd you have to go here. Is it because you don't want to do anything and you just want to blindly follow me? Isn't that all you've done this whole adventure?" he spat. "Get lost!" A fair was ablaze in his eyes.

Crimson stared at him for a heart beat before rushing towards the left path. She could feel heat crawl up to her eyes and nose. 'Don't cry,' she thought to herself. 'You're strong.' She took a few deep breaths, eyes still stuck on the ground. She suddenly crashed into someone else.

"Are you serious? Why'd you have to crash onto me?" The voice came from Jake again. Crimson flinched. She couldn't help but notice that his colours were even paler this time. "You're always so impatient! I have to do all the work and trouble keeping nagging me! I mean, isn't your impatience the reason we're stuck together!?" The man in front of Crimson crossed his arms before walking away.

Crimson could feel tears start rolling down her eyes. Even the images of her in the mirror seemed to look on her. She could he at their voices laughing and taunting at her. She quickly scrambled up and just raced forward, blindly choosing paths. She suddenly halted when she crashed into a bend. She flinched, her cheek throbbing from the impact.

"Never think do you?" It was Jake again. She didn't face him this time. "You just do, do and do. Never think on planning something out. Of course, I have to do that task. You think this adventure is nothing more than fun and games." He hissed, stepping closer. "Well its not. It never is. Yet you don't care, you keep doing things willy-nilly." He stepped next to her ear. "WHY CANT YOU THINK!?" he roared before disappearing.

The shout still rang in Crimson's ears. She crouched down, burying her head in her hands. She let out soft sobs, which turned into cries. "Ugh. You're confidence is so easily broken. You have no self esteem, huh? Why'd I pick you to be my teammate?" a voice spoke above her before leaving.

Crimson paused before collecting herself. She scrambled up onto her feet and trudged on. Her mind was blank and her heart was heavy. She just kept walking, shutting out the taunts of the mirrored images. In a few minutes, she reached the middle. "Crimson!?" A voice cracked. "No, no, not again. But why're there two of you now?" Crimson's curiosity got the best of her and she looked up.

There were two Jake's now. Fully coloured, perfectly the same. They both had a red tint know their faces. She looked beside her. It was another of herself! And disturbingly similar. Even the doppelganger's eyes and nose were stuffy. "Is this... A challenge?" Crimson, the real one, asked. Both Jakes looked at her.

"Yes," the one on the right replied, full of confidence. "I'm pretty sure they're testing us on our trust or something." The other one hesitated before shrugging. "I think," was all they replied. Crimson tilted her head. They were both so similar. And their personality matched either way.

"Well, if it's a trust bond test, we'll win right?" the fake Crimson, which Crimson nicknamed C, asked cautiously. "Even if all that stuff had happened to us, we're still close friends, no?" The real Crimson's eyes widened. "If it was all a test...." Crimson wracked her mind for something to say. "Then it doesn't matter what those images of us said. We still care for each other either way."

The other Jakes paused before both replying, "You both are right." The one on the left spoke up, "Then we need to find who out partner is." This made all four of them pause. "A quiz?" the Jake on the right asked, smiling slightly. The other one smiled and shook his head. "No need."

He suddenly stuck his hand out, "Can you tell me why you're stuck in this planet?". C stared at the Jake before averting her gaze to the ground, face flushed. Crimson, had acted like that when she first met Jake. But now, she was more confident, knowing Jake wouldn't laugh at her. Besides, they both had done a lot of stupid things on their adventure.

"Isn't that an easy question?" The real Crimson asked, a smirk on her face. "I accidentally stole a ship and crash landed here. You've heard me tell you this before." She rolled her eyes jokingly. "Tell me then, why are you here?" She waited for an answer, determination in her eyes.

"Captured by the Equilibri. They went to my planet and took us all to Gregorax. I was a prisoner. We met at out jail cell. This is too easy," The Jake who had asked the question before answered. "Well that's that. I guess we are the real ones. The fake ones will probably be swallowed back into the mirrors, right?" The other Jake reached his hand out and Crimson almost took it.

However, the other Jake suddenly piped up. "I was living in my home when suddenly the alien ships came down. A gigantic equilirbi, the leader I presumed, ordered all the others to capture us. My dad tried to fight him off but lost his life instead," The words haltingly came out from Jake's mouth. "My mom and I were captured. As she was already, she was quickly sent to get her energy extracted. They threw me in a cage so I could grow up. I've been in that cage for a year or so...." His voice trailed off, and Crimson could see his eyes were glossy.

"I guess at the very least I shouldn't keep this a secret. Real Crimson, you might think I'm the fake one, but my story is definitely real. I guess before you leave, I wanted you to know this because I don't know if the other Jake would ever tell you," he murmured. 'Jake... The real Jake....' She realized.

Suddenly the Jake in front of her lunged, his hand reaching towards Crimson. He was already starting to turn pale and translucent, like he was disappearing from the real world. His fingers almost grazed Crimson but just then he was blown away.

The real Jake had his blaster up. He had definitely made the shot. He turned around and fired at C, who was trying to run away. As she hit the floor, she shattered into a million pieces. "Thank you," Crimson replied, her eyes still wide with shock. "That was a surprise." Jake stared at her for a bit, an uneasy look in his eyes. "Don't worry. All those other Crimsons you probably saw were just fakes. Whatever they said, ignore it."

Jake smiled, placing his blaster back around his belt. He stuck his hand out, his eyes sparkling. "You too. Know that I don't mean whatever those fakes said. I think you're a great friend," he nodded. Crimson smiled, grasping Jake's hand in hers.

A low groaning sound came from around them. The mirrors slowly moved down, the light reflecting off of it temporarily blinding the two. But then they could finally see again, all they saw were rows of Equilibri, all with weapons raised.