Euphoric | Peter Parker

30- Ansel

I couldn't breathe. It felt as if my lungs collapsed as I stared at the ghost before me that claimed to be my dead brother.
My stomach seared with pain. Not an upsetting pain, it felt as if my wound was reopening from where he made me involuntarily stab myself with a poison coated blade.
I had killed him. I saw him die as I squished his neck with my own hands. He had created me my own personal hell before I even met him.

He groaned out of irritation as he motioned with his hands. "Can you at least say something? I can't hear your thoughts when I'm like this."

"This is an illusion. This- no," I shook my head as my throat began to burn. "You aren't here. Nope. No way."

"That's not an illusion, Alger," The Doctor pointed, "He must've came out when I pushed you out from your body."

"Two minds in one body can put strain on a person?" Ansel shrugged his shoulders as he smiled sheepishly.

"Stop that! I don't understand. How?"

"Alger, really?" He scoffed, "I'm a telepath! I had more power inside your head than when I was actually alive! Though, I was only limited to what was in your mind-"

"Shut up!" I yelled. The entire situation was making my head feel like it was spinning. "You were dead! I snapped your neck! And now I'm supposed to believe that you survived? That you tricked me?"

"Look, I'm not the bad guy here!"

"Yes, you are!" I yelled again. Then, I thought for a moment. "Wait, were you the hallucinations? The hallucinations of him?"

"That...was me, yeah, but I stopped after I realized just how badly they affected you!"

The next moment was a blur. Out of anger, I lunged towards Ansel and wrapped my hands around his neck and squeezed as we twisted around violently in the air.

"You're the reason for my headaches, aren't you?" I fumed as he gasped for breath, "You want to kill me again so you can have control!"

I tightened my grip as Ansel tried to fight me off. He grabbed my face and I yelped as I released him when he shoved both of his thumbs into my eyes. The roles reversed as he whipped around me and pinned my arms behind my back.

"I didn't cause your massive aneurism of a headache!" He grunted as I tried to break free, "Your own body is doing that to itself! Do you not remember what mother told you about absorbing too much electricity?"

"She was a liar and so are you!"

I thrusted my head back and hit him right on the nose. He cried out in pain and as I was getting ready to strike, the Doctor suddenly was in the same translucent form and threw us apart.

The Doctor held his hands out as he floated between us. "You two are acting like little kids! Can't you handle this in a more civil way?"

"No! He's the devil!"

"I'm surprised you even know what the devil is-"

"Enough!" The Doctor yelled.

Ansel and I froze as he groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You won't get anywhere if you two keep acting that way!" He continued, "Now, stay still and behave."

Ansel nodded as I huffed.

"Doctor, you don't understand," I pleaded, "I can't trust someone that killed me then planted himself inside of my own mind so that he could have control of my body!"

"I don't think you understand that if I actually wanted to do that, you would've been actually dead a long time ago!" Ansel spatted.

"Stop!" The Doctor begged, "Did you not just hear what I said?"

"Sorry," Ansel muttered, "But I think I know why Alger has been having those headaches."

"Yeah, because of you!"

"Alger!" The Doctor scolded, "Stop that!"

I huffed again as I covered my face with my hands. The entire situation was a nightmare.

"Alger, look at me," Ansel begged. I glanced toward him as he sighed. "I no longer have a body of my own to return to. I definitely don't want to take over your defective one now. I have nothing to gain by lying to you."

I groaned and crossed my arms as he continued.

"Absorbing too much electricity will start to affect your other abilities. That's why you no longer sense anything. Our father was the same way; His ability of creating his own electricity caused lightning to strike him every single time there was a storm. He could absorb it, but if not released, it would start to hurt him internally until he absolutely had to let it out. That's why where we lived had walls that could absorb electricity. Alger, what you've absorbed is slowly killing you."

"But it's the only thing that's keeping me alive!" I cried out, "If I release it, I'll die!"

"And if you hold it in any longer you'll explode!" He yelled back.

Though in the odd form, I still could feel the tears as they brimmed my eyes. I didn't want to die again, and I especially didn't want to be the one that actually killed me.

I wiped the tears away as I laughed bitterly. "I bet Aloysis saw this coming. Me having no choice but to listen to you."

"Seeing my twin sister grown up through your eyes has certainly been an odd sight to see," He cleared his throat, covering up what I assumed to be the sadness in his voice, "Look, I know what I did was wrong. Killing you was the worst thing I could've done and I apologize, but you need to understand what I am trying to tell you. If you don't release the electricity, you will die. And if you die, you'll never see Peter Parker again."

"Then what should I do?" I asked.

"Do as the doctor ordered: Try using your abilities."

The Doctor floated over to his now limp body and his body gasped as his ghost went back in.
"We need to do so, and quickly, if you don't mind," He added as he stood up.

"What's going to happen to Ansel? I don't want him back in my head."

"I'm afraid nothing can be done," The Doctor said as he fixed the collar of his cape, "If he has no physical body then he's stuck like that. Frankly, I've never heard of such a thing, but I suppose that it can happen."

"I guess I'll just roam the streets as a ghost that only sorcerers can see," Ansel laughed as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I say it's the best scenario for me."

Though there was nothing but bad blood between us, I felt slightly sad for him. However, it was the best thing for everyone that the world's most powerful telepath wasn't able to read anyone's mind.

"Thank you for the advice," I said to him as I floated back to my body, "And good luck out there as a ghost."

He smiled and nodded as I reentered my body. It would be, as I hoped, the last time I would ever have to see him.
It felt weird, to say the least. Though fully aware of what was going on around me, it felt as if I had just woken up.
I groaned as I sat myself up and was helped up to my feet by the Doctor.

"Is he still here?" I asked him.

He shook his head as he stared down at me solemnly. "I can assure you he can never hurt you or anyone again in that form. I don't think he can ever possess a physical body ever again."

"Good." I clasped my hands. "Now, where were we?"

"The mirror dimension?"

I nodded. "Let's get this thing over with."