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He was running.
He was running and all he could do was run. Run away…running away from everything.
He passed a few Hathys. They smiled at him and called for him to perform a trick for them. But he just ran away. A tad bit disappointed, they returned to their conversation without words.
Jevil didn’t care. Nothing mattered. Nothing mattered anymore. Nobody mattered. Nothing was worth it.
He ignored the tears pouring down his face and the burning feeling in his chest. All he did was run. He had to get as far away as possible. He never wanted to go back. Nobody would miss him, after a while. So he ran, and he ran, and he ran.
He reached the Forest. Finally stopping, he took a moment to catch his breath, only to fall to his knees and sob. There was nobody around to see him. He wrapped his arms around himself and rocked back and forth as he let the tears run down his face. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. The burning in his chest wouldn’t go away. And the tears just kept on falling. Pure misery filled his Soul, and there was nothing he could do about it. For a while, he just sat there. Suddenly, a spark lit up in his mind. And then, he made his decision.
He got up. Such little movements seemed so strange, like every step he took was monumental in some way. But he wasn’t thinking of that. He knew how to fix everything. And then, maybe, everything would be okay.
There was a spot in the Forest, a singular tree. It did not stick out much. If someone were to pass by it, the most they would make of it was another beautiful tree. Nothing special. But, sometimes, if you poked around, you would find a strange man there. He could do many things. Strange things. Surreal things. Beautiful things.
He was not there that day. Jevil searched everywhere for him, screaming out his name. All in vain. He was not there. But something else was.
He noticed something behind him. A large black void, monochromatically pulsating. Maybe this was where the man was? And yet…what if it was a trap? Or what if it would hurt him?
Jevil did not care anymore. If anything, the void being harmful to him would benefit everyone else. He reached his hand into it….and nothing happened. He poked his head into it. All he saw was darkness. Darkness…and a barely reflective mirror. Slowly entering the void, he could make out a reflection in the mirror. It was him….but in black and white. Strangest of all, the reflection’s face wore a malicious grin. At the moment, Jevil’s face was quite dull and emotionless. He tried leaning to the side. The reflection did not do the same. It merely giggled.
“Who are you…?”
“WHY, I’M YOU, YOU!”
“You’re not me.”
“OH, BUT I AM. AND I KNOW MUCH MORE, MORE THAN YOU DO! I SEE YOU AND YOUR SADNESS, OH SUCH SADNESS AND MISERY. BUT FROM EMOTION I AM FREE, FREE!”
“You’re talking crazy. Who are you, really?”
“I’M JUST YOUR REFLECTION. PROOF OF YOUR REAL SELF, SELF.”
“Real…?”
Jevil’s throat tightened. Nobody here was real. The Reflection laughed again.
“LOOK AT YOU, SO WEARY, WEARY. DON’T YOU WISH TO ESCAPE THE PAIN, PAIN?”
“There’s no escape. Nothing is real, and you can’t escape what doesn’t exist. I’ll get over it.”
“THAT YOU WILL, WILL! BUT YOU NEED ME, ME. COME CLOSER, CLOSER, AND YOU’LL SEE! UEE HEE HEE!”
Hesitantly, Jevil stepped forward. His instincts told him to get out of there, but something deep inside ushered him forwards.
“BETTER, BETTER. NOW, YOU AND I BOTH KNOW WHAT HAPPENS EACH AND EVERY TIMELINE. THE LIGHTNERS RETURN, AND THEY SEAL THE FOUNTAINS, FOUNTAINS. THE ROARING DESTROYS EVERYTHING, AND THEN WE GO BACK TO THE BEGINNING. BUT THERE IS A BETTER WAY, WAY!”
“And what’s that?”
“HEE HEE HEE! QUITE EAGER, EAGER, YOU ARE! YOU WISH TO SAVE SEAM, DON’T YOU? AND WHAT ABOUT YOUR OTHER FRIENDS, FRIENDS? YOU WISH TO SAVE THEM TOO!”
“Just tell me how to do it. I’ll do anything.”
“SOMEONE KNOWS THE MAGIC WORDS! WON’T YOU CROSS THE JORDAN WITH ME, ME?”
The Reflection reached its hand out, seemingly asking Jevil to take hold. He hesitated. What would happen if he took this stranger’s “help”? It hadn’t gone so well with the other Man, after all.
But if it would save the ones he cared about…well, he would do anything. Who knows?
Maybe he won’t have to cry anymore.
He took the Reflection’s hand. And that’s when it all went blank.
***
A jester emerged from a pulsating black void, its eyes dyed as dark as the emptiness it had left. Scythe in hand, it made its way to the Castle. The eternal time that awaited it was looming. And nobody would forget it.