The Misadventure

Chapter 34

Fallout's POV

 "Ouch, that hurts. Hurts right here." The Cavet standing above me poked at her heart.

It was an exact replica, from the clothes to the last, tiny detail of standing. Feet pointed inward slightly, back straight with arms crossed behind it. Her clothes were even ripped and bloody as mine were. I would even bet that every strand of her short hair was sticking up exactly as mine was.

"You must be Cavet." I muttered. She leaned against the wall.

"I think you're Cavet. Identity crisis?" The other of me's expression remained blank, despite the mocking tone they used.

"I think you're Cavet too," I sighed. "You know, I figured I wouldn't have a chance of manifesting an alter. I'm practically already insane." She tilted their head slightly, eyes flicking back and forth as I spoke. They came to a rest on me when I stopped.

"No, you are. You're just good at controlling it. Should I go into the details?"

I waved my hand impassively. "Chemical reaction in the brain, emotional barriers, yeah. This sudden appearance is because of Bella, then." She nodded.

"Yes. You lost control, completely and utterly, all barriers knocked out, for about 27.3 seconds, give or take. The chemical outburst was astounding. You just put every nueroscientist out of business." The other Cavet straightened again, fingering the sword hanging at her side. I slowly stood, rising first into a crouch and then up to my full height, matching hers. Unlike me, she had both hands. Son of a gun.

"So, chemical imbalance probably combined with an outburst of energy. Glitch in the matrix?" I asked. She nodded.

"Glitch in the matrix. You know what that means."

I sighed and pulled my sword free, swinging it in a circle.

"That means that you can probably manipulate something as well. What is it? Bella's got her objects, Evil has her mind tricks, what are you doing?" I asked. Cavet cocked her head.

"What are you doing? Their powers seem to be fairly interlaced, ours must be as well." She lashed out suddenly, forcing me to jump back and parry the move before counter striking. She blocked my swipe and twisted her sword, but I yanked mine free and smacked hers, pinning it to the wall. Cavet grinned.

"Fascinating." She lurched forward and I released the sword, pushing it away with mine.

"Quite so." I agreed. I attacked first this time, swiping first at her stomach and then slashing it towards her feet. She jumped up quickly and swung at me, which I blocked again. This time, I forced her sword away and punched her in the face with as well as I could without a hand  to do the actual punching.

Cavet drew back, glowering at me. Then we both attacked at the same time, swords flashing through the air and metal screaming when it made contact. We mixed hand to hand combat with the sword fighting, striking at each other and landing kicks when close enough. The other Cavet pinned my sword suddenly to the wall and slid her blade along mine. I dropped it just as the sharp blade scraped over the hilt, barely missing my fingers.

I kicked her chest, sending her sprawling backwards onto the floor. I was on my replica immediately, kicking her ribs and stomach again and again while she remained down.

"Cavet!" Someone screamed from behind me, far down the hall. I kicked the not-me on the floor again and yanked the sword from her hand, pointing it at her throat.

"Stay away from me!" I yelled, not looking back to see who it was. I locked eyes with the replica of me laying on the floor, and she grinned at me.

"And yet, you always let the heart win over the mind. They could back you up, give you help, you could defeat me right here. Yet you tell them to stay away because you demand they stay safe whilst you commit suicide."

"Duty of soldier." I spit. "How do I make you leave?" She shook her head.

"Does not work like that. I'm more of a trial an error person, just because you aren't."

I rolled my eyes and put a bit more pressure onto the sword, watching as a line of blood appeared at the point. "You are a maniac, are you aware?" I growled.

"Maniac, that's me!" She choked.

"I agree." I pressed harder, and she gagged as the tip dug into her throat. She glared at me, dark eyes flashing with rage, and the floor slowly crumbled away to nothing and she fell through. The other Cavet fell into darkness, twisting gracefully before disappearing.

Bella was at my side in an instant, flanked by the others.

"So, I have Evil, and you have Maniac. We should start a club." She offered quietly. I snorted.

"Let's just hope that they don't."