Right Hand Man (King Dice x Devil)

Chapter 22 : Two Halves Of One Whole

Mugman's POV

"Okay, I'm going to try and drop us near the casino," Mike explained.
"Won't the Devil and King Dice try to kill you?" Elder Kettle pointed out.
"They will, but at least you two will be home," He replied, softly.
I placed a reassuring hand on his knee (I would've put my hand on his shoulder but he's too tall for me to reach). I smiled warmly at him,"Don't worry, Mike. I'll explain everything to them so they have no choice but to leave you be."
He chuckled, sadly,"You can try, but I doubt it'll work."
"We'll see about that, won't we?"
He smiled.
He looked at both Elder Kettle and I, and put his hands together,"Alright, here goes nothing!"
I eagerly watched as a small hole appeared beneath us. King Dice could do the same thing; he'd always do it when Cup and I would reach a Die House. All three of us fell through the hole as it closed behind us. Then, in no time at all, we were in front of the Devil's Casino.
I gasped with a giddy grin,"We're home!"
"Are you sure it's safe?" My grandfather asked, staring nervously at the door.
I giggled,"Of course it's safe! King Dice and The Devil have changed into model citizens-well-mostly. They still need some work-but! They really are better now! They'll be delighted to meet you!"
Elder Kettle smiled awkwardly,"Okay...if you say so, Mug."
I turned to Mike, and opened my mouth to say something, but shut it quickly when I saw his expression. He was staring through the window; his eyes were wide, sweat running down his face. He looked petrified. I cautiously walked to him and reached for his hand. He jumped a bit when I managed to grab the ends of his fingers. He looked at me, I smiled.
"You can wait out here if you'd like," I offered.
He still looked unsure.
"I promise I won't let them hurt you," I added.
"Wha-no. No, that's not what I'm afraid of anymore..." He finally said.
I raised a brow,"What do you mean?"
"I-I'm-I'm more concerned about that..." He stammered. He pointed towards the window.
I looked through it. My eyes widened. Mike?
It looked just like him, except darker. He had both of his eyes, which were purple instead of yellow. His normally white shirt was a dark blue and his bow tie was white instead of red. Dark electricity sparked from the tips of his fingers. He was fighting my family.
"How-how can their be two of you?" I turned away, staring worryingly at Mike.
He was at a loss for words.
I looked back through the window. The Devil, King Dice, and Cuphead were cornered by the throne. They were injured and weak. They couldn't hold up for much longer.
Time for reinforcements.
I approached the door and held the knob loosely. I turned it slowly, making sure it didn't make a noise. I let it open on it's own.
The other Mike was towering over them.
He snickered,"Any last words, you worms?"
I grit my teeth,"Yeah, two words: Back. Off."
The Stranger turned around and saw me. We glared at one another. My family gasped.
"Mug!" Cuphead cried.
"Kid, what are you doing?" The Devil said.
"Run! Get out of here!" King Dice demanded.
"We're not going anywhere," a voice said from behind. Mike stepped through the doorway, standing confidently behind me.
The Stranger clenched his fists. The sight of Mike seemed to pester him. Then, he heard King Dice, the Devil, and Cuphead stand up from behind.
The Stranger looked from us to them. With a growl, he teleported away.

We were safe. For now.

Mike R. Phone's POV

How? How is this possible? How is he here? Why is he here!? Unless-
"Mike!" The Devil snapped at me. "What the hell is going on!?"
"Ah-uh-Devil? I...I-I can explain-" I stuttered before being interrupted by Cuphead.
"MUG!" He immediately ran to his brother.
Mug did the same,"Cup!"
They hugged each other. Then Cuphead hid Mug behind him, glaring at me,"What did this fiend do to you?"
"This fiend set me and Elder Kettle free!" Mug answered, putting his hands on his hips.
"Wait-what?"
Elder Kettle poked his head from behind the door. Cuphead gasped,"KETTLE!"
"Cuphead, settle down," Elder Kettle told him. He walked to Cup and gave him a hug.
At this point in time, the Devil and King Dice were standing behind Mug's family, glaring at me.
I bashfully gazed at my feet, hugging myself tightly. The Devil was about to say something until Mug put a hand on his leg.
"Um...Devil?" Mug said.
The Devil bent down and held Mug in his arms,"Did that monster hurt you?"
"He's not a monster-at least-not anymore," Mug replied, slowly.
"What'd you mean?"
"I mean...he's different now. I talked to him, just like I did with you and King Dice. He wants to be a good guy."
The Devil let go of Mug, stood up, and stared at me,"Him? Of all people?"
King Dice whispered,"Maybe he's using Mug to let our guard down-"
"I'm not using him," I spoke up.
I walked forward. Cuphead and Elder Kettle stepped away, while Mug just watched. I glanced at him with a small smile,"Thanks, anyways."
I raised my head so I was facing King Dice and the Devil,"I'm sorry. I know my apologizes mean nothing to you, but I don't care. Whether you forgive me or not is unimportant compared to the situation we now have to face."
"What are you talking about? What would you know, you prick?" The Devil growled.
"I'm talking about that guy. The other me. The Stranger. I know why and how he's here. I'll explain everything if you'll let me."
I stared into his eyes and he stared into mine.
Why should I forgive you? He said to me, telepathically. You've hurt innocent people. You tried to rape my Dice, and you raped Cuphead. Not to mention, you stole Mugman away from us.
I'm not asking for forgiveness. I told him. I don't deserve to be forgiven. I'm asking for trust. I want you to trust me long enough so I can tell you what's going on and how to stop it.
He narrowed his eyes.
Everyone stared at us tentatively.
I continued to speak telepathically.
Please, Dev. I know what happened in the past, and I know you hate me because if it.
I don't want us to get together again; it wasn't real love. But I also don't want to ruin this for you anymore. I realized that your happier with King Dice then you have ever been with me. I'll admit King Dice is very attractive, but he belongs with you. I promise I'll never try to steal your love away from you again.
Mike, I don't hate you. I just hate what you did.
I won't do it again. You can trust me...
The Devil sighed,"Fine, tell us then. What's going on?"
I nodded,"The reason why the Stranger looks like me is because he is me. He used to be a part of me. He was the hatred I felt about everyone.
"But, when I kidnapped Mug and he talked to me about being a good guy and all, something changed. I felt it change. It was the hatred I felt leaving me. Yet, my hatred was too strong to vanish completely. It separated itself from me, hence turning into the Stranger. Now it wants revenge; it wants to fulfill it's heinous acts out on all of you. This is all my fault," I finished, solemnly.
No one spoke. We were all silent, at a loss of words. Could this be real? Is this truly happening?
It was King Dice who broke the silence,"You said the Stranger wants to 'fulfill it's heinous acts'. What does that mean exactly?"
I was reluctant to answer,"He-I wanted to see the Devil suffer. I was jealous that he turned mortal and I didn't. Heh...guess that doesn't matter anymore..."
The Devil put a hand on my shoulder,"What were you planning to do to make me suffer?"
I brushed his hand away,"I wanted to take away everything you loved, one by one. That means the casino, Mugman, King Dice-everything."
"Then there's only one way to solve this," Cuphead said. "We have to defeat the Stranger."
Mugman asked,"How do we do that?"
I nodded, and pointed to myself,"Through me. I know my weaknesses, which means that I know his."
"Lead the way, Mike. How do we kill the Stranger?" The Devil smirked.
My lips curled into a smile,"Well, I have a weak spot on my chest, between the ribs. If we land a blow hard enough in that area, he'll fall apart, and we will be victorious."
"Alright! Then let's start planning!" The Devil announced. "We'll take the fight to him!"
Our small group cheered, excited and determined. As they started plotting ideas, I remembered something.
My smile faltered but no one noticed. I remembered the one detail I purposely left out. If I had told them, it would change everything. I wanted to tell them but I kept my mouth shut. They don't need to know...

When he falls, I fall.

1/7/18