Journey to a Better End II

Chapter 20

I recently did a little thinking and I came up with an idea...what if I did a chapter sort of from Paradox's point of view?
____________________________________

        Falling was never a pleasant feeling but by now, Add had gotten used to suddenly being dropped and being left at gravity's mercy. The only problem was he was wounded at the moment and didn't even want to think about the result of his fall once it was over. To his surprise, he did not meet the hard floor nor the rough grass outside his home. Instead he landed right on the padded cushioning of his bed.

        He was a bit surprised that the current Paradox would care to have him land in such a location. Add suddenly panicked when he realized that Ara nor Paradox weren't anywhere to be found. Ryu was still there in the corner, out cold from when Ara knocked him out before they initially left, but Ara wasn't within sight at all. Failing to realize that he really should have been trying to go anywhere in his condition, Add tried to leave his bed only to end up falling to the floor.

        He stayed still, dealing with the recoil of his actions when the door was suddenly opened. "Oh, there you are. Paradox wasn't kidding about being back so quickly. Paradox just told me where you were," Grace said as she stood at the door. Add looked up in surprise only able to stare at his mother with slight confussion. "What happened to you?" Grace asked once she actually noticed the state Add was in.

        She quickly dropped to his side attempting to reach for him but for some reason, the action scared him and Add backed away. Grace tilted her head a bit at his actions but said nothing as she stood up. "I'll go get the first aid kit," she said before exiting the room. When she did, Paradox made his appearance having walked from a portal near the door. He was still in his adult form and stared at Add with narrowed eyes.

         "You're lucky there are still more anomalies to fix. I would have left you for dead although Ara wouldn't be too happy about that. She's a bit different than my Ara but not far from her personality. Damn Paradox making us remember such troublesome things," Paradox muttered. "Where is she?" Add demanded, still not put at ease for he had not seen Ara himself. "In mother's room. Her arms are fine. I bandaged them a little before coming to you," Paradox said.

        "She isn't your mother. Stop calling her that," Add said as he rubbed his side a bit. He was extremely sore and likely a little bruised from being repetitively kicked. "You're such a weakling. At this rate, history will repeat itself and Ara will die at the hands of your enemies once again leaving you to helplessly watch as your whole world that you spent so long building up is ripped away from you in mere seconds," Paradox spat.

         Add had a feeling Paradox wasn't just saying those words off the top of his head and they surely had a background story but either way, Add was bothered by what Paradox spoke. "Tell me something I don't know. Why do you think I'm so mad at mysel?" Add muttered. Tears threatened to escape the edges of his eyes as he gave in to his negative thoughts. He was weak. He couldn't even protect Ara when she needed him to. He wasn't able to see that they were walking into a trap until it was too late.

        "What you don't know is that I can make you a deal. I know a way you can become stronger like me," Paradox said. Add looked to Paradox who wore a smirk, eyes radiating a promise of power. "I'm no idiot. I would never follow any path you have in mind. I'll have to fix this on my own," Add muttered, quickly averting Paradox's gaze. Where had his mother gone. Surely it didn't take that long to retrieve a first aid kit.

         Although he was still usure as to why Grace was free from her room and paying him attention, he was also sort of relieved that she wasn't trying to harm him. "How are you going to get any stronger. You're nothing without me. I suppose you have your smarts but that will only get you so far. I'll let you think about the offer. If you ever consider making a deal with me, just let me know. I need to go back and check on Ara before this time freeze of mine wears off," Paradox said almost mockingly.