Standing half in and half out of the alley, sweat began to run down Arden’s face. He didn’t know what the message meant, but he felt dread when looking at it.

  Paradox in progress.

  He needed answers.

  He backed out of the alley and looked for someone, anyone. He saw several people walking away from him, but their body language didn’t betray anything. Arden saw another person leaving the municipal building yawning, also not aware of the message on the Status leaving Arden to realize something.

  Only his Status had this anomaly.

  The supposed paradox that was in progress was centered on him.

  He gritted his teeth as he broke into a sprint through the alleys. He needed to return home as soon as possible. He wasn’t sure if Sya would be affected in any way, but he had to make sure that she would be alright in this strange scenario.

  Arden lost track of time in his mad dash back to his sister. He felt that he was going fast and slow at the same time, with the ominous threat of the situation constantly weighing down on him.

  It had been a while since he felt this much fear. He could only think of two instances where he felt truly afraid. One was when he and Sya’s parents were killed, and the other was shortly after when Arden and Sya made their way into the slums for the first time.

  Yaan certainly did not invoke the same amount of fear, even with his new power. He caused pain, but Arden could heal from it with his own ability.

  This fear of something unknown felt like someone had draped a wet towel over his soul. It was almost paralyzing, but he ran to it all the same. The unknown was only scary because it had the potential to be horrifying. If Arden could figure out what it was that the Status was referring to, then the unknown would become one certainty that he could plan around.

  Halfway to his building, Arden felt that he was taking too long by taking the quiet route of the alleys. He needed to save time, so he took to the streets, even if it meant that the people who hated him would see him.

  Arden was confident in his running, despite his little incident earlier before dawn. He had to be. When he was one of the two largest targets in the slums, and the person he voluntarily protected was the runner-up, he had to be able to make a quick getaway. And he had plenty of practice. The only people he couldn't get away from were the healthy, well-trained people of Miasma, whose specs were naturally higher than that of the average slum rat.

  The sun was waking up as it rose above the horizon, and unfortunately so too had the inhabitants of the slums. When they saw Arden running through the streets, they were not pleased.

  “It’s the traitor!” one of them yelled, stirring the rest.

  “He’s actually here!”

  “Kill him!”

  “Are you crazy!? What will his pet Blight Walker do if we kill him!? Run away!”

  The people of the slums were worked up into a frenzy with only his appearance. Opinions were divided on how to deal with him. Some wanted to kill him. Some wanted to run away. But the one opinion that was universal was their hatred of him.

  ‘What the hell is wrong with them!? What's so wrong with being worried about your sister!?’

  *****

  It wasn’t just in Arden’s neck of the woods that people were thinking about Arden. As the less courageous people ran away from Arden towards the central area of the slums, word spread, and rumors were created.

  The story changed from Arden running somewhere to Arden running away from something. Rumors that he killed someone and was making a break for the wilds beyond the slums circulated among the slum folk.

  They reached the ears of several people. Each of them had different reactions.

  One of them smiled. Maybe he could use this to get rid of Arden for good.

  Another sighed and wearily shook her head. It seemed Arden was telling the truth when he told her that he could either eat or stay out of trouble. He couldn't do both.

  The last one looked south toward where Arden said he’d be. It seemed that she would meet him several days earlier than she thought.

  *****

  No one knew the slums like Arden did. Despite being in the slums for only a few years, he had made full use out of the time he had. No one else was as despised as he was, so he needed to know every shortcut and hiding spot he could to avoid being caught.

  That was the reason he was able to elude the few pursuers that were dumb enough or incensed enough to give chase. In this labyrinth of condemned, decaying, and crumbling buildings, Arden would always be the minotaur.

  Arden could see the building in the distance, no more worse for wear than normal. The cracks ran along the walls of blank concrete, but stood strong, more or less. Arden felt enormous relief upon seeing that tattered concrete monolith was as he left it a few hours prior.

  He swung the door wide and sprinted through the dilapidated halls and up a flight of stairs to the second floor. Entering the apartment that had quickly become synonymous with home and seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he relaxed. All of the looted furnishings that he had managed to find in various states of disrepair were still there. The worn leather couch, the makeshift table made of cinder blocks and wood planks were all still there.

  The tension drained from his body as he fell to the floor, emotionally and physically exhausted. He heard Sya in the next room talking softly, which provided immense comfort for him.

  The adrenaline wore off, and when it did, he felt something about the living space was off. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but it was just wrong. The gnawing sense of suspicion once again took hold of his heart as he forced himself back to his feet, when he realized what was wrong.

  ‘Who is Sya talking to?’

  As soon as he had the thought, he was able to hear the voice of the mysterious third party. He couldn't make out the words, but the voice was disturbingly familiar.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  Could it be that she had a secret friend? Arden doubted it, but nothing was impossible in this new world.

  He thought of all the people he knew that didn't despise him and neither of them were men, unlike the voice coming from Sya’s room.

  Arden walked to Sya’s door and gently pushed it open a smidge. He needed to see what was happening on the other side, even if it may have been a breach of privacy. The message had him on edge. If she got mad at him, he could just show her the message to mollify her.

  Her room was sparsely decorated. There wasn’t much besides a bed and a pile of books. Being stuck inside for years, books were pretty much the only method of entertainment she had. Arden had once discussed getting a bookshelf for her, but she thought that it would be too much work to find and set up. There was one major change in the room, and that was another person.

  A man with messy black hair stood over Sya talking quietly with her. He was a little shorter than average and looked quite malnourished. His familiar voice rubbed Arden the wrong way. He hated the sound of it.

  “...I’ll have to go now, Sya.” he said, as Sya fell asleep.

  The man turned around and Arden saw who the man was. Arden recognized the hair. He recognized the voice, and realized why he hated it. It was his.

  The person standing in front of Arden was an almost perfect copy of himself. The only difference he could see were the black cracks running through his skin. The cracks ran deep, and they were everywhere. It was like the clone's body was the source of a magnitude 9.0 earthquake. Despite his body being broken, there was no blood spilling from the openings in his skin.

  Despite looking as old as Arden, the copy had an aged look in his eyes.

  Arden’s eyes went wide, and he didn’t say anything. His mind was racing trying to figure out what this thing in front of him was. Before he could figure out what to do next, his Status appeared in front of him again.

  Paradox in Progress.

  “Hey there,” Other-Arden began.

  Arden didn't do anything. This didn't make any sense. Why were there two of him? Why was the other him broken? Why was he here, in front of Sya?

  “Don't do anything, me,” the doppelganger warned. “I'm not here for Sya. I lived with her for a long time. I know how much she needs her rest.”

  Other-Arden left Sya’s room and Arden silently followed the impossible being. When Arden shut Sya’s door behind him, he found his words again.

  “Then why are you here, waking her up?”

  “Because I missed her. You have no idea how long it's been since I last saw her.”

  “It's been a few hours for me.”

  “A drop in the ocean, you lucky bastard. My time can't even be expressed in years. Calling out how fortunate you are is a dick move.”

  “So is showing up in my house, unannounced, in my sister's room.”

  Other-Arden considered the point before nodding his head in agreement.

  “That's a fair point. But to be fair, she's my sister too.”

  “And that makes it better?”

  “I guess not.”

  Other-Arden spotted the prized piece of furniture in the loft. A tattered leather couch. He couldn't help himself, and moved over to it, and sat down. All of his joints popped as he relaxed for the first time in who knows how long.

  Arden was not amused, but he let it happen regardless. He doubted he could do anything to stop the doppelganger.

  “What the hell are you anyway? There shouldn't be two of me.”

  “Why not?” Other-Arden with an amused smile.

  “Because the world can barely handle one of me.”

  Other-Arden chuckled.

  “That answer is worth 70 points, even though it was narcissistic, even by our standards.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You're correct in the fact that I can't be here. It is fundamental to this reality that only one ‘Arden’ can exist. Same with everyone else. Only one of any given person can exist at a certain time. That's one of the big rules of the world. So then, what does that make me?”

  “Something that breaks reality?”

  “Close. If I broke reality, then nothing would exist anymore. But what if I was a reality breaker that was unable to break reality?”

  Arden narrowed his eyes and looked down at the doppelganger currently lounging with a satisfied smile on his face.

  “You're the paradox.”

  “Bingo.”

  “Okay, so you're a walking contradiction. What does that have to do with you being here?”

  Other-Arden looked up with a contemplative look on his face. He looked like he was trying to solve an advanced math problem.

  “How do I tell you this without getting you any more involved?” He muttered.

  Arden stayed silent as his doppelganger continued to think. When the brainstorming was over, he faced Arden again.

  “Alright. You've seen the cracks right?”

  Arden looked at the many cracks running through his doppelganger’s body. Just looking at them caused him to feel anxious. He didn't know why, but he felt dread just looking at them.

  “Yes. I've seen them.”

  “I'm broken. I can't tell you the full story without attracting their attention. Do you feel revulsion looking at me?”

  “I can't say it's comforting,” Arden confirmed. “Who are ‘they?’”

  Other-Arden shook his head and put a finger to his lips, the Universal sign for telling someone to keep quiet.

  “I can't say. You know of one of them, and for the purpose of the conversation it's enough. The power you have isn't yours. It belongs to the one behind you.”

  “What power?”

  “The Legacy Ability, obviously. Before the one behind you chose you, it used to be mine. When it left, it turned me into this. I can't die.”

  “It seems like you can still use the power then.”

  “I'm not. It's just the echo of the Legacy. You've used it, right? I remember Yaan beating us up pretty often, so you must have. It healed you. I can't heal. But I can't die either. My body fails, but my spirit lives on. That's why I'm cracked. When the power was taken, my body pretty much exploded. My soul is holding the pieces together, but I'm tired. That's why I'm here.”

  Arden had a lot of questions. What was the Legacy Ability? Who was ‘the one behind him?’ Why did the Legacy leave Other-Arden and come to him?

  Arden didn't know. And from the flow of the conversation, he could tell that his doppelganger was reluctant to share the answers.

  “Arden,” the doppelganger spoke. “I want to die. I need to be made whole again for it to actually work. That's why I need the ability. Give it up.”

  Arden could hear his heart in his chest. It started to pound, and the dread that he faintly felt emanate from Other-Arden now came at him at full force. It was much closer than before.

  Other-Arden was a threat.

  “You want me to become like you?”

  Other-Arden held his hands out in front him and shook them, indicating that that was not his intention.

  “Not at all! I wouldn't dream of inflicting this on anyone! You won't become like me if you willingly give it up.”

  Arden was hesitant.

  “What if I don't want to give it up?”

  Other-Arden took a deep breath.

  “Look, don't be like that. I know how it feels. The power of that regeneration is hard to pass up, I know. You finally have a chance to claw your way up out of the slums. But it's poison. A parasite. Before you know it, it will leave you broken and find a better host.”

  Arden didn't say anything. But he didn't have to. With his body language closed off, the doppelganger could tell that Arden wouldn't give up the bug.

  “Then you leave me no choice. I’ll follow Yaan’s example. I'll beat you until you give it up.”