Cloud - Chapter 37: Chapter 37

My eyes snapped open and I immediately sat up straight.
My eyes quickly scanned around and I realized that I was back into Cloud's bedroom with new clothes on me. I frowned in confusion. I asked myself what had happened and instantly, a flow of images passed through my mind as I remembered Estella's exact words before I fell unconscious.
The last replica, we got him and we brought him back here.
My eyes widened and I immediately got out of bed. Cloud did not seem to be present and I wondered if it was him who changed my clothes. How many hours (or even days) had I been asleep? I walked to the door, determined to find some answers, and when I opened it to get out, I came face to face with Nicolas.
"Luffy," he exclaimed in surprise at the sight of me. "You're awake."
"Where is he?" I asked him right away and he frowned. "The replica, where is he?"
"Oh, him," he realized just then what I was talking about. "He's in the living room but-"
I did not wait for him to finish his sentence and quickly ran towards the living room. He had no choice but to follow behind me and when we finally reached the living room, I was breathless. My gaze immediately fell on him and honestly, I couldn't believe my own eyes.
It was the perfect copy of myself.
He was there, laying on the long couch, his eyes closed. He seemed to be sleeping peacefully. I slowly advanced towards him, looking at him in fascination. It was the first time that I was seeing my exact copy in front of me. Yeah, I talked to the original before but this time, it was different, completely different. I wasn't having a talk with myself in my head but the person was right here in front of me.
"Is he sleeping?" I asked Nicolas.
"Yeah," he replied, even though I kind of already guessed the answer. "He has been sleeping from the moment that he arrived here. Storm was supposed to keep an eye on him but I don't know where he went."
"How long has it been since his arrival?" I questioned him then.
"Well, two days," was his reply and I looked back at him with wide eyes.
"Two days? I have been sleeping for two days," I said in disbelief and he nodded. I remained speechless as I tried to compose my thoughts, "And none of us woke up?"
"No, hmm, Estella said that when they arrived here, the replica fell unconscious and soon after the same thing happened to you," he told me. "You both did not move and you both did not open your eyes. You just remained asleep but now, you are awake so maybe-"
"Maybe he will wake up very soon," I completed the sentence for him and he nodded once again. I looked back at the replica. What was the meaning of this? Why did we both fall unconscious at the same time? Was it because we were linked? It was the first time after all that one of the replicas and I were in the same place.
"It's weird," Nicolas said as he came to stand beside me, his eyes were on the replica. "It's weird seeing two of you. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this replica. I actually thought that it was you but I slowly noticed a few differences between you and him. His hair, for example, are a little bit darker than yours and he has a tattoo at the back of his neck."
"You have observed him a lot," I realized and he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I did not really have something better to do," he admitted. "So I mostly watched over him but I also kept an eye on you too. Though, it was Cloud who mostly remained by your side. He gave you a shower and changed your clothes."
Oh my god.
That was one way of embarrassing me. Nicolas did not seem to realize that his words made me uncomfortable and also made me blush and I thanked god for that. I cleared my throat awkwardly.
"Speaking of Cloud, where is he?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "The house feels empty."
"Actually, we're the only ones here. Estella, Nova, Rain and Cloud went somewhere to do something important. I don't know where though, and the twins are also out. Only Storm and I are here, well he was here minutes ago," he replied to me and just when I was about to ask him another question, we heard a small groan.
I looked at the replica and found him moving. My eyes widened and on instinct, I took a step back along with Nicolas. My breath seemed to get caught in my throat at that moment and when the replica finally opened his words, I felt myself being consumed with fear but also with excitement and a smile of relief came on my face.
"Hi," I greeted him, not knowing what else to say and his eyes snapped in my direction. "Are you okay?"
He simply stared at me, without saying anything. I tried to keep a smile on my face but it slowly faded as his gaze on me became more intense. Then I saw it; a specific emotion passed through his eyes and I immediately guessed what was to happen next.
He screamed in fear.
I should have knew that things would turn out like this but I did not expect any of it and it was the same for Nicolas. The replica got off the couch and ran for his life. Nicolas and I immediately reacted and we quickly ran after him but thankfully, the replica did not have the time to go so far as Storm suddenly appeared in front of him and he gave him a punch in the face, stopping him dead in his track and the replica fell down.
"Storm," I exclaimed in disbelief as I looked at the replica who was groaning in pain on the ground. "Are you crazy? Why did you punch him?"
"Well, he was trying to run away," Storm replied with a shrug and it was like if what he did was completely justified. Letting out a sigh, I walked to the replica and gave him a hand to help him stand up but at the sight of me, he quickly backed away in fear.
"Stay away!" he shouted at me, "You devil! Stay away from me!"
His words took me by surprise and I did not try to get closed to him any further. Of course, he wouldn't want me to touch him. I looked exactly like him. He must probably be in a state of shock seeing me standing right in front of him. I was the only one among of us all to know about the existence of the replicas after all. He lived his whole life thinking that he was unique but now here was a perfect copy of himself in front of his eyes.
"Well," Storm said, folding his arms, his eyes came on me, "Luffy, sorry to tell you but I need to go. I can't stay here any longer. Do you think that you can manage with the replica?"
"What? Where are you going?" I asked him in confusion.
"Back in hell," he replied, "I only accepted to help Cloud for a minimum amount of time but now that the job is done, I need to get back to my own business. So, will you be alright?"
"But we are supposed to fight in a war," Nicolas reminded him, incredulous. "You can't go now. We need all the help that we can get."
"People are dying," Storm told him, "A lot of souls are roaming around without a purpose and I need to take care of them for them to see the light. Then only will they be able to rest in peace or even remain in hell. I really need to go."
"But-"
"Let him go, Nicolas," I interrupted him and I looked at Storm, a strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. "You can go. We'll manage. Thanks for the help that you gave us, Storm."
"Anytime," he told me and a smile came on his face, "Try to stay alive. Inform Cloud about my departure and take care of you, Luffy."
With that said, he disappeared from our sight into smoke. Nicolas let out a curse. I couldn't really order Storm to remain here. I did not really understand what was the purpose of his job in hell but I knew that it was important so letting him go was the best option. I looked back at the replica who was staring, with wide eyes, at the place where Storm was previously standing.
"Who the hell are you people?" I heard him whisper and I took a step towards him. His eyes immediately snapped in my direction and he got on the defensive side. "Don't come closer!" he shouted at me and I sighed.
"Listen, we are not here to hurt. We just want to talk," I reassured him and he let out a laugh.
"You fucking kidnapped me," he exclaimed. "I was living my life without bothering anyone and you people came to kidnap me! What do you want from me? Where did you take me?"
In that moment, the replica reminded me of Nicolas. My guardian too, when he came here for the first time, accused us of kidnapping him. Well, we really did kidnap him and now his situation pretty much resembled the current situation of the replica.
"I'm Luffy," I decided to present myself and I pointed at Nicolas. "And that's Nicolas. What's your name?"
"I was told to not give my name to strangers, especially kidnappers," he snapped at me and I let out another sigh.
"I gave you my name and it will be polite of you if you give me yours in return," I told him and he huffed, rolling his eyes. He slowly stood up. There was a bruise on his cheek and I concluded that it was where Storm hit him.
"The name's Cedric," he finally admitted and I smiled. Good, we were making progress.
"Well, Cedric, I'm sure that you have a lot of questions. I have some too actually, so how about we sit down and talk?" I proposed to him and he frowned, suspicious.
"Depends," he replied, looking between Nicolas and I, "Are you two dangerous?"
"We're not," I reassured him right away and things suddenly became different. He smiled at us. It was not really a reassuring smile but more like an evil one.
"Too bad, I'm dangerous," he informed us and honestly, he took me by surprise. I did not like the way he was looking at me.
"Hey, don't you dare try anything," Nicolas warned him, getting on the defensive mode and Cedric laughed in a hysterical way before moving forward. We immediately stepped back. He smirked.
"I can feel your powers," he told me in a more confident tone with his eyes directed on me. Why did his behavior change suddenly? "It's wow. You are really strong."
"Don't come closer," Nicolas ordered him, "Luffy, he's giving me the creeps. I think that it will be better if we tie him up."
I was starting to think the same.
"Oh, no, don't do that," Cedric told him and he chuckled. "Let me show you what I'm capable of first."
Everything that happened next happened really fast.
Unexpectedly, Cedric ran towards me, ready to jump on me but Nicolas came to stand between us. Though, it was of no use to stop Cedric. Somehow, the background changed around us and we were no longer in Cloud's living room. I fell on my back and Nicolas was just beside me in the fall. We landed on something hard and cold.
"Damn," Nicolas cursed out loud and he looked around himself. "Where the hell are we?"
"Welcome to the Eiffel Tower," Cedric told us, standing a few meters away with his arms wide opened and Nicolas and I immediately stood up on our feet. True enough, here we were in Paris. It was dark already and a cold breeze was blowing.
"How the hell did we get here?" Nicolas asked in disbelief but the answer was obvious.
"It's him," I replied, "It's Cedric."
The replica laughed.
Everything immediately clicked in my mind. How could I have forgot about this? Cloud's mother's words came back to me and I remembered when she described to me the type of replicas that existed. She told me about one who could teleport himself wherever he wanted. It needed to be Cedric of course.
Damn, we should have locked him from the very start!
"Cedric, we're not here to fight with you," I told him, "We just want to talk. Take us back to the house."
"And why should I?" he asked me, "I don't know you and really, I can't understand why you look exactly like me."
"I can explain everything to you," I promised him, "You just need to trust me."
"Sorry but I don't trust strangers," he stated and he disappeared from our sight without warning.
"What? Where the hell did he go?" Nicolas exclaimed, looking around. "Don't tell me that he left us here."
"No," I shook my head, "He's still here. I can feel him."
And I was right.
Cedric appeared just beside Nicolas and he gave him a kick in the stomach. The guardian did not see it coming. Cedric grabbed him by his hair and slammed his head against a metal bar. The impact was too strong and Nicolas was instantly KO. His body fell to the ground, unconscious. I looked at Cedric in horror.
Before I could react, he disappeared once again and I turned around on myself, trying to know where he would appear next but he succeeded to take me by surprise. He hit me at my back and he disappeared again only to reappear in front of me to hit me in the face. I fell on my knees and he gave me a kick in my stomach. I grimaced in pain.
He continued like this; disappearing and reappearing only to hit me. At some point, I started to have enough of this. I closed my eyes and concentrated on him and only him. I knew that I was stronger and his stupid game was not going to be the end of me. Time seemed to slow down and I found him. Just as he was about to hit me, I moved out of the way and I grabbed him.
I threw him down and got on top of him. Concentrating, I tried to use my powers to block his powers. I did it before and I just needed to do it again with Cedric and surprisingly, it worked.
"Ah, what the hell!" he shouted when he realized that he couldn't teleport anymore. He tried to move but I punched him in the face. I gripped him by his front shirt and glared at him.
"Listen to me now," I ordered him, my grip tightening. "You are going to calm down and we'll talk. I'm not here to hurt you but if you pushed me too far, I'm going to make you regret it."
"I'm not scared of you," he spat at me.
"I'm not scared of you too," I made it clear to him and we stared at each other.
He was trying to resist me. I could feel his power fighting back to get free but I tried to contain them as much as I could. It would be really bad if he started to teleport again and who knew what he would do then.
Why did he even attack us? I understood that he was scared, he still was, but he could have ran away from the moment that he woke up. Why brought us here to fight? What the hell was his problem? Since so long, I wanted to meet the replicas, I had imagined how our meeting would be but I never expected it to be like this. Of all the replicas, I needed to meet with Cedric.
"Okay," he said at last. "We're going to talk and you'll explain to me why the hell we look alike."
I nodded but I did not let go of him. I wasn't so dumb. I did not let my guard down as I told him about everything that he needed to know. I told him about the Vins, about the original and about the replicas. His expression changed when I informed him that the Vins were trying to get theirs hands on him simply to kill him. When I was over with my long speech, I gave him his time to think about everything that I said.
"Is any of this true?" He asked me then. "Why should I believe you? You could be lying to me."
"And why would I lie?" I questioned him. "I have no reason to lie to you."
"And you have no reason to protect me too," he snapped angrily. "You said that you don't want the Vins to kill me but why is that so? You don't even know me. Don't you want to have the powers of all the replicas for yourself?"
"I don't want this. I never wanted the power," I told him in disbelief. "I don't want to have the power of darkness. I want a normal life. I don't want to get possessed by an evil being. I just want peace."
Unexpectedly, he laughed, "Peace? You're delusional. There is no way for you, for both of us, to get away from this life. The powers that we have changed us and there is no turning back."
"I'm not giving up," I told him. "I will have a normal life and I need your help for that. We need to stop the Vins. We are the only ones left. As long as they don't have any of us, we can still hope that things will turn out good."
"And who said that I wanted to fight?" he asked me and my gaze hardened.
"It's either you join my side willingly or I will have to force you?" I told him and he snickered.
"Sorry, but joining your side is not something that I want to do," he declared and soon after his words, he disappeared.
My eyes widened in disbelief. How did he do that? His powers succeeded to overcome mine. Before I could process what was happening, Cedric appeared on top of me. He grabbed my hair in a firm grip and slammed my head against the hard surface. I immediately tasted the blood in my mouth.
"Having two of us is not what I want so excuse me but I have to get rid of you," he stated and I coughed out blood. I tried to get him away from me but my position did not allow me to do so. He gave me a kick in the face and I heard something break. Fuck! The blood was now coming out of my nose and I coughed out more blood. His hand went around my neck and he lifted me up from the ground.
I was not feeling good. I wanted to fight back but somehow, I did not have enough will in me to do so. He started choking me and no matter what I tried to do, my powers were having no effect on him. He smirked. He seemed to think that he was winning and I was about to give up when, suddenly, Cale and Calum appeared out of nowhere behind the replica.
The latter was too focused on me to notice the twins and they attacked him without wasting another second. They grabbed him by surprise and when he tried to teleport, he couldn't do so. I didn't know what Calum did but Cedric did not find a way to escape. I was finally free and as I tried to catch my breath, Cedric was trying to fight back Cale and Calum.
"Let me go," he shouted and I glared at him, breathing hard.
"Guess that you chose your side. You leave me no choice," I told Cedric and I ordered the twins, "Take him back to the house and lock him in the basement. Block his powers. I don't want him to escape."