Enter the Doppelganger

Dark Grackle’s cavernous office was quiet.

The large glass desk was empty, and the enormous swivel chair, made of black leather, was spun around to face the window that overlooked the city below. In this chair was a man dressed in white. A hood cast his face in shadow, and on his shoulders was a cape that was as white as the feathers of an angel’s wings. He was slouched in the chair, only his shoulders and neck touching the chair’s back, and his eyes were closed. However, he was far from asleep. He was alert and ready, for he knew he only had so long until Grackle, the thief of the world he had once protected, returned.

White Crow was the only man brave enough to challenge Grackle, for Grackle was superhuman. The rare man who did not know of him could draw such a conclusion from his office, considering he could find it. At first glance, it was a somewhat average room for this day and age, excluding the marble floor and the office’s size as a whole, until it came to the subject of entrances. What was peculiar about the office was that there were no doors. The windows were the only possible entrance, one would think. But there was another way to enter, for when Grackle was a child, he had developed a strange power . . .

Less than an hour had passed since Crow entered the office when a familiar flash of bright blue light illuminated the room. Opening his eyes, Crow stayed still for a moment longer before rising and standing in front of the window, looking out over the abandoned city below.

“Grackle.”

His younger brother now stood in the center of the room, his arms folded. Grackle wore all black, including a cape that was as black as a grackle’s feathers, the bird for which he was named. His hood was off, revealing a young, fair-skinned face and short auburn hair. He looked at Crow with an expression frigid with challenge; having sensed this expression, Crow smiled and said:

“I’m here to take my world back.”

The blue light was seen again, less brilliant this time, as Grackle was travelling a shorter distance, and less than a heartbeat later he was beside Crow. His blue-green eyes stared with disbelieving fury at the shadows in which Crow’s own eyes were hidden.

“The world is mine now,” Grackle said icily.

“You stole it from me,” Crow responded coolly. “That doesn’t make it yours. It is mine to protect.”

Grackle narrowed his eyes. “Not anymore.”

Once again Crow smiled. “We’ll see about that.”

Without warning he leaped into a jumping crescent kick, attacking with his left leg. Grackle used a swift high block to prevent the attack from striking him in the head as it was intended to. Before his brother could counterattack, Crow had followed up with a right leg roundhouse kick, still in midair. Grackle blocked this attack too, this time with an outer wrist block, but Crow’s left leg had now touched the ground and was ready to attack again. He faked going for another high section kick but at the last section changed to the real attack: a side kick to the stomach. Grackle went flying backwards but disappeared in a flash of light to appear again crouched on the floor, having regained his footing and balance. He launched into a series of backflips, closing the distance between him and Crow. Throwing himself into the air, Grackle hurtled towards Crow with a flying side kick, aiming for his hidden face. Crow evaded the attack, falling to the ground in a forward somersault. When Grackle landed, Crow was already standing, moving in to attack with a walking back kick. Grackle sensed the attack and lashed out with a back hook kick, narrowly missing Crow’s jaw. The attack was immediately followed by a left leg roundhouse kick, which Crow dodged and countered with a roundhouse kick of his own that struck Grackle’s spine. Grackle faltered and Crow used this brief moment of distraction to execute yet another roundhouse kick, which hit Grackle in the face. Immediately scarlet blood began to trickle out of the corner of his mouth, and his lip was bruised. The impact of the kick had made his head snap back and forced him to lean backwards, and he took a few staggering steps towards the south side of the office, moving unsteadily along the east windows. The sun was just starting to rise.

*And so is a new power.*

*The returning power.*

*My power.*

Continuing his attack, Crow struck Grackle in the chest with an axe kick, knocking him to the ground. Grackle used his arm to break his fall, landing on his left side. Before his brother could stand up, Crow placed a foot on his shoulder, pinning him to the cold marble floor.

“Surrender, Grackle,” Crow said. “You know the world is rightfully mine.”

“You think I’m going to give up just because of a little blood?” Grackle snarled. “You think I’m going to let you take the world back this easily?”

“I don’t think that,” Crow replied, “but it would be a wise decision to surrender.”

“Never,” Grackle growled.

“Very well,” Crow said, reaching into the pocket of his cloak. He took out a small hourglass filled with white mist and held it in his palm, taking his foot off Grackle’s shoulder and taking several steps back. The sun continued to rise, beginning to flood the office with light. This light shone upon Crow, making him look truly like an angel.

“I’m ready to fight whatever you throw at me,” Grackle said fiercely as he got to his feet. Blood continued to run down his face, and his expression was one of determination and fiery courage.

Crow closed his fist around the diminutive hourglass. “This world belongs to White Crow. And we’re going to fight to defend it.”

Grackle took up a fighting stance. “You’re talking like you have some sort of army. Guess what, it’s just you and me.”

“It was,” Crow agreed. “But before we continue . . .”

He crushed the hourglass in his hand, and white mist spiraled out of his palm. The mist formed into the figure of a man, and the longer the mist existed in this shape, the more human the shape became. The mist became his clothes as well as the long cape he wore around his shoulders, a cape as an angel’s feathers. His fair-skinned face could be seen, as his hood was off, and like Grackle he was young, with reddish-blond hair and bright blue eyes.

The second Crow stood beside the original Crow, and as they took up identical fighting stances, they simultaneously spoke three words:

“Enter the doppelganger.”