Chapter 55: Look-Alikes

Zane pov

I gasped as I saw the boy looked just like me... But not only that, he was one of the ones I saw in my dream. Even his machine, despite being damaged, looked a lot like the one from my dream.

"We come in peace," my look-alike said, smiling weakly.

He fell out of cockpit.

Kaeii dashed forward and caught him. "Woah, little buddy. You okay?"

The other me chuckled weakly. "Chiero, that you?"

Chiero? What kind of name was that?

He glanced me and smiled. "Seems I met another dopple of mine. Hope you can treat me a little nicer than the last one."

The last one? I gulped as I recalled my dream. One of them was a commander of Titanos... Was he the one this guy had met before?

Sarudei looked at the other mecha as its cockpit opened. There were two others onboard.

A black haired boy with blue eyes stepped out, alongside a woman with short red hair. She looked a lot like Lady Arisa.

The attire of all three was closer to that of the Titanos than our own.

"Like Deros said, we come in peace," the Arisa look-alike said.

Sarudai ran over and hugged the boy. "Syran, you're alive?"

"Syran? I'm Vyran!" he exclaimed. He furrowed his brow as he looked at her. "But, I assume I look like a friend of yours?"

She frowned and stepped away. "Uh... Yeah, a very dear friend."

"Seems like we all have our share of doppelgangers," I remarked, my eyes darting between the newcomers and Sarudei.

"Indeed," the Arisa look-alike agreed, her gaze falling on me. "You look remarkably like Deros.

I nodded, trying to keep my surprise in check. "And you look very similar to our leader, Arisa."

She raised an eyebrow, then chuckled. "Interesting. My name is Varia."

My cheeks warmed up. 

"Nice to meet you, Varia," I managed to say, hoping my face wasn't as red as it felt.

Deros, my doppelganger, managed a weak wave. "Nice to meet you all too."

We all stood in awkward silence, the reality of the situation sinking in. The question of why we looked like each other hung in the air, but I didn't dare to ask. Not yet.

"We should head back," Sarudei finally broke the silence. "We can tend to your injuries and figure everything out in the village."

That seemed to be the best course of action. We helped the newcomers onto their feet and started our journey back to the underground city. The excitement of the hunt was replaced by a tense curiosity. 

We reached the entrance of the village without any issues, the guards at the entrance giving us a surprised look as we walked in with our new guests. In the village, murmurs and whispers followed us as we made our way to the HQ.

Arisa ran over to us, surprise evident when she saw the newcomers. "What happened?" she asked, her gaze lingering on Varia.

Varia snickered. "You must be Arisa. Nice to know I am a boss of sorts even in this place."

"We've got some guests," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "They crashed near us while we were hunting. They're injured."

Arisa's professional demeanor kicked in, her surprise replaced with concern. "Alright, let's get them comfortable then," she said, directing us to the infirmary.

As Arisa tended to their injuries, the rest of us stepped outside, leaving them to rest. The air was heavy with unasked questions, the mystery of our doppelgangers a puzzle we were yet to solve.

In the end, it was Kaeii who voiced the question we were all thinking. "What do you guys think? Why do Deros and Varia look like Z and the boss lady?"

I shrugged, my mind racing with possibilities. "I don't know," I admitted. "But maybe they do."

Arisa opened the door. "Come on in."

We walked back in. 

"Seems I didn't need to tend anything for the siblings here," Arisa said.

"Siblings?" I asked, glancing at Vyran. He didn't give off the same vibe as Hiesno. Plus, Sarudei confused him for a guy called Syran.

"Yeah, Varia and I are siblings," Vyran said. "We come from a planet called Quadra."

"Quadra?" Arisa asked. "I've never been outside of Edesia. How is Quadra like?"

Varia hummed. "I'm getting the sense that we aren't in Retra anymore, but not in Titanos either." My voice module is saying we're speaking a language from Soleon.

Deros gripped his necklace and gulped. "So, we got blown into another universe?"

"Then did that Titanos ship come from here?" Vyran asked.

Arisa folded her arms. You've heard of Titanos? Did they invade your world too?"

Deros looked down. "No, Quadra is fine. It's my planet, Orginal that is in danger."

I gritted my teeth. Those monsters, even my other selves aren't free from their grasp. Did he also lose his family to them? No... Did that mean I was fated to be alone in every universe?

He looked up and me and patted my shoulder. "You okay, other me?"

I turned away. "I-is your family dead?"

"I-I'm not sure. Our Titanos doppelganger took over my hometown and since then, I haven't seen them."

So, my dream wasn't just a dream... There really was another me who worked for those disgusting tyrants...

A heavy silence fell over us, the weight of Deros's revelation sinking in. I couldn't help but feel a wave of sympathy for him. We were connected in more ways than just our looks, it seemed.

"I'm sorry," I finally said, my voice barely a whisper. "I know how hard it can be, not knowing if your loved ones are safe."

Deros nodded, his gaze distant. "Yeah, it's tough. But I still have hope. I won't give up until I find them."

His determination was admirable and contagious. I found myself nodding in agreement. "That's the spirit."

Arisa cleared her throat. "So, you three come from another universe from ours and Titanos?"

Varia nodded. "Yes, we come from a realm called Retra, which our forefathers called 'the Realm of Technology'. We fought against those from 'the Realm of War' on Deros's planet. Based on what I heard on my way here and just now, Titanos took over this planet, didn't they?"

She nodded.

"According to Ret, the whole universe is theirs now," Sarudei said.

Varia sighed. "I see. And who is this Ret?"

"A commander of Titanos," Arisa said. "Currently, my brother is trying to get more information from him. Anything that can help is liberate Edesia from their grip."

"Then, allow us to help you," Varia said. "Deros and my brother have machines that rival, if not outright surpass, those of the enemy. With our combined forces, we might be able to defeat the enemy here. If we're lucky, your uprising might force them to leave Retra alone."

Arisa snickered. "So, you want to use our world to draw the enemy's gaze away from your universe, huh? How calculating of you. But, can't say I wouldn't do the same in your shoes. Fine. Let's go retrieve your machines, and then we can plan our next big move."

Varia shook her hand and smiled back.

Arisa was the same in every realm, it seemed. Wait, did Titanos have their own? If so, we might be in danger if we ever had to fight her...