MY CLONE—Mirror Me

CHAPTER 7

Nova Sterling Point Of View

“We are not backing down, not now, not to them." I held my dagger firm. The approaching torches pointed directly at us. Their bearers saw us ready to fight back. 

Somewhere in the dark between the trees, a Mercer soldier cocked his rifle. The battle has started. 

Kieran suddenly appears from the shadows and slams his fist into the tree above my head, making me jump. Leaf bark scatters and falls around us. 

“The necklace is killing you,” he roars. His breath is hot against my face. 

I pressed back against the rough tree bark, the necklace burning against my collarbone. Its mysterious glow pulsed faster, like the final pump from a dying heart.

Between gunshot sounds, I heard Jace shout from somewhere to our left. 

But Kieran's gold eyes held me frozen; I couldn't resist him. “You don't understand what's going on between us yet?” He said.

Another gunshot sounded and interrupted him. This time, the bullet scratches his arms. But he barely blinks. 

I screamed at Kieran as the bond mark on my wrist burned brighter. “You don't get to possess me; I am not your property.” The red glow travels up my arm like a living fire. 

Kieran's eyes darkened from gold to black. “Yes, I will. Just watch me."

Then she appeared. A dark version of me stepped out from the pendant. “I am your Mirror-Me.” She smiled and held my hands. “You carry the pendant necklace, the bond mark, and me.” 

My muscles stiffen in shock. “I live inside you like your twin.” She says in my voice, but it sounds twisted as if it’s still not mine.

Suddenly, her mood changes, and she frowns. “You need me to defeat them,” she says, touching Kieran's shoulder and leaving icy fingerprints on his jacket. "I can make you strong nova.”

Kieran pushes her away. “Get out of her here,” he commanded. 

Mirror-Me laughs— it sounds like shattering glass. “I am here now; too late.”

My necklace exploded with light, and my senses caught a vision. I entered into a throwback scene.

In The Flash Back—

Eight-year-old Kieran was in a Lab. He tied my wrists to a metal table, and his hands shot out. “It's the only way,” he whispered. And injected me with a green substance.

In The Present Moment—

The vision cleared away, and my senses returned to the present

I gasped, griping my pendant chain. “Liar!” I kicked Kieran and sent him stumbling backwards. 

Mirror-Me clapps. “Yes! Hurt him!” and she laughs.

Leaves dance to the wind’s direction and whisper nearby. 

Gideon and Jace hid in the trees and watched. But neither of them moved. 

Kieran wipes out blood from his lip. “It is either the necklace is lying to you, or your mirror-me is confusing you.”

Then Fire erupts through my bond mark, and Kieran's matching mark glows beneath his shirt. 

I screamed as the necklace burst out with light. I gasp for air as if I've been underwater. The pendant chain feels like it's choking me; I am dying.

“Nova, stop!” Gideon ran through the bush. 

Jace appears beside me, blade drawn. “Well, this is dramatic.”

Mirror-Me sighs. “They'll only disappoint you.” Then, her hand dives into my chest. It feels like cold water is spreading through my veins. 

Everything turns red. Kieran runs toward me, but it's too late. 

Mirror-me smiles through my mouth and speaks with my voice. “You're mine now.”

Then everything goes blank to me. Mirror-me has possessed my body and is now controlling me.

I opened my eyes to complete darkness. At first, I thought I was blind. Then I heard breathing. Someone was in here with me. 

“Nova?” a familiar voice whispers. It’s Kieran. He reaches for me, and I see his eyes are glowing violet. “You need to wake up,” he says urgently. “Before she takes control forever.”

Then I hear it - Mirror-Me's laughter echoing inside my head. “They can't have you.”

I first felt cold, sharp like winter and freezing my bones. Black veins crawled beneath my skin. My eyelids fluttered open to the view of fractured moonlight. I'm kneeling in the snow. But these hands are not mine, as Mirror-me is now controlling them.

Gideon stands five feet away, raising his hands. The usual quiet strength in his amber eyes has become fear for me. 

Jace moves to my left-hand side with his silver knife glinting. “Well, this is awkward.” He smiles, but his eyes stay serious. “How do we eliminate the bad spirit without hurting Nova?”

Kieran stood at my right hand, blood dripping from his wounded cheek. “Nova,” he says in a scratchy voice. “You have to fight the bad copy of yourself!”

Mirror-Me yanks my body upright. My spine cracks. “She can't.” using my voice to speak through me. It sounds sweet but dangerous, like poisoned candy. 

It's now evident that the neck chain has been feeding me her anger for months. It has now activated Mirror Me to control me. But suddenly, a memory about the past slams into my senses, and I enter a vision.

In A Flash Back—

I saw Mama's hands tremble as she put the necklace into my drawer. “This necklace is special, sweetheart,” she whispered, her voice shot out trembling. “It shows what's in your heart, both the happy and scary parts, too.”

In The Present Moment—

The vision clears off, and my memory returns to the present moment. 

Gideon's nose wrinkles like he smells something rotten. “You’re not magic.” His voice rough as a barking dog, fingers pointing at Mirror me. “You’re one of Mercer's fake creations, a Mercer Lab and Kingsley Tech product.”

Mirror Me; the fake me stops moving—my heartbeat spikes.

Jace whistles. “So you are Daddy Mercer's little science project.” He flips his knife. “The Question is, why did they clone Nova?”

Kieran's face turns white as snow.

Suddenly, Mirror-Me attacks and moves my body without my consent. Gideon almost dodged the attack, but my fingernails scratched his scars. And red lines appear on his skin.

“Gideon!” I scream in my authentic voice. “It’s the clone using me.”

Mirror-Me reacts inside my head. “Shut Up!”

Pain spread into my brain! I fall, rolling in the snow. 

Everything turns blurry, but I see Kieran running towards me.

Gideon jumps like a superhero, stopping Kieran. They crash into the snow. “If you punch her, you'll hurt the real Nova!” Gideon yells.

Jace kicks a tree in distress. “Then what do we do, smart guy?”

Mirror-Me stands over me, wearing my face like a bad Halloween mask. “The game is to make you watch me win,” she said, still using my voice and forcing my hand to touch the necklace. “Say goodbye, boys.”

Then everything explodes like BOOM! A bright light flashes as burning heat knocks me down. Everything disappears as Mirror-Me pulls me down into a dark vision of the past. 

Then a creepy voice whispers in the dark: “Let me show you the truth about your precious alpha.” And the vision starts to display.