Chapter Twelve:

Ash:

Paul 3 had turned to face us. His eyes are different then Paul's. I know that they shouldn't be. I glare back at him, keeping Paul close to me.

"We have got to get out of here." Paul 3 says without warning.

"Take all the power you need. We'll retrieve the targets-"

"We've got to get out of here. Someone has picked up on my energy." He hisses, turning back to where Dawn 3 and Gary 3 are sitting. "We must retreat."

"We have faith that you can get rid of whoever it is." Gary 3 says quietly.

"I can already tell that we are equally matched! We must leave." He holds his hand out and his mark flashes as he calls upon his energy reserves. I watch Paul's reaction.

"Does he mean you?" I ask. He replies by shaking his head.

"Reggie. If Reggie picked up on his energy…."

"But Reggie's much more powerful then you."

"Something's wrong with him." I get the simple reply.

Without warning, a sudden amount of light fills the room. Paul 3 almost drops to the ground but gets up instead, glaring. A large yellow mouse stands in front of him, behind him, my counterpart.

"You aren't going to get away!" Not the brightest, this counterpart of mine. I get to my feet as well, pushing Paul behind me. I don't need them thinking that Paul is some kind of threat.

"Let them leave. You won't be able to do anything. Especially with a overgrown mouse…." I say.

Paul 2 grabs my shoulder. "That overgrown mouse, can shoot electricity." I glance at him for a second.

"What kind of weapons does he have?" Paul asks him, eyes wide. Paul 2 shrugs.

"He doesn't have much."

We turn back to Paul 3 to see his reaction. He glares at Ash 2 for a few moments before returning to his forming of the portal.

"We must leave. You, must learn when there is no use fighting." He says to Ash 2. Turning back to his friends he motions for them to come. They run towards him just as the portal opens. It suddenly shuts down abruptly. We all turn to see Reggie, standing quietly in the doorway.

"We'll have none of that, Paul." He says smirking at his 'little brother's' reaction. Paul 3 pulls back and holds out his left forearm, his mark easily seen.

"I need your assistance." He says calmly to Ash 3. Ash 3 runs towards him and Reggie is about to interfere when the mouse beats him to it, shocking both of them. Paul 3 this time, falls to his knees. Glaring at the mouse, Dawn 3 pulls back on her bow. Reggie gets there first, knocking her to the side and shouting.

"Everyone! Get out of the building!" No one has to be told twice. Sprinting for the doors, and no one tries to stop them. Paul 3 is crawling back towards Ash 3, holding out his hand, desperate for the contact.

Reggie turns over to us and motions for us to come. We do, standing slightly behind him. "We're leaving guys. They aren't after anyone but us." he says calmly. We nod in agreement and he holds out his hand to form a portal, which suddenly collapses in on itself. We look up to see Ash 3 help Paul 3 up.

"You're not going anywhere…" Dawn 3 mutters. "Good luck getting rid of Paul!" Reggie holds out his hand again, trying to form another portal but it doesn't work.

"Damn it. I can't beat someone who has their bond with them…" Paul grabs Reggie's arm.

"Take power from me." Reggie looks like he is about to refuse, but changes his mind when glancing at Paul 3. His hands are tight around Ash 3's left wrist, his breathing speed increasing.

Reggie nods, grabbing Paul's wrist roughly and pressing it to his forehead. I can't really do anything to help. I glance over at Gary and Dawn, they look just as helpless. It's simply a race now. Whoever finishes first. Why they want to kill us I don't know. Other than the point that we're enemies, but we've never done anything.

Paul 3 suddenly snaps his eyes open, looking up at us. He sits up slowly. Ash 3 collapses but he ignores him. He cocks his head at us before swallowing.

"What's going on? Why doesn't he do something?!" Dawn whispers, her eyes wide. Gary, who works in the medic/science department, a scientist at heart, stares at Paul 3.

"I don't think he can move. At least yet. His body is overloaded with energy… his hearts moving at a rate that could result in a heart attack. His breathing indicates that." Gary stands up. "He's defenseless for the moment." He draws his dagger. "We should kill him." I stare at him shocked at the venom in his voice.

"Gary… I know he wants to kill us but why can't we capture him?"

"No time. He's more powerful then Paul. I don't know how but he is."

"They're counterparts, they can't be different."

"That's a past theory." He replies. "I don't want to get to close… I wish I had my bow."

"Why?"

"He can probably disrupt my cellular structure if I get to close…." Not really understanding what he means, I swallow hard. Reggie suddenly pulls away from Paul who drops to the ground, unconscious.

Reggie's hand shoots out and he forces the portal quickly. I grab Paul and waiting for Reggie's signal, I throw myself in. Dawn and Gary follow quickly. Reggie, still watching Paul 3 with wide eyes, jumps in as well.

….

Paul, Dawn and I are sitting in the lab, listening to Gary while he uses a computer to try and figure out how the difference between Paul and Paul 3 is possible, or even there.

"Look, little things are possible. Sometimes even big things. Sometimes even abilities. But when both of you are Dare'th's you should have the same amount of power." He glances up at Paul, who's still exhausted from his ordeal with Reggie. "That means you have that potential power. It is just accessing it that must happen."

I am not actually sure that Paul hears him. His eyes are closed and I'm pretty sure that he is falling asleep. I lean over and touch his shoulder softly. He doesn't react.

"He ok?" Gary asks. I nod, smiling slightly.

"Drained from Reggie taking his energy. Didn't get much rest the past few days thanks to all the practicing Riddle is making us do."

"Practice? What?" Dawn asks frowning.

"Dare'th. We did some archery on horseback today." I rub the back of my head. "And we've been coming here every night. To the lab I mean."

"So… little to no rest." Gary smirks. "And he finally fell asleep sitting up." I smile slightly before leaning over to Paul again. We're sitting down on lab benches, so it's kind of freaky that he's still sitting completely straight. I move my bench closer to him before leaning him against me, wrapping my cloak around him. His is in the wash thanks to a little accident that happened…. Chance bucked him off into the mud… courtesy of Drew.

I then look back up at Gary and Dawn. They both have cocked their eyebrows and are smiling slightly.

"What?"

"Nothing…." Dawn says calmly. "So, what are you going to report to Cynthia Gary?"

He shrugs, turning away. "I really don't know. I'm going to tell her that Paul has potential, but I need further examination of the other Paul to find out the rest."

"But with him, you could?" I ask, interested. He shrugs.

"Probably. Unless it's just natural or his personality. But there was something wrong, especially with his eyes…" I nod.

"So… I guess that's it."

"Yeah…" Gary mutters softly.

"See you guys tomorrow." Dawn says getting up to leave. We wave to her. I stand up as well, wrapping my arms around Paul. He shifts slightly, holding onto me. His eyes remain closed but he walks a little, with me mostly supporting his slight weight. I nod to Gary and he nods back.

Walking out into the freezing night, I head towards our dorm. At one point, he shifts again, looking up at me. I almost think he's going to say something but he doesn't, just lowers his head and closes his eyes again.

Arriving at our dorm, I head over to the bed and lay him down quickly. He twists slightly, still holding onto my shirt with one hand.

"Paul?" I ask uncertain if he is awake or not. He shakes his head and pulls himself against me, his breathing has slowed again and his chest is moving ever so slightly. He lies down slowly, still gripping my shirt, pulling me down with him.

"Cold…" is all he says and I pretty sure it is subconscious sleep talking.

"You want me to stay?" I ask nervously. He mumbles something and snuggles up against me. I get in the bed slowly, allowing him time to reject me. He simply lies down with his head on my shoulder, completely asleep within a minute.

I smile, even though it is too dark to see it, stroking his long hair. Looking over at the window, I can just see the stars up in the sky. I surprise myself doing something without really thinking, I lean over and kiss his forehead. He mumbles again but doesn't wake. Jubilant, I lay back down, and go to sleep.