CHAPTER THREE
Time seemed to flow by in an instant as several more prisoners were dragged out of their cages and subjected to the unknown transformation process, the Prince becoming increasingly fearful as a few former citizens emerged from the locked torture room as entirely changed beings who appeared to lose themselves to madness. Others weren't so lucky, implied by the guards to be nothing more than another chargrilled corpse for the dogs to chew on.
Unfortunately, the guards went in the direction of the Prince's cage and seemed to express a special interest in him. For what purpose, the Prince didn't even want to think about as he was dragged out of his cage with ease, being still far too exhausted to fight back against these monsters.
He managed a quick glance back in the direction of Kaileena before he was forced to turn around by one of the guards as she could only reach out a hand and somehow, someway, get him back with her. But alas, it was a fool's errand as she could only shed some tears at the seeming hopelessness of the situation.
As the doors closed behind the Prince, he could finally witness first-hand what had gone on after much unseen horrors had transpired. It was a medium-sized room, empty cages dangling above him with a rocky foundation in the centre and guards with large axes standing in position, ready for any form of action.
Walking up the long staircase with guards continuing to force him on, the Prince's arms were placed in chained restraints behind a stand-alone structure on top of the rocky foundation, getting a chance to see the ominous shadowy figure in the flesh, him sitting on a chair on a higher level with two fellow guards providing much-needed nourishment, with only his disturbing red eyes viewable under his hood.
'Well, what are the odds of this happening?' the shadowy figure said in a voice that to the Prince, sounded similar enough to his own during his time in Azad. 'To be in the presence of the very person who stole everything from me and better yet, is at my mercy... Oh, I will enjoy changing you.'
'Who are you?' the Prince demanded. 'Why do you claim to be who you say you are? And what reason have you for attacking Babylon?
The shadowy figure sighed as he made a gesture that encouraged a guard to remove his hooded robe and reveal first-hand to the Prince who he was dealing with. He looked on in shock at what was revealed.
This... thing was him! It was almost like looking at a reflection in a twisted mirror as the 'Doppelganger' shared much of his appearance, only with greyed skin, blackened hair, gloves, previously-mentioned red eyes and some kind of symbol on his right cheek that reminded the Prince of the Island of Time.
'Oh come now! Don't act so surprised,' the Doppelganger commented. 'Who else would know the ins and outs of Babylon's defences? Its weaknesses? Its strategic entry points? Why of course, someone who lives there or previously did anyway.'
'You are nothing more than a mockery of my visage!' the Prince shouted out. 'Do you think me scared of a mere shadow, an imposter who deludes himself on visions of grandeur?
'But I am the true Prince of Persia,' the Doppelganger explained in a calm tone. 'You see, when you slew the Dahaka, you ended up creating me from its essence which had began to spread out back into the timestream thanks to all that time travelling we had both done during our collective quest, restoring me to life after being absorbed into the Dahaka, after you in the form of that creature leaped out of the way to let me be its next victim.'
The Doppelganger continued, 'Realizing that my fate was changed and a different version of myself had wrongfully taken my place in the timeline, I amassed an army from the Sands that remained on the island, using the Dagger of Time once again to take control of its forces and seek vengeance for the one who took everything from me!'
'And what exactly will that achieve for you?' the Prince retorted. 'You are still nothing more than a monster, a corrupted visage of a changed man!'
'Perhaps I am,' the Doppelganger angrily responded. 'But once I manage to turn you into one of my soldiers or you die during the process, it won't really matter either way. Because when you're gone, I will be the only Prince of Persia once more.'
The Prince thought the situation over quickly. If he died, at least he wouldn't be left as just another mindless slave to the whims of his paradoxical sand monster duplicate. But what of his family? The Old Man? Or even the people of Babylon? Would they be truly proud of him for making a stand against these invaders or would they be ashamed of him for creating this entire mess in the first place? Accursed Sands, he stated within his head.
'So any last requests before you lose yourself forever to the position of a mere lapdog?' the Doppelganger taunted with malicious glee.
The Prince knew immediately what to say in the moment as he shouted, 'These are my people! This is my war! I will not be afraid!'
'That's the spirit!' the Doppelganger responded with gleeful enthusiasm as he ordered guards on the lower levels to set flames alight while he prepared the Sands needed for the full transformation process.
The Prince could only watch and later scream in horror as the flames engulfed him, leaving the next few minutes uncertain.