You cannot recognize my soul? I’m your twin brother! I’m Sol!”

Those words pounded hard inside Luna's head, causing him an intense headache.

“You cannot recognize me? Really, twin brother?” Carl asked, stressing the word twin with a look of sheer disappointment.

“Stop messing with my brain!!!” Luna made the scythe around his arms vanish before landing a strong punch at the face of the maddening young man in front of him.

Carl, whose soul was supposedly devoured by envy, appeared aggravated with the blow he had received, but instead of retaliating, he only took a deep breath then gazed at Luna with eyes that seemed strangely disturbing.

“I know this is hard to take in,” Carl patiently uttered, looking and sounding more like Sol, which was bringing Luna more rage and confusion. 

“I was as shocked as you are when I realized that I am no longer in my own body," Carl went on, also looking as frustrated as Luna. "I don't want to be trapped inside this… vessel! But I had no better option. This is the only way I can stay with you.”

Luna raised his hand to punch Carl, but this time, the latter quickly dodged the former's knuckles then grabbed him by the wrist, twist his arm towards his back, and securely wrapped an arm around his chest.

“Listen first, Luna!” Carl yelled in annoyance as he tightened his grip around his twin brother. “Let’s talk…”

“SHUT UP!” Luna yelled in denial before slipping away from Carl's tight grasp.

Luna furiously rained kicks and punches at Carl, but the latter was easily dodging each blow like Sol would have had. Luna and Carl wrestled for minutes, until both of them were down on the ground, exhausted and catching their breath.

“I wanted to ask plenty of questions that Sol and I only knew,” Luna was staring at the ceiling, tired and frustrated. “But if you are the voice inside my head, you can easily answer everything.”

“That is why I want you to look closely into my soul,” Carl sat up and stared at him with sincerity that only Sol would do.

“But your soul is like any other soul I had seen earlier this day,” Luna also sat up and sighed with deeper frustration. “It shines brighter than Carl’s, but what if Pride is only messing up with my mind?”

“Okay, I get it. You have trust issues and I understand your reasons,” Carl also sighed, looking as if he was trying to be more patient towards Luna.

Sol was the only one aside from Dad who had always been so lenient towards him.

“Let’s take this slowly,” Carl breathed. “We are twins. We have far more deeper connection than the voice inside your head,” he seriously gazed at Luna before asking, “Did it talk to you?”

“No,” Luna cautiously answered.

“Good,” Carl sighed with relief. “Don’t let him enter your mind ever again.”

“I don’t know how to do that,” Luna glared at Carl who nodded in agreement.

“You’ve been trying for years but the voice remained inside your head,” he let out a sigh of frustration. “If all the bad things happening to us is because of the voice inside your head… then maybe…” Carl quickly shook his head. “Talking to that crazy red smoke is never an option. We need to find Mom, Dad, and my body on our own! Don’t you ever talk to that voice, Luna. Understood?”

“Okay,” Luna was still suspicious of Carl but not as much as before. He was gradually starting to believe that he was talking to Sol and not Carl.

He was starting to sense that far more deeper connection between him and Sol. It was a strange sensation but familiar, warm, and comforting. It was something that he can only feel whenever Sol was beside him.

But still, he can be mistaken.

“Get up,” Carl ordered as he got to his feet. “Dr. Jerami is also confused with what happened to me and her son's body. She told me to give her some time to think. We’ve given her twelve hours. That must be enough time.”

“Twelve hours?”

Carl wrapped an arm around Luna’s shoulder and said, “Yes, sleepyhead. You had been sleeping for twelve hours. But it’s good. You’ve rested enough.”

It was strange that Luna did not cringe at the contact. Every time a stranger touched him, he would feel electricity crawl on his skin and run up his spine. He can only feel utterly safe with Dad and Sol. With only the two of them. In his entire lifetime.

Maybe the young man standing in front of him was not really Carl but his twin brother Sol.

Maybe.

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