"Jamal." a voice rang out in the dark silence.
Instantly opening his eyes, Jamal was still on his back staring at a vast white space. Slow to get up, he could feel his feet connected to the ground, although it was made of no color. Looking around, there was nothing in sight for him, except for a large door. The group had just returned from the ocean, dropping off the safe. Making it back to the rebel headquarters, he was greeted towards his temporary residence of a bed and a lone nightstand. So what happened in that span, as he continued to look around. Hadn't he been here before, as the man was quickly familiar with what was going on.
The last time he was in this situation, was when he understood his ability to ignite himself with his burning flames ultimately. So what could it be now? Sure, he got strong enough to burn an intense blue, but this mental or whatnot process wasn't even needed last time. Something different was occurring.
"Who's there?" Jamal pulled out his fists, although no fire came out of them.
"I'm you. You've been playing too many games lately, you know." the voice spoke again.
This time, Jamal could tell that it sounded similar to him but not exactly. Was this a copycat imitation, or perhaps something stranger than that. No matter what, he wouldn't fall for any trap from anyone.
"Alright, seriously, who are you really? I got things to do." Jamal tried to ignite himself, but no flames came out.
The voice in the background simply laughed, as Jamal started punching the air in frustration.
"Look at you. You're pathetic." the voice continued, "You really think you will able to beat Youden in your current state?"
"Shut up!" Jamal roared louder, causing bits of fire to appear.
"There we go. Fuel your anger and fury. Devolve into your true instincts. You've been acting like you can waste time, but you know you have so much power inside. You can actually be useful, instead of literal garbage."
"You piece of shi-" Jamal turned towards the noise to be greeted by a dark ball.
"Come, and I'll show you." the ball started to move toward him.
"Show me what?" Jamal said once the ball stopped in front of him.
"The power you've been missing. You're so close to reaching it, you just have to take it." the ball began to fluctuate in form.
Something was off about this, causing Jamal to step back. This didn't seem normal to him at all, or at the very least a deal or situation he was willing to agree upon.
"Don't pretend that you are this righteous and chivalrous person. You know exactly what I am." the voice came to his ear, "I am your true self."
At first, Jamal didn't say anything taking another step back. That couldn't be right, as he glanced at the dark place. It was starting to mold into a humanoid figure, with pieces floating around. Was it really imitating him?
"Don't be shocked, you have been hiding it for far too long. Take it, and let's end this with carnage. Manifest your true desires, and let's kill that bastard with no mercy." the figure finished its transformation.
Jamal could only gasp in shock, as the imitated figure began to walk forward. It was as if he was frozen in time, as the figure rose was mere inches away from him.
"I-,I-, I can't do that." Jamal forced out.
"I think you can. This is what you really want after all." the figure said one last time, before pressing his hand onto Jamal's chest. "Show the world your actual thoughts and rain death on those threatening it."
Without even getting a word off, Jamal screamed in immense pain before everything went dark. This couldn't be it, could it?
.....
The cool night air still filled the room, as the man stood at the side of his bed. Heaving in breath, Jamal crept towards the room's sole mirror. Feeling his face, he was completely awestruck by his appearance.
Despite seeming completely normal, his eyes and pupils were in an extremely dark red, although he was in no form. Hand trembling, he could see bits of dark flames swirling around him, although this was much different from before. It felt as if a shell around him was broken into, letting whatever contents seep through. Unable to gauge this strength, Jamal could tell that whatever happened was just the beginning. But he couldn't believe what nonsense what being said in there.
"No. That was all wrong." he closed his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath.
Waiting a few more seconds, he reopened his eyes to see that everything appeared normal to him. His eyes were back to normal, and no flames or anything related to his power was moving around him. Was it all a dream, a sign from, or even for the future? There was no way to tell.
"Jamal, you've had a long day. We still have so much to deal with, so let's go to sleep," he muttered, rubbing his head in exhaustion.
Whatever had just happened, was going to eventually reveal itself to him. It would only be a matter of time, or rather, a sequence of events, that could only show the entire extent of what happened this night. But the world needed to be saved more importantly right now, and Jamal and the rebel forces were running out of time. Youden could not win, or they would all lose. And they all knew the consequence of that action. No, they would prevail, even with their lives on the line. This is what they would all have to die for.