[ Jade's Harmonic Ascendance ]
Jade found herself enveloped in a dazzling pink and white wonderland, so different from the shadowy, mysterious realm where Brandon had been.
Her eyes widened in awe, drinking in the kaleidoscopic hues, glowing like fairy lights in a fantastical garden.
Just as she began to marvel at the wonder around her, a flicker caught her eye.
And there she was—her doppelganger, materializing out of thin air.
The two girls stood a few feet apart, tilting their heads to the side in an almost synchronized motion.
Their beady blue eyes met and blinked, as if engaged in a silent conversation.
Jade broke the spell, her hand coming up in a spirited wave.
"Hwello~ I'm Jade. Who awe you?"
The doppelganger waved back, her lips curling into an endearing grin as she winked.
"Hwello~ My name's Jade too…"
A thought seemed to cross the doppelganger's mind.
"My grandmama says I have to beat you…"
Jade blinked, her brows furrowing in innocent confusion.
"But… I dwon't know how two fwight…"
Her doppelganger pouted, crossing her arms over her chest and staring skyward as if pondering some great mystery.
"Hmmm… I dwon't like two fwight too~"
Jade's face lit up, her eyes sparkling like little stars. A broad, irresistibly cute smile graced her lips.
"How about we plway rock, paper, scissors?"
"What's thwat?"
Her doppelganger inquired, eyes narrowing slightly.
Jade's giggle filled the air, as delightful as the tinkling of wind chimes.
"Hehehe~ I'll teach eww,"
She declared, her feet barely touching the ground as she skipped over to her mirror image.
But then, her eyes met her doppelganger's once more.
A glint of something more somber reflected in both sets of eyes.
==========
[ Baron's Harmonic Ascendance ]
In stark contrast to Jade's pastel paradise, Baron's battleground was more like a backyard free-for-all.
With a huff, Baron crossed his arms, eyeing his look-alike.
"So, ewww the one I gwotta beat, huh?"
The doppelganger smirked, struck a dramatic pose.
"Yeah, and why haven't you learned how to speak properly?"
"Hmph! I'm only 2~!"
Baron didn't need any more prompting.
With a whoop, he charged at his double, kicking up sand as he ran.
Their first clash was a full-blown, arms-flailing, classic playground tackle.
"I'm gonna give you a black eye!"
Baron's doppelganger announced, aiming a kiddie punch at Baron's face.
"Joke's on eww, I like black!"
Baron retorted, landing a punch right back at him.
And sure enough, matching shiners appeared under their eyes like badges of honor.
The two continued their scrap, adding teeth and nails to their mini-arsenal.
"OWWW~! Eww bit me!"
Baron yelped as he tried to gnaw on his doppelganger's arm in retaliation.
"Ha! First one to cry loses!"
Baron's doppelganger laughed, wobbling back to his feet.
"Joke's on eww, I never cry!" Baron retorted, charging again.
==========
[ Brandon's Harmonic Ascendance ]
In a realm of endless darkness, an abyss that swallowed all light, Brandon faced his own mirrored image. Both stood clad in ethereal armor, black as the void, with ten swirling vortexes hovering menacingly behind them.
"So, you're what I could have been,"
Brandon muttered, gripping his celestial pen like a spear.
"Or what you still could be,"
The Doppelganger shot back, flexing his bare hands.
Brandon lunged first, his celestial pen elongated into a spear, its point aimed straight at the doppelganger's heart.
As Brandon lunged with his celestial pen, a sudden thought pierced his concentration.
"Is defeating my own image—what I could have been—victory or defeat?"
The question vanished as quickly as it appeared, leaving behind a residue of doubt that he couldn't afford right now.
*Vrosshhhhhhh*
His double sidestepped, and from the palm of his hand, a blade of dark energy emerged, parrying the celestial spear.
The abyss reverberated with the clash of their weapons and energies.
A flurry of strikes and dodges, neither giving an inch.
Feeding off the rising tension, their vortexes accelerated, swirling like never before.
Brandon took a deep breath and chanted,
"Devour."
His vortexes howled like wind through a cavern, and a wave of dark energy washed over his doppelganger.
But his doppelganger smiled and whispered the same word,
"Devour."
Brandon felt a part of him being siphoned away.
It was like losing blood, yet he found himself getting stronger.
It was the same for his double.
Both had activated Devour—consuming the essence they'd just stolen from each other to empower themselves.
"Two can play at this game,"
The doppelganger hissed, his eyes glowing brighter.
Faster now, their energies amped up, Brandon's celestial pen clashed with the shadowy blade, each strike sending out shockwaves that shook the abyss.
Sparks clashed with shadows in a frenzied dance, lighting up the darkness in sporadic bursts.
Brandon spun and jabbed; the doppelganger parried and punched.
When their fists collided, the world seemed to tremble. An explosion of force and energy erupted from the point of impact.
BOOOOOOOMM!!!
Both Brandons were sent hurtling backward, skidding through the abyss like stones skipping over water.
As he flew backward, the real Brandon closed his eyes for a moment, focusing.
Tendrils of black cosmic energy crept out from his arm, winding around his celestial pen like serpents of darkness embracing an ancient spear.
In that moment, there was a silent communion between man and weapon—a telepathic exchange so profound that the abyss itself seemed to hold its breath.
Time felt like it slowed, each tick stretching out, magnifying the moment.
It was as if the pen and he were one—connected not just by hand and weapon, but by the very fabric of their souls.
His eyes snapped open.
And then, with every muscle in his body tensing, he launched the Celestial Pen like a javelin.
As the celestial pen whizzed through the abyss, its tip spat out a stream of ethereal ink.
The ink spiraled around the body of the pen, cocooning it in a helix of radiant energy.
*VROOOOOSSSSHHHH!!!*
It wasn't just a weapon anymore; it was a comet, a celestial entity soaring through the void.
The helix of ink spiraled faster and faster until it was a blur of ominous malevolent shadows.
The doppelganger looked up, eyes widening.
No time to dodge, no time to counter.
The Celestial Pen struck true, obliterating the doppelganger in an awe-inspiring burst of ink and stardust.
The force of the impact seemed to echo through the abyss, a cataclysmic finale to their battle.
And then, as if heeding some cosmic summons, the scattered stardust began to swirl.
It drifted towards Brandon like fireflies to a flame, each particle tinged with an ethereal glow.