I've decided Wally eats emotions in this one bc I like it. ✌️
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"This is your fault, you know" he says out loud one day, just to the aether. But he knows the Doppelgänger, the Thing That Isn't Him, is listening. "Humans aren't meant to witness this level of death and destruction. You dried up your own food source."
"S'pose I have," a voice whispered near him. It giggled as Cal turned to see nothing. "Normally I'd do away with empty vessels, but you fascinate me. You're such a weirdo. There's no one here to sacrifice yourself for, and yet you do. You've renounced your own name and taken command of a dead ship. You're trapped here, but you refuse to ask my help to get out. To what end? What do you get out of this, Alexorys Andara Caliburn?"
Cal grimaced. "My name is just Caliburn now. And… I don't know."
"Even a machine would know its purpose." A giant, disembodied cheshire grin grew before his eyes. "Shall I give you one?"
"I don't trust you to give me a purpose that won't kill or maim me," Cal grumbled, turning 90 degrees and folding his arms across his chest. Why did he even call out to the damn thing? Every time they interacted it ended up sucking for him.
"Ohhh, such disdain…" The voice floated from behind him in an arc to end up in front of him, bodiless but no less present. "I've already seen that show, you know. No, I'm interested in something different. But in order to see that, you'll need to leave this ship."
"I'm not interested," Cal mumbled, squaring his shoulders and heading back to the bridge. He yelled as he was suddenly grabbed and hauled backwards at top speed through the hallway.
"I didn't ask!" the Thing cackled, launching him into a wall at the end so hard the air left his lungs. He gasped, trying to get it back.
There was a satisfied sigh that echoed in their little corner of empty hallway. "You've had more than enough time to prance about in my realm, little creature. Now you're coming home with me. Don't worry, pet, I'll be taking good care of you." The voice wavered and shifted as the Other Cal materialized before him, smirking.
Cal sat frozen, chest heaving, looking up into the liquid mercury eyes of his doppelganger. It tilted his chin up to look directly at its face, and as he looked into the shifting patterns, everything in Cal's mind rapidly blossomed and exploded.
