THE OTHER ME
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I wake up.
---
Head spinning.
Room spinning.
Everything spinning.
---
I look down at myself.
My clothes—
red.
All red.
Blood.
Not mine?
Mine?
I don't know anymore.
---
My hands.
I hold them up.
Young.
Smooth.
No scars.
No calluses.
These are not the hands of a forty-four-year-old man who killed five hundred eighty-eight people.
These are not my hands.
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"Where... where am I?"
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Then—
AHHHH!
Memories hit me like a truck.
The building.
The police.
The guns.
The jump.
Falling.
Feeling like a bird.
The ground.
The crash.
The—
"I remember. I was dying. I was flying through the air. And now—"
I look around the room.
Papers everywhere.
Symbols on walls.
Unknown language.
---
"I'm in a different body."
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I stumble to the mirror.
Grab it.
Look.
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Young face.
Grey eyes.
Dead eyes.
Like mine used to be.
But younger.
Paler.
Like he hasn't eaten in months.
Hair long.
Too long.
Covering his face.
Touching his neck.
---
I touch my face.
My new face.
"It's... real. Actually real."
I stare at myself.
"This is like those anime shits I heard about. Reincarnated to another world."
I laugh.
Empty.
Hollow.
"I can't even die peacefully, can I?"
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My eyes twitch.
Left.
Right.
My body doesn't move.
Just my eyes.
Like something's wrong.
Like something's watching.
---
"Who is playing with me?"
My voice comes out deep.
Cold.
Dangerous.
---
"No one is playing with you."
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The voice comes from everywhere.
I freeze.
Then—instinct.
Ten years army.
Thirteen years killing.
I drop into fighting stance.
Ready.
"Who are you?! Where are you?! Stop hiding and come out!"
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"Veda. Calm down for a second."
Hearing my name from nowhere—
it makes my blood cold.
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I punch the wall where the sound came from.
CRACK.
The wall breaks.
My hand bleeds.
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"My my. You're still strong. Even in a weak body."
I don't respond.
Just keep looking.
Searching.
Every corner.
Every shadow.
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"Veda. Stop acting like a little kid."
Laughter.
Mocking.
Watching me make a fool of myself.
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"How do you know my name?!"
"Not just your name. I know everything about you. Who you are. Where you were born. What kind of job you did. How many people you killed."
Silence.
Then:
"How many family members you have. Your mother. Your wife Gita. Your dead child. Veer... or Shakti?"
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I stop breathing.
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"By the way—that child was actually a girl. So. Shakti."
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My dead eyes—
open.
Widen.
"I... I didn't even know."
No one told me.
No one could tell me.
The baby died before anyone could say.
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"Hahahaha! I like that expression, bro! Hahahaha!"
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"Are you... God?"
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The room goes silent.
Like time stopped.
No reply.
Nothing.
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My teeth grind.
Anger builds.
Everything—everything—comes back.
Gita.
The finger.
The blood.
The killing.
The emptiness.
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"FINALLY!"
I scream.
"FINALLY YOU PIECE OF SHIT SHOW YOURSELF!"
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I punch the air.
Break the table.
Shatter the window.
Destroy the walls.
Everything.
Anything.
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"COME OUT HERE! FACE ME! YOU... YOU RUINED MY LIFE!"
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"I am not a god."
The room goes silent again.
Then—
"I am you."
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I freeze.
Look at the mirror.
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The reflection—
is smiling.
Big smile.
Wide smile.
Wrong smile.
---
He steps out of the mirror.
Floating in the air.
Glowing like light.
Same face.
Same body.
Same everything.
---
Two of us.
One on the ground.
One in the air.
Same face.
Same blood.
Same name.
---
"I am also Veda. Veda Raj Kumar."
He floats down.
Lands soft.
"And you—" he points at me, "—your body is in a different world now."
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I stare.
Can't speak.
Can't move.
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"Everything is the same as your old world. But different. This is a parallel universe."
He opens his arms wide.
"You are a one-of-a-kind soul, Veda. Blessed. You can travel time. Space. Everywhere."
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I don't say anything.
Just look.
Confused.
Shocked.
Broken.
---
Young Veda tilts his head.
"Oh. You still don't understand?"
He steps closer.
"Let me help you."
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He walks toward me.
Toward my body.
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My eyes go wide.
"What the—"
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He walks into me.
Into my flesh.
Into my soul.
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PAIN.
My head explodes with pain.
Voices.
Thousands.
Millions.
Screaming.
Whispering.
Chanting.
---
My eyes glow.
Bright.
Burning.
---
I scream.
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And then—
I see.
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THE VISION
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Universe.
Planets.
Millions.
Billions.
Trillions.
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Life.
Creatures.
Some I recognize.
Some I don't.
Some that never been discovered.
Some that never will be.
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Cosmos.
Stars being born.
Stars dying.
Time moving forward and backward and sideways.
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Then—
the past.
A past that never existed in my world.
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Glowing beings.
Floating.
Beautiful.
Powerful.
---
They came down to a young world.
Young Earth.
Young humans.
They helped.
Built kingdoms.
Built monuments.
Built temples that no human hands could make.
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I saw humans flying.
No machines.
No wings.
Just... flying.
Using powers.
Fire.
Water.
Earth.
Air.
---
I saw battles.
Humans fighting with light.
Glowing beings watching.
Some smiling.
Some worried.
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Then—
some humans started a rebellion.
"Why should they rule us?"
"We are strong too."
"Take their power."
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And some glowing beings—
started turning black.
Darkness spreading through their light.
Corruption.
Jealousy.
Hunger.
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War.
Worlds burning.
Planets destroyed.
Universes collapsing.
Everything on fire.
---
And in the middle of it all—
one being rose.
Big.
So big.
So powerful no one could challenge him.
He cried when sad.
He burned when angry.
---
He broke the door.
The door that connected everything.
Every universe.
Every dimension.
Every world.
---
He created a new place.
For those who defied him.
For the dark ones.
For the humans who cheered for destruction.
He called it—
HELL.
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They cried.
Begged for forgiveness.
---
Other shining beings felt pity.
Not for the dark ones.
For the humans.
Not all humans were bad.
Some just... followed.
Some just... existed.
Some just... wanted to live.
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They begged the King.
"Mercy. Not for us. For them. For our creations."
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The King's anger cooled.
Slightly.
He created another world.
HEAVEN.
Empty.
Peaceful.
Safe.
---
He locked the dark ones in Hell.
With their worshippers.
Forever.
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Then he looked at the remaining humans.
"Choose."
His voice shook reality.
"Follow me to Heaven. Empty. Safe. Or stay in your world. Half-burned. Broken. But yours."
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The humans chose.
Half chose Heaven.
Followed the glowing beings.
Out of love.
Out of devotion.
Out of fate.
---
The other half stayed.
They laughed inside.
"Go. Enjoy your empty paradise. We will build again. Without them. This world is ours now."
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The glowing beings left.
The King left.
Heaven closed.
Hell sealed.
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Years passed.
Thousands.
Millions.
The world changed.
Distorted.
Reborn.
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Dinosaurs.
Mammals.
Monkeys.
Humans.
Again.
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But the souls of those old humans—
the ones who stayed—
they never left.
They're still here.
In this world.
Cursed to live forever.
Watching.
Waiting.
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They tried everything to break the curse.
Rituals.
Sacrifices.
Prayers.
Nothing worked.
---
Over time, they evolved.
Learned to connect with living humans.
In dreams.
In darkness.
In moments of weakness.
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Some humans feel them.
Call them spirits.
Angels.
Ghosts.
Devils.
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The humans who connect with them—
who let them in—
who carry their ancient knowledge—
they are called...
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THE VESSELS
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"And our goal," the vision whispers, "is Heaven. The NEW WORLD."
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I gasp.
Air rushing back into lungs.
Blood pouring from nose.
Vision fading.
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Young Veda's voice:
"Oh. Your body is still weak for this power."
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I grab my head.
"Power?"
"Yes. It's my power. I know everything. You can call it... omniscient."
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I look at him.
One question burning.
"So... God actually exists?"
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Young Veda smiles.
He knows what I'm thinking.
He knows everything.
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"I don't know about God."
He tilts his head.
"But there are beings with power like gods. Beings watching our every action. Beings who made us foolish humans."
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He steps closer.
"I will help you meet them, Veda."
His eyes meet mine.
"And you will help me reach the NEW WORLD."
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We stare at each other.
Same face.
Same blood.
Same name.
Same fire.
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And somewhere—
deep inside the empty shell of Veda Raj Kumar—
a fire that went to sleep years ago—
starts waking up.