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Courtesy Call Excerpt: The FallI watched as Keyne fell to his knees, chained to the golden steps beneath him. He said nothing. He just... stared up at me. I couldn't tell what that look in his eyes was. Was it... regret? Determination? Or... Was it the same thing I was feeling? "Go on", Lady Fortuna beckoned. She was lurking in the distance, her hair spilling over the side of the stairs like a waterfall. My eyes followed it for a brief moment... I couldn't see the end. Dee had told me countless stories about Ember's hair... I just wish I had seen it under better circumstances. I raised my blade into the air, and glared down at the monster that I should have called my brother. I wanted to hate him. wanted to push him and watch him tumble down into oblivion, but I... I just couldn't. I could feel Ember watching me like a hawk. Her gaze pierced right through me. I think she knows. I looked down to Keyne. How… how did we end up here? I... I wanted him dead. So much. But now, here was my chance, and I couldn't bring myself to put everyone out of their misery. I wanted him gone... but all I could think about was Carson. This... was all my fault. I should have listened. I should have trusted Carson. I never wanted to protect him. I only wanted revenge. I should have told him. I should have trusted him. He was always so loyal. I had always thought | was, too... but no. It was then that I realized: sitting in front of me was not my brother. Sitting in front of me was my mirror. Keyne and I... we're not just siblings. We're twins. Clones. Failed clones. I had always thought that Carson was my true twin, but no. I was a fool. He... isn't like us. Keyne and I. C-001 and C-002. We were condemned from the moment we were created in that lab. We are the monster. He is damned, and so am l. We are our own kind of evil. My hands shook as I tried my hardest to stand my ground, trying to find the drive in me to end this "performance". My knees were weak, and my mouth was dry. My arms stung from the cuts and burns, and yet the only thing I could feel was this suffocating sense of regret. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. How did I stray so far? I gave everything for Carson, and here I was, about to behead our brother. I... I should have let Carson try to fix him. I lowered my sword, but Ember spoke up. "An eye for an eye. Is this not your motto?" I wanted to respond to the goddess, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from Keyne. We were such pitiful twins, weren't we? I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth, trying to block my own tears. That was when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I felt one of Ember's long, black nails brush my cheek. They... felt just like my mother's. "Out of two, there must only be one", she told me. I… I knew that. I had never heard it before, but… somehow… I knew. Like it was ingrained into who I was. My brows furrowed, and I lifted my blade once again. I had to.trophy