"Where the hell am I?" Arwin got up and looked around as he struggled to piece together what had happened. All around him was a desert of white sand that stretched outward, almost endlessly. The sky was a dark, gloomy color with no sign of a sun or moon, yet the place seemed to be bright as if lit up by some unknown entity.
"I told you where we are, didn't I?" The emotionless voice rang in Arwin's ears. He turned and saw the apparition that had been speaking to him this entire time. It was an exact copy of him except for its eyes, which were a dazzling emerald green color that seemed to give off a faint glow. The apparition was chained up with brass chains that produced a metallic clinking sound each time it moved. "I told you this is the collective consciousness, a place where different personalities like you and me can meet." Arwin backed up a little. What did he mean by personalities? Arwin prepared to speak again only to be cut off by the apparition, which spoke. "Are you sure you want to stop the pain, or should I retract my offer?" Arwin stuttered as he answered, "Y-Yes, please. I don't want to feel like this anymore." Arwin felt a wave of tears almost flow down his cheeks as he spoke, as if a flood was being held back by his gentle eyes.
The apparition sighed and raised its chained hands to Arwin, speaking in its emotionless tone once more. "Simple, all you have to do is break my chains." Arwin stayed frozen for a moment as he took his time to think about his options. He could break the apparition's chains, setting it free, but would it really set him free? He could also refuse the offer, but then would this thing really let him go? He sighed and spoke, "Will you really take the pain away?" to which the apparition answered, "Yes, I will." Arwin looked around and finally saw a sharp rock sticking out of the white sand. He rushed to move the chained apparition. Its chains all appeared to connect to a single, larger one that was buried in the sand. He dropped to his knees beside it and threw the stone skyward, slamming it full force against the chain. He winced as a sharp pain shot through his hands, but he persisted in his resolve to put an end to his emotional turmoil and continued to strike the chain, his hands getting more and more bloody with each blow. Eventually, the chain broke, sending a brief sound wave that pushed Arwin back.
Arwin got up and scratched his head. The fall was disorienting but mostly painless. He discovered the white sand to be surprisingly soft. He looked ahead and saw a cloud of dust gradually dissipating as the sand fell to the ground. From it, the apparition emerged, wearing a creamy white robe that seemed to appear out of nowhere and covered its face with a hood.
"Hey, now you can---" Arwin grinned, relieved that the apparition was no longer causing him pain. However, before he could finish, the apparition turned to face him, its emerald eyes glowing faintly behind the hood. Its expression was still emotionless, but it also carried a hint of disappointment, malice, disgust, or perhaps all three. Suddenly a chain shot from the sand and wrapped itself around Arwin's neck, but it wasn't the only one, as more chains shot from the sand and wrapped themselves around his hands and legs before dragging him down to his knees and hands. Arwin tried to get up, but the chains were too strong for him.
Arwin continued to struggle until he heard the rustling of sand as something approached him. He lifted his head only to see the apparition looming over him. "You bastard, what the hell did you do?" The apparition stayed quiet, still staring at him with that confusing glance. "Answer me now." The apparition tilted its head and calmly answered, "I have a name, you know." Arwin felt a rage build within him. "You bastard!" But before he could complete his statement, the apparition spoke again. "My name is Orez, and I did just what you asked." Arwin tried to get up, his rage driving him forward, but he soon found himself pulled back down by the chains that bound him. "What the hell is going on? I don't get any of it." He clenched his fist, squeezing the sand unfortunate enough to be caught in his grasp. "This solves nothing. It—" Arwin felt his voice shake as he spoke, but then he felt someone grip his head and force it upward, and as he stared into those cold emerald eyes, he felt his body shiver with fear as Orez spoke. "Don't you get it yet? Well, don't worry, I'll spell it out for you: you don't exist. Everything around you is alive. In fact, you are just a figment of a boy's imagination. You and me, none of us are real."
Arwin's eyes widened. What did he mean when he said he was fake? Was it even possible? "Lies....those...those are lies," the apparition sighed and gave him a cold look before speaking "Huh well let me put this way you've heard of multi personality disorder well guess what the original has it and with it we were born personalities born to fill his place " as the apparition continued to speak its voice carried no emotion at all only an emotionless calm that swept over Arwin like a torrent "Just think about it your lack of memories from before high school and the fact that you've never considered it ,that pain in your chest and then that pain in your chest, well guess what your were made like that to carry the pain of the original well not having the memories to keep you from breaking well taking his place" "Shut up! Shut the hell up and stop spewing these lies."
But the apparition didn't stop its calm voice burst forth again, bringing with it a harsh truth. "Don't want to hear about you? Then I'll tell you about me. I have all the memories you don't, but I do not have the emotions to react to them. But then look at yourself. You have only caused more pain since you took control, which is why you have been hearing my voice. It finally hit him at the exact moment those words were spoken. He looked directly at the apparition and spoke with dread, "Am I being replaced?" "Exactly." Orez's voice struck Arwin like a truck as he finally let go. He let out a sombre laugh as Orez continued to stare coldly at him. Do you think this is a joke? ... am I truly worthless?" Orez stood up and turned around, the ground beneath him rustling as he walked. "But listen, I am not going to let things end like this. I will find a way to get out of this prison." Arwin felt the tug of the chains as they pulled him into the sand. Arwin's eyes widened, but he had little control over the situation as the sand engulfed him. His gaze was drawn to Orez, who had turned back to give Arwin one last cold glance. "By the way, do not be confused. "Arwin is not your real name, and it never will be." Arwin gritted his teeth and yelled, "Stop, I will not believe you," to which Orez simply replied, "If you really do not like my words, then prove me wrong," and with that, Orez stilled down, seemingly disappearing in a cloud of sand. Arwin was almost completely submerged in the sand, and as he saw the last glint of light, he thought, 'But maybe he is correct. I do not deserve this name.
Orez awoke in front of a mirror and looked at himself. He clutched his fists and touched his face. Now that he was genuinely free of that place, he was going to make sure he never made that idiot's error again. The next day, Orez reported to school. After being stuck in that guy's head for so long, he did not have much trouble getting to class. The halls greeted him as he gracefully moved through them. Just then, someone grabbed him by the collar and pushed him against the wall, and it was none other than Ambrose, his face twisted into a frown, rage visible on his face. "How could you abandon me like that?" Orez sighed and spoke without emotion. "So, are you sad because I left or because your bank account finally decided to abandon you?" Maybe you did not think I would notice you. Well, guess what? I did." Ambrose's fist nearly hit Orez's voice as he said, "Go ahead, use your fist on me, but do not expect me not to use my own means on you, and I am sure you know what my family is capable of." Ambrose's face showed a hint of hesitation as his fist froze an inch away from Orez's face. He let him go with hesitation and backed away from Orez, who fixed his uniform and walked away, only to turn around and say, "And if I did not make it clear earlier, we are over, completely over. Orez was going to fix all of the fool's mistakes and achieve his desired outcome, no matter what it took.