Writing Duels R1: Coalesce

Alice-Two was created by Dr.Charles Reagan and his wife, Dr.Marisa Reagan as a look-a-like of their daughter Alice who, at the age of nine, tragically died in the town river while playing innocently with her younger sister, Rose. It was a tragic event that everyone in the small town of Shelbrook knew about. Although the town was known as the town that never speaks, word got around quite quickly about the death of the young girl. Alice-Two resembled the deceased girl to the last strand of hair. Her flowing blonde hair and her bright blue eyes. Her high cheekbones and fair complexion all looked like the girl who had passed away not too long ago. Charles and Marisa loved the girl as much as they had loved their daughter. They cares for her and did what they could for her so she would adapt to the world around her.

Alice-Two was not human. She looked very much like a normal person but was not. She lacked social skills and had no heart. There was no blood to be found throughout her body and she was incapable of the emotions of humans.

When the two doctors introduced Alice-Two to their town people found her to be creepy and unreal.

"Have you two gone mad?" asked one of the townspeople.

There was quite an uproar between the people in the town. For a town in which nobody really knew each other, there was a lot of discrepancy about this so-called "human doll". Were the Reagan's really that distraught about their deceased daughter that they had to create a doll to be her replacement? The townspeople let the situation go after a while.

Two years went by rather quickly in the Reagan home and it was on the sixth birthday of their second daughter, Rose that everything started to... change. Alice-Two had begun to show strange signs that something was wrong.

"Alice-Two! What are you doing?!" screeched Grandma Reagan. There was a small dead mouse in the hand of the girl. She had picked it up and was holding it close to her as if she were cradling it. Sickened by this, Grandma Reagan leaped at the young girl and slapped her hand, forcing her to drop the mouse.

"What did you do?!" shouted the young girl and she turned to her grandmother and glared at her.

"That is wrong. You don't do things like that Alice-Two! Why can't you be normal like everyone else? You are an awful child. You're not even human."

Alice-Two pushed a few hairs behind her ear and looked sternly at her grandmother. "I am human. Am I not? Why do you say things like that to me when I am your granddaughter? I'm hurt."

"You are not my granddaughter."

"What? Am I not good enough for you?"

"If Alice hasn't died then you wouldn't even be here. You're nothing but a bad memory to this family, that's all you are. So don't think you are their special daughter or anything. You are just a replacement and nothing more."

"I don't believe you. My mommy and daddy love me."

"They don't love you Alice-Two."

"Yes they do!" she shouted at the old woman. "They are my mommy and daddy and they love me!" she shrieked.

The older woman lunged towards the little girl, grabbing her by the hair. "You are NOT my son's daughter!" screeched the woman in a shrill voice.

"Let me go!"

"You're a freak! You're a doll! You are nothing in this family! Do you understand me? Nothing!" she said and she released the young girl.

"I'll kill you," was all she said in return. With that the young girl turned away from her grandmother and left the room. She noticed Rose standing outside the door, smiling at her. "It's you Rose. Why are you here?"

"Do you want to play with me, Alice?"

Alice-Two pushed the young six year old down and ran a finger along the little girl's throat. "How many times have I told you. I am not Alice. Do not call me by that filthy name. Do you understand, Rose?"

The little girl trembled beneath the older girl and she nodded her head. She understood perfectly well.

As Alice-Two sat in her room she took a peek outside at the gloomy town. It was small and everything seemed grey. There was a church in which everyone attended and a town square that hadn't been used in over fifty years. There was little to nothing in the town except for a few shops and houses. It was an awful, dreary place and Alice-Two hated it.

The night was calm and there was not a single sound to be heard. However at the stroke of midnight and shrill scream woke the Reagan home. Charles and Marisa bolted from their room on the second floor down to the main floor. Charles slammed open the door to reveal his mother lying in her own red blood on her bed. An axe was lodged in her stomach, the blood seeping through the open wound. Marisa screamed in horror and Charles covered his mouth and backed out of the room.

"Mommy? Daddy?"

"Rose!" shouted the younger girl's mother. "Rose you shouldn't be here, where is your older sister? Where is Alice-Two?!"

"Alice said she was going to kill Grandma," said Rose. She smiled brightly at her parents. "She meant it, didn't she?"

Her mother stared horrified at the young girl who's expression was blank. She smiled but it was a smile with no emotion. She looked neither fearful nor happy. She was totally expressionless. "Rose... where is Alice-Two?"

"Where she always is."

"Where is that?"

"In Mommy and Daddy's closet."

Marisa backed away from her youngest daughter, her eyes filled with fear. She ran to we husband and gripped his sleeve. "I know where Alice-Two is."

"Why are we looking for her?" he asked.

"Come with me," was all she said and she led her husband to their bedroom and threw open the closet door and switched on the light. There, sitting amongst the clothes was the small blonde child who's white nightgown and face were splattered with blood.

"Mommy. Daddy," she whispered and she looked up at the two and grinned. She reached a bloody hand up to her mother who pulled away. "Mommy?"

"Alice-Two... what have you done?" asked Marisa. She examined the child who looked as though she were about to cry any moment. "ALICE-TWO!! What have you done?!" she shrieked.

The young girl let out a howl of laughter. Her eyes seemed to darken and her smile was as wide as possible. "That old hag had it coming. I told her I'd kill her. She never understood me like you, Mommy," she said and she wrapped her arms around her mother's waist.

In a second, Charles forcefully pushed Alice-Two away from her mother. "What's wrong with you?! What have you done?!" he shouted. He raised a hand and the girl closed her eyes as the sting of the slap reached her face.

"Why did you slap me, Daddy?" pouted the young girl. She looked up at her infuriated father and rested a hand on the cheek in which he had just hit. She looked at her mother who's eyes were full of fear and she frowned. "Why are you mad at me?"

Charles and Marisa looked upon the girl and Marisa could see that the child genuinely did not understand that her actions were wrong.

"Go to bed, Alice-Two and get some sleep. We'll talk about this in the morning."

The news of Alice-Two's crime spread across the town. People contacted Marisa throughout the day in attempt to convince her to rid of her daughter. Marisa was unsure of what to do. Would she have to take Alice-Two's life? She couldn't... she was her daughter... No... she was not her daughter but a mere replica of the daughter she once had. However she thought to herself of whether or not Alice-Two should remain as she is. After all... it was proven she was able to kill without any mercy or regret. Buy nonetheless she was still just a little girl and Marisa rested her face in her hands for she could not get rid of her daughter like the townspeople wanted.

"She's our daughter, Marisa."

"I know. That's why I have said no to everyone in the town. I can't just leave Alice-Two. Even if she isn't our daughter I love her very much as if she was. But this town... I'm afraid of what they could do to her."

"Don't think about it Marisa."

"Alright."

Suddenly their was a blood curdling scream from upstairs and both Marisa and Charles ran up to see their six year old daughter lying on the ground unconscious. Alice-Two was hovered over her, her hands wrapped around the small neck of the child.

"Alice-Two!" shrieked Marisa and she ran to the young girl and pushed her away.

"She said I wasn't her sister!" shouted Alice-Two.

"Marisa..." Charles face went pale as he lifted his fingers from his daughter's wrist. "Rose is..."

Marisa raised a hand to her mouth and let out a scream. She dropped to her knees beside her dead daughter and sobbed. Charles merely stood and observed before his eyes lingered over to the other girl. She had no expression but she too was observing her mother and dead sister closely.

"I'm sorry... Mommy," she said quietly. "But she deserved it."

Several days went by but Marisa and Charles refused to give up Alice-Two to the townspeople, even after the death of their six year old child. They loved Alice. They loved Alice-Two. Nothing and no one could come between that. But one cold night, it was dead silent in the town of Shelbrook. But in the distance there was a band of people walking as quietly as they could towards the Reagan residence. With them they carried torches lit with fire and a few had guns and knives. This would be the night they would rid of the evil child.

"CHARLES REAGAN!" someone shouted as they reached the house. "Give up that evil girl. Give her up now."

"I cannot do that," replied Charles as he opened the front door.

"Have you gone mad?! That girl killed your mother and your six year old daughter! She killed your only real daughter and yet you still defend her?! That little being is tricking you into loving her."

"That's my true, Daddy," said a small voice from behind.

Charles turned around and he was shocked to find Alice-Two head to toe covered in blood. A small kitchen knife was in her hand and she was crying.

"Alice-Two... what... what have you done?"

"I'm sorry Daddy. I had to. I had to get rid of Mommy, she tried to kill me first. She said she couldn't do it anymore and tried to kill me. I'm sorry. But I still love you, Daddy. Don't you love me?"

Charles looked upon his daughter and he dropped to the ground like a rock.

"You evil little girl!" screeched a townswoman.

A crowd of men ran at her and grabbed the young girl by her arms and dragged her into the house. They brought her to the kitchen where a dead Marisa Reagan lay on the crowd in her own blood. They tied her to a chair and ran back outside.

"Charles Reagan. Either you come outside or we burn your house along with you in it. Take your pick."

He said nothing and the townspeople murmured amongst themselves before the first person went up and set the first flame on the house. In minutes the entire house was engulfed and flames an the townspeople mourned the tragic death of the Reagan family.

It was sad that the first time they came together as a community was over something like this. In the town of Shelbrook people never spoke to one another. The citizens barely knew eachother's names. But by now everyone knew the Reagan's and their misfortunes. In almost fifty years, a town that was once unsociable and gloomy became a wonderful and lively town. People say that it was because of the misfortune of the Reagan's that brought everyone together. Others say it was because everyone was tired of living that way. But everything was good now and everything was as it should have been many years ago.