“I’ve been thinking,” Cutter said.

  He and Reader stood behind the earthen wall. Beyond them, the white floor that stretched into eternity had become a grey. A moon, shrouded by wisps of cloud, cast faint light. They would see them coming, but in this weak light they could get closer than was comfortable before they became apparent.

  Reader glanced at the bulky fighter. “Jeez, don’t hurt yourself.”

  Cutter screwed up his eyebrows. “Ow much?”

  Just behind them was arranged Reader’s apparatus. At first glance, it was a mess. It seemed like an accident, or something attempted and abandoned. A mound of earth that started low and grew higher, an ugly wedge that was higher as it grew closer to the wall. A few logs lay along the slope of the ledge, bound together with rope, forming a frame that had no immediately apparent purpose.

  Reader said, “Sorry…”

  Cutter grinned, never taking his eyes from the darkness beyond the walls. “S’okay. You’re proving my point anyway.”

  “What point?”

  Cutter said, “What I’ve been thinking about!”

  Reader said, “You never told me what you were thinking about! You just said you’d been thinking!”

  Cutter said, “Oh yeah…”

  Reader waited, not entirely patiently.

  Cutter said, “Well, I’ve been thinking about us.”

  Reader said, “You and me?”

  Cutter flashed a smile. “No. Well, yes. But Tiller too. I meant the three of us.”

  Reader nodded slowly. “Oh, yeah. Me too. I can’t stop thinking about it really.”

  Cutter looked at him, then returned his eyes to the grey expanse. “What you been thinking about?”

  Reader said, “Nothing in particular. I just can’t stop trying to process it. We’re apparently the same guy, but how does that work? Is this multiverse, or multiple timelines? Or something else?”

  Cutter said, “Aren’t those kind of the same thing?”

  Reader huffed. “Huh?”

  Cutter said, “Isn’t the multiverse just all the universes that are created when probability determines different outcomes and those possibilities create new realities?”

  Reader stared at him. “That’s pretty smart.”

  Cutter shrugged. “Back at you, we’re apparently the same guy.”

  Reader said, “I guess we are.”

  Cutter said, “But that’s what I’ve been thinking about. Does that exactly make sense?”

  Reader said, “We share a lot of common preferences, a lot of experiences, our wives and kids are the same ages and have the same names…”

  A sound caused them both to twist their hands, Cutter’s hand flying to the haft of his glaive. The form of Tiller became apparent. He hardly noticed them and made no attempt to engage. He was walking the interior of the walls, looking for weaknesses. He knew he’d gambled by sparing the earth the crops were growing in, and his concerns were gnawing at him. As they watched, he paused to scoop a few shovels of earth onto a barely perceptibly lower part of the wall. His earth sigil glowed, and the freshly placed earth crunched and compacted.

  Reader tracked his movement as he trudged on, fading into the darkness of the interior of their makeshift fort.

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Cutter breathed, “Poor bastard.”

  Reader said, “He’s just doing his part.”

  Cutter said, “The poor fucker can’t stop. Haven’t you noticed that? Everything is go go go with him. Make as much money as fast as possible. Deal with the threat before it can develop. He doesn’t want to take a wage so he can enjoy himself even though he knows he’s going to be here for months or years. He isn’t able to switch off.”

  Reader said, “He likes a beer.”

  Cutter laughed. “Oh! Yeah? Well, we all like a beer! That’s one of the only common elements.”

  Reader frowned, looking at him, puzzled. “No… we have a lot in common.”

  Cutter nodded, holding his gaze. “Oh yeah? Well, we have a lot in common in terms of our histories, but Reader, seriously, dude, we’re all three of us like chalk and cheese.”

  Reader paused as if realizing something for the first time.

  Cutter widened his eyes, nodding and trying to draw Reader in with the gesture. “Ya see? That’s what I’ve been thinking about.”

  Reader whispered, “Holy shit. Why didn’t I see it?”

  Cutter leaned close and spoke so quietly, “’Cause you’re super introspective. You’re about two notches away from being on the spectrum.”

  Reader took no offense but simply countered, “It’s a spectrum, everybody is on the spectrum somewhere.”

  Cutter waved the idea away. “That’s not the point. The point is we seem to have the same wife and kids and enough of the same history for it to make sense, but we are different. Radically different. Tiller is obsessive, totally goal-oriented and driven, he can’t relax, can’t stop. He’s going to make himself sick. He’s okay with people, not great, but okay. He likes a drink and you can see he’d love to cut loose but he can’t let himself.”

  Reader spoke vacantly, “And you’re the opposite. Happy-go-lucky, all oo-rah and pornstar talk. You want to fight and take your chances and have a party every day.”

  Cutter’s grin was blazing. “And you’re quiet. You don’t like people. You fucking hate confrontations. But you’re practical and inquisitive.”

  Reader said, “We’re not the same person at all.”

  Cutter’s smile faded. “That’s the part that’s been driving me crazy.”

  Reader said, “Huh?”

  Cutter said, “We seem to be the same person. Come on, play the game again.”

  Reader shrugged. The grey beyond the wall was as unmoving as ever, but the tension of what might come could not be put aside.

  Cutter said, “Favorite movie?”

  Reader said, “Revenge of the Sith.”

  Cutter scowled. “That’s such a weird fucking choice. Of all of the Star Wars…”

  Reader looked puzzled. “Yours?”

  Cutter sagged. “Revenge of the Sith.”

  Reader said, “I took my little brother to see it when it was in the theater…”

  Cutter looked sad. “The last time…”

  They shared a look of understanding, commiseration, and grief.

  Cutter said, “You ever go to hospital?”

  Reader said, “Yeah, once.”

  Cutter said, “Let me guess?”

  Reader shrugged. “Like I have any doubt you’ll name the exact time and event.”

  Cutter said, “Cross the street, by the bridge. Metallica blazing in my ears. I was what, seventeen?”

  Reader said, “We were thinking about Lila, so we were sixteen.”

  Cutter snapped his fingers in agreement. “Right! Shit, Lila. Never did manage to get with her.”

  Reader said, “Tried my damndest. She just wasn’t interested.”

  Cutter shook his head, shaking off the shackles of reminiscence. “That’s not the point. We crossed the bridge—”

  Reader inserted himself, “It’s weird when you say we. Say I.”

  Cutter said, “We’re the same guy, we both have the memory.”

  Reader said, “It just freaks me out.”

  Cutter shrugged. “Fine, fine. I was crossing the bridge, music in my ears, Fade to Black, the solo just ramping up. Fuck but that’s a good solo. And yeah, I was daydreaming about that Lila. I turned my head just in time to see the white something and then…”

  Reader said, “And then I woke up in a hospital bed, four weeks later.”

  Cutter said, “Missed Christmas.”

  Reader snickered, “Missed the New Year party…”

  Cutter’s eyes went wide. “Shit! Yeah! That ate me up! Sean and Lila had a fight, she rebounded with that geek Derrick! If I’d been there… damn!”

  They were both silent for a time. Many thoughts seemed to float in their minds. The missed opportunity with Lila, the missed Christmas… then thoughts of the rehab, relearning how to walk. Other thoughts as well, strange little things. Memories of lying in the bed in the ward, in the deepest part of the night, Pokémon playing before them on a Nintendo DS, so alone.

  Reader seemed to chew on a thought and then looked up to Cutter. “Okay, I see your point.”

  Cutter said, “Right?”

  Reader nodded. “Yeah. There’s no denying we’re the same guy. Or we at least have the exact same memories and preferences…”

  Cutter interjected, “Except you prefer missionary, lame.”

  Reader didn’t acknowledge him. “So we have the exact same past, the exact same memories, almost the exact same preferences and likes and dislikes but…”

  Cutter spread his arms wide, encompassing both of them, and Tiller, and the entire universe. “We’re totally different people. Not just a little bit different, but completely and absolutely different.”

  Reader’s head lolled, as if accepting a defeat. “Yeah…”

  Then Reader looked up to him. “So what’s your conclusion?”

  Cutter looked back, perplexed. “Huh?”

  Reader said, “You said you’ve been thinking about it. What did you come up with?”

  Cutter looked abashed. “Uh… no… I’ve just been thinking about it. I don’t have a conclusion.”

  Reader returned his stare, his mouth working hollowly.

  Then the peace of the night was broken by the voice of a stone automaton.

  “GIIIIIIIIT! SOOOOOOOOME!”