You freeze. Looking at this man is like looking at a mirror. His clothing is strange and unfamiliar, and his hair is longer than yours, but in every other way he is your exact twin.
You always suspected you would look good in a turtleneck.
A memory pops into your head. It’s something your father said to you on your sixteenth birthday. “Bashar,” he said. “If you ever meet your doppelgänger…a man who is your exact double…do not speak to him. Do not make the mistake of listening to his lies. Just kill him, immediately.”
It seemed like a strange thing to say at the time, and it really dampened the mood of your birthday party, but in retrospect it was remarkably prescient.
Your doppelgänger’s eyes flash down to your machete, and then back to you. A look of terror comes over his face.
“Wait!” he says. “I know what you are thinking, but please, wait! Just listen to what I have to say!”