Chosen Chapter 6: The Gemini Factor
Xxx
Inside the San Francisco City Bank, a forty year old security guard, who was a little overweight, made his round in the lobby during night time. He walked past the service counters and looked at the entrance, which was a large glass wall with revolving doors. It looked fragile, but it was actually fortified and bulletproof glass. In the square in front of the bank, everything looked peaceful as usual and a large fountain flowed water in lighted streams. The guard put away his flashlight and grabbed his walkie-talkie.
"Everything is clear here, Jim." The guard said. "How is it looking upstairs?"
"Nothing to worry about, Carl." Another guard replied. "Let's meet back at the office and I'll grab us some fresh coffee from the employee kitchen."
"Copy that." Carl replied. "Meet you in a few."
Carl the security guard put away the walkie-talkie and headed back to the security office in the back. As he whistled a tune, he was unaware of two figures dressed in black walked up to the bank. Both were the same height with an identical slender build and average height, though their faces were covered by black hoods. One of them placed his hand on the glass and then formed a fist, shattering the glass wall with a single punch.
"What the hell!?" the guard screamed as he spun around and looked at the shattered glass.
The guard reached for his gun, though before he could get it, one of the figures suddenly shot forward in superhuman speed and knocked him out with his own gun. As the guard fell to the ground, the other guard appeared on the balcony on the floor above them.
"Carl, what was that noise?" the other guard called out as he looked down. "Oh god."
Before the second guard could make a move, the figure that had knocked out the first guard ran up the stairs in a blur and knocked him out as well. He then leaped down from the balcony and landed next to his partner. The two figures nodded at each other and made their way to the security office. When they found the door locked, one of the figures grabbed the door handle and ripped it off.
As they entered the office, one of the figures shut down the cameras by destroying the motherboard. When the cameras were down, the figures both removed their hood, revealing themselves as near-identical young men in their early twenties. They had short light brown hair and brown eyes, and the fact that they looked almost the same was because they were twins.
"Cameras are down." The first twin replied. "I can see the vault in the basement, but I don't think we're getting in from here."
"Doesn't really matter, we came prepared, right?" His twin replied. "Let's go."
The twins left the security office and headed to the vault, which was in the basement behind the counters. They hopped over the counters and looked around for the stairs.
"Nick, over here." The second twin called out as he found the stairway.
The twins headed down and soon found themselves standing in front of a large metal vault door that seemed indestructible.
"I don't think I could smash through this if I tried." Nick remarked as he touched it. "Are you sure your spell will work, Nathan?"
"Of course." His brother replied. "Just stand back and watch."
Nick took a step back and waited, Nathan held out his hand at the door and started casting a spell.
"A metal door don't mean a thing,
As it's dissolved into nothing."
The metal vault door briefly flashed in a searing light before melting away, leaving no trace behind. Nathan smirked while his brother merely shrugged unimpressed. The twins stepped through the hole in the wall. A large pile of money was waiting for them in the middle of the room. They circled around the money and could not help but smile at the impressive sight.
"That's easily a couple of million." Nathan said.
"I told you this job would be better than all the previous ones combined." Nick replied. "We should have hit a major bank the first time around."
"We didn't know what we were doing then." Nathan replied. "We would have screwed up."
"Man, look at all this cash." Nick replied. "We're millionaires."
"It is definitely enough to lead some very comfortable lives." Nathan replied.
"Come on, think a little bigger." Nick said.
"What do you mean? We agreed this was the last one." Nathan replied as he turned to his brother.
"You wanted this as much as I did." Nick said as he placed a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Don't go grow a conscious now. We take what we want, and nobody can stop us."
"Why do we need more? We already got more than we can spend." Nathan suggested. "Let's take a break and enjoy the money first."
"Good idea." Nick replied. "Let's grab the money and go on a vacation. You know we always talked about surfing and diving. Let's go to Australia, the great Barrier Reef?"
"Sounds like a plan." Nathan replied with a smile. "Now let's get going before the guards wake up."
Both brothers revealed a large white bag rolled up on their belts and started collected the money. When both bags were full, Nathan tied them up, while his brother walked across the vault and ripped a safety deposit box from the wall with his bare hand. He placed it on a table and pulled the lit off.
"Cool." Nick remarked as he picked up a gold watch and let it slip around his wrist.
"Dude, those are private possessions." Nathan replied. "We agreed to only take the money."
"Oh, grow up, stealing is stealing." His brother replied annoyed. "There is no such thing as a good bank robber. Don't you want a fancy watch?" He added as he waved the watch in front of his face.
"I'll buy one." Nathan replied. "Now let's get going."
The brothers picked up the bags filled with money and started heading out the vault. However, when they reached the top of the stairs, one of the guards suddenly appeared and aimed a gun at them.
"Drop the bags and put your hands up." Carl said. "I don't know how you did it, but you're not getting out of here with that money. I already pressed the silent alarm."
"Do you really think you can stop us?" Nick asked threatening as he dropped the bag as he took a step forward.
In a panic, Carl shot the gun, though before the bullet could hit, Nathan grabbed his brother in a blur and pulled him aside. Nick then stepped forward and grabbed the arm of the guard, twisting it and throwing the gun away. With a hand around his wrist, Nick smirked and twisted the man's arm even further, until it almost broke.
"No!" Nathan called out and he shot forward in a blur and pressed his brother against the wall.
"Don't be a fool, he saw our faces." Nick snapped at him. "Even we can't escape a nationwide manhunt. What else can we do?"
"We are not killing anyone, if we do that, we'll become like…" Nathan replied hesitantly. "We're not killing him."
As the guard cradled his hurt arm, Nick walked past him and picked up the gun. He studied it for a moment and then aimed it at the guard, who started to plead for his life. However, Nathan positioned himself between his brother and the guard and shook his head, pleading his brother not to do this. Suddenly, a fourth individual appeared out of thin air. He seemed like a man in his late thirties, with neat brown hair and dressed in a leather jacket.
"Well, what do we have here?" The man asked.
"Who the hell are you?" Nick asked as he aimed the gun at him.
"The name is Bacarra, and I am here to help." The man replied as he waved his hand and cast a short spell "Sopio Oblitus". Suddenly the guard slumped over to the ground.
"What did you do?" Nathan asked concerned.
"I put him to sleep, and added a little something that will make him forget what happened." Bacarra replied. "You should be thanking me."
"That depends on why you're here." Nick remarked.
"You're right." Bacarra said. "I didn't come without a reason. I have a deal I would like to offer you. But let's talk elsewhere, shall we?" He added as sirens started sounding in the distance.
"Where?" Nick asked.
"That rooftop over there." Bacarra replied as he pointed at a building across the square. He then smirked and disappeared in a blink.
"Nick, no." Nathan warned his brother as he saw the look in his eyes. "We can't trust him."
"It won't hurt to hear him out." Nick replied. "Take us up there."
"I am so going to regret this." Nathan said with a sigh as he placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and disappeared from the bank in a blur.
A few seconds later, the rooftop door of the apartment building flew open and the twins appeared on the building, where they were greeted with a cold breeze. The mysterious man named Bacarra stood across from them, overlooking the police cars headed toward the bank. He then turned to the twins and smiled.
"I have to say, you two have made quite an impression in the magical community." Bacarra said. "Everyone is talking about it."
"We don't care about the magical community." Nick replied bitterly. "We've always taken care of ourselves. We don't need anyone else."
"Especially not someone like you." Nathan added with a frown.
"Oh, you don't trust me." Bacarra concluded. "Why, because I am evil? We're the same."
"We're nothing like you." Nathan snapped at him.
"Details." Bacarra remarked unimpressed.
"So what is this deal you were talking about?" Nick asked impatiently. "And what is in it for us?"
"Do you really want to spend your lives using your magic for petty crime?" Bacarra asked. "You could do so much more, be so much more. I can offer you power, status, anything you desire."
"At a price." Nathan remarked.
"You seem like the skeptic one." Bacarra replied before turning to his brother. "Which means you must be the idealist. I bet you hate being rejected for what you are. I can tell you want to be free and in power."
"Look, you don't know anything about us." Nathan said and grabbed his brother by the arm. "Nick, let's get out of here."
"Hold on, I want to hear what he has to say." Nick replied as he shook loose.
"I knew you would." Bacarra said. "I know all about you, where you came from and what you have been through. You're not just looking for money or power, you're looking for a place to belong. Like orphans looking for a home."
"And you want to be our daddy?" Nick remarked skeptically. "Thanks, but that is a little creepy."
Bacarra smirked and corrected his jacket. "Hardly." He replied casually. "I run an organization, and we have big plans. Change is coming real soon, and there will be winners and losers. I am offering you a chance to be on the winning side for once."
"So what would we have to do?" Nick asked.
"It is quite easy." Bacarra replied. "My colleagues and I have some business to attend to, delicate work that cannot be disturbed. However, we have been experiencing a slight witch problem."
"We're not killing witches." Nathan replied instantly.
"Who said anything about killing? All I need you to do is distract them for a while." Bacarra replied. "Keep them chasing after you instead of me for a few days."
"And in return?" Nick asked.
"Powers, wealth and a place in my organization." Bacarra replied as he raised his hands. "Anything you want. Think it over for a moment."
Bacarra turned around and walked over to the edge of the roof, where he watched the police searching the bank. At the same time, Nick grabbed his brother by the arm and dragged him away. He wanted to say something, but Nathan told him to be quiet.
"I think he is listening in on us." Nathan said telepathically, not wanting the warlock to overhear them.
"So what? We have nothing to hide." Nick replied with his mind. "This is a golden opportunity. We need to take it. We can have anything we want."
"We can't trust him." Nathan said. "Everything about this seems wrong. Do we really want to go up against a couple of good witches?"
"They've never done anything for us." Nick replied angrily. "They don't want us, so why should we care about them?"
"If we think like that, we're no better than him." Nathan said as he nodded his head to Bacarra. "I am telling you this is a mistake. We have always stayed under the radar of good and evil, not picking either side. We have no idea what we're getting involved in."
"Aren't you getting tired of living in the shadows, always alone?" Nick asked with a frown. "Because I am. This is our chance to belong to something."
"I don't think this is the kind of thing we want to belong to." Nathan replied as he sighed. "I'll leave it up to you, but please consider it carefully."
Nick fell silent and Nathan could see his brother was thinking over their opinions. Although Nick was usually in charge because he was the older twin, he did still listen to his advice. However, Nathan knew he would always follow his brother, because they only had each other.
"Are you boys done?" Bacarra asked and he suddenly appeared next to them.
"You can read minds?" Nathan asked concerned.
"No, but it was quite obvious you were arguing." Bacarra replied. "You really need to work on your poker faces. So what is it going to be?"
Nathan looked at his brother, who cleared his throat. "I want to make one thing clear." Nick said. "We will agree to be a distraction, nothing more. We will not kill anyone for you. We decide how we handle it and when we get out."
"Agreed." Bacarra replied. "I can accept those terms. And as a symbol of good faith, please accept these." He added as he held out his hand and two glowing white orbs appeared.
"What are those?" Nathan asked.
"Powers." Bacarra replied. "Powers that you need when you go up against the Chosen."
The twins exchanged looks and Nick shrugged. Nathan nodded and both then placed a hand on a glowing orb. They were briefly engulfed in a white light as the powers entered their bodies while Bacarra looked on contently that his plan had worked.
Xxx
Across the city, Billie Jenkins was having a girls night with her friends Violet and Mikelle in her dorm room. They had popcorn, movies and of course lots of gossip and boy talk. Even Mikelle, who was not exactly the girly type, seemed to be enjoying herself. Billie loved it, it made her feel normal. She needed a distraction from Jake, as she had not spoken to him in over a week. They had admitted they had feelings for each other, though he seemed determined it could never work. However, while she was willing to take the risk, he shut her out instead. She needed to forget about him.
"So Violet, what is going on with you and Arthur?" Billie asked. "What happened on that island?"
"I don't know." Violet replied hesitantly. "And nothing happened on the island."
"You spent the right together." Billie replied.
"Yeah, and I slept while he stood guard." Violet replied. "Nothing happened."
"Why not?" Mikelle asked.
"I don't know. I am not like… you know." Violet mumbled. "I just don't know how to do stuff."
"Wait a minute, are you a virgin?" Mikelle suddenly asked.
"God, can we please not talk about this?" Violet called out embarrassed.
"It is nothing to be embarrassed about." Billie said. "I think it is sweet to wait for someone you really care about."
"I do really like him." Violet replied with a sigh. "I just don't know how to handle it. Last time I took a chance, I got shot down. I am afraid."
"Forget about Duncan." Billie replied. "Arthur is different. I can tell that he likes you. You should ask him out."
"I nearly did on the island, but we were interrupted." Violet replied. "Since then, I've just been too nervous. I don't know what to say."
"Just keep it casual." Billie replied. "As him out for coffee and just talk."
"You think?" Violet asked doubtfully.
"Definitely." Mikelle replied. "Speaking of keeping things casual, Billie, anything you want to tell us concerning a certain hunky witch hunter?"
"I don't want to go there." Billie said. "He made it clear he doesn't think it will work."
"But something happened on that island?" Mikelle asked.
"We are running, scared, adrenaline pumping." Billie admitted. "We got trapped in a cave and things happened."
"So you did screw him." Mikelle concluded with a smirk.
"Hey!" Billie called out annoyed.
"Oh my god, Billie." Violet said. "On the island? What were you thinking?"
"It was the heat of the moment." Billie said. "It were unique circumstances, I don't dive into bed with any random guy, so no judging."
"I'm not judging." Mikelle replied with a shrug. "Been there, done that."
"Okay, enough of that." Billie said as she stood up. "Let's just watch the movie."
"Do you guys think we should have invited Duncan?" Violet asked.
"What? No, it's girls night." Billie replied with a frown.
"Besides, he might be gay, but he is still a guy." Mikelle added. "This is not exactly his scene."
"Just like it isn't your scene?" Billie asked.
"Exactly." Mikelle replied. "I am just here for the dirty stories and the popcorn. Don't think for a second you get to polish my nails or do my hair."
"Oh, I would love that." Billie said smiling with a fake disappointment.
"Shut up and just put in the movie." Mikelle replied with a smile.
Just a Billie got up to put in the movie, there was a knock on the door. Billie walked over to the door and opened it. Her friend Taylor was standing on the other side. Lately, they had not been spending a lot of time together. Somehow, magic always seemed to get in the way. A frown appeared on Taylor's face when she noticed the girls night and seemed disappointed. Billie instantly felt guilty over it.
"I wanted to see if you wanted to hang out." Taylor said. "But I guess you're busy with your new friends."
Before Billie could respond, Taylor turned around and walked away. Billie called after her, but she did not respond. With a sigh, she closed the door and leaned against it. Great, now Taylor thought she was being replaced. It was more complicated than that. Because she was a witch, there were just certain things that Billie could not share with her. She was tired of coming up with lies and excuses. She still wanted Taylor to be her friend. Perhaps she should consider letting her in on the magical secret. The only question was, could she handle it?
xxx
