Chosen Chapter 10: Raiders of the Lost Valley
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At some point late in the evening, a red sports car drove up the driveway of a large mansion and parked in front of the door. A tall young man, somewhere in his twenties with brown hair, got out and headed inside through the imposing wooden doors. He followed a long hallway filled with expensive paintings and sculptures until he reached a door. He stopped and waited a second before knocking. When the person inside called him in, he opened the door and stepped into a large office. A man in his forties was sitting by the fireplace, his back turned to the younger man. The young man nervously started pacing.
"Just tell me." The man remarked impatiently as he picked up a glass of wine.
"I'm sorry." The younger man said. "I lost sight of the expedition. I think they entered the valley and now I can't find them anywhere."
"You think they entered the valley, or you know they entered the valley?" the older man asked in a calm but impatient tone.
"I… I know." The younger man replied hesitantly. "Otherwise, I would have been able to locate them. My sensory powers don't work there for some reason."
"It's a mythical valley holding ancient magic." The other man stated. "Of course your sensors won't work there. The valley has been guarded in secret for centuries."
"What do you want me to do?" the younger man asked.
"I wanted you to tail the expedition." The older man said. "However, it seems that even that task was a little too difficult for you."
"It wasn't my fault… sir." The younger man argued as he looked down. "One minute they were there, the next they were gone. They vanished."
"And you were unable to find the entrance on your own?" the older man asked.
"I searched for hours." The younger man said. "Eventually, I decided it was better to report back before I wasted more time."
"You made the right call, you won't be able to find it on your own." The older man stated.
"So what now?" the younger man asked.
The older man stared in the fireplace as he took another sip of his wine. "The expedition has passed it deadline already. It will soon become clear that something went wrong. They will send a search party to find them."
"But who will be able to find them?" The younger man asked confused.
"I think a certain psychic witch will be able to lead you there." The older man replied. "After all, she will undoubtedly attempt to find her lost boyfriend."
"You mean one of the Chosen?" the younger man asked shocked. "Are you sure that's wise?"
"We will cross paths with them sooner or later." The older man said. "If you had done your job, we wouldn't have needed them now."
"I'm sorry." The younger man replied as he bowed his head in shame.
"Never apologize for mistakes." The older man replied harshly. "Just fix them instead."
"Of course." The younger man said. "I will get on it right away."
The younger man wanted to head out, though before he could reach the door, the statue standing next to it suddenly came to life and blocked his path. The young man stepped back and nervously turned around. The other man walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He had dark hair and a charismatic smile, though his green eyes revealed he was not pleased.
"I do not need to remind you how important this is, do I?" The older man asked in a calm but determined tone. "We need what's in that valley to begin our plans. Do not disappoint me again."
"I won't, trust me." The younger man replied confidently. "You know you can count on me."
"Of course." The older man said with a smile. "That's why you're here in the first place. Who else could I trust?"
The older man padded the younger man on the shoulder and returned to his chair. With a wave of his hand, the statue returned to its original position. The younger man excused himself and quickly left the office. As he walked back to the front door, his confident demeanor changed to a frustrated one. He assured himself he was not going to fail again. He needed to prove himself. As he got in his car, he drove off with screeching tires.
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The following morning, Billie Jenkins walked through the empty living room of a charming house not far from the college campus. It was a two-story house with an amazing porch. It even had an actual garden. The inside of the house was a little dated, but still beautiful with dark wooden floors and many wooden elements. It was the perfect place for a fresh start. Her new roommate was becoming unbearable, though that was hardly the only reason she needed something new.
As Billie looked at the large stone fireplace, Violet came walking in along with the realtor, a balding man in his late thirties dressed in an ugly brown suit.
"Well, as you can see the living room is quite spacious and has lots of natural lighting." The realtor said. "It connects to the hall and to the dining room in the back."
"How were the bedrooms?" Billie asked.
"As I just told your friend, the house has three bedrooms roughly equal in size." The realtor replied. "The master bedroom has its own ensuite while the other two share a bathroom."
"Sounds perfect." Billie said.
"It sure does." The realtor said. "I need to make a phone call, so I will leave the two of you to check it out on your own."
The realtor left the room and Billie heard him step outside. She turned to Violet and could barely contain her excitement. This place was perfect, just like she had always dreamed her house would be. Violet, on the other hand, seemed less thrilled and a little distracted.
"What's wrong?" Billie asked.
"Come on, Billie." Violet replied with a frown. "Think, do you really think we can afford the rent on this place? This is a family home."
"We'll work something out." Billie replied.
"I doubt it." Violet said. "I don't get why you even wanted to come here. You know it's far outside of our price range."
"Yeah, but have you looked around?" Billie called out. "It is so beautiful. I saw the pictures on the website and something just drew me in. It's like this place was calling out to me."
"I don't know." Violet replied hesitantly.
"I know what will cheer you up." Billie quickly said. "Follow me."
Billie grabbed Violet by the arm and dragged her from the living room to a smaller room across the hall. It was obviously designed to be a study or office, though Billie had other plans for it.
"I think this would make a perfect magic room." Billie told her friend. "We can keep all our magical stuff here, like potions and scrying crystals. Of course we would have to lock the door when we have guests, but I think it could work. What do you think?"
"Look, Billie." Violet replied with a sigh. "I get that you love it and I think it's great too, but we have to be realistic. There is no way the two of us can afford this."
"Well, then why don't we just ask Duncan to move in?" Billie suggested with a shrug. "We have three rooms and I know he hates living in the dorms as well. And he does have that trust fund..."
"You want to ask Duncan just so he can help pay rent?" Violet asked with a frown. "Isn't that a little unfair to him?"
"No, that's not what I meant." Billie quickly replied. "Duncan is our friend and part of the Chosen. It would be good to all be under the same roof. Or… do you not want to live with Duncan? Do you still have feelings for him?"
"Of course not." Violet replied annoyed. "I'm over him, it was just a stupid crush. I'm happy with Arthur, if he ever decides to come back at least."
"Haven't you heard from him?" Billie asked.
"His last letter came a few days ago." Violet replied. "He said they had been delayed and had almost found this mysterious valley they were searching for."
"Are you worried?" Billie asked.
"I don't know. I have been a little distracted lately." Violet reasoned. "I know everything is probably fine, but I keep having this bad feeling. Like my subconscious is trying to tell me something."
"Well, maybe you should listen to it." Billie said. "Witches are known to have a strong sense of intuition, and you're psychic to boot."
"But what can I do?" Violet asked.
"You could try asking Leo." Billie suggested. "The expedition was organized by an anthropology professor with connections to Magic School. I'm sure Leo knows more."
"Good point." Violet replied. "I think I'll do that."
"So what are we going to do about the house?" Billie asked. "Just be honest, I know you love it."
"Alright fine." Violet admitted with a smile. "I do love it. And I would love to live here with you and Duncan. But we're not going to force him into anything. He has to want it."
"I promise, you will not regret this." Billie said excited as she hugged her friend. "I'll go talk to Duncan and you go find out more about that cute boyfriend of yours."
"Okay." Violet replied.
Violet left and Billie returned to the living room to take one last look around. She didn't know exactly what drew her to this place, but she knew she wanted it. Perhaps she just wanted something knew after everything that had happened lately. She really wanted to live here with Violet and Duncan, since they were like her family now. Being able to afford the rent with the three of them was just an added bonus. Now all that was left to do was to convince Duncan.
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Across town, in a somewhat rundown alley behind the motel, Duncan was thrown across the alley and crashed into a dumpster. A little dazed after hitting his head, he looked up and saw a large Brute Demon charging at him. One moment he was walking to the mortal with groceries, the next he was being attacked for no reason. Before the brute could land a punch, Duncan was pulled away in a blur of super speed and found himself standing next to the twins.
"Thanks." Duncan said. "Nice timing."
"No problem." Nathan replied. "We noticed big ugly over here lurking around, though you showed up before we could take him down."
"Let's talk later." Duncan interrupted him when he saw the brute turning toward them.
"I got this." Nick said confidently. "He might be bigger, but he's not stronger than me."
The Brute Demon screamed angrily as he charged at them again. Nick smirked and ran to confront him. When the brute tried to strike him, Nick blocked his punch with his hand, sending a small shockwave through the alley due to the impact.
"Think you can take me, little twink?" The Brute snarled at him.
"What the hell did you just call me?" Nick asked. "I think you got me confused for my brother."
"You really think you're as powerful as me?" The Brute asked. "You're out of your league."
The Brute Demon laughed as he raised his arm and lifted Nick off the ground with little effort. Panic flashed on the twin's face when he realized his mistake. The demon smirked as he punched him in the gut, sending him flying backwards. Nick crashed to the ground and rolled down the alley until he came to a halt right in front of the others.
"A little help here?" Nick remarked as he painfully crawled up.
Duncan nodded and threw a Bursting Ball at the brute, who caught it and crushed it with his bare hand without even flinching.
"He is stronger than most brutes." Duncan stated.
"You don't say." Nick replied annoyed.
"Allow me." Nathan said.
Nathan picked up a piece of metal from a dumpster and charged at the demon with superhuman speed. He circled around the demon and managed to plant the metal bar in his side. The demon cried out in pain and ripped it out. He flung his arms around and managed to hit Nathan before he could get away. He then grabbed him and lifted him up by the throat.
"People will pay a lot of money for you thieves." The brute said. "But I'll keep the pleasure of ripping your heads off all to myself."
Seeing how Nathan was about to be crushed, Duncan panicked and astral projected. His astral form appeared behind the Brute Demon and conjured a Bursting Ball. He looked at the gaping wound in the demon's side and threw the metal sphere at it. When it combusted, the demon screamed out in pain and was engulfed in flames. When he turned to ashes, Nathan fell down coughing. Duncan smiled relieved and returned to his body while Nick helped his brother up.
"Are you okay?" Nick asked concerned.
"I'm fine, you?" Nathan replied.
"Just a few scratches." Nick replied.
"So is this the part where you tell me why a Brute Demon just assaulted me in the middle of the street?" Duncan asked with a raised eyebrow.
"We… uh, sort of robbed him at a demonic market some time ago." Nathan admitted reluctantly.
"Of course." Duncan replied while rolling his eyes.
"Just because we stopped being criminals now, doesn't mean our past is erased." Nathan said. "There are still people out there who want our heads on a platter."
"I'd say a lot of people." Nick added. "We pissed off pretty much everyone at one point or another."
"Just my luck, falling for a petty criminal." Duncan remarked.
"You can still get out." Nathan replied.
"Are you kidding me? After all this trouble?" Duncan asked. "Look, I said I wanted to help and I'm not going to give up because of one demonic attack. Now we should get out of here, the motel is no longer safe."
As they started walking back to the street, a black SUV suddenly pulled up at the end of the alley. Duncan instantly realized demons were not the only ones who had unfinished business with the twins. The government was still after them as well.
"Crap, you should run." Duncan quickly said. "Meet me outside of P3."
Nathan nodded and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder before disappearing in a blur of speed. Duncan took a deep breath and headed toward the SUV. He saw a familiar agent stepping out and knew it meant trouble.
"Duncan." Agent Murphy said. "I wish I could say it was good to see you again."
"I feel the same." Duncan replied. "Can I help you with something?"
"Drop the act, I know the twins are back." Murphy said. "They're not going to get away again. And if you help them, you will be going down with them."
"Sorry." Duncan lied. "But I have no idea what you're talking about."
Duncan reached into his pocket and dropped a potion bottle at his feet. As smoke began to rise up and engulf him, he disappeared from the alley.
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