As they awoke in the morning, the brothers went through their morning routine once more, putting themselves through the strain of an extra two hours of physical training before taking a shower and getting dressed, today dressing in matching combat fatigues, Aiden’s slightly lighter than Aleksander’s. After tying their boots, the men went to their personal weapons and training room, a large gymnasium laid out in an obstacle course on one side. Walking in, the Brothers were surprised to find someone was already there, a human by their scent, although a strange one. Both of the Evers were on their guards immediately before they remembered that the Military wanted them to go on a Recon Mission to Korea, and that they were to be escorted by some of the humans of the base. Letting their muscles untense, both of the men moved towards the armory right off the main room, ignoring the soldier for now, browsing through their large personal collections of weapons and ammunition.
Aleksander chose out a long staff for himself, along with two long, thin knives in crossed sheathes on his lower back, made especially for slipping between pieces of armor or an enemy’s ribs, hidden under his shirt. Along with these weapons, Alex drew for himself a shorter, thicker knife, forged specially for his grip as a sword-breaker, sliding it into his belt and pulling down a holster holding two Desert Eagle .50 Caliber pistols, wrapping the holster belt around his waist and checking the guns, which fit perfectly in his massive hands, built larger for this purpose. Grabbing a couple of clips of ammo and slinging the staff across his back, Aleksander turned to walk out at the same time as Aiden did.
Meanwhile, Aiden looked through his collection and pulled down two large scimitars, made specially to fit his large, slender-boned hands, taking a few practice swings before placing them on his back in his X-sheathe. Turning to another shelf and pulling down a long chest belt of throwing knives, he strapped it across his torso and tightened the straps, grunting in satisfaction. Grabbing a small metal case off a shelf full of such containers, he turned to go just as Aleksander was doing the same across the room.
They then walked together over to the human, who was still standing where he had been when they entered, dressed in combat gear with a heavy machine gun hanging at his side loosely. Saluting, the man watched the Brothers walk over, announcing himself as they drew close enough to hear him, his voice strong and rich, “I am Sergeant Brent Gonzalez of the U.S. Army, Ranger Division. I hear I am to be reporting to you today sirs?”
Aleksander smiled, returning the salute lazily and speaking strongly, “Why yes, Sergeant. Your job today is going to be making sure you and your men don’t get murdered. Our job will be the extermination of all life that isn’t American. I think our jobs might just coincide on this particular day.” He grinned, revealing his sharp, evil-looking teeth. The Sergeant didn’t even flinch as the Brothers stood before him, their powerful might evident in their very stances.
“Yes, well, today, I think I can do my job just fine. Shall we sirs?” The soldier gestured for the Evers to go first, standing aside. As Aleksander passed the man, he instantly knew something was off, every nerve in his body suddenly going tight as a high wire. Stopping with a silent command to Aiden, he moved suddenly towards the Sergeant, stooping down as he froze the man in place, locking his muscles where they were with a simple pushing in the neural structure of his brain, leaving only his tongue and eyes free to move.
“What are you?” Aiden spoke in low, measured tones, staring at the man over Alex’s head. His bright green eyes had taken on the hardness of two chips of emerald, and his voice was giving a hint of a snarl, menace seeming to pour off of him in waves.
“I’m the last thing you’ll ever see, you filthy maggots.” With a snarl of pain and fury, the creature broke Aleksander’s mental blockage, springing forward like a cat to attack Aiden. As if time were slowed down, Aiden noticed every single change that took place in that split second of time.
As he flew, Sergeant Gonzalez changed. His ears pointed and his teeth sharpened into long fangs, the rest becoming sharp but short. His nose seemed to recede into his face, leaving slits for nostrils and his eyes grew larger, the iris disappearing as his brown morphed into a bright teal color. As he reached the apex of his graceful flight, his body seemed to writhe and change, becoming more animalistic and feral, growing hairier and thicker of muscle, his knees cracking as they reversed their directions. The thing that landed before Aiden was taller and much scarier than Brent Gonzalez. It stood almost as tall as he did, and it stank of the moon and grass.
Smiling, Aiden suddenly held up a hand to the Wolfman. As expected, the beast tore it off and ripped it to shreds. Aiden simply giggled as it regrew, watching the feral creature hesitate. This, he hadn’t been told to expect. With a smile as evil as it was shiny, Aiden reached up and wrapped a hand around each half of his own jaw, ripping it open like a snake’s right before devouring a mouse. Suddenly, his whole body rippled and his jaw distended and became wider, his teeth and lips growing to accommodate his new jaws, the rest of his face becoming lupine as his whole skin began to sprout long black hairs, transforming him into a larger, darker Wolfman in seconds. Growling triumphantly, he lunged forward, biting for the other man’s neck. Regaining his senses, Brent leaned out of the way, moving to tackle Aiden. But Aiden gripped his waist from behind, lifting him into the air and dropping him on his head. As the Wolf lay there dazed, Aiden clawed open a gash in his chest, howling hungrily.
As Brent tried woozily to stand, Aiden ripped into his neck, severing the jugular in a single snap of his jaws. Whimpering in pain, Brent sagged as if he were a deflated balloon, all the fight gone from him in seconds. Twisting his neck sharply, Aiden ended his life, his body slowly returning to normal as his anger receded.
"Well, you really can't trust anyone these days. C'mon Bro, we're already outfitted, let's drag this bitch up to the Sergeant and pick up some assassinations. Maybe this time we can get rid of that crazy old coot in Ohio who's started that cult of the darkness up again." Aleksander said, smiling slightly. He had hoped this would be the case anyway, so they could get back by tonight
"Yeah, and maybe pigs will fly. You KNOW the Govs won't let us touch him yet. They think he's harmless. Plus, it's only a few more days till we leave for good anyway." Aiden said, grabbing the corpse’s left foot and dragging it behind him as he began walking towards the inner compound.
"Yeah.. Sounds good to me. We're set up for a killing spree anyway."
As the Brothers walked, they thought silently of later that night. Each had different plans for a romantic evening with his own special lady. It was a night where they'd blow alot of their back pay and be happy about it. Utter bliss.
As Aleksander wandered into General Yerna's office, Aiden dropped the remains of Brent on the Generals floor.
"Oh come on! Another one?" The General exclaimed, looking up. He didn’t seem surprised though, this sort of thing happened a lot.
"Yeah. Called himself Brent Gonzalez. Real good at it too. He almost got us with his Ranger act." Alex said quietly, flopping down in a chair and stretching his legs. He folded his hands and watched the General as Aiden began picking his teeth with a fingernail, popping out a piece of vein after a second.
The General sighed, speaking slowly. "You want another assassination? I've got one fit just for you two if you do. We've got a drug dealer from up in Vermont, he's hiding out in our city. Forty Ever protection detail, twice that in humans. All the humans are gunning, and most of the Evers are tough cookies, a lot of special mods and high end mercenaries. Think you can pull this one boys?"
Aiden looked disgusted and Aleksander just yawned. "If we couldn't, why would we bother asking you for a mission Yerna? We know you try to keep us entertained. We appreciate it, we really do." He got up and walked out of the room, a grin on his face.
"Yeah, we do. So, like, don't hold dinner for us. And lock the door after we leave." Aiden giggled and winked, back flipping out the door after Aleksander’s retreating form.
"Show off!" Yerna yelled, grumbling about teenagers and their antics, his thrown knife thudding into the wall a second too late.
On the uneventful drive into town, Aiden and Aleksander discussed the best plan for the infiltration of the enemy stronghold. After going through several plans, including the famous Boondock Ceiling Trick, and the Let’s Split Up Ploy, they had settled on the most simple, direct route. Kill first, ask questions never. It had never failed them before, so why should it now?
With that settled, they resolved to enjoy their drive into town, Aiden by sharpening his blades and Alex by dodging through traffic like a maniac and screaming at other drivers. In this way, time passed pleasantly enough for them both.
Pulling up a couple of blocks from their target, both of the brothers checked their weapons, making sure that everything was in order. With that settled, they started to walk down the street, carefully keeping a leisurely pace so as to attract as little attention as possible for them. Waving to passersby, they both managed to blend into the crowd, staying unnoticed for as long as they possibly could.
As they approached a building set out from the others by it’s shabbiness, the two noticed there were several men casing the crowd, watching for anyone who didn’t belong. They were set apart by the tribal markings scattered about their faces, placing them instantly to any other Evers who saw them. Approaching the door alone, Aiden smiled at the men without stopping, his manner extremely confident.
The man at the door was a burly Ever with dark eyes and a mace hanging at his belt. Without even glancing twice, he stuck out his hand to stop Aiden in his tracks, a bored expression dulling his eyes. Smiling, Aiden reached out to the hand and grasped it, slowly bending it backwards. Noticing him for the first time, the man still didn’t comprehend who this teen-seeming man was. Exerting his strength, he sought to rip off Aiden’s arm.
With a gasp of pain, he suddenly found that his arm just wasn’t there. Neither were his legs.
As the Ever dropped to the ground, Aiden wiped his blade, smiling around him at the new arrivals. His sword was amazingly fast, and the men who were staring at him were still trying to comprehend what had happened. The other crowd-watchers were gathering around him in a glaring mass, leering in anticipation of an easy kill. Drawing his other blade, Aiden beckoned them to attack him, a cocky grin gracing his lips.
Dropping low and spinning, Aiden sliced up and through one of them, his blade jerking slightly as it passed through the body, his left arm slamming the other blade into the stomach of another. Ripping his blade out, he leaped upwards, powered by his awesome strength, coming down behind the remaining three and spinning into a massive roundhouse kick. As his super-powered leg slammed into them, the three men were smashed into the wall, dying without a sound.
Landing in a crouch, Aiden flashily sheathed his blades and whistled for Alex to join him. As he walked up, Aleksander just smiled, shaking his head and muttering, “Showoff.”
Walking into the building, the brothers looked around themselves. Alex had an uneasy feeling about this, and so did Aiden. There was no way that the other Evers could doubt who was here. There wasn’t anyone but an Ever who could have ripped the door guard apart like that, and Aiden was famous for his twin swords. The simple fact that there was no answering attack was giving Aleks the creeps, and it was notoriously hard to do that.
Seeing movement flickering down a hall out of the corner of his eye, Aiden took off after it, darting through the hallway, bent low and moving as fast as he could without losing control. Right on his heels, Alex took off after him, dodging around corners at top speed in an effort to stay alongside his brother.
As the two ran through a doorway after the blur they had chased all this way, they both skidded to a stop, looking around bemused. This was unexpected.
“Oh shit,” Said Aiden, his hands already reaching for the blades on his back, “I think we messed up this time bro.”
“Yeah, I think we did.” Aleks answered, his eyes moving fast as he tried to count the Evers lining the walls and the balconies around them. He had the count at one hundred to one, and still more were coming in behind them and from other doors around the theatre. His hands moving like lightning, Alex pulled his staff out of its holster on his back and spun it once, getting a good feel for the weapon as he did.
He had a feeling that this wasn’t gonna turn out very well for them.
“We wish you no harm, brothers! Lay down your weapons and we shall teach you the proper way to view the world, without fear or anger for your fellow being.” The delicate voice seemed to be coming from everywhere at once, one of the Evers on the highest balcony the apparent source. He was slight, and very effeminate, his finely chiseled features suggesting a nobility and sweetness that made the person receiving his attention feel gifted. The one thing that spoiled it were his eyes, their depths deep and horribly ancient, belaying him for the beast he truly was. There was no mercy in his eyes, only pain and torture.
“How about you come down here and we’ll see how many chunks I can slice you into before you die?” Aiden replied, making his voice childishly innocent and sweet, his mouth stretching wide in a feral grin below eyes like acid, their depths showing a creature with no need for morality when it came to a decision of death to a killer.
“Or I can shove my staff up your ass till it comes out your nose and watch you die slowly! I think I’d like that.” Aleksander added in, his grin predatory and his eyes like gleaming sapphires in his pale face.
With an obviously fake sigh, the pale wraithlike Ever frowned down at the twins, his voice taking on a barely veiled edge of steel as he spoke, “Then you shall die. Attack my Brothers! The first to bring them to me alive shall eat at my table tonight!”
With that, the strange, short Ever spun on his heel and stalked off into the recesses of the building. As soon as his words had left his lips, there had been a sound of weapons being drawn all around the theatre, Evers of every description leering greedily at the two brothers.
Aleks sighed softly and tucked his back against Aiden’s.
“I guess this is it Bro. It’s been nice knowing you.”
“What do you mean? I plan to catch you up on the other side so we can have a good laugh at what we’ve accomplished.”
With a quiet laugh, Alex answered in a soft voice, “If there even is another side…”
And with that said, the mass of Evers pressed in close, and the melee began. Oddly, all of the Evers were surprised to discover that these “Immortal Twins” they had all heard so much about were easy to fight. They seemed no stronger than anyone else, and were easily defeated and knocked unconscious, only killing ten others in their flailing fight.
Or at least, that’s the impression they gave.
The first thing Aleks noticed when he awoke was the lack of memory for a long period, which he expected. The second thing he noticed was the heavy breathing about twenty feet away, which he also expected. That should be Aiden.
He should have noticed the third thing first, since it was holding a knife to his throat pretty darn hard.
Keeping his eyes closed and his mind blank, Aleks tried his hardest to figure out what kind of a situation he was in. There was a rather heavy individual sitting on him with a knife pressed to his throat, its edge painfully sharp. There seemed to be a lot of people around him, one of them a still-unconscious Aiden. It looked like their plan had worked out, fooling their gullible foes. The enemy believed they were beaten, and Aleks just didn’t have it in him to prove them wrong.
Yet.
As if on cue, the heavy weight was lifted from his chest and he was pulled up by his hair. At the same time, Aiden grunted as he was dragged awake by the same sort of treatment. Apparently, they hadn’t made too good of an impression on the boss.
“Open your eyes. We know you’re awake you pompous fools.” Said a slightly nasally voice, somewhere in front of Aleks. He sounded very royal, and he also sounded like he was about 7 feet in front of Aleks.
Opening their eyes, the Brothers both looked around, sharing their eyes for a few moments as they took in the room around them.
It looked like someone’s ego had exploded in here, multiple times. Every wall was covered in the same likeness, done over and over in every artistic media imaginable. On one wall was an original Impressionist-era painting sitting right alongside a modern digital-frame picture. It was amazingly self-centered and callous, the ultimate narcissistic display of self-love.
There were five other Evers in the room, and a human serving coffee off to the side. The nasal-voiced Ever, the same one from the painting and the theatre hall, was standing above them in all his aristocratic glory, triumphantly sneering at his captives. To either side of him were two more Evers who looked as if their swords were literally fused to their arms, their expressions blank in the way only the severely Programmed could be. Only a Programmer could suck out all the humanity of a person like that and still leave them as a working individual.
The last two Evers were nearly as tall as the brothers, and each had a massive Glock held to one of their heads. They weren’t Programmed like the bodyguards, they were just scum of the earth, trash that had taken up work so they could get paid cheap doing something that brought them sick pleasure.
Exactly the kind of trash that Aleks loved to take out, his role as garbage man of the earth his most fulfilling.
Unfortunately, the brothers were tied up tight, and it would be a while before they’d be able to get a chance to kill these freaks. Instead, they decided together to just listen and see what they could find out without saying anything. Words would come later. If there was a later.
“As you can see, your useless powers were no match for my glorious soldiers. You were fools to even consider the thought that some human’s little pets could make their way into my keep and not be caught and overpowered. Every Ever here saw you coming a mile away, and every single one of them was ready to kill you as soon as you arrived. I made them wait, simply because I like your style. I’d like you to join my forces, and in return for your services, I will spare your lives and make you my top generals. You will live in the lap of luxury,” The nasally voice of the Ever droned on for what felt like eternity, although Aleks knew it hadn’t been more than five or six minutes, “ and never shall you want for anything. You will lead my armies to greatness and domination of this puny planet! Together, we shall usher in the age of The Evers!” The nasal voice reached an impassioned crescendo, his eyes staring off into the distance as he spoke, seeming truly mired in his dream of world dominion.
Of course, Aiden couldn’t let that continue for long, being the cheeky asshole that he was. With a bored yawn, he spoke, “Well, that’s all well and good, but I’m afraid that we can’t stand for another competitor for the world. We’ll have to respectfully decline your offer.” With a sarcastic smile, Aiden spat at the regal Ever, his aim surprisingly good as he hit the man dead on in the center of his forehead.
With an outraged cry, the Ever screamed out to his guards, “Take them to the dungeons! I will watch them executed later. Personally.” With a disgusted noise, he stalked off, the two Programmed guards following him like loyal dogs after their master.
With guffaws of nasty satisfaction, the two Evers with the guns dragged the brothers off down many flights of stairs to the dungeons, stripping off their weapons and tossing them carelessly aside. Throwing the two into a cell, they wandered off, laughing at their own clever use of force.
“Buffoons. Stupid ones at that. They didn’t even bother to lock the cage.” Aiden snarled, working at his bonds in earnest.
“I wonder why that happened, brother?” Aleks grinned, ripping the chains off his feet and standing up, “I’m not completely stupid. I paid attention to the worthy details.”
“Good job bro. Now let’s get out of here and have us some fun.” Aiden grinned ear to ear, kicking open the cell door with a bark of happiness, his features growing slightly lupine as he walked towards his weapons. His hair grew thicker and his nails longer, and by the time he had picked up his swords, his legs were longer and more adapted to running. With a last wink at his brother, Aiden loped off with a parting, “I’ll see you at the throne room, Bro.”
Shaking his head with a grin stuck on his face, Aleks watched his brother lope off before picking up his gear and starting off in the other direction.
It was gonna be a while before they found the throne room, but it would be a fun while.
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