Secrets & Lucky

With a raised brow Neto looked at his friend for a moment and with caution he said,

"Yeah amigo, you did not always look like you do now. Your hair and eyes were a different color, well your hair was a little white-ish but it was mostly not. Your eyes definitely changed color though, all of this happened right when you started using your, ah...Gift yeah, when you first used that is when it completely changed.

"I figured that was a good enough reason if any for why you suddenly looked different, suddenly being in control of a vast amount of power."

The news shocked Bazel to his core, since no matter how he searched through his memories he had always looked exactly as he does now. He did not believe that Neto would lie to him, as there is no motivation, and he had a gut feeling that Neto was more right that wrong.

So desperate he was to puzzle out the truth, that he unconsciously began to loosen the seal that had been placed on him when his Gift had manifested completely for the first time.

Just enough was it loosened so that memories he should not have access to began to flood in through the connection that was created, memories that were exactly the same as his own but with several key differences.

It was like he was looking at two pictures side by side, whenever he called forth a single memory. They were identical in every way except the shades of color were off, like a lighter shade and a darker shade of the same color.

Some memories were more out of sync than others, with those involving Lily almost completely identical.

Memories of more mundane, or perhaps less cared about things, were the most out of sync while memories involving people like Neto were half and half.

A soul tearing pain rang out through his head as the memories continued to flood in, especially when he moved on to the more recent ones where it was like one picture was dyed in red while the other dyed in blue. So distinct were they...that the memories could have never been mistaken as one and the same but instead two distinct entities.

'For the current me, if I had to torch half the city in order to achieve my goals...I would be completely fine with it.

'But this other me, he would have vehemently opposed it against all odds.

'What am I? Who am I? Who is this other me?

'Is one the original and one a cheap copy, is it an evolution of selves, or perhaps we are both just fakes for an original long past.'

Bazel's thoughts became more and more disarrayed as his entire world was called into question but there was still room for doubt, still room for everything to be a gross misunderstanding he was having.

Such room was all but lost when a particular memory came to mind however, one of a pocket watch that did not tell time.

One snapshot of his past told him that the watch had always shown the picture of a dark abyss, while another said that it had once been a picture of a sunny sky.

'Lily's reaction, my awakening of the gift, and the next progresion...the red outline...its all linked'

A truth so insidious, so vile, and so sorrowful came to his mind but the moment he was about to fully comprehend its depths...he went out like a light.

The partner whose origins had never been questioned, as if they could not be, was looming over the unconscious body of Bazel.

Under the shocked eyes of Neto, this creature appeared and grew in size... swatting the back of Bazel's head like a fly and knocking him out cold.

The same ancient and infinitely intricate seal from Bazel's Gift awakening appeared once more, and the mysterious cat tweaked its design so that it was locked tight.

The cat turned its head, looking at Neto who was unsure if he should stab the creature or not, and a tendril of shadow left its body and formed words on the wall of the van in between them.

"Do not speak of this event, nor the last, for his sake and your own"

The creature then shrunk in size, disappearing underneath Bazel once again.

All that was left was a concerned Neto, who looked at Bazel wondering what had just transpired.

Sighing at yet another impossible event occurring before his very eyes, Neto leaned back and muttered,

"I am no fool, I can guess as to what is going on. Looks like I will be a keeper of secrets, a role I am used to despite my dislike for it...."

----

Coming back from the realm of unconsciousness, Bazel awoke to realize that he was in a vaguely familiar place.

Resting on a comfy couch in a lounge, that he recognized to be the Southern Central Police Department's, Bazel got up and scanned his surroundings.

"Hey there, what day is it?" asked a voice from behind Bazel, one that sounded familiar but he could not put a face to the voice.

Turning around he saw a normal looking man who was completely unassuming and who looked like the kind you'd see working behind an office table, except he was definitely not unfamiliar with the gym to say the least.

"Hey there, what is the name of the city we are in?"

Rubbing his head that felt like it had been on the receiving end of a dump truck, Bazel replied,

"I have stopped keeping track of the days for awhile now, and this is the City of Occultatum...have we met before?"

The owner smiled brightly and presented his hand for a shake,

"We have, but I looked a little different before. Name's Lucky, one of Boss Neto's loyal followers for years now. I was in the area and he came and told me to look after you, said that you fell unconscious randomly.

"We had some doc's take a look at ya but they said it was just due to stress and a lack of sleep, insomnia perhaps."

Shaking the man's hand, who he still felt was extremely familiar, Bazel pressed onwards,

"So, where did we meet before?"

Breaking the handshake, Lucky put on a contemplative look while messing with his suave brown and slick brown hair,

"Ah, well it was outside of your former place of work a few years back. When the prosecution of Neto and the rest of his Niños was still underway by that slimy bastard.

"Perhaps this will ring a bell..."

Lucky coughed a few times and hummed a tune, each time he did his voice changed in pitch and tone.

Putting on a face of servility and rubbing his hands together he said,

"Come on, come all, answer a few simple questions for a chance to earn big prizes!"

The words and actions may have been quite silly to most, but to Bazel they were anything but.

"You...you were the guy who gave me the lead on my corrupt senior. You were one of Neto's men?"

Lucky smiled while making a triumphant pose,

"It was I all along, the mastermind bahahha!"

Despite the silliness of the man in front of him, he was still impressed for it could be said that the man in front of him was his golden ticket.

He could still remember their first meeting:

At the foot of the stairs that led to his place of work was an odd man who was offering cash prizes to answer basic questions. Such questions were easy to answer, but vague enough that the answer would change depending on the person answering.

Figuring that he could use whatever money he could get, Bazel played along and earned a bit of cash but he also gained something far more important than that...

Contained within the cash was a small slip of paper, a slip of paper that detailed several wild accounts of the criminal acts of one of his office's most beloved seniors...such acts that would land him in jail faster than the speed of sound if it were true.

"So that is what those odd questions were for then," declared Bazel as he finally unraveled a mystery several years in the making, "you were asking probing questions, to peer into the character of the one answering."

Lucky clapped lightly and whistled,

"Correcto! Although you were not the only one to receive my information, you were the only one who cared enough to check if it was true. Thus, you earned yourself several admirers of your character and sense of justice, so much so that there are several people like me who would delve into hell if you so much as asked.

"Do not underestimate your contributions, as you saved the lives of Neto's entire inner circle...and his own! Saving my brothers and my Boss, I see you quite favorably you know."

Although Bazel was touched, he failed to see where this was going and was about to ask just that but Lucky continued on,

"So favorably that I have volunteered to be your personal guard. I will be in your service until we murder those freaks who took Lily from you, a shame that is also mine to bare as I was not there on the day she was taken to stop them. You would not believe the shit I got from my brothers when they came back from that failed mission, for not being there when our savior needed me the most."

Again the sentiment reached Bazel, but rationale told him another story which he articulated rather bluntly,

"No offense, but I doubt you would have made a difference. My foes are not one that can be easily killed by mortal means, and the ones who took Lily were undoubtedly extremely powerful and efficient.

"I would not be surprised if a Genus was personally involved in the capture, and the reason why there were no casualties was simply because they did not want to waste any time."

Clicking his tongue and shaking his head, Lucky responded by saying,

"This will not do, to look down on little old me like so. Even if I don't have this Gift or whatever, I am still more than capable. I can say with confidence that I am the strongest out of all of Neto's Niños, him included. My strength is not in my speed or my power, but something that cannot be measured but also something that is far more important than such simple things like mere speed and power.

"Care to test it out? To the roof?"

Without even waiting for a reply, Lucky laughed provocatively and headed for the roof.

Amazed at the guy who completely went along at his own pace, Bazel found himself slightly curious and so he decided to play along.

Following Lucky up the stairs, Bazel wondered if he would match his words or if he was just full of hot air.