Location: Classified Silencer Facility — 0600 Hours
Two children sat in silence.
One boy. One girl. Identical faces.
Their shadows intertwined on the floor like dancing snakes.
Dr. Velasco stood behind the glass, clipboard in hand.
"They're ready," she said to Colonel Dela Vega.
"They better be," the Colonel replied. "Dominic's not playing anymore. And neither is Guevarra."
Velasco pressed a button.
The room lit up red.
The twins stood.
As one.
---
Meet the Gemini: Sol & Sera
Sol: Male. 5'10". Slender build. Ashen blond hair. Calm like still water. His power? Shadow Compression — folding shadows into density sharp enough to slice steel.
Sera: Female. 5'10". Same build. Raven-black hair. Her ability? Shadow Inversion — converting light into anti-shadow, a field that nullifies shadow movement for a few seconds.
Together?
They're a loop. One attacks, the other disables.
They never speak.
But their minds are linked.
---
Meanwhile — Recovery in the Ruins
Elias sat near the destroyed safehouse's wreckage.
Maya still hadn't woken up.
Her body was stabilizing, but her shadow aura pulsed erratically—like it was trying to adapt to something new. Or someone new.
Kael re-wrapped his bandages and handed Elias water.
"That last hit… the way your shadow burned—was that fire?"
Elias shook his head. "It didn't feel like mine. It felt like…"
He didn't finish.
Instead, he turned as the air grew cold.
Kael reached for his blade.
Too late.
They had arrived.
---
FIRST CONTACT: GEMINI DROPS
The sky shimmered.
Two shadows fell like meteors.
Sol landed first, slicing the air with an invisible blade of compressed dark matter.
Sera followed, touching the ground gently—then shattering all light around her into darkness.
The hill turned black.
Elias activated his armor instantly.
Kael whispered, "These aren't like Dominic."
"They're worse," Elias muttered. "They're controlled."
---
Shadow vs. Shadow
Sol moved first, fast and precise. His blade tore into Elias's armor like it was paper.
Elias dodged and countered, but his flame-shadow flared out of sync—like it sensed the twin's power and hesitated.
Sera leapt, slamming her palms into the ground.
Suddenly, all shadows froze. Even Elias's.
"Shadow Lock Field—5 seconds!" Kael shouted.
Elias screamed as he was stabbed straight through the shoulder by Sol's returning strike.
Blood sprayed. His armor cracked.
And still, the twins didn't speak.
---
Maya Awakens
Her eyes fluttered open.
Her body jerked upright.
But it wasn't her alone.
Her shadow moved first—wrapping her like armor.
She rose.
Walked.
And when Sera turned, she found herself staring at Maya's new form:
Half-shadow, half-light.
Balanced.
Maya lifted her hand.
A pulse of reverse-shadow exploded outward, canceling Sera's null field.
Elias's shadow surged back to life.
And this time—
He didn't hold back.
---
Turn of the Tide
Elias shouted, fire-shadow curling around his arms.
He locked eyes with Sol.
"You were built for this. I wasn't."
Sol slashed forward—
—and Elias met the blade barehanded.
The flames didn't just burn. They absorbed the dark.
Sol's weapon cracked.
For the first time, Sol blinked.
And Elias punched.
Hard.
Sol flew back—crashed through a tree—and didn't rise.
---
Sera's Retreat
Sera's eyes widened.
She looked at Maya.
Then at her brother.
Her shadow rippled—uncertain for the first time.
Maya stepped forward.
"You don't have to fight."
For one brief second… Sera hesitated.
Then her shadow wrapped around Sol and teleported both of them in a swirl of darkness.
Gone.
---
AFTERMATH: THE WARNING
Kael knelt by Elias, tying off his bleeding shoulder.
"You shouldn't have survived that."
Elias winced. "I didn't."
Maya stood nearby, her shadow still active but calm.
"What were they?" she asked.
Kael looked grim.
"Government dogs. But more than that—they were born from Project Silencer's second phase."
Elias narrowed his eyes.
"Second?"
Kael nodded.
"They call it Project Origin."