Special Eyes Chapter 20

Several years ago . . .

Little Jackie Li, barely out of kindergarten, was curled up in the back corner of his bedroom. Arnold was outside, knocking on the door and asking to be let in. But Jackie ignored him.

Finally, Arnold gave up. He stared at the locked white door and sighed. Staring back was a poster hanging on the door of Captain America pointing ahead, as if to scold the boy's guardian.

"Yeah, yeah," Arnold said dejectedly at the poster. "I know I screwed up."

News broke this morning that Eleanor Jones had been murdered. Since then, Jackie had sealed himself in his bedroom.

For the last few weeks, Jackie had complained about noticing something strange around one of their neighbors, a woman named Eleanor Jones. Miss Jones was known in the apartment complex to have some bouts of odd behaviors, which Arnold himself had witnessed from time to time, talking to things that weren't there or staring at empty spaces for prolonged periods of time. But she seemed a pleasant enough person, so Arnold never saw anything wrong with allowing her to watch over his stepson for him while he was away on work. Until Jackie started making those wild claims that a monster was following her. 

No one believed the little boy. Even the lady in question herself dismissed his concerns. But Jackie insisted that Miss Jones was in trouble and even went as far as to call Nine-One-One, resulting in an embarrassing situation for Arnold with his fellow police officers. Arnold grounded Jackie and decided then and there to cut all ties between his son and Miss Jones.

Jackie didn't like that and his claims of a dangerous monster going to hurt Miss Jones persisted.

Finally, Arnold snapped and told Jackie that monsters were not real and yelled at him to go to his room.

A few days later, Miss Jones moved out to a different apartment complex elsewhere. Following that, came the news. The details were not pretty.

It didn't take a genius to realize that Jackie had been right about Eleanor Jones being in trouble all along. But it was too late now. Way too late. For Miss Jones and Arnold.

**********

Present day, Arnold sat on the couch watching his stepson scurrying around the dirty abandoned warehouse they found themselves trapped in. While Jackie busied himself by trying to find a means of escape, Arnold slowly let sink the revelations that Jackie had presented.

He really wanted it all to be some kind sick joke. But the reality was both he and Jackie had been levitated off their feet and flung into this forsaken place by Alice using something like the Force. That was about as supernatural as supernatural could get. 

It was definitely a freaky experience. Downright scary even. But something from the experience stood out above all else to the police officer of several years now. 

"Take care of him for me, Officer! I'm counting on you!" Alice had said.

"She did that to protect us!" Jackie had yelled at him. "To keep us somewhere safe! Alice is definitely NOT on board. She's actually going to stop the Ritual or die trying!"

And then came flashes from the distant past when both those two were no taller than the height of his waist: what happened with Eleanor Jones.

Arnold sighed and then got off the old couch with a grunt. "Jackie. Jackie!"

Jackie was muttering softly to himself ideas while staring at the window up at the second story level when he heard his name called and stopped. Sourly, he snapped, "What?"

"Tell me everything you know about the Gathering, especially the Wizard," Arnold said.

Jackie frowned. "Why?"

Arnold answered, "Because if we're going to save Alice, I need as much info as I can. It'd be great if you even know of a way to handle those invisible monsters."

Jackie stared at Arnold in disbelief. 

"Please, Jackie," his step-father implored softly. "I've known Alice for almost as long as you have. I know she's a good kid, and I want to help her. Please tell me everything."

Jackie hesitated. He still could not completely shake his distrust. But time was of the essence and he knew he needed help if he was to get out of this warehouse. So, after mustering up his courage, he talked. This time, he truly told Arnold everything. From knowing about Alice's special eyes since they were kids to discovering Waller had his own special eyes, about the monsters they could see to finding out what they were called from the Rat. He spilled Daisy's past too. And then he revealed something he just discovered a couple of hours ago: the Wizard's true identity.

Arnold frowned. "Are you sure?"

Jackie nodded. "It makes sense when you think about it. I mean, look where we are."

He waved his hand about to ceiling above and Arnold looked around the warehouse.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. But that still leaves one question. Where's the Gathering if not here?"

"Apart from this warehouse, there are two places left they could be at now," said Jackie. "Everything else under the Putts name's been taken by someone else. The first is the Putts family home. It's got just enough rooms for all the Gathering members if they share. Actually, I'm pretty sure the house is their main headquarters."

"Then why come here?" asked Arnold. "Why not go straight to the house?"

Not that he was complaining since he didn't think about the house either and still managed to catch up with Jackie.

"Because I figured the house was too small for the Ritual," Jackie replied. "Otherwise the Wizard would be holding those Gathering rallies there too. Either that, or he didn't want to ruin a nice house with occult stuff. The warehouse has plenty of space for lots of people and it's secluded enough to do something wizardly without being bothered. I was hoping to do something to sabotage the Ritual before they could get started. But since it looks like they're not using this place at all, (well, except for keeping us prisoners), that just leaves the last place."

"Which is?" asked Arnold.

"A restaurant," said Jackie. "On the second floor of a big hotel. The hotel is still operating and it looks like they're still looking for someone to lease the place out. But I saw complaints online from people looking to buy that they got turned away because someone already got the contract. I don't know for sure if there's really any truth to that, but if it is true, something tells me a little Wizard magic has something to do with it. It wouldn't make any sense to keep the ad up looking for people to use the restaurant otherwise."

"Wait," said Arnold. "If the Wizard can use his magic to get the hotel folks to help him stop someone from taking the restaurant, can't he use that same magic to take any other place? Why bother with places that are pretty much abandoned?"

"Pride, for one," said Jackie. "But the bigger reason is he just can't. His powers have limits. That's why he's keeping to the abandoned places for now. Less trouble to deal with."

Arnold nodded. "Alright. I already know about the restaurant and the house. If I can just get a call to the station, we can have cops swarming both places. I'm guessing the Chief must know about Waller's special eyes and about magic and invisible monsters. He's probably got others on his payroll who specializes in these sorts of cases."

"Wouldn't surprise me if that's what his spy program is really all about," said Jackie.

"Only problem is," Arnold continued, "my phone's in the car."

"And mine's locked in your room," Jackie added.

The stepfather and stepson pair looked at one another.

"How are we getting out of here?"

"Well, since the only door's locked, I guess through the window?"

Arnold looked up. "Pretty high up, the window."

"Well," Jackie said, turning his gaze to the couch, "we have that."

Arnold looked at the piece of old furniture and then rolled up his sleeves.

Together, he and Jackie lifted the sofa up and brought it to one of the windows missing its glass pane. Once below the empty steel frame, they lifted one side of the couch up, which reached the window short a couple of feet. Not unexpected.

With the couch up against the wall, then came the next phase of their great escape plan: Arnold boosting Jackie up so he could climb up the couch and reach the window. Jackie put his foot on Arnold's cupped hands and was flung up to the couch's left side now up. Using that side as a platform while Arnold kept the couch steady, Jackie reached up for the window sill, only to his frustration discover that it was still a few inches out of reach.

"Careful, Jackie," Arnold said as he nervously watched his stepson stand on his tiptoes to try and reach their ticket out of the warehouse.

Jackie, however, was too focused on the window sill to hear. 

"Almost . . . there," he grunted. 

He decided to try hopping, so he did. It worked and he managed to grab the window sill. But at the same time, gravity brought him back down and his grip wasn't strong enough. The way out literally slipped from his fingers. Or should it be vice versa?

Jackie fell back down onto the makeshift platform. His sudden weight caused the couch to wobble strong enough that Arnold couldn't hold on.

"Whoa!"

Both Jackie and the couch fell. Arnold dove to catch him, but the couch got in his way and there was no way he would make it in time anyway. But to everyone's relief and astonishment, Jackie didn't crash onto the hard ground. Instead, he floated midair. At least, it looked like he was floating in midair.

Jackie didn't feel like he was floating. Instead, he felt like he was lying in arms like a baby lying in the arms of its mother. It didn't take him long to realize he had just been saved by an invisible monster. 

Gingerly, the unseen monster used one hand to put Jackie into the sitting position before lifting him up by the back of his shirt. The moment it did, Jackie figured out that it was a monster he had encountered before.

"Thanks," he said after his feet touched down and he looked up. He couldn't see anything but warehouse walls, but he knew he was speaking to someone there.

Arnold rushed over from around the fallen couch. "You okay?" he asked, looking up and down for any injuries. "Hurt anywhere."

Jackie answered reassured, "I'm fine. Not hurt anywhere. See?"

He jumped up and down to show he was uninjured, bringing relief to his parent who calmed down and then glanced at the empty space Jackie had given a look.

"I suppose some thanks are in order," the police officer said to the empty space. It was embarrassing, but he swallowed the feeling down. "Thanks for saving Jackie. Seriously."

There was no response, making Arnold second-guess himself and wonder if he really was just talking to air. But then Jackie stepped in with some instructions, some questions, and then a request.

"Stomp your foot once for 'yes' and twice for 'no'. Have we met before?"

There was a single, dull thump. "Yes."

That confirms it, Jackie thought before moving on to the next question. This monster was the same one that worked for Zak back in that back alley. 

"Did you come with Alice?"

Two thumps, "No."

"Why are you here?"

Silence.

"Oh, right. Sorry. Did you follow me here?"

One thump, "Yes."

"Why?" Jackie asked again. But then a thought crossed his mind and he added, "Were you following me because you were worried about me?"

One thump.

"Were you looking out for me? Trying to keep me safe?"

Again, one thump. 

It must want to pay me back for saving it from Liu, Jackie realized. Excitement started to rise in him.

"Did you want to help me?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to help me right now?"

Once more, "Yes."

Jackie smiled. Things were really looking up for him now, he thought.

Without wasting any more time, he got to his request.

"Then can you please bust that door open?"

After an affirmative thump, more thumps followed along with clouds of dirt trailing towards the sheet of steel barring the exit. Huge hand prints dented the edge. Each finger was probably as long and thick as Arnold's legs. All it took was a single yank for the door to be pried open with a brief but sharp squeal and the chain and lock snapped.

Arnold stared at the now clear opening and shook his head. He muttered mostly to himself, "Nothing surprises me anymore."

Together, he and Jackie stepped outside and looked around, basking in fresh air and freedom.

"Alright," Arnold said. "Let's get in the car and-!"

He cut himself short when he turned and saw Jackie floating in the air again, looking like he was sitting on an invisible high chair close to ten feet tall. Dread instantly seized the police officer.

"Jackie, what do you think you're doing?"

"Sorry, Arnold," Jackie said from atop the shoulder of the Egregor. "But we can't wait for the police to get ready. The Ritual has to be stopped now."

His words made true Arnold's dreadful prediction.

"Jackie, get down from there now! You can't stop the Ritual alone. At least bring me with you!"

But despite Arnold's plea, Jackie shook his head in refusal. And then he whispered next to him, "Go."

"Jackie!"

Arnold chased after the flying teen. But his stepson's steed was too fast and inexhaustible for Arnold's human legs and stamina.

Before long, Jackie was just a speck in the horizon, leaving Arnold alone in the middle of nowhere.

<== Chapter 19                                                                                                           Chapter 21 ==>

Special Eyes Chapter 19

As Alice rode the car being driven by Taylor, staring out the window where everything was a blur, she thought back to when it all began. It's only been a couple of weeks, but with the way she felt, those weeks may as well have been months or even years.

Jackie was right about pretty much ever. Alice had willingly joined the Gathering and became one of the Wizard's top apprentices. But she was also secretly working against them and resolved to foil their Ritual at all costs.

But how did Alice end up with this self-imposed mission? Well, to understand that, let us turn back the clock to when it all started, the moment when Alice first laid eyes on that flyer.

"So you named a gathering, 'The Gathering'?" Jackie had asked Taylor.

"Yes," Taylor said, sounding a bit on guard.

"Smart!"

Oh, that goofball, thought Alice as she rolled her eyes before turning her attention to the paper in her hand. After reading through it once, her brain got an electric jumpstart. She had to read it again and again just to make sure it wasn't her eyes playing tricks on her. 

Then again, she thought, I see monsters that are invisible to everyone else all the time, so who knows?

Printed in ginormous font resembling lightning bolts were the words, "Come to the Gathering" in one line and, "where destiny awaits" in another. But within the generous amount of space between those two lines was another message:

"If you can read this message, then you are like me, someone who can see more than others can. You can see THEM. The monsters, living beings shaped in ways that don't make a lick of sense.

"Brother or sister, know this. You are not alone. This message is proof of that. Show it to someone who cannot see, and you will know this message is true.

"And if you are like me, plagued with loneliness and suffering for being born with something no one else has, then come to the address in the square on the bottom corner. There, you will finally find someone you can truly connect with, who can truly under you and where you can learn to free yourself from the torment of the monsters around you."

"Say," Alice heard Jackie went, "where and when is this Gathering supposed to take place? I don't see that anywhere."

Alice nearly turned with a start. She wondered if he was joking around, but she could see that was not the case as she subtly watched out of the corner of her eye the way Jackie strained his as he gave the flyer a look himself.

An amused Taylor explained the Gathering's selection process for new members to Jackie, who accepted with boatloads of confidence. But Alice could not understand how something could be called a puzzle or a test with the answer out in the open like that, plain as day.

Jackie mulled over his copy of the Gathering flyer as they headed towards Chinatown, with Alice observing him outside his notice. His "Hmm," and "Mmmmh," and "Hm?" while making that goofy look he always had when in deep thought made it all the more clear to her that her friend, practically the reincarnation of Sherlock Holmes, could not see the answer right in front of her face. It convinced Alice that the message she read on the flyer was legit, which excited her to no end.

How could she not be excited? She thought that she was the only one in the world, but here was proof she was not alone. Not only that, she had a chance to meet people without the fear of being judged as weird or crazy. And it was not a chance she was going to let slip through her fingers.

Once Saturday came around, Alice packed a few things in her backpack and headed to the address printed in the white square at the bottom corner of the flyer. She inputted the address on her phone's map app and let GPS guide her way. A few bus transfers and a walk down a street later, she came upon a building with glass doors guarded by two of the biggest monsters she had ever seen. And they were pretty ugly ones too.

One appeared to be a man, but he was ten feet tall. His skin was like tree bark and both his eye lids and his mouth were sewn shut. His right ear rested on his shoulder as his neck was permanently bent.

The other monster was a dog standing on its hind legs. One bloodshot eye was bigger than the other. And its torso was translucent yellow jelly.

If not for the fact that both wore Gathering t-shirts like Taylor does, Alice would have immediately turned around and walked away. But once she noticed the shirts, she took a deep breath, mustered some courage and approached them.

She looked up at the monsters, gave them a weak wave and a soft, scratchy, "Hi."

They both looked at her, making her jump. But then each grabbed hold of one of a pair of glass doors and pushed them open, clearing the way for her to go inside. 

The monsters dipped their heads down in deep bows with their free arms lined across their stomachs, sort of like how butlers bowed to their masters in big, fancy mansions.

Seeing it for what it was, an invitation, Alice walked through the opening with forced boldness. She was greeted right away by a human, a guy around her age and wearing (no surprise) a Gathering t-shirt. The young man introduced himself as Zak and led the way up the stairs to a party room with a stage.

Alice was surprised to see so many people in the room. Are they all people like her? Could they also see monsters like she could? She wanted to find out. But at the same time, she was afraid of possibly being disappointed. 

That fear was what kept her words in her throat even as her mouth hung open. And with how she froze like that, she probably looked like a cardboard cutout or a weird statue to everyone around her. Two twelve-year-olds even gave her weirded-out, sideways glances as they passed by. That was painful. Really painful.

Alice soon gave up trying to strike up a conversation and like in any other day at any other place, she hung back, away from the crowd.

Pretty soon, Zak got up on stage to get things started. No need to go into detail what happened next since they do the same thing every week and even say the same thing every week. After Zake got the crowd riled up, the Wizard made his appearance and his sales pitch. It was a word for word match for the speech Jackie would hear some time later.

Alice was taken in by the Wizard's words and was in awe in his display of real magic power. She was also keenly interested in the way he and Zak controlled those monsters they brought on stage, which was no surprise since those monsters have tormented her for most of her life. But more than anything, it was the Wizard's empathy for her lifelong plight that won her over.

Alice was all ready to join the Gathering, to become one of the Wizard's apprentices and learn his magical ways. But then came the part in the Wizard's speech about revenge and his plan to do something he called "the Ritual". 

All sorts of red flags were raised, and alarm bells rang in her head. The Wizard never said anything about what the Ritual would do or how it worked, but it was pretty obvious to Alice that whatever it was, was not good. Not good at all.

The eagerness to join the Gathering quickly waned and was replaced with the urgent sense to get out of the room and get away from these people, especially the Wizard. While everyone else was engrossed with the Wizard's idea, cheering their support and willingness to take part in the Ritual, Alice turned to leave. 

She quietly tiptoed to the door, gently pushed it open just a bit enough and slipped through. After taking a look around and seeing no one, human or monster, she bolted down the stairs as fast as she could, nearly slipping a few times. After jumping over the last five steps (and possibly fracturing her bones in the process with that hard landing) she sprang through the doors to the lobby and raced for the exit. 

Alice was just about to open the door to freedom, when suddenly-

"Alice?"

Someone called out her name and she froze.

Slowly, she turned and looked over her shoulder. Taylor sat at the greeting table, apparently in charge of it while the Wizard put on his show. Held sideways in her hand was her phone softly playing a game's battle song.

Taylor put the phone face down on the table, the game's song still playing, and stood up.

"You're leaving early? The Gathering's gathering doesn't doesn't end for another thirty minutes."

"Yeah, well," said Alice, "I just remembered I have this thing I need to take care of later, so I thought I'd better bounce a little early. So sorry about that. Would love to talk tons with you about how great you guys are, but them's the breaks. You know?"

She laughed nervously. 

"Uh-huh," went Taylor. "You know, you and Jackie are really alike."

Instantly dismayed, Alice protested, "We are not!"

But Taylor just chuckled. "I'm just kidding with you. But I do know why you're really leaving early. It's because of that Ritual talk isn't it?"

Alice's blood ran cold. But slowly, she nodded. 

She was afraid of what was going to happen next, but then turned confused when Taylor went, "Good."

"What?" That's when it dawned on Alice that Taylor was like her. "Wait, you know that the Ritual's bad?"

"No duh it's bad," Taylor said, her face twisting to show the disgust she felt towards the Ritual.

"I don't get it," said Alice. "Why are you still with these guys if you know how bad they are?"

Taylor let out a long sigh. "Because I have no choice. I'm in too deep. If I try leave now, the Wizard and those Acolytes of his will see that as a betrayal and take revenge. You saw what he can do. I don't care about myself, but just imagining him using those powers of his on my little brothers and sisters sends shivers down my spine. I realized too late what I got myself into. But it's not too late for you. Act fast and get out of town while you still can. And take Jackie with you too."

Alice was even more confused now. "What do you mean, get out of town? And why'd you bring up Jackie?"

"I saw the Wizard's notes while cleaning his office," Taylor explained. "It had lots of details about the Ritual. He thinks that it's a spell for revenge,  but that's not what it truly is."

"What kind of spell is it, then?" asked Alice.

Taylor put her hands on Alice's shoulders, looked straight into Alice's eyes with a dark, grim look plastered on her face. And then she answered in all seriousness, "A catastrophe. City-wide. The kind that will make lots of people die."

Alice wanted to laugh it off as a joke. She really wanted Taylor to laugh it off as a joke. But the dark look on Taylor's face held on. She was being serious. 

And she wasn't done.

"How the Ritual works is it creates a signal that gets broadcast into monsters' brains making them go berserk. And the more people that do the Ritual together, the stronger the signal, the more it can spread out, and the more crazy the monsters will get. The Wizard already has enough people to make every monster in the whole city go ballistic. If the Gathering pulls it off . . . Well, I don't need to tell you what happens next, do I?"

No, she did not, Alice thought. She already said lots of people will die and that's all Alice needed to know. 

Alice pictured Jackie lying in the jaws of that huge wolf thing outside, and it nearly made her throw up for real.

She declared, "That Ritual has to be stopped! We need to tell everyone what the Ritual will really do. For all the hate they got for the world, they can't want something like a mini-Armageddon."

But Taylor shook her head. "They won't listen. The Wizard didn't do anything magical, but he completely brainwashed everyone. You just happened to be smarter than everyone else, and I was just lucky (or maybe unlucky) to find out what the Ritual was really going to do."

"Then we need to go to the police!" Alice said. But Taylor shot that idea down too. 

"And tell them what?" she said. "That a guy calling himself a wizard plans to start the apocalypse with monsters that rarely anyone can see? You should already know how that'll go."

"Then we don't say any of that," Alice said. "Some of the people in there are kids. We can get the Wizard arrested for kidnapping!"

"Alice, the Wizard's got legit magic powers with an army of Egregors."

"Egregors?" Alice had never heard the word before.

"It's what the invisible monsters are called," said Taylor. "But my point is the police aren't ever going to get close to him, let alone cuff him."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Frustrated, Alice yelled before she could stop herself. She regretted raising her voice and cast a worried glance at the door. Relief was slow to come as nothing happened and the Wizard's voice continued to echo down from the floor above.

More softly, Alice repeated herself. "What are we supposed to do?"

"The only thing we can do," said Taylor. "Run. Get your friends and your family, and get out of this city before it's too late."

But Alice sadly shook her head. "That's impossible. Even if they believe me that something really bad's going to happen, they won't just up and leave. They'll go to the police or try to do something themselves."

Especially Jackie, thought Alice. The guy is too much of a hero-wannabe to leave anyone in trouble alone. The moment he hears about the Ritual, he'll definitely march up to that Wizard and try to talk him out of doing the Ritual.

Alice didn't want to think what would happen after that.

"There has to be some way to stop it," she said. "Come on, Taylor. You know this stuff better than I do. Can't you think of any ideas?"

"Well, I did think of something that could work," Taylor said hesitantly. "But it's about as impossible as all our other options, and more dangerous."

"I don't care, what is it?"

"To become an Acolyte."

Taylor reasoned being one of the Wizard's top apprentices would put someone at the best spot to sabotage the Ritual and prevent it from triggering a disaster.

"But once you do that, it's game over for you," Taylor said.

Again, Alice said, "I don't care."

The image of Jackie in a monster's jaws flashed in her imagination again.

"I'll do whatever it takes to stop it from happening."

"Then you'll have to work really hard and fast," said Taylor. "Not anyone can join the Wizard's Acolytes and there's only one spot left. You gotta be the best of the best. I'd try for the last spot myself, but it turns out magic's not really my thing. Can't even get the little monsters to listen to me. I could never pass the test to join. But maybe you can."

Alice wasn't so confident. But if joining the Gathering and becoming an Acolyte was the only way to stop the Ritual from hurting the people she loved, then that's what she was going to do.

After going through the steps of becoming an "official" member, Alice was taken to a house, a big one at the outskirts of the city, by bus. It was there she found some very familiar faces. 

She did not know any of the kids there personally, but she had seen them on the news. These were the missing kids who had upped and vanished without a trace. They were like her, people with special eyes who had chosen to run away and joined the Gathering as the Wizard's apprentices. 

The house was like some kind of small boarding school for magic and sorcery. Lessons were held on the first floor in the west wing sitting room by the Acolytes in the morning. Afternoon time was when the Acolytes themselves trained in the east wing room. The second and third floors held the quarters where the apprentices slept. Up in the attic was the Wizard personal dwelling.

Alice drank up whatever information she could during classes and spent all her free time practicing until very late at night. She worked hard. Harder than she had ever worked before. And she read ahead as much as she could from the books the Wizard's Acolytes were willing to provide for her. Her studies became all the more urgent when Taylor showed up with the unsurprising news that Jackie had begun snooping.

She had only been with the Gathering for a few days, but quickly decided to try the test. Taylor had said not a lot of time was left before the Wizard would initiate the Ritual so it was now or never. 

To even her own surprise, however, Alice not only passed, but she was hailed for having the best score out of all the Acolytes, beating the previous record holder by a wide margin. The Wizard enthusiastically welcomed her to his own classroom, though some of those Acolytes didn't share that enthusiasm. But from then on, Alice was taught directly from the Wizard himself and continued absorbing all his lessons while exceeding his expectations. She was also quick to take on the duties of the Acolytes, which included tutoring the other members of the Gathering, working on the flyers and playing host to the Gathering's gatherings. The rest was history. 

A lurch of the car as Taylor parked it in the garage awoke Alice back to present day.

As she shut the engine, Taylor asked, "Had a nice dream?"

Alice answered with, "Awful."

Together, the girls got out of the car and made their way to the dining room, which also served as the house's meeting room. The Wizard was there sitting at the head of the long, polished oak table. At either side of the table sat the Acolytes.

"Well?" asked the Wizard, hands clasped on the table in front of him.

"It's done," said Taylor. "I saw it all with my own eyes. Jackie Li won't be a problem."

"Good." The Wizard gave a satisfied nod.

"I still think we should've offed him while we had a chance," said Zak. 

He threw Alice a hateful gaze, but Alice just coolly looked back, knowing it would annoy him more if she appeared apathetic. Among the Acolytes, he disliked Alice the most, likely jealous from all the attention she was getting from the Wizard.

"Now, now Zak," the Wizard cut in. "I know how you feel, but it would be cruel to make our dear Alice here end her friend. Besides, we're not monsters. If we don't need to off anyone, we shouldn't."

Zak quieted down, but would not stop throwing withering glares at Alice when he was sure no one was looking. Alice ignored him and took her seat furthest from the Wizard. Alice excused herself and left the room.

The Wizard looked around, beaming at each and every one of his top apprentices. 

"Now then, let's get started. You all know why we're here today. I've got big news to announce. Here it is: the time has come. Shortly, we begin the Ritual."

<== Chapter 18                                                                                                         Chapter 20 ==>

Special Eyes Chapter 18

Jackie stared at Alice, unable to believe his eyes. 

"This isn't a trick, is it?" he said, slowly walking up to her. "You're actually here, Alice?"

"I'm here," Alice said. "Really."

She raised her hand, fingers gently drifting to Jackie's face. And then, like a viper, snatched hold of Jackie's ears and gave it a painful twist.

"Owowowowowow!"

Jackie stumbled back after being let go, rubbing his tortured ear.

"Yep," he went, voice strained like the rusted hinges of a creaking door. "It's really  you alright, Alice. Only you can pull off the Demon Ear Twist like Granny Tsing can."

Finally recovered from his own shock, Arnold shook himself awake, mustered up a stern look and walked up to the two teens.

"You have been a hard girl to find, Alice," he said. "You've got a lot of explaining to do. Like where you've been and what you've been up to. Oh, and why you're dressed like someone from Hogwarts. But that can all wait until we're back at the station."

Alice shook her head. "Sorry, but no. I didn't come here to be arrested."

Jackie's blood ran cold and his heart was seized with dread.

Clueless to the foreboding turn his stepson had sensed coming, Arnold frowned. 

"Now look here, young lady," he said, trying for a gentle but stern voice of reason. "You're not being arrested. But there are a lot of people, present company included, who have been very worried about you. And it sounded like you got mixed up with some dangerous people. The police station is a safe place. We can protect you there."

"It's not my safety I'm worried about, Officer." Alice shifted her gaze over to Jackie. "It's yours."

Patience at an end, Arnold snapped, "And just what is that supposed to-!?

He never got to finish his sentence before he went flying up a dozen feet in the air where he remained hovering in line with Alice's outstretched hand.

"Arnold!" Jackie cried. "Alice, stop this. This is wrong. You know it is! Whatever the Wizard said, whatever you and the rest of the Gathering went through, it doesn't make that Ritual thing right. It has to be stopped."

"I'm sorry, Jackie," Alice said. "But there's no stopping the Ritual. You can't stop it. No one else can."

"No one else can?" Something about that phrase bothered Jackie. And then the pit of his stomach clenched as he realized something dreadful. The most dreadful discovery he's made so far. "Wait, Alice, you don't mean-?"

Instead of answering, Alice held up her other hand and Jackie found himself hovering several feet over the ground just like Arnold. She wordlessly looked up at her two captives and they looked back. Arnold was stunned speechless at the fantastical experience he was having. His mouth hung open and out came the garbled moaning of a man whose brain had turned to mush. Jackie was at a loss for words and could only beg through his eyes.

But whatever he conveyed with his gaze, Alice turned away from. She, instead, looked to her right where something apparently pretty tall stood next to her.

"Open the door," she ordered.

Neither step-father or step-son could see who, or what, she spoke to. As far as their eyes could tell, there was nothing there. But Jackie knew better by now that the Wizard must have lent Alice one of his big Egregors. Arnold remained ignorant until huge dents looking like hand prints appeared on the steel door. 

With a high-pitch whine, the door rolled aside to expose the way into the warehouse. Right in the middle of the warehouse was an old leather sofa, gray and worn out but in good condition. Two armchairs, one red and another white, accompanied the sofa at either side of it. At the foot of the sofa was a big cardboard box opened to reveal it contained an assortment of bananas, apples, and carrots.

With a flick of Alice's wrist, Jackie and Arnold were flung into the warehouse. They hit the sofa, which nearly toppled over but managed to swing back down on its legs proper.

"There should be enough food in there to last you a few days," she said. "But if you're lucky, you won't need all of it. There are snack bars on the bottom. I also put a couple of cans of disinfectant spray behind the red chair for when you use the bathroom."

"No, Alice!" Jackie threw himself off the sofa and raced to the exit. He didn't even make it halfway when the door slammed shut. But that didn't stop him from ramming himself against it and then try pry it open. It didn't budge having already been chained and padlocked from the outside. Stubborn, he resorted to pounding his fists against the rusted steel sheet. "Alice, please! You don't have to do this! There's another wizard out there! A hell of a lot stronger one! He can stop the Ritual!"

There was a short pause, and then . . .

"If this other wizard is so great, why aren't you with him right now?"

"That's-!" Jackie tried to answer but quickly faltered.

A short moment of silence later, Alice's voice came through again.

"I knew it. Even if this wizard's real, but not even you can trust him, then there really is no one else who can stop the Gathering."

"I can still help you!" Jackie cried. "We can work together! Don't try to stop them on your own!"

There was a rustle of fabric and a clunk as Alice pressed her back against the door.

He heard a weak chuckle come in through the door. "So you figured out what I'm up to. What gave it away? Was it a small slip of my tongue? Whatever. I'm not surprised." 

"You really are amazing, Jackie. You can see thing I can't. In a way, your eyes are even more special than mine."

"Alice . . . I-!"

"But you can't help me. Not this time."

"No, Alice! Don't go!"

But Alice shouted back, "Good bye, Jackie. Thanks! For being my friend! Take care of him for me, Officer! I'm counting on you!"

"Alice!"

Jackie called out to her again and again. He wouldn't stop screaming her name even when his voice turned into pathetic wheezes and to no avail. Alice was gone.

From the sofa, Arnold stared. He watched Jackie finally stop and slowly slide down to his knees, forehead and clenched fists pressed against the door.

When some wits, but not all, returned, the police officer, in a daze said, "What was all that? Did Alice just use magic on us? Real magic? Does that mean she's a . . . a witch?"

Jackie took a deep breath. And then another. His breathing rapidly grew quick and then he hoarsely shouted, "Shut . . . up! Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!"

He whirled around and leaped to his feet, eyes blazing with fury.

"You always do this! You always make assumptions! Never thinking for a moment to give anyone the benefit of the doubt! You say you want to understand, for me to tell you what is going on, but when I try to do just that, you never give me the chance! You never listen. NEVER!"

He turned away and pressed his forehead on the door again. And then straightened up and turned back around.

"No, not this time." Jackie marched right up to Arnold. "This time, you listen and you listen good." He jabbed his finger two times into Arnold's shoulder. "No arguing because you saw the proof with your own eyes. 

"Magic is real. Alice does have magic powers. But she learned it from the Wizard. The Wizard's the real problem. He's the mastermind behind the whole case of missing kids, using the Gathering to recruit people like Alice and turn them into his magic apprentices so he could get their help with an evil scheme to cast some kind of big magic spell or curse, or whatever, which he calls the 'Ritual', to get revenge on some people. While he's at it, he got his followers wanting get revenge on their bullies too, to get them on board with his plan. Alice looks like she's on board, but she's actually not. She let slip she plans to do something about the Ritual by herself, stop it somehow. But outnumbered and out-magicked, there's no way she'll survive."

"You say Alice is not on board but she just locked us in an abandoned warehouse!" Arnold pointed out.

"Don't you get it?" Jackie snapped. "She did that to protect us! To keep us somewhere safe! Alice is definitely NOT on board. She's actually going to stop the Ritual or die trying!"

**********

Alice could hear Jackie call out to her clear as day, but she kept on walking away from the warehouse, never looking back once. On and on, and on she walked down the street, the warehouse slowly shrinking behind her, until she approached someone waiting for her up ahead. It was Taylor, on orders from the Wizard to stand as witness to Alice's loyalty to the Gathering. But that was not where Taylor's own loyalties seemed to lie.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked. "We could really use all the help we could get."

Alice gave a resolute nod.

"I'm sure," she said. At last, she turned to give a look the warehouse where Jackie now resided, but only for a brief moment before turning back to Taylor. "We are stopping that Ritual. No matter what it takes."

<== Chapter 17                                                                                                         Chapter 19 ==>

Special Eyes Chapter 17

Nothing to be surprised about, but as soon as they returned home, Arnold took Jackie's phone and then stormed into his step-son's bedroom to take his laptop computer. After locking both devices in his own room, he went as far as to disable the internet in the apartment. 

"You are grounded!" the police officer yelled. His face was flushed red with parental fury. "No internet, no freedom. I am driving you to school and I am driving you back home. Tell your boss at the grocery store you're not going to make it to work for the next couple of weeks because apart from school, you are NEVER leaving this apartment!"

To keep his words true, Arnold cashed in the remainder of his vacation time to stay home and keep Jackie under constant watch. He even went as far as to put a cot against the front door where he slept at instead of his own room to prevent Jackie from possibly sneaking out at night.

But Arnold's actions were not enough to deter Jackie from continuing his pursuit of the Gathering. If not even near-death by monsters could stop Jackie, being grounded certainly couldn't. 

Jackie bided his time over the remainder of the weekend, during which he was allowed only reading, doing homework and watching cable television. And then, after being dropped off at school on Monday, he went straight to the library, the only place he would have internet access to do some research. 

Other than the supernatural stuff, there was one more thing Jackie had neglected to tell the grownups: that the building the Gathering used was once owned by a guy named Putts. He was sure they probably figured that part out already but had an inkling that if they knew he also knew, they'd have a better chance of getting in his way.

The name he discovered at the Gathering's spot turned out to be the jackpot of all clues that Jackie needed. He figured that if the Gathering was using a building owned by Putts for their meetings, they were likely to use another as a backup hideout. After a little bit of online research both in the morning and during lunch, he found what he needed and then made a plan of action.

Once the bell rang to signal the end of the school day, instead of heading out the front where Arnold was surely waiting to pick him up, Jackie went west and through a side exit. A straight cut across the bordering grass field led to a bus stop with fellow teens that he could blend in with. As an extra precaution, he threw the hood of his gray sweatshirt over his head to hide it and put on a pair of black sunglasses to hide his eyes. He purposely brought the hoodie sweatshirt and sunglasses today for that very purpose.

Pretty soon a bus came and opened its doors to the crowd of high schoolers to invite them in. Jackie took the invitation without bothering to check where it would go and, with no place to sit, grabbed one of the small hoops dangling from the overhead rails and stood waiting for departure, which couldn't have come soon enough. 

Out the window, Jackie spotted his step-father running over to the bus stop. Heart pounding from panic, Jackie quickly turned his back to the glass pane and flipped his backpack over to hug against his chest, hoping it was enough to escape Arnold's notice.

As the bus drove on, Jackie risked a peak and was relieved to see Arnold rapidly become a speck in the distance. Jackie had successfully escaped and was now free to go where he needed to.

The Putts family used to own several properties all over the city with a variety of different purposes. Apart from the amusement center, they also ran a hotel, a restaurant and a few fashionable boutiques. They also owned a warehouse to store and distribute their brand goods.

Most of those properties had already been taken over by other companies and converted into something else. But a few buildings still remained unclaimed and abandoned like the amusement center had been. Chief on that list was the warehouse, a secluded place perfect for an evil wizard and his army of followers to conduct a nefarious magic ritual. 

The journey to the warehouse was somewhat long and difficult. Without his phone's online map, he had to rely on directions and advice from the bus driver, who recommended transfers at certain stops with certain bus numbers. 

But the abandoned warehouse was apparently well-known to the transit worker and he questioned why such a young man would go to a place like that. Jackie had to make up some excuse on the spot about filming a homemade movie for a competition. The driver didn't seem to buy it, but let Jackie go with a warning to stay safe and not do anything reckless. Advice that was already too late.

After following the driver's directions, Jackie found himself looking up at two-stories high steel covered in a decade's worth of rust. Weeds jutted out of cracks which spread out from the island of concrete to the neglected black road marred with dents and potholes. The windows that formed a ring around the building were completely covered over by water stains and dust, but had a few panes missing allowing a view inside that showed a completely empty and dismally dark space. Even outside was dark as the sun neared a full retreat for the day.

Jackie took a quick look around the premises and strained his ears for any sign that he was not alone. But he could detect nothing, visible or otherwise. 

Although the Wizard's power had been amazing, he showed Jackie that that power had limits. Unless that show of exhaustion back when he levitated everyone was just that, a show, he did not seem capable of putting an illusion on so big a structure. In other words, the warehouse was truly abandoned and there was nothing Jackie was going to find here.

He turned to move on to the next location on the list. It was at that moment he spotted a very familiar car drive up.

Arnold emerged out of the car and yelled out Jackie's name, absolutely livid.

Jackie turned to run, but Arnold shouted, 'Don't even try it! I'll tackle you to the ground!"

Arnold was being completely serious and Jackie knew he had no chance of outrunning the seasoned law man. So, he reluctantly stayed put while his step-father lividly stomped over.

"Really, Jackie? Haven't you had enough already?"

"How did you find me so quickly?" Jackie asked

"Waller tipped me off about the sign by that underground cave," Arnold explained. "Based on everything we already know about the Wizard, it was a safe bet you'd be snooping at other places owned by the Putts's."

He pressed fingers against his temples and turned away for a few seconds before swiveling back over to Jackie.

"What is with you, Jackie? Why do you have to keep putting yourself in danger like this? Why can't you leave it to the grownups? I know you got issues with me, but don't the other guys on the force deserve your trust? You saw for yourself that we were already very close to getting the Gathering. Why couldn't you just stand back?"

"You heard Waller," Jackie said. "They've lost their connection to the Gathering. There's no chance of you guys getting them in time."

"And whose fault do you think that is?" snapped Arnold. "It was yours, because of your recklessness. Because you didn't think things through."

"I thought it plenty through," said Jackie. "You're the one who can't seem to get the picture."

"Then tell me!" screamed Arnold. "Tell me so I can understand! So that I can help! You are my son, Jackie! I know you don't agree, but that is what you are to me. Jessica trusted me to keep you safe, to raise you in her place, to provide what is best for you. If anything happened to you, I could never look your mother in the eye ever again. And you are . . . You are the only family I have left. I don't know what I'd do if I lost you too."

Jackie could tell that everything Arnold said came from his heart. And he felt a little guilty. But he could not stop at this point. 

He shook his head. "I'm sorry, Arnold. But I'm not going to stop. I can't."

Arnold looked at Jackie with a face that showed he was at the end of his rope.

"Don't make me lock you up," he implored.

"That is actually a good idea."

Father and son whirled around. To their utter surprise, before them stood Alice. The black robes she wore over her Gathering t-shirt and jeans swayed against the wind. Her face grew ever darker with the shift from day to night. 

"Let's just hope this time a spy doesn't show up to spring him loose."

<== Chapter 16                                                                                                            Chapter 18 ==>

Checks Safety: How to Protect Yourself from Checks Fraud and Scams

Hey guys.

Today, I wanted to help spread awareness about fraud and scams involving checks. 

There are lots of different ways criminals go about committing fraud and scams, but quite a lot of them involve issuing fake or bad checks out to their victims. This act is very heinous and damaging, because not only do victims stand to lose a lot of money without any hope of recovering it, but they also lose good standing with their banks. Why that is, is quite simple.

Even though victims don't know that a check is bad until it is too late, if they happen to take out any money after depositing the check, they are pretty much taking out money that doesn't exist. Money taken out that doesn't exist end up being covered by the bank. Basically, regardless of being deceived by someone else, the victims took the bank's money and owe that money back.

Because the victim's bank also suffers a loss, depending on how much money is lost, the bank may even terminate the victims' accounts and ban the victims from doing almost anything with them. To make matters worse, the loss might also go on the victims' permanent record, preventing them from opening a new account at another bank until the old bank is repaid what was taken from them. It is an unfair and devastating situation for victims, but one, in the eyes of bank policy, they are as much responsible for.

But there are ways to protect yourself from such fraud and scams and avoid suffering such damage to your finances and reputation. As long as you take certain precautions when you receive a payment via check, you prevent yourself from becoming a victim of fraud and falling into malicious traps. What are these precautions? Let's explore them together now. 

First up is what this millennial think is the best way to keep yourself safe from getting hurt by possible bad checks: Instead of depositing the checks you receive at your own bank, go to the bank labeled on the check to cash it out. Any bank can tell you right away if a check with their name on it is good or not. For example, if you get a check with the Bank of America logo, you can go to any bank using the Bank of America name and get cash for it. The bank teller or customer service officer will take a look at the check and then find out if the check is good or not. They might not or cannot say any more than that for privacy reasons but getting a "no" from them is enough to let you know that the check is not good, at least for now, and that you could have gotten into trouble with your own bank for depositing a bad check.

You can also call the bank labeled on the check to verify if it is okay to deposit. That's the second-best way, in this millennial's opinion. Over the phone, the bank should be able to tell you if the check is good, or at least legitimate. 

However, with over-the-phone contact, things could get awkward. People working in the bank's call centers are naturally cautious about what they say to people who call them, especially when it concerns account information. You can explain the situation for them, but I wouldn't recommend pushing the call center for definitive answers. If you're not satisfied with the answer, then better to just go see an in-person representative of the check's bank and try cash it out. 

If you can't do either, or you're willing to take a risk, you can deposit the check into your own account. But DO NOT take the money out right away. Wait at least a week before you start spending. A week or so should be plenty enough time for the check to be cleared as good or not. If it's good, you got money. If it turns out to be bad, you might get charged a penalty fee, but a loss of $50 or less is a lot better than losing money in the hundreds or even thousands.

One thing to keep in mind, if you receive a check from someone and they want you to use your own account to cash the check and use the money right away, chances are they are a scammer. This chance doubles if they discourage you from going to cash out the check at whatever bank the checks are supposedly connected to, which should be okay for anyone being legit on their payments.

One common scam that uses fake or bad checks is called a Job Scam. Scammers pretend to be companies, tricking their victims into thinking they got a job to buy stuff like goods, supplies or services for the company. The scammers send their victims fake checks under their name, saying the money is for the payments. But really, the victims are giving their own money, or their bank's money, to the scammers who are using a second made-up company to take that money. 

This method of scamming is extremely time sensitive, so scammers will be impatient and rush their victims to take out the money as soon as they can. A legit company should already know the way banks work and be okay with delays or at least understand they can't be helped. In the case of an emergency where money is needed right away, a legit company should be okay with the check being cashed at the bank it's supposed to come from. Only a scammer would NOT be okay with the check being cashed like that since it'd be found out right away to be fraud.

And here's a bit of advice for all of you guys and gals looking to make a little bit of extra cash selling some old stuff online: if you get paid by check, make sure it clears first before you mail out the goods to the buyer. That goes for payments done online too. There are some nasty people out there who'll pull whatever tricks they can to cheat sellers and get stuff for free.

That's all I got to say about the topic for now. Make it a habit to practice the precautions I've mentioned above and whatever other advise you might get from your bank and stay vigilant for anything strange. Do all that and your money will stay out of the hands of criminal scum.

Stay safe out there, and happy reading.