Burning Phoenix - Saga 1

(Quintiles 22, 59 / 2:36PM)

Two years later…

In the hilly city of Lagefor, the bustling streets downtown rock the city with business, growth, prosperity, and most important of all, money. Everyone walks to lunch at the same time, everyone works with one another, and everyone is in sync to not fall behind. As the old saying goes, time is money.

In the center of the city, lies a large metallic bank, its walls from the outside impenetrable and almost indestructible. It was in between two small skyscrapers, and in front of the highest tower in the city, it was described to be the most tucked bank in the world.

In the bank doors, a big group of guards with ARs watched as every executive and millionaire came and went into the bank. Looking around in the street, the group of guards have their faces masked as they look around, waiting for something.

Inside the bank, dozens upon dozens of bank tellers deposit checks, withdraw checks, and most importantly of all, checking their customers' status as a member of society.

(Random guy) Look, I just want to withdraw some money from the bank, I need it for something.

(Bank Teller #1) Listen Mr. Zirardge, your father has said that you’ve been using your money carelessly, so I’m obliged to respect his orders without question.

(Random guy) You don’t understand! If I don’t have the money withdrawn, how am I going to support—

(Bank Teller #1) I’m sorry sir, but thank you for your time. Can I help the next person in line?

A blonde-haired boy in his late teens started to sulk as he walked slowly out of the bank.

Inside the bank was spotlessly clean, with the white marinated marble spread throughout the bank as people clanked it with their heels and dress shoes. In the center of the bank, was an area where bank tellers would do their business, having a little iron bar wall to separate the teller and the customer.

Across the entirety of the bank, massive golden pillars showcased statues of each wild animal of Terra, ranging from the deadly mammoths of the Kepputhan and Aizzonian glaciers, the lethal saber-toothed ligers found in the tundras, and the territorial ground sloths found in most parts of the world.

The blonde-haired boy turned around to see the secular parts of the bank, his eyes glancing at every single pillar that was constructed with ease, his fists clenching as he then looked at the center at the top to see a portrait of his father.

(Blond-haired boy’s thoughts) Is it wrong to be in a relationship…

As the boy turned back around to exit the building, he noticed a white van that was similar to one of the vans that his father bought for his guards. Focusing on the van, the boy folded his arms as his eyes squinted.

(Blond-haired boy’s thoughts) Why would the guards park in the front? Aren’t they supposed to park in the back of the building?

The door to the passenger side of the van opened, letting a bulky man walk towards the back. Unlocking the back, the passenger let out a few other guards who wielded Mossberg shotguns and AR-15s on the right side of their arms.

The guards of the van then met the guards that were guarding the door.

The boy put his hand on his chin, scenarios racing inside of his thoughts as he started to look around for something to hide.

(Blond-haired boy’s thoughts) I’ve never seen the front bank guards this casual before. Is this…

All the guards that were standing in front of the door then put on their masks…

Covering their faces, the guards lined up single file, holding their weapons with both of their hands. With the passenger in front of them, he quickly kicked and broke the glass door down, causing the glass to scatter all around them.

Everyone in the building saw the commotion as the guards piled into the building, their weapons loaded as the person in front held up his handgun and pointed it in the air. With a simple push of his finger, the guard fired three gunshots into the roof.

(Bank Robber #1) Alright! This is a robbery!

(Bank Robber#2) Everybody gets down so no one gets hurt!

The group of 10 guards—bank robbers made their presence well known to everyone, pointing their guns at the crowd and bank tellers.

Everyone inside the building dropped to the floor, their chests reaching the white marble stone as they stained the floor with their sticky palms. With many of the citizens on the ground, many of them started to silently pray, shutting their eyes. As the crowd was being tamed, the bank robbers reached towards the center with ease.

The blonde-haired boy stood behind a plant, wielding a small BB hand pistol beneath his brown jacket.

(Blond-haired boy’s thoughts) Are they robbing my father’s bank? What are they, stupid?

Having his body tucked away, he saw the bank robbers pointing their guns toward the bank tellers whose faces turned pale as they had their hands in the air.

(Bank Robber #3) Alright, take me to the Zirardge mine!

(Bank Teller #2) W-what mine?

The robber pointed his shotgun toward the teller's head through the iron bars, aiming the barrel at his forehead. Despite the robber having a fully enclosed face mask, his hands were shaking as he put his pointer finger gently caressing the trigger.

(Bank Robber #3) It’s at the bottom, right?! If you don’t take us to the mine, then we’ll bury you in one!

The bank teller looked at his co-workers, his face drenched with sweat while his body shook with utmost fear and despair. Silently nodding, the bank teller looked down at his desk as he took in a breath in and out.

(Bank Teller #2) Alright … I’ll send—

(Bank Robber #3) Nah, nah, nah. Just you. We only need you, nothing else.

(Bank Teller #2) What makes me so special?

(Bank Robber #3) Just get out of there!

The bank teller left his area and opened up the little wooden gate to walk towards the bank robbers. With the bank robber holding the shotgun to the back of the teller’s head, the bank teller’s face started to drench with sweat, causing a foul odor to come out of him. Despite this, the teller continued walking with a gun on the back of his head as he made his way towards the lunch room.

(Bank Teller #2) This is the way…

(Bank Robber #3) I’ll go with him. Can three of you back me up, and six of you guys hold down the fort?

(Bank Robber #6) Sure thing.

Opening the lunch room door, the teller noticed that the lunch room still had trash and food left out. As the robbers walked by, their facial expressions behind their masks contorted with disgust.

(Bank Robber #4) You guys are pigs.

(Bank Teller #2) It was the end of our lunch!

(Bank Robber #3) Keep walking.

Seeing a wooden door, the four robbers waited for the teller to activate a wooden key. Shakingly pulling out his pass card, his sweaty fingers gently pressed the four-keyed lock. With a click, the door was open, causing the robbers to push the teller forward.

Leaving the lunch room, they saw that they had to take a long flight of stairs.

(Bank Robber #2) So how long is this flight of stairs?

(Bank Teller #2) About five flights of stairs…

One of the bank robber tsked. Still having the barrel of the shotgun clinging to his head, the teller and the four other robbers walked down the stairs to the mine. With the teller’s breathing rigid and warm, his eyes started to look around aimlessly.

The teller was about to fall down the stairs before the robbers managed to catch onto him for support. Seeing the state that the teller was in, the four other bank robbers looked at each other.

(Bank Robber #4) Do we need this loser?

(Bank Robber #3) It’s just for right now.

Reaching the last flight of stairs, the bank robbers and teller put their feet down on the stone-marbled floor as they looked to see a big open space. One of the bank robbers noticed a large vault, a vault wrapped in titanium and with big metal bars.

Walking quickly towards the vault, they noticed that it needed not a 6-numbered code, but a 36-numbered code. Realizing that breaking through the door wouldn’t be a good idea, they all looked at the bank teller who was breathing more irregularly.

(Bank Robber #4) Punch in the code loser.

The female-sounding robber grabbed the bank teller by the nape and put his face near the circular lock. Crushing his face tightly onto the metal, one of the bank robbers held the female bank robber back, placing his hand on her right shoulder.

(Bank Robber #3) You can have fun with him after he punches in the code.

(Bank Robber #4) Does it look like I want to have fun with this loser?

The robber that held the shotgun made a clicking sound to the shotgun, which caused the teller to turn a deathly pale.

(Bank Robber #3) Punch in the code now! Your brain would be sprained with a push of my finger if you don’t do as we say!

Crying, the teller slumped down as he put his hands on the vault. Not looking at the bank robbers, he continued to sweep bristled tears as his sweaty palms stained the titanium vault.

The bank robber who held the shotgun to his head pulled back the gun and holstered it on his left arm. Bending down on one knee, he put his arm around the teller’s shoulder.

(Bank Robber #3) Now listen here. We need that code for the vault, and you’re the only person that could help us. You don’t want to die right? So how about you just stand up and open the vault?

The teller swiped away his tears with his right hand, putting his right arm down motionlessly as if he didn’t dare to look at the masked robber.

(Bank Teller #2) I … I can’t … you need the chief manager to do it … he’s the only person to have the 36 numbered code—

(Bank Robber #3) Do we look like a fucking joke to you?

The female bank robber pulled out a knife from her left pocket and held it firmly on her left hand. Grabbing the teller’s motionless right arm, she pulled it and jabbed the knife right into the man’s right hand.

(Bank Teller #2) AAAH!!

His vocals tearing up from the pain, the teller curdled his right hand to himself as a knife was infused on both ends of his palm and his hand. Blood spurring across his hand and onto his arm, the bank robber forced the teller up by the throat.

(Bank Robber #3) You’re Mark Taken. Age 32, 5’8”, 160 pounds. You have a family of two living on the north side of the city with a beautiful wife. You drive an old school WMB to work and you always wear a white collar shirt and khaki pants on the weekends. Lastly, you’re not just a bank teller, you are also known by the higher-ups to be the big boss, am I right?

The bank teller, who is now the chief manager, started to choke hard as his throat was being strangled. Pushing the chief manager down, the bank robber pointed the shotgun toward the manager.

(Bank Robber #3) You could drop the dumb bank teller act. If it takes you one minute or more for you to open the vault, then we’ll make you a headless chicken. Clear?

The bank manager, his body odor pungent as his breathing was starting to remain back in order, stood up slowly as he clenched in the brutal pain that his right hand gave out. Using his left hand, he took out from his pocket a wrinkly old napkin, a napkin that caused many bank robbers to look at each other and shrug.

Putting the napkin on his right hand, without moving so that the pain wouldn’t commence, the manager used his healthy hand to find the numbers. Twisting and turning, the vault’s locks slowly started to be undone as the manager pressed his fingers onto the pin.

With a click, the vault then started to slowly open, the vault door being tucked in from both sides of the wall as it slid to reveal the mine.

(Bank Robber #1) Well what do you know…

The bank robbers saw mountains upon mountains of gold coins inside of the vault. The shiny reflected coins let the masked robbers open their mouths as the scene was too much for their eyes…

(Bank Robber #2) They weren’t kidding when they said the Zirardge Bank has more worth than the entirety of Aizzonia.

(Bank Robber #1) Yeah, and we're only robbing 1% of it…

(Bank Robber #2) No, it’s .1% of it.

As three bank robbers ran towards the mountains of gold, they soon brought out their big, well-manufactured, stylish black bags. Grabbing the handfuls of light gold coins one by one, the bank robber who used to hold a shotgun to the manager's head put his hand on the manager’s right shoulder.

(Bank Robber #3) Do you see those black bags?

The bank manager noticed that the black stylish bags had a symbol on the back of them. Squinting, the manager noticed that the symbol had an eagle next to two shotguns pointing at it. Instantly, the manager started to break down in a ghostly panic as he laid his legs and butt on the hard floor.

(Bank Robber #3) You now know what group you’re dealing with, right?

Holding the shotgun with his left hand, he then pointed it towards the bank manager’s face, his finger calmly on the trigger while the manager had a putrid smell coming from his crotch.

(Bank Robber #3) Now tell me, do you love your wife?

(Chief manager) I do! I do! I do! Please don’t kill me! I love my family more than anything!

(Bank Robber #3) Oh, really? Then why do you have a little love affair with a woman 10 years younger than your wife?

The chief managed to turn his head towards the bank robber, his eyes fluttering up and down as continued to gulp rapidly, to the point where his throat began to run dry.

(Bank Robber #3) Here’s a little motto from the Blood Eagles. Anyone that hears evil…

The bank manager then remembered his family for the last time.

(Bank Robber #3) Speaks no evil…

Pulling the trigger, the slug blew away the right side of the manager’s face.

Bits of brain scattered throughout the floor as blood swept around the manager's neck and upper body. The scent of blood already corroding the room with the stench of death.

Hearing the gunshot from behind, the three bank robbers looked behind as they saw their comrade shoot the manager with ease, stopping what they were doing, the three of them tilted their heads as to why they would shoot an innocent man.

(Bank Robber #4) I was going to have some fun with that loser…

(Bank Robber #2) Doesn’t he have a wife though?

(Bank Robber #4) He does have a son.

(Bank Robber #1) But his son’s eight…

Back to putting in the gold coin, the three of them filled up whatever they could in their bags. As the robber who shot the manager saw the others trying to get the gold in, he quickly ran towards them to do the same.

As they filled eight bags of pure gold, the bank robbers carried them with both of their hands as they decided to leave. Not even bothering to close up the vault, they soon ran up the stairs, the weight already weighing them down as their legs were quivering.

(Blood Eagles Member #4) Hey, can someone help me here?

(Blood Eagles Member #3) No.

(Blood Eagles Member #4) sighs … if you can carry one of my bags, then I’ll let you do whatever you want…

(Blood Eagles Member #3) Deal.

Reaching the top, they quickly got into the main center where the rest of the now Blood Eagles members were holding down the fort. Walking towards one of the members, the one with three gold bags gave one to alleviate the soreness.

(Blood Eagles Member #4) Fucking cheater.

One of the Blood Eagles members talked to another, as both examined their surroundings.

(Blood Eagles Member #1) How’s the situation going?

(Blood Eagles Member #6) We’re in the middle of a standoff. Police, Zirardge guards, and even some military personnel are outside in the front.

(Blood Eagles Member #1) Don’t worry. The boss had thought of that beforehand. He’ll pull us out.

(Blood Eagles Member #5) Hey. What about the civilians here?

(Blood Eagles Member #1) Did they hear evil?

(Blood Eagles Member #5) No.

(Blood Eagles Member #1) Then command them to cover their ears if they want to live.

Ending the conversation, the blood eagles then all grouped in waiting for their cue to strike. Checking the clock at the center of the room, they noticed that the time was…

(Blood Eagles Member #1) 2:42 PM.

Then came the sound of raining bullets…

(Blood Eagles Member #1) Right on time. Alright men, let's move!

With all 10 men and women leaving the bank, they soon noticed that the police, Zirardge guards, and military men and women were all being rained hell upon from above. The Blood Eagles, most likely consisting of 30 to 40 people, were scattered on both sides of the street that the police and authorities were in.

As the authorities were shot at, they all took positions to defend themselves, with many firing with handguns and ARs, similar to the Blood Eagles members.

With the main group managing to sneak inside the van, the driver was able to remain hidden and started up the engine. As most of the other members who were considered reinforcements continued to be decoys for the robbers, the van backed up quietly until it had enough space to make a 3-point turn.

(Blood Eagles Driver) How much money did you guys get?

(Blood Eagles Member #1) With eight bags, I would say we probably have over 16 million dollars worth of gold coins.

(Blood Eagles Driver) And how many coins did the Zirardges have in that mine?

(Blood Eagles Member #1) They have a net worth of 16 billion dollars…

Managing to have the van turn towards the street, the main group managed to get out safely, riches and gold on their hands as they all shrugged and laughed.

Seeing the van flee, the rest of the blood eagles retreated into their vans, firing off many bullets at the authorities as the vans ran off.

Many of the police and military were injured, with many having bullet wounds to the stomach and chest, followed by the stench of blood running amok around the area.

(Random Cop) Was it just a distraction? It didn't feel like a standoff…

Seeing the sight unfold, the young blonde-haired boy saw everything unfold with his own eyes, as he held in his pockets two handfuls of gold coins.

(Blonde Haired Boy’s thoughts) I wonder why they left the vault open. Also, why did they only target the chest or stomach areas?

In front of the bank, he slowly walked out of the building, his face neutral and calm as he examined his surroundings. Noticing that a beast human was running towards him, he opened his eyes wide as he saw her sprinting at him with full force.

(Blonde Haired Boy) E-Elizabeth?!

The cat-human girl, Elizabeth, ran up to him and held him tightly, her arms shaking as she looked up at him.

(Elizabeth) Johnny?! Are you ok?! What happened?!

Johnny pulled out a handful of gold coins to Elizabeth, her face widening in shock as she took a couple of steps back.

(Elizabeth) Did you … just…

(Johnny) Don’t worry, I didn’t rob the bank. Someone else did. Don’t worry, today, tomorrow, and the rest of the week and month, you’ll be able to have good full-course meals!

(Elizabeth) You know I can live off of trash cans, right?

(Johnny) sighs … oh Ellie …

Johnny patted Elizabeth’s head, roughing up her brown hair. Looking up towards the daylight sky, he held Elizabeth’s body even more.

(Johnny’s thoughts) I just hope someone is strong enough to teach my father a lesson…