“Wow.”  Morgan was wide eyed as the transport bearing her, Dr. Jenny, Dr. Leon, and a half dozen security guards started out of the facility.  It was her first time outside of the Project Gemini building, and to see so much of the outside world was almost too much for her to even comprehend.  “What's that!  Ooh, what's that!  What are those green things!  What's this black stuff on the ground?”  The questions went on and on as they drove in the heavily armored vehicle, Morgan practically plastered to the window.
“Is she always like this?” Jason turned to Dr. Jenny with a little chuckle, looking over to Morgan.
“She's never been outside before, Dr. Leon.  This is a big adventure for her; she's seeing things we take for granted that she's barely even heard of.”  Dr. Jenny replied, smiling and laughing at the raw enthusiasm of Morgan's questions, answering them as fast as she could, although she couldn't quite keep up with the energetic girl.
“I understand that, but it seems like she just never runs out of energy.  We've been on the road for at least two hours now, and I don't think she's even taken a breath in.  And please, call me Jason.”  He smiled, reaching out and putting a hand over hers.  She rose a brow at him for a moment before starting to laugh, reaching the hand from his and wiping her eyes.
“Dr. Leon, I hardly think this is time for flirting; especially with a woman who's ten years your senior.”  She said between chuckles and laughs, shaking her head.  “We're in the middle of something very important right now.  Perhaps when this is over, Dr. Leon, but for now, I think we're best sticking as colleagues and friends.”  Jason let out a sigh, rubbing his temples.
“Come on, Jennifer.  Neither of us are getting any younger, and we've been involved in this project our entire lives.  We know each other so well, why can't we at least give this a shot?  And at our age, a ten year's difference isn't so much of a matter now.”
“Dr. Leon, can't we just wait until this is ov-” She was cut off as a loud BANG rang out through the vehicle, a large dent in the side inches from Dr. Jenny.  The security personnel stopped the vehicle right away, stepping out and armed to the teeth.  Dr. Jenny held Morgan and crouched down, Jason leaning over all of them protectively as the loud exchange of gunshots rang out around them.  The exchange lasted for less than thirty seconds before the security boarded the vehicle again, peeling out quickly down the road.
By the time Dr. Jenny, Jason, and a sobbing Morgan finally lifted themselves up, the sight of the attack was far behind them.  They would never know it, but those that had been cut down by security were not dangerous rebels or people out to get to Morgan.  They were the few that had escaped from the facility, trying to get the vehicle's attention to get help and get taken home.
***
“I'm bored!  When can we go outside?”  Lily sighed, huffing a bit as her arms crossed over her chest.  The atmosphere inside of the vehicle was hot and muggy, despite the blasting air conditioning.  Most of the heat was radiating off of Lily, who was doing her best not to light any fires, but was still very hot to the touch.  Tracey and Linda were with her, surrounded by many security officers; many more than were attending Morgan's group.
“Calm down, Lily, we can go outside when we get to our resting point tonight.  You heard General Logan, we have to wait and be careful so the bad men don't come back.”  Linda's patience was drawing a little bit on end, she was used to calming Lily, but the girl seemed even more on edge than usual.
“Hmph.”  The girl huffed, little bursts of flame coming from the corners of her lips as she crossed her arms over her chest.  Tracey looked over her shoulder at the two with a quiet sigh.  She was getting fairly cramped in the vehicle as well.  She was also almost certain the amount of security guards that were with them surely violated some rule about how many people could be inside of the vehicle at once.  What they hadn't been told was that there were at least three tanks moving with them, carrying even more security.  Despite when Lily was calmer, they still treated her like a ticking time bomb; her power could be devastating, but only when she was antagonized.  But no one was willing to take that risk.
“Mama, who was that girl I saw?”  Lily asked, turning to face Linda, calming down a bit, the air taking a cooler feel to it.  “I felt like I knew who she was, but I've ever met anyone else.  She was pretty,” she said with a little smile, “not as pretty as me though.”  Linda looked at her and let in a deep breath.
“Well, Lily, that girl,” she paused for a moment, “she's your sister, Morgan.”  Lily's eyes widened as she heard that, before breaking into a fit of laughter.  It wasn't until she looked down and saw in Linda's eyes that she was serious, not merely joking with her, that she realized she was serious.
“I have a sister?  But why haven't I ever met her before?  Why is she so far away?  Why are people after us?  Why-” Linda rose a hand as Lily barraged her with question, and much to her and Tracey's surprise, the girl quieted herself almost right away.
“It's a long story.”
***
“A sister?  But she was so pale, Dr. Jenny.  I don't get it.”  Morgan had similarly asked Dr. Jenny about the girl she had seen during the meeting.  When Dr. Jenny had told her she had a sister, she had immediately believed her, and her reaction had been slightly less spectacular than Lily's.
“Well, her powers are different from yours, Morgan.  She can use fire instead of water.  And she's kept herself inside much more, so that fire doesn't spread, although she was always paler than you were.”  Dr. Leon looked at them quietly, wondering just how far this length of conversation would go.
“But, I don't ever remember having a sister.  I recognized her, sort of, but I know I've never met her.”  Morgan turned to look at the two of them quizzically, innocent and curious.
“Well, it's a long story.”  Dr. Jenny said, and after a brief nod from Dr. Leon, she began to tell Morgan the tale of how the world got to be as it was now, just as Linda was telling the same tale to Lily, hundreds of miles away.  “It started in 2014, when the first wave of the Neoplague hit the human race.”
***
No one is quite sure where it came from, and when the Neoplague first hit, no one thought that it could be as devastating as it was.  It was thought to merely be part of the AIDS epidemic, or perhaps a new fast acting cancer.  The nations of the world were rather antagonized against one another at this point, and no records were exchanged, each nation thinking it had the best and brightest to solve the problem.  Perhaps if we had been more willing to work together then, less people might have died.
It started as several isolated incidents, mostly in hight populated areas, with a low quality of life or health.  Then it began to spread.  Before anyone knew it, the Neoplague, as it was newly christened, was a global epidemic, effecting everyone, both rich and poor, high and low, smart and ignorant.  Within a year, one seventh of the world's population, one billion people, had died.  Another billion had been quarantined in areas that were called Black Zones, areas of land where those infected were herded into and cut off from the world in an attempt to stave off the infection.  What fools we were.
Putting people into the Black Zones staved the plague for less than a month before it roared back into full force, and those that were left continued to be infected and die.  For a full ten years the plague ravaged the Earth, touching every point of the globe.  Then, one day, as mysteriously as it had arrived, the plague simply vanished; or rather, it felt like it had, as people stopped being infected and stopped dying en mass.
Those that were left discovered two important things.  The first was that the plagues gone, and they assumed themselves immune, or at least able to resist the infection.  The second discovery was much more astounding, and has shaped the world ever since.  These people discovered they had supernatural abilities.
“You mean like me!”  Lily quipped up, cutting off Linda's telling of the history of the last few decades.  Tracey reached over and put a finger to her lips.
“Hush, let her finish.”  Tracey was a bit nervous though, wondering how far Linda was going to tell; if she was going to give a general idea, or tell Lily about her personal hand in creating the current situation.
It didn't take long for leaders to arrive out of those that were left in the world, some of them had been in positions of power before, and some had been part of the hard workers that had been the middle or lower classes.  With people now able to fly, or send messages with the mind, it took surprisingly little effort to gather these people into a council, which would become the Global Government that most work under today.  Within a year, new countries had formed, and old ones had gathered themselves back together, and a sense of peace was starting to settle over the world.
Rebuilding took another five years to complete, but with people being the power sources, machinery, or material builders for new things, it was easy to recover from what otherwise might have been a world-ending experience.  The only thing that remained constant were the Black Zones.  No one was willing to look into them, to see what went on behind the tall, black steel walls.  And no one wanted to.
Smaller countries found central areas to join together in, forming large cities connected by small strings of smaller villages or even single homes.  Larger nations, like ours, the United States, instead divided themselves into “Areas,” locations and divisions of land where people of like minds and abilities joined.  Area Omega, where the original Project Gemini facility was located, was located in the central area of the united states, and the focal point of scientists.  Artisans and writers gathered along the East Coast.  Those with more physical abilities, or military training, gathered on the West Coast, where the secondary Project Gemini came to be located after-
“After what, Dr. Jenny?”  Morgan asked as Dr. Jenny's voice trailed off lightly.  Dr. Jenny shook her head.
“Never mind, Morgan, we're not there yet.”  She said, going back to the tale, Dr. Leon nodding in approval, Morgan quieting politely and waiting for her to continue.
Once reconstruction was completed, things began to settle down.  Countries began to reform their cultures, people found their missing families, if they hadn't already.  Schools formed to educate, businesses to sell, hospitals to heal.  People did what they did best, and used their gifts as best as they could to accentuate that.  However, people began to worry.  As the years wore in, it became increasingly clear that their children, the ones born after the Neoplague, at least, were  not exhibiting any abilities.  And this scared the parents and the people who had survived it.
You see, they saw their abilities and their united survival against such a devastating event as a sign of unity, something that they could all relate to, and be close because of it.  They feared that, without their powers, that society and civilization would devolve back into what they once were, petty, ignorant, and angry.  They feared that the world would tear itself apart once more once the last of the powers had died out.
So the scientists of the world gathered together and began to research the source of the mysterious supernatural powers that the entire world had been given in the wake of the Neoplague.  For years they searched, comparing everything from blood types down to DNA of the newly born children and those that lived through the plague.  Five years of research passed before we finally made the discovery of what set these people apart.
The Neoplague survivors had antibodies- a body's natural defense against infection and disease.  It was what prevented the Neoplague victims from being infected again, and led to the eventual death of the disease- everyone who was live was simply immune thanks to these antibodies.  It was the logical step to assume that, for whatever reason, these antibodies were the source of the mysterious supernatural powers.
They began to gather volunteers to be injected with these antibodies.  They were warned in advance that no one knew what would happen, and yet agreed for the chance to fly or breathe fire or do whatever they could.  However, as the years of injections and observations went on, no one developed any powers.  It seemed that their bodies made antibodies against the new antibodies, which their body saw as invaders.  Hope was given up, and in every official capacity, the project was closed down, and new research began.
“But that's not the end of it.”  Dr. Leon said quietly as he looked down at the floor.  “The project was closed only officially, but it continued in an unofficial, underground capacity.  The big brains of the world wanted to find out the source of these powers, and instill them in future generations at any, any cost.”  Dr. Jenny nodded to him and turned to Linda and Tracey, as well as the twins.
“You two are a product of that unofficial project.  They found a volunteer for a secret project.”  Dr. Jenny sighed quietly, remembering that painful day when the twins were first split up.
“What happened Dr. Jenny?”  Morgan asked quietly, looking up with her wide, innocent eyes.  Even Lily, who was normally easily bored and possessing a short attention span, was looking intently, waiting to hear the rest of the story.
A woman who's husband had recently passed away came to the project just before it closed.  Her husband had died because of an adverse reaction to the injection, but rather than hate the project, she earnestly wanted it to succeed, for the greater good of the future.  She had lived her life as a biologist, and she had an idea.  Just before her husband passed she became pregnant with twin children.  She proposed that they could introduce the antibodies harmlessly into the body by injecting them en utero, when the children are still in their mother.
The idea was quickly, and quietly, implemented, and the children inside of her were injected with the antibodies on a regular basis, in slowly increasing amounts, so as not to shock their system.  When they were born, they showed positive for the antibodies.  No powers were shown yet, but the antibodies stayed, which was much farther than they had gotten before.  The mother and her twin girls stayed on board, waiting for any signs to develop.
“That was us?”  Lily asked as Jenny took a moment to breath.  It was Linda who answered her.
“Yes, the two baby girls were you and your sister, Morgan.  You were given then code names Castor and Pollux, which are the two stars that make up the gemini constellation.  The project was officially christened Project Gemini by the big brains, and the observation of you began.  Nothing happened at first.”
“For two years you were simply children who lived with us and loved your mother, and she loved both of you more than the world.  Then it happened.”  Her voice got dark as she looked down.  Seventeen years later and it still wasn't easy to talk about.  She took a deep breath and began again.  “Two years after your birth, both of your powers manifested.  But it was not a joyous occasion.”  She hesitated, and turned to Linda.  Linda looked to Tracey, who looked to Lily and then back to Linda.  Linda gave Jenny a nod before going over to sit next to Lily.  This was going to be dangerous.  “Lily, this mostly concerns you.  Please try to stay calm.”  And she began again.
Every week the doctors would come and take you one at a time to just do some basic testing.  For any sickness, any signs of powers, just checking on your overall health.  Lily was playing with your mother at the time, when they came to take her for testing.  She cried something awful as they took her away.  Lily reached for your mother, who just smiled and promised her it would be alright.  But she was young, and as far as we can tell, she just wanted time with your mom.  Without much warning, fire burst from her hands, reaching out for your mother.
“No.”  Lily breathed quietly, already beginning to shake.  The air in the van began to grow hotter.  Linda brushed her arm over Lily's in an attempt to calm her down.
The entire room lit up.  No one was worried about a fire beyond normal measures, so there were papers and devices laying around the room.  They lit up, and Lil, your mother, and the doctors were caught up in the blaze.  Because of her power, she protected, but the others were not.  They all died, your mother included.  After that, a meeting was called, and the two of you were split up, studied and raised separately.
The story continued to explain how the twins had been split up, and that they were to be raised separately.  Nothing had happened beyond their normal practices or lives, until just a few days ago, when their had been attacks at their facilities, and they were brought together.  That was where they were now, ready to meet for the first time in almost two decades, outside one of the Black Zones, so that they could be safer together.
***
“No.  No.  No no no no no no no no no NO!”  Lily screamed out as fire jumped from her hands, licking past her lips and in her hair.  Linda was forced to back up out of the flames, which were quickly growing.  Tears streamed down the girl's face.  “I did not kill my mom!  I loved her!”  She screamed out as more fires burst around her body.
“She's throwing a tantrum, Jenny, we have to do something!”  The room became almost oppressively hot, their bodies quickly breaking out in a sweat.  The guards began to move and aim, but there were others in the way.  That didn't stop them from aiming, though.  If this went on for another few moments, it probably wouldn't stop them from shooting, either.  Lily was getting out of control, though, the fire was growing around her.  The heat was becoming intense at an alarming rate, most of those inside now breaking out in a considerable sweat.
“No!  I didn't do it!  I didn't do it!”  She was screaming loudly, and when her eyes opened for a moment, they were glowing bright red.  More fire licked around her body, threatening to engulf her, and everyone in the convoy.  The security in the vehicle turned, several small red laser dots littered along Lily's body.
“She's going out of control.  Fire on my mark!  Ready!  Mark!”
The sound of echoing gunshots was near deafening.
***
“My- my sister killed my mom?”  Morgan asked, a few tears sliding down her cheeks as she looked to Jennifer.  She was stunned, and confused, and hurt.  She hadn't realized how much she missed her mom until now, when the subject of her death had come up.  She wiped her eyes, the tears smearing across her cheek, a bit of water that was, for once, out of her control.  Jennifer got up and walked over to her, wrapping her arms around the girl in a warm hug.  Morgan turned and wrapped her arms around Jennifer tightly, tears falling as she cried.
“Shh.  It's okay, Morgan.  Just let it out.”  Jennifer whispered to her.  Morgan cried, the guards leaned back, bored, and Jason was waiting to help them when he was needed.  “She didn't mean to.  She didn't mean to do it.  You were both so young.  She didn't have control.  She didn't mean to.”  She repeated it softly over and over again to Morgan, who let all the pain of her mother's death out after ignoring it most of her life.  She had always been so happy and bright, because of how much she hurt when she thought about anything else.
It took her a little bit, but they finally calmed the girl down, her body shaking and her eyes stained red from her tears.  She looked up at Jenny and wiped her eyes, sniffling and looking out the window.
“I'm not mad at her.  I can't be.”  She said quietly, looking back to Jenny after a moment.  “It wasn't her fault.  I just know it.”  When she had learned that she had a sister, it was like a floodgate had opened up to explain so much that happened during her life.  Why she was where she was, why she didn't know anyone else, and even why she had the strange mood swings she was privy to, on some days.  “It explains a lot, really.  I would sometimes feel like I could, I guess, feel someone else.  Feel those emotions, or feelings.  I just thought I was having strange swings or something.  But it's because I have,” she paused, and, even with the pain she felt, smiled, “a sister.”
***
The bullets never made contact with Lily, or anyone else.  As soon as they got within a few inches of the girl, they simply vaporized.  Several small fires were breaking out over the length of the car, and Linda and Tracey had to throw off their jewelry, some of it melting down when it hit the floor.  Then, just as suddenly as it began, the fires snuffed out, not just the ones coming from Lily, but the ones around her as well, even those that had broken out simply because of the heat.
And then she just cried.
“...Emergency team, stand by.”  One of the security officers said, frowning at the sight of the molten piles of lead resting on the ground that had once been bullets.  “Report this to General Logan.  And keep it quiet.”  He said to one of the smaller agents, who nodded and moved to the side.
“Mommy.”  Lily sobbed out, her pale fleshed body shaking as she cried.  It was almost surreal, when Linda reached out to hold her, and she found that Lily's skin was icy cold.  “She,” she stammered out quietly, looking up to Linda, “she doesn't blame me.  Morgan.  I don't know how.  I just,” she hitched out another sob before continuing, “know how she feels.”  She had often felt sudden bursts of joy, or calm, or happiness.  But since her own emotions were so boundless and freely held, she never thought twice about them, but now that she did, she realized how sudden they were.
“I think things have calmed down.  We can continue to travel.”  Tracey said to the security team, who somewhat reluctantly began to start the convoy again towards the meeting point.