Things Ain't Always What They Seem
A classic ghost story, with a twist...
Some Info:
This story was inspired by one of my favourite authors, Batmanskipper. The Halloween special story, All that's left, has given me great ideas so, I am here to see if I can make my own version. Thanks to Batmanskipper, if you're reading this, for that awesome story! Now, on to my usuals.
Summary:
Ten years after the mysterious disappearance of the entire population of Central Park Zoo, a penguin team of paranormal investigators decide to film the first episode of their show at this allegedly haunted zoo. But, when the strange happenings escalate, they will have to uncover what really happened there. Inspired by Batmanskipper's "All that's left".
Disclaimer:
I do not own The Penguins of Madagascar. It belongs to Tom McGrath, Eric Daniels, DreamWorks Animation and Nickelodeon. I only own my OCs.
Introduction:
The Paranormal Adventures Crew
So many things were going through his mind. He wanted to reconsider, but he had already told the whole world. He couldn't turn them down; his reputation would be ruined. He wanted to do so many things that he almost became indecisive. "Why am I so naive!" he would tell himself again and again. But who knows? It may not be a bad of a place as they say.
Zack Thompson was the leader of a small group he had formed called The Paranormal Adventures Crew, or The Penguin PAC for short. Why penguin? The only reason was because the crew members, including Zack, were penguins. Yet again, why penguins? That started a few years ago, after the Revolution of the Animal Kingdom.
The Revolution of the Animal Kingdom wasn't really a violent revolution. It was only proclaimed that title when humans found out animals were smarter than they ever thought, acting almost human to be exact. They discovered this during an experiment they did on animals, which involved trying to figure out what they were saying. Apparently, the animal test subjects weren't very creative when they tried escaping by hacking the laboratory's mainframe while being observed.
The humans were astounded by this act that they asked the animal that hacked the mainframe, who was a Chinstrap Penguin, if he would kindly help them in the development of a translator in exchange for his freedom. Since animals are able to understand humans and not vice versa, he agreed with a nod and surprisingly to the humans, a handshake. Nobody but him knows if hacking the mainframe in plain sight was part of his plan or not.
A few months later, they created what is now called the Socializer. This was literally a translator that could translate any animal's speech into human words, or English as they call it. Having kept their word, they gave the penguin his freedom and is now well-known in Antarctica as 'the one who started it all'. After word got out and the Socializers were handed out, humans and animals managed to learn to get along and even become friends, after a few years of getting used to it.
Zoos before that kept animals as 'exhibits' are now homes for animals that lived in the humans' territory. Animals who lived in them had more privacy, as the habitats were made more secure and private. Humans still viewed the inhabitants, but the feeling changed to when you would visit a friend's home. Everyone, animals and human alike, were happy.
When do the Penguin PAC come in? Well, they came into view just a few years after the revolution. You see, eight years after the revolution, a small group of paranormal junkies who had recorded countless videos of themselves exploring supposedly haunted caves in Antarctica went viral, and they got a chance to make an official show that was offered to them by the humans. They accepted, of course.
The crew included Zack, a Classified Penguin or Classic Penguin, Danny Baldwin, a Chinstrap Penguin, and Loretta Hudgens, a Macaroni Penguin. Zack had experience and knowledge of the paranormal after that day he fell into one of the haunted caves when he was young. Danny, or Dan as he prefers it, was the expert in all the video equipment they used and Loretta, or Lori as she likes it, was great with working with the audio equipment. Together, they were the Penguin PAC.
They all had decided to start the first episode of their show, titled "Paranormal Adventures", in a zoo that had been closed down for almost ten years. It had been closed since two years before the revolution started. Through some hefty research, some rumors and a desire to explore the abandoned zoo, they decided that that would be a great place to jumpstart their show.
The abandoned zoo was a pretty famous one even before it was abandoned. It was locally known as Central Park Zoo, New York. Based on research they had done, the reason why they had closed it down was because all the animal inhabitants just disappeared all at once. Where they disappeared to, nobody knows.
After the revolution two years past the day it was shutdown, some humans and even some animals tried to see if they could restore it and make it a habitable place. However, anyone who had entered never came back out. From rumors being spread throughout the city of New York, the animals that had disappeared years ago haunt the zoo, and that anyone who entered, joined them.
"So, are we all ready for this?" asked Zack in a confident yet uneasy voice. Right now, the Penguin PAC was just outside the locked gates of Central Park Zoo. The humans were kind enough to give them a key for the locks, so getting in wouldn't be such a problem. What worried Zack was getting out.
Zack was the median of the group, Lori being shorter than him and Dan being taller. He had flat-top hairstyle that spiked upwards slightly. His beak was short and stubby and his flippers were no longer than his waistline. He had a dark shade of emerald in his eyes and he has a small scar on his left side from falling into the cave years ago. He also had a slight American accent.
Dan wore a scarlet red bandana over his head to hide the messy plumage that resided there. Some still stuck out, but it was better than nothing. His black beak was not too long nor too short and his flippers were past his waistline by a small amount. His eyes were ocean blue and he also had a slight American accent.
Lori was the shortest in the group, which sometimes helped in tight situations. She had a slight hourglass shape and decently sized, slender flippers. Her beak was short and her longer head feathers hung down no further than where her neck ended. Her eyes were a revision of an autumn's day; a warm shade of hazel. She also had what sounded like a smooth, English accent.
"You bet your tail feathers I am..." replied Lori as she got out some of the equipment from their penguin-sized van.
Zack went over to the locked gates and Dan gave him a boost so that he could unlock the gates. "I hope this place isn't too bad. I mean, it's just an abandoned zoo..." said Dan as Zack managed to remove the locks and chain.
"Yeah. Plus, I really don't think ghosts can keep someone stuck somewhere. We've seen plenty and none of them wanted us to stay for good..." assured Zack. The two males then grabbed some equipment from the van. "Hey Dan, do you think you can try to film everything? That way, we can just choose the best parts and some random ones more easily..."
Dan nodded and grabbed the professional, penguin-sized camera with a spotlight from the van. He turned it on and checked to make sure the tape was in. "Ok. Rolling in 3...2...1...Action!" He pressed the record button and aimed it at Zack.
"Action? I thought that was for movie scenes..." Dan didn't seem to hear Zack's comment before he faceflippered and signaled the crew to enter the eerie confines of the abandoned zoo.
A/N: Ok, we are here with another story for the suspense fans! For those who love Batmanskipper's stories, here is my story inspired from one of them. Don't worry Batmanskipper, I will change the story, but some references from the one you made will be used differently, so I hope you don't mind. So, I am thanking you for that story for credit. R&R!