Author's note: I did left you hanging the last time, didn't I? Naughty! I have always wondered something that I'm sure many have too, and this might give some answers.
1. Saturn
The streets are empty, the action is somewhere else. No rush to get there, no tales to be told yet. The circus left a few weeks ago, but the legends are still here as well as the questions. Silence is wonderful to give it a thought, sometimes. How much had they changed in a few centuries? It seemed like forever. Jack had not contacted the rest of his crew in the States, probably because there was no need. The main "event" was far too busy taking care of three kids, so it had fallen into Gyoza. Not that he had complained about it, but Gyo was actually surprise to hear from his old friend and feared that he wasn't going to be the only one to be pleased with the news.
Moving one with his outstretched arms, Gyoza glanced from top of Zoom Comics and stared towards the manor called Hillhurst. The three local heroes were busy battling a whole squad of Crustaceans. Those kids could really own the show if they tried. Too bad he was busy with something else, or maybe not? A quick peek was no waste. Full speed it is!
Jo, Drew and Roland had been through a lot since they visit of the circus. The fight for the coins was in its peak, and it only got nastier day by day. Jo had not forgotten about the Wolf and Jack, but didn't had the heart to ask the phasm. Also, she feared that if the Crustaceans vanished, they no longer would have reasons to see the ghost and that thought was unsettling. Jo didn't want to say goodbye just yet. That little instant of distraction was almost enough for one dreg to have a clear shot, luckily Roland was also paying attention to put her out of harm's ways.
"Jo! Snap out of it!" said her friend and she nodded. "I can't be watching Drew's back and yours at the same time"
"Sorry" the girl got up and resumed the attack.
Gyoza chortled from his position. Those kids were really something. No wonder Blue was so interested in them. Oh! Spoke too soon. That second shot was too close to comfort. Perhaps it wasn't a bad idea to step in and put things at ease, so he could visit his friend without unwanted guests. That is if those kids would be in a different spot. Nothing too difficult for him to handle. If they weren't wearing those armors, Gyoza would have reconsidered as his speed was often too much for humans to bear, but it was a short distance and those kids were fully protected; so it just took him only a three seconds to put them in the safety of the manor. The enemies blinked, the Beetleborgs are gone and before their eyes was a strange octopus, a mischievous sneer in his eye-less face.
"Good afternoon, gents. Sorry to change today's menu, but I happen to be in the area and you are not welcome" the upper side of the octopus 'head opens revealing some white tentacles similar to a jellyfish's that sparkled like loose high wires. The dregs went pale and ran for the hills in seconds. It was a good thing the big ones weren't there. Apparently, Nukus was busy, and that worked just fine for Gyoza, as he closed the upper lid of his head and let out his signature chuckle. "Hope I didn't scare you, kids" the octopus smiled at the trio, as a pair of eye-looking dots appeared in his face. "I could have watched you doing your thing all day, but if there is something I don't like is unwanted crowds" Gyoza smiled more gently but had to step back when he noticed the weapon in Drew's hand. "Wow, easy! Easy now! I come in peace!"
"Who are you? And what are you?" apparently, Jo's brother didn't trust monsters from outside the manor.
"My name is Gyoza and I'm a visitor, of course. I have come to see an old friend" slowly moving his main tentacles, Gyoza decided to be polite.
"Oh, yeah? And how do we know you're on our side? You could be another of creations of the Crustaceans" these last days had been too hard for the kids. It wasn't a surprise their trust was hard to gain.
"Please! I'm too handsome to have come out of a comic page and I just made those jerks run like cows, I think that says everything. But if you don't believe me, you can ask your ghostly friend. I promise to wait here until you do" the octopus was actually hot from the heat, but refrained himself. "I have all day and night" Gyoza remained where he was. "I won't move from here"
"What do you think?" Drew whispered to Roland. The octopus watched them talk with a smile.
"Well, he did put us away and scared the dregs" admitted Jo.
"But we should be careful, just in case. You never know with the coins in range" suggested their friend. "Be right back"
"Take your time" Gyoza looked around and had an idea. "I'll be here when you return" he watched them go inside. "But first, let's make this wait a little easier"
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
"And look who's back!" Mums, the manor's living mummy, joked as soon as they walked in. The trio went to the nearest window and looked outside, once their armors were gone. Much to their surprise, Gyoza had somehow managed to get himself a parasol, drink, paper and a beach chair. "What are you brats looking at anyway? How many tanks you have destroyed? Hu? What is that?"
"That's what we're trying to figure out" answered Roland.
"He just camped in our front yard! Who does that thing think he is?" Mums growled.
"Vho did vhat?" Fangula, the manor's vampire, walked to the window followed by the rest of the monster gang. "Ouh! Is dat a giant rubber ducky? Or taffy?"
"Ducky!" shouted Frankenbeans, the resident Frankenstein monster.
"Not really, big guy" the mummy corrected him.
"Rararara?" asked Wolfgang, the werewolf.
"No, no taffy either" replied the vampire.
"It's more like an octopus. He said he was visiting" Drew was surprised. How had Gyoza managed to prepare all that in so little time? "Any idea of who he is?"
"Not a clue" admitted the vampire. "And he doesn't efen look edible"
"He just scared a whole bunch of dregs. Try that for size, blood sucker!" joked Little Ghoul, receiving a snarl. "Come to think of it, I once heard about a strange octopus moving through the East Coast"
"You did?" Jo looked at her.
"Just rumors, but apparently it had been living near New York for centuries" Ghoul shrugged.
"GUYS, WE WON! YES! TAKE THAT! WE… Where did everybody go? Guys? What? What's going on here?" Flabber, the resident phasm, finally made it to the parlor and was surprised to find that nobody was there. When he saw them at the window, he felt aghast. "Uh, guys! C'mon, don't let me hanging! What are you all looking at? Flowers grow? The clouds on the horizon? It's nice but not that… nice. Well, blast me for a fool. I'll be a monkey's uncle!" the phasm had recognized their visitor.
"You know him?" asked Drew.
"Course! But I haven't seen him in a really long time" the ghost went thoughtful. "He just got here?"
"So we think. Said his name was Gyoza or something like that, and he scared the lights of the dregs" explained Jo and Flabber let out a giggle. "What?"
"Gyoza is a Japanese dish, it's like a white pasty. They call him that because his head does look like that when he's not doing his 'nice' camouflage" explained the ghost. "That is not his real looking, trust me. It's much bigger and terrifying"
"Told you he was trouble!" reasoned Drew.
"Uhm, yes and no. He's not what you think" Flabber corrected them. "But why are we keeping him outside? I didn't know you wanted roasted octopus for dinner! Let him in already!"
"Count me in for dinner!" yelled Fang.
"Two!" joined Mums.
"Four!" Frankie applauded.
"Rarararara!" Wolfie barked.
"You guys just can't take a hint, can you?" grumbled Little Ghoul while the kids followed their mentor to the door. Flabber's face was unreadable, for the first time in years. As if something he had waiting for a long time had come to pass at last. When they opened, all the atrezzo was gone and only the octopus was left, flashing his best smile. The phasm and Gyoza shared a silent look.
"Koro" said the ghost.
"Hy-as'Klale" smiled the octopus speaking in Chinook. After a few seconds, they both shared a tight hug. "Blue, old chap! You've grow smaller and fatter, too!" joked Gyoza.
"You surely have lost a few pounds! When was the last time we wrestled like this?" Flabber countered.
"Uh, let me think. Oregon, check. Juan de Fuca plaque? Check. Umm. Ah, yes! That great earthquake, remember?" smiled the octopus. "That was between shows in Mysteria. Until I had to leave because of that issue in Boston with the tea. I've been very busy since that and I still can't stand coffee. Yuck!"
"Now, that was one to remember. Good times! But, uh, why are we standing in the heat! Come inside, you uber-squid! C'mon! We have a lot to catch up!" they all went to the parlor.
"Jack told me about his visit months ago, but I'm delighted to finally get to meet your three young heroes, Blue" Gyoza was truthfully delighted. "Glad I could be of assistance"
"Guys, you know what to do. Try to be nice" Flabber encouraged them and they nodded. "This is Drew"
"Hi" whispered Josephine's brother. The octopus smiled politely and moved on to the next one.
"Roland" they were introduced one by one.
"Hey! Uh, nice to meet you" the mentioned boy gave out a smile.
"Same here, kiddo" the octopus nodded and eased him.
"And Jo" the ghost touch made the girl snigger a little.
"Hello" she backed up slightly when he saw Gyoza stretching his head to have a good look. The octopus was as elastic as his friend, even more. Koro smiled and winked, making her to lose her fear.
"Pleasure to meet you, miss. And I take it that those are your room mates. Madsen told me something about it" he went thoughtful. The monsters shared a few glances. "I usually perform at Mysteria, but problem is I can be too far from my turf or complications pile-up. Is hard to keep peace in the East Coast. Not like I'm the local hero, never, but still. Sometimes I do miss Hokkaido, my dear Uchiura Bay, the Ainu people and Sapporo. Oh, dear! Now I'm getting sappy" Koro brought out a handkerchief from his strange black coat and Flabber smiled.
"Wait, so you're from Japan?" asked Drew.
"Hai! Sōdesu!" nodded Gyoza replying in his mother tong. "I go back every now and then, but not as often as I would like. I got kicked out by a rival monster some centuries ago, much to my embarrassment, and I had to settle in America. Luckily, Blue here is more a sparring partner than an adversary, so I can have a little peace in my yard"
"Yeah, right. Flabber? Sparring partner? Monsters?" the three kids looked at their friends. "He's not much into giving punches, that's for sure, nor in being scary"
"Votes on that" said Mums and all the monsters rose their hands in the air, even the stone gargoyle.
"Guys, really! Ok, that's enough for today! Koro, do you mind?" asked the ghost.
"Private talking? And a bathtub? Dibs! See you kids later!" smiled the octopus and they left the room to have some catching up. The teenagers watched them and wondered what did they had to talk about. What was Gyoza doing in the other side of the country? And how where Flabber and him friends?
"Hey, aren't we forgetting something?" the mummy suddenly realized.
"Vy all means!" Fangula nodded.
"Here we again" the kids knew the monsters had just opened the lounge, again.
Took me long. Yes, I know, but today I received the right amount of energy to get this started.
The sequel of Mysteria is bringing some lights and a few shadows.
See you soon!