Ghosts of the Past

Alexnandru Van Gordon

Alex: You guys are so smart—someone guessed who the mysterious person was from the last chapter. So good…that was just so amazing. I applaud you and will tell the rest of the readers who you are, but I don't want them checking out the reviews before I tell them. Just read on.

Victor: I knew it! Will you tell us all the clues you set out?

Alex: Yep—a couple of times I even practically told you who it was. Just wait. I'll tell you when I'm finished the chapter! Yeah!

DISCLAIMER: Raise your hand if you think I own this…YOU—put down your hand!

CHAPTER FIVE: Fun time

"He's been yelling and thrashing about all morning." The doctor said with a noticeable gulp. It was obvious he entered the room right when they were trying to strap him to bed by the bruise growing on his left cheek. "I don't think now is the time to see him."

The Titans stood together in the doctor's office, along with a very ticked-off Red-X. If they didn't know any better, X could have been Robin's brother—he acted with the same attitude sometimes.

"Look—" Red-X slammed a hand down on the desk, leaning ominously close toward the startled doctor. "I need to see him now! Unless you want this city destroyed, I suggest you let us see him!"

"Is that a threat? I didn't think you would go so far as destroy a city."

"You punk!" Red-X exclaimed, being pulled back by Starfire and Cyborg before he could grab the nervous man's neck. "Slade will do that—not me! How dare you say such a thing! I'm gonna—"

"Leave." The doctor said nonchalantly. "We will be sure to call you back as soon as Robin is in a better condition. Until then, I hope the best for yourselves and your friend. He was progressing well until tonight."

Red-X froze and the others' were surprised by his action. "Why—what happened tonight?"

The doctor, straightening the papers on his desk before he sat down, paused at the question. "He said he saw Jacob—a dead relative of that Joyce girl he keeps seeing. And then he said he saw one of her younger brothers…Vincent or something like that."

Not even Starfire could hold X back when he suddenly slipped through their grasp. He stood at the front of the desk and leaned back toward the frightened doctor, his voice a little shaky. "Blond hair—blue eyes—thirteen?"

"Y-yes…Why?"

"That wasn't a ghost!"

The doctor frowned and straightened his jacket. "A person doesn't need to be dead for someone to imagine they're around."

"But that kid went missing last night!" X argued. "He could have come here!"

"Even so, you must wait while we question Robin further until we can determine if he was seeing things or not. Come back tomorrow afternoon and we'll tell you everything we learned."

"But—"

"We cannot say with certainty that what he saw was true."

"But—"

"Leave, thief, or I will see if we have room in this asylum for you. It is quite apparent that you have a few things wrong with your own mind."

"Why you—"

Starfire covered his mouth with her hand and, with her alien strength, dragged him from the room as he tried to break free—hell bent on strangling the doctor. The others follow quietly, just as uneasy. It was urgent that they talk to Robin, but a day wasn't as bad as a week, like some of their waits had been in the past. As long as he was safe, they had nothing much to worry about. Then again…Slade had been awful quiet since his escape. He was planning something, and when it hit them…

Doomsday.

-V-

When he woke, he was slightly choking and his head hurt. Someone was holding onto his hair to keep him standing on…a stool?

It was dark, but there was enough light to see that he wasn't alone as his vision focused, and it didn't take him long to realize that there was a noose tied around his neck, his hands tied behind his back. Straightening, he found he could breathe easier, but he almost had to stand on his toes to escape the rope around his throat. Off to the side, where the rope was tied, someone just outside his view pulled on the rope and Vincent choked slightly. Then a little slack was given, and the struggle lessened.

Where the hell was he?

"How long has it been since last I saw you, Vince?"

His eyes snapped back to the figure standing in front of him. Strolling out from the shadows was…

"Joyce?" He asked; eyes wide with shock and…confusion? He didn't know whether to be happy or afraid. She was dead…The sister he loved so much was long dead…

Dressed in the suit she wore as a hero in training, she held out her gloved hands and stared at them as lightning danced from one to the other. It had to be Joyce because only she and Vincent had those powers. Sure, his were weaker, but only Joyce could do a little trick like that without electrocuting herself.

"You know…I was always jealous of you, Vince." She began, still staring at the lightning. "You had two powers while I always thought I had one."

Thought…That meant—

"You have two?" He whispered. It made sense then…maybe. She could have had rejuvenating powers, but then how did that explain Jacob?

"Yep, Vince. I've got two."

Vincent paused…Joyce didn't call him Vince. Only his friends called him that—Joyce always loved to say his full name. After all, she was the one who picked the names for him and his twin brother Kyle.

Joyce walked toward Vincent and reached around his neck, under the rope, and took off the small chain he always wore. On it was a small lightning bolt charm, something that Joyce wore once for luck. The first time Joyce discovered she had powers, she accidentally electrocuted herself to the point where she landed herself in the hospital for a month. She couldn't explain it—no one could, and no one thought she was going to live. Their parents gave that to her when she first arrived in the Intensive Car Unit, trying to get over the fact that she might die. But she didn't. She lived and proved a lot of people wrong, continuing to work on her uncontrollable powers.

"I remember this…" The girl said with a faint smile, she held it in an open palm, looking at it like it meant everything in the world. "She gave this to you when she left for Gotham…"

Vincent just about had a heart attack. "Kyle!"

The supposed Joyce smiled and stepped back into the shadows. It seemed darker and Vincent thought it was his eyes…Then out came Kyle, dressed in a black sweater and jeans like Vincent, the gloves still on his hands. He finished putting the chain around his neck, an exact look-alike to Vincent, with his blues eyes alive in the oddest of ways. He was darker…he always had been a trouble maker and his attitude wasn't the best, but…Kyle and Vincent were the best of friends since they could first walk. This couldn't be Kyle…

"You look disappointed." Kyle snapped, a small frown covering his face. "First you leave me to train for justice like that electric witch did, and then you can't even give me the simplest of hellos? I thought we were brothers."

"Then why didn't you come…I don't understand. Why are you doing this?"

Kyle laughed, tapping his right temple with an index finger. "You forget—our family has a mental history. I suppose that's why you're so shy…"

"That still doesn't explain why you're doing this! You sent an innocent boy to the asylum!"

Kyle could only laugh again, placing a foot on the stool and tipping it forward. Vincent struggled to stay standing, the noose choking him again. "I want everyone to suppose, because I had to. We were always outcasts because of what we could do, and not to mention Joyce left us to save lives. Then you get up and go, always the better child of the two of us. You had two powers, you always had the best marks in school, mom and dad paid attention to you—it's no wonder they let you stay in Gotham while I had to ride back home with two dead bodies to bury." He leaned the stool further forward and Vincent was almost cut off from air completely. "Then I found out that—not only did I have selective intangibility like you, but—I could look, sound, and feel like anyone."

Kyle lifted his foot from the stool and it fell back, jerking at Vincent's neck painfully. At least he could breathe again. "Then explain the lightning." He asked; voice hoarse before he cleared it. "Can you copy powers?"

"That's what I had problems with." He raised his hands and should the gloves. "Slade made these—it contains a hundred times as much electricity than that of what our dear sister could produce in a month. He electrocuted her as he strangled her—and I've been dying to find out whether the broken neck or the electrocution killed her first. Tell me—do you know?"

Slade…Slade killed her? He always thought it was an accident—that perhaps she had outdone herself again. The bullet in Jacob's head and the gun Joyce supposedly carried around with her said enough for his death—Joyce shot him, but Slade…

He killed her.

Vincent fought the tears, staring down at the ground. He was trying to phase through the rope, but something was wrong…

Kyle noticed the look on his face and smiled. "Seeing that you can't ghost through family, I smeared the rope around your neck with blood from a cut I made on your arm. The stool is perfectly fine, so go ahead and phase through that if you want. You can hang yourself—I promise not to stop you."

"You bastard…" Vincent growled. If he wasn't hanging, he would have kicked the boy in the mouth. "They know I'm gone—Robin saw. When he tells them and I don't show up, they'll know he's not insane—and if I escape I'll only tell them. Go ahead and kill me. This game of yours is over."

"Not my game…" Kyle grinned and the second figure walked around Vincent into his view. It was none other than Slade himself. "This is the master of the games—Vincent, meet Slade."

Vincent was lost for words. Here was his sister's murderer standing not five feet away from him and he was powerless to do anything about it. He was as good as dead…what did it matter anymore.

"You're game is the one that's over." Kyle continued, looking more serious. "I don't need my powers to look like you, and I've got the chain for proof. I'm going to stroll right in to the T-tower and make up some lie to counter whatever Robin tells them—and the real game will continue. But I must admit—you almost spoiled it all. You gave me the scare of my life when you showed up at the asylum."

He could have stopped this—he could have stopped Kyle!

He frowned, still fighting back tears. "And what about mom and dad—they're not stupid. They know you're insane."

"Mom and dad…" Kyle looked to Slade who gave a small nod—making Kyle smile again. "They're off visiting Joyce. I can't be sure when they'll return, but maybe you'll get to see them sooner than later. It all depends where she is—heaven or hell."

He wanted to hang himself then…but suicide was the unforgivable sin. At least if he let them kill him, hell would seem farther than heaven. He'd been good during his life—maybe he could see his family in heaven. All that was missing was his older brother in prison and his lunatic older twin, Kyle—but they would land in hell with Jacob, his cousin. It was unfair that his family should suffer so much…but bad things happen all the time.

"You're going to answer every question I ask you." Slade said, seeing the look of defeat on the boy's face. "Because there are three outcomes once I push the stool out from under you. A) The rope with strangle you; B) the drop will break your neck; or C) the rope will snap. But I doubt the third will happen. Now…" Slade turned toward Kyle, the good little soldier he was. "I believe your brother's visit will merit some curiousity all the same. I think it's time to return what was taken from me."

Kyle nodded his head. "I'll go get him after I lead the Titans off." His eyes fell on Vincent. "Have fun while I'm gone, bro. And if I don't get to see you again—then goodbye!"

How could he…After all that they had been through together when they were younger—how could he just leave his family to die? How could he want them dead?

Vincent's eyes fell to the ground once more as Kyle left him…Perhaps now he would die before the insanity plagued his mind too. Joyce moved too late, refusing to take the pills she needed, going insane until it drove her to murder Jacob. Jacob had it coming, and Kyle was going to do all he could before it killed him to. At least Kyle would die with a clean mind. At least he wouldn't betray anyone…

-R-

The pills did nothing for him. The doctors said they would help him—but they weren't. They only made his body temperature drop and rise with mere seconds between the changes. He had such a terrible headache and sleep refused to claim him. He had been strapped down to the bed almost the entire day, released only once to eat and relieve himself of his digested water. Then he was strapped down again, and since then all he could feel was a fever. No matter what he did, he felt so hollow and sore inside.

Freedom seemed like an impossible dream.

No one believed him…No one believed him…Not one person believed him! And where were his friends…his team? He had given everything to lead them right—had given everything to make sure they were well. There was no way he would do this to one of them, but here they were…

…betraying him.

What were friends? They claimed to be his, but they acted nothing like they should have. They didn't even have the decency to visit him when he asked the doctor to call for them. Even if they didn't believe him again, it would have been comforting to have them there to talk to him. No one wanted to talk to him…

To them he spoke nonsense.

He didn't like playing this game…He was losing and he couldn't afford to lose.

His sanity depended on it.

-X-

He was so upset…he refused to talk to anyone. He sat on the couch and spoke to no one, ignoring anything anyone said to him. Arms crossed, masked eyes fixed on the window, he just pretended he was a statue. This world was so goddamn foolish. This was an emergency and that idiot doctor wouldn't listen!

"X…?"

That voice was hard to ignore.

Red-X snapped up and glanced over his shoulder at Vincent. The boy just entered, looking a little roughed-up like had had next to no sleep since last night. Who could blame him? He was at the asylum…or so Robin claimed.

"Where have you been?" X asked, standing and walking over to the boy. The other's looked up from what they were doing, eager to hear if the doctor had been right in what he said. "Robin said you were at the asylum."

The boy scratched the back of his head, his voice as soft as usual. "I was? No…I was…lost."

His shoulder's fell and he just gave up right then and there. So Robin was crazy after all. Did that mean his plan—whatever it was—would fail, or was it brilliant? X wanted to know, but that would have to wait…It would have to wait until tomorrow afternoon.

"Hey—where are you going?" X called after the boy, watching as he strode toward the hall.

"I'm going to lie down." The boy yawned. "I've been walking around since yesterday, and I can barely move my feet…if, of course, it's okay with you?"

X nodded. The boy would need his rest after coming all the way over to Jump City for nothing. He needed time to think anyway…

What was to become of Robin?

-K-

Kyle, of course, went down the hall and phased through the walls, walking through Cyborg's room and out the other end until he found his way outside. Then he headed for the asylum. It was a long walk, but no one bothered to stop him—after all, he looked perfectly normal to the human eye. Back where he lived, he might have received an odd look, seeing that his sister's powers weren't exactly a well-kept secret thanks to the news, but here was different. No one knew that he was going to help a perfectly insane man kill or torture them to no end.

How…tragic.

He came to the back of the asylum, watching out for guards as he phased through the ground and made his way around in blank darkness until he was sure he was under the prison, then, seeming to float, his head popped up from the ground and he found himself in an empty hallway. Grinning, he pulled himself up and stood, brushing himself off as his appearance slowly melted into that of a young man, dressed in a white suit that most doctors wore. Then, hands behind his back, he strolled off out of the security camera's blind spot. It blinked when he finally came into view and nothing.

Another doctor turned the corner, bidding Kyle a good-morning. He returned the gesture and started his search for Robin's cell. It was close to the center of the building, near to where Slade's own cell had been. He was going to get the Boy Wonder out the same way he let the villain out.

Finding the room, Kyle watched the camera in the upper corner of the hall as it turned to stare down another hall before phasing through the door. Robin was muttering something in his sleep, a strait jacket on and straps pinning him down to the bed. The night was just upon them and Robin was lost in his nightmares, sweating slightly as he strained against the leather restraints.

Kyle reached into his pocket and produced a gag. With it in both hands, he slowly crept up toward Robin and lowered it toward his face—fitting it into his moth just as he woke.

"Murrph!" Robin exclaimed; struggling again as Kyle tied the gag behind his head.

"Relax…" He laughed gently. "I'm here to return you to your master…"

-R-

Anything but this…Anything would have been better than this. He would have rather stayed in the asylum for the rest of his life—just not Slade!

Please…no…

-A-

Victor: The one who guessed right was…drum roll please…Aeris-Raven! Yeah! She picked it up.

Alex: Now for the CLUES:

1) In the last chapter of Pieces of the Puzzle, you learn that Kyle and Vincent can ghost through certain objects at will. When Slade escaped from prison, I hope you guys asked yourself how he had done such a thing. Besides, with Kyle disguised as his sister, the first thing he asked Wintergreen was: "What does he think? Shall I continue, or am I a failure like everyone else?" Didn't you wonder what he/she had done before he was sent to drive Robin nuts at the mall? The kid ghosted Slade through the wall—and you'll find out how he discovered Slade and Wintergreen in the first place later on in the story.

2) In my last sentence of the second chapter, I bet you guys thought I made a mistake. I said: Relaxing her powers, he headed off to rest. He relaxed his powers—he was himself again. I did that a second time in the chapter three: He needed to rest again like every times a job needed to be done…Shall I continue with the clues?...

3) HW kept disappearing whenever Robin tried to tell his friends he was seeing her—like in the hospital. All the boy had to do was ghost through the floor or the wall to leave, making it seem like Robin was seeing things.

4) When Vincent snuck into the asylum to see Robin, he panicked when he saw his brother as Jacob and started to fall through the floor. Even though he was becoming intangible, "Jacob" was able to body-check him through the floor without going through Vincent. Remember? The boys can't ghost through family and you know Jacob was dead. That only left Kyle and his parents, but not even HW mentioned when she was alive that her parents had powers. She mentioned Kyle, Vincent and her older brother in Pieces of the Puzzle, but nihil about her folks.

5) (I didn't expect you guys to pick this one up) When Robin sees HW at the music shop, she doesn't have her mask on. He sees that her eyes are blue—when HW's eyes should really be a dull gray. Vincent and Kyle have blue eyes, not their sister.

Alex: That's all I can remember setting up so far. This chapter was longer than usual, so I hope you enjoy it. The fanfic server seems to be slow as of lately. I keep getting alerts a day late or so…If anyone else too, please send me a message so that I know I'm not going insane.

Thanks,

Alexnandru Van Gordon,

And

Victor Van Heiring