The three vulture ghosts kept their wings flapping, though since they were ghosts, they didn't need to move their wings to fly. They had just finished a night at the lodge. It had been fairly uneventful – a few of the other vultures had discussed their latest hauntings over a plate of ghost-mice, and they'd all talked about all the things that were wrong with The Ghost Zone these days. Now they were on their way home. Unfortunately, as all three of them were 1,995 years old, remembering where there home was and how far it was from the lodge became a bit difficult. One of them was always in charge of leading the way, and they rotated every week. This week, it was the bald one's turn. And he had decided to lead them on a detour. A detour that had lasted for four hours now. The other two were growing impatient.
"We've passed that door five times now!" the one with hair and a normal beak said, pointing to a nearby church door. "And we've been out here for hours!"
"I know it's around here somewhere!" the bald one said absentmindedly, searching around.
"You've been saying that for 120 years! We haven't found anything once! Face it! There's no natural gateway to Florida around here!"
"No, no! I saw it! I was there! Orange groves, beaches, senior citizens, everything! I know it's here!"
"You so do not!" the third vulture with a bent beak piped up.
"You're almost 2,000 years old and you're losing your mind!" the one with a straight beak added. "We go through this every week when it's your turn to take us home! We're lucky we ever find our way back to the lodge, let alone our nest!"
"Oh?" the bald vulture, now growing irritated, turned to face his two companions, "You think you can find the way home! We once got lost for a week in a box-world because of you! That blue whippersnapper we ran into never shut up once! It's my night to lead us home, and we're going to look for that gateway to Florida!" a loud snap went off near them, and instantly the three had something else on their mind.
"You boys hear something?" the vulture with the bent beak asked. Suddenly, a blue ghost net sprung out, seemingly from nowhere, and snagged all three of them. They frantically tried to escape, pecking at the net and pulling at it with their legs, but there was no escape. They were trapped like rats, and soon got a look at their captors. One was a walking suit of fearsome battle armour, attached to the net by a cable extending from his left arm. The other was a cultured-looking man with long, neat hair, a grey fedora with a rose on it, and a long black overcoat covering an Armani suit.
"Not much for brains, strength, or anything else," the cultured man smirked, "But they'll do for errands. Bring them," the armour drifted forward towards the net obediently, wearing his own nasty smirk that sent all three vultures into a cold tremor.
---
"Excellent!" Technus cried, "As a ghost, I, Technus, have far more control over my beautiful technology than I could ever hope to obtain in the real-world!" it was true. As a ghost, Technus had the ability to manipulate and control any form of electrical technology that was from the real world. He could activate them, make them levitate, give them spectral power, and bring them to him. Endless possibilities lay before him with these powers. He could build his battle suit. He could assemble the greatest display of technology ever prepared. And he no longer had need for an Ultra-Computer. With his ghost-powers, he could spread his intellect to all machines with ease.
"Time to begin!" Technus declared aloud for himself, "For I, Technus, now ghost-master of all things electronic and beeping, must set out to find a large gathering of technology as a means by which to build myself…" he heard a crash go off behind him, and he whirled around. He saw no one.
"Who dares to interrupt me, Technus, Master of Science and electrical technology?" he yelled, his Electro-staff materialising in his hand. No one came out to face him. One red blast of ectoplasm did, however. Technus went crashing up against a door, his Electro-staff falling into The Ghost Zone. A black box came flying towards him from the same direction, opening up and expanding as it headed towards him. Before Technus could move, he had been trapped within the box.
"Wha…" he muttered. He had tried to fire off an ecto-blast to free himself, but nothing had happened. "This box is disrupting my new, groovy ghost powers! How the…" he looked up. His two captors had drifted out of the shadows. One he did not recognise – the walking suit of battle armour. But his second captive was a very familiar face.
"Vlad?" Technus said, astonished, "What are you doing here?" his old partner didn't answer. Instead, he just chuckled and shot Technus a devilish grin.
---
The ghost-bison leapt out from behind the bushes and onto the dirt path, red eyes frantically darting around in an attempt to find a hiding place. When it could find one, it took off down the dirt path, adrenaline pushing it forward at a faster pace than it could usually manage. The source of his terror was not far behind.
A ghost vehicle that resembled a hunting jeep save for a more technological look plowed through the bushes that the bison had come from and pulled out onto the dirt road. Behind the wheel was a ferocious-looking mechanical being with his right hand on the wheel and his left hanging out of the jeep, trying to fire off a ghost-net built into his arm. In the back was a well-dressed man with long hair and an unshaven face, who watched the bison in front of the jeep intently.
"Fire," the man said nonchalantly to the mechanical figure. The robotic being grinned and stretched his left arm out, tightening his hand into a fist. A long cord shot out from his arm, and at the end of it was a blue glowing ghost net. The bison saw the net out of the corner of its eye. With one last burst of adrenaline it tried to escape, but to no avail. The rope closed around it, and it fell to the ground, trapped.
The jeep pulled off to the side of the path, coming to a screeching halt. The mechanical being leapt out of the jeep and ran over to the captured prey, while the long-haired man gracefully flew out and floated over. He remained hovering just above his terrified captive, letting a small smile come to his face as his robotic minion prepared to hit the button on his arm that would electrocute the net.
---
Vlad, Luchesi, and the don's seven advisors stood just outside the Family's building, Vlad out in front of the eight leaders of the mob with his arms crossed. He had a serene look on his face as he took in the sight before him. Luchesi had the same bulldog appearance as he always did, looking as though he wanted to get back inside. Six of the advisors stood intently and obediently, stoic looks on their faces. Tony was noticeably jittery, taking great care to throw Vlad a dirty look every few seconds. His hands had a tight grip on an edition of The Ghost-Zone Times with the headline "DISAPPEARANCES REACH THIRD MONTH."
That headline led to a hint of maliciousness filtering into Vlad's expression. He had taken up reading that paper, and he had been at the Order's sanctuary earlier that week to look up a lead on Pariah's Keep and had overheard Arthur and Majeed talking. Word of his and Skulker's little hunting party had spread quickly. All over The Ghost Zone people were talking about the mysterious disappearances that had been happening as of late. Ghosts of all kinds had been vanishing without a trace. It happened in the territory of the Order. It happened in areas that were run by the Family. Members of both the Order and the Family had been counted among those missing. Even Walker had lost a few men. And the Order was the only one with a lead – the disappearances were similar to the ones near Skulker's lair. But that was all they knew. And it was all Vlad wanted them to know…for now.
"So what is this all about?" Luchesi suddenly asked in a heated voice. "Why couldn't we do this inside?"
"I'm sure you remember a little promise you made me a few years ago?" Vlad began cordially, letting his grin slip into a slyer look. "I saved Tony's life, and you said that I was owed a debt of gratitude? That if there was ever anything I ever needed to benefit myself I needed only to ask it of you, and I would have it?"
"So I did." Luchesi nodded. "I suppose that's what this is all about. But why couldn't we have done all this inside?"
"I've given this a lot of thought," Vlad went on as though Luchesi had said nothing. "It's getting rather risky for me to personally be committing all these heists and thefts. After all, I am the one running Dalv Corp now. Even with my ghost-powers there's always the chance that something could go wrong, and if I were even so much as vaguely connected with any of these little robberies, it could be quite embarrassing. It may even compromise our entire deal. And I still have the Order to worry about…"
"Why don't you leave then?" Tony suddenly quipped. "They allow resignations. Or aren't you after something for yourself there?" An unnatural silence fell over all of them. Vlad met Tony's glare and raised one eyebrow in response. The other six advisors all took one step back in perfect unison. And Luchesi suddenly rounded on Tony and slapped him hard across the face.
"Whatsa matter with you?" the don snarled. "Enough of all of this shifty-eyed nonsense of yours!" he turned back to Vlad, instantly calming down.
"So what is it you want for this little problem?" he asked calmly.
"Oh, it's nothing, really," Vlad chuckled. "I just need my own men. A group of people who will report to me and me alone, whom I can put on anything I need them to do, and who will be considered as my personal employees." He made sure to put just the right amount of emphasis into that word "personal." Vlad watched smugly as Tony's eyes seemed to nearly pop out of his head. He could also sense a change in the don's attitude as well. Luchesi showed no signs of fear, but Vlad could see that suspicion now rested in the mob boss's eyes. Vlad had asked for a deal that was entirely one-sided. There were no loopholes he left open for exploitation, no overlooked details that the Family could use to make sure he stayed in line. And Vlad had gotten a good enough measure of Luchesi to know that the don couldn't back out of his debt to Vlad without impugning his "honour."
There was only one hole in the deal that Vlad had left open for the don to exploit…and Vlad already knew how to patch it up.
"You sure you want this as our deal?" Luchesi finally asked. He made an attempt to hide his suspicion, but a bit of it couldn't help but leak out into his tone. "Well, I am bound to grant this to you. But I am afraid that our own boys are stretched rather thin as it is. It may take quite some time to get you your men." Vlad could tell instantly that Luchesi was lying. He had been in the business world for several years now and had gotten quite used to all of the things Luchesi said to keep the Family in power. He knew a prevaricator when he saw one.
Fortunately, it didn't matter.
"Oh, that's quite alright," Vlad said, placing his hands behind his back. "I've taken the liberty of…hiring a few people myself. And that," he moved his hands out in front of him, rolling back his left sleeve to reveal his watch, "is why we couldn't do this inside." He lifted his watch up towards his face, hit a small button on the side, and gave the members of the mob one last sly grin before speaking into his timepiece.
"Come in."
The door that led outside to the main realm of The Ghost Zone opened, and Skulker, in a newly crafted, finely polished, and fully operational battle suit, jumped down and landed next to Vlad, a nasty grin on his face. In his wake followed three old ghost-vultures wearing fezzes, which flew down and perched themselves on the roof of the Mafia's headquarters. After them came a ghost-squid of impressive size and with one eye. Following the squid, there was a ghost-wolf, and then came Skulker's two ecto-pusses. The next ghost to come had all of the mob members standing with their jaws hanging open, and Vlad delighted in their shock. This next ghost was the Family's own Eel.
One by one strange and bizarre animal-ghosts began to fly into the space, either landing behind Vlad on the cobblestone road around the Mafia's headquarters or perching themselves along the roof of the building. Their numbers continued to multiply, and Vlad watched as the eight most important members of the Family grew more panicked. Tony had pulled a handkerchief from his jacket and had begun to dab at the sweat forming on his face, shaking worse than ever. The six other advisors conversed among one another in hushed whispers. And Luchesi, though he tried his best to keep himself reserved, still radiated with an aura of suspicion, and he cast a curious expression in Vlad's direction. Vlad could sense that the paternal attitude that Luchesi had taken towards him would not last much longer. But that didn't concern him. The don still wasn't as apprehensive as Tony. He wasn't even as nervous as the other six advisors. If Luchesi hadn't caught on to what Vlad could do and planned to do by this point, he wouldn't prove himself a burden now.
"Do we have a deal?" Vlad asked cordially, bringing himself back into focus.
"Done." Luchesi nodded simply and sighed. "If you will excuse us now, Vlad, we will be heading inside." The don turned sharply and marched for the door, his seven henchmen following in his wake. Tony took the time to give one last haunted glare in Vlad's direction before stepping inside at the end of the line, shutting the door behind him.
Vlad watched the Mafia figures slip back into their headquarters contentedly, amusement flowing throughout his body. All was going as he needed it to be.
"Now just so we're clear…" the ghost-vulture with a straight beak and hair flew up to Vlad's side "…Thursday is still lodge night, yes?"
"Yes." The smile fell from Vlad's face. "And ask me that again, and I'll let Skulker turn you into his next night's supper." He watched as the vulture turned to look at a grinning Skulker, who had produced a fork and knife from two compartments on his lower wrists. The vulture quickly flew back to the roof, and Vlad turned curtly to face his many minions.
"Let's go." He kicked down hard and lifted up off the ground, heading out the door to the outside realm that had foolishly been left open. Skulker, the vultures, and all the other beasts were quick to follow, the last one out remembering to shut the door this time.
---
Katou calmly flew through The Ghost Zone, a map held out in front of him to guide him to his destination. It had been quite a long time since he'd been on a lone flight like this.
The spread of the mysterious disappearances over the past few months had him and the founding council out on search parties, trying to find a trace of the vanished or evidence of the culprit. Thus far, they had been unsuccessful. Early in the quest, the usual suspects were quickly eliminated – both Walker and the Family had suffered losses at the hands of the mystery abductor. And the vanishings themselves were unlike anything that had been encountered before. The only similar incidents on record were a series of abductions at one of the far ends of the Order's territory, but even these weren't the same. The hulking metal scraps that appeared to be pieces of a larger design no longer appeared. And though the few signs left by the earlier disappearances had suggested an advanced being or tool at work, what was left in these incidents made the previous evidence look prehistoric. There was clearly a highly advanced technological force behind all this, of the kind that the Order deemed unethical, Walker deemed illegal, and the Family deemed unwise to use in the name of their "business" ventures.
Three months out now, and they had come by nothing. Ghosts of all kinds had continued to vanish, and just two weeks ago, a scout who had once been Majeed's apprentice had come by what was left of a ghost who had been shot with some sort of blast and left to decompose. Examinations of the wound revealed that it was not from any known weapon used by the Order, the Family, or Walker, and it did not appear to be a spectral blast fired by another ghost. There were no other signs that would suggest a struggle. And the blast looked similar enough to evidence from the disappearances to suggest a connection, yet it appeared to come from a different kind of device. The reason for the change in tools and the fact that this ghost was destroyed, not abducted, made absolutely no sense. Only two explanations had been inferred – this ghost had been murdered by a different force with similar tools, or the ghost behind the abductions was testing new weaponry.
With all that had been going on with that situation, it seemed a bit superferlous to be worrying about a portal to the real world, but this was not an ordinary portal. It was much larger in size than any other gateway known, and it was not natural. It had broken into The Ghost Zone from the real world, rather than a doorway in The Ghost Zone filtering out into the real-world through some connection or other on the part of the ghost that lived behind that door. An artificial portal was not something to be taken lightly, and Katou had offered to investigate.
Arthur and Manach had suggested that Katou send Vlad out to look into this, as he had his own artificial portal, but as Vlad wasn't yet a member of the Order, Katou objected to it. Despite the tensions between them, Katou still held out hope that his apprentice could repent and become a member of the Order. He had not yet told the other members of the founding council about his dispute with Vlad for a number of reasons, but he had not yet lost all faith in his apprentice. But his worry had continued to build. He knew that Vlad had least some involvement in the Guyart incident, and that meant he had ties to the Family. There was no way that Vlad would ever forgive Jack, and that would always be a tragic flaw that could lead him to temptation. And there was something about Vlad's career as a CEO in the real world that did not seem right to Katou.
Something was amiss about his apprentice. And he had thus far found himself without the heart to press the matter as hardly as he should have.
He cleared his mind of those thoughts as he looked down toward his map and back up again. Right in front of him was a swirling vortex of bright green and white in an octagonal shape. Tucking the scrap of parchment away in his cloak, Katou stepped inside. A short distance ahead of him were sliding doors in the same octagon-shape, marked with diagonal yellow-and-black stripes. The doors were shut tight, but that was not of any concern. Katou drew his sword, wedged into the thin line where they met, and once he had opened up enough space, he pushed the doors aside and stepped out into the real-world.
He found himself in a large, dimly lit laboratory, the floor tiled in dark marble. The ceiling was high above the floor, odd and bizarre tools and devices connected to it by wires, cables, mechanics, and some kind of system designed to lower the objects. Three curved tables arranged in a circular shape were right before Katou, holding test tubes, beakers, notes, a microscope, controls to some gadget or other, and an unmarked container. Another table up against the wall on the left side of the room held more beakers. The far side of the lab held a cold, hard slab meant to serve as a bed. On the right side there were three large generators and more controls. By the controls was the hard steel door out of the lab. And scattered throughout, on tables, up against walls, and on the floor, were strange and advanced-looking guns, lasers, and weapons unlike anything Katou had ever seen.
The samurai took in the sight before him as well as he could, but there was an unnerving quality to this place. The only light source he could discern was the glow from the portal behind him, which cast long shadows and an eerie tint across the lab. The tools, devices, and weapons scattered throughout did not appear human or Earthly. A ghostly hum emitted from the portal behind him. And he could have sworn that behind the door to the lab, he had heard a mournful howl.
There the howl went again.
And again.
And yet a fourth time.
What was this place?
Drawing his sword again as a precaution, Katou floated over and phased through the door. When he saw what was on the other side, he couldn't help but fumble with his blade.
It was another dark room, long and dimly lit by flickering red lights. Strapped down to surgery tables by unbreakable ghost-braces, at least twenty-five ghost-animals were confined. An additional twelve were shoved against the wall, kept in cages. But these in cages were not normal. Some had extra or missing eyes. Some had no eyes at all. One ghost-bear had a third limb, and a ghost-rabbit was freakishly large and its teeth had become sharp. Some ghosts were bits and pieces of several animals, assembled together to create the most foul and grotesque beasts imaginable. All the ghosts strapped down had panic in their eyes, letting out howls and cries for help.
Katou summoned back his composure and tightened the grip on his sword. There was only one thing to do. But before he could cut the first restraint, the door slid open behind him. He quickly whirled around, stepping into a defensive position, ready to ward off whatever may have been behind him…
…And he found Vlad Masters standing in the doorway.
"Vlad?"
Katou stepped down out of his defensive stance, but regarded his apprentice with both surprise and concern. He had rarely ever seen Vlad in human form save for brief instances when Vlad used it as a tactic in training, so just seeing him with white hair was unusual. And today, Vlad was clad in a white labsuit with a black lapel, black gloves, black boots, and a black belt. The shirt of his labsuit hung down to just above the top of his thighs, held in place by the belt. The suit was hazmat and clung to his form, and it made Vlad seem better built than his usual Armani suit did.
He had his hands clasped behind his back and his one eyebrow arched high, daggers shooting out of his eyes towards the samurai.
"What brings you to these parts?" he cooed.
"Your new portal didn't go unnoticed." Katou pulled himself together with a simple breath. "I came to see where it led."
"Well, I think you've found that out now, hmm?" His tone clearly indicated how he felt on Katou's staying here, but the samurai was not through yet.
"What is all this?" he motioned behind him towards the Hell in the back of the room. Vlad paid it no mind. He didn't even blink.
"I was not the one to…make the modifications, if that's what you're getting at. The way in is also the way out." He pointed back towards the portal, once again letting the daggers of his eyes fly at the samurai. Katou locked onto Vlad's gaze as he slowly re-sheathed his blade. The two held their glares for a small eternity, the fires in neither of their eyes cooling.
Finally, never taking his eyes off his apprentice, Katou bowed cordially, passed Vlad, and moved toward the portal. The second he stepped out of the room, he heard the doors slide shut behind him. Vlad had not followed him out.
Katou began to walk towards the portal when his foot disturbed one of the weapons lying on the floor. A shot of hot red laser went off, leaving a scorch mark on the metal rim around the portal.
Katou eyed the mark as red smoke drifted from it and became one with the air. He knew that mark. He had seen it and others like it many times. And many times it had been recorded as evidence for the strange disappearances throughout The Ghost Zone.
The samurai did not let his expression change. He did not let a glint of fear slip underneath his eyes. He silenced every thought in his mind that was screaming to get out into the open. He kept himself calm and collected as he flew back into The Ghost Zone, letting only a sigh escape him.
The pain, the loss, and the burden would be let out at a later time and in controlled measures.