Touhoumon: Gray Version
Chapter 13: Dealing with the Fourth Estate

The three of us could only stare at the fourth of our number as we made our way through the streets, preparing to try once more to find a reporter with an open ear and a curious mind. Even though our efforts had been fruitless the previous day, I still was somewhat confident that we could find a warm body to help us spread the word.

However, I was still reluctant to go along with the plan that had been enacted by our resident poltergeist. Namely, a resident poltergeist that had borrowed my sister's body, in order to do whatever in the world that she needed to do. This is after considering that there was no need of her to even take the body in the first place.

No need that I saw, at the least. In the mad ghost's mind, though, she had plenty of reason.

Still, the three of us could only watch with worry on our faces as my sister's body danced along the streets, as if it was controlled by someone who wasn't quite sure of how humans walked from point a to point b. Considering we were dealing with a poltergeist, and one that seemed to float around so much, the sentiment isn't that far fetched. It still begs the question of why she needed to do it in the first place.

Not that I think any reasoning will be given anytime shortly. The poltergeist loves to be obtuse, more than anything else. Apparently, she also loves to dance about at the same time. She can't even stay walking straight, constantly twirling and skipping from place to place. That grin on her face doesn't help… At least it makes it clear who exactly is in charge upstairs. Not that I have to like it in the least.

We do manage to distract her from going in. I would almost say that she is distracted by anything and everything shiny, but I'd like to believe that there is some method to this madness. I'll just to take solace in the fact that she is acting like she just received a new bicycle.

She better be careful though. That's one bicycle I'll be unable to repair said chain.

As annoyed as I may be, she doesn't tarry by too great of a margin. Our aimless wandering drags the attention of those that still line the streets. I take the time to glare at a few boys who seems to be taking too much advantage at the sight. I can't help but grin as they recoil from the shotgun still strapped to my back.

Our progress is eventually aided by the actions of the two youkai accompanying me. Tokiko, having walked beside me the entire time while glaring at the poltergeist, eventually grabbed her by the arm. "Enough of that. I'll not have you embarrass her by what you're doing to her body."

My sister's body grinned at her, looking nothing like herself. "But what if she doesn't mind at all? Most girls like to let their hair down and relax. And poor Joy never has had the chance…"

That alone made me snort. "She has chances all the time. We may have never bothered to go out, but there isn't exactly much of a town where we live to have a night on the town. Or however that phrase may go." Shrugging, I shook my head. "But we need to get going. I don't feel like we should wait too long in the open…" My eyes fell onto another group of hooligans who were watching us from an alleyway as we traipsed along."

Merlin just shook m sister's head before dancing along. "Oh, poo." Still dancing along the road, she smirked at me. "But what if dear old sister didn't want to tell her little brother how she felt?" Nearly singing, she spun back around. "After all, I'm in her head. I know everything she knows, see everything she sees…"

"Or you're just trying to stir up trouble." Nitori took that moment to chime in, before the poltergeist got too much steam worked up. "I may not be familiar with your kind, but I can already tell you love causing trouble. There's not a word you can say that will make me take you seriously."

Pouting slightly, Merlin turned away. "Meanie… A girl's gotta have her fun somehow, after all?" Even though she was complaining, she did take the moment to calm down and start walking at something approaching a normal gait. At least Joy could rest in peace, knowing that she wasn't being used in such a manner.

Unless, of course, the poltergeist was telling the truth.

Our journey once again took us closer to the downtown area of the city, where the giant skyscrapers were growing out of the concrete. I couldn't help but let myself get distracted once again by the sights, so giant they were. The mountains were more massive, of course, but the mountains were something I was familiar with. These man-made obelisks still were able to take my breath away, even though I had seen them already.

The difference between these buildings, and the ones in the city of Chicago, were numerous. Instead of all clean and kept up, many of these looked to be abandoned. While there were signs of life, fresh trails on the sidewalk, clean tracks where doors swung open, not to mention clothes hanging from windowsills, it did not bother trying to keep up state of the building. Grime had build up on the windows that did exist.

I would've hated to imagine what it'd be like to live in the buildings, but sadly I already had an idea. The papers we had visited on a previous day, while located just closer to the station than we were currently, were in buildings similar to this. It was dreary, I tell you. Oil lamps burning inside rooms in the middle of the day, augmenting the light coming in from the outside. The conditions were threadbare at best.

We never made it far past the worker manning the front desk. Any reporter laughed us off, not bothering to even sit us down and take our words. Hopefully, this poltergeist will be able to ensure we get the word out. Not that any of us trusted her at her word, but what choice did we have that didn't involve storming the papers and taking them over?

Rhetorical questions aside, we eventually made our way towards one of the old tall buildings. Any name that it might have had at one point had been removed, and the steel that had once glistened merely sat there dully, waiting for polishing that was never to come. Coughing to myself, I glanced at my sister's body. "So, you are sure that whatever hocus-pocus that you are going to do will work?"

She just grinned at me. "Of course it will work! The humans that do not fall under the sway of my power are next to none!" With a giggle, she held a hand out into the middle of the air. "I shan't quote nor paraphrase the gardener. Such things are looked down upon. But first, let me bring out my tool."

At her words, her hand began to glow, as a small orb of light rose out of it. I shot my eyes over to Tokiko, recognizing the magic for what it was worth. Not that I had the slightest idea as to what she was doing, but that would come in the next few seconds. The blue ball of light began to rise up, before it took shape.

As the light faded, giving away to shiny metal, I was able to take a good look at what she had summoned. Some sort of brass instrument, by the looks of it. The smallest one… a trumpet, I do believe. Oddest-looking thing I would have ever seen, though. What with disks that are linked to spindly metal rods, connected in such a haphazard fashion… It looked like something we'd make out of a few spare pieces of tubing we'd find in a junkyard.

Holding a hand up, she caught it. Idly mashing the buttons on it, the disks spinning about in response, she grinned. "After all, I'm a performer. And a musician can't be caught without her chosen instrument, can she?"

Rubbing my temple, I shake my head, nodding along idly. "Whatever you say, Merlin. But what good will that do…" I sigh, not even finishing the question in my head.

Before I dismiss it quickly, she responds. "What good does the Siren do with her voice, honeyed and cloying?" Her ever-present grin on my sister's face, she nodded towards Tokiko. "Already we have the woman half human, and half bird. Shall we draw in the mariner who sails upon a sea of words, and crash him upon our rock?"

Alright, now I was completely lost. Tamping down my initial reaction to turn to Joy, I glanced at the little birdie. "Do you have any idea what she's talking about? Or should I just put this down to nonsense once more?"

She stared at my possessed sister for a moment, before nodding shortly. "An old myth from the west… Was it… Greek, I believe? A story about maidens who would stand on the shore and draw sailors to their doom, with enchanting melodies."

Merlin beamed at her. "Good! So someone does know. But remember, there were three sirens…" Spinning the trumpet around in her fingers, she finished. "And there are three sisters. Rather symbolic, do you not think?" Not waiting one more moment, she strode in, gripping the horn firmly. Pulling the door open, she glanced back.

"So, coming?"

Needless to say, we were. Tokiko rolled her eyes at the display by the poltergeist. At the glance she sent me, I just shook my head. "Just remember what she is. She seems to thrive on the attention."

Tokiko snorted. "Not to mention the drama. Annoying…" She scoffed at the girl, under her breath. "I'm beginning to miss the solitude with her around."

"Not that I can blame you." I shook my head, before beckoning her after me. "But it won't be for too much longer, remember?" I had to laugh softly under my breath, thinking about it. "I can't believe how many times I've already had to remind myself."

Our resident kappa took the moment to pipe in. "Trying, isn't she?" With a snort, she kept walking. "I won't complain if she pulls through." As she walked on in, she tapped my shoulder. "Oh, and do remember that we still need to test you. Who knows what would happen if we didn't bother to figure out your limits."

That aside, we finally followed in as well. Doing so, we found Merlin leaning over the desk, talking to the receptionist. "Are you sure that I won't be allowed in to talk to the nice reporter? I'm sure that I have something very interesting to tell, and that he might want to hear…"

The girl at the desk wasn't having any of it. "I'm sorry. All access to our reporters is determined in advance of any potential meeting with a source." She shrugged, before turning back to the paper.

It was odd seeing my sister's body pout as if she were but a little child being denied a sweet from the jar. But still, Merlin contorted her face in such a way. "Why ever not? This could be something very important to his career? Or hers, if you've anyone of our persuasion." Chuckling at that, having found it oddly amusing, she kept needling the woman. "It won't hurt, even if it's just for a little while. I take that back. Especially if it's just for a little while. We just need to get a few words in."

The receptionist sighed, setting her pen down. Eyes glancing at each of us in turn, noting the weapon on my back, she snorted lightly. " As if we've not had our fair share of innocent sources coming in, before having the reporter found in a pool of blood." She shook her head. "No need for it the body count to be increased. Not to mention that it would be on my head if anything did happen."

Still, Merlin was not fazed. Perhaps that ghost was made out of butter or soap. So slippery was she that not even the most determined of opposition could cause her to relent. "Oh, trust me, there will be no troubles at all." She nodded sideways towards us, not turning her face. "These are just some associates of mine, that are here to make sure that I stay on… task."

"That's nice." The droll voice of the receptionist tutted towards Merlin, before lowering her head back towards her paperwork. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to be doing. Unless I need to call for security?" As she spoke, her voice started to rise, echoing slightly through the building.

Merlin just shook her head. "There's no need for that. After all, can't you make an exception? Just this once?" Smiling brightly, she leaned down onto the desk, completely violating the lady's personal space.

Leaning back abruptly, she shook her head. "I am quite sure. I would be crazy to think that I was permitted to otherwise."

"Well, it's a good thing that I do crazy then." Letting the horn raise up from her hands and above the desk, she smiled at the receptionist. "Just let my music do the talking, if you don't like what's coming out of my mouth."

The woman just stared at her blankly, seemingly transfixed by the horn rising into the air as if carried aloft by strings. "What in the world is going on?" But any further questions were halted as she trailed off, and the disks began to turn on the spindly instrument.

To my ears, though, there was but silence. No blasts of brassy notes came out of the front of the horn. All we could hear was the clacking of valves spinning about, gently clacking into their stoppers. Glancing between the performing poltergeist and the others, I softly asked, "Am I missing something here?"

Nitori just shrugged her shoulders slightly, before Tokiko answered. "If you're hearing the same thing that I am, then I don't think so…" She tapped the side of her head, where her earholes were. "I know that she used to play for the human village, at times. She and her two sisters, at least…" She shook her head, headwing fluttering about in confusion. "But the biggest question is why would they separate? That is, assuming that they have…"

Not quite what I had asked, but considering what she had told me about her interactions with the village, she wouldn't have much first hand experience. "But, what is it she is doing to this…" I paused, not quite knowing how to word it. "Is what she said about the sirens true…?"

Tokiko glanced at Merlin for a few moments, before shaking her head. "No. The sirens were singers. She plays on her instrument."

Glancing at her, I frowned. "That doesn't seem to be the case." Indeed, the spirit in my sister's body seemed to be gently moving her hands about, not as if she was conducting the horn, nor as if she was playing it from the distance, but more as an unconscious sway. The grin on my sister's face had grown to monstrous proportions by now, while the look on the receptionist's face was growing to match. "I'm starting to think this wasn't such a good idea."

The ibis beside me snorted. "You don't say? I don't trust her at all." She was about to continue her tirade, but was cut off by Nitori.

"It isn't such a good one. But our only choices were starting to get down to brute force. Humans are fragile enough as it is." The kappa continued watching the show in front of us. "Not that you'd let us do such a thing."

Tokiko nodded shortly. "That's why we're doing this here and now, isn't it? I mean, it wouldn't be hard for me to scare her, like that lady back at the train depot…"

I shook my head shortly. "We already thought about this. The answer is no." I sighed once, glancing back at the poltergeist as she continued to do her work. "We're in a rush, yes, but you know that there are guards just out of reach. One wrong move, and we'll get in a firefight. And I'd rather not get shot us shot at for no good reason. Especially considering how low the odds are that we'd be able to get through and tell the story anyways."

She sighed, nodding slowly. "I suppose. It's not like they know any better."

Within a few more seconds, Merlin stepped back. "So, what did you think of my counterargument, friend? Think that you can show us the way, now?"

The receptionist grinned, jumping to her feet. "Why of course I can! Such a marvelous idea, why did I never even think of it before?" She sighed breathily, before dancing away down a corridor. "Come, come! We must be quick about it! I must be off soon after; there are so many things that I still have to do!"

Laughing softly, Merlin grabbed the horn out of the air and followed after her. "If that's what you want from us." Glancing at me, her grin widened. "Although, I could give some suggestions…"

I immediately shook my head. "No, don't be getting any ideas. Remember the deal we had. Don't involve more than you have to."

That just earned me a pout from the girl. "Aww, meanie…" Still, she didn't bother to give any more suggestions to the girl as she pranced along. This drew quite a number of glances from a few people working, but they gave it no heed, content to just continue with their work at their desks.

As we began to climb a set of stairs, I couldn't help but to ask her. "So, what exactly did you do to her? It just looked like you were waving our arms around, from what I could see."

She turned to face me as we continued to walk up the stairs. I couldn't help but to wince as the head turned all the way around to look at me. Unable to hear any cracks of bones or popping of muscles or other various parts I had no knowledge of, I still found myself looking askance of her. "Oh, that? I was just giving her a solo performance. Nothing beyond what your mind can comprehend."

"But how did you-"

"Keep the rest of you from hearing anything?" Another of her default expressions covered her face. "I'm completely in control of my music, you know. Even if that's such a crude way to describe it." Her head turned back, finally facing in a direction that was normal for a human to face. "Ah, the urge to wax poetic makes me feel so pathetic, but one can a body do?"

Snorting in response, I offered, "Concentrate on what we're doing, instead of breaking into musical numbers?"

A small titter came from her mouth as we exited into the hallway. "Oh, what a joker. I like you. Perhaps I can give you a performance once we're done…" Laughing at the growl that came from Tokiko's throat, she idly spun down the hallway, as the receptionist gaily led the way.

It wasn't long until we came down to the end of the hallway, where an old wooden door with an older brass sign hanging on the front. Happily, the receptionist dashed forward, standing to the side of the wooden portal. "Here you go! I'm sure the editor will be quite happy to hear what you have to say to him!"

My eyes meet the others' as we pond the new development. "We didn't need to meet someone so, important." I clear my throat softly. "We only needed to talk to one of the reporters…"

"That won't be necessary!" Bouncing from foot to foot, she shined her bright grin on each of us in turn. "If it were up to me, I'd take you to the owner, not some other person. The music said that it would be a good idea. That you have something very very important to tell us." A shrug graced her shoulders as she sadly finished speaking. "Too bad that she is not here."

Rubbing my temple, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on, I sigh once more. "Well, thank you. Just, don't do anything too crazy, alright? Wouldn't want anything to be happening to you…"

She laughed before grinning. "What's the fun without doing something crazy?" Small chuckles escaping her lips between breaths, she pushed open the door and into the room. "Boss! I've got someone here to see you!"

From inside the depths of the room, a gravely voice drifted across the dim interior, as little plumes of smoke drifted from the corners of the door and towards the ceiling. "Valerie? What in hell are you doing up here this time of day? I know that there's nothing important enough going on outside to warrant being given permission to see me."

The receptionist whose name we had forgotten to ask answered back with a rather bright and cheery voice. "Oh, nothing too bad, boss! Just go some new friends of mine up here wanting to tell you some important news, or whatnot. I'm not too sure. The music is making my head all fuzzy."

The voice seemed to sigh. "Your drink has been spiked again, hasn't it." The statement needed no answer, for whatever reason. The voice was not very alarmed, oddly enough. Was this more of a regular occurrence than either was comfortable with, or did he simply know her well enough that he could tell the change in her demeanor?

The answer should be obvious enough, to me. Every person is valuable in times like this. If you don't know them, you can't trust them. If you can't trust them, why would you bother to keep them employed? Sometimes, I wish I had more knowledge of the intricacies of how such things worked. It isn't as if one had to wonder if they could trust the plow, after all.

In the midst of my thoughts, the man shook his head. "No matter. I see you've gone to some great lengths in order to see me. Not the least of which was done to my receptionist." Turning to the indicated person, who seemed to be floating in her happiness, he waved her out. Just go, Valerie. I'll handle it from here."

"Ok, Boss!" At that, she giggled happily, before skipping along the way they had come.

After another tired sigh, the man waved us into his office. "Come on. You might as well get this over with." Once they were ushered in, the man locked the door behind him, before walking over to his desk. The room looked as tired as he did, with ancient metal walls fading, and an even older desk scuffed, bruised and burned from wax and ink. The only source of light currently was the bay windows behind him, marginally cleaner than the others we'd seen. Seated behind his typewriter, he finally looked back at us. "So, before you kill me, can you tell me what it is that I have written that warranted it?"

Slowly shaking my head, I answered. "We're not here to kill you. Far from it. We need you to get the word out." I glance at the others. "It's something very important. But nobody will even give us the time of day."

The man stared at us for a few seconds before placing his arms on his desk. "Really now? That is positively ridiculous. You march into my office, having fed my assistant who knows what sort of hallucinogenic, while armed, I might add, all just to tell me a story?" Rubbing his temple, he let out another breath. "What is it that is so important that you need to go to such lengths?"

"Well…" I sighed, unsure of how to start this. We had been planning this for so long, but for the actual conversation? How could we make anyone believe? "It's a very long story. It involves the monsters, the explosion… everything that's happened over the past fifteen years. And someone who wants to take advantage of it."

The man leaned back in his chair. "So you say. That's still a rather weighty claim that you're making." Even though he was still skeptical, he did manage to give us a curious look. "If you have enough to back it up, though…"

Nitori took the moment to respond. "We do not have much hard evidence for the worst of it." She shrugged to herself, mulling over our options. "We can give you our word, and what little we have. Perhaps it'd be best for us to fill in the blanks about what you know."

Staring now at her, he grimaced. "It isn't as if I have anything to do. Not as if I've got my own deadlines to meet, nor do I actually have other business I could be taking care of." He began to laugh under his breath. "But it isn't as if you'll let me go until you've had your say, is it?"

"Nope!" Merlin grinned happily at him. "And if you don't want to listen, that's why I'm here." She winked at him grandly. "We have ways to make you write, after all…"

"There's something wrong with you." After his blunt statement, he looked back at me. "But fine, I'll tell you what little we know. Not that it would do much good." He sighed once more, before crossing his fingers. "The explosion fifteen years ago was of unknown origins, and managed to wipe out the sum of human development of the last one hundred and fifty years." As Nitori opened her mouth to correct him, he specified, "Give or take. I'm old enough to remember what it was like back then. While I hazard that you four were at best children."

Ignoring the smirk that was playing on my sister's face, he continued. "But that wasn't the worst of it. We could have easily recovered, making strides to further development." Looking far away, he started to reminisce. "But then came the monsters. Just when the battle lines had finally ended, they came. I'm certain that you know how horrible they can be."

I couldn't but give him a short nod. "Yes, I remember the sparrows well." I was able to keep myself from shivering at the mention, but it still sent a bit of cold sweat down my back. Old habits do die hard, even in the face of a much greater threat. "We had to deal them plenty of times where I grew up. Until they managed to overrun us."

"Up here, it's mostly crows we have to deal with. Along with the occasional cat. Damned things." With a sigh, he kept going. "It was a hard strain on resources. More and more people were dying to them, so we had to pull back. Most were not experienced enough to deal with a small cat that had the strength of a tiger, along with the proclivity towards making your flesh rot off." Tokiko winced slightly as he mentioned that last part, causing him to nod. "So you do know what I'm talking about."

"Yes, we do." Cutting him off, I sighed. "Alright. Well, we do not know who created the explosion. It originated in a land called..." I bite my tongue, looking at the others. "How do you pronounce it, again?"

The kappa took the lead once more. "Gensokyo. Translated to your tongue, it means land of fantasy." She knitted her brow. "You might say that it was a reserve for various types of creatures that are similar, yet quite different from the monsters you've encountered."

Raising an eyebrow, the editor asked, "Alright then. So, from what I understand, there was some fantasy land, and scientists were trying to create monsters?" His look started to grow suspicious. "Eventually, they messed up, and they got loose?"

Our kappa couldn't help but to dryly laugh. "Not quite. You're still assuming that these creatures are created by man." As she stilled, she looked down, scratching her chin. "In some cases, I suppose that you may be right. But not in the way that you expect." Doffing her hat, she laid out the secret. "Gensokyo was a land of magic, not a land of science."

Just as suspected, we met the initial suspicion. "Really now? A land of magical creatures… What are the odds of that?" He leaned forward, looking at us eagerly. "So, where's your proof? And how does that tie in?"

At this, I jumped into the conversation. "It's not that hard to believe, is it? The monsters out there, decidedly not human, and possessing powers that are far and beyond what we could be capable of." I shrug. "It's hard not to believe it's magic."

"What he is trying to say is that it is the simplest explanation." Nitori clasped her hands together. "Mystical creatures coming from nowhere and walking the land? That reeks more of magic than science gone wrong. At least given the state that outside technology was during that specific point in time."

Snorting at her mention of it, he asked, "So, you are from that land?" Not expecting nor receiving an answer, he looked back at me. "So, how does that tie into the electricity problem?"

Once more, I glanced at Nitori, letting her take over this part of the conversation. "Electricity cannot be used in high volumes of magic unless it is shielded. That is why there are very few scientists in our land. The only ones that are successful to any great degree are the kappa. Of which I'm a part."

"A what, now?" He rubbed his forehead. "No idea what that's supposed to be… some kind of great ugly turtle." Snorting under his breath, he muttered, "Not that I'm quite up to date with my mythical creatures. You'll have to forgive me if I don't have a clue about what you're talking about."

Merlin took that moment to chime in yet again. Having strolled around the desk, she patted him on the head, before flitting over towards the window. "Oh, don't be that way! I'm sure that she'll explain it all to you."

Internally flinching at the motion, I answered over Nitori. "That's not as important. Yes, she isn't human, but she effectively is." After feeling eyes burning into my head for a few moments, I shook my head and kept talking. "Save for being much stronger, sturdier, able to breathe underwater… Anything that I missed?"

"We can't breathe underwater. We can just hold our breaths for an exceedingly long time." She looked as if she was prepared to give a lecture, but realized that now wasn't the time for a lesson. "But he is essentially right. We're water-based creatures, and also the only engineers of note in the land. We discovered long ago how to make electronics work in magic."

Still not believing, his hands still had found their way to a pad of paper, as he jotted down notes on what we were saying. "So you say. But assuming that, it sounds like you are the only civilized creatures in the land. Were the rest monsters that killed everyone?"

"We are not!" Tokiko shouted over all of us, causing all of us to jump. She had been so quiet, that we had nearly forgotten that she was there. "We are not monsters. The monsters are something else. Something wrong. Perversions of our magic."

Intrigued by her outburst, the editor leaned forward. "Really? So, what separates you from the others? You look human enough to me. Is it just the ones that are relatively humanlike and lack the animal features, or is there something else that separates these monsters from those whom are not?"

Flinching slightly, Tokiko quickly removed her cap, showing off her wing. "No, it's something more than that! I may not be human like you, but it doesn't mean I'm sort of monster that wants to eat people!"

Frankly, it should be obvious that I did not point out that it was how we met.

Still the man had started to look more and more curious. "Interesting, a monster that is intelligent? Interesting." He glanced at me, and then over at my sister's body as it stared at a bug on the other side of the window. "So, are you two human, or is there something special about you?"

Well, there was no reason for me to give away what exactly seemed to be happening to me. If this did get printed, I didn't want it to get out to the ones that we were fighting. I'd like to not lose one of the few advantages we had, after all. "I'm human. My sister over there is human also. However, she is currently being possessed by someone as part of her deal for getting us here."

"Possessed? By what? A ghost?"

Before we could blink, Merlin was in his face. "Not a ghost! How many times to I have to explain? I am a poltergeist, a type of spirit. Not one of the dead!"

He blinked. "Ah. A poltergeist. That I do know."

Sighing, I spoke. "That explains everything, doesn't it?"

Starting to chuckle, he nodded. "That it does." He thought for a few more seconds, before nodding. Pushing aside his typewriter, he set the pad of paper on the desk. "Very well. I'm interested. Let's talk."

Sitting down in a chair, Merlin decided to burst forth my sister's chest, before lying in the air above us. "Talk? About where there be monsters? Where the evil is in the heart of man, and how he falls to the whispers of those otherworldly? Or the hammer that is about to descend on this planet."

Beside me, Tokiko couldn't help but to snort to herself. "Loves to be dramatic, that one…" Still, she looked up, before nodding. "Then yes. Let's talk."

Alone in his office once again, the man leaned back in his chair, sighing grandly as he did. "What a day… And what an unbelievable story." He looked down at pages and pages of notes. Legends and theories, nothing provable, nothing determinate. If he were to publish any of this, and it turned out to be false, there would go his business. "Not that we have that many to begin with. Not compared to before…"

Still, he looked down. "What if it is true, though?" Then he would be culpable in letting this story slip through his hands. "Even if we're mocked for this, people will hear. I hate to do this on such little information, so little proof." Shaking his head, he pulled the typewriter closer. "But the word of a monster should be enough to at least have it be heard."

Knowing that he'd have to type, he began to feed the paper through the rollers. It waited there, ready to be struck. Even with his reluctance, he began to pound out the familiar introduction. "Sometimes I wish the real owner wouldn't make us do this, but she is committed to upholding her deals. No matter how silly they may sound."

This is the Cirno News Network with a breaking news story…

The meeting over, the five of us retreated back towards the station, eager to be back before the sun had set. I still doubted whether or not any of the monsters encroached upon the city that late, but there was certainly the chance. Considering I'd rather not expend the ammunition if necessary, or risk becoming injured once again, we moved with all haste.

Still, it took all of our effort to move inconspicuously, as one among our number seemed hell-bent on causing trouble. Joy did her best to corral her, but there was little that a knife would do against someone ethereal, after all. "Merlin, will you please calm down? Once we're back to the station, you can fly about to your heart's content…" I winced as another dustbin started to waggle, the ancient object scaring the life out of a passerby. "At this rate, you'll draw attention to us."

The girl pouted again, reluctantly letting go of her hand. "Are you sure? It's quite amusing to see them run. But then again, they don't know it's me that is causing it. I wonder how I can fix that…"

Joy rolled her eyes, before trying to poke her forward once again with her knife. Quite ineffectually, but she still tried. "Why don't you simply get a business card, or something? Heaven forbid that you not be known for the terror that you are inducing."

Oblivious to the sarcasm in her voice, Merlin nodded along. "I know! But Lyrica was always in charge of the promotional stuff. Lunasa and I were just the ones that made the music."

"Erm…" I glance at the others, completely mystified. "Who are they supposed to be? I don't quite recognize the names." She hadn't mentioned anyone else as far as I know. Then again, trying to keep track of what came out of that girl's mouth was like trying to identify which tree a leaf fell from.

Still, Merlin seemed to take it as a personal affront that I did not know who they were. "You don't know them? How could you not know them?" She slipped through Nitori and Tokiko, before looking me straight in the eye, floating along backwards. "They're my sisters! The best pianist and violinist on the planet!"

"…Right." Well, that's great. Does that mean we should be expecting company soon? "I still can't believe there are more like you. How can that be possible?" One of these days, I should learn to lay off of these rhetorical questions.

"Well, one day my sister got real lonely, and so she decided-"

"Wait." Joy cut her off. "I don't want to hear any more of her prattle than I can suffer through. I've had to listen to her all day. I don't think I could take much more without losing my sanity."

I couldn't help but to grimace. "How bad was it?"

She looked me in the eye. "It was quite hard to concentrate. What with all the babbling that she calls her thoughts." She shivered slightly. "Not to mention the humming…"

For her troubles, Merlin only shot her a curious look. "What's wrong with humming? I need to keep in tip-top shape, so I can make sure that my trumpet is out of tune when it needs to be!"

Before I could stop myself, I found myself asking, "Out of tune? Don't you mean the other way around?"

The poltergeist laughed out loud. "Of course not! My pitch is always perfect! So, what if I wanted to be just off of pitch, to create such a lovely dissonance?"

Alright, I have no clue what she's talking about. Probably would be the best to simply drop the conversation where it stood, before the ghost got too excited. "Right, Merlin. Whatever that you say. We'll just trust you when it comes to music?"

Suddenly serious, she nodded. "Yes sir! I shall not let you down!" Finally, she floated back with the rest of us, instead of staring at me with that unblinking face. Even though I had a moments reprieve, I knew I was going to regret this. The others seemed to agree as well.

However, we fortunately made it back without any trouble. No wild monsters, no more of the lunatics or the humans they have working for them. To be honest, it was rather nice, not having to worry about whether I needed to shoot the next person I would see.

I put such thoughts to the side once we were inside, safe and sound. Finally free to haunt as she wanted to, Merlin took off to who knows where. Now that we were in relative silence, I looked at the others. "So, what is our next move from here? We've done pretty much all we can. If we wait too much longer, we might not make it all the way to the east."

Our resident kappa nodded as well. "Agreed. There's nothing more we could do." Blinking, she shrugged, holding her hands up. "Well, there is a lot we could do. We could try and take a main line to a more populated city, and repeat the process we just went through. Perhaps then we could spread the word out more quickly. But convincing stranger after stranger of our purpose won't completely help. This is something bigger than us, but the help we truly needed is not here."

Glancing at Tokiko, I waited for her opinion. "I think I would agree… Do what we can to tell others of what's going on, but in the meantime we have to go back." She looked down. "Even if I don't particularly want to go back there…"

I patted her shoulder softly, quietly doing my best to calm her. "Shh… Shh. Don't worry about it. We'll burn that bridge when we get there."

My comment did seem to help a bit, but garnered a much stronger reaction from the kappa. "I know one bridge I would take much pleasure in burning. The bitch."

"Hey now." Shooting her a look, I tried to shut it down. "Lunatic problem first, then we can go start the fire." Seeing the hopeful look on her face, I snorted. "I wasn't being literal though. Sometimes I'm glad that you don't have any power over fire." Or any of them, for that matter.

All she did in return was shoot me a wicked grin, which I promptly did my best to ignore. "Sister, do you have anything else to say?"

"Besides that I wish to stab something?" She shrugged. "Not particularly. Going means getting closer to our targets, meaning that we can finally avenge them." Mouth thinning, I nodded. "Right. Let's fire up the engine, then. We can be out of here before too long. No telling how much we'll travel, instead of simply magicking our way across the sea."

Nitori looked as if she wanted to correct my speech, but eventually decided that it wasn't worth the effort. Rising to her feet, she left, wanting to get the train warmed up so we could head out. The rest of us eventually followed her to the station, before looking through the building, making sure there was nothing we had forgotten.

The whole thing was a waste of time, as we simply hadn't taken anything out of the train that we couldn't carry on our bodies. Nor did we need to loot what was left of the furniture that was in the building, so we returned empty handed.

Once we were back, the train was almost ready to go. Steam was billowing from the pistons as traces of smoke flew from the chimney. Tokiko and I sighed in relief at the prospect of moving on, not the least of which was due to the crazy poltergeist that was following us.

"Speak of the devil…" The moment that thought crossed our minds, the ghost herself popped her head in through the ceiling. "Coming to say goodbye?"

Merlin just tilted her head, giving me an odd look. "Why would I do that? Shouldn't I come with you?" She laughed lightly. "Besides, it's been so boring since I got here. You people are interesting!"

Right. More like she could scare us and we wouldn't try to exorcise her. At least, we hadn't been pushed to it. "No, it's fine. We need to be heading on now. We can't wait any longer." Crossing my arms, I shot her a look. "Besides, aren't you in this city for a reason?"

"Perhaps I was." She shrugged. "Or maybe I wasn't. Maybe I already found what I sought, or what I seek must instead find me." Dropping the heavy lines, she pouted once more. "Besides, I still haven't made someone manic. You never did let me work my magic during the interview."

Sighing, I pinched my nose together. "That's because he was quite willing to listen. We didn't have to put him in a good mood, as he still wanted to hear us out in a bad mood."

"So, you're sure?" The ghost shot me a look in return. There was something in it that I couldn't quite read… "No reason I can come?"

I glance at the other two, seeing what they thought. But by the looks of what would be annoyance at best, they wouldn't readily consent to it. "I don't think so. Sorry."

A frown flickered over her face, before being replaced by a ghost of a smile. "That's ok! Besides, I just wanted to take a look at your balls before you went. They did sound very impressive when you described them earlier."

As Tokiko nearly began to sputter with anger, seemingly eager to go up there and give her a piece of her mind, I realized what she meant. "Wait, she means…" My hand leapt to my pocket, not finding the small sack they were in. Looking back up, I saw the poltergeist with the bag, having removed one of the small orbs within. "Merlin! Don't do anything stupid with that!" Could a ghost even be captured by one of those things? Worse, what if she did something to Tokiko's and Nitori's, and they were injured…

My thoughts were interrupted as Tokiko spread her wings, flying towards the girl. She managed to snatch the bag from her, but was unable to yank the ball in her hand away. Merlin just smirked at her, before speaking at us. "I wonder what this could possibly do..."

Whatever she did to it seemed to trigger the mechanism. Above her head appeared that all to familiar hole in space once again. Merlin stared at it for a second before she was sucked in. The ball hovered in the middle of the air for what seemed like a short eternity, after which it slowly fell to the ground.

As it did, I could feel the headache coming over my head. Resisting the urge to bang my head on the nearest hard object, I sighed. "Things just couldn't stay simple, could they?"

A/N Hey everyone. It feels like forever since I've done this. I finally managed to get this off the ground. It may be a bit short, and not accomplishing much, but at least we're finally going somewhere. Sorry for the wait, as RL has had some issues recently that got me out of writing zone. I think I am back in the mood, though, so we will see how things go.

As for this chapter… Well, not much to say, really. Gonna keep these notes short. If you're wondering about anything in particular, just review or shoot me a pm, and I'll do my best to answer.

Digressing; thanks for reading, as always. Hopefully, I'll be seeing ya'll again much sooner. Until next time!