Disclaimer: I do not own Static Shock.
Author's Note: I planned on having this done by Halloween. Well, things didn't go exactly how I planned. My new goal is to have this story finished by the end of the year.
Thank you Worker72 for your review of the last chapter.
OCTOBER 30
The blaring alarm clock woke the two teens from their fractured slumber. Richie was the first to rise with his arms stretched above his head. He popped his back and let out a loud yawn. Richie tossed the blankets from his makeshift bed beside the actual bed his friend occupied. He ruffled his bangs then turned to face Virgil whose eyes were wide open yet remained motionless on his side.
Richie followed where Virgil's eyes rested. The amulet Kangor handed over the previous night rested within Virgil's grabbing range if needed. It slightly surprised Richie that Virgil had chosen not to wear it in his sleep. It comforted him to not fully trust Kangor; although witnessing the supernatural events himself, there was something that did not entirely add up in Richie's mind. Never had Virgil been one to give into superstitions over logic, but Richie did not expect that to be the case for much longer.
Richie turned off the alarm clock then returned his attention to Virgil who had yet to move.
"V, come on, we have to get ready for school," Richie spoke. He gave a half smile which promptly vanished upon receiving no reply from Virgil. Richie lowered himself to his knees and gently shook his friend who blinked upon contact.
Virgil sat up and placed his palm against his forehead.
"V, you alright?" Richie asked.
Virgil shook his head. "Would you be alright if something you couldn't fight wanted to kill you?" Richie stepped back and lowered his head. Virgil realized what he said and snapped his eyes over to where Richie stood. "I'm sorry, Rich, I just have so much on my mind right now."
Richie nodded.
Virgil decided against telling Richie what all he experienced in the short amount of sleep he had. He fell into slumber a little after one, but the sleep was not at all restful. Virgil could tell Talon's strength was rising, she made sure to keep him aware.
It was not long after drifting into sleep she came to him.
Virgil did not remember the moment where he left his bedroom and found himself walking about the misty road. He knew in his mind where he was heading and commanded his feet to stop, an action that proved futile. It was as if he himself were floating above his zombie-like carcass that seemed to move at another's will. Virgil stopped just short of the cemetery gates. He placed his hand upon the steel bars and let an electric jolt pulsate through the fence. The opening obeyed his request and allowed the youth to enter.
He walked through the black dirt, careful not to directly step upon any of the plots. The decaying leaves danced about his feet. Surprisingly enough he showed up in his civilian clothing, although he knew he should have left in his Static costume. Virgil called out to his body as he carefully weaved through the tombs, not noticing the hundreds of eyes following his travels from their resting place. Virgil's eyes were fixed on their destination, as though he were being summoned against his will. Despite not wanting to take another step, the curiosity restrained him.
Virgil stepped up the hill to see two figures standing before him. One was a tall, looming figure wearing a black hooded robe with his arms crossed about his chest. He wore his face in a serious manner. Beside him was a second person, only a bit shorter than the first. He was lanky, dressed in dark street clothing with a smile covering his face. Only when Virgil approached the candlelight did he recognize the people to be none other than Kangor and Ferret, yet he could not call out to them. Kangor beckoned Virgil closer with a wave of his index finger. Virgil obeyed causing the tallest man to smirk. Virgil felt intense fear, but kept moving against his better judgment. Kangor turned his back and walked with Ferret following two paces behind. Virgil swallowed and followed after the two.
Kangor stopped and bowed before a marble statue in the form of a harpy. He glanced over her painful expressions. Her body hung limply, one knee on the ground and the other out in front, her form draped in some kind of thin fabric, similar to ancient Greek statues. The clawed fingers reached up, her lips calling out to anyone who would listen. What mesmerized him the most were her eyes. There was so much fear displayed in those chiseled eyes. It looked as if she knew she was about to die and there was nothing anyone could do to rescue her.
Virgil looked over at Ferret who replied with a smirk. He nodded to the sculpture. Against his own will Virgil found himself moving towards the statue. He placed his hand upon her cheek to find a warm liquid streaming from her eye. Virgil pulled the clear substance to his lips and let his tongue taste the salty water. There was a soft laugh that froze his entire body. He lifted his eyes to the statue once more to find it replaced with the broken body of the meta-human previously known as Talon.
Talon fell down on her knees. She looked up at Virgil with sad eyes. She opened her mouth to speak but only blood poured onto the grass. Virgil looked around to find himself alone with the apparition. He heard Kangor and Ferret's laughter from afar which seemed to diminish further by the second. Virgil tried to step back to find his feet frozen to the ground. He looked down at Talon who reached a bloodied hand up at him. Virgil held his breath and closed his eyes hoping to wake any second.
He opened his eyes to find her standing straight in front of him. She reached out her arms and gave him a smirk. One clammy hand touched his cheek. Virgil felt every abrasion against his face. Virgil gagged on the toxic smells rising from Talon's corpse. She put one of her claws against Virgil's face and let it slide gracefully down his cheek. A thin line of blood fell over Talon's fingers. Virgil's eyes met with hers. Instead of rage or hatred she shared with him a moment of sorrow.
Virgil parted his lips to apologize when the fury displayed through Talon's brow. She brought her claw above his head and lowered for the strike.
Before the claw came in contact with his skin Virgil woke with a start. He nearly fell out of his bed and on top of Richie. Virgil glanced around the room taking in everything that happened. He had difficulty sorting through reality and the nightmares. He inhaled hoping that everything that happened of late had been one long nightmare brought on by Halloween. Virgil sunk into his covers once more letting the thought of it finally being over relieve the fear in his heart. The feeling of contentment ended the second Virgil saw the amulet sitting on his dresser. Virgil clutched his pillow and pulled himself into a ball. He found difficulty sleeping through the remainder of the night.
These were some of the things Virgil decided to never share with an already concerned Richie. Still he underestimated his friend's ability to tell when something was amiss.
It was not until after they dressed and reconvened at the breakfast table that Richie noticed just how little sleep Virgil received. His eyes were bloodshot with dark circles encasing his lips. Virgil yawned once every two minutes.
Richie noticed a familiar chain around Virgil's neck with the gem resting inside his shirt. Richie thought it was a horrible idea to wear Kangor's gift out in public where the Meta-Breed could easily spot him. Richie swallowed the slop Sharon masqueraded as food when a disturbing thought occurred. He eyed the hidden amulet wondering if in fact through the tragedy of Talon's death the Meta-Breed used this to their advantage and the necklace was in fact bugged to track down their biggest threat. Richie nearly gasped aloud at the accompanying thought that they planned on one of them dying in order to put this plan into effect and Talon had merely drawn the short straw. Richie sighed and told himself that he had been reading too many science fiction comics.
Sharon passed glances at the two boys who were usually full of chatter and cheer. Even on the days of an exam they made jokes in order to cope. Sharon was not the only one to notice as Robert lifted an eyebrow when he walked through the door of the usually noisy kitchen. Robert grabbed a mug of coffee and sat down where a plate of bacon and eggs had been prepared for him. He exchanged glances with his daughter who replied with a shrug.
"Virgil, something wrong?" Robert asked breaking the silence.
Virgil picked his fork through his eggs. Usually the group would assume this to be one of Virgil's unique ways of insulting his sister's cooking, but the absent look in his eyes told them otherwise.
"Virgil," Robert repeated.
Virgil glanced up at the sound of his name. Robert frowned at the condition his son appeared to be in. There seemed to be a bruise forming about his neck. Robert's eyes fell on Richie who wore a few adhesive bandages upon his cheek. Between their injuries and the window somehow being smashed in while they were all away worried the older man. He was certain that no one in the neighborhood would pull those kind of pranks. When he questioned Virgil about the damage the teen lied about his presence the entire afternoon. Virgil's current state reminded him of the nights in college where he stayed up past his normal bedtime working on class assignments.
"Yeah, yeah," Virgil responded. "We were up late working on that history assignment. Just a little tired." Virgil rubbed at his eye then downed his glass of orange juice before anyone had a chance to inquire him further.
Robert frowned. Virgil could tell his father was not entirely buying that excuse. The younger man gave the older one a full smile and commenced eating so as not to rouse anymore suspicion.
"But if you ever need to talk, I'm always here for you," Robert stated.
Virgil nodded with a smile and puffed cheeks.
"So are you going to actually do it?" Shenice asked holding a peanut butter and banana sandwich in her grasp.
Virgil shrugged.
"I just don't think it's such a good idea," Shenice stated before taking a bite. Her leg had been properly bandaged with the extent of the injury being only a minor sprain. Unfortunately she required the use of crutches.
"I actually agree," Richie spoke. Virgil and Shenice's eyes fell on the blonde. Richie took another sip from his milk. Richie hated seeing that look of betrayal in Virgil's eyes. "I didn't want to say anything until the shock of this all wore off." Richie swallowed. "But I don't know if we should trust Kangor. I really think there's something he's not telling us."
"And doing some kind of séance is dangerous," Shenice added. The boys' attention snapped over to the female in their group. "I've read and heard lots of stories about those. It's dangerous, you don't know what you're dealing with. You don't want to start something you might not be able to finish."
"Yeah, Kangor said she gets stronger the closer it gets to Halloween," Richie reminded his friend. "Halloween's tomorrow. I mean what if by calling on her we somehow are able to bring her back and she can strangle you in your sleep or something?"
"What other choice do I have?" Virgil asked. "Besides I won't be the one doing the summoning, Kangor will."
"But you don't know how much experience he has with this," Shenice retorted.
"He said he was a medium," Virgil argued.
"But he's still human." Shenice sighed. "I'm not going to participate in something like that and I strongly suggest you don't either."
Richie and Virgil were taken back. Never before had either of them seen Shenice behave so strongly on her fears. Usually she was the first one to jump into action.
"What are you guys talking about?" Daisy asked as she joined the group. The three seized in fear. Seeing the perplexed look upon Daisy's face let them assume she only caught the last sentence of the conversation.
"Hey, Daisy," Shenice said trying to hide the frustration in her voice.
"You're a rational girl, right?" Richie asked. Daisy's eyes widened. She looked over at the other two to gather any hint of what Richie was getting at. The blonde put her questions aside when he asked the next part. "Do you think it's smart for a friend to be meddling around in something he has limited knowledge about?"
Daisy shook her head. "You make it sound like some kind of dangerous situation."
"It is dangerous," Shenice blurted having forgotten a civilian was involved in the conversation.
Virgil glanced over at Richie in hopes that one of them would come up with something to cover before Daisy had a chance to ask. Daisy's eyes fell on Virgil as she could tell from where Richie's eyes slipped that he was the one they were referring to in that situation.
Virgil sighed. "I don't mean anything by it." Daisy's eyebrows rose in curiosity. Virgil felt the back of his neck sweating. He gave her a toothy smile. "With Halloween being tomorrow night I thought about having a séance at my house tonight." He pointed his thumb at his teammates. "They're worried I'm going to release a demon or something."
"You could," Shenice warned. "You shouldn't do something you won't have full control over."
Daisy looked into the eyes of the three surrounding her. "You guys are serious?" The three nodded. Daisy sighed then turned her attention to the object of her affection. "Virgil, I never thought you'd dive into something so stupid."
Virgil was taken back.
Daisy let out a laugh. "You know all that stuff is fake, right?" The three were dumbfounded. Daisy continued, "You'll end up scaring yourself by something you thought you saw. That's as silly as thinking there are ghosts."
Virgil released a nervous laugh. He took a glimpse at the other two who shared his thoughts on how Daisy would change her mind if she had been a part of the events that took place the previous night.
"I just thought it be some Halloween fun," Virgil stated.
Daisy lifted an eyebrow. "I don't believe you, Virgil." She laughed and flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "Sometimes you can be a real geek."
The three superteens gave a nervous chuckle. Upon Virgil's glance they decided to postpone the conversation for a later time.
"Virgil, wait!" Richie called.
"Quiet, you'll wake my family!" Virgil yelled in a hushed voice. Richie's eyes darted over to the clock to see it read a half hour until midnight.
Virgil, now having changed into his Static uniform, save for the mask, headed for the window. Virgil zapped the window frame, lifting it up the wall. Richie grabbed his friend's wrist. Virgil turned around to stare the blonde in the eyes. Richie's face held a frown that showed no chance of lightening along with the grip on Virgil's wrist.
"I agree with Shenice, this just isn't the right thing to do," Richie pleaded. Virgil was about to protest, but Richie knew he had to get the last word in at any cost. "I think maybe you should contact the police or something."
"Richie, they'll think I'm insane and I'll be locked up in the loony bin with half the people in this city who want to see me dead," Virgil argued.
"Maybe we are insane," Richie stated.
Virgil chuckled. "Well if we are, I'll know for sure tonight."
Richie sighed as Virgil shook himself loose from his grasp. Richie's hand fell down to his side, his eyes following to the floor. Virgil stared at his friend somewhat willing to heed his words. Still, the brainiac was not present in his dream the previous night. There was still so much Virgil chose not to disclose with Richie merely for his friend's own sanity.
"Please, just think this over," Richie begged.
Virgil sighed. "I'm going, Rich." He looked into Richie's wide eyes. It only lasted a few seconds before Virgil removed his eyes from Richie. He allowed himself to breathe then said, "You can come if you want, but I want this to end tonight." Richie could tell through Virgil's body language and lack of eye contact that he was keeping something from him. Richie chose not to probe further.
Richie clenched his fists and let out a growl before heading over to his book bag. He pulled out his costume and shot Virgil a glare before hurrying off to the bathroom. Virgil thanked him before he left the bathroom. Richie stood in the doorway and shut his eyes to turn away the pain yanking at his stomach. He took a deep breath then left Virgil's viewing range.
Virgil patiently waited for his friend's return. Richie stepped into the room not bothering to hide his displeasure towards Virgil's decision.
"You don't have to go," Virgil stated. In all honesty he did not want Richie to accompany him in case there was any danger.
"I'm not going to let you face this alone," Richie replied with a hint of frustration in his voice. "Shenice is physically unable to help you right now. If anything you should be turning to someone who has more knowledge with the supernatural than yourself."
"Which is why I have no other choice," Virgil argued.
Richie sighed. "I still think you shouldn't trust Kangor and Ferret." He tugged on his sleeve. "I can't explain it, but there's just something not right with those two."
"What do you mean?" Virgil asked, suddenly interested.
Richie shook his head. "I don't know. I just feel something's off is all."
Virgil nodded. "Don't worry, I'll be careful."
Richie gave his friend a half smile. The two put on their masks and hurried out the window.
The entire journey to their destination reminded Static of the nightmare; the only difference this time as opposed to the dream was that he now had full control of his body and could leave if he wanted to. Or did he? Static stopped in midair merely to test that notion. Gear turned his head to find his friend standing on the disk with his arms crossed. It brought a smile to his face to think Static finally came to his senses. Static shook his head and pushed forward before Gear could question him. Gear bit the inside of his cheek and followed closely behind.
The two hovered just outside the graveyard. The seven-foot, steel fence guarded the resting bodies from those still living. Static felt a shiver pass through his body as he stared at the location his stomach warned him to avoid. Static swallowed, assuming it was only the knowledge of the nightmare that gave him those feelings. He flew over the gate with Gear following.
They flew over the various tombstones and trees. Static usually found the cemetery to be peaceful in the daytime when he would visit his mother's site, but at night it held a different atmosphere. Static kept his eyes away from the plots.
"Hey, where are we going?" Gear whispered.
Static kept his eyes ahead. "I think I know where they're going to be."
"How?" Gear asked. "Kangor never said where?"
Static sighed. "This place isn't that big." He let the next words roll off his tongue. "Besides, I had a dream last night where I met up with them on that hill."
Gear was about to speak when he noticed the two bang babies standing atop the hill. Static's eyes widened. They were not wearing the same garments he dreamt, but their stances were exact. There was a round, wooden table set up with four chairs. On the table were several unlit candles.
Static and Gear touched down just short of the two. Static zapped his disk and placed it inside his coat. He wore the amulet in plain sight. Kangor smirked at the gift worn so proudly on the hero's body.
"Wondering if you were gonna show up?" Kangor stated.
"I just hope you can make this work," Static replied.
"It's not me who will make it work, it's you," Kangor retorted. When Static's body language displayed utter confusion the giant chose to elaborate. "You're the one she's after, I can help, but you're going to have to be the one to put her to rest."
"Will she cooperate?" Static asked.
Kangor shrugged. "Let's hope so."
Static nodded. Ferret stood over to the side with his arms crossed. The two heroes could tell he was just as sleep deprived as Static, if not more. Static winced at the lines of healing cuts that covered the rodent's skin and hoped to never fall victim to a ghost's whims.
Kangor lifted his jacket sleeve making the two jump and Ferret lightly snicker. Ferret would have laughed harder if not for fear of worsening his headache. On the giant's wrist sat a silver watch. Kangor tapped the watch's face twice then motioned for the three to follow him to the table.
"It's best we start this at exactly midnight," Kangor explained. "We have four minutes." He stood behind his oppointed chair and ushered the others to follow his lead. "Take a seat wherever you like and make yourselves comfortable, we'll be here for a while."
Gear stepped in front of Kangor. He leaned close and put his hand up against his lips so only Kangor could hear. "You have done this before, right?"
"Of course," Kangor replied. Gear gave a sigh of relief. Kangor put a finger to his chin and added, "But I've never dealt with one so enraged as Talon, though." Gear gulped catching Kangor's ear.
Static placed his hands on the back of his chair. He kept his eyes on the smooth wood, yet beneath the surface he was ready to run off. Still there was something within him that commanded he stay as it was his only option of ending the nightmare.
Kangor sighed. The two superteens looked up. "Look, if you're not ready for this…I don't know what will happen. I don't even know if I'll be able to control her." Kangor looked straight ahead where Static stood across from him. His eyes met with the teenager's. He had only one question. "Do you want to do this?"