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blackevermore · 3 years ago

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x Secrets of The Lake: The Company of Misery and Pain

{ Chapter 10 }

Summary: Vladimir Masters’ family tree has always been tainted by secrets swept under the rug. From generation to generation there have been countless reasons the Masters’ family had seemed to keep private from the public. Even to this day, Vladimir was no exception. But what was one to do when a restless spirit from the settlement years finally breaks free from restraints and demands you answer for your ancestor’s crimes? Vladimir doesn’t know. However, Clockworks does.

Notes: We just having fun, rewriting some of the canon, new adventure new characters. I will apologize now for any grammar, spelling, weird sentence structuring in advance. My brain writes faster than my fingers and even when I go back through to reread it I still miss things. Sorry about that!

Word Count: 5086

P.s: I feel like this chapter is shit :/ but we honestly have to keep going!!

Danny could feel it, Sam could feel it because Danny could feel it, and Tucker could only feel it because Sam told him via passing a note. Something was wrong or something was going to be wrong. Danny had kept it to himself all morning up until lunch. The annoying feeling like he should probably skip class and fly around to make sure everything was okay itched away at the back of his head.

“Okay so lemme get this straight, Vlad is currently keeping a ghost at his house that Clockwork told him was coming to haunt him from the past. He has to deal with it or something bad will happen in the future?” Sam recapped and Danny only nodded as he bit into his sandwich.

“Not gonna lie Vlad did give off that energy his family owned slaves,” Tucker muttered and Sam kicked him under the table. “What?! Come on I mean....come on.”

“I said the same thing Tuck,” Danny chuckled and rested his face in his palm. “But he insisted they didn’t and this ghost was purely a paid-ish servant. But whatever, she’s here and lemme tell ya she’s got this crazy power that changes your emotions. Yesterday after finally getting her down I almost punched Vlad for breathing.”

“You should have done it anyway and played it off.” Sam smirked and poked at her salad. “I still don’t like the guy.” She sighed and pushed her food away, not really feeling hungry.

“I don’t blame you, but I assure you he’s not the same person anymore. Same antics but now in an Addams family uncle way. Plus Dani and him playhouse and I think that actually made him become better. We haven’t fought in almost two years so I say that adds up to something.” Danny smiled and Sam only nodded along and shrugged. Danny knew it would take Sam a few more years to wrap her head around Vlad actually laying off and doing something else with his life. Hell, it took Danny by surprise when everything suddenly took a turn and both of them were outed out as halfas.

Danny actually felt like he had a friend to help take the blow with when it came to explaining to his parents about everything. Vlad had stood as his rock and that was enough for Danny to consider Vlad really was changing. Guess he finally grew up. Danny chuckled at his own joke then turned to Tucker. Tucker was a lot more laid back about the whole thing, of course, he was also ready to throw down if Vlad tried his shit, but if Danny felt safe, so did he. But it’s always been like that and that's why they got in trouble the most and Sam was the brains of the group.

“I just have a bad feeling.” Danny turned away from his friends and looked around them. Danny tried to single out if the feeling was coming from any of his peers. High school was filled to the brim with overly emotional teenage hormones that rubbed off on each other. Maybe Danny picked up some cheerleaders' manic panic feelings when he walked past them this morning. Or maybe it was the game club’s mourning from their loss last week, Danny understood that especially when he and his friends lost their games. “But it's not a ‘Vlad’s planning something dangerous’ bad, just an ‘oh no’ bad.” Danny sighed and ruffled his own hair to distract himself. He was tired and stressed out about school and life in general, he didn’t need anything else, mudding up the last of his managing teenage mind. Sam was quick to change the topic to something more fun and Tucker quickly took the chance to show off a new feature he tweaked on his phone.

Danny only half listened as he continued to watch people and drown out from the rest of the world. That was quickly cut short when a fire truck raced quickly past the school and busted left down an avenue and headed off into the distance.

“Who sets stuff on fire at 11:30 in the morning?” Sam snickered.

“It’s almost 12, they waited long enough,” Tucker added which made the girl laugh and Danny nodded with a smile. Danny was about to make the following joke but his phone dinged with a message. He pulled it out and his face nearly turned white as he saw it was Dani.

Phantom 2: Fire Truck just shot past me and their heading towards dad’s

Phantom 1: Shouldn’t you be in class...

Phantom 2: Wrong response…...FIRETRUCK HEADING TO MASTERS HOUSE!

Danny slammed his phone down and grabbed the sides of his head. His friend's small conversation was brought to a halt and they looked at him. Danny groaned and stood up and one command so did Sam and Tucker to do what they did best and cover Danny so he could transform and take off. They were seniors and yet the ol’ ‘cover me guys’ was still strong in their blood.

“Be back before last period or Lancer will be on your ass.” Tucker winked and Danny rolled his eyes before turning invisible and taking off. His friends couldn’t see him but they could take a guess which way he was going. Tucker turned to Sam and hummed before putting his hands on his hips.

“Should we follow him?” The geek asked the goth.

“You just don’t wanna present in Econ next period.” Sam rolled her eyes and sat back down at the table, now feeling the urge to finish her salad.

“You do most of the talking anyway, I’m just there to flip the slides.” Tucker shot Sam finger guns and the girl only smirked and shook her head.

It took Danny no time to make it to Vlad’s home and see two windows had been blown out on the top floor and pink and purple smoke mixed together piling high into the air. Neighbours on either side of Vlad were out of their house and watching in worry. Danny could hear the firetruck getting close. Danny began to cough as the smoke got into his lung, he lowered himself and quickly shot inside the house to see what was going on. When he landed in the bedroom hallway and quickly started to check the rooms. When he got to the end of the hallway he saw the anti ghost bars were turned off and Tayonna was gone. There was a fire in her room and busted windows.

“Oh shit,” Danny whispered then felt the floor rumble from below. He sank through the floor and was almost hit with a pink blast. Danny barely missed it as it flew past his head and quickly dove down to the floor. He turned visible and made cover as another blast flew over his head. Danny looked up from the floor and saw Plasmius dodging another attack and Tayonna still in her human form standing firm on the ground. Tayonna held purple flames in the palm of her hands and a giant ring of flames surrounding her.

“Tayonna stand down!” Plasmius yelled and fired a fireball towards Tayonna who reflected it with one of her own.

“You no longer tell me what to do Vladan!” Tayonna rose her hands towards the air and conquered three ectoblast that was set ablaze

“For the last time, my name isn’t Vladan!” Plasmius yelled and blasted one of the fireballs Tayonna held steady. Danny could tell Vlad was slowly reaching his limit of tolerance. It was likely Tayonna tried her mind junk on the man and it backfired terribly. Tayonna threw down her hands to send off the last two she had. Plamsius shot down the second one then took hold of the last one and threw it back. Tayonna wasn’t prepared for the returning attack and it hit her in the chest, sending her falling to the floor. The girl groaned and tried to push herself to the side to get back up but Plasmius shot at her again.

Tayonna must have sensed it and threw her arm back to create a line of fire around her to stop the blow. She slowly stood up and stepped back before doing a digging motion that created lines of electricity to shoot across the floor and upward to where Plasmius stood. Being as fast as the older ghost was, he simply teleported away before any of the bolts could hit him. He teleported right in front of the girl ready to shoot her back but Tayonna was faster and like a glitch she was inches away from him, placing both of her hands on his chest and with full strength shot him back with purple static.

The cry of plain Plasmius let out told Danny that the attack was more than he was ready for. Plasmius was slammed against the door and Dany was happy he didn’t go through it. Tayonna began to float into the air doing the blurry ghostly movements Danny saw at the pond. Danny thought quickly and reached for the thermos, he was so happy he always kept that bad boy strapped, and unclasped it and sucked Tayonna in. The girl turned at the feeling of being pulled and let out a horrendous scream as she was dragged into the dark void. Within seconds she was sucked in and Danny was making sure the lid was on as tight as it could go. Danny quickly hurried over to Plasmius as the older halfa pulled himself from the door and rolled to his knees. The same creepy red mist fell out of Vlad’s mouth and the man let out an ugly fit of coughs.

“What the hell happened?!” Danny didn’t mean to raise his voice but in a fit of panic it did and Plasmius only groaned and pushed himself up by a knee. Once standing Plasmius turned back into Vlad and the older man couldn’t help but clench his chest. “How did she get out? Who let her out? Vlad, you didn’t let her out, did you? Why would you-”

“Shut up!” Vlad yelled and pushed the boy away in annoyance. “Get out of here before they break down my door and see you.” Vlad turned away from Danny and tried to look less in pain than he already was. Danny frowned and grumbled about Vlad being a dick and shoved the thermos towards Vlad. At first, the man was confused but took it anyway before turning another cold shoulder to Danny.

“You have to answer me later!” Danny yelled before shooting through the roof and up into the sky. The firefighters had just broken down the door and neighbours were gasping as they saw Vlad being pulled out of the house. Danny stayed a while to make sure nothing else crazy happened before he heard the sound of his phone ding. It was Sam telling him to hurry up, last period was in 20 minutes. Danny shoved his phone in his pocket and rocketed back towards his school. He knew he would have to come up with some other ghost fighting excuse for why he missed two periods when he got home. Danny told himself he needed a break. He needed a break so he could make it to graduation and to sweet sweet summer break.

Danny was already checking his phone for a news update for the incident at Vlad’s house. But there was nothing. Surely the people of Amity would know if their former mayor’s house went up in flames. It surely knew when Vlad’s ass was all over the news. Danny told Sam and Tucker he wouldn’t be walking home with them but to make sure Dani got home safe. When he got out of school he still had to serve a hour long detention from Lancer for something he already forgot about. Danny made his way through the air to Vlad’s to check up and see what happened after he left.

Danny stood right outside the house invisible, everything was quiet, the smoke from the upstairs windows was gone. When Danny made it up to the front door he noticed it was no longer busted off the lock. It was fixed as if the events of today didn’t even happen. Danny ghosted inside and gasped, the whole foyer was cleaned and just as fancy as it was when Vlad first moved to town. Danny could see his reflection in the marble floor which he couldn’t the day before. Danny flew upstairs and even the stairs had been clean.

“Vlad?” Danny called out hoping that maybe the older halfa would be lurking around. Danny poked his head through a few doors and saw no sign that Vlad could even be home. He got to the bedrooms and checked those and still no Vlad to be found. Danny did notice however the guest room Tayonna was in was cleaned and the windows were brand new. Danny poked his head into the room but didn’t sense anything, not even Tayonna’s ungodly emotional pulls.

Danny looked around once more just to double check himself but no one seemed to be home. He was about to give up and fly home until he heard the sound of stuff slamming coming from below. Danny moved with caution as he went to Vlad's basement. Down below Vlad sat at a worn down chair tapping away at a computer with the thermos next to him. Ghost scattered around the place rebuilding screens and some of the portal that was broken by Tayonna. Danny landed on his feet and quickly ducked as a ghost flew over him with a monitor in hand.

“Good to see you back, little badger,” Vlad called over his shoulder as he continued to type away.

“How did you-”

“Simple,” Vlad spun around and leaned back in his chair. Danny’s face turned to confusion before he narrowed his eyes and shook his head. As long as it wasn’t actually hurting anyone Danny could turn a blind eye to it. “After I got everyone to leave and nearly all the news anchors to pretend they never had a story. I had to get the place fixed up and I really didn’t feel like calling anyone. Besides, we have wonderful handymen in the Ghost Zone.” Vlad didn’t seem to be in the ugly mood he was in earlier, Danny could see in his eyes there were still traces of annoyance and maybe the typical Vladness, but not anger. It almost seemed like Vlad was in a better mood and Danny wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or if he could quickly punch the man to double check.

“Has she been in there the whole time?” Danny pointed over to his thermos and Vlad sighed and nodded.

“I wasn’t letting her out again.” The man grumbled and spun back around towards the computer.

“Again? So you did let her out.” Danny walked closer and picked up the thermos making sure Vlad hadn’t started poking at it. Vlad ran a hand over his hair and nodded looking almost ashamed he had to admit he caused the problem.

“I was curious of how far her mimicking powers could go and as soon as I asked-”

“Seems more like you to command than ask.” Danny corrected.

“As I asked her to do it again she refused, then the red mist showed up and jumped down my throat and before I knew it I was reaching out towards her and grabbed her arm. Then of course you showed up and saw where that led us.” Vlad rubbed his throat a bit then cleared it. A bit more of the mist flew from his mouth and Vlad waved it away angrily. “Blasted thing.”

“Is this mist also a ghost?” Danny tried to sense if the mist was around or not. It seemed like it was gone at the moment and Danny sighed. Danny knew whatever it was that now clung to Vlad like Tayonna had an important role in this mess as well.

“I don’t believe it’s a ghost. It’s more so like dead ghost memories that follow her. It could be what makes her restless and has manifested into a physical form.” Vlad rubbed his chin and held out his hand for the thermos. Danny was slow on handing it over but finally caved. Vlad was about to untwist the top but Danny quickly shot out his hands and stopped him.

“Whoa, what are you doing?! She almost set your place on fire and now you're gonna let her out, again?” Vlad quickly snatched the gadget away from the boy and pointed behind him. Danny turned his head and saw a ghost trap on the floor already set up and ready to go. Danny hadn’t realized that he almost stepped in it. Would have been great if Vlad had just said to move out the way or something.

“She’s not going to cause any more trouble once I get this on her.” Vlad reached over and pulled the drawer open and pulled out a collar.

“So you’re gonna do the collar thing again, that’s totally gonna get her on your side.” Danny crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. He couldn’t help the faint sting and itch around his neck as memories of being in the collar himself flashed through his head. Danny should have known Vlad would keep the damn thing even after Danny broke it.

“I defused the shocking system, all it will do is make her as powerless as possible. That means even her emotional mind games. She will be as human as she’s pretending to be.” Vlad handed Danny the collar to hold as he fiddled with the thermos to get it open. Danny eyed the thing and repeated Vlad’s words in his head. And with three easy seconds, he had a monkey brain moment and snapped the thing around his neck. Danny felt his powers get pulled back inside his body and his core shut down as he collapsed to the ground and turned human. Vlad snapped towards the boy and palmed his face in disbelief. Vlad quickly gave the command for the collar to release and Danny shot back up holding his breath. The teen tried to play it off like he wasn’t caught red handed playing around.

“I’m good...we gucci.” Danny shrugged and blushed from embarrassment. Vlad rolled his eyes and picked up the collar once more and handed it to Danny with a silent ‘stop playing’ and turned back to the anti ghost circle. Vlad popped off the lip and flipped the switch to release and pressed down on the button. A bright blue glow sprung to life from within the container and Tayonna was shot out to the ground. She was discombobulated as she held her head, slowly blinking and looking around. When she turned and saw Vlad and Danny she got to her feet and flicked her wrist to activate her powers.

When she didn’t see the glow of purple she looked down at her hands and back up to Vlad with anger. Vlad tried not to meet her in the eyes but there was something alluring about them and he couldn’t pull away. He strongly regretted it when he saw how angry she was and how angry he became suddenly. His anger rose as he thought about the years he spent in the hospital alone. The anger he still held against Jack and the fact he himself didn’t have the honour of marrying Maddie.

Vlad almost lost himself in the anger until he felt Danny nudge him. He snapped his neck towards Danny and the poor boy jumped back as Vlad’s eyes faded from blue to a red void and back again. Vlad blinked a few times then covered his face to get away from Tayonna’s sight. When he felt himself calm down with the help of counting down from ten he turned back towards the boy and pointed towards the collar.

“Yeah well, how are we supposed to get it on?” Danny whispered and Vlad groaned as he hadn’t thought about that.

“Fudge muffins.” Vlad closed his eyes and sat back down in his chair. He knew he couldn’t simply ask her to wear it without having to wrestle her down to the floor. Which threatens the chance of them rolling out of the circle and her being able to use her ghost powers. Vlad didn’t have time for his lab to be ruined all over again as it was nearly finished. Vlad had to think of something that could possibly trick the ghost into wearing it.

“Tayonna,” Vlad called out to her calmly and that seemed to confuse not only her but Danny. “Let’s make a deal.” Vlad didn’t wait for a yes or a no as he stood up and crossed his arms behind his back and walked to stand right in front of the girl. He left himself open as he locked eyes with her again. Either he would end up yanking the collar from Danny and getting it around her neck while dealing with false emotions. Or in the low chance he managed to get her to back off and be compliant he would simply snap the thing around her. It seemed that the former would be the winner until she started to breathe heavily, her brows turned upward in sadness and she finally backed away from him. She lowered her head and turned away. Vlad fought the smirk that laced itself across his lips and kept them pressed tight.

“What do you want?” Tayonna asked, not above a broken whisper. Vlad held out his hand to Danny and the boy handed him the collar.

“You will wear this collar and we can actually speak like civilized people. Or you will stay down here in the basement in this small circle until you can be civilized.” Vlad held up the collar with an open hand and waited for the ghost to turn towards him. It wasn’t much of a deal and he knew it but whatever had to be done would be done. He could see the way her hand slowly inched up her dress and he tsked a few times. “If you try that again I will not hesitate to rip you apart molecule by molecule. I don’t take playing with my core lightly.” Vlad’s voice dropped to a growl and that worked to get the ghost to move her hand away from her chest. She turned towards him qualmy, eyeing the collar then up to his eyes, she scrunched her nose at the idea of having to wear it.

“You’ve never put me in a collar.” She said.

“And I wish I didn’t have to,” Vlad didn’t know why he said that nor where it came from. When he saw the way her face dropped again he felt it in his heart and it made him take a deep breath before letting it out. “If you wear it, it won't hurt you, I promise you this.” It will never hurt again. Vlad was sure these were just her false emotions projecting but deep down he could actually feel that he meant it. Somewhere inside him he truly didn’t want to collar her or hurt her, and that bothered him. Tayonna looked lost in thought as she looked between the two males in front of her. Danny looked confused by Vlad’s sudden calm demeanor and ready to stop the whole thing. The boy held his wrist and just stood there. Tayonna looked back towards Vlad and her eyes went wide. Vlad could see it in her eyes she looked at him as if he was someone she was looking for and it pained her. Then her brows fell in knots and she shook her head before walking closer to the edge of the circle.

“I promise,” Vlad whispered to her once more than brought the collar up to snap around her neck. Tayonna flinched a bit at how tight it was then brought her hands up to touch it. Vlad held out his hand and she hesitantly took it as he led her out of the circle. Vlad almost felt happy to have the girl calm and willing. He watched her face closely as she looked around her. She was beautiful. What? Vlad winced at the small voice in his head but continued to stare at her. She’s always been so beautiful. Vlad’s eyes went soft like the way they did when he looked at Maddie, but in his mind, there was no Maddie, just Tayonna. Tayonna quickly took her hand back and held onto herself when she noticed Vlad’s hard stare. She wavered on if this was a good idea or if she had just handed herself over to the wrong person. Vlad snapped out of whatever fix he was in and cleared his voice before turning towards a very baffled Danny.

Vlad held up a hand, he didn’t have the answers himself, “It seems we might be getting somewhere, Daniel.” Vlad walked past the boy and lifted up his jaw. Vlad walked towards his portal just as the last monitor was fixed in place. He forgot all about the work being done during that whole thing. Vlad thought it was best now that he got the girl out of the circle to put space between them. He didn’t need any more little voices in his ear telling him things he didn’t believe.

“All done, boss!” The ghost workers all called off and Vlad thanked them before turning on the portal to allow them to leave. Vlad sighed in pure happiness as the soft green glow of the Ghost Zone illuminated his face. It was comforting since Vlad spent a lot of time there when he wasn’t taking care of his companies. It felt like he needed to take a quick flight through the zone to refresh himself before stepping foot in his house ever again. But that will have to wait as Vlad now has to get Tayonna to talk. Vlad turned back to the others and the default smile he normally wore. Danny only gave him a slightly worried expression while Tayonna turned completely away from the portal.

“Well, Daniel I think it’s best if you made it home.” Vlad stepped to the side and held out a hand ushering Danny. The boy bit his lip and looked back towards Tayonna who hadn’t moved an inch since getting out of the circle.

“Is this a good idea?” Danny walked over and going ghost.

“I can assure you it will,” Vlad gave him his best smile and nodded.

“You’re not gonna do anything...dangerous to her are you?” Danny leaned in towards Vlad with narrowed eyes and a finger pointed towards his face.

“Daniel, have I done anything to warrant your concern, as of recently?” Vlad’s smile dropped and he cocked a brow towards the teen. Seriously if Vlad wanted to cause trouble he honestly wouldn’t wait for the opportunity, he would go out and do it. Danny seemed to back down from that and rubbed his neck.

“No but old habits die hard. Keep me updated, fruitloop.” Danny shot through the portal and off into the Ghost Zone. Vlad sighed and rolled his eyes and closed the portal before turning on his heels and walking back towards Tayonna. When he got close she flinched away from him and shot him a glare.

‘The constant mood swings are rather annoying’ Vlad thought but kept his face neutral. “Miss Tayonna, it would be better if we went upstairs. Unless you wish to stay down here.” Vlad held out his hand but she refused to take it, with a shrug he dropped it.

“I don’t.” She responded and Vlad nodded then started towards the basement stairs to head back towards the first floor. Tayonna silently followed behind him.

Vlad kept an eye on Tayonna as he ventured around his house. She continued to follow him without complaint. At first Vlad found it endearing, she seemed so lost and followed him everywhere, but when he forgot she was there from how quiet she was and tried to go to the bathroom he quickly had to set rules of sorts.

“You don’t have to follow me, you could go sit somewhere until I come for you.” Vlad turned around and faced her and she seemed embarrassed for a moment. She turned her head from him and huffed.

“I have no idea where I am.” She mumbled.

“You’ve been in my house for almost a week and you don’t know your way around?” He tried to not sound condescending but it was a bit hard when the ghost that’s been haunting you acted like a puppy.

“I stayed by your side the whole time.” Tayonna looked back up to him and Vlad felt his heart skip a beat and his mouth run dry. He thought it was oddly flattering until he remembered she did it in ill will. Then there was something that caught his eye that really made him choke up. On the right side of her neck in the small dip before her shoulder were bite marks. That’s when he noticed the way she tended to only stand towards him on her left. Tayonna noticed his eyes staring towards her right and she turned away. Vlad didn’t have to say anything to confirm that that one particular dream she had actually infiltrated. ‘Dream manipulation, emotional manipulation, and mimicking...interesting’ Vlad blushed a bit and cleared his throat. Even with the stab in the back, he couldn’t help but still enjoy it for what it was. But he wouldn’t rub that in her face, yet.

Vlad turned away and motioned for her to follow him towards his downstairs office. He opened the door and allowed her to walk in first, he offered her a seat and Tayonna took it. Vlad walked over to his desk just as the phone began to ring. Ahh yes, what a wonderful time to receive a personal call. Vlad frowned and let out a heavy sigh before answering.

“Masters speaking.” Vlad gave his professional voice and the voice on the other side sighed and for once Vlad felt at ease by the rude welcoming.

“Hello Sir, you have got to be shitting me.”

#📖Ghost Stories👻#vlad masters #danny phantom #dp fanfic #my writing #Secrets of The Lake

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etlunainmorte · 5 years ago

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***

"So, will you take on the job, or not?"

The question has been bugging V, to be perfectly honest.

And it all started when a client visited the shop that one uneventful day.

V was busy sweeping the floor ( Dante was, as usual, sitting on his favorite chair with his booted feet propped up on the desk ) when the door suddenly opened, revealing a woman in her mid - twenties.

"Welcome to,... ah,..." the poet awkwardly began as he looked up from what he was doing ( he was instructed by Dante to keep practicing his greetings as a way of helping him loosen up in front of strangers and possible clients ) and took a look at the woman, who just ignored him and walked pass him.

"Are you Dante, the Legendary Devil Hunter?" The woman asked with her low and raspy voice.

"Yeah? How can I help you?" Dante lazily inquired as he stretched his arms like he just woke up from a long, undisturbed slumber

"I need you to drive out the evil spirit that's haunting my house." The lady demanded in a very bossy tone. "I'll pay you - "

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, señorita!" The Devil Hunter, who was wide awake now due to the woman's brash attitude, held up both his hands in an attempt to interrupt his very demanding client. "This is a Devil Hunting Agency, and not some fancy paranormal shop for old wives."

The woman's eyes widened as she placed her hands on her hips, clearly annoyed at the ugly attitude that Dante just showed her. "As I've told you, I could pay you - "

"Nope! Not gonna drive out ghosts for ya, miss." Dante rested the back of his head against his raised arms once more as he settled his feet back on the desk. "And I hunt Devils, not spirits. They're just, eh. Small fry,..."

The woman closed her eyes, holding up her hands and balling them to fists as she kept her temper in check. And when she opened them once more, V saw her grab something from the pocket of her ripped jeans and carefully placed it on the desk. "If you ever change your mind, you should be able to find me on this address."

V's eyes never wavered from the woman as she made her way out of the shop, ignoring him once more and walking pass him like she didn't even see him standing there. He carefully placed the broom and the dust pan on one corner of the room and made his way towards Dante. He saw the business card on the table, picked it up, and faced the man behind the desk.

"The electric bill is due tomorrow." V reminded the man, hoping for him to reconsider. "Why did you refuse?"

Dante opened one eye and peered at him curiously. "Eh, I'm not interested in it."

"Why?"

Dante sighed and closed his eyes as he made himself comfortable on his favorite spot. "I told ya. Ghosts are just small fry. Not worth my time."

"But, the lady needs help. And she is willing to pay." V reiterated, stressing on the word pay. But, he was ignored by the Devil Hunter.

What's with people and their tendency to ignore him?

With a deep sigh, V left the man and read the contents, pondering for a while if he should accept the job in place of the lazy Dante. The simple card contained the name of the client and her address. Nothing more.

~ Avery L. Edwards ~

• No. 794 Swan Lane, Red Grave City •

He dragged his gaze off the words that seemed to hypnotize him and went out of the shop, hoping to find Avery L. Edwards.

And there she was, about to start the engine of her shiny dark bike with purple highlights.

"Miss Edwards,..." V called her attention, slightly running to catch up to her before she could drive away.

Avery fortunately ( and finally ) noticed him and removed her helmet, turning her gaze towards him and appraising him from head to foot. In fact, she looked so surprised that a man such as V was trying to have a conversation with her.

Was it his unusual appearance?

"And you are - ?"

"V." The poet answered, taking a deep breath and leaning on his metal cane for support. He, then, straightened his back and tilted his head to the side. "You can call me V."

"Oh. What can I do for you, V?"

"About the commission - "

"Stop. Right. There." Avery pointed at V, cutting him halfway through his sentence. "If you're planning to take on the Poltergeist at my home, then you're making a HUGE mistake."

Huh? "And may I ask,... why?"

"Furniture floating and smashing about. Disembodied voices in the middle of the night. And your skinny, princess ass begging to be fed and given vitamins. Are you goddamn sure?!"

Now, Dante may have sensed her odd attitude, but her wrongful assumption of him being incapable of the task did somehow put him on the edge. He looked at her straight in the eye, slightly bowing his head, and showing her his devilish smirk - a sign that he was more than ready for the simple task she originally have for Dante.

And this slightly unnerved the woman.

"I would like,... to see myself try." V simply told her.

The woman raised a scornful eyebrow. She knew that Dante was her one and only hope and choice. No other person in Red Grave could do it but him.

But, this man?

"So, will you take on the job, or not?"

"I would like to,... if you would allow me."

Avery furrowed her eyebrows and regarded him like he was some suicidal maniac begging to be fed to the lion. "Alright. I'll expect you tomorrow, then. Move into the house for a week. Bring whatever or whoever you need. You know my address."

"Would a cat and a bird do?" V innocently asked as he playfully twirled his metal cane in a display of confidence. This woman,... must be taught a lesson.

Avery pursed her lips and wore her helmet once more. "Sure. Whatever. I don't care. Just,... get rid of the ghost for me. I'll pay you. That I can assure you."

And with those words, she finally drove away.

Despite the question strangely bugging him, he was, in fact, feeling excited of this new mission. Yes, Dante might consider it as "small fry" but, facing Poltergeists was definitely a welcome change compared to his boring Devil Hunting routine. And he wanted so much to prove that woman wrong about him.

He was about to go back to the shop to pack what little belongings he have when he noticed Nico staring at him with wide eyes and open mouth. Apparently, she has been standing near the door for quite a while and must have heard the conversation between him and Avery. She almost dropped her groceries as she attempted to close her mouth and control her drooling.

Wait, did she look,... excited?

"Whoa, a paranormal investigation!" The Artisan gasped. "Can I tag along?"

"I don't - "

"Come on, man! Ya gotta let me!" Nico strode closer to him, flailing her arms about and almost sending her groceries flying everywhere. "This is like,... a dream come true for me! Okay, how about this: we'll split the pay 70 - 30. But, I'll be happy with nothing, though, if you don't want 70 - 30! But, come on, that's good deal, yeah?"

"Nico, I - "

"Please? I'll drive you on the way there. I will not be a bother."

V felt cornered. The woman looked really excited that he would surely feel guilty if he refused her.

Him, Griffon, Shadow, probably Nightmare, as well, and finally, Nico.

What could go wrong with this simple task of driving away a single evil spirit from someone's home with some comrades? After all, Avery did say he could bring just about anyone.

And what does her house look like, anyway? And what was the reason behind this Poltergeist's ceaseless haunting?

***

✒ P.S. I Love You ✒

***

~ A V X Reader set in a modern Alternate Universe.

~ Life goes back to normal after the fall of Urizen, the Demon King. V, one of the Demon Hunters who survived the demonic invasion, officially joins Devil May Cry and takes on small jobs to make ends meet. One day, a female client hires him to drive away an evil spirit that haunts her home. Along with Nico, who brings along her new state - of - the - art gadgets to help him on his new mission, and his familiars, Griffon, Shadow, and Nightmare, V moves to his client's home - a mansion rich with history, both happy and dark. And in that mansion, he finds a diary that once belonged to the client's great grandmother, a woman named (Y/N) (L/N), who is, somehow, connected to the hauntings of the restless spirit he must drive out.

~ A Halloween special from yours, truly. Enjoy. 🖤🖤🖤

***

✒ A special thanks to @la-vita for introducing us to Avery L. Edwards. ✒

✒ @micaelagua ✒

***

✒✒✒

***

#devil may cry 5 #vitale sparda #p.s. i love you #v x reader #v x you #prologue

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monitorsscrawlings · 7 years ago

Text

On Ghosts And Other Undead

Below I've compiled some rough notes for later perusal, since this stuff is important, and I vow this is the absolute last time I let myself spend literally hours on end holed up in the families secret library. Morty has helped fill in some of the blanks, but there is still much more to learn. I can already hear Grunk impatiently stomping around upstairs so best to write this all down quickly, while it's still fresh.

Firstly all undead, regardless of their nature, form or disposition come in two very broad categories: those being either Corporeal or Incorporeal. Now lots of entities that are technically incorporeal can still exert their will on the material plane, still posses a more or less tangible form and can still be perceived by the naked eye. Likewise there are a few corporal who can and will flip physics the bird and explode into a swarm of cockroaches or melt into slime or dissolve into mist or the like at will. Sometimes trying to apply a label to such entities is an utter waste of effort, frankly. The main difference I've found is that incorporeal entities are a soul or conscience expressing itself through a body with an ectoplasmic base and thus not bound by the laws and limitations of meat-space, where as a corporal entity is a being rooted in a physical body that no matter how strange or dangerous still has at least some physical limitations. More than most incorporeal entities I've encountered anyways.

Haze: Incorporeal. A weak spirit, less a proper ghost and more an uppity glob of ectoplasm super-charged by an overabundance of usually negative residual emotions that have become ingrained into the underlying fabric of a place; things like grief, anger, fear and despair. Typically manifests as a misty, ill-defined humanoid figure composed of smoky ectoplasm, usually using smog, dust, sands, bits of trash and the like to give it actual solidity once it grows strong enough. Not a ghost in the true sense, more like fragmented echos of strong emotional imprints. Prolonged exposure to a Haze may cause hallucinations, disrupt recording devices and other electronics, but they're more a petty nuisance than any kind of real threat.

A stiff gust of wind or a handful of salt is usually more than enough to disrupt them, as they're barely strong enough to survive being sneezed at, much less a light breeze. Typically incredibly short-lived as one might imagine, and often preyed upon by stronger more malicious entities as a quick and easy snack to revitalize their own essence.

Shades: Incorporeal. A kind of low-level ghost or spirit. Usually a lost or restless soul clinging to the material plane to deliver a message or seeking help. A struggle that often leaves them weakened and confused, since they lack the stability or focus of true ghosts. Practically no physicality, though touching them for any length of time will seriously sap your body-heat, and letting one latch on to you is just a bad idea in general, since if allowed to they can pass on visions or posses you, which speaking from experience is seriously dangerous and not at all fun, and we should never let that happen again. Potentially dangerous, as emotions and belief can have a nourishing effect, giving them more permanence and clarity of thought as well as more focus and direction. Usually however, they only whisper, guide and hint, and will pass on of their own violation once they've passed on their message to its intended recipient or revealed their killers identity.

If a shade starts to become violent or latches on to an unwilling host, exposing them to sanctified iron, throwing a handful of salt their way or dragging the victim out in to strong sunlight will weaken the shade and force it to release its victim.

Phantasm: Incorporeal. An incredibly strong personality impressed into the fabric of a place, sometimes catalyzed by a traumatic death or catastrophic event. The sort of people that spawn these things usually just aren't nice or pleasant people, quite the opposite really. Many are simply mindless recordings that lash out blindly and invisibly, pushing people out windows or down stairs, creating disturbances and growing both stronger and more violent as the responding emotions and raw belief from the people who bear the brunt of these outbursts or happen to witness them in action floods in.

Some phantasms tend to gain more visibility and cohesion over time, but remain mindless echos of those who have already passed on, albeit more complex and better defined in the scenarios they act out. Great potential for harm and mischief, avoid if and whenever possible. A ritual cleansing or exorcism of the problem area is usually enough to destroy and erase these things, but it's altogether too easy to mistake a phantasm for any number of other things, and the wrong treatment can actually make things like this worse.

Ghosts: Incorporeal. Human or other sentient who have died and who's soul or spirit persists after death, bolstered by all kinds of ambient magical, ectoplasmic and miscellaneous energies. Usually people who have died in a dramatic or spectacular way, violently and unexpectedly, though there are always exceptions. Personality, behavior, as well as where and how they died all can have an affect on a ghosts appearance, and their particular powers, if any. There are two things that define them. The first is that all ghosts--true ghosts--are self-aware, conscience, and retain their free-will. The second thing is that most ghosts tend to start their unlives temporarily anchored to the area they died in, though I'm not quite clear on exactly why. Aside from that they all tend to be pretty varied. Most are sub-categorized by what they do and how they operate, since ghosts are one of the most varied groups of undead.

Firstly you've got Specters. Just regular ghosts. Many go about their unlives in a drifting, dream-like fugue-state, like sleep-walkers. Others have been known to act as guardians or household spirits attached to a particular individual or household. Practically indistinguishable from a living person nine times out of ten, specters tend to be a very placid and down to earth bunch in comparison to both Haunts and Poltergeists. This however does not make them harmless, and an angry specter is likely to make its displeasure felt in a violent and explosive manner if pushed too far or threatened. Often kept sustained and strengthened through prayer, remembrance, and offerings from those they knew in life.

Next you've got Haunts. Spookers and tricksters, most Haunts delight in frightening, pranking and in some cases even outright tormenting the living, causing mischief, grabbing attention and creating a ruckus. Everything from shape-shifting and ectoplasmic manipulation, petty tricks and spoiling milk to borderline poltergeist-like behavior, heavy-duty terror tactics and full-scale hauntings of anywhere from a single person to an entire household of people. Basically the polar-opposite of Specters in both motive and temperament. More attention demanding but less likely to lash out violently if angered. These are probably what most people think of when they think 'ghost'. Usually non-violent, often very spirited and characterized by strong personalities, haunts can be stressful and deeply annoying to deal with, but they're rarely actively malicious or deadly. Incredibly varied in appearance, I don't think I've ever actually seen two that looked much alike.

Finally, there's Poltergeists. Ghosts who are motivated by anger or frustration, either with themselves, their demise and current state of being, or the world around them. Some might not even be entirely aware of their current circumstances or trapped in a state of shock or denial and unwilling or unable to move on or adjust to their new existence. Poltergeists as a general rule tend to be territorial, antagonistic, temperamental and the most likely to lash out violently at their surroundings with very little prompting. Poltergeists in particular should be handled with care, compassion and discretion.

Salt, fresh blood--human, animal, monster, fae or hell even demonic ichor seems to work--sanctified iron or polished silver all work at keeping ghosts either in or out, providing the boundary-lines forged through these methods remain secure. For some reason sleep-catchers work on lassoing or stymieing most haunts. Mirrors of glass or polished silver are likewise excellent at capturing and containing them, provided you know you're doing and how to go about it. If a ghost persists in endangering others or acting in a violent fashion, an exorcism will work as a last resort to forcibly boot them off in to the afterlife. The religion or culture the exorcism is rooted in doesn't matter, so long as it's performed correctly and the proper materials are used.

[ There's a hastily scrawled note under the last entry for this page. Clearly someone was in a rush. The note reads: 'Ending this here for now, Journal. Hands cramping up something fierce and I can hear Grunk banging on the lab-door. Guess my times up. Note to self: fill in and compile rest of notes later ASAP.' ]

Author Note: This is one of those written pieces I originally wrote up on my other blog, and really not a heck of a lot has changed, though I did try to tweak and clean it up a little. Mainly to make it a little more stylistically consistent with the second half, which I think reads better of the two.

Special thanks to @delistylehardcore who indirectly inspired this and who’s awesome characters and artwork help inspire me and make me want to keep writing more. If you’ve made it this far might I recommend checking them out?

#Otherverse Data Files #Otherverse Lore #Ghosts #Undead #The Undead #Spirits #Perilous Entities

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flying-guinea-pig · 7 years ago

Text

Season Finale 5/7

AO3 link

The previous chapters.

Chapter 5: The Lower Levels

She hadn’t expected this assignment to be so… well, boring.

Boring was good. Boring was safe. But a small part of Elisabeth wished Alcor had been here to liven things up. At least then she’d have someone to snark with.

Bad idea. She still wasn’t sure about Alcors motivations. That sudden generosity of his was suspicious as hell, and she was too clever to fall for that. It was a good thing he wasn’t here, and her deal kept him from annoying her until she specifically summoned him. If only the same could be said about his little electronic spawn…

[So I’ve been looking at that data,] the Alcor Virus said. [And these guys sound a lot less like cultists and a lot more like scientists. This is all calculations and stuff. I’m still figuring out what they were trying to do, exactly, but it’s way more complicated than anything human could come up with. Must have had help.]

‘From their demon, obviously,’ she typed. ‘Did you find any info on it?’

[Not yet.]

“I can’t believe it,” the camera guy said. “This phone - especially designed and spelled to have reception anywhere on Earth - is barely working anymore. But yours doesn’t seem to have any problems at all. Who are you messaging anyway?”

“Does it matter?” She wished Tenney would hurry up. How much time did a man need in the bathroom anyway?

She was just impatient. Eager to get on with this show. Not worried, of course. It’s not like standing around in this gloomy corridor made her feel exposed or anything. That would be silly. She knew who was responsible for those ‘haunted lights and computers’ and it wasn’t a murderous ghost at all.

Had it been this quiet, a moment ago? Sure, they had been distracted by exploring, but no matter where you were in these living quarters, the faraway roar of the ocean and the faint creaks of metal were always in the background.

Not here, though. Not now. She could only hear her own breaths and those of Steve and April, and the quiet hum of the electronics they carried on their person.

The overhead lights flickered out. In the darkness, something made a high-pitched wailing noise.

"Well, this is definitely a haunting," Steve said, his face illuminated only by the glow of his camera screen.

Did something touch her neck? Elisabeth turned around, heart pounding, but of course there was nothing there.

Something clammy grabbed her arm. She swallowed her scream, realising it was just April.

“Sorry,” April whispered, her terrified fingers gripping hard enough to bruise.

Ghosts. Give her a demon any day - at least you knew what they wanted, even if it was to screw you over as much as possible before devouring your soul. Ghosts could have all kinds of motivations, ranging from helpful to kill-everything-that-breathes.

She glanced at the screen on her wrist. Her camera recorded blackness, of course, but the night-vision mode could make out the lines of the corridor and the dark doorways lining it.

"Relax,” Steve said. “I've seen a lot of hauntings. When there are knives flying at you, that's when you start to worry."

She made a face. "How about we don't give the ghost ideas?"

"You're not scared, are you? Ghosts are creepy, but usually not malevolent. Just confused. They don't realise they're dead."

"Usually," she muttered. How comforting. The soft cries in the background made the hairs on her neck stand straight up, but oh, no worries, it usually wasn't malevolent.

̇ͅl̇̇ͅͅė̇ͅͅȧ̇ͅͅv̇ͅėͅ

April’s nails were digging into Elisabeth’s arm. “… did you hear that?”

This… wasn’t the Alcor Virus playing around, was it?

̤̤̇̈̇̈ͅͅÿ̤̤̇̇̈ͅͅö̤̤̇̇̈ͅͅṳ̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅ ̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅm̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅṳ̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅs̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅẗ̤̤̇̇̈ͅͅ ̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅ ̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅL̤̤̈̇̇̈ͅͅË̤̤̇̇̈ͅͅÄ̤̤̇̇̈ͅͅV̤̈̇ͅË̤̇ͅ ̣̤̬͚̇̈̌͋͘ͅN͚̬̤̣̣̤̬͚͋̌̈̇̇̈̌͋͘͘ͅͅO͚̬̤̣͋̌̈̇͘ͅW͚̬̤̣͋̌̈̇͘ͅ

The voice seemed to come from everywhere – echoing from the metal walls, bounding back on itself in a fading loop of leave now… now… now…

Light, sudden and blinding.

Elisabeth had never been this happy to see someone come back from the bathroom. Tenney stood in the open doorway, a hand raised, holding something that glittered like the brightest star –

The darkness shuddered and faded.

“You will find peace,” Tenney said, with a solemn nod at what turned out to be a mirror. He tucked it away before Elisabeth catch more than a glimpse of the rolling darkness inhabiting the silver frame.

“You can let go of me now,” Steve said. He nodded at her hand, which was holding him in a grip not unlike April’s.

“… right,” she said. Stupid traiterous hand.

“That was the scariest moment in my life,” April said, also letting go. “Thank you so much, John. For a moment there, I really thought she’d do something to us…”

Tenney’s smile was smug. “All in a day’s work, my dear.”

---

Francesca and Flint were waiting for them at the staircase.

Steve usually trusted Tenney's sixth sense in these things, but seeing the look on Francesca’s face made him really regret that little ritual Tenney had performed.

“Where is Katya?”

“We don’t know,” Francesca said. “We went through a haunted spot, up in the fifth level. It was nothing I couldn’t handle, but when the ghosts dissipated Katya was gone. We hoped she’d just been turned around in the confusion and she’d meet us down here.”

“We tried calling her, but the phones stopped working a while ago,” Flint added. “Is your connection with Monifa still active? Maybe she can use the live footage from Katya’s cam to help us track her down.”

Steve checked his camera again to make sure, but no luck. “My connection is gone too. I have no way to reach Monifa.” Wait a minute… “Adams? Your phone still works. Let me use it for a moment.”

For some reason Adams glared at the screen before handing her phone over.

Steve dialed Monifa and held his breath in anticipation.

“The number you are trying to reach is currently unavailable,” a pleasant if slightly robotic woman’s voice said. “Please try again –“

“And? Does it work?”

“No. The number is unavailable.” He handed the phone back to Adams. “Maybe Katya misunderstood, and she’s waiting on the seventh level itself?”

“Maybe…”

"She’ll be fine. This isn’t the first time someone got lost during a haunting, she knows what to do,” Tenney said, with a smile. “I’m sure she is waiting for us down there. The important thing now is the cameras keep working.”

Francesca raised an eyebrow. "You're in a good mood."

"Of course. Cutting off the phones, white noise, now a missing person - all signs of a strong haunting. That is what we're here for, is it not? Now, let us go and find the little lost lamb before something traumatising befalls her."

Steve took up his assigned spot at Adams' back as they descended the stairs and reached the seventh level. Adams had taken out her phone again. She was frowning at it, apparently so distracted that her walking speed suffered. They trailed behind the rest of the group.

"Something interesting on there?" Steve asked, when Adams had slowed down so much she was almost standing still. She looked up and put away her phone, a guilty look flashing over her face for a second. Steve nodded towards the end of the corridor, where Flint was impatiently holding open the large metal door for them. "We should hurry. Unless you want to split up again."

"I'd rather not," Adams said. Her eyes flicked down towards the pocket she had just stashed her phone into. "What would you say if I told you there was something weird going on here?"

"I'd say, hey, wasn't it dark underneath that rock you were living under?" He shrugged. "It's a strong haunting. Weirdness is the norm."

She glared again. This one was pretty easy to rile up, wasn't she? He was starting to have fun with this. "I'm not talking about ghosts."

That... was slightly more worrying. "You're not saying the demon is still around, are you?"

"No," she said. Frowned, touched the assorted demonology gear she was wearing on her belt. "I don't know. There's something."

"Well, if we come across that 'something', how badly do we need to worry?"

"There aren't knives flying at us," she quipped. "According to your theory, that means everything is fine, right?"

Steve made a face as he followed her down the corrider. The lights flickered.

"There's just one thing..." Adams said, trailing off.

"What?" he prompted.

Her eyes were shadowed. "Demons rarely bother with knives."

On cue, as if the universe had some intuition for dramatics, an inky and thick darkness rose from the floor and spread as mist through the corridor between them and the door.

A woman screamed. The sound came from all directions at once, deafening and echoing and full of pain.

At least Tenney would be happy. This wasn't a category one anymore.

"Let's catch up with the others," Steve said, and took Adams' arm to pull her with him when she seemed frozen to the floor.

"There's a woman," she breathed, throwing glances behind them as he guided her through the dark.

"I know."

"She has no face."

"Yep, that happens."

"It's a faceless woman."

"It's a ghost."

"She's holding something - oh god. Oh god."

"Don't freak out now. You deal with demons, for crying out loud."

"She's holding a severed head and it looks just like me.”

“Illusions. Trying to frighten you,” Steve said. “Keep moving.”

“It’s working!” He could hear Adams breathe, near hysteria but then suddenly more measured. "Right. Show no fear. This is nothing. I've seen much worse."

"That's the spirit. Don't slow down though."

"It's just a ghost. A restless soul. I deal with things that eat those for breakfast. This is fine. I am fine."

"Yes, but can you be fine and speed up?"

"Why? We're not going anywhere."

That... was unfortunately true, Steve realised. The doorway was now only a faint outline in the distance, Flint nowhere to be seen, the walls of the corridor replaced by writhing darkness.

The ghostly screams had stopped. The corridor was silent as the grave.

Steve regretted that turn of phrase immediately.

"I never knew ghosts could manipulate space like that," Adams said, and although her voice seemed thoughtful he could hear the tremor underneath the forced calm. "Interesting. Well, mister 'I've-seen-a-lot-of-hauntings', what do we do now?"

"Tenney and Francesca are the experts," he said. The spirit in the distance was standing still. Motionless. "I only know the basics."

"Let's hear it."

What would Tenney do in a case like this? He'd seen his boss work hundreds of times! Why the hell was he panicking, this was just his job, there was no reason to panic at all...

The ghost cocked her head. Even without a face, he could feel her gaze zero in on them.

She started to move.

Adams had moved too, but not to run. For some reason she'd taken one of the spray bottles from her belt and she was hurriedly spraying the contents in a line in front of them, from one wall of moving shadows to the other one. Then she vigorously applied the herbal spray on herself, and on him.

"What are you doing?" Steve asked. It smelled of rosemary and who knows what other herbs. Was this a demon thing? "Are you flavouring yourself? What, you think ghosts don't like italian food? This junk may work on demons but not on - hey!"

She'd quit spraying them both and unscrewed the top of the bottle before throwing it at the spirit, which had moved a lot closer now. The liquid puddled on the floor, its scent strong enough that Steve halfway expected his nose hairs to burn off. No way was that just a herbal spray. What did she put it that stuff?

Finished with her weird ritual, Adams took his arm and now it was her turn to pull him along, towards the door that still seemed so horribly far away.

"Do- your- thing," she said, between gasps for air as they ran. "I don't- know- how long- it'll stall- her!"

Basic exorcisms. Would basic work? This wasn't a category one! He knew the chant, of course, but he wasn't like Tenney, he didn't have the gift, would it even work if the ghost hadn't been bound in silver first? Damn it, where was his boss when you needed him? And damn that rule about not stealing Tenney's spotlight, they should all carry a silver mirror for exactly these kinds of circumstances, why did Tenney have to take all sorts of odd precautions and neglect this?

Well, usually they didn't get split up like this, not in strongly haunted places, but still...

"Are you going to do something or what!" Adams screamed, next to his ear, her eyes wild, things moving in the shadows flanking them where the walls used to be, skeletal arms of utter darkness reaching out...

Ding!

"DAMN IT, VIRUS, NOT NOW!"

Right, right, the chant, he knew this...

"Ex-exodus demonus," he started. Yes, he knew this. Confidence. Strenght of will. Like Tenney did it. He could do this. "Spookus scarus ainafraidus no ghostus, bumpus goosus shamalaaan!"

The world around them seemed to shimmer. The arms faded into normal walls. The faceless head rippled and a slit ripped across its dead skin where a mouth should have been. It screamed, high and really fucking creepy, before the swirling shadows swallowed the woman and dripped away.

The door to the other corridor was right in front of their noses. They wasted no time running through it. Steve slammed it closed behind him - as if that could stop a ghost, ha! - but it did make him feel a bit better.

"That's the worst latin I've ever heard," Adams said, gulping air and leaning heavily on the wall. "I wouldn't even call it Latin. It's gibberish."

"It's an ancient chant to banish ghosts," Steve said, slightly defensive.

"Whatever. Did it work?"

"We're alive, aren't we?"

She had the gall to glare at him. He glared back. He had just saved both their lives, she could at least pretend to be grateful.

“Where are the others?”

“No clue,” Steve said. He tried to keep the worry from his voice. Tenney wouldn’t leave him behind, not voluntarily. “We need to stay focused. They can’t be far – maybe we can hear them.”

The bodies should be around here somewhere. The broken police drones as well – this was where they malfunctioned and died. This level had been bad news even before Tenney’s little foray into forbidden magic…

“I don’t hear anything,” Adams said. “It’s dead quiet.”

The beam of her flashlight revealed some bumps on the floor in the right corridor. They threw odd, sharp-edged shadows.

"Dead quiet is the right word for it," he said, as his eyes made sense of the bumps. The shadows seemed to shiver. He took a deep, slow breath. "Left. We're taking the left corridor."

"Good call," she said, as the shadows trooped together and became stretched-out faces, mouths wide and gaping.

"Maybe run?" Steve offered.

“Let’s.”

They didn’t get far. The left corridor came to an abrupt end. There weren’t any doors, only an open hatch in the floor.

Her flashlight was reflected by a metal ladder, reaching into the deep.

"I think we've found where everyone ran off to,” Elisabeth said.

---

The ladder seemed endless, a large tube into the dark.

The shadows above them were only just shadows, now. They'd left those... things behind. She hoped.

What an impractical way down. Why not a staircase, like in the upper levels? She couldn’t imagine having to climb down every day. It made no sense. The cult had no reason to hide their rooms – they lived on a damned oil rig in the middle of nowhere. Who’d bother them here?

Her eyes caught the lines and squiggles on the walls and she stared. They seemed to move in the shivering glow of their flashlights.

Binding circles. So many of them – she kept spotting more and more as they descended, layered into eachother, symbols of containment and containment and containment in a dazzling show of both skill and paranoia.

Layering circles was an art, really. The most she’d gotten was five – after a certain amount, the magic of one circle interfered with the others until the whole thing either exploded or malfunctioned in another, more spectacular way. She’d never seen anything like this. She hadn’t thought it possible.

If only she had her hands free, to take notes.

At the bottom of the ladder was a round, featureless room. The binding circles ended at the top of the single door, so their energies wouldn’t be disrupted by the door opening or closing. Pretty ingenious, actually.

The door itself was metal, to no one’s surprise, and embossed with a single flattened X.

Ding! her phone said.

Fine! She might as well look what that annoying thing had to add. It would only keep on nagging anyway.

[I've got a bad feeling about this.] The Alcor Virus looked worried, insofar as a bunch of pixels on a small screen could have an expression. The lines of text came quickly, one after another. [I can't reach the rest of me.]

[I can't go anywhere!]

[You should call Dad.]

"Not a chance," she said. Nice try, but no. Adding a demon to the mix was obviously not going to help. They were dealing with ghosts here.

[You don't understand! Something is really wrong here! I can't reach -]

She stopped reading and slipped her phone back into her pocket.

Ding!

Silence.

---

#transcendence au #elisabeth adams #fic: season finale #the alcor virus #al-v #steve the camera guy #ghosts #a bit of creepiness

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