#charles the ghost

[tatters-the-bat]

I don't remember if I've posted this so I'm gonna do so again and use it as an excuse to loredump :3

This is the main cast of one of my OUs, Ectopolis, the city of ghosts!

Ectopolis is in Earth's atmosphere, but is only visible and tangible to ghosts. "Newlydead" souls flock to the city due to the presence of The Pool, a large, mysterious collection of colorful ectoplasm that souls use to shape their new ghost forms! It's also where they go to if their ghost form is ever destroyed. There are other settlements and stuff like floating islands all across the atmosphere, but Ectopolis is the biggest, mostly because of the Pool being such a central thing to the ghost world.

Sometimes, on the surface of the Pool, powerful splotches of high-energy plasm form, known as Hyperplasm. Very few ghosts have ever formed from these, and the few that did have no memory of their previous life. One of the most prominent is the namesake, Hyper, who is the mayor of the city now!

He and his crew here basically just work to ensure that new ghosts learn how things work and that nothing threatens the spectral plane - sometimes, rogue souls will corrupt and become monstrous Specters roaming the atmosphere, so part of the group's job is to make sure those specters are dealt with so they don't hurt anyone.

Character info below cut!!

As mentioned, Hyper is the mayor and does mayor stuff; in fact, he's constantly swamped with paperwork. As a hyperplasmic ghost, he's capable of plasma shock abilities, but this is rarely seen due to him usually being too busy to be directly involved in combat.

Zest is the security guard of the Pool, usually the first person people meet when they form. He makes sure well enough that people make it to the front desk and get acclimated to their afterlife. Buuut he's also a huge flirt and slacks off near constantly.

Charles is a strong, silent janitor who in life was a successful party-bro bodybuilder. He doesn't talk much, but he never backs down from a challenge - which is what got him killed, when at a party he decided to chug a dubious shake made from everything in the fridge. He's Zest's boyfriend also! :3

Rayne is the front desk clerk of the main building where the Pool is, so she makes sure new ghosts get registered into the system and know where they should go to do whatever it is they want to do. She's bitter and sarcastic, but she opens up if you get to know her. She and Zest lovingly despise each other.

Dillon is a nervous wreck of a ghost that works the cafeteria, having died from a heart attack after receiving a letter from a famous chef that wanted to meet with him, which he has not lived down. Ghosts don't need to eat, but Dillon has succeeded in making incredible flavor profiles that bring in people all the time anyway. If only he wasn't so shy and anxiety-filled.

Emile was a veterinarian in life, specializing in reptiles. They died to a snake bite, and has gotten some reptilian traits to it in its afterlife. It's affectionately called "Dr. Snake-Eyes," "Dr. Chameleon," "Dr. Lizard-brain," etc by Zest - he hates all of those nicknames. They're a very capable ghost doctor, being a major reason that more people don't have to reform at the Pool, so it doesn't like being 'othered' by its attributes.

[davidaugust]

Scares the Dickens out them. 😳

[that1nerd-20]

When a fanfic writer puts a nickname you think Is icky in their smut fic

[hansoeii]

Ohh look, it's the dead boy detectives!

[puppetdaily]

The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come from A Christmas Carol at Chichester Festival Theatre

[carebeardean]

Charles whose dad smashed his cassette tape with a hammer learns to navigate the backpack cause, like, he needs to be useful, yeah?

and this way Charles has everything Edwin needs, and if Edwin gets sick of him he’ll just.. he doesn’t know what he’ll do.

but then Edwin gets the record player.

he suggests, tentatively, that Charles might play some of his “queen” if he liked. after all, if they are to haunt potential realtors away from their new office, they may as well entertain themselves.

so they take turns, switching out; edwin likes opera. he shows Charles how to waltz, chiding Charles to stop looking at his feet til they’re gliding, whirling around like they’re in the movies. Edwin’s smile is small and pleased and lovely. (Charles attempt to get Edwin to headbang along to queen results in a sort of awkward rhythmic nodding. Charles loves him so much he could die again.)

And, like. Edwin doesn’t like clutter. he doesn’t bother with the random tidbits ghosts give them for solving cases.

until now, apparently.

now he comes back from trading at the goblin market with little useless things—a cursed rubix cube, records from bands Charles mentioned years ago.

Charles is so busy trying to subtly read his book on Edwardian courting rituals (disguised by Nikos discreet manga covers) that he doesn’t realize what Edwin’s set down in front of him. he stares at Edwin’s spiky handwriting, the tidy numbered list.

“I thought, perhaps, that we might—start a new tradition.”

Charles blinks, eyes stinging. “Mate, did you.. make me a mixtape?”

“Crystal assisted me, and while she was absolutely insuffer—“ Edwin staggers, catching him with a surprised little noise.

“I love you so much,” Charles says, muffled into his throat. “You’re my favorite person. I love you so much it hurts, sometimes.”

“Yes,” Edwin says softly, hands curling around his waist. He takes Charles weight like it’s nothing. “I believe I know the feeling.”

this is a longer fic on ao3 now!

[montyfinchirl]

A dead boy with a cricket bat and a magic backpack: if you wanna get to him you have to go through me!

Another dead boy who spent over 70 years in hell AND clawed his way out of it, is an insanely skilled magic user, doesn’t even notice when he’s burnt by iron, and got up and started walking around like he was in barely any pain after being trapped in a machine for half an hour that evaporates other ghosts in SECONDS: :3

[cinnamoodles]

you did not kudos? you left the fic without a reblog? oh! oh! jail for reader! jail for reader for One Thousand Years!

[hannaloony]

Like they’re DEAD boy detectives 💜 They have to have their “true” ghost’s forms (Part ???)

[technically-human]

St. Hilarion's ghost story

[mayomkun]

But I still think of you

[sweetlullabyebye]

When she tells you your best mate gets jealous when you say you want to shag someone

vs when someone wants to shag your best mate

[sasakisyndrome]

“charles and edwin adopt a hellhound” is very cute and i’m a big fan but i raise you the boys stop a cult that was sacrificing a lamb and edwin refuses to go unless they bring it with them and then they have a dead sheep detective

[not-the-living-ghost]

i love dead boy detectives because it's just 8 episodes of characters matching edwin's unhinged neurodivergent freak with their own equally unhinged neurodivergent freak

[hansoeii]

the best person I know.

[succubusvalentine]

"character and character would NEVER be together why are people shipping them?!"

I know for a FACT you were watching those Elsa x Jack Frost videos on YouTube as a kid. THEY'RE FROM COMPLETELY DIFFERENT UNIVERSES. But you gobbled it up didn't you. DIDN'T YOU.