The chitinous legs on the underside of Cheryl's tentacle missed my legs by inches as I passed through the trapdoor. Immediately Cheryl threw herself after me. She was running on pure instinct, and my aura was moving away from her, her prey was escaping! She drug herself through the trapdoor after me in a flash, her bulk slipping through the narrow opening like she was made of jello.

The world seemed to slow down, time crystallizing as my stomach lurched, and my perspective changed. I could hear the clicks and clacks of the crabs moving beneath me--the splashes of water as they moved. I could taste the filth in the air, the awful mixture even more pungent after smelling so much bleach. And I saw Cheryl. She was beautiful, not in the same way as a peacock, but in the prowling way of a jungle cat. A strange mix of otherworldly horror and gracefulness. It was a strange thing to notice as I fell through the air, but I couldn't help it. I knew I would only get one shot for this to work if I mistimed it, I would fall. And the only thing I could do would be to try and destroy the soul cage before I hit.

As the moment of perfect focus passed, and the world began to speed up again, I readied Barry's shotgun. My hands were slick with sweat and crab blood, making my grip somewhat shaky. It would have to be good enough. I aimed, then I threw the gun forward, aiming straight for the metal rungs of the ladder. The shotgun hit in between two of the rungs and started sliding. For a heart-stopping second, I thought I was dead. But as my momentum pulled the strap down, the shotgun caught and lodged in the rung. My weight transferred to the strap I had lengthened, it stopped my fall abruptly, digging into my back and shoulder with a flash of pain. I hit the wall a second later, and my vision swam from the impact. At the same time, I desperately veiled my aura. Cheryl plummeted past me, her tentacles whipping out for prey that was suddenly gone from her senses. I hadn't veiled fast enough...

One tentacle struck out. It slammed into my chest at an angle, and for a second, I thought her chitinous legs were going to puncture my skin and rip me from my perch. But the blind flail wasn't at the right angle to puncture, so the legs only slashed lines of pain across my skin instead of stabbing straight through. Even that glancing blow made my already tender ribs feel as if they were going to cave in. Then, she was past me, and no more tentacles found me. She hit the ground with a splat. I craned my neck, shifting my position to try and get a better look.

I almost slid from the strap and had to flail desperately to get my hand on the ladder. Once I was stabilized, I saw where Cheryl had landed.

None of the crabs charged her, none of them even twitched. It seemed like the only sounds in the room were my ragged breathing and the splash of water falling from the pipes. Then the crabs moved. They rushed forward in a wave of chitinous legs and waving claws. They crashed over Cheryl, and she started fighting, but it was like fighting the tide.

In seconds they covered her, crawling up her body, claws the size of my torso clamping down on her tentacles. If she had been at full strength, she could've fought them, I was sure of it. But down on limbs, blind and exhausted they swamped her. Then, they started tearing her part.

I looked away. I didn't need to give my nightmares any more fuel. I brought my other hand to the ladder, careful not to shift my balance too much. It was a miracle the strap had held me this long, or at all. I had a feeling it would've broken if I'd been any heavier. I managed to get both hands on the ladder and then started the very slow and very careful process of pulling myself up it one rung at a time. I made sure the strap was still on my back when the shotgun dislodged, my weight no longer holding it in place. My ribs ached. I had broken them before, and while they weren't quite that bad, they were in the same ballpark. Where had that phrase come from? Ballpark...? I shook my head and focused on the ladder. One rung after another.

I made it to the trapdoor and didn't look back. The sounds of tearing meat and crunching chitin were all I needed to hear. I pulled myself over the lip of the trapdoor and collapsed onto my side. I took a few shallow breaths, trying not to strain my ribs. "ALDER LOOK OUT!" Ben roared. I twitched. It was supposed to be a roll, but my body didn't have the energy I was asking from it. A second later, a boot collided with my ribs. I lost track of... of everything. The pain that exploded in my ribs made my whole body quake. I could feel myself curl into a ball, trying to protect my stomach, but the motion was distant like I was feeling someone else go into the fetal position. What is it about my ribs today? I have a whole body to abuse, yet people keep going for the ribs.

The world came back into focus, and I screamed. Or at least I tried to. My lungs just let out a pathetic wheeze. I looked up, blinking away tears of pain. Trenton was standing over me, his face a mix of satisfaction and pure anger, bordering on hate. I coughed, the motion causing pain to shoot out through my whole body. "Boy, you look excited to see me." Trenton stared down at me, and his lip curled into a sneer. "Oh, I am very excited to see you." His voice came out thick like he was struggling to get them past his throat. It would seem he had found out just how much data I had destroyed. I gave Trenton my best smile. "I'm glad you're excited to see me, but I don't like you like that."

Trenton took a deep breath, which was unnecessary since he didn't need to breathe, and just looked at me. The look in his eyes told me that he was going to make good on his promise to kill me slowly. I knew Ben was too weak to put up much of a fight. While he could still run up and deck Trenton, the other ghost was much, much, more skilled with manipulating magic. Though Trenton had to be tired as well, I didn't give Ben good odds against him right now. Ben was smart enough to know that as well, which was why he hadn't done anything yet. Trenton was arrogant enough, and dumb enough, to completely ignore Ben. Dismissing his presence as beneath his notice. I could still make it out of this. I just needed to signal Ben to spill the coffee. Once Trenton's magic was taken away, I could use my aura to forge a link and force him to move on.

Of course, he could still defend himself, but he couldn't just fry my brain before I broke through. Trenton leaned down, and I had to force myself not to shiver at the look in his eyes. He was far past the point of simple anger. He had entered a place that caused ordinarily peaceful people to kill. And Trenton was far from peaceful when he was calm. I had seen that look moments before I had been killed. And I knew what it was like to feel that kind of rage driving me to kill. Despite the scars those memories had left, they had also given me something valuable. Experience. I could acknowledge that now that I wasn't just fixated on the horror behind them. I could look at Trenton and fight back my pain and fear enough for me to think. Trenton wanted me in pain and afraid, if I could give him what he expected, then he would feel in control of the situation. And people didn't rush when they felt in control. I just had to find a way to do that and signal Ben at the same time. Right. But how do I do that exactly?

I thought desperately, trying to force my brain to come up with something. After a few long seconds, when my and Trenton's eyes were locked, the answer came to me. This tactic had worked with Sarah; maybe it would work with her boss too. I looked away from Trenton, breaking the staredown, and let some of the fear I was feeling seep into my voice. "Please, man. Don't kill me. Like you said, I- I'm just a Telss!" Trenton's eyes didn't change, but he didn't kick me again either. "I'm not a threat, the only reason I'm still alive is blind luck!" Not exactly untrue, I had gotten lucky. "I don't even want to be here! I would rather be home drinking coffee." My aura was veiled, so I couldn't tell if Ben had left the room, but I had faith he'd gotten the message. Now I just needed to make sure Trenton didn't kill me in the seconds it would take before Ben got to Sarah.

Trenton looked at me for a few long moments before his eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled. "I appreciate the attempt at a con. It's cute." He stood up and started pacing. "And it's true. It was luck that let you escape my people for so long. But you're not going to convince me to spare you now; you've cost me too much." He stopped pacing and stared towards the far wall. "Where was this meekness when you were destroying my data!" I saw the kick coming. But all I could do was clench my stomach and try to turn.

Trenton's icy boot slammed into my ribs, and I heard the crack more than I felt it. My breath came out in a slow wheeze as I curled in on myself even more. The pain was so far past excruciating that I didn't have the verbs to describe it. It was like white-hot coals had been stuffed into my ribs. I started to refill my lungs only for my bones to shift and grind inside of me. Tears welled up in my eyes, and I turned to look at Trenton. His pale cheeks were flushed, his eyes were open too wide, and his lips turned up into a cruel smile. Everything hurt, but I forced myself to keep staring at Trenton. Even as my eyes started to water from the pain, I kept staring. So, when Trenton's face shifted from cruel satisfaction into shock, I was ready.

I brought my aura down like a hammer, focusing all of it onto Trenton. He staggered and grunted like he'd been punched in the gut. But then he straightened and started towards me. I focused harder, trying to force my way past his defenses. Trenton took a step forward. It was slow like he was carrying something heavy. But it wasn't nearly as slow as it should've been. Something was wrong. I tried to push harder, slow him more. And I realized what was wrong. It wasn't just my body that was tapped out. My aura was almost totally exhausted too. Trenton took another step forward. This hadn't happened to me in years; once my aura had grown to a certain size, it was a rare ghost that could hold out for more than a few minutes. And I was usually able to contain them for that time.

While it was true that there were also plenty of times where I got beat to hell, it was only until I broke through and forged a connection. Now though, with another step, I wasn't sure if I had enough power left to break through his defenses at all! As soon as I thought it, I realized I was right and desperately scrambled to grab my shroud. My aura was still condensed over Trenton, slowing him as he tried to reach me, but he was almost on top of me. I tried to grab ahold of the section of my shroud, but a stab of pain lanced through my mind in rhythm with the pain in my body.

I gasped, which added even more pain to the pile and lost the grip on my shroud. My shroud was as worn out and overused as the rest of me. It was still raw from the blast of power I had used only yesterday. Trying to pull more from it felt like trying to lift with a muscle that you had worked out until failure of the day before. Trenton's eyes locked with mine. There was an understanding between us as we stared. Only one of us was going to survive the next few seconds. Trenton dropped towards me, his weightless body landing on mine with only the feeling of slight pressure and icy cold. But when his hands clamped down on my throat, they held plenty of strength behind them.

He started to squeeze, cutting off my air, and in return, I pushed harder with my aura as I tried to get hold of my shroud again. Trenton's whole face had turned red, and his neatly groomed hair was wild and disheveled. I seized my shroud in a mental grip. I had been braced for the pain this time, and while it wasn't any less intense, I didn't let go of my shroud either. Trenton's hands didn't even hurt, not when compared to the rest of me. But everything was starting to get... Fuzzy. The world started to shrink down until it was just me, Trenton, and my shroud. I was gripping my shroud as hard as I could, so hard that it was giving me a headache. I needed, I. I needed to...

Even as he had fallen, Trenton had never looked away. Our gazes were still locked as tightly as his hands were around my throat. Right, that was what I needed my shroud for. As the edges of my vision started to fill with black, I tore a section of my shroud away. It was only a day's worth, but I pushed it against Trenton. Only for it to stop as it encountered the barrier of his magic... I pushed more, another day's worth, and another and another. I lost track of how much of my shroud I pushed out. I just kept pushing. It hurt, it felt like I was tearing my own arm off. But at this point, more pain was like adding wood to a bonfire. I opened my mouth in a silent croak and pushed. Trenton's eyes widened in shock. Then my power broke through.

~<>~

My cheek throbbed with pain. It hurt! I held back any tears; Gallo men didn't cry. I needed to get up, but something in my mouth distracted me. It tasted like metal. I reached up to my lips. They were wet. I looked at my finger and saw that its tip was red. I took a deep breath. The floor smelled like bleach and cleaners. It always smelled like that. the smell made my head hurt. I pushed myself to my feet and looked at my papa. My lip started to tremble. I bit down on it hard. Gallo men didn't show fear. My papa looked down at me, his expression cold.

He was standing next to his big wooden desk. He was big. With manly features and dark eyes. "Trenton." I straightened my back and looked him in the eyes. You always meet Papa's eyes when speaking to him.

"Why do you make me do this?" I swallowed and shifted in place. Papa's voice was deep and smooth. "I, I'm sorry?" Papa stared at me, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking. He sighed and grabbed his chair from behind his desk. He set the chair down in front of me and sat.

"Trenton, I've told you that you can't play with the cleaning staff's children." I nodded; I didn't understand. But I didn't want him to think I didn't.

Papa looked at me for a second before sighing again. "I see you don't understand. That's okay. That just means you have a chance to learn. Trenton, you and me. We're different from them, greater. If you spend time around them, you're going to limit yourself." Papa stood from his chair and walked over to me. "I don't punish you because I hate you, Trenton. I do it because perfection requires discipline." He rested his hand on my shoulder and smiled down at me. "Now that you're ten, you need to act more responsible. Do you understand?" "Yes, Papa."

~<>~

I woke up into a strange world where breathing had been replaced with pain. No, wait, that might just be my broken ribs talking. Broken ribs? Had I gotten those. Did I displease papa? But what did I do wrong? I had to fix it. Perfection was the – no. No. My throat burned, and my whole body hurt. And my name. My name was Alder. And I helped ghosts.

I opened my eyes. I was on the cold floor of the wrecked office room. And I was alive! Honestly, I couldn't believe it. I wanted to say I had gotten insanely lucky, but my body didn't feel very lucky. I groaned quietly, trying not to strain my ribs. The fact that your body can complain at all means you're lucky, Alder. I looked up and saw Ben standing over me. "You need the mantra?" I shook my head, wincing a second later. Why was my neck sore? "No, I'm good. I just. I need a minute." Ben nodded, stepping back to give me space. I closed my eyes, Trenton, hadn't been a good man. Cold, ruthless, cruel, stupid. But I couldn't help myself from feeling pity for the man. The poor bastard had the odds stacked against him from day one. It didn't make what he did any better, but I could feel sorry for that boy I had seen that I had been. Sorry that he had turned out the way he did. I opened my eyes.

"All right, I'm good to go." Ben looked at my crumpled form and snorted. "You look like you got drug along behind a truck on a bumpy highway for 10 miles while being beaten with clubs." I managed to stop myself from chuckling with an effort of will. "That was... Oddly specific." Ben grinned. "Just calling it how I see it." I returned his grin. "What happened on your end?" Ben shrugged. "Not much, I rushed over to the coffee pot and managed to cobble together enough energy to throw it at the lady's legs. But then I had to try and pull some of the ambient magic into me or risk blacking out. It only took me a minute, but by the time I got back over, you were unconscious, and Trenton was gone." "And the crabs and lobsters and whatnot?" I asked.

Ben walked through the wall before returning a second later. "Most of them are dead, too injured to be a threat, or have gone to a different part of the building. You should be able to make it out safe." I nodded, remembering halfway through that my neck hurt. "All right, we have one more thing to do here. Then we can go call the Knoll clan to clean up." Ben looked at me for a second before asking, "One more thing?" I started to nod but remembered in time to stop. I grimaced, not being able to nod my head was surprisingly annoying. "Yeah, well, two more, actually."

Getting up was something of a process. Ben helped me, but the amount of help he could give was inconsistent. Being a ghost meant that he usually wouldn't be able to interact with somebody without expending some of his personal energy, which he currently had almost none of. But, since I was weird, he could touch me. But he couldn't really lift me since he needed energy in place of muscles. It took some time, and not a small amount of swearing, but I got to my feet without passing out.

Burning more of my shroud hurt to the point it was almost debilitating, but I burned it. I threw it against the soul cage. My power off-balanced the soul ward. It interacted with it strangely. I suppose my power was similar since it also affected ghosts and spirits directly. It took some time, but I wore it away, reducing it to nothing. A dozen souls moved past me, each one vanishing within seconds. Throwing my shroud against the soul cage felt familiar. When I had been fighting Noren, when I sent a blast of my shroud out, some of it must've hit the soul cage. Maybe I was the reason John had managed to slip out.

With that done, I left the aquarium out of the front door. John was there, his white blood speckled lab coat dry despite the light rain. He looked almost the same as before. But something was different about his face, he wasn't smiling, but it wasn't the dead expression he'd had before either. The storm had let up some, but winds still whipped the trees and scattered branches across the parking lot.

I walked up to John or to be more accurate, limped up. Ben walked up with me, standing at my side. I held the vanilla folder in one hand. I had taken it from one of the file cabinets. I stared at John, and he stared back, glassy brown meeting green. Those brown eyes didn't look like they were staring past me anymore. They were bright and full of intelligence. My hand tightened around the folder. "Howard. Howard Johnson. I can't believe I got part of your name right." Howard smiled at me. It matched the smile I had seen in his soul. "They kept. They," I stopped to clear my throat.

"They kept good records. I don't know why. Criminal activity doesn't seem like the kind of thing you want to record. But they kept a picture of you in this," I gestured with the file. "The head scientist, researching Marine Biology, specifically crustaceans. You went to try and tell the Knoll clan what they were doing. You probably signed on for making crab meat faster or something. But I'm guessing you found out they were also making things like Cheryl." Howard nodded slightly, his smile turning a touch sad. Slowly, still moving as if he were in a dream, Howard stretched out his hand. I paused for a second, unsure of what he wanted. Then I remembered. I reached into my back pocket and pulled out the notepad. It had been soaked from my jump into the mantis shrimp tank, but it hadn't fallen apart. This time when Howard reached for it, his hand didn't pass straight through.

He took the notepad and slowly, carefully began to write. He handed the pad back to me. His smile grew wider as the wind picked up, whipping my hair back and forth. An even stronger gust blew through, and Howard went with it. I stared down the pad and the two words he'd written in a neat scrawl. Despite how careful he had been, the wet paper had still torn in a few places.

Two words. "Thank you."

I started to cry. Ben carefully put an arm around my shoulders, and I leaned into him as the wind howled around us. I felt weak and battered. Memories tore at me. They hadn't gotten any quieter. But some things were worth the cost. Some burdens worth bearing. I could carry them. So long as I remembered the reason why.

The End.