It wasn't a teacher, as Alec had initially thought. The moonlight slid over their mysterious interlocutor's shadowy profile to reveal a boy no older than themselves, lean and pale-skinned, with a head of platinum-blonde hair. He was gazing steadily down at them through those strange, lilac eyes, munching on an apple. He was dressed in the gold and white uniform of the Zeus Dorm.

"It's a student," Maddison observed.

"'It' is a he, thank you very much," the boy corrected.

"A very annoying student," said Ethan, looking more exasperated than normal.

"And familiar," Alec said, squinting up at him.

"Of course he is, he's one of the Olsen twins," Reya said, as though this were obvious.

The name stirred something in Alec's memory: just as Javon had warned him about Damon on his first day, so he had received information on several other notorious students on campus in the days following.

"Where's your partner in crime?" Charlie asked the boy.

"I think you mean 'when,'" he replied, sounding amused.

"What?" Alec said. He felt a sudden tap on his shoulder and wheeled around to find himself gazing into a pair of gleaming sunshine-yellow eyes framed in a freckled, heart-shaped face, with sheets of pale blonde hair falling around it. The girl giggled, then, suddenly, disappeared, as if she had vanished into thin air. Before Alec could do more than register his surprise, he heard the girl giggle again and looked around: she was now at the foot of the tree.

"What the . . ." he began, utterly bewildered. Nobody else, however, seemed to be shocked by this sudden turn of events. "What is going on?"

"Alec, meet the Olsen twins, Katrina and Anthony," Ethan said dispassionately. "Both equally weird and irritating —" There was an infinitesimal pause, the space of a mere heartbeat, then — "Alec, meet the Olsen twins, Katrina and Anthony. Both equally weird and . . ." Ethan trailed off, looking confused, then cast the girl a furious look. "Scratch that, one of them may be even more annoying than the other." Katrina giggled again.

"I feel like I'm missing something here," Alec said, holding up his arms. Anthony did not move, but he suddenly fell through the branch he had been sitting on, his body covered in lilac energy, as if he had become intangible. Just before he hit the ground, a spiral, rippling pool of the same energy appeared underneath him and he fell smoothly into it. It closed up and disappeared — then another gateway opened beside Alec and Anthony walked out casually to stand beside him.

"You're the one that defeated Shadow Shifter," he observed, disregarding Alec's astonishment, and sounding totally indifferent.

"Oh. . . . Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"Ooh, modesty," he said to his sister. "I like this one."

"And 'this one' would like some answers, if you don't mind," Alec said, starting to get angry. "How are you doing . . . whatever you're doing? How are you even here?"

"I'm surprised you haven't heard of us," Anthony said, looking genuinely amazed. "We sort of have a rep." He pointed at his sister, grinning.

"See, this one," Maddison said, walking forward and tapping Anthony's chest with the butt of one of her bone daggers (he looked down at it, mildly curious), "has the power to manipulate space. And she can manipulate time." She jerked her head at Katrina. "No one really knows the limits of what they can do, but what we've seen has been enough to cement them as —"

"A colossal pain in the ass," Charlie finished.

"Space? And time? At your age?" Alec couldn't believe it.

Anthony shrugged. "We're awesome like that. Apples, anyone?" He drew a small plastic bag from his pocket and emptied the contents onto the grass. Several apple seeds rolled out. Katrina moved forward and waved a hand over them: yellow light enveloped the seeds, and seconds later, several large, fully mature apples lay before them.

Anthony picked them up and offered them around. Alec took one, gazing down at it in utter disbelief, as did Reya, Charlie, and Javon. Ethan didn't accept any, and when Anthony proffered one to Maddison, she smacked it out of his hand and it rolled away.

"You didn't answer the question," she snarled. "How did you find us? Did you tell anyone else we were here?"

"Rude," said Anthony, looking sadly at the discarded apple. "But no, we didn't. We heard you planning to sneak out of school — you should really be more careful talking about things like that in public — and we decided to go with you. But we didn't say anything, because —"

"Because you knew we'd tell you to get lost," Javon said.

Anthony pointed at him and clicked his tongue in affirmation.

"The fact that you thought you shouldn't be here, maybe should have told you that you shouldn't be here," Maddison said through gritted teeth. "Do you know what you've done? What if somebody else noticed when you snuck out?"

"Please, we've been sneaking out of school since we've been here," Katrina said dismissively. "It's really not that hard. The League and the Academy might be prepared to deal with the basics, like intangibility and superspeed, but there's not much technology can do to stop you when you can fiddle with the very fabric of reality. We're fine."

"It doesn't matter anyway," Alec said. "We're going back now. You missed all the fun." He gave them a taunting smile and moved back towards the vehicles, and the others turned with him, but before they could take a step further, Reya suddenly uttered a small scream.

"What?" Charlie demanded, his expression shifting to one of urgency as he hurried to her side, towering over her.

"That!" Reya raised a shaking finger and pointed behind him. Everybody turned, bemused, and then as one their looks of puzzlement became those of shock. Something was approaching them from the opposite end of the street, moving with frightening speed. It was shaped like an average man — but it was green and transparent, soaring through the air like a large, malevolent bird, illuminating the dark ground with a misty, emerald light. Though he had never seen one except in cartoons, Alec knew exactly what it was — a ghost.

A spine-tingling hissing noise filled the air as it advanced on them, swaying from side-to-side.

"Is that — is that a ghost?" Javon said, sounding terrified.

"Whatever it is, we're not sticking around to find out," Maddison said, and she leapt onto the Zetawing. "Come on!"

No one needed telling twice. They moved at once, resuming their earlier positions atop the vehicles. But just as they made to move off —

"Wait!" Javon cried. "We can't just leave them." He was indicating the twins.

Reya made an exasperated noise and released her grip on his waist, then jumped to the ground. Her eyes glowed with the same violet light as when she had cast the spell to summon the vehicles, and purple energy blossomed from her hands. It wove through the air, forming itself into a flat, circular platform, inlaid with glowing, dark grey runes around the edges. "Get on!" she ordered the twins. Both jumped onto the platform and it took to the air. Reya called out to them again and all three vehicles streaked off behind her.

But the ghost was still following, gaining on them as they soared above the city. Then, to their horror, another speck of green emerged from the ground below.

It swam up towards them like a fish through water, hissing hungrily. Maddison flicked her wrist and a dagger appeared in her hand. She launched it at the ghoul, a perfect headshot, and the moment it collided, the ghost exploded in a wisp of green smoke. But now more were erupting from below, a positive swarm of them, dozens upon dozens of misty green figures, all swooping towards them.

Ethan waved his arm in their direction, but nothing happened. "My telekinesis isn't working on them!" he yelled in panic.

"Because they don't have any substance," said Anthony. "They're literal ghosts."

"Well, if you have any bright ideas, I'd love to hear them!" Ethan shouted back. They were nearing the sea. It glittered ahead of them, a great, glass-like expanse shining silver in the moonlight. But the fleet of ghouls was still gaining.

"We can't head back with them still behind us," Alec bellowed. "What if they follow us back to the Academy?"

"You're suggesting we stay?" Javon asked incredulously.

"I'm suggesting we lose them first."

"How do we do that?" Charlie asked.

"We don't have a choice, we'll have to fight. But not here, it's too close to the city, we might be seen."

"Across the water, then," Maddison agreed, and she dived towards the glistening surface. Javon, Reya, and Charlie followed, and so did their pursuers, all veering to the far left across the sea, the city shrinking behind them.

"I've got an idea," yelled Anthony. "Smith, we need knives, a lot of them. Buckley, on my signal, you shoot them ahead with your telekinesis."

"Ahead —" Ethan began, staring bemusedly at the ghost-free expanse of sea in front of them.

"Just trust me!"

"Take the wheel," Maddison told Ethan, and in one clumsy, awkward movement that nearly sent Ethan toppling off, they switched places. Maddison held on to his waist, her other hand held up, palm out, and several long-bladed knives sprouted from her hand.

"Now!" Anthony yelled. Maddison threw the blades upwards, and Ethan guided their movement with his telekinesis, shooting them forward with the force of bullets. A lilac gateway sprang open in front of them, swallowing the knives. As it closed, Alec looked around: another gateway opened up on their right, and the knives pelted outwards, ripping through the tide of ghosts.

Many of them moved away, veering away from the site of attack with screeches of fury. But several others dove under the water's surface. The motion was smooth, the effect almost nonexistent. There wasn't even a ripple as they slid under.

"They're underwater!" Alec shouted. The vehicles had barely begun to rise away from the water's surface when the creatures erupted upwards again, appearing smoothly from beneath the water. The swarm blocked off their escape, closing in on them, grabbing at each of them in turn. One of them appeared directly underneath the Zetacycle and swung its hand at them. Its clawed fingers raked through the vehicle's underside and through Charlie's leg. He let out a terrible scream and lost hold of the Zetacycle, which overturned, sending them plummeting towards the sea.

Before they could crash against the cold, sinisterly smooth surface, time seemed to slow down. A second became an eternity, and though Alec's mind was racing, his body felt as if it were drifting down to the sea's face in an invisible column of oil. The same had happened to Charlie, floating beside him, as well as the ghosts that had been following their descent.

Reya streaked past in real time, hovering above the water, with Anthony and Katrina beside her. Katrina's eyes were burning bright gold, her hands outstretched in their direction. Reya began to cast a spell in that strange, deep, ethereal voice, and without warning, Charlie and Alec resumed their fall at regular speed. Just as they were to touch the surface and plunge below, an immense swathe of the water suddenly froze over, transitioning smoothly into a vast block of ice. They crashed against the newly made platform, bouncing slightly.

Charlie groaned, rubbing his chin as he stood up. "Thanks, Rey."

"Thank me later, they're coming."

Alec stood up, looking at the enormous fleet of ghosts descending upon them. Reya fired a streak of purple lightning into the swarm and it broke apart, the ghosts soaring away in different directions. She continued to chant, turning her palms towards the surface of the water beyond their block of ice. Purple energy streamed into the water and it began to rise, forming itself into a violently whirling water spout, which shot into the sky. The spout ripped through a number of the ghosts, but still others evaded, plunging downwards again.

Charlie darted forward, his hands balled into fists and outstretched in front of him. Orange energy sheathed his fists, extending to his wrists like prismatic boxer gloves. He launched himself into the crowd, swatting at creatures left and right, and they exploded on impact. Overhead, Maddison, Ethan, and Javon were swooping by, fighting off the rest.

Alec suddenly realized how little he had to contribute. His powers were solely earth-based, and surrounded by only ice and water, he had no way to help.

Movement below caught his eye and he glanced down. A split second later, two glowing, emaciated hands flew out of the ice and wrapped around his ankles. Pain seared through his legs, scorching-hot, and the hands wrenched downwards. The ice shattered beneath his feet and he was pulled into the roiling sheets of freezing water. It rolled over him, the cold burning his chest as icy water flooded his lungs. He kicked out, but his feet connected with nothing. Yet the hands were still there, pulling him further down like a pair of hundred pound weights tied to his feet. He thrashed and writhed, but to no avail. The light above was fading out of sight, blackness was blotting his vision, the cold was attacking him fiercely. He wasn't going to make it. . . .

Just as his eyes began to close, he felt a sharp jerk on his shoulders, and he found himself being pulled upwards as though a powerful, invisible force had hooked him by the shoulders. The ghost below tried to yank him down again, but Alec was still soaring upwards as if being reeled in by a massive fish hook. Light was speeding back into view — and a second later he broke the surface, reemerging under the star-scattered night sky, coughing and gasping.

But he did not stop rising. From the corner of his eyes he saw Ethan, moving his arms in his direction as he continued to elevate. Then Ethan made a sharp, swift movement in front of him, as if tossing a ball, and Alec was thrown forward. A gateway of lilac light appeared suddenly in front of him: he slid smoothly inside, encompassed by warmth and a soft, pleasing light — then he was flung outwards, landing on cold, hard ground. Pain flared in his knees as he collapsed, looking around. He was now in some kind of park, but it was completely deserted. Why had they sent him here. . . ?

It occurred to him that they had done it to keep him out of the way, since he couldn't defend himself, but a moment later the portal reopened, and Alec understood. He pressed his fingers against the concrete and felt the stone slide smoothly over his skin, encasing him in a glistening grey coat. The pain was dulled, as was the burning sensation in his lungs, and he dove into the portal. It regurgitated him in midair above the sea, and he began to fall. Then Javon sped past and he landed on the back of the Zetaboard.

"Nice of you to join us," he yelled over the rushing wind, tone somewhere between sarcastic and impressed. Alec grinned back, but Javon suddenly yelled, "Duck!" A ghost was soaring towards them from the left. Javon ducked, but Alec, glad of the chance to finally be able to fight back, closed his fist and concentrated on his hand. Just as it had with the marble tablet, the stone began to expand, only this time it didn't peel off of his skin to form something else in midair; following Wildfire's examples, he decided to shape it instead. His fist swelled, becoming rounder, and small spikes erupted all over the surface, forming a mace. He swung at the oncoming assailant, and the ghost exploded, showering them in ribbons of green.

"Gross, ghost guts," Javon said, rubbing himself off. At the same time, an earsplitting scream rent the air and they whirled around.

Back on the ice, Katrina was alone, and a group of ghosts was descending on her. Charlie was still power-fisting his way through the army of ghosts, and Reya was busy with her own horde. Maddison, however, descended onto the scene, Anthony on the Zetawing with her.

"Trina!" He jumped off, landing beside his sister. His arms spread wide in a sweeping gesture, and a barrier of energy rose around them. Alec was half-expecting the ghosts to simply slip through, just as they had done with the ice, but to his surprise, they ricocheted off as forcefully as if they had been launched from a cannon and crashed into a metal wall.

"I've got an idea, get closer," Alec told Javon. As the latter brought them closer to their assailants, Alec liquefied the stone coating his arm. Concrete rose in small bubbles in front of him, hardening into orbs of solid rock, and with a jab of his arms each ball broke apart into countless tiny pieces, blasting through the air like tiny earthen bullets, tearing through the spectral forces.

Again, more moved towards them, but then they froze, as abruptly as if Katrina had frozen time again. But judging by the shocked look on her face, she hadn't. Everything had gone silent. The water was completely still. Even the wind had stopped blowing.

Then, without warning, the ghosts faded away. A heavy presence seemed to fill the space, weighing on the air itself. Nobody spoke. Everyone was looking around, but they saw nothing. Seconds passed, then the sound of the wind rushed back to them.

"What . . . what's going on?" Reya squeaked. "Are they gone?"

"I think so," Maddison said, her voice almost wondering. "Did any of you feel that . . . that . . ."

"Yeah," everyone else said automatically. A sudden chill ripped through the air.

"I think we should get back to school now, before they come back," Alec said. He was suddenly afraid.

"Tony, get us out of here," Katrina said.

Anthony did not hesitate. The portal opened in front of them, a ring of lilac energy, glowing white at its core, reflected in the water. "I can't take us all the way back to school," he said. "But I can get us closer."

"It doesn't matter, as long as we get out of here," Javon said. All of them turned towards the portal and filed inside. No one looked back as they moved, but Alec could tell that they were all feeling the same thing he was: like unseen eyes were watching them.