Ghosts of Tomorrow

Ted gets kidnapped by a Chinese Militant Group. Meanwhile, several members of his family find themselves in serious trouble.

 

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Chapter 18: Ghosts of Tomorrow

 

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The first thing I noticed when I arrived in Washington was how quiet it was. Strange, since according to my watch it was rush hour. When I walked over to the Lincoln Memorial I found out why—a demonstrator was speaking to a large crowd. “This is a complete lack of responsibility on part of our nation’s leaders!” the guy speaking boomed. “While we pay taxes to meaningless wars and struggle to make ends meet, certain politicians circumvent the constitution at will for their own self-gain. If we, the people of the United States do nothing then this will continue to go on and it will give those who hate us more fuel.”

 

“I think I’ve heard enough of this bullshit.” I spat as I turned to go.

 

“Hey, there he is!” I heard someone yell. “There’s Ted Toss!” I turned to my left to find myself looking down the barrel of an M4 standard issue assault rifle.

 

“You picked a bad day to come here, you monster!” someone in the crowd said. “We saw your biography. AND we saw 'Death Awaits All'!”

 

“Kill him!” I heard another say. “Kill the b*****d!”

 

“Clearly it’s time for me to go.” I said as I reached for my sword.

 

“You will do no such thing.” Someone whispered into my ear. That was the last thing I heard before getting hit in the head with a blunt object. After that I felt nothing.

 

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“Mom, what is this place?” Evelyn asked me as we emerged from a subway station in Harlem. “It feels so hostile here.”

 

“We’re in the poorest section of the biggest city in America.” I replied. “Most tourists avoid coming here whenever they can. It’s a place where crime, prostitution and drug addition run rampant. Anyone with evil intentions who sees us may just decide to kill us.”

 

“Then why are we here?” She asked as she gripped her staff a little tighter.

 

“There’s something I want you to see.” I replied. We walked a couple of blocks to an abandoned housing building. It had been vacated after a police raid revealed multiple drug factories inside. Although it was considered abandoned it was now inhabited by the homeless, the poor and the downtrodden. Of course, this would be subject to change at any time. Since someone jammed a body into the elevator shaft we took the stairs to the fifth floor. We walked down the hall and stopped at apartment 5-E. I knocked three times before someone answered.

 

“Who is it?” Came a rather hostile voice on the other side.

 

“It’s Katrin.” I replied. “Please let us in.”

 

“Who’s that with you?” the voice asked.

 

“One of my kids.” I replied. “She’s not from this world so you don’t have anything to worry about.” After a short pause the door creaked open. I stepped into the dark room with Evelyn very close by. When the door closed behind us the room was completely dark.

 

“What happened to the light?” I asked into the dark.

 

“If I let sunlight in here it could attract unwanted attention.” The voice said.

 

“That must make it hard at night, then.” I replied as I pointed a finger at the steel barrel I found near one of the boarded windows. “Fire!” With that, light spread across the entire room. “Unlike you I actually enjoy the light.”

 

“Where’s that other voice coming from?” Evelyn asked me. I pointed at the only corner of the room that was still dark.

 

“What did you bring her here for?” the voice asked.

 

“She’s here to cure you.” I replied calmly. “Like you, she too is from Kyomora.”

 

“I see...” the figure said before finally granting us its presence. Evelyn’s reaction was almost dead-on.

 

“What are you doing so far from home?” She asked. “And what happened to you?”

 

“His name is Rupee.” I replied. “When your father came to earth last year he was assigned to secretly observe him and make sure nothing happened to us.”

 

“Unfortunately I was captured by local authorities.” He replied. “They took me to some base in the middle of nowhere and did a bunch of strange experiments on me. Luckily Prince Talen found me and helped me escape. Unfortunately, I couldn’t go back with him in my current condition so I decided to hide out here.”

 

“I tried healing him myself but it seems he needs to be healed by one with the blood of Kyomorian Royalty running through their veins.” I said. “If you do this then he can finally go back home.”

 

“I don’t know if I’m strong enough.” She replied.

 

“At least try.” I said. “It’s a personal request of the King.”

 

“Alright,” She heaved. “I’ll try.”

 

---

 

“What a headache…” I groaned as I came to.

 

“Sorry about that.” another voice said. “We’re actually surprised it only took one blow ourselves.” My head snapped up and forward, in the direction of the voice of my captor.

 

“This is an interesting sword you have here.” I heard a woman nearby say. “I’ve never seen anything like it. It doesn’t look like it came from any known human civilization, either.” I tried to move but I quickly discovered I was tied to the chair I was sitting in.

 

“I wouldn’t try anything if I were you.” Said the guy who sat across from me. “Those ropes are made of titanium. I doubt even you can break them.”

 

“Really?” I asked with a hint of amusement. “Maybe I’ll surprise you.”

 

“How so?” he asked, returning the same expression I wore.

 

“You’ll see.” I replied, already concentrating on what I was going to do next. “Energy Force!” Instead on my bonds freezing solid like I expected, nothing happened. “Interesting...that's not what's supposed to happen...”

 

“What’s wrong, Mr. Toss?” he asked. “Don’t tell me you failed to notice the Force Seal we put you in? It’s suppressing that Force Energy of yours. We wouldn’t make good kidnappers if we didn’t take that into consideration, would we?” I looked down and saw that I was indeed sitting inside a Force Seal. A quick look told me that he'd only done half the job. The seal only blocked Terra Force Energy and of course, I was also a Master of Time.

 

“I see.” I replied as a smile spread across my face. “Tell me something. Do you know everything about me?”

 

“Of course we do.” He replied. “Why else would my friend over there not have suggested we place you there?”

 

“Then your friend would also know that simply suppressing my Terra Force Energy isn’t enough.” I replied as I began to glow. “Trust me when I say nothing of this world can bind me!” With that I extended my wings, which broke all my bonds instantly. I stood up and put my foot in the chest of the guy standing behind me. He felt back, hit his head on the wall and passed out. I released more energy, shattering the seal and restoring the rest of my powers. “That just leaves my sword…”

 

“Damn…” The guy said, not smiling anymore. Then he turned to his companion. “Why didn’t you tell me he’s a f*****g angel?!”

 

“Maybe because it’s the best kept secret in the universe.” I answered. I extended my hand and my sword returned to it. “Nice try, though. If you’ll excuse me, I have some business to take care of.”

 

“Wait.” Said the woman in the room. “Before you go there’s something you should know. We just saved your life.”

 

“I find that hard to believe.” I replied.

 

“Well, she is telling the truth.” A man said as he came into the room with two guards brandishing weapons. “I could’ve ordered you killed but seeing those wings I now know it would’ve been futile.”

 

“Indeed.” I remarked. “You would have incurred the wrath of God.”

 

“At least hear us out before you leave.” The man said. “Perhaps after hearing our story you will not think ill of us.”

 

“I seriously doubt that.” I said as I sheathed my weapon.

 

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“Anybody home?” I asked as I knocked on the door to Celes and Alex’s house. No answer. A moment later a car shot out of the garage and blasted down the street.

 

“That looked like Alex.” Gina remarked. “I wonder where he’s going?”

 

“I don’t know but it doesn’t look like Celes and Jenna are home.” I replied. “Let’s follow him.” We got back in our car, turned it around and gave chase. Once I got a fix on his Force Energy, following him was easy. When he stopped outside a collapsed factory we pulled over, too.

 

“What’s going on here?” He asked when he realized we’d followed him.

 

“I should ask the same thing.” Gina replied. “We were at your house when we saw you take off like a bat out of hell. Mind telling us what’s going on?”

 

“I just got a phone call a little while ago from Ann.” He replied as he turned to the collapsed building before us. “Celes and Jenna a trapped in there.”

 

“What?!” I exclaimed in horror.

 

“Wait, there’s more.” He continued. “It seems there’s also a gas leak. The slightest spark could cause an explosion that would kill them instantly.”

 

“That is bad.” I replied. “Celes wouldn't have enough time to react if the place explodes. Only someone whose specialty is water could get in there. It seems dad is the only one who can save them at this rate...”

 

“I agree.” Alex added. “But he hasn’t been answering his phone all day. He supposedly went to Washington but nobody's seen him.”

 

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“It seems Ted isn’t answering his phone.” Mom noted after another unsuccessful attempt to call him. “I wonder what’s going on?”

 

“He must be in the middle of something important.” I noted as Serenity and I stood opposite Zane and his companion. Still, what can be more important than rescuing us from the middle of nowhere? Nobody can find us except him!”

 

“I agree.” Mom added. “I agree. “It seems we’ll just have to wait.”

 

“I can believe that brat is putting up so good a fight!” Zane's companion spat after Serenity sent her flying. “She can't possibly be human...”

 

“Sorry to break it to you but she is.” I replied with a smile. “One thing that should be obvious is we inherited the willpower to face adversity head on from our father. Once we take out the two of you, we'll finally be at peace.”

 

“Keep telling yourself that.” Zane remarked as he readied his sword. “It takes more than a strong will to defeat someone like me!”

 

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“It all started 17 years ago during World War III.” The man started as we entered a viewing room. “During this time we were living in China. Coalition Forces crossed the sea and invaded us despite what we said about being neutral. Apparently, Allied Forces believed we were planning to launch a nuclear missile at Japan and Australia.”

 

“And it turns out we made a mistake with the coordinates.” I replied. “Of course, by the time we realized that it was already too late.”

 

“Damned skippy!” He exclaimed. “Over half a million people were killed! Innocent people who had done nothing to deserve what happened to them!”

 

“Maybe so, but it had the desired effect.” I replied curtly. “If you kidnapped me in the hopes of my feeling remorse, you’ve wasted your time. It’s not that I still don’t give a f**k about the 1 million people I killed during the war—more or less it’s because of the fact that people like you won’t shut the f**k up about it. I was a soldier and that was war!”

 

“I see.” He said rather calmly. “Somehow I’m not surprised with your words, Ted Toss. That’s why we’ve decided on a few things that would make you reconsider your last statement.”

 

“You can do whatever you want with me.” I replied with a laugh. “Hell, I might just enjoy it. I can’t die, after all.”

 

“Maybe not, but they can.” He said. Three screens turned on right then and there. In the first one was the scene of a collapsed building in Chicago. In the second was footage of Katrin and Evelyn in an abandoned building in New York City. In the third were Mark Anthony, Serenity and Terra. Apparently they were stuck on an island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. On second glance I realized Mark and Serenity were fighting some people—one of which I recognized as Zane Highwind. I could only look in disbelief. “Listen closely to what I have to say. I have men stationed near all of them. If I will it, they will all die in front of you right here and right now. Even with that sword of yours, there is no way you can rescue them all at once. What say you to that?”

 

“This is a nice metaphor but it won’t change a thing.” I said. “If I apologized to you now we both know I wouldn’t mean it. I might just decide to wipe you all out should you decide to harm them. If you value your soul then you would do well to leave them out of this.”

 

“Ah, it looks like we’ve found your weakness.” He said with a sadistic smile. A smile I’d only seen on one other person--mine. “Yes…you will accede to our demands...”

 

“And what would they be?” I asked, now beginning to lose my patience.

 

“The first is to stand trial for war crimes.” He replied. “My name is Justin Honda and I will be your Judge, Jury and if necessary—executioner. The second is to hear the testimony of the survivors and families of those you murdered in cold blood. The last will be whatever punishment is deemed appropriate. You have no choice but to accept these terms.”

 

“No, it’s more complicated than that.” said a new voice. “You left out the part about my best friend there having a f*****g army backing him up!” In the next moment the wall to our right collapsed and Tomiko’s Mercenaries rolled in, locked and ready for action. “Either you let him go or I’ll make sure you have a closed casket funeral.”

 

“You might want to do as he says.” I replied without turning. “I honestly can’t tell if he’s joking.”

 

“Marina’s on her way to find Terra right now.” said Tom. “We should have the coordinates very soon. A few Supers are heading for New York and Chicago as well.”

 

“It looks like the tables have turned.” I said to Mr. Honda. “The hunter has become the hunted.”

 

“Sorry, but no.” He said before gas was released into the room. Before Tom could reach for a gas mask it ignited, sucking all the air out of the room and knocking us all unconscious.