Sorry this took longer than usual. My job is kicking my ass, but I'll be at the weekend soon enough and I can sleep in for two days straight. That'll be nice.
I hope you like how this is going. Sorry I haven't been speaking much in my notes lately, but I just don't have a lot to talk about sometimes. Everything is okay, don't worry.
Either way, I hope you all enjoy the chapter!
Kids were a chaotic force of nature, something that was true in nearly every respect. As long as a parent cared for them and actively took part in their lives, they could tell you about all the shit the tykes could get into.
Looking down at the two skull heads of Caliborn and Calliope, Karkat couldn't help but think that law was universal even in the Ghost Zone.
"She tried to mess with the thing-"
"Only because you kept demanding that-"
"And considering the amount of damage-"
"That you caused-"
Karkat was glad he grew up an only child. He figured having a sibling would definitely be annoying in the long run.
"Kids, all I want to know what broke." Frostbite looked as tired as any dad would be with children fighting right in front of them. Especially if it was happening in public. "We have guests, so I would like it if you behaved yourselves."
"I didn't ask for anyone to be here." Caliborn huffed, stomping a foot on the ground. Unlike his sister, he didn't seem embarrassed by the spectacle. "If they don't want to deal with our shit, they're free to leave."
"Caliborn!" Calliope stomped her own foot, in a bizarre mirror to her brother. She sounded like she was actually trying to be polite. "Don't talk back to father like that! You could at least tone it down with the swearing."
"Like I actually care!"
Frostbite sighed, rubbing his temples. He gave a shrug to their questioning glances, as if to reassure them that this was normal.
"They usually get like this if no one is keeping an eye on them. Especially if their so-called imaginary friends start appearing more often." The yeti ghost didn't seem actually bothered by this, though anyone would feel a little embarrassed if they were in his shoes. "Kids, seriously. These people have helped us with something, and I want to make their short stay here as good as possible."
"Fine." Caliborn rolled his eyes and turned around dramatically, moving to sit down in the closest chair. "But I don't want to talk to anyone. I need to practice my craft with our friends help."
Karkat could see him grab a tiny sketchbook, one filled with scraggly drawings that were made by a clumsy hand. He also saw Calliope take out one of her own, filled with much more impressive drawings.
He had a feeling he shouldn't say anything about that unless he wanted a tantrum thrown his way.
"I guess we shouldn't be surprised you're the type to adopt." Karkat did feel his respect for Frostbite go up a bit. Maybe some of his claims were true after all. "I'm guessing they don't get along too much."
"Unfortunately. Whether it's because of their unique type or they're just like that is a mystery though." Frostbite clapped his hands. He quickly tried to change the subject. "Is there anything you'd like to know about this place? It's been here longer than I have."
"Oh, I think I've got a few questions." Terezi had a notebook out, already moving forward to ask him some questions. "First, I'd like to know how..."
Karkat rolled his eyes as his friends practically overwhelmed the poor guy but decided to hang back and just listen. It wasn't like they weren't asking questions he was going to ask anyway. He was done doing the talking too.
His eyes did drift away, though not of their own accord. The halfa didn't really know why but watching the two fight was funny in its own little way. Growing up a single child did make him wonder what having a sibling would be like.
It looked like being a twin would be a little weird, if somewhat annoying. The two, despite arguing earlier, were doing the exact same thing with different amounts of success. The fact they hadn't separated after the fight showed that maybe it wasn't a serious one. He couldn't help but find it weird how Void Hood and Heart Hood seemed to interact with them, critiquing their drawings.
...Karkat did his best to not have a double take, but suddenly his focus drifted onto the two other Hoods floating around. They definitely were interacting with the kids, as he could see Heart Hood talking to Caliborn like it was no issue. Calliope seemed to hang off of Void Hood's every word.
Karkat spared a glance at Signless, who seemed to notice it as well. As chill as ever, he didn't seem to care about it too much. Then again, he must trust his "associates" enough not to traumatize some kids.
Karkat looked over everyone, noting that they were all distracted. While some, notably Vriska, didn't seem to care about the lesson, they were at least trying to hold it together out of politeness. It made sure that nobody saw him move towards the kids. The fact the two hoods appeared here was not a coincidence, obviously.
"Hey, Calliope and Caliborn, right?" Karkat wasn't sure how to start a conversation with them, but that was a start. "Whatcha drawing?"
"It's Caliborn and Calliope, and it's none of your business." Caliborn kept looking at his sketchbook, only looking up to give a glare to Heart Hood. Karkat couldn't help but think the guy looked like he could be Dave's brother, only enhanced by the pointed shades he wore. "Though if you need to know one thing, it's that mine are better. Certainly more complex than my sister's stock."
"You really aren't going to make a lot of friends like that, little man." Heart Hood lazily floated on his back, not sparing them a glance. The weird nonchalant tone certainly cemented the idea he and Dave were related. "I keep telling you, nuance is the name of the game. Or messing with their obsession with blue aliens. I'm honestly not sure anymore."
"Ignore him, he's just angry that I'm able to convince people to hang up my artwork around the Far Frozen more than he can." Calliope rolled her eyes, ignoring her brother's whispered insults about Heart Hood and horses. "Though I keep telling him he's better at writing than I am, he isn't satisfied until he tries to win in everything."
"A little low there, Calli. It's true, but damn." Void Hood, who looked a hell of lot like Rose, laughed. She was a lot bubblier than her 'Light' counterpart. "You want to save that talk for when you're actually in a competition or something. Maybe take it a little less seriously?"
The kids were ignoring them, or at least pretending too. Karkat was doing the same, though it seemed like these two were just trying to stop the sibling fighting. Surprisingly mundane, or actually useful?
Karkat looked over Calliope's drawing. He could actually see Void Hood drawn there, instantly recognizable due to the clothing. A good place to start.
"Is that one of the imaginary friends your dad mentioned? She seems nice." Karkat figured that was a fair guess, but there wasn't too much detail in the drawing yet. "Why the hood though?"
"That's..." Calliope paused, face screwing up as she briefly looked at said girl's direction. There was a small blush on her face. "I don't honestly know. She hasn't told me yet, though I think she looks better without it."
"Hey, don't tell him about them. And don't fraternize. They're a lot older than we are, and that isn't their purpose." Caliborn waved a pencil in his sister's face, which Calliope nearly smacked away judging from her expression alone. "They said we're going to be a part of a great destiny, and I'm seizing mine alone if you keep this up."
"Didn't I say that you aren't supposed to go after it? I keep telling you to do that. Not everything I say is a test." Heart Hood threw his arms up, giving Void Hood a tired look. "Do kids always stop listening to you after a certain point? Or is this just a thing with this one?"
"Eh, some do it early, some start later. It's honestly hard to tell." Karkat wasn't sure where Void Hood learned this information, but she sounded confident about it. "At least one of them gets it. At least, kinda."
More riddles, though that meant he was on the right track. Just had to get them to say something.
"What are their names?"
The question seemed to stop an impending argument, with the twins giving each other a brief look. Karkat figured there'd be silence, so he checked around. Frostbite was preoccupying everyone with something he'd brought out (some kind of ice sword?) while he talked with Signless. He was obviously keeping an ear out, which was fair. He was a stranger talking to his kids.
"We're not doing this again. I know we made it a rule in our ongoing games, but that doesn't mean we have to do it for everybody." Caliborn was weirdly insistent about this, as if it was a sticking point. "Just because you were able to ratify it-"
"-Means I am completely in the right when I do this." Calliope looked at Karkat with narrowed eyes. She seemed to be contemplating something. "Would you mind helping us with a little experiment?"
"Shoot. I've done worse things involving experiments." Karkat almost motioned to his hazmat suit before realizing they probably wouldn't recognize it. That, and it was a bit of a fucked-up joke. "Fire away."
Caliborn groaned loudly as Calliope continued.
"Whenever somebody asks that, we came up a with a rule that they have to guess their names instead." She said it in such a clinical way that showed practice. How many times have they done this? "We know their names. They just want to make a game of it."
A mumble came from Frostbite, a somewhat fond version of "here we go again."
"You only have one chance, though! If you get it wrong, you never get to ask about them again." Caliborn crossed his arms, leaning back into his seat. "Those are the rules too, no matter how much Calliope is willing to break those."
"I do think it's a bit unfair to not let them have multiple tries." Calliope shrugged, getting back to her drawing. She didn't seem to think it would result in anything concrete. "Give it a shot. No one's gotten it right this far."
"She's got a point there, Phantom. You the gambling type? Because you've got one in a million shot right here." Heart Hood said ominously. If it wasn't for the anime shades, it probably would've been threatening. "The fate of the universe rests on it."
"Not literally. Mostly. Timelines can be really fickle like that." Void Hood leaned in too to hear his answer. He really doubted it mattered that much. "First thing that comes to your mind, like the others."
"Dirk and Roxy." Karkat hadn't hit anything wrong yet. Might as well just roll with it for the time being until he could figure out their real ones. "Roxy is the one with Void symbol, if you need any clarification."
Karkat felt momentarily satisfied when he saw Dirk wilt under realizing the name he was given. It honestly made him feel accomplished there.
That was quickly dashed when he saw the twins look at him in shock. Caliborn seemed to react first, pointing at him with actual fear in his eyes.
"H-How the hell did you-"
The exclamation was cut off as an explosion came from outside. The fact that nearly every single one of the ghosts inside were battle ready would've been concerning outside any other instance.
Frostbite flew over to the windows, looking outside with barely contained fury. He growled as he was able to confirm what it was.
"Raiders attacking again. I knew we were long overdue for an attack." Frostbite moved towards the kids, grabbing them both up with much protest. "I'm going to take them downstairs. If you don't mind, I would appreciate some help driving them off."
"I'll gladly go fight some idiots!" Vriska grabbed Tavros by the back of his shirt, already heading towards the door. "Come on, Pupa, we need to kick some ass. I want to know your moves."
"But I don't have any moves! Phantom beat me when he was-" Tavros was cut off as Vriska tugged at his shirt. "Don't stretch the fabric!"
"Phantom, you mind hanging out with Frostbite until he can get his kids to safe place?" Karkat gave Terezi a nod. She twirled her cane, ready to pull out the sword as everyone filed out. "We'll try to leave some for the rest of you."
"Don't count on it though! Momma is going to get herself a fresh pelt if she can get one." Nepeta leaped out a window without a second thought. "APEX PREDATOR INCOMING!"
Signless was the only one to leave with any sort of calm. Then again, the fact his hands were already alight with ecto energy kind of disturbed that image.
"You certainly have some interesting friends." Frostbite pressed a button with a free hand, one of the walls in the room moving to the side. "Come along, then. While I highly doubt anyone will be able to follow us, I don't mind backup while I drop the kids off into the panic room."
"You can count on me. Lead the way." Karkat floated behind, making sure to keep an eye out. "And yeah, you don't know the half of it when it comes to my friends."
They'd be fine, he had no doubts about that. But something told him there was something coming their way.
Kanaya and Feferi were learning quite a bit about Karkat simply from their conversation alone, with many of the latter's statements confirming some suspicions.
Karkat was obviously hiding something and did seem to know quite a bit about things he shouldn't. He sometimes disappeared without warning and would occasionally do something that would be seen as strange. And maybe, just maybe, he wasn't as alright as he said.
However, that was only anecdotal evidence from one person. She wasn't sure how, but Kanaya had convinced Feferi to properly introduce her to Eridan so she could get more than one opinion.
"I do have to warn you, Eridan can sometimes be pretty ornery. He's okay in small doses, but if he gets really snobby," Feferi shook her head, blowing out some air. She'd probably have to rethink some stuff that'd been going on around them later. "Well, I'll knock some sense into him. He seems to think Karkat as a friend, so he might listen."
"I've dealt with many insufferable people in my lifetime. However, they've also met me, so I think I'll be just fine." Kanaya didn't care much about the attitude of a rich prat. She'd deal with many and they usually didn't come back for another conversation. "If anything, you might want to keep me away from him after this."
"That really doesn't make me feel better about all of this. I really don't want to mess with the few friendships he has by doing this." Feferi pointed in Kanaya's face, narrowing her eyes. "Don't mess this up. You have no idea how hard it is to even get him to socialize sometimes, much less make any new friends."
"I'll behave as long as he does too." Kanaya's patience was running thin. She was determined, but that didn't mean Feferi had to treat her like a child. "We're here. Please call him out."
Feferi had brought them to the Eridan's house, which was more of a mansion than anything. The place reeked of fresh construction, meaning that this place was completely invasive to the town. She wondered what that signified about the Ampora's, but the stuff she could think of didn't exactly raise confidence.
"Hey, Eridan! It's time to stop moping around and get some sunshine!" Feferi stopped, waiting to hear something. "He usually comes out fairly quickly when I do that. Just give him a minute and he'll be out here griping at me."
It indeed did take a minute for Eridan to show up, looking more irritated than amused. The fact that it was so late, and it looked like he just woke up wasn't exactly an awe-inspiring sight.
"Fef, you know my dad hates it when you yell. At least get inside and try to find my room first before you do that." Eridan blinked as he finally caught eyes with Kanaya. "Oh, you're Karkat's aunt, right? Still have a lot of questions about that."
"Hopefully I'll have the time to answer them someday. However, I have a few for you first." Kanaya didn't have a high chance of this ever happening again, so she might as well go on the offensive. "As long as you've known Karkat, have you noticed anything strange?"
"Huh?" Eridan was thrown off immediately, which was exactly what she wanted. "Strange how?"
"Strange in any capacity. I know you've become friends with him in only a short time, but I was wondering if you've seen him do anything... weird?" There was no good way to phrase it. She hoped that it would ring some kind of bell for him. "I've been concerned about a few things involving him and I just want to make sure it's not all in my head."
"It probably is all in your head. From what I can tell, Kar isn't really strange." Eridan deflected. His eyes looked one way as he said this before meeting hers again. "Are you sure you aren't talking about his dad? Spades is kind of seems like a lunatic, honestly."
"That's a fact. And I certainly wasn't talking about him." The boy was trying to stonewall her. That was an unwelcome idea for someone who's already come this far. "And would you please answer my question honestly? I'd rather not waste my time doing the run around here."
That must've pissed him off, cause she could see his eyes light up and his head rear back. He was acting like she just spit in his face.
"Excuse me, I'm wasting your time? You're at my house and you came to my door. I'm not wasting anyone's time but mine." Eridan scowled, and Kanaya found it an ugly thing. It was also somewhat off to her, too many teeth than there should've been. "What, are you pissed that your mommy didn't get to spend time with Kar, but I do?"
...Kanaya would've liked to have a chainsaw in her hands right about now. She didn't know what she'd do with it, but she had a really good idea.
"Whoa, Eridan, calm down. Kanaya's just concerned about some stuff she thinks Karkat might be involved in. Don't throw insults around just yet." Feferi breathed in and out slowly, trying to get him to follow her lead. "Just take some deep breaths. Try not to go too crazy here."
Eridan did pause, not joining in on the exercises, but stopping what was probably going to be another insult. The Ampora narrowed his eyes before he breathed out of his nose.
"I don't fucking care what you think is happening, but I don't know shit. Kar's perfectly normal, as far as I know." Eridan started closing the door, mood obviously ruined at this point. "Just drop it. You have no idea what you're even asking."
The slam of the door caused Feferi to flinch, but Kanaya just glared. She could hear the other girl sigh as she focused on the door.
"Well, that went to shit. I think you actually set a new record there." Feferi frowned, looking up at a window that she figured led to Eridan's room. "...I've never seen him lie that fast either. He wouldn't normally do that unless he was trying to hide something too."
At least that little detail provided some clue that Eridan was in on it. Which made her wonder even more how he was involved at all. She figured that Aradia and Sollux were definitely in on it, but a guy Karkat barely knows? That somehow made it worse.
Kanaya stopped, sniffing the air a bit. She smelled something burning.
"What the hell happened there?"
Feferi moved towards the door, looking at a small part of it that was... burnt. At the very least, it was warped enough for them to notice it, as if something hot had touched it long enough to make the metal bend and the wood singe.
It was in the shape of a handprint and was definitely not there until after Eridan left.
"...I think I might have more questions for you, Peixes."
Karkat had known the place was a fortress, but the number of hallways and dead ends made his head spin.
Frostbite was obviously the type to keep security high, and since he was leading his kids to a panic room, he'd obviously go for the best thing to keep them safe. Unfortunately, that meant he used confusions as a weapon judging from the architecture.
At least there were shortcuts.
"I never really understood how he knows where to go around here. Doesn't he have it changed every few weeks?" Dirk flew over their heads, acting pretty cold about all of this. "I can respect the complexity, but he's got to get lost here a lot."
"That's the thing, Dirk. It's not always about why," Roxy waved her hands in the air with faux mysticism. "It's about why not. And that they do need to hide shit too. Raiders are surprisingly resilient."
"So, I'm guessing the attacks happen a lot?" Karkat desperately tried to drown out the commentary, focusing on the task at hand. It took him nearly everything not to shoot them down. "I can't imagine you have all of this for fun."
"Unfortunately, yes. You get a bunch of supplies and people in one place, and some of the more unsavory ghosts decide to try and take it for themselves." Frostbite had his spear gripped tightly, keeping his eyes out. "We keep most of the supplies down here, along with the panic room. Even if they somehow break in, which they never have, they'll never get close before we beat them out."
"Who cares about those peons?! They're incompetent anyway!" Caliborn tried to climb over his dad's shoulder, trying to point in Karkat's face. "How in the hell did you get their names right! No one's gotten their names right!"
"Are-are you talking about your imaginary friends?" Frostbite slowed before remembering what kind of situation they were in. "I've been trying to figure them out for years. How in the world..."
"I-If you don't mind, we would appreciate it if you told us. Maybe after this is all over, though." Calliope winced as an explosion was heard outside. Karkat could've sworn he heard Vriska laughing. "Hopefully."
"It's a long story, alright? I'm not even sure how to explain it." Karkat needed to confirm some things, anyway. Especially if the kids were why he was sent here. "Let's just find the panic room and..."
Karkat blinked before shooting forward, stopping to raise his hand. "Wait."
The reason for the sudden stop became apparent when something slid through the ceiling of the castle, an act that should've been impossible. They could see a pair of boots slip through first, along with the baggy form of a white hazmat suit follow behind.
It was that fucker who freed Fright Knight.
"You!" Karkat brought his sickles out, the man jolting at the sudden flow of anger. "I was wondering where the fuck you went?"
"Ah. You're that boy that tried to stop me from doing my business with Fright Knight." The man didn't seem too shocked, though he was intrigued. "What an interesting coincidence. Or maybe it's not a coincidence at all. The fact that you're here for such important events says something."
"Uh," Calliope looked between the two, even more confused. "Why is a human here? How do you two know each other?"
"And I appeared right where I needed to be? I'm starting to think something is watching over us." The man pulled out the orb he had last time, tilting his head. "And I think it's starting to favor me."
"Smug bastard." Karkat flicked a sickle to the side, looking briefly at Frostbite. "Get your kids out of here. I don't know what he's here for, but it can't be good."
Frostbite, despite wanting answers, didn't ask anything. His kids being the priority, he went through another hidden door.
"I see that this is becoming a habit of ours. I try to do something, and you're there to stop me." The human charged up the sphere, letting the shine of it light up the hallway. "I'm guessing you aren't going to underestimate me this time?"
Karkat tensed, battle ready. "You better fucking believe it."
The human shot a ray of light directly at Karkat, which the halfa answered with his own ecto blast. The two met in the middle, lighting everything up between them and nearly blinding them in the process.
Karkat, know this would happen, swung a sickle on a chain towards the ceiling above the man, breaking some of the ice. The shower caused the man to pause, moving back to try and avoid the debris. Karkat took it as his chance to move forward, attempting to grab him.
The human was only able to dodge twice before the halfa latched onto his arm, throwing him into the wall. Swinging the but of a sickle into the place the man's jaw was, Karkat hit hard, making him hit the wall harder.
The man stumbled, the hover pack faltering as he did so. He rubbed at his jaw, grumbling.
"I'd say that was a little excessive." The human dodged a kick sent his way, noting the ice crack where it landed. He sent a ray at Karkat, causing the boy to fumble back. "Though I still think you're holding back a bit."
"Just because I want to break your bones doesn't mean I want you dead." Karkat swung his entire body around, getting the man in the back. He attempted to grab the orb, missing only by an inch. "Considering you could've gotten an entire town killed, you're not exactly worth a gentle touch."
"That's fair, I suppose." The orb started glowing green, the man dodging a swipe of a blade before grabbing the halfa's arm. "I'll have to return the favor."
Karkat felt the world change around him instantly, the familiar sense of teleportation causing his stomach to stir. The man threw him over his shoulder, right into a pillar of ice after the teleportation finished.
The halfa blearily looked around, noting that they were outside of the building now. He could see various citizens of the Far Frozen fighting off invaders who looked like they'd bitten off more than they could chew. That didn't mean there wasn't a surprising number of them.
The thought was interrupted as Karkat could see another ray fly out at him from the human, forcing him to dodge and move behind various ice pillars and other structures. He wasn't allowed rest, but he could see the human starting the teleportation again.
The halfa had enough time to grab see Tavros (of all people) accidentally kick a raider his way. Karkat grabbed the guy instantly, throwing the unconscious body at him instantly. It didn't connect, but it did give him long enough to grab the human again before the teleportation went through.
Another shift, a turn of the stomach, and the two were tumbling through open space. Another turn and they were in total darkness. A third, and final, turn brought them back into familiar cold temperatures as they broke through an ice wall.
Karkat lost his grip as a boot connected with his chest, causing him to fly back. He was able to grab the mask, ripping it off as he hit the wall, a grunt escaping his lips. He could hear Frostbite curse, something that brought his adrenaline up
Karkat raised a hand filled with ectoplasmic energy, growling as he saw the face of the man and...
...it was Doc Scratch?
It took only a few seconds to recognize the slightly battered face of the doctor, even if it had been a good while since they saw each other last. Despite the bruises and scowl, the balding head and air of superiority matched things up.
"As much as I'd like to understand why you're looking at me like that, I'm on a tight schedule." Doc Scratch threw the orb upward, causing everyone in the room to take a step back as it hung in the air. It started shining multiple colors at once, the rainbow effect making an intimidating display. "If you'll excuse me..."
Various lights started firing out of the orb, hitting anything and everything in its path. Karkat had to focus on dodging it instead of looking at Scratch as he moved towards Frostbite. The yeti ghost looked ready to swing down on him before a ray from the orb hit him, causing him to go on the defensive.
Before the ball exploded into a bright white, knocking him unconscious, Karkat could see Doc Scratch snatch Caliborn before slipping through one of the walls once again.
Well, I bet some of you were expecting that reveal. Then again, how long has it been since I showed Scratch? Months? Either way, I hope you appreciate the twist.
I'll see you all next chapter!