Ghostbusters: The Great Escape
Moderator: LadyTevar
Ghostbusters: The Great Escape
Note: This story has very special significance for me. This, my fellow sci-fi fans and board members, was the very first fanfic I ever wrote, way back in 2000; you can see clear differences in my writing style from then and now.
Anyway, it was a taste of things to come, from an unfinished Batman/Hannibal Lecter crossover to my magnum opus, the Star Trek/Star Wars crossover ‘The Best of Both Worlds’. For the Ghostbusters fans out there, I hope you enjoy it (its set right after the end of Extreme Ghostbusters).
"The Great Escape"
A GB/RGB/XGB Epic
By JME2
"The time has come for us to leave this prison once and for all!" Surt's angry voice floated over the gathered assembly of the containment unit's most powerful spirits. Seated amongst him were ghosts such as Tempus, Samhain, the Sandman, the Grundel, and Achira. At his feet lay Fenris.
"Two generations of the accursed Ghostbusters have kept us here long enough. Must we spend the remainder of eternity standing by helplessly as more and more of our kind are locked away with us?" The demons grumbled and looked at each other. "Well?" the Norse God roared.
There was silence. The ghosts were thinking of their leader's words. For over fifteen years, they had all been trying to escape from the Ghostbusters' containment unit to wreak vengeance upon humanity. But despite all of their best-laid plans, they had failed. Their morale was at its lowest. Even the newest ghosts were convinced that they were trapped there forever.
Finally one of the demons, a rat-like creature, spoke up. "Why not escape using the device that brought our friend here, Grundel, out?" it said. Another ghost shook its head. "You fool, they'd have to work it and it has most likely been destroyed. I think that we should just face it, there's no way that ..."
An alarm suddenly sounded throughout the many chambers of the unit. "Another one is joining us," muttered Samhain. "Let us greet the new prisoner," rasped the Sandman. They hurried to the gateway, the source of incoming ghosts, wondering who was next.
* * * * *
"Well, I'm sure glad that's over," said Peter, as he closed that containment unit's outer hatch after removing a trap. "Yeah," said Garrett. "Especially since that spook kept disappearing and reappearing all over Central Park."
"Well, he did provide us a close encounter with those lovely cheerleaders ..." Venkman shut up after Egon gave him that look. Oh well, Egon never changes, thought Peter. After what we went through with the new team, he probably still worries about Ray, Winston, and I busting ghosts in our "old age."
It had been a year since the Original Ghostbusters and the Extreme Ghostbusters had teamed up to trap the Bermuda Triangle demon before it destroyed the planet. The city had honored them for the first time since the defeat of Vigo the Carpathian and the guys had left New York after Thanksgiving.
But the ghosts sure hadn't honored them. There were soon more and more supernatural appearances throughout New York. Egon had to call back the original team to ask for the extra help that was needed. They leaped once more at the prospect of remaining Ghostbusters a while longer. Even Louis (who had returned to the world of ghostbusting since he had lost his job as an accountant), Slimer and Janine had been called upon to help out with the almost constant sightings and subsequent busts.
Peter's thoughts continued to recap his ghostbusting career. What was it, fifteen, sixteen years ago? Yup, during the first few months of business, it was pure chaos when Walter Peck had the bright idea to shut down the containment unit. Peter shuddered at that thought. What a mess! At least Peck got fired, and the EPA had him committed to an asylum following the Gozer incident and Peck's attempt to get revenge by taking Slimer. All the original Boys in Gray had wondered about Peck's reaction to the return of Egon and his new team of Ghostbusters two years earlier.
Peter and the others started heading up the stairs when he noticed that Egon was staring at the containment unit. Yeah, who wouldn't? That machinery represented fifteen years of busts and the result was thousands of ghosts, locked away, never to return. He frowned at the phrase. There have been a couple of close shaves, the last few years, involving their prisoners' escaping. But after all of this time, the ghosts had to have accepted the inevitable: they're trapped forever, it's over. Or had they accepted their fate?
"Peter," Egon's voice cut into his thoughts. "Yeah, Spengs?" "As soon as everyone is rested, I want a meeting called in the lab. I think we may have problems," said Dr. Spengler. "Like what?" asked Peter. But Egon was already up the stairs. Peter wondered if it had to do with the thoughts that he had just had on the containment unit. He followed Egon and told the others to meet up at the lab.
* * * * *
Surt watched the spectacle that he had witnessed for more than a decade now. One wall of the containment unit opened up, revealing a long tunnel. A figure was thrown out of it and the walls started to close. As usual, several ghosts attempted to fly towards it, but were too slow. Another failed attempt, Surt thought. The figure stood up and looked at Surt. It was tall, dressed in a black robe. It looked human, with the exception of the glowing black eyes and the claws that were its hands.
"Welcome to the containment unit, fellow spirit," a ghost said. "Where you will spend the rest of your..." The ghost was cut off by Achira, who had raised her snakelike hands and spewed a fireball at the goblin. The figure moved towards the fallen spirit and let loose lightning from its claw tips. "Wrong, you fool. All prisoners will be released from this prison as of this moment!" it snarled.
The figure then turned its attention towards Surt. "My name is Ender. You are the one known as Surt, I assume?" Surt nodded, suddenly feeling worried about his position in the CU's chain of command. "Do not be worried, I have no desire to dethrone you, only to lead everyone here to freedom."
The Grundel grinned. "What makes you so confident? We've tried to escape from the containment unit for years, with no success." Ender shook his head. "I'm confident because a task force of powerful spirits are ready to break open this dungeon on my telepathic command!"
Surt didn't believe him. He motioned to Syren and Banshee, who let loose a mind-scanning energy wave. It passed through Ender and then back to them. Banshee screeched. "He's telling the truth." Ender nodded. "But why are you here now? asked Samhain "Why have you not come years earlier?"
Ender replied almost instantly. "I am a member of DOG (Destruction of Ghostbusters), a paranormal organization founded to destroy the containment unit. We want nothing in return, just to free our fellow spirits ... and then destroy humanity, but we'll ignore that for now. Unfortunately, the Ghostbusters had exterminated almost all of the existing spirits in the Netherworld by the time their first team had disbanded. The ghosts who remained were too frightened to react. Then, we got word of a transdimensional breach involving a long forgotten prison for rebellious ghosts. We've spent the last two years planning "Operation: Freedom," but in order for it to work, I had to allow myself to be captured and placed in here."
"This is all very intriguing" said Tempus, "but why are you needed in here? Why not break in via the front entryway?" Ender shook his head at the demon that had failed to lead a ghost revolution. "The Ghostbusters have greatly updated their security systems for the containment unit. Not even concentrated blasts from my task force could open it. A spiritual overload will be required from all the demons present inside here, as well as from the outside. So, are you ready to be freed?"
There was silence. Then Surt nodded. Ender's eyes went dark and then flashed. "My forces have been contacted. Let us begin." He raised his hands toward the entry hatch and lighting poured from them. Other demons copied and aimed their powers at the wall as well. Soon, it will all be over; we'll be free at last, thought Surt ... and he smiled.
* * * * *
"I'm sorry that I've interrupted your resting period, but this very urgent," said Egon. "Let me guess," said Eduardo, "somebody died?" He was nudged by Kylie to shut up. "No, this is very serious. There have only been two occasions in the history of the Ghostbusters when we've been as busy as we have been the last few months. There are two possibilities," said Egon. He looked towards Ray.
"The first case involves the coming of a demon like Gozer or Vigo, but we thought there weren't any Class 10 demons left like that. It is probable that one other spirit like that was not mentioned in Tobin's Spirit Guide, but that seems highly unlikely given the work that was put into it and with what we've come across." Ray finished.
Kylie then spoke up. "I think I know what the second scenario may be," she said. "A warm up to an attack against the Ghostbusters headquarters." Egon slowly nodded. Louis collapsed in a chair. Eduardo started to sweat. Peter whistled. Roland looked shocked. "Ray and I believe that it's the latter because of the size of the PKE readings taken from the last few cases, which indicate that it probably isn't another big Twinkie on the horizon ..." he trailed when he saw Garrett giving him a confused look.
Egon smiled and continued. "It's a long story. Anyway, there is something else you should see." He pointed towards Ray, who lowered a map of NYC from the wall. "This map shows the sites of our busts from the last few weeks." Little ghost trap icons marked the areas. The Ghostbusters firehouse was marked by the famous 'No Ghosts' logo. "If you look closely, you'll see that each bust takes place closer and closer to the firehouse. And if you recall, the last few busts have been especially difficult. They've been wearing us down, trying to catch us off guard."
Garrett spoke up. "You mean they've been scouting out our weaknesses and home turf! Why those dirty ..." Garrett's voice was suddenly interrupted by one of the alarms, the basement alarm to be precise. Ray rushed to the computer. It was just as they feared. "I'm reading at least five Class 7 spirits in the basement. Their PKE signatures do not match any we've previously captured! They appear to be attempting to rupture the containment unit!" He hoped that Egon's recent modifications to the protection grid and outer shell would hold.
"Everyone down to the basement," yelled Roland! They all rushed downstairs ... everyone grabbed a proton pack or trap from the equipment locker in the process. They burst into the lower levels of the firehouse to see just what Ray had described. Five gargoyle-like creatures were firing beams of energy, from their eyes, at the containment unit. But thankfully, it held and didn't crack. Egon's security modifications to the CU's armor are working like a charm, Roland thought.
One of the creatures turned around and snarled at the assembled humans. Its eyes glowed, but before it could fire, it was knocked down by two bursts of pink goo. Kylie looked to see Peter and Eduardo coming down the stairs. They both had large tanks, with cylindrical rifles, on their backs. Kylie looked at them, knowing that they were using retired pieces from the Ghostbusters arsenal. "Slimeblowers?" she asked. "Si. Egon suggested they could be used to temporarily plug ruptures in the unit, chica," Eduardo
replied sheepishly.
The other gargoyle creatures had now noticed the intruders and charged at them. But the teams were ready. They let loose their proton streams and ghost traps and within a few minutes, all of the creatures, including the one covered with slime, were in ghost traps. Roland rushed over to the secondary console at the work desk. "No apparent major ruptures; everything's okay. Aside from a few minor repairs, everything's looking good."
While they all cheered, Egon put down his proton pack and whipped out his PKE meter and aimed it towards the containment unit, just to be sure. It had seemed too easy ... they had trapped the demons in record time. He took his readings, frowned, and then checked them again. Slowly, he lowered the PKE meter, his face going pale. "Ray, this looks extraordinarily bad," he said.
Ray looked at the meter himself and turned pale, as well. "Those gargoyles were targeting the protection grid generator. You don't think that ... " Ray paused to think. "Could the spirits inside have known about this and planned it?" asked Kylie. "Well, in my opinion ..." Eduardo started to speak, but then shut up. He looked at the containment unit and saw a sight that ran his blood cold: cracks spreading throughout the surface of the containment unit and rays of energy bursting through the storage facility. He and everyone else could instantly tell that no makeshift repairs could hold back what was coming.
"Evacuate the firehouse now!" Egon yelled. They all ran like hell back up the stairs and clambered into the Ecto 1. Egon made sure that everyone had been squeezed in and were all accounted for. The firehouse's doors opened slowly and the driver of the Ectomobile put the pedal to the metal. They were soon several blocks away and Winston stopped. They climbed out and looked back at their headquarters.
It looks just like sixteen years ago, when Walter Peck shut off the protection grid for the original CU, thought Egon. Smoke and sparks were bursting forth throughout the firehouse and a huge PKE burst was coming out of the roof. Except unlike last time, it was huge compared to what had come out in 1984. Egon knew that this was due to the fact that when they had first started business, they had captured only a small amount of ghosts before the EPA incident occurred. There were thousands and thousands of ghosts in the containment unit now and the blast was more destructive than ever.
Egon spoke softly, but everyone heard him. "The moment that we have dreaded for sixteen years has finally come. The ghosts, that we have long fought to capture, are free from the containment unit and because of us, the very fate of the world is doomed. In the name of science, who the hell are we gonna call?"
Both generations of the Ghostbusters stared at the huge PKE cloud hovering above the firehouse. All were silent, watching as the huge cloud started dividing itself into individual ghosts. Everyone started recognizing several ghosts hovering above the ground. For example, Kylie's eyes widened as she saw Achira. Eduardo, Egon, and Slimer gasped as Surt emerged at the top of the cloud. The other members of the original team stood in shock as one part of the cloud formed into the shape of the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man.
Egon switched off his PKE meter, which was on the verge of blowing up from all of the entities there. The ghosts were free, but hopefully there would be time to come up with an alternative plan and trap them again. After all, the dump truck ghost trap they had used on the Bermuda Triangle entity was in the alley right next to the firehouse. It had the potential to suck them in all in and act as a temporary CU. But all hopes of this were literally crushed when Mr. Stay Puft stepped into the alley, and Egon heard the crunching of metal. So much for that plan, thought Spengler.
The PKE cloud had reached its full height and was starting to dissipate. Then, Surt rose to a higher position and yelled something. The demons all turned towards the firehouse. A feeling of dread gripped all of the Ghostbusters as they suddenly hoped that they were wrong about what might happen now. A huge PKE surge erupted from the combined forces of the ghosts and was aimed at the firehouse. When the smoke cleared, they saw that the firehouse was still standing ... but not a whole lot of it. Both teams groaned. Could this day get any worse for them?
Suddenly, there was a cry from several ghosts floating in midair. Several started towards them. "Uh, mi amigos y amigas ... I think they see us!" exclaimed Eduardo. They jumped back into the Ectomobile and sped away. But it was like running away from a tidal wave. The ghosts soon had the Ecto 1 surrounded. "Now would be an excellent time to test out the ERPS!" yelled Egon. Ray nodded in agreement. He leaned towards the front and hit a little red button on the clutch. Waves of proton energy instantly swept
the car and the ghosts were blocked out. Winston sped along once more
"What is that thing?" asked Peter. "The ERPS is a little invention that Ray, Roland, and I have been testing for the last month. It stands for Ecto Repulsion Personal Shield. Prevents any form of ectoplasmic creature from entering any preset vicinity." Garrett looked out the rear window and suddenly spoke up. "You said any form of ectoplasm?" Egon nodded. Then he turned pale and his heart almost stopped as he saw what Garrett saw. Several of the ghosts were preventing Slimer, who had fallen behind, from entering the Ecto 1.
"Slimer!" Garrett and Ray opened the window and fired at the spooks while Kylie and Peter attempted to throw a trap and catch the green spud. But the ghosts outmaneuvered them and Slimer was soon gone. The other ghosts fell back as well. Egon yelled at Winston to stop, but Ray calmed him down. "Egon, we'll get him back, but if we go after him now, with what little weaponry we have, they'll massacre us!" Egon breathed in and out and then nodded. "You're right. But we almost lost him to those ghosts a year ago during the Fenris incident. He's our friend and a lot of our busts have been due to him. I vow that we will get him back."
Janine broke the silence that had ensued Slimer's capture and Egon's vow. "What are we going to do about the equipment? The firehouse is in ruins and all we have left are the proton packs on our backs." Peter instantly grinned. "I thought you'd never ask. Ray, do you think it's time we showed them 'Warehouse 51?'" Egon and Winston stayed quiet; they seemed to know what the other two Boys in Gray were saying. But Janine and the kids looked at them and all said the same thing: "What the hell is 'Warehouse 51?'"
* * * * *
Surt soared above the city, landing atop the remains of the Temple of Zuul on the Shandor Building. How fitting he thought. Their new base was the location of the incident that had caused so much problems for the Ghostbusters back in 1984. He had always believed that this building would serve as the perfect hideaway, should he ever escape the containment unit. He turned and stared at the two giant doors that marked where Gozer had entered this dimension. Even after sixteen years, there was
still rubble and debris left over from that apocalyptic battle between a fellow God and four lowly mortals. According to Ender, that gate had been closed, but could it be possible that ...
His attention was diverted when Ender approached him. Ender was holding, in his hand, a large green object. Surt's ghostly heart skipped a beat. "I see that you have brought to me the traitor to our cause, Slimer," he rasped. Ender smiled. "Yes. Unfortunately, the Ghostbusters escaped, but we will track them down. For now, I shall serve you in your attempts to get revenge on humanity. However, what are you planning on doing with this worthless piece of spiritual energy?" he asked. Surt produced a wicked grin and looked down at Slimer's cowering form.
* * * * *
The Ecto 1 turned into the warehouse district of New York and stopped at a rundown looking building. Everyone got out looking depressed, holding the remains of proton blasters and proton packs in theirhands. As soon as they had thought all was well, they'd dropped the ERPS ... only to find a group of ghosts lying in wait. They had escaped, but not unscathed. The Ecto 1 looked like it'd been through a war. They all stepped out, with the original team in the lead. "This, my friends, is 'Warehouse 51,' and a
haven for us Ghostbusters." Ray said. He unlocked the door and everyone breathed in awe.
Roland opened, then blinked, his eyes to make sure he wasn't dreaming. The whole room was littered with many retired pieces of Ghostbusting equipment. There were several of the original-style proton packs, ghost traps, PKE meters, and other pieces that he had heard about. There were display cases, pieces of the original storage facility, the redone Vigo painting, a lot of the stuff from the original team's days at Columbia University, a fully-operational replica of the Ecto 1-A, and even the legendary two-man helicopter, the Ecto 2.
Peter broke the silence. "After we originally disbanded, Ray and I stored a lot of retired equipment and Ghostbusting momentos here. The owner is an old friend of mine, so we don't pay for it. Egon had agreed to live in the firehouse and needed space for spare equipment." Ray shook his head in agreement. Egon concluded by saying, "The ghosts have escaped from the CU, the firehouse may be gone, and the newer equipment destroyed ... but we have all of the material necessary, to start over, right here, " he explained. They were all silent. Then Roland spoke up. "All right people, you heard the man, let's get to work!"
* * * * *
High atop the Shandor building, Surt was plotting his next move: an attempt to improve his minions' morale. He could see that they were getting restless and tired of the orders he had given inside the CU: "Once we're free, we will wait until I command you." He decided their wait was over once he saw that, finally, all of the ghosts from the CU were gathered before him. Was it just him or did his summoning take longer than usual? He ignored that train of thought and immediately spoke.
"I know that you are growing restless, my servants, so now you shall have your revenge! Run free and wreak havoc on this city." The ghosts started chattering wildly and took off. Even the more powerful demons joined in. Surt turned towards Ender. "They deserve to have a little fun after all of these years. I only wish I could join them, but I have more pressing matters to engage in." Ender looked at the Temple doors and nodded.
* * * * *
The EGB's drove the Ecto 1 into the remains of the firehouse's front hall. The front part of building was still mostly intact ... unless you counted the huge hole in the middle of the floor. They stepped out and instantly warmed up the old style proton packs on their backs. They came back because Egon had just stressed the need for spare parts required to get the stored equipment in working conditions.
So while the others were getting the warehouse in order, they had armed themselves with what little weaponry they had left. Thanks to Egon, Ray, Roland, and Winston, who had jury-rigged the original packs, they had some equipment that would work for the time being. They had cautiously approached the old base, for fear of any ghosts still keeping watch. Each had an assignment to salvage whatever they could find. Roland was to head for the weapons locker, Kylie to the upper lab, Eduardo to the basement, and Garrett to the office. They immediately went their separate ways.
The door to the weapons locker opened and Roland peered in. Amazingly, it was almost unscathed from the CU's rupture, despite its location right above it. He wasn't surprised, however, that a lot of equipment had fallen off the racks. He gathered the remaining proton guns, proton canisters and ghost traps, and loaded them into the back of the Ecto 1.
Everyone else emerged from various spots throughout the firehouse. They were quiet as they looked above the door. No one could ignore the symbolism there. The sign that bore the 'No Ghosts' logo was cracked and hanging from the wall, ready to fall. Unless they could restart anew, this could mean the end of the Ghostbusters...
They made it back to 'Warehouse 51' within half an hour. During the trip, the Ecto 1's built in PKE meter had started going off the scale. It was probably the escaped ghosts, no doubt terrorizing the city as a start to their newfound freedom. But they just kept on going, they were in no condition to bust any ghosts at the moment.
They stopped short at the warehouse's door, having seen what was now hanging above it. It was the second version of the 'No Ghosts' logo, the one that had hung outside the firehouse during the original team's come back in 1989. They stepped inside and wondered if anything else could surprise them now, after what they'd already seen this day.
The warehouse was crammed full of workmen and technicians, who were busily getting all of the equipment in working order. The Ecto 2 and Ecto 1-A replica were polished up and ready to go. Several techies rushed out and got to work on the Ecto 1. In the center of all the activity, Peter and Egon were speaking with the mayor of New York. Amazing that he's actually listening to us this time. He probably still believes that we conjured up that Bermuda Triangle demon, SIDNEE, or whatever Egon had called it, thought Garrett.
They finished their conversation and stepped towards the EGB's. "Did the mayor hire all of these workmen for us?" asked Eduardo. Peter nodded. "The mayor agreed to help us for two reasons. The first is that the city is in chaos and this will damage his attempts to follow with his predecessor, old old friend Lenny, in becoming Governor. Second, he finally believes in ghosts ... thanks to a conversation that he had at breakfast with the spirit of Fiorello LaGuardia."
"And, thanks to several charitable donations, we're back in business!" Egon piped in. "The timing couldn't be better. I want everyone over here." All ten Ghostbusters stepped over to Egon's laptop. "I've traced all of the PKE sweeps from the escaped ghosts to 550 Central Park West," he explained. Ray's eyes opened wide. "The Shandor building! But why would they be going there ... unless ... could it be possible ..."
Egon's face turned grim. "We merely sent Gozer, Zuul, and Vince Clortho back to their dimension and sealed the gateway. Apparently, Surt's found a way to reopen the temple doors by using a large surge of PKE, similar to what they used to break out of the CU. It would act as a crude, but effective replacement for the Keymaster and Gatekeeper. To aid this surge, every ghost from the dimensional gateway, that we uncovered two years ago, has joined them. As I said earlier, we could experience the coming of another Class 10. It appears that Surt will use Gozer's return as the key to unleashing hell on Earth, as revenge for being locked away by us. The surge is building up right now, slowly at first. We need to get there now in order to save the world as we know it! We all may get killed on this mission, so if anyone doesn't want to go, speak now," Egon finished. There was silence. "All right, let's go for it!"
* * * * *
The scene at the Shandor Building was remarkably similar to what it had been sixteen years ago. The sky was darkened, the building had been evacuated, and ghosts were flying around the top of the temple. Slimer was chained to the stone altar that had been rebuilt after the Gozer incident, held back by ectoplasmic chains of PKE energy. Surt and Ender were watching all that was happening, waiting for the right moment to unleash Gozer upon this world again.
Below, the crowds watched anxiously, many of them having been present at the original incident. Sirens were heard and a cheer ran up from those in front. A police escort squadron was rolling down the street, followed by the Ecto 1 and Ecto 1-A replica. Above them, the Ecto 2 came into view, with Eduardo and Kylie maneuvering it above a position where they could see the top of the Shandor Building.
The Ectomobiles pulled up in front of the building's entrance and four GB's jumped out of each Cadillac. All eight briefly shook hands with the crowd, then strapped on both versions of the proton packs, as well as the slime blowers, and headed inside. Amazingly, nothing strange happened as they made their way to the top of the building. The elevators were even working this time, saving them the strength that they would need for the battle. The lack of supernatural occurrences was disturbing. But then again, when all of these incidents had occurred before, Gozer had willingly come forth to this dimension. But now he's being forcefully summoned, thought Ray.
They took a different route, straight up to the temple this time, having found a stairwell that had been added when the building had been renovated following the explosion in 1984. They all knew what they might expect as they rounded a corner at the top of the building. There, they saw Surt, and the newer demon that they had trapped earlier in the day, surrounded by thousands of ghosts raising their hands and channeling energy at the temple doors.
"We're going to go full streams. Aim for the newer demon and Surt ... now!" yelled Ray. Six streams of proton energy, four yellow and blue, the other green and red, hit Surt, causing him to lose focus for a second. He spotted the GB's and shook his head. "You just never learn, do you? I was going to have Gozer kill you, but I'll save him the ..." Surt was interrupted as he was knocked back and two proton streams emerged from behind him. He spun around, to catch a glimpse of the Ecto 2 with Kylie and Eduardo on board.
Kylie took a quick reprieve, aimed for the stone alter and blasted it, freeing Slimer. While the others resumed their fight, she prepared to toss Slimer the trap dubbed GTX. It was an experimental one that Egon had been working on in order to keep up with the demand of ghosts that they were catching. It was designed to hold an infinite number of spirits, but had never been tested. Well, there'll never be a better time, she thought, as she threw it to the spud.
Several of the other ghosts were attempting to flee, but wild proton streams and bursts of positively charged slime hit them. Slimer maneuvered himself under the commotion and buried himself underneath the trap. It looked like a cross between the older and newer design, but he ignored the details, and hit the trap's switch. A huge vortex of proton energy swirled over a radius of half a mile, catching every ghost in the vicinity in its powerful beam.
Five minutes passed and just about every ghost was in. The only ghost left was Ender. He stayed at Surt's side the entire time, continuing to fire blasts of energy at the temple doors, until he too was sucked into the trap. As the doors closed on him, he began to cry out, "You're too late, mortal. See for yourself the power of the supernatural ..." then he vanished into the trap.
The Ecto 2 touched down on the roof, its passengers giving high fives to the other 'busters. "We came, we saw, we kicked its ..." Garrett was interrupted as a boom shook the building. The temple doors heaved and flew open, revealing the palace of Gozer. From the closed doors, a voice boomed, one that the original team had hoped to never hear again. "Subcreatures! Gozer the Gozerian, Gozer the Destructor, Volguus Zildrohar, the Traveler has returned and you will all pay!"
The Temple doors swung open, revealing the form that Gozer had taken sixteen years earlier, that of a women. It fired a blast of energy that the GB's managed to avoid. However, the Ecto 2 wasn't so lucky. Eduardo and Kylie managed to bail out, but the 'copter fell off the roof to the street below. Everyone looked at each other, trying to figure out what to do, and then returned their gazes at Gozer.
"Let's show this prehistoric bitch that we can still do things like we do downtown!" yelled Peter. Blasts of proton energy and slime hit Gozer square in the chest. Gozer was surprised. "You mortals are more powerful than before but no matter; I'll ..." she stopped and screamed. Egon had grabbed the GTX, aimed it at Gozer and hit the release button. A funnel of thousands of evil spirits shot towards Gozer at high speed, knocking the creature back to where it had come from, along with the other ghosts.
"It's not over; we've got to close the Temple doors and prevent them from entering this world once and for all. Everyone, aim and cross your proton streams at the temple's opening ... fire at my command," yelled Egon. Winston, Ray, and Peter looked at him in shock. "Egon, are you trying to have us sued by every state, county and city agency in New York again!?" said Peter.
"The newer proton packs' ionization energy is less harmful and combined with the slime blowers, will block out the destructive nuclear particles with ours. Don't argue with me, just do it!" Everyone looked at Egon and turned their attention towards the temple. Already, several spooks were coming out and more were following them. The team said quick good-byes, just in case. At Egon's command, they fired concentrated blasts at the door.
After a few seconds, an explosion took place, but merely a small one that knocked the GB's back towards the edge of the building. When they looked again, the temple was gone, destroyed for good... and according to Egon's trusty gigameter, there were no traces of paranormal activity. They had done it. Gozer was gone for good, as were all of the ghosts that they had captured over the years.
Exhausted, they emerged from the building, drawing the cheers from the crowd as they had for many years. They uploaded all of the equipment and clambered into the Ectomobiles, driving off into distance, heading back to Warehouse 51. Egon made sure that Slimer was with them this time. They all laid back in their seats, not really talking ... but knowing that they would probably disband for good after this. At least for now, they knew that the world was saved by them, yet again, and they had truly abided by the Ghostbusters motto: I ain't 'fraid of no ghost!
The End.
Anyway, it was a taste of things to come, from an unfinished Batman/Hannibal Lecter crossover to my magnum opus, the Star Trek/Star Wars crossover ‘The Best of Both Worlds’. For the Ghostbusters fans out there, I hope you enjoy it (its set right after the end of Extreme Ghostbusters).
"The Great Escape"
A GB/RGB/XGB Epic
By JME2
"The time has come for us to leave this prison once and for all!" Surt's angry voice floated over the gathered assembly of the containment unit's most powerful spirits. Seated amongst him were ghosts such as Tempus, Samhain, the Sandman, the Grundel, and Achira. At his feet lay Fenris.
"Two generations of the accursed Ghostbusters have kept us here long enough. Must we spend the remainder of eternity standing by helplessly as more and more of our kind are locked away with us?" The demons grumbled and looked at each other. "Well?" the Norse God roared.
There was silence. The ghosts were thinking of their leader's words. For over fifteen years, they had all been trying to escape from the Ghostbusters' containment unit to wreak vengeance upon humanity. But despite all of their best-laid plans, they had failed. Their morale was at its lowest. Even the newest ghosts were convinced that they were trapped there forever.
Finally one of the demons, a rat-like creature, spoke up. "Why not escape using the device that brought our friend here, Grundel, out?" it said. Another ghost shook its head. "You fool, they'd have to work it and it has most likely been destroyed. I think that we should just face it, there's no way that ..."
An alarm suddenly sounded throughout the many chambers of the unit. "Another one is joining us," muttered Samhain. "Let us greet the new prisoner," rasped the Sandman. They hurried to the gateway, the source of incoming ghosts, wondering who was next.
* * * * *
"Well, I'm sure glad that's over," said Peter, as he closed that containment unit's outer hatch after removing a trap. "Yeah," said Garrett. "Especially since that spook kept disappearing and reappearing all over Central Park."
"Well, he did provide us a close encounter with those lovely cheerleaders ..." Venkman shut up after Egon gave him that look. Oh well, Egon never changes, thought Peter. After what we went through with the new team, he probably still worries about Ray, Winston, and I busting ghosts in our "old age."
It had been a year since the Original Ghostbusters and the Extreme Ghostbusters had teamed up to trap the Bermuda Triangle demon before it destroyed the planet. The city had honored them for the first time since the defeat of Vigo the Carpathian and the guys had left New York after Thanksgiving.
But the ghosts sure hadn't honored them. There were soon more and more supernatural appearances throughout New York. Egon had to call back the original team to ask for the extra help that was needed. They leaped once more at the prospect of remaining Ghostbusters a while longer. Even Louis (who had returned to the world of ghostbusting since he had lost his job as an accountant), Slimer and Janine had been called upon to help out with the almost constant sightings and subsequent busts.
Peter's thoughts continued to recap his ghostbusting career. What was it, fifteen, sixteen years ago? Yup, during the first few months of business, it was pure chaos when Walter Peck had the bright idea to shut down the containment unit. Peter shuddered at that thought. What a mess! At least Peck got fired, and the EPA had him committed to an asylum following the Gozer incident and Peck's attempt to get revenge by taking Slimer. All the original Boys in Gray had wondered about Peck's reaction to the return of Egon and his new team of Ghostbusters two years earlier.
Peter and the others started heading up the stairs when he noticed that Egon was staring at the containment unit. Yeah, who wouldn't? That machinery represented fifteen years of busts and the result was thousands of ghosts, locked away, never to return. He frowned at the phrase. There have been a couple of close shaves, the last few years, involving their prisoners' escaping. But after all of this time, the ghosts had to have accepted the inevitable: they're trapped forever, it's over. Or had they accepted their fate?
"Peter," Egon's voice cut into his thoughts. "Yeah, Spengs?" "As soon as everyone is rested, I want a meeting called in the lab. I think we may have problems," said Dr. Spengler. "Like what?" asked Peter. But Egon was already up the stairs. Peter wondered if it had to do with the thoughts that he had just had on the containment unit. He followed Egon and told the others to meet up at the lab.
* * * * *
Surt watched the spectacle that he had witnessed for more than a decade now. One wall of the containment unit opened up, revealing a long tunnel. A figure was thrown out of it and the walls started to close. As usual, several ghosts attempted to fly towards it, but were too slow. Another failed attempt, Surt thought. The figure stood up and looked at Surt. It was tall, dressed in a black robe. It looked human, with the exception of the glowing black eyes and the claws that were its hands.
"Welcome to the containment unit, fellow spirit," a ghost said. "Where you will spend the rest of your..." The ghost was cut off by Achira, who had raised her snakelike hands and spewed a fireball at the goblin. The figure moved towards the fallen spirit and let loose lightning from its claw tips. "Wrong, you fool. All prisoners will be released from this prison as of this moment!" it snarled.
The figure then turned its attention towards Surt. "My name is Ender. You are the one known as Surt, I assume?" Surt nodded, suddenly feeling worried about his position in the CU's chain of command. "Do not be worried, I have no desire to dethrone you, only to lead everyone here to freedom."
The Grundel grinned. "What makes you so confident? We've tried to escape from the containment unit for years, with no success." Ender shook his head. "I'm confident because a task force of powerful spirits are ready to break open this dungeon on my telepathic command!"
Surt didn't believe him. He motioned to Syren and Banshee, who let loose a mind-scanning energy wave. It passed through Ender and then back to them. Banshee screeched. "He's telling the truth." Ender nodded. "But why are you here now? asked Samhain "Why have you not come years earlier?"
Ender replied almost instantly. "I am a member of DOG (Destruction of Ghostbusters), a paranormal organization founded to destroy the containment unit. We want nothing in return, just to free our fellow spirits ... and then destroy humanity, but we'll ignore that for now. Unfortunately, the Ghostbusters had exterminated almost all of the existing spirits in the Netherworld by the time their first team had disbanded. The ghosts who remained were too frightened to react. Then, we got word of a transdimensional breach involving a long forgotten prison for rebellious ghosts. We've spent the last two years planning "Operation: Freedom," but in order for it to work, I had to allow myself to be captured and placed in here."
"This is all very intriguing" said Tempus, "but why are you needed in here? Why not break in via the front entryway?" Ender shook his head at the demon that had failed to lead a ghost revolution. "The Ghostbusters have greatly updated their security systems for the containment unit. Not even concentrated blasts from my task force could open it. A spiritual overload will be required from all the demons present inside here, as well as from the outside. So, are you ready to be freed?"
There was silence. Then Surt nodded. Ender's eyes went dark and then flashed. "My forces have been contacted. Let us begin." He raised his hands toward the entry hatch and lighting poured from them. Other demons copied and aimed their powers at the wall as well. Soon, it will all be over; we'll be free at last, thought Surt ... and he smiled.
* * * * *
"I'm sorry that I've interrupted your resting period, but this very urgent," said Egon. "Let me guess," said Eduardo, "somebody died?" He was nudged by Kylie to shut up. "No, this is very serious. There have only been two occasions in the history of the Ghostbusters when we've been as busy as we have been the last few months. There are two possibilities," said Egon. He looked towards Ray.
"The first case involves the coming of a demon like Gozer or Vigo, but we thought there weren't any Class 10 demons left like that. It is probable that one other spirit like that was not mentioned in Tobin's Spirit Guide, but that seems highly unlikely given the work that was put into it and with what we've come across." Ray finished.
Kylie then spoke up. "I think I know what the second scenario may be," she said. "A warm up to an attack against the Ghostbusters headquarters." Egon slowly nodded. Louis collapsed in a chair. Eduardo started to sweat. Peter whistled. Roland looked shocked. "Ray and I believe that it's the latter because of the size of the PKE readings taken from the last few cases, which indicate that it probably isn't another big Twinkie on the horizon ..." he trailed when he saw Garrett giving him a confused look.
Egon smiled and continued. "It's a long story. Anyway, there is something else you should see." He pointed towards Ray, who lowered a map of NYC from the wall. "This map shows the sites of our busts from the last few weeks." Little ghost trap icons marked the areas. The Ghostbusters firehouse was marked by the famous 'No Ghosts' logo. "If you look closely, you'll see that each bust takes place closer and closer to the firehouse. And if you recall, the last few busts have been especially difficult. They've been wearing us down, trying to catch us off guard."
Garrett spoke up. "You mean they've been scouting out our weaknesses and home turf! Why those dirty ..." Garrett's voice was suddenly interrupted by one of the alarms, the basement alarm to be precise. Ray rushed to the computer. It was just as they feared. "I'm reading at least five Class 7 spirits in the basement. Their PKE signatures do not match any we've previously captured! They appear to be attempting to rupture the containment unit!" He hoped that Egon's recent modifications to the protection grid and outer shell would hold.
"Everyone down to the basement," yelled Roland! They all rushed downstairs ... everyone grabbed a proton pack or trap from the equipment locker in the process. They burst into the lower levels of the firehouse to see just what Ray had described. Five gargoyle-like creatures were firing beams of energy, from their eyes, at the containment unit. But thankfully, it held and didn't crack. Egon's security modifications to the CU's armor are working like a charm, Roland thought.
One of the creatures turned around and snarled at the assembled humans. Its eyes glowed, but before it could fire, it was knocked down by two bursts of pink goo. Kylie looked to see Peter and Eduardo coming down the stairs. They both had large tanks, with cylindrical rifles, on their backs. Kylie looked at them, knowing that they were using retired pieces from the Ghostbusters arsenal. "Slimeblowers?" she asked. "Si. Egon suggested they could be used to temporarily plug ruptures in the unit, chica," Eduardo
replied sheepishly.
The other gargoyle creatures had now noticed the intruders and charged at them. But the teams were ready. They let loose their proton streams and ghost traps and within a few minutes, all of the creatures, including the one covered with slime, were in ghost traps. Roland rushed over to the secondary console at the work desk. "No apparent major ruptures; everything's okay. Aside from a few minor repairs, everything's looking good."
While they all cheered, Egon put down his proton pack and whipped out his PKE meter and aimed it towards the containment unit, just to be sure. It had seemed too easy ... they had trapped the demons in record time. He took his readings, frowned, and then checked them again. Slowly, he lowered the PKE meter, his face going pale. "Ray, this looks extraordinarily bad," he said.
Ray looked at the meter himself and turned pale, as well. "Those gargoyles were targeting the protection grid generator. You don't think that ... " Ray paused to think. "Could the spirits inside have known about this and planned it?" asked Kylie. "Well, in my opinion ..." Eduardo started to speak, but then shut up. He looked at the containment unit and saw a sight that ran his blood cold: cracks spreading throughout the surface of the containment unit and rays of energy bursting through the storage facility. He and everyone else could instantly tell that no makeshift repairs could hold back what was coming.
"Evacuate the firehouse now!" Egon yelled. They all ran like hell back up the stairs and clambered into the Ecto 1. Egon made sure that everyone had been squeezed in and were all accounted for. The firehouse's doors opened slowly and the driver of the Ectomobile put the pedal to the metal. They were soon several blocks away and Winston stopped. They climbed out and looked back at their headquarters.
It looks just like sixteen years ago, when Walter Peck shut off the protection grid for the original CU, thought Egon. Smoke and sparks were bursting forth throughout the firehouse and a huge PKE burst was coming out of the roof. Except unlike last time, it was huge compared to what had come out in 1984. Egon knew that this was due to the fact that when they had first started business, they had captured only a small amount of ghosts before the EPA incident occurred. There were thousands and thousands of ghosts in the containment unit now and the blast was more destructive than ever.
Egon spoke softly, but everyone heard him. "The moment that we have dreaded for sixteen years has finally come. The ghosts, that we have long fought to capture, are free from the containment unit and because of us, the very fate of the world is doomed. In the name of science, who the hell are we gonna call?"
Both generations of the Ghostbusters stared at the huge PKE cloud hovering above the firehouse. All were silent, watching as the huge cloud started dividing itself into individual ghosts. Everyone started recognizing several ghosts hovering above the ground. For example, Kylie's eyes widened as she saw Achira. Eduardo, Egon, and Slimer gasped as Surt emerged at the top of the cloud. The other members of the original team stood in shock as one part of the cloud formed into the shape of the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man.
Egon switched off his PKE meter, which was on the verge of blowing up from all of the entities there. The ghosts were free, but hopefully there would be time to come up with an alternative plan and trap them again. After all, the dump truck ghost trap they had used on the Bermuda Triangle entity was in the alley right next to the firehouse. It had the potential to suck them in all in and act as a temporary CU. But all hopes of this were literally crushed when Mr. Stay Puft stepped into the alley, and Egon heard the crunching of metal. So much for that plan, thought Spengler.
The PKE cloud had reached its full height and was starting to dissipate. Then, Surt rose to a higher position and yelled something. The demons all turned towards the firehouse. A feeling of dread gripped all of the Ghostbusters as they suddenly hoped that they were wrong about what might happen now. A huge PKE surge erupted from the combined forces of the ghosts and was aimed at the firehouse. When the smoke cleared, they saw that the firehouse was still standing ... but not a whole lot of it. Both teams groaned. Could this day get any worse for them?
Suddenly, there was a cry from several ghosts floating in midair. Several started towards them. "Uh, mi amigos y amigas ... I think they see us!" exclaimed Eduardo. They jumped back into the Ectomobile and sped away. But it was like running away from a tidal wave. The ghosts soon had the Ecto 1 surrounded. "Now would be an excellent time to test out the ERPS!" yelled Egon. Ray nodded in agreement. He leaned towards the front and hit a little red button on the clutch. Waves of proton energy instantly swept
the car and the ghosts were blocked out. Winston sped along once more
"What is that thing?" asked Peter. "The ERPS is a little invention that Ray, Roland, and I have been testing for the last month. It stands for Ecto Repulsion Personal Shield. Prevents any form of ectoplasmic creature from entering any preset vicinity." Garrett looked out the rear window and suddenly spoke up. "You said any form of ectoplasm?" Egon nodded. Then he turned pale and his heart almost stopped as he saw what Garrett saw. Several of the ghosts were preventing Slimer, who had fallen behind, from entering the Ecto 1.
"Slimer!" Garrett and Ray opened the window and fired at the spooks while Kylie and Peter attempted to throw a trap and catch the green spud. But the ghosts outmaneuvered them and Slimer was soon gone. The other ghosts fell back as well. Egon yelled at Winston to stop, but Ray calmed him down. "Egon, we'll get him back, but if we go after him now, with what little weaponry we have, they'll massacre us!" Egon breathed in and out and then nodded. "You're right. But we almost lost him to those ghosts a year ago during the Fenris incident. He's our friend and a lot of our busts have been due to him. I vow that we will get him back."
Janine broke the silence that had ensued Slimer's capture and Egon's vow. "What are we going to do about the equipment? The firehouse is in ruins and all we have left are the proton packs on our backs." Peter instantly grinned. "I thought you'd never ask. Ray, do you think it's time we showed them 'Warehouse 51?'" Egon and Winston stayed quiet; they seemed to know what the other two Boys in Gray were saying. But Janine and the kids looked at them and all said the same thing: "What the hell is 'Warehouse 51?'"
* * * * *
Surt soared above the city, landing atop the remains of the Temple of Zuul on the Shandor Building. How fitting he thought. Their new base was the location of the incident that had caused so much problems for the Ghostbusters back in 1984. He had always believed that this building would serve as the perfect hideaway, should he ever escape the containment unit. He turned and stared at the two giant doors that marked where Gozer had entered this dimension. Even after sixteen years, there was
still rubble and debris left over from that apocalyptic battle between a fellow God and four lowly mortals. According to Ender, that gate had been closed, but could it be possible that ...
His attention was diverted when Ender approached him. Ender was holding, in his hand, a large green object. Surt's ghostly heart skipped a beat. "I see that you have brought to me the traitor to our cause, Slimer," he rasped. Ender smiled. "Yes. Unfortunately, the Ghostbusters escaped, but we will track them down. For now, I shall serve you in your attempts to get revenge on humanity. However, what are you planning on doing with this worthless piece of spiritual energy?" he asked. Surt produced a wicked grin and looked down at Slimer's cowering form.
* * * * *
The Ecto 1 turned into the warehouse district of New York and stopped at a rundown looking building. Everyone got out looking depressed, holding the remains of proton blasters and proton packs in theirhands. As soon as they had thought all was well, they'd dropped the ERPS ... only to find a group of ghosts lying in wait. They had escaped, but not unscathed. The Ecto 1 looked like it'd been through a war. They all stepped out, with the original team in the lead. "This, my friends, is 'Warehouse 51,' and a
haven for us Ghostbusters." Ray said. He unlocked the door and everyone breathed in awe.
Roland opened, then blinked, his eyes to make sure he wasn't dreaming. The whole room was littered with many retired pieces of Ghostbusting equipment. There were several of the original-style proton packs, ghost traps, PKE meters, and other pieces that he had heard about. There were display cases, pieces of the original storage facility, the redone Vigo painting, a lot of the stuff from the original team's days at Columbia University, a fully-operational replica of the Ecto 1-A, and even the legendary two-man helicopter, the Ecto 2.
Peter broke the silence. "After we originally disbanded, Ray and I stored a lot of retired equipment and Ghostbusting momentos here. The owner is an old friend of mine, so we don't pay for it. Egon had agreed to live in the firehouse and needed space for spare equipment." Ray shook his head in agreement. Egon concluded by saying, "The ghosts have escaped from the CU, the firehouse may be gone, and the newer equipment destroyed ... but we have all of the material necessary, to start over, right here, " he explained. They were all silent. Then Roland spoke up. "All right people, you heard the man, let's get to work!"
* * * * *
High atop the Shandor building, Surt was plotting his next move: an attempt to improve his minions' morale. He could see that they were getting restless and tired of the orders he had given inside the CU: "Once we're free, we will wait until I command you." He decided their wait was over once he saw that, finally, all of the ghosts from the CU were gathered before him. Was it just him or did his summoning take longer than usual? He ignored that train of thought and immediately spoke.
"I know that you are growing restless, my servants, so now you shall have your revenge! Run free and wreak havoc on this city." The ghosts started chattering wildly and took off. Even the more powerful demons joined in. Surt turned towards Ender. "They deserve to have a little fun after all of these years. I only wish I could join them, but I have more pressing matters to engage in." Ender looked at the Temple doors and nodded.
* * * * *
The EGB's drove the Ecto 1 into the remains of the firehouse's front hall. The front part of building was still mostly intact ... unless you counted the huge hole in the middle of the floor. They stepped out and instantly warmed up the old style proton packs on their backs. They came back because Egon had just stressed the need for spare parts required to get the stored equipment in working conditions.
So while the others were getting the warehouse in order, they had armed themselves with what little weaponry they had left. Thanks to Egon, Ray, Roland, and Winston, who had jury-rigged the original packs, they had some equipment that would work for the time being. They had cautiously approached the old base, for fear of any ghosts still keeping watch. Each had an assignment to salvage whatever they could find. Roland was to head for the weapons locker, Kylie to the upper lab, Eduardo to the basement, and Garrett to the office. They immediately went their separate ways.
The door to the weapons locker opened and Roland peered in. Amazingly, it was almost unscathed from the CU's rupture, despite its location right above it. He wasn't surprised, however, that a lot of equipment had fallen off the racks. He gathered the remaining proton guns, proton canisters and ghost traps, and loaded them into the back of the Ecto 1.
Everyone else emerged from various spots throughout the firehouse. They were quiet as they looked above the door. No one could ignore the symbolism there. The sign that bore the 'No Ghosts' logo was cracked and hanging from the wall, ready to fall. Unless they could restart anew, this could mean the end of the Ghostbusters...
They made it back to 'Warehouse 51' within half an hour. During the trip, the Ecto 1's built in PKE meter had started going off the scale. It was probably the escaped ghosts, no doubt terrorizing the city as a start to their newfound freedom. But they just kept on going, they were in no condition to bust any ghosts at the moment.
They stopped short at the warehouse's door, having seen what was now hanging above it. It was the second version of the 'No Ghosts' logo, the one that had hung outside the firehouse during the original team's come back in 1989. They stepped inside and wondered if anything else could surprise them now, after what they'd already seen this day.
The warehouse was crammed full of workmen and technicians, who were busily getting all of the equipment in working order. The Ecto 2 and Ecto 1-A replica were polished up and ready to go. Several techies rushed out and got to work on the Ecto 1. In the center of all the activity, Peter and Egon were speaking with the mayor of New York. Amazing that he's actually listening to us this time. He probably still believes that we conjured up that Bermuda Triangle demon, SIDNEE, or whatever Egon had called it, thought Garrett.
They finished their conversation and stepped towards the EGB's. "Did the mayor hire all of these workmen for us?" asked Eduardo. Peter nodded. "The mayor agreed to help us for two reasons. The first is that the city is in chaos and this will damage his attempts to follow with his predecessor, old old friend Lenny, in becoming Governor. Second, he finally believes in ghosts ... thanks to a conversation that he had at breakfast with the spirit of Fiorello LaGuardia."
"And, thanks to several charitable donations, we're back in business!" Egon piped in. "The timing couldn't be better. I want everyone over here." All ten Ghostbusters stepped over to Egon's laptop. "I've traced all of the PKE sweeps from the escaped ghosts to 550 Central Park West," he explained. Ray's eyes opened wide. "The Shandor building! But why would they be going there ... unless ... could it be possible ..."
Egon's face turned grim. "We merely sent Gozer, Zuul, and Vince Clortho back to their dimension and sealed the gateway. Apparently, Surt's found a way to reopen the temple doors by using a large surge of PKE, similar to what they used to break out of the CU. It would act as a crude, but effective replacement for the Keymaster and Gatekeeper. To aid this surge, every ghost from the dimensional gateway, that we uncovered two years ago, has joined them. As I said earlier, we could experience the coming of another Class 10. It appears that Surt will use Gozer's return as the key to unleashing hell on Earth, as revenge for being locked away by us. The surge is building up right now, slowly at first. We need to get there now in order to save the world as we know it! We all may get killed on this mission, so if anyone doesn't want to go, speak now," Egon finished. There was silence. "All right, let's go for it!"
* * * * *
The scene at the Shandor Building was remarkably similar to what it had been sixteen years ago. The sky was darkened, the building had been evacuated, and ghosts were flying around the top of the temple. Slimer was chained to the stone altar that had been rebuilt after the Gozer incident, held back by ectoplasmic chains of PKE energy. Surt and Ender were watching all that was happening, waiting for the right moment to unleash Gozer upon this world again.
Below, the crowds watched anxiously, many of them having been present at the original incident. Sirens were heard and a cheer ran up from those in front. A police escort squadron was rolling down the street, followed by the Ecto 1 and Ecto 1-A replica. Above them, the Ecto 2 came into view, with Eduardo and Kylie maneuvering it above a position where they could see the top of the Shandor Building.
The Ectomobiles pulled up in front of the building's entrance and four GB's jumped out of each Cadillac. All eight briefly shook hands with the crowd, then strapped on both versions of the proton packs, as well as the slime blowers, and headed inside. Amazingly, nothing strange happened as they made their way to the top of the building. The elevators were even working this time, saving them the strength that they would need for the battle. The lack of supernatural occurrences was disturbing. But then again, when all of these incidents had occurred before, Gozer had willingly come forth to this dimension. But now he's being forcefully summoned, thought Ray.
They took a different route, straight up to the temple this time, having found a stairwell that had been added when the building had been renovated following the explosion in 1984. They all knew what they might expect as they rounded a corner at the top of the building. There, they saw Surt, and the newer demon that they had trapped earlier in the day, surrounded by thousands of ghosts raising their hands and channeling energy at the temple doors.
"We're going to go full streams. Aim for the newer demon and Surt ... now!" yelled Ray. Six streams of proton energy, four yellow and blue, the other green and red, hit Surt, causing him to lose focus for a second. He spotted the GB's and shook his head. "You just never learn, do you? I was going to have Gozer kill you, but I'll save him the ..." Surt was interrupted as he was knocked back and two proton streams emerged from behind him. He spun around, to catch a glimpse of the Ecto 2 with Kylie and Eduardo on board.
Kylie took a quick reprieve, aimed for the stone alter and blasted it, freeing Slimer. While the others resumed their fight, she prepared to toss Slimer the trap dubbed GTX. It was an experimental one that Egon had been working on in order to keep up with the demand of ghosts that they were catching. It was designed to hold an infinite number of spirits, but had never been tested. Well, there'll never be a better time, she thought, as she threw it to the spud.
Several of the other ghosts were attempting to flee, but wild proton streams and bursts of positively charged slime hit them. Slimer maneuvered himself under the commotion and buried himself underneath the trap. It looked like a cross between the older and newer design, but he ignored the details, and hit the trap's switch. A huge vortex of proton energy swirled over a radius of half a mile, catching every ghost in the vicinity in its powerful beam.
Five minutes passed and just about every ghost was in. The only ghost left was Ender. He stayed at Surt's side the entire time, continuing to fire blasts of energy at the temple doors, until he too was sucked into the trap. As the doors closed on him, he began to cry out, "You're too late, mortal. See for yourself the power of the supernatural ..." then he vanished into the trap.
The Ecto 2 touched down on the roof, its passengers giving high fives to the other 'busters. "We came, we saw, we kicked its ..." Garrett was interrupted as a boom shook the building. The temple doors heaved and flew open, revealing the palace of Gozer. From the closed doors, a voice boomed, one that the original team had hoped to never hear again. "Subcreatures! Gozer the Gozerian, Gozer the Destructor, Volguus Zildrohar, the Traveler has returned and you will all pay!"
The Temple doors swung open, revealing the form that Gozer had taken sixteen years earlier, that of a women. It fired a blast of energy that the GB's managed to avoid. However, the Ecto 2 wasn't so lucky. Eduardo and Kylie managed to bail out, but the 'copter fell off the roof to the street below. Everyone looked at each other, trying to figure out what to do, and then returned their gazes at Gozer.
"Let's show this prehistoric bitch that we can still do things like we do downtown!" yelled Peter. Blasts of proton energy and slime hit Gozer square in the chest. Gozer was surprised. "You mortals are more powerful than before but no matter; I'll ..." she stopped and screamed. Egon had grabbed the GTX, aimed it at Gozer and hit the release button. A funnel of thousands of evil spirits shot towards Gozer at high speed, knocking the creature back to where it had come from, along with the other ghosts.
"It's not over; we've got to close the Temple doors and prevent them from entering this world once and for all. Everyone, aim and cross your proton streams at the temple's opening ... fire at my command," yelled Egon. Winston, Ray, and Peter looked at him in shock. "Egon, are you trying to have us sued by every state, county and city agency in New York again!?" said Peter.
"The newer proton packs' ionization energy is less harmful and combined with the slime blowers, will block out the destructive nuclear particles with ours. Don't argue with me, just do it!" Everyone looked at Egon and turned their attention towards the temple. Already, several spooks were coming out and more were following them. The team said quick good-byes, just in case. At Egon's command, they fired concentrated blasts at the door.
After a few seconds, an explosion took place, but merely a small one that knocked the GB's back towards the edge of the building. When they looked again, the temple was gone, destroyed for good... and according to Egon's trusty gigameter, there were no traces of paranormal activity. They had done it. Gozer was gone for good, as were all of the ghosts that they had captured over the years.
Exhausted, they emerged from the building, drawing the cheers from the crowd as they had for many years. They uploaded all of the equipment and clambered into the Ectomobiles, driving off into distance, heading back to Warehouse 51. Egon made sure that Slimer was with them this time. They all laid back in their seats, not really talking ... but knowing that they would probably disband for good after this. At least for now, they knew that the world was saved by them, yet again, and they had truly abided by the Ghostbusters motto: I ain't 'fraid of no ghost!
The End.
- Singular Quartet
- Sith Marauder
- Posts: 3896
- Joined: 2002-07-04 05:33pm
- Location: This is sky. It is made of FUCKING and LIMIT.
As I said, this was the first fanfic I ever wrote. So, once again, my Star Trek/Star Wars crossover, 'The Best of Both Wolrds', being much more recent, is cleary different in terms of style and plot - a logical progression that comes with experience.Singular Quartet wrote:Wow.... that was... medicore. It was contrived at times, but either way... yeah.
Thanks.
-
- Pathetic Attention Whore
- Posts: 5470
- Joined: 2003-02-17 12:04pm
- Location: Bat Country!
- Singular Quartet
- Sith Marauder
- Posts: 3896
- Joined: 2002-07-04 05:33pm
- Location: This is sky. It is made of FUCKING and LIMIT.
- screamer_3
- Redshirt
- Posts: 10
- Joined: 2005-11-28 10:07am
- Location: Restaurant at the End of the Universe
- Contact:
- Sidewinder
- Sith Acolyte
- Posts: 5466
- Joined: 2005-05-18 10:23pm
- Location: Feasting on those who fell in battle
- Contact:
I didn't think it was that bad. I liked the details and references to the movies, although the final battle should've been longer-- imagine how disappointing 'Return of the Jedi' would've been if Luke defeated Vader on Endor's sanctuary moon, and the entire Imperial Navy and Army surrendered before the Rebels could launch their attack on the Death Star II.Singular Quartet wrote:Wow.... that was... medicore. It was contrived at times, but either way... yeah.
But now that your writing style has improved, you might consider revising this story. (I do it all the time to older stories, because I'm a perfectionist.)
In ending, let me say you did a good job on your first fanfic. (I wish I could say the same about my first fanfic.)
Please do not make Americans fight giant monsters.
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
At the moment, I both preparing for another semester and also trying to manuver both The Best of Both Worlds and Yesterdays and Tomorrows into position for their respective endgames. In additon, three other projects are in the works deep within the bowels of my brain. Two are Justice League related (a one-shot and and ongoing story) and the third would be a stab at Sherlock Holmes' bete noire, Professor Moriarty.Sidewinder wrote:But now that your writing style has improved, you might consider revising this story. (I do it all the time to older stories, because I'm a perfectionist.))
However, when the time comes, I might revise it somewhat. If I don't, then I'd certainly would like to re-visit the world of everyone's favorite professional paranormal investigators and eliminators. Until then...
*claps laughing* Oh that was fun! *hrmms* that was great.
the longer i wait,the more i forget.the more i forget, the longer the list of desires grows. for that which is wanted is forbidden. and we all know that forbidden fruit is often the sweetest.Don'tcha wish your g/f was a witch like me?~*~AYVBABTU