Who You Gonna Call?

Crystalite wrote:"Why? What are you up to? I'm trying to help you out a little. The alternative is that this pegasus circling your cage looks like she's ready to tear loose a thunderbolt; I sincerely doubt you or my crude cage can withstand that. I can call her off, if you agree to cooperate. Or you can not, and I get to see what happens when you get two or three megavolts pushed through you inside a metal box."

"Death doesn't scare me any more."

Elacular wrote:With that, she charged again, shovel primed to smack into Straight-Up's stupid face.

His face is so stupid, and Rhinestone so close, it's easy to smack. The smack knocks Straight-Up into Scooby, aligning the two's cores and allowing Dr. Spengler to blast them both at once.

"When they fly over this, hit the button!" shouted Dr. Spengler, tossing a device over towards Rhinestone and White Whisper.

The device lands on the bridge White Whisper set up, and looks like a breadbox-sized... box... painted grey and yellow, like caution tape, with a line down the middle indicating that it opens up. The box has a smaller box on the side of it, this one painted pure grey, with a screwed-in plate on it. Attached to this smaller box is a black, insulated wire, roughly ten feet long, that connects to a plate with a single red button on it.

Brony 7 of 9 wrote:

Crystalite wrote:"Why? What are you up to? I'm trying to help you out a little. The alternative is that this pegasus circling your cage looks like she's ready to tear loose a thunderbolt; I sincerely doubt you or my crude cage can withstand that. I can call her off, if you agree to cooperate. Or you can not, and I get to see what happens when you get two or three megavolts pushed through you inside a metal box."

"Death doesn't scare me any more."

"Suit yourself," Maverick replied, bringing his platform away from the ground and the cage to insure he himself didn't get shocked.

((Let 'er rip, Copper.))

White Whisper contemplated the panicking ponies running away with a frozen look on his face evocative of a hydra's head in a constant state of hatred of its other three. "I don't know what was expectin', really," he sort of mumbled before shrugging his pony shoulders. Immediately afterwards, the button landed on the earthen bridge nearby, and White Whisper (though he would later deny it) skittered backwards, a look of fear crossing his face that he barely managed to hide as he turned to Rhinestone once more. "Nor was I expectin' that. Alright. Good job smacking that scoundrel in the face, very sorry about the silly comment...not sure if bein' off your meds is any better..." This last part, of course, was mumbled far, far beneath Whisper's breath. "Take care of the button for me? Pretty please with assorted toppings? I'm not in the mood for...whatever happens to ghosts when you press it to happen to me. Not nearly private enough for things to get that kinky."

Another cigarette was withdrawn, by hoof, from the colt's jacket, and he lifted it to his mouth, where it lit on its own. "Also, forget you heard that last part. I go and ramble a lot when I don't have instrumental backing."

Rhinestone looked at the box. She wasn't particularly interested in what might happen if she pressed the button. Explosive decompression, radiation poisoning and instant death all came to mind. Even so, she moved warily over to it.

Sweet Puff bounces on the cloud in rage, sending as much lightning as she can muster at the the ghost, but as the electric charge runs out of he cloud, the bouncing becomes gleeful as the cloud springs her back up into the air. She seems to not be able to hold a grudge for very long.

Crystalite wrote:"Suit yourself," Maverick replied, bringing his platform away from the ground and the cage to insure he himself didn't get shocked.

Copper Rose wrote:Sweet Puff bounces on the cloud in rage, sending as much lightning as she can muster at the the ghost, but as the electric charge runs out of he cloud, the bouncing becomes gleeful as the cloud springs her back up into the air. She seems to not be able to hold a grudge for very long.

The natural electricity of the lightning flows through the magnetic fields generated by the cage, creating what's sure to be a massive storm of electricity... in an incredibly localized area. As the cloud runs out of lightning, smoke rises from the cage and the speaker system vanishes into thin air.

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:"Take care of the button for me? Pretty please with assorted toppings? I'm not in the mood for...whatever happens to ghosts when you press it to happen to me. Not nearly private enough for things to get that kinky."

Elacular wrote:Rhinestone looked at the box. She wasn't particularly interested in what might happen if she pressed the button. Explosive decompression, radiation poisoning and instant death all came to mind. Even so, she moved warily over to it.

As she Rhinestone moves closer to the box/button, the Mad Entertainer Party is yanked over towards said box.

"Now!" shouted Dr. Spengler.

Last Rites, to his credit, stayed behind and is now pushing himself up from the ground, looking at the spectacle before him...

Rhinestone grinned widely, "I believe in motherbucking miracles! And for the record, this is how magnets work!" and slammed her hoof down on the button.

As Rhinestone slams her hoof down on the button, the box snaps open and generates a spiral of light and sound, entrapping the Mad Entertainer Party. The two ghosts scream as they are spun around in a rapidly contracting circle before being sucked into the box, which snaps shut behind them. A light on the smaller portion of the box flashes green as Dr. Spengler turns off his pack and collapses onto his floating disc, panting heavily.

"That... that was..." panted Dr. Spengler. "Harder than I remember..."

Sweet Puff abandons the tiny cloud and flies up to the griffon again. "Now are you ready for a game?"

Maverick returned to what was left of the cage and peered inside...

Checks Galore!:

Crystalite wrote:Maverick returned to what was left of the cage and peered inside...

The first thing Maverick notices is the smell. It's not quite burnt flesh, since there wasn't any flesh inside to begin with, but whatever it is reeks something foul. The second thing he notices is the black smoke that fills the air - since it had nowhere to go but inside the cage it gathered into one mass. Sweeping away the mass (as I'm sure Maverick would do) reveals no trace of the ghost beneath. As for exactly how it went down, Maverick is sure it had something to do with the reaction of the lightning and the Faraday cage's magnetism, but isn't sure of the details. There are too many unknown variables to figure out if the process can be reliably replicated.

Copper Rose wrote:Sweet Puff abandons the tiny cloud and flies up to the griffon again. "Now are you ready for a game?"

"I'm afraid..." pants Dr. Spengler. "I may... have to postpone. I don't think... these old bones... could take much more... action today."

Dr. Spengler coughs and looks over the few ponies still remaining in front of his booth.

"On another talon..." he continued. "That was... quite brave... of you all. Not many ponies... could take on... two wraiths... and a banshee. I don't believe... all of us... have been... formally introduced. My name is... Dr. Eagle Spengler. Parapsychologist... scientist... and ghost hunter. A pleasure... to meet you all."

"Uh, yeah. Cool." Rhinestone nodded. "If I called you crazy out loud, totally my 'b'. That was awesome. Aaand, as long as you're still being awesome, I've got a kind of a thing that...uh, are you too busy right now?"

Huffing at the griffon not wanting to play, Sweet Puff suddenly appears 3 inches from Whisper's face. "Hi! Do you wanna play a game?"

White Whisper deftly moved the cigarette out of the way a millisecond, or perhaps a mere half-second, hard to keep proper time at the practically relativistic speeds this filly was shifting about at, before Sweet Puff's unmarked face would be markedly burnt by it. He showed no surprise, or shock, as he felt quite justifiably that he had used his shock quota up for the day and possibly would be able to reduce that quota down by about 2.8 a week for the rest of the year. "'Pends on the game," Whisper said frankly.

Then he looked around Sweet Puff at the good doctor. Well, good mad scientist. Magiphysicist? "Eh, hardly brave to engage in some verbal poetry, especially against those feckless fellas. Don't even like rap and I could tell they were atrocious...no, the real bravery was these three here who actually put themselves in the line of literal fire instead of some simple wordplay. 'Specially you, with the shovel. All jokes aside, I Admire the way you aren't afraid to smack some evil ghost ponies in the face with a slab of metal on a stick. Anyway, anyhow, anywho: I'm White Whisper. Bit of a drifter, though I've chosen to keep heart and home at Ponyville for a while now." He frowned a little, and apparently sighed if the sudden shift in the smoke's shape was anything to judge by. "Maaaaay have to move now."

Rhinestone giggled a bit awkwardly, not used to compliments. "Ah, no big. I mean, I deal with wo-whooooa wait. Okay, not going there."

She put her hoof to her chin in thought. "I'm kind of a...I deal with dead people, yanno? I'm in the business of minor groundsbreaking for the animation impaired. Heh heeeh...nopony's buying it. Yep. I'm back in Saint Dymphneigh's home for the disturbed aren't I? Uh...are we, like, all freaky ghost ponies who don't judge here orrrrr..."

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:"Anyway, anyhow, anywho: I'm White Whisper. Bit of a drifter, though I've chosen to keep heart and home at Ponyville for a while now." He frowned a little, and apparently sighed if the sudden shift in the smoke's shape was anything to judge by. "Maaaaay have to move now."

Elacular wrote:"She put her hoof to her chin in thought. "I'm kind of a...I deal with dead people, yanno? I'm in the business of minor groundsbreaking for the animation impaired. Heh heeeh...nopony's buying it. Yep. I'm back in Saint Dymphneigh's home for the disturbed aren't I? Uh...are we, like, all freaky ghost ponies who don't judge here orrrrr..."

"My name is Last Rites," said Last Rites to Dr. Spengler, stepping next to Rhinestone. "I am a priest here in Ponyville. I am a friend and colleague of Rhinestone Eyes. She works as a gravedigger under my supervision."

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold up!" echoed Bell Mare's voice in Rhinestone's head. "If you think this quack can deal with me as easily as the Mad Entertainer Party, you've got another thing coming, missy..."

"Nice to... meet you all," said Dr. Spengler. "Now, I was wondering if... you all would be interested... in a job offer..."

Before Dr. Spengler can say anything more, SUDDENLY...

---

This has a good explanation in the OOC topic.

Before Sweet Puff can say anything to Whisper, she spots the two jackals and shoots over to them gleefully. "Hi! I'm Sweet Puff! Wanna play a game?" Ignore this post, please.

Brony 7 of 9 wrote:

Crystalite wrote:Maverick returned to what was left of the cage and peered inside...

The first thing Maverick notices is the smell. It's not quite burnt flesh, since there wasn't any flesh inside to begin with, but whatever it is reeks something foul. The second thing he notices is the black smoke that fills the air - since it had nowhere to go but inside the cage it gathered into one mass. Sweeping away the mass (as I'm sure Maverick would do) reveals no trace of the ghost beneath. As for exactly how it went down, Maverick is sure it had something to do with the reaction of the lightning and the Faraday cage's magnetism, but isn't sure of the details. There are too many unknown variables to figure out if the process can be reliably replicated.

Maverick merely held a hoof over his nose; his own attempts at cooking had been worse. After assuring himself that Medium Rare was now Well Done, he pulled out his study list and added "localised thunderstorms" to the list.

Brony 7 of 9 wrote:

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:"Anyway, anyhow, anywho: I'm White Whisper. Bit of a drifter, though I've chosen to keep heart and home at Ponyville for a while now." He frowned a little, and apparently sighed if the sudden shift in the smoke's shape was anything to judge by. "Maaaaay have to move now."

Elacular wrote:"She put her hoof to her chin in thought. "I'm kind of a...I deal with dead people, yanno? I'm in the business of minor groundsbreaking for the animation impaired. Heh heeeh...nopony's buying it. Yep. I'm back in Saint Dymphneigh's home for the disturbed aren't I? Uh...are we, like, all freaky ghost ponies who don't judge here orrrrr..."

"My name is Last Rites," said Last Rites to Dr. Spengler, stepping next to Rhinestone. "I am a priest here in Ponyville. I am a friend and colleague of Rhinestone Eyes. She works as a gravedigger under my supervision."

"Whoa whoa whoa, hold up!" echoed Bell Mare's voice in Rhinestone's head. "If you think this quack can deal with me as easily as the Mad Entertainer Party, you've got another thing coming, missy..."

"Nice to... meet you all," said Dr. Spengler. "Now, I was wondering if... you all would be interested... in a job offer..."

Upon hearing that introductions were being made, Maverick stepped off his platform, returning it to it's original size and putting it into his pocket.

"I'm Artesian Maverick. And I have a question for at least two of you," he said, pulling out his M.E.D.S. and showing how it beeped at White Whisper and Rhinestone.

"What the buck!?"

"HOLD!" Two voices ring out from atop a nearby roof.
"For when there is no more room in Tartauros, the dead shall walk the earth!"
"Judgment upon ye weary souls, ye lost and damned!"
"The light of this world, no nightmare ghost will take!"
"No living soul will a darkened phantom break!"
"Behold a second death, the stricken Hallows!"
"Send souls back whence they came, with wraithmade Gallows!"
Twin figures, jet black silhouettes against the sunlight, glare over the crowd with pious menace.
"Now cry fear, terror as... wait, hang on."
"What? Keep going- 'terror as you witn'-"
"I know the line, stupid, where are the ghosts?"
"... Well they were here a minute ago, weren't they?"
One of the two looks around, and the other turns back to the crowd.
"Uh, have you guys seen any ghosts around here?"

Before Sweet Puff can say anything to Whisper, she spots the two jackals and shoots over to them gleefully. "Hi! I'm Sweet Puff! Wanna play a game?"

Rhinestone gaped briefly at the two...dog things? Whatever. "Uhhhh...if by ghosts you mean stupid, washed up, slightly memetic undead has beens, then yes. If you mean actually dangerous dead things," here her eyes briefly, involuntarily darted over to Bell Mare for just a second before moving back to the rhymey dog thingies. "...Thaaaat depends whose asking. Who are you and were you ever affiliated with a psyche ward?"

The male jackal backs away slightly from the buzzing filly- and the female growls a bit at her- turns to the other pony to answer her question. "Well no, we-" He is cut off by a whack from the female's tail across his neck. "We are Hallows and Gallows, the Jackals of the Wastes, Ghostkillers. Tell us where they went, so we may purge them."

"She's Hallows, I'm Gallows. We're famous in Zebrica!" The male affirms, almost defensively.

"Well, the two clowns where captured in that weird box down there, and I electrocuted the not-candy giving unicorn mare." Sweet Puff says matter-of-factly.

"Aww what, we missed them?" "I knew we should have gotten here sooner." Hallows snaps at her brother, who rounds on her. "You're the one who wanted to stop and recite the stupid intro 5 times!" "You're the stupid one who couldn't keep his lines straight, stupid!" The siblings launch at each other, nipping and clawing in a tussle on the roof, and then rolling of and down to the ground.

White Whisper opened his mouth.

Then he closed it.

Then he opened it again.

"I'm done," he said, turning and walking away.