Freddy took a deep breath before he started. “Now, I realize that you are not normally a fan of my long historical explanations, but I think a lot of this information could prove to be useful on your mission. So, you might want to indulge me for a moment.”
“I appreciate any help that you can give me Freddy. Just remember that this is time sensitive. That’s all I ask.”
“Understood. Now, our first recorded writings stem back to the Xia Dynasty in China. Although, the evidence suggest that the keys themselves were actually created by the Yellow Emperor, our oldest records come from the stories of Zhuanxu.”
“Zhuanxu, as in one of the Five Emperors?”
“That is correct. As the grandson of the Yellow Emperor it seems very likely that the keys and their secrets were handed down within the family. As fairly minor artifacts, most writings have them used as fancy locking mechanisms. Stories tell of them being used to secure state papers and personal effects. Few other mentions of the keys are made until the Shang Dynasty. It is here that the Keys are passed from lord to lord, being used and written about more extensively. This is also when we first learn of the elements by which they are forged and the elementals that give them their power,” Freddy smiled.
“Right. Vix told me the keys capture spirits or something.”
“No, they do not capture the spirits exactly. The keys were each forged from the five elements. But it is through these elemental spirits that they gain their power. These spirits are not captured, but rather imbue the key with their energy. Unfortunately, the spirits are often hesitant to lend their energy, which makes this process troublesome. Traditionally, it is taken against their will.
“In addition to the difficulties of acquiring the energy, it must be gathered in a very specific order for the key to serve the function you desire, be it locking or unlocking. A commonly used sequence would be as follows. Should you wish to lock an object, the spirit energy must be gathered in the order of wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. This is often called the generating cycle. But to open that lock, one must use the order of overcoming. That cycle is wood, earth, water, fire, and then metal. These are the most common orders used in the keys, although a custom order can always be created by the maker of the key, should they choose. I hope you’ll forgive my rudimentary explanation of something so complex, but you made it clear that time was an issue.”
“Oh good, as long as that’s the rudimentary explanation,” I laughed. “So, let me make sure I understand all of that. Once we find the key, we have to determine the order by which it is powered, then we find some spirits, ask them to charge the key, and then stick it in the lock. About right?”
“That is the essence of your task, yes.”
“Sounds simple enough.”
Freddy smiled wide, clearly appreciating my sarcasm. His expression turned a bit more serious as he continued.
“Clearly, this is far from a simple task. First, we will need to know which key is required. Unless you already have this information, the simplest means to determine this will be an examination of the locked item. Each key leaves a fairly distinct magical mark once it is used. I should be able to determine which key we need once I see these marks. After we have this information, we must locate the key and determine which order of collecting is required. Often this is written upon the key itself, but if not, a few experiments must be run to ensure we are generating the proper cycle. Then, we must locate the elemental spirits and ask them to donate the energy we require.”
“Are these keys hard to find?”
“In this case luck may be on our side. Not only am I the worlds leading expert on the Wu Xing Keys, I also happen to possess the worlds largest collection,” he smiled, “With any luck, I have already acquired the key we need. If not, I know most of the predominant collectors out there. Hopefully we can locate it quickly.”
“Fingers crossed you have it. Now, what happens if the spirits say no when we ask for their energy?”
“As I stated, in the past it has often been taken against their will,” he frowned.
“Do we have to kill them?”
“No, nothing that extreme. In fact they must be alive to empower the object. Often the key-master defeats and captures the spirit and then offers to release them upon the empowerment of the key.”
“On a side note, I think there’s a rule that states anytime you say ‘key-master’ you have to make it clear we aren’t releasing Gozer the Gozarian.”
Freddy’s face crinkled in confusion, “I am afraid I do not get the reference.”
“Okay. I don’t know how that’s possible, especially considering the name of our organization. But, once this is all over, assuming we survive, you’re heading immediately to my house for a movie night.”
“I would enjoy a night of camaraderie.”
“Are you really gonna call it that?”
His smile made it clear he was. I rolled my eyes and he seemed quite satisfied with himself. This is why I spend most of my time with my dragon.
“Okay, so back on topic. If my charming nature isn’t enough to convince the spirits to help us, then I have to hold them down until they say uncle? Is that basically the deal?”
“That is essentially the steps you must take, yes.”
“Well, at least that part I should be good at.”
“While your physical combat skills are always impressive, I am afraid it will not be quite as simple as punching the elementals we encounter,” Freddy pointed out.
I couldn’t contain my laughter, “Oh Freddy, don’t worry. I didn’t think for one minute you were going to tell me it would be that easy. We both know that’s not how our lives work is it?”
“More often than not, you are correct.”
“So, what’s the trick to fighting ghosts?”
“Well, spirits, not ghosts.”
“Is there a difference?”
Freddy looked taken aback, “Surely you jest. There is a huge difference.”
“I never jest about ghosts. And don’t call me Shirley.”
He shook his head as he got the joke, “I see. But all joking aside, ghosts and spirits are vastly different. A ghost is the echo of a deceased being while a spirit is a creature of energy.”
“Aren’t ghost energy beings as well?”
“Not exactly. Again, please forgive my short and rudimentary explanation. If a person dies in a violent fashion, in an area containing very specific mana conditions, it is possible an echo of their conscious will be imprinted on the site. This is where we get our haunted house tales. These echoes fade rapidly, losing their personality and comprehension skills. This is why classic hauntings include the ghosts making random noises and moving odd objects. They have degraded so far they no longer understand their environment or have any self-awareness. They almost become more animalistic as time passes.”
“Interesting. How long do they last?”
“That depends on the situation,” he started, “In most cases a ghost will fade from existence in a matter of weeks. There have been instances of hauntings lasting for months or even a year or more, but those are quite rare. The conditions must be perfect for a prolonged ghost existence. I have heard of one very interesting situation where a ghost butler maintained his conscious mind and existence for many years because of an odd bond with a vampire. But that story is quite long and as you have said, time is of the essence.”
“Wait, if all ghosts fade, does that mean Vlad will eventually go away?”
“Absolutely not. Vlad is a dragon and dragons are spirits. A spirit, in contrast to a ghost, is actually a being whose true form is pure energy. They use the matter around them to create a physical body from which they can interact with the material world. In fact, it is this fluidity that most scholars credit with the ability of dragons to shapeshift. Since their physical body is just a matter shell over an energy body, with enough mana, they can morph it to suit their needs,” Freddy smiled.
“Okay, that’s pretty cool. A
nd I guess it explains why Vlad could so easily adapt to living in my car. It’s basically just another physical shell to inhabit.”
“Precisely.”
“Happy to hear Vlad isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. So, now that I know there’s a difference. How does one fight a spirit?”
“Well, that differs depending on the spirit in question. We are fortunate to only be dealing with fairly standard elemental spirits. Now, let me clarify that when I am talking about elementals in this context, we are not talking about the beings from the stories of Paracelsus.”
“?” said my face.
“Paracelsus was a renaissance physician, alchemist, and occultist. You may know him as the founder of toxicology or the man who gave zinc its name. But he is also known for his writings about elemental spirits. His elementals however are not the beings we are talking about. In his stories the gnomes are the earth elements, the undines are the water elements, the salamanders are the fire elements, and sylphs are the elements of air. It is only the sylphs that are close to correct.”
“Got it, so not Parablahblahs elements.”
“Correct. The beings we will be encountering are actually comprised of the elements from which they gain their name. The spirit of wood will have a physical form comprised of roots and bark and twigs. It is often called the walking tree. This is one of the easier spirits to contend with. Being made of wood makes it very susceptible to…”
“Fire,” I interjected smugly.
“Correct. Although swinging a torch at the creature is far from the most efficient means of combat. We would be best served by acquiring a Charred Blade. They are constructed from volcanic glass and forged in the fire of burning Ash tree embers. Obsidian is most often the glass of choice, although other volcanic glasses can be used as well. Due to the fragile nature of the glass, only a master craftsman can construct a blade capable of withstanding combat with the elemental.”
“So I’ve gotta beat a tree with a piece of obsidian glass?”
“Again, keeping things as simple as possible, that is mostly correct. A proper craftsman will construct the blade in a fashion by which it is strengthened in the presence of the elemental. This allows it to withstand the rigors of combat. I am afraid the techniques by which this is achieved are trade secrets and vary from crafter to crafter. It would not be an efficient use of our time to discuss them at this juncture. But I assure you the blades are quite sturdy within the context of battling the elementals. The charred blade is most often crafted into spearheads on a shaft of ash wood as homage to their origins. If a spear is not a good fit, we should be able to find various other weapons.”
“No worries Freddy, we played with spears quite a bit back in the temple, if that’s what we find, I’ll be good.”
“Excellent. That should make shopping easier. Most craftsman prefer to sell a finished piece. It may even save us a bit of money if we do not require a custom weapon.”
“Always nice to save some money.”
Freddy shifted a bit uncomfortably, “BD, I am afraid this will not be a cheap endeavor. I understand that you have a bit of wealth, but I should warn you, the items we will need for these battles are quite expensive. It may cost you a great deal of money to acquire all of the necessary tools. Especially working on a time constraint.”
“How much money are we talking about here?”
“If I were to hazard a guess, I would say this will cost you in excess of fifty thousand dollars.”
“Of course it will,” I barely managed through hysterical laughter.
Freddy paused, a confused look upon his face. He almost seemed worried that he’d insulted my wealth by suggesting that was a lot of money. Make no mistake, even when you’re rich, that’s a lot of money. But it wasn’t the money I was laughing about. I figured Freddy deserved an answer to his perplexed look.
“Sorry, it’s just so perfect. You see, Vix has always had very expensive tastes.”
Freddy nodded and even allowed himself a small smile as if he understood why I found it so funny. But it was definitely my own private joke. I couldn’t stop thinking about the first time I saw Vix outside of her mission. Her purse alone cost several thousand dollars. I’ve never understood the things other people spend absurd amounts of money on. Although to be fair, when you own as many swords as I do, perhaps it’s not fair to throw stones. I got my laughter under control and made it clear Freddy could continue.
“Well, I am happy this does not cause you stress.”
“Not at all Freddy, I have plenty of money. Far more than I deserve,” I said, my tone going more somber than I intended.
“It is not my place to decide who deserves what in life. However, I would say your willingness to help those you care about makes you more deserving than you wish to admit. Even though your opulence might deem it unnecessary, I shall endeavor to find the best prices on everything you need.”
“Thank you Freddy, I appreciate that.”
He nodded and smiled.
“Okay Freddy, so how hard are these blades to come by?”
“While they are not common, I believe I know a place where we can purchase everything we will need for this mission,” He smiled.
“Why do you look so happy?”
“Because, we shall be visiting J Street.”
He smiled so wide I almost thought he was going to split his head in half. Once he noticed the lack of recognition on my face, he was so shocked it rendered him temporarily speechless. It’s rare for Freddy to be speechless, so I enjoyed it for a few seconds before I helped him out.
“Is that some famous specialty shop or something?”
He cleared his throat before speaking through his wide smile, “There are many specialty shops. They are all located on J Street. Have you really never heard of it?”
“You mean like the actual street? As in between I and K streets?”
“Precisely.”
“Freddy, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but we’re in DC. A city with many quirky features, one of which is that it does not have a J street.”
He couldn’t contain his happy outburst, “Oh Mr. Chang, the District does in fact have a J Street. It is one of my favorite things about this city.”
“Freddy don’t make me Google maps you here. It goes from I to K. If my childhood history lessons are correctly remembered, it had to do with the ‘I’ and the ‘J’ looking too similar on a sign or something.”
“While that is the explanation often cited in history books and known to the general public, the truth is far more fascinating. You see, they did not skip J Street. In fact, J Street runs right in-between ‘I’ and ‘K’ streets, exactly where one would expect to find it. Well, exactly where one who knew where to look would expect to find it. It is on the other side.”
“Other side? Do you mean in the Veil?”
“Exactly. When Major Pierre Charles L'Enfant was tasked with designing the District of Columbia, he discovered a narrow slice of the Veil. As I am sure you know, he was fired before finalizing his design plans. Many people believe that the tension between L’Enfant and the Commission in charge of approving the plans was in part due to the Major’s insistence on skipping J Street. But, as he was under orders by President Washington not to reveal the discovery, he could not explain his stance to the commission. Once he was fired from the city design, Andrew Ellicott took the reigns. Ellicott was also entrusted with the secret, and he insured that J street would remained hidden. L’Enfant and Ellicott actually worked together quite closely. I believe we even have a copy of the letter written by L’Enfant to Ellicott detailing the Veil pocket. We can check the archives if you like?”
“Thanks Freddy, but that won’t be necessary. I believe you. I think I just have to get my head around this. You’re saying there’s an entire street that runs through DC but in the Veil?”
“That is correct. It is a fabulous place, filled with stores the likes of which you have never seen,” he smiled.
“Even
better than the one below Union Station?”
“While I will happily admit that each have their benefits and uses, comparing the two is hardly fair. They are very different things. The bazaar below Union Station is much more of a market setting. While there are many permanent structures, most of the products are seasonal or often second hand. There is a great deal of bartering and trading. I would say the Union Market shares many attributes with a jumble sale, or flea markets as you refer to them here.”
“How is that different from J Street?”
Freddy couldn’t help but smile. His eyes almost glazed over as he was picturing what he was talking about.
“J Street is the Rodeo Drive of the supernatural world. While there are low and high-end boutiques, they are almost all selling new goods. These are professional craftsmen who provide products of the highest quality. You can commission objects of the breathtaking beauty and detail or find the most rare of treasures. There is a reason it is known the world over.”
I raised an eyebrow to make it clear that I thought Freddy might be practicing his hyperbole skills. I won’t lie, it was sounding pretty cool. But when Freddy gets excited about something, he tends to go a bit overboard. So, I wasn’t entirely sure that I was being painted a realistic picture of what to expect. Plus, I guess I found it really odd that something so famous existed in my city and we hadn’t visited it yet.
“Sorry Freddy, it just seems weird that I’ve never heard of this place.”
“Perhaps you are just not remembering correctly. It was definitely discussed in your training,” he tried.
“Well most of that is a blur, so it could have been. Okay, well on the plus side, Freddy you get to be the one to tell me all about it. Especially if like you said, I can get everything we need there. I’m in. How do I get there?”
The expression on Freddy’s face was both sheepish and hopeful. He nervously rubbed one hand on top of the other as he tried to find the courage to speak. Finally, after a very long breath, he spoke up.
G.H.O.S.T. Teams (Book 3) Spirits Page 4
