A screech tore into the air several days later, and everyone in the car braced for impact.

“What the shit, Mathersberg?” Zer0 shouted.

“What’d we hit?” Bruce asked, sticking his head between the front seats.

“If I knew I’d be tossed about like a damn rag doll every time we got in this bloody moving box I would’a stayed with the Duchess,” Pepper said, straightening his tag and picking himself up from the backseat floorboard.

“You are a rag doll,” Bruce responded.

“I’m a god damned beanie baby, you underfed buffalo; and you better start showing some damn respect or I’ll…”

“Sorry,” Aury interrupted. “I thought I saw a cat in the road.”

“All this for a bloody cat?” Pepper accused.

Zer0 put a hand on Aury’s leg. “It’s okay. We all hate that place.”

“Hate what place?” Pepper grunted. “Oy! Dusty foot. Little help, yeah?”

Bruce looked down and caught Pepper struggling to pick up an iPhone, half his size, from the ground. He rolled his eyes, scooped it up, and tossed it on the seat next to him.

“Much obliged.”

Pepper scurried up into the seat. He happily scooped up a little cap Zer0 fashioned by sewing two fingertips from old conductive gloves together, and reaffixed it to his right mitt, then went back to scrolling. “Just couldn’t get enough with one Great War, eh? Had to have a second. Sheesh…” he added, getting lost in his scrolling.

“I don’t know why you gave him that thing,” Bruce grumbled.

“He needs to learn about the past hundred years somehow. You sure weren’t gonna teach him.” Aury stated, pulling back into traffic, heading for the highway.

“So how we gonna handle this?” Zer0 said, pulling out a pair of aviator sunglasses and perching them on her nose.

“We’re just gonna ask some questions,” Aury said, glancing into his mirrors as he switched lanes.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say that sounded easy,” Bruce added.

“You got a better idea?” Zer0 spat. Bruce sneered.

“The Duchess was right,” Aury said. “If this is actually a Century’s Turn then the Victorian Fray will have noticed something too.”

“Don’t quite get the century thing,” Pepper said from behind his phone. He raised a paw, using his entire arm to swipe across the screen.

“It’s like any other transfer of power,” Bruce said, squinting through the window at the passing buildings and people. “Stability is weak. The wrong incident can cost lives.”

“Like with the archduke? Ferdinand? Ferdinard? Ferd…” Pepper turned his screen toward Bruce.

“Exactly,” Bruce stated. “While powers are stable things are generally okay. When power shifts, things get rough.”

“So, what’s a Century Turn?” He went back to inspecting his phone.

“There’s more than one world. A mortal realm and a spirit realm,” Zer0 solemnly explained. “And just like the political powers vying for control here, powers vie for control in the spirit realm. It seems to happen in phases, though we’re not certain when. Every so often, there’s a shift in which spirits have control.” She sighed under the weight of the situation. “For the past century or so, the Victorian era spirits have been the strongest.”

“Most hauntings and poltergeists are of little Victorian era children, toys, or buildings,” Bruce interjected.

“Mathersburg specializes in twentieth century spirits. Cultural things that happened when we were kids,” she continued. Aury’s eyes narrowed as they flashed into the rear-view mirror and back to the road ahead. “He’s been called a lot lately. Those sprits are starting to cause some serious stir.”

“One of ‘em attacked Z,” Bruce spat.

“That wasn’t a spirit,” Aury rasped. The three collectively pursed their lips.

“That’s another thing,” Zer0 said with a sigh. “There are some beings that have been around a lot longer than just the centuries. They’re the ones calling the shots. They’re the ones we have to worry about.”

“So what about the Greengate Gang?” Pepper said, setting his phone down.

“They have the most sway in the Victorian Fray,” Bruce said. “If anything is happening, they’ll know.”

“They’re just a bunch of pompous asshats, though,” Zer0 added.

“We’re here,” Aury said, turning onto a long, hallow looking road.

Pepper clambered onto the center console as the scene dawned from the crest of the hill ahead. Buildings poked up, mostly dilapidated and unkempt, save for one. A massive sun-bleached shadow along the peak of the face announced it as the Bethlehem Temple Church. It looked to have been a place of worship once but was abandoned and repurposed over and over until only this monolithic hull was left. A warehouse for old things, wrapped in elaborate stained glass and supported by crumbling columns.

The car came to a soft halt and hummed to sleep. Seatbelts clicked and the four stood on the sidewalk looking up at the building. The other three heard Aury sigh and the sound of hard-soled shoes clack on concrete. They followed a few steps behind. Before he could rap the massive door, a sliding window, about the size of a cell phone, opened and a man’s eyes poked out, grumbling deep in his chest.

“I’m here to see my order,” Aury said. They eyes looked him up and down, then flashed behind him. “They’re with me.” The eyes looked to Pepper, who was aimlessly patting his belly, listening to his beans clack together. “Him too,” he added with an eye roll. Another grumble sounded out, the window clapped shut, and the door creaked open.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Aury adjusted his hoodie as he walked through the massive, oaken threshold.

“Ain’t seen you in a while,” the doorman announced.

“Still too soon,” Aury responded, not looking at him.

“Well, you’re a big Christmas goose, aren’t ya, fella?”

The doorman looked down, locking onto Pepper’s plastic safety eyes with a sneer. Pepper took in the black suit, white shirt, and black tie that adorned the man’s massive, V-shaped frame, topped by a bald head with a patched eye.

“Piss off!”

“Uh huh,” Pepper said, looking the man from his shoes to his head. “Another rodgerin’ I’m adding to the list, I am. You’ll figure it out,” he added, marching in quick-time to catch up with the crew.

Pepper skuttled forward, chasing his human companions around a corner before stopping to gape upward. The ceiling seemed to go on forever, way farther than the building showed outside. Massive wooden chandeliers hung at varying heights and matching, lit torches burning in wall sconces attached to every surface, save for the railings of three distinct floors.

“Crixus,” A deep, nasal voice rang. Aury snarled and looked up to the third-floor balcony. A man wearing a white Victorian era suit, complete with ruffles, wrist kerchiefs, and lace spewing from the open chest of his coat held his chin as high as his downcast eyes would let him. “What a lovely surprise. Have you finally come to call?”

“You wish,” Zer0 called, her voice echoing off the stone walls and floor.

“I see you’re still engaging with the rabble,” the man drawled as a lazy hand waved in their direction.

“That’s a lot coming from a niminy-piminy like you,” Pepper shouted as he rejoined the group. The sound of lighters opening, sparking, and clapping shut echoed out all around them.

“What’s the meaning of this?” the man shouted, his nostrils flaring. “You dare bring a haunt into our sanctuary?”

“Calm your fancy boots, Henry,” Bruce said. “He’s with us and we’re with Chris.”

“I’m still a member in good standing, Henry,” Aury annonced. “You know the rules.”

Henry sneered again but it slowly wiped to a smug smile as two other like-dressed men emerged from behind him, joining in the glare.

“Crixus,” one of the other men said. This one was dressed in a complimentary, dark-colored suit with all the frills.

Aury grimaced at the mention of that name. “Arthur,” he said.

“Have you come to learn proper hunting?” Arthur said. “Or do you plan to play with your little toys for the rest of your career?”

“I came for answers.”

“Aren’t you asshats supposed to be gentlemen?” Zer0 scoffed. “I’m tired of staring up at you.”

Eyes among the three frilly men narrowed as others started clearing throats and wiping noses with laced handkerchiefs. With chagrin, the trio of Victorian-dressed men, left the balcony railing and started making their way to the ground floor.

“Okay, now what are these flowers on about?” Pepper whispered as all four of them watched the silent fanfare of wistfully grasped banisters and heeled boots that should clack but didn’t.

“Henry, Arthur, and Pembrook,” Bruce scorned. “They’re the head of the Greengaters.”

Pepper’s beaded eyes glinted as similarly dressed people moved aside, letting the three men pass.

“Bruce,” Henry intonated as he exited the staircase.

“Henry,” Bruce burped.

“Still playing with cartoons?”

“Still using paper and pencil to do your work?”

“At least my tools won’t run out of batteries.”

“Ask your wife about batteries.”

“We have some questions,” Aury said, stepping between the pissing contest and practically getting some on his shoes. Henry glowered and lazily stretched his eyes to Aury.

“I say we let ‘em keep goin’, eh, love?” Pepper whispered to Zer0. She smirked.

“What could you possibly want that would be interesting enough to pique my attention?” Henry asked, his eyes struggling to peel away from Bruce’s glower.

“We need to know about the Century’s Turn,” Aury responded.

“There’s not been any Turn,” Henry said, blinking away from Bruce, looking down his nose at Aury.

“I’ve been called more in the past month than in the past year.”

“That speaks more to your skill than your point.” Voices from the balcony chuckled in response.

“Two greater demons were out in the day light,” Aury said. Henry rolled his eyes. “And they were after him,” he added, pointing at Pepper. Pepper harumphed and put his hands on his would-be hips with such force his beans rattled.

“Whatever unholy union you have with this sour, little sock puppet is your own business.”

“He’s a Century Artifact, you moldy q-tip,” Zer0 shot. Henry locked eyes.

“The Duchess confirmed it,” Bruce added. Henry’s eyes narrowed and panned to the bear. Pepper waived excitedly and danced a quick jig, ending his number with jazz hands that quickly blossomed into as obscene a gesture as his violently green mitt could manage. Henry snarled.

“We would have noticed something if that were the case,” Henry spat.

“That speaks more to your skill than your point,” Zer0 snarked.

Pepper erupted into laughter that took several seconds to quell while Henry glared daggers that could have split the little bear in two.

“The Duchess confirmed all of this and told us we need help,” Aury continued. “And as much as we all hate it, that’s you.” Henry’s glossy eyes rolled. Aury took a step closer. “I know you hate me,” he hissed. “And you know I could give a shit, but this could be bigger than both of us and, try as you’d like, we both know it.”

Henry looked over his shoulders then up at the rafters, catching eyes with the spectators. He glided toward the center of the room, extending his arms and performing a slow turn so everyone could see. “The Greengaters are always in the service of the cause,” he announced with a smile that hid his teeth. Happy grumbles stirred from all around.

“Does everything have to be a fucking show with you,” Bruce growled.

“Do calm yourself, Bruce, old friend. We wouldn’t want you to catch a spell.”

“At least take some of our tools,” Aury said, interrupting the tirade that was about to spill out of Bruce’s beet-red face.

“Can’t,” Henry uttered. “No room for batteries.”

“Don’t be an ass,” Zer0 spat, pressing a handful of pop rocks packets into his chest with such force Henry took a step backward. He sucked his teeth and handed them to the men behind him.

“That could have gone better,” Zer0 said through the dimming sunlight on the street.

“Not our fault,” Bruce added.

Aury’s zippo struck and he inhaled sweet tobacco smoke. The trio sharply turned back to the door.

“I bet your mum is still walking sideways after you, ya whale,” Pepper shouted, dodging a kick from the doorman.

“Fuck outa here,” the massive human grunted, kicking at the teddy with his other foot and stumbling.

“I hope you fall flat, you wanker. I’m gonna stand on your face and put my beans on your nose.”

“He’s really taking to that body, huh?” Bruce said with a grimace.

“You get a look at that pork pie over there?” Pepper said, toddling with his beans readjusted so it looked like his chest was puffed up.

“He should have punted you,” Zer0 added.

“What’s gambling have to do with it?”

Everyone shared an equally confused glance.

“So, what now, Chris?” Bruce said, picking up the tail of the precession, blocking the door man’s view.

“We wait,” he responded, taking one last, solemn look at the face of the building. It looked like it was snarling at him through teeth made of tattered stone columns.

“Fucking great,” Bruce scoffed.

“Waiting ain’t so bad,” Pepper added. “Besides. You look hungry.”

“I could eat,” Bruce responded. “Wait. Do you get hungry too?”

“Nah, but look at ya! You always look hungry. Hey! Hang on a minute!” Pepper shouted at the door that slammed in his face. Zer0 rolled her eyes and stepped aside so he could get in through her door. “Thanks, love,” Pepper said. “Not sure what’s gotten into the pack mule over here.”

Zer0 shook her head and closed the door behind her.

------------------------------

“They’re on a trail, lord,” the shadow hissed from the alley between the buildings. “Do we announce to the Cryptic?”

“Not yet,” Epoch answered, his voice drawing out contemplatively. “We won’t bother them until there’s something to report.”

“And what’s next?”

“How fairs your hoard?”

“They stand at the ready, all save for Sepsis and Trench. They’re still…” he trailed off before continuing with a gleeful hiss, “tied up.”

“Good,” Lord Epoch responded, turning back toward the shadows. “Good. I think we have a hunt to plan.”